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zsenzsen's review
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
fantaseareader's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
strombringer's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
geekwayne's review against another edition
3.0
'The Prefect' by Alastair Reynolds was the November pick for my online book club and I am woefully late in finishing it.
Set in the world of The Inhibitor Trilogy, this story follows a Prefect through the Glitter Band as he investigates a brutal attack against a habitat. The trail leads to an even more insidious attack that threatens many lives.
I liked this read, but wasn't as engaged as with other Alastair Reynolds novels. It's possible that my reading tastes have change over the years. It was nice to see some nods to the Inhibitor Trilogy as a sort of easter egg in the novel.
Set in the world of The Inhibitor Trilogy, this story follows a Prefect through the Glitter Band as he investigates a brutal attack against a habitat. The trail leads to an even more insidious attack that threatens many lives.
I liked this read, but wasn't as engaged as with other Alastair Reynolds novels. It's possible that my reading tastes have change over the years. It was nice to see some nods to the Inhibitor Trilogy as a sort of easter egg in the novel.
microbiologist's review against another edition
5.0
A perfect Prequal to an amazing series. I WANT MORE!
xamulblack's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
morggie's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
bigenk's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
The Prefect is my first dip into the greater Revelation Space universe. At it's core, this is a police mystery/drama where the main character, Tom Dreyfus, works for the Panoply, a police force with the sole mission of enforcing democratic voting in a massive system of otherwise independent habitat spheres known as the Glitter Band. The Prefect is a prequel to the events in most of Reynolds other books, and I'm under the impression that the tone may be different here in comparison to most of the others.
The world that the Glitter Band is a part of must be what most people read these books for. It really pops off the page at you, a completely cohesive world that has all of the trappings and tropes of a space opera, but executed at a really high level. The relationship that base-humans have with the Ultras/Conjoiners, the diversity of social/government structures that are present in the Glitter Band, the beta/alpha level human approximations that exist in a software form, and the ubiquitous use of "abstraction", which functions as a hyper realistic augmented reality that nearly everyone relies on. All of these world building pieces sum up to a universe that sticks out from the crowd in terms of quality, and provides a great space to explore themes, such as the limits of democracy and freedom, and what constitutes a free-thinking human consciousness.
The opening third of The Prefect is perhaps the best. Reynolds writes with excellent pace here, and strings out the mystery at hand to create some excellent tension that kept me engaged in the work. Unfortunately, that pacing doesn't maintain itself much past the point that the mystery is mostly revealed. Especially bad is the B plot where one of Dreyfus' deputies becomes trapped in one of the habitats and has to work her way out of trouble. Most of these interludes were painfully boring as the characters involved simply spectate action happening in the distance, while wasting both their own and the readers time. This subplot also ends extremely anticlimactically, with no closure to speak of upon it's completion.
The characters themselves are pretty weak. Mostly they only serve as vehicles through which we experience the plot, which is what Reynolds clearly cares about most. This isn't necessarily a damning choice, I just wish that we were given a little bit more of a glimpse into the personality of the characters. This is 500+ page book, I want to get a sense of who these people are to some degree. As it is, the characters are mostly monotone and bland. Lets talk about that length too, while we're here. Normally I shy away from stories of this length, but while I certainly think The Prefect could've been trimmed down a touch, I didn't find the page count to be nearly as much of an anchor as it normally is. Perhaps this was due to the ease with which the book reads, because Reynolds uses an approachable and easy prose style which is to it's benefit. Would I have liked if Reynolds occasionally broken that mold to flex his literary muscles? Of course, but I also think that making a world of this scale and complexity approachable is a skill as well.
The Prefect fills the niche of entertainment focused space opera admirably. Yes, I had my problems with it, but I still had enjoyable time immersing myself in this universe. And it's the universe itself that I will no doubt be returning for when I pick up another one of Reynolds' works.
The world that the Glitter Band is a part of must be what most people read these books for. It really pops off the page at you, a completely cohesive world that has all of the trappings and tropes of a space opera, but executed at a really high level. The relationship that base-humans have with the Ultras/Conjoiners, the diversity of social/government structures that are present in the Glitter Band, the beta/alpha level human approximations that exist in a software form, and the ubiquitous use of "abstraction", which functions as a hyper realistic augmented reality that nearly everyone relies on. All of these world building pieces sum up to a universe that sticks out from the crowd in terms of quality, and provides a great space to explore themes, such as the limits of democracy and freedom, and what constitutes a free-thinking human consciousness.
The opening third of The Prefect is perhaps the best. Reynolds writes with excellent pace here, and strings out the mystery at hand to create some excellent tension that kept me engaged in the work. Unfortunately, that pacing doesn't maintain itself much past the point that the mystery is mostly revealed. Especially bad is the B plot where one of Dreyfus' deputies becomes trapped in one of the habitats and has to work her way out of trouble. Most of these interludes were painfully boring as the characters involved simply spectate action happening in the distance, while wasting both their own and the readers time. This subplot also ends extremely anticlimactically, with no closure to speak of upon it's completion.
The characters themselves are pretty weak. Mostly they only serve as vehicles through which we experience the plot, which is what Reynolds clearly cares about most. This isn't necessarily a damning choice, I just wish that we were given a little bit more of a glimpse into the personality of the characters. This is 500+ page book, I want to get a sense of who these people are to some degree. As it is, the characters are mostly monotone and bland. Lets talk about that length too, while we're here. Normally I shy away from stories of this length, but while I certainly think The Prefect could've been trimmed down a touch, I didn't find the page count to be nearly as much of an anchor as it normally is. Perhaps this was due to the ease with which the book reads, because Reynolds uses an approachable and easy prose style which is to it's benefit. Would I have liked if Reynolds occasionally broken that mold to flex his literary muscles? Of course, but I also think that making a world of this scale and complexity approachable is a skill as well.
The Prefect fills the niche of entertainment focused space opera admirably. Yes, I had my problems with it, but I still had enjoyable time immersing myself in this universe. And it's the universe itself that I will no doubt be returning for when I pick up another one of Reynolds' works.
11corvus11's review against another edition
5.0
This was one of my favorites in this entire series. In part likely because it felt more cyberpunk, but also just a great and interesting story.
captaincrunchabunch's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5