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aseel_reads's review
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
This book was way too long for what it tried to deliver. I did like the message/the whole point of the future pov but I do think there were some messy mental health rep, that bordered on problematic.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Pandemic/Epidemic, Terminal illness, Death of parent, Classism, Cultural appropriation, Death, Medical content, and Toxic relationship
ame_lepage's review
slow-paced
2.25
This was one of the most painful reading experiences ever.
This book was just so not for me.
I have considerable eco-anxiety, and this book triggered me pretty badly (especially the third book). I was definitely not having a great time, and while I understand that it's important to know what will happen if we don't do anything about climate change, this was just too much for me.
I also think the idea behind this story might have been too ambitious. There was basically no connection between the three books (and if there was, it was never stated explicitly and you were left to figure it out on your own, which in some cases work, but it didn't in this one), which made me wonder what was the point of the book. I also felt like the author was withholding information about the world purposely just for the shock factor, which is not something that works well, in my opinion. I still have too many questions after finishing the book.
I also feel like the author might have taken the open endings too far. We never know how the first and the third book finish, which was so unsatisfying (especially when you stick through a 700 hundred-pages book in the hopes of having some kind of conclusion).
I do have to say the Book 2, Part 2 was great. I even cried at the end and for me, it was the highlight of the book. However, apart from that, it was unfortunately a miss for me.
This book was just so not for me.
I have considerable eco-anxiety, and this book triggered me pretty badly (especially the third book). I was definitely not having a great time, and while I understand that it's important to know what will happen if we don't do anything about climate change, this was just too much for me.
I also think the idea behind this story might have been too ambitious. There was basically no connection between the three books (and if there was, it was never stated explicitly and you were left to figure it out on your own, which in some cases work, but it didn't in this one), which made me wonder what was the point of the book. I also felt like the author was withholding information about the world purposely just for the shock factor, which is not something that works well, in my opinion. I still have too many questions after finishing the book.
I also feel like the author might have taken the open endings too far. We never know how the first and the third book finish, which was so unsatisfying (especially when you stick through a 700 hundred-pages book in the hopes of having some kind of conclusion).
I do have to say the Book 2, Part 2 was great. I even cried at the end and for me, it was the highlight of the book. However, apart from that, it was unfortunately a miss for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Racism, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Cultural appropriation, Homophobia, and Infertility
Moderate: Rape
jourdanicus's review against another edition
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
What a long read.
I originally picked this up because I was intrigued by a story in which same-sex marriage was legalized in the US in the 1800s. This book was so much more than that (and I'd hope so at 700+ pages/30+ hours), for better or worse. I don't think that summary does it justice. Really, I see this as 3 separate books. I found myself wishing for more clear connections between the 3 stories. I know the characters were all related in some way, but I think that could have been made more explicit to bring more cohesion to the stories.
Other than that I struggle to come up with any complaints, which is surprising given that I do not tend to enjoy or even reach for books longer than 400 pages. I pretty much love any kind of character study, and this was much more character- than plot-centric. Book I, being the most focused on the topic of legal/normalized same-sex marriage, doesn't stand out to me the most, though it was enjoyable. Book II, about Lipo-Wao-Nahele, was such a gorgeous story and could totally have stood on its own; I'm a sucker for compelling parent/child relationships. Book III was a bit too depressing for me to have read during a current pandemic, but Charles was an interesting (if somewhat unlikeable) character, and I was most endeared to Charlie.
I could have done with more female characters for my taste - at least with more representation than justmothers who abandon their partner and child . But I can accept that not every book is going to check every single box for me. This one did enough to keep me engaged through to the end, and that's more than I can say for some that are nowhere near as lengthy.
Now going to look up a family tree of the characters so I can finally figure all that out, lol.
Edit: Can't believe I forgot to mention that the cast for the audiobook narration was fantastic. That's a big part of what kept me engaged. I definitely recommend this book on audio over other formats.
Another edit: Oh, so apparently the characters were NOT all related, and just had a lot of the same names? I don't know. That's just confusing. Sweeping family saga this one definitely is not.
I originally picked this up because I was intrigued by a story in which same-sex marriage was legalized in the US in the 1800s. This book was so much more than that (and I'd hope so at 700+ pages/30+ hours), for better or worse. I don't think that summary does it justice. Really, I see this as 3 separate books. I found myself wishing for more clear connections between the 3 stories. I know the characters were all related in some way, but I think that could have been made more explicit to bring more cohesion to the stories.
Other than that I struggle to come up with any complaints, which is surprising given that I do not tend to enjoy or even reach for books longer than 400 pages. I pretty much love any kind of character study, and this was much more character- than plot-centric. Book I, being the most focused on the topic of legal/normalized same-sex marriage, doesn't stand out to me the most, though it was enjoyable. Book II, about Lipo-Wao-Nahele, was such a gorgeous story and could totally have stood on its own; I'm a sucker for compelling parent/child relationships. Book III was a bit too depressing for me to have read during a current pandemic, but Charles was an interesting (if somewhat unlikeable) character, and I was most endeared to Charlie.
I could have done with more female characters for my taste - at least with more representation than just
Now going to look up a family tree of the characters so I can finally figure all that out, lol.
Edit: Can't believe I forgot to mention that the cast for the audiobook narration was fantastic. That's a big part of what kept me engaged. I definitely recommend this book on audio over other formats.
Another edit: Oh, so apparently the characters were NOT all related, and just had a lot of the same names? I don't know. That's just confusing. Sweeping family saga this one definitely is not.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Medical content, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Homophobia, and Death of parent
sabotheking's review
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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? Yes
2.0
This book does not need to be as big as it is. I found it incredibly overly descriptive, info-dumping that did not drive the plot forward in any way shape or form, and it made it hard to figure out what was actually important to know. Author does have a way of writing that makes the story stick with you, and I did find the relationship between Grandfather and Grandaughter in book 3 really emotional and well fleshed out. Did NOT like the random commentary on black, asian and indigenous people that were downright offensive and served no purpose other than to piss off the reader (me). The 3 stories had no relation to each other. The theme of paradise felt really messily and hastily put in towards the conclusion of each story. There really was no conclusion to book 1 and 3, they were left very open ended and they felt as if the author did not know what to do with the story anymore and just hastily said "THE END BYE". Enjoyed the twist in the conclusion of Book 2 of the father, but the conclusion of the son was lacklustre at best. The conversations around the struggles of Kanaka Mauli in Hawai'i felt more like a criticism on them rather than the US and that felt off. However I am not Kanaka Mauli so I cannot speak for them, I would love to see and hear about opinions that they have of this book. There were so many valid conversations that this book raised but they were brought up and then led to nothing. It tried to do so much, while if it only focused on the characters it would be a far more enjoyable read. The characters had barely any development themselves, however I do think it was pretty interesting how all the main characters, while being in their 20's, all felt like I was reading about children. I had a lot of sympathy for the main characters, except for David jr. In Book 2. What kept me reading was the relationships. I thought they were interesting to read about, I would've loved more from that because there so much that could be talked about but it also felt very surface level which was disappointing. I wouldn't recommend reading this book, but I don't necessarily think I wasted my time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Classism, Body shaming, Gore, Racial slurs, and Racism
Moderate: Death of parent, Death, Toxic relationship, and Sexual assault
kkulhannie's review
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Colonisation, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infidelity, Medical trauma, Outing, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Trafficking
Moderate: Abandonment, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Gun violence, Mental illness, Murder, and War
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