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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
slow-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
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This has to be one of the best cross-genre blend books I’ve ever read! The mystery and sci-fi are so perfectly balanced I can’t get over it - this puts the science in science fiction, but keeps it fun, accessible, and effortless to read all the way through. And then on top of that, it’s Agatha Christie in space. What’s not to love!!
I’ve been so heartbroken lately over how little time I get to read these days, BUT on the flip side - having to take my time through a book allowed for a full-immersion experience, and I so loved getting lost in this story on an interplanetary space liner somewhere in the future with Tesla, Shal, and Gimlet. ABOVE ALL, Gimlet, the sidekick superhero service dog we all need in our lives. Loved the dog, loved the ship, the science, the story, the secrets, the cocktails. This is classy, charming science fiction, with characters you care about more than the case they’re on. Highly highly recommend!
I’ve been so heartbroken lately over how little time I get to read these days, BUT on the flip side - having to take my time through a book allowed for a full-immersion experience, and I so loved getting lost in this story on an interplanetary space liner somewhere in the future with Tesla, Shal, and Gimlet. ABOVE ALL, Gimlet, the sidekick superhero service dog we all need in our lives. Loved the dog, loved the ship, the science, the story, the secrets, the cocktails. This is classy, charming science fiction, with characters you care about more than the case they’re on. Highly highly recommend!
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Space whoduneit. I enjoyed the tale and will likely reread.
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
This book is unique mostly because its protagonist falls in many categories where you don't usually see books go: a newlywed woman who suffers from chronic pain and PTSD due to an accident many years back. She has a small service dog who helps her manage as well as a pain suppression device embedded in her brain. As someone who struggles with chronic back pain, I felt those parts were portrayed accurately to my (much less severe) experience, and the way they interact with the murder mystery plot were interesting.
Yet the very purposeful, message-driven nature of this book also became the part that bugged me. The service dog plays a central role in the final solution, and a lot of it is based on how everyone loves the dog. As a person who doesn't like dogs, I found the universal reaction to the dog to be a bit nauseating and tiresome. The book's projection of how sharing your pronouns becomes normal didn't quite succeed in convincing me and detracted from the overall plot as the characters had to use ridiculous circumlocutions to mention whether a suspect they glimpsed was "towards the typically feminine end of the scale." As a tea-totaler, the cocktails and constant drinking by the characters did nothing for me despite the author's kind afterward about how cocktails should include non-alcoholic beverages because gender inclusivity.
Overall, a fun murder mystery, but not a classic.
Yet the very purposeful, message-driven nature of this book also became the part that bugged me. The service dog plays a central role in the final solution, and a lot of it is based on how everyone loves the dog. As a person who doesn't like dogs, I found the universal reaction to the dog to be a bit nauseating and tiresome. The book's projection of how sharing your pronouns becomes normal didn't quite succeed in convincing me and detracted from the overall plot as the characters had to use ridiculous circumlocutions to mention whether a suspect they glimpsed was "towards the typically feminine end of the scale." As a tea-totaler, the cocktails and constant drinking by the characters did nothing for me despite the author's kind afterward about how cocktails should include non-alcoholic beverages because gender inclusivity.
Overall, a fun murder mystery, but not a classic.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-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