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benmor0213's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Gore, Body horror, and Blood
Moderate: Sexual content, Xenophobia, and War
Minor: Confinement
meowata's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Violence, Gore, and War
Minor: Sexual content
aspiringwriter77's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.5
Moderate: Cursing and Sexual content
akfowly's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
In the end I think I might have enjoyed the book? I have some quibbles about Kira's fate. It felt almost a little like it leaned too hard into a few tropes about women, but it was still unexpected and creative. I read this as part of a christmas present for my mom, so it wasn't my first choice of a book, and if it hadn't been for that I probably would have stopped reading before part 1 ended. For an almost 900 page book, it lacks heavily in character development.
Also, I don't care for the world-building info-dump I discovered at the end of the book when I went back to check a couple things for this review -- if you want to tell me that a pepper was cultivated by someone before they won a 'tri-solar hot pepper bash', incorporate it in the text.
Important: I don't care for the way Paolini portrayed the non-white characters and women in this book, to be completely honest. There were definitely moments where Kira's perspective felt uncomfortable to read, and pulled me out of the flow as I was reminded that a man wrote her, especially as she was perceiving herself and some of the male characters. Also when she had 'emotions' she felt less believable/real than the (2/3 male-coded) maybe more robot-than-human ship minds. It felt a little like she spent the entire book (which covers maybe up to a couple years of time? Hard to follow the timeline between her dissociating and the cryo gaps, tbh) dissociating from shock, and viewing the world through a looking glass.
In general the romance aspects of this book felt clunky and unrealistic/lacked emotion**, and even as an avid romance reader, I could have done without it. On the note of Hwa Jung, I did not care for her portrayal - it felt at times like a series of microaggressions rather than a whole person. Kira's own heritage is only alluded to via her last name, so it felt a little bit checkboxy, i.e. they are not white because that's what's 'in' vs. creating full and complete intentional characters. Also felt pretty uncomfortable about the other two romances - Hwa Jung and Sparrow felt like another 'diversity' checkbox, and the Dr. who was being antagonized by the gal and then suddenly they were having sex and then engaged to be married felt...bizarre to say the least.
My other big quibble is that a huge twist in the book relies really heavily on unreliable narrator and hinges pretty heavily on something that in my opinion is actually a moment where he figured it out at the end and forgot to make sure the beginning still fit the timing right. Without giving spoilers, it has to do with the timing of Kira's first and subsequent contact experiences and the origin of something that I don't think quite fits with the explanation at the end.
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Death, Murder, Gun violence, War, Torture, and Blood
Moderate: Body horror
Minor: Colonisation, Sexual content, Dysphoria, and Racism
aisleyreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Sexual content
This book is definitely for adults (18+). There are 2 sex scenes (one in the 1st chapter and one in the midpoint), but they handled very tastefully and may not bother people with healthy sexual relationships.retrofuturism's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Still a good read, but for its length the ending feels so unsatisfying as to retroactively mess with my enjoyment of the rest of the book. I agree with other reviewers that it could have used heavy editing, but I would've been fine with the length if the ending was good.
For fans of creature features, transhumanism, and space fantasy.
Jennifer Hale was a great audiobook narrator.
Graphic: War, Body horror, Medical trauma, and Violence
Moderate: Ableism and Confinement
Minor: Fatphobia and Sexual content
ashlightgrayson's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
The conclusion of the story is open ended and emphasized how far in the future the story is occurring. I think some people may see some aspects of fantasy in the world and story. Personally, I found that interesting and enjoyable. I’m not one to nitpick at the minor aspects of a world if it doesn’t really affect the story. It’s a fictional story with aliens, spaceships, and impossible space travel, so a symbiotic relationship that modifies the host party isn’t really where I draw the line is what I’m saying. If you want to just read this first book and stop here you totally can. However, I definitely think I'm going to read the sequel. I feel like I appreciated the story most after finishing it and having time to digest everything that happened. It’s one of those books that I think you have to sit with for a bit in order to determine if it’s for you or not. Even if it’s not for you, I think it’s not a bad introduction to hard sci-fi. I'm looking forward to more.
Graphic: Body horror, Medical trauma, Death, and Gore
Moderate: Sexual content and Violence
zeneszerzo's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Blood, Gore, and War
Moderate: Sexual content
weinerman's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Minor: Sexual content
darkefyres's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Body horror, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Blood, Grief, and Violence
Moderate: Cursing, Vomit, War, and Sexual content
Minor: Medical content