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3.72 AVERAGE
3.72 AVERAGE
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
I liked how the book was set up, the different perspectives, time jumps and writing styles, even though it was challenging to be thrust into an entirely new situation every few chapters.
The thing is; I do not unterstand the point of the story. The uploading your consciousness thing served as a red line (though it was a very minor factor in some chapters), but that’s it. I have NO idea what the author was trying to achieve by telling this story, or rather, several stories. And that leaves me disappointed.
The thing is; I do not unterstand the point of the story. The uploading your consciousness thing served as a red line (though it was a very minor factor in some chapters), but that’s it. I have NO idea what the author was trying to achieve by telling this story, or rather, several stories. And that leaves me disappointed.
Egan is an excellent writer and some of the sections in this book had me riveted (the lovelorn mathematician! The spy!), but it didn’t come together for me, I am sorry to say. I even made a chart to keep track of the characters- people who’ve read the Goon Squad might like it better.
Connected through characters and structural conceits to “Goon Squad” it’s a very different book with its own approach and concerns. “Goon Squad” is a little more immediate and grounded and human - “Candy House” is more conceptual and takes much bigger swings, turning harder into “Goon Squad’s” speculative / sci fi elements. It’s still a rush - Egan’s almost showing off in her ability to shift style and voice so drastically piece to piece yet make them compelling and link them all. But it’s a little less linked to an actual grounded reality - there are secret assassins, there are several super geniuses - it doesn’t feel quite as human and “real” as its predecessor. And the connections between everyone starts to feel almost a little too much, less the glancing intersections of real life from Goon. That said, the sheer audacity and skill of the writing and the dense ideas and thematics including around stuff like identity , subjectivity/“main character syndrome”, authenticity in age of social media and the rest I find very compelling that I still was pretty blown away. Def love meta fiction Egan more than “Manhattan Beach” style.
(I’m glad I reread “Goon Squad” before hitting this one, it helped me keep all the characters straight, although also allowed more direct comparison and I def loved this but prefer the first)
Struck me upon reading there are some similarities between Egan and Emily St John Mandel’s work - although way less conceptually dense ESJM similarly concerned with different viewpoints and how lives intersect and touch one another in unexpected ways.
(I’m glad I reread “Goon Squad” before hitting this one, it helped me keep all the characters straight, although also allowed more direct comparison and I def loved this but prefer the first)
Struck me upon reading there are some similarities between Egan and Emily St John Mandel’s work - although way less conceptually dense ESJM similarly concerned with different viewpoints and how lives intersect and touch one another in unexpected ways.
Hmm might need to re-write this review, but upon initially finishing the book I’ll give it a general 3.5/5.
Definitely tough to follow, mainly because there were so many characters and different perspectives, and while I could generally connect everyone, it took a lot of mental effort to keep track of the characters and plot. I found myself wanting more of a resolution for each little sub-story included here.
Nonetheless, I’m still glad I picked up the book - was a reflection on technology and the human experience.
Definitely tough to follow, mainly because there were so many characters and different perspectives, and while I could generally connect everyone, it took a lot of mental effort to keep track of the characters and plot. I found myself wanting more of a resolution for each little sub-story included here.
Nonetheless, I’m still glad I picked up the book - was a reflection on technology and the human experience.
Interesting concept but too disjointed in my opinion
challenging
reflective
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:
Complicated
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes