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3.84 AVERAGE
3.84 AVERAGE
Beggars in Spain is one of the key SF works on genetic engineering, tackling some of the difficult questions of how society will deal with a class of genetically-superior "Haves" while the overwhelming majority of humanity remain unenhanced "Have-Nots."
A genetic enhancement that eliminates the need to sleep has the unexpected side effect of greater intelligence and immortality. The story is told from the point of view of the Leisha Camden, who, despite her best efforts, is unable to heal the rifts that form between her fellow Sleepless and the rest of society, the Sleepers.
Is the fear, anger, mistrust, and violence that springs up between the Sleepers and the Sleepless inevitable? What does it mean to be human? Sleeper and Sleepless must both wrestle with the meaning and interpretation of the phrase "all men are created equal" if democracy will survive. What do the superior owe to society? What does society owe to the strong? To the weak?
These questions are then raised to the next level when the Sleepless find their supremacy challenged by their own success in engineering Superbright children.
In the near future, scientists have discovered how to genetically engineer babies not to require sleep, resulting in highly intelligent, rational children called “Sleepless.” Leisha is one of the Sleepless. Although she has a happy childhood, as she begins to mature she realizes that her place in the world is much more complex than she expects. “Sleepers” unable to compete, treat Leisha and her kind with jealousy, and disgust. Is there a way for the Sleepers and Sleepless to find peace? How can you create a society based on equality when all people are not, technically, created equal?
Beggars in Spain is the September selection for calico_reaction's bookclub on livejournal. I was a little skeptical about it first, but I'm glad that I picked it up, because I ended up falling in love with Leisha's story. Beggars in Spain is an intelligent novel about a woman struggling to find equality in a world of genetically engineered inequality. It's about judging people on their individual productivity, while still paying attention to the “beggars in Spain” or people that cannot be productive. Throughout the book as Leisha shapes and reshapes her personal philosophies, the reader is right there with her, trying to find answers in an increasingly complex world.
Beggars in Spain is divided into four sections that take place over eighty years of time. During this time you encounter a large variety of characters, watch them grow from birth to old age, and are able to see their impact on the world. This allows us to cover a lot of territory in one book. Under a lesser writer, covering so many characters and concepts could result in the entire cast feeling undeveloped, playing second fiddle to the author's big ideas. I did not find that this was the case here in Beggars in Spain, as I really enjoyed getting to know the characters. Outside of Leisha, the character that fascinated me the most was actually the main villain. As the book continues, she ends up doing some pretty awful things, but she is so rational about it in her thought process, that you can almost see where she's coming from. I also enjoyed the character Alice, who is Leisha's Sleeper twin sister, and watching the different paths their lives took as a result of their differing statues.
Beggars in Spain is a fascinating sci-fi book that will really get you thinking. It is also the first book in a trilogy. I am very curious as to where the series will go next, as the author has already covered so much ground in book one. I will pick up the second book, Beggars and Choosers, soon.
Beggars in Spain is the September selection for calico_reaction's bookclub on livejournal. I was a little skeptical about it first, but I'm glad that I picked it up, because I ended up falling in love with Leisha's story. Beggars in Spain is an intelligent novel about a woman struggling to find equality in a world of genetically engineered inequality. It's about judging people on their individual productivity, while still paying attention to the “beggars in Spain” or people that cannot be productive. Throughout the book as Leisha shapes and reshapes her personal philosophies, the reader is right there with her, trying to find answers in an increasingly complex world.
Beggars in Spain is divided into four sections that take place over eighty years of time. During this time you encounter a large variety of characters, watch them grow from birth to old age, and are able to see their impact on the world. This allows us to cover a lot of territory in one book. Under a lesser writer, covering so many characters and concepts could result in the entire cast feeling undeveloped, playing second fiddle to the author's big ideas. I did not find that this was the case here in Beggars in Spain, as I really enjoyed getting to know the characters. Outside of Leisha, the character that fascinated me the most was actually the main villain. As the book continues, she ends up doing some pretty awful things, but she is so rational about it in her thought process, that you can almost see where she's coming from. I also enjoyed the character Alice, who is Leisha's Sleeper twin sister, and watching the different paths their lives took as a result of their differing statues.
Beggars in Spain is a fascinating sci-fi book that will really get you thinking. It is also the first book in a trilogy. I am very curious as to where the series will go next, as the author has already covered so much ground in book one. I will pick up the second book, Beggars and Choosers, soon.
Original review posted at: http://intoyourlungs.livejournal.com/19727.html#cutid1
Why I read this: [info]calico_reaction's Alphabet Soup book club
So, as usual, when this book was chosen as September's pick for [info]calico_reaction's Alphabet Soup book club, I had never heard of it. However, I was completely and utterly sold on the premise: gene-altering to make it possible for people to never need sleep? THAT IS SO COOL. I've never been a huge sleeper (though that seems to be changing as I get older.. guh) but I've still always wished I never needed sleep. Think of all the books I could read stuff I could do!!
So, I went into this book with a fair bit of excitement. I also really loved Nancy Kress's Author's Note/Beforeword at the beginning of the book in which she explains how she came up with the premise.
Overall, it was a good experience, but I had some issues. Mostly to do with length.
All right SO, the first half of this book was excellent. I really enjoyed the first part of the book, where we watch Leisha grow up as a Sleepless child and slowly watch as she begins to realize just what that means and how that affects how people see her and how that affects how they treat her. We get to watch her find other friends, other people who are also Sleepless, as she feels (understandably) isolated.
It then shifts to Leisha's adult life. She's come to fully realize that being a Sleepless means people will, whether they realize it or not, fear her, be jealous of her, and thus, feel anger towards her and the other Sleepless in the United States. I loved how Kress handled the segregation that ensued from people being able to not need sleep. She also added in the fact that people who are Sleepless are inherently more inclined and apt at learning (making them super smart) and also be incredibly less susceptible to aging. I mean, to be compeltely honest, I would feel pretty bitter myself if I were a Sleeper in a world that had Sleepless. Maybe I wouldn't be prejudiced against them, but I would certainly wish to possess the traits they have.
I feel it's also worth making note of Leisha's character, because I felt a little torn about her. On the one hand, I loved her; she's an incredibly compassionate person, and it's really admirable that she refuses to take sides in the Sleeper/Sleepless debate, despite being a Sleepless herself and being subjected to prejudicial treatment because of this (which is something she also never chose.) She refuses to see Sleepers as the enemy and will help them just as readily as she would help the Sleepless. Now, while that's all very noble and stuff, it was also frustrating because she really did come off as naive, or just plain delusional sometimes. She would constantly defend Sleepers who were being very discriminant against Sleepless, and while I realize that not ALL Sleepers were hate-mongerers, I just sometimes wished she acknowledged those who DID more.
I *really* loved the end of this first book, when Leisha and Alice rescue Stella Bevington from her abusive home. It really drove home the whole theme of "beggars" and completely changed Leisha's view on things. The whole metaphor of the "beggars in Spain" was really awesome actually, and I loved it. I especially loved when Tony brought it up, because I remember writing down in my notes that I was confused about Leisha's reasoning: she doesn't mind helping the Sleepers because she feels like she needs to contribute to society in order to fulfill her moral obligations, as stated by her belief in the political system inplemented by that Yagai guy. However, the whole system relies on trade, and I just couldn't see Sleepers being able to trade (fairly) with the Sleepless, so in turn, I couldn't see how Leisha thought she was going to negotiate with the Sleepers. (Of course, all these notions are sort of turned on their heads at the beginning of book one.)
I think it's *also* worth mentioning that Beggars in Spain was originally written as a novella (and won the Hugo I believe) and that that novella constituted the first part of this book. It was easily my favorite part of the book, and I can see why it won the Hugo -- it's really well done.
The whole court case in the second part of the book also really engaged me as well though. Especially the end, when it's revealed that the doctor has been lying the whole time, and it's discovered that that asshole at the scooter place planned everything -- that was all a bit of an OMG moment for me.
One more thing I want to mention about the first half of the book (and this part actually applies to the book as a whole, because it's present throughout) is the relationship between Leisha and her twin sister Alice. The two are fraternal twins, so Alice was never subjected to the gene-altering that Leisha was, making her a Sleeper. This made things... strainged between the two sisters (to say the least.) At the beginning of the book, I thought Alice was a real bitch, but I understood WHY she was a bitch. As the novel progressed though, so too did the relationship between these two sisters change and evolve. It was all so complicated and messy, and ultimately, it ended well, which made me happy. I really wanted to see these two reconcile, and for the most part, I think they did.
So, the first two parts of the book (which constitutes about half the novel) was all fine and dandy. It had a lot going for it: a mostly likable protanist, some interesting philosophy, some fairly complicated ethics and ethical questions, and a court case that had enough intrigue to keep me glued to my e-reader.
The third and fourth parts of the novel is where things really started to sloooww down for me.
Don't get me wrong; there's quite a bit to like about these next two sections as well, but I find they were dragged out a little too much, and I found myself wishing that the book would just END ALREADY.
I liked some of the issues brought up in the second half; the whole idea of there being another tier of Sleepless who are even more powerful (mentally) than the first batch of Sleepless was interesting, though very, very predictable. I found it quite obvious from the get-go that the Sleepless were going to start discriminating against the Super-Sleepers, are least start trying to exert some kind of control over them, which is exactly what happened. I predicted that these Super-Sleepers would notice and resent that and would in turn rebel and cause a shit-storm of epic proportions, which is exactly what happened. However, I liked Miranda's character, which certainly helped matters.
Another qualm I had was with the villain of (most) of the novel, Jennifer Sharifi. She definitely wasn't one-dimensional, but she was just... too evil I guess? I get that she was just trying to keep her people safe, but I don't know. She goes to the extremes sometimes, and by the end, she went a little over-board. I guess that was the point though; we're supposed to watch her spiral out of control, from having a fairly reasonable idea and just taking it way too far.
Ultimately though, this second half really, REALLY suffered from the length. I can't stress that enough. It's very likely just a personal thing, but I loved the first half of this book so much that I really was sad to see it lose steam in its second half. There were some interesting bits, but it just felt too weighed down by the length.
Final Verdict: This is a bit of a tough call. I *really* liked the first half of this book. It's really engaging (especially the first part of the book, though the second part was pretty good too, I thought) and the awesome premise pulled me right in. Kress paints a very realistic picture of how things would probably turn out if people could be born as Sleepless. Leisha is a bit naive and on the verge of being delusional, but she's such a nice and compassionate character that I couldn't help but like her anyway. Her strained relationship with her sister was also really well done, and I very much enjoyed reading about that and watching it change and grow. Where the book *really* faltered for me was in its second half. I'm not sure why, but it just felt LONG, despite introducing a great new character (Miranda) and presenting different philosophical and ethic ideas concerning the Sleepless. However, I found many of the events in the second half of the novel to be fairly predictable, and for the most parts, things played out just as I predicted they would, which made the plot feel even longer than it really was. So yeah, it wasn't ALL bad, but compared to the AWESOME beginning, I felt a bit let down and disappointed. I would still whole-heartedly recommend reading this though, but perhaps just the novella form (which was only the first part [out of four] from this novel), as it was definitely my absolute favorite chunk of the story.
Why I read this: [info]calico_reaction's Alphabet Soup book club
So, as usual, when this book was chosen as September's pick for [info]calico_reaction's Alphabet Soup book club, I had never heard of it. However, I was completely and utterly sold on the premise: gene-altering to make it possible for people to never need sleep? THAT IS SO COOL. I've never been a huge sleeper (though that seems to be changing as I get older.. guh) but I've still always wished I never needed sleep. Think of all the books I could read stuff I could do!!
So, I went into this book with a fair bit of excitement. I also really loved Nancy Kress's Author's Note/Beforeword at the beginning of the book in which she explains how she came up with the premise.
Overall, it was a good experience, but I had some issues. Mostly to do with length.
All right SO, the first half of this book was excellent. I really enjoyed the first part of the book, where we watch Leisha grow up as a Sleepless child and slowly watch as she begins to realize just what that means and how that affects how people see her and how that affects how they treat her. We get to watch her find other friends, other people who are also Sleepless, as she feels (understandably) isolated.
It then shifts to Leisha's adult life. She's come to fully realize that being a Sleepless means people will, whether they realize it or not, fear her, be jealous of her, and thus, feel anger towards her and the other Sleepless in the United States. I loved how Kress handled the segregation that ensued from people being able to not need sleep. She also added in the fact that people who are Sleepless are inherently more inclined and apt at learning (making them super smart) and also be incredibly less susceptible to aging. I mean, to be compeltely honest, I would feel pretty bitter myself if I were a Sleeper in a world that had Sleepless. Maybe I wouldn't be prejudiced against them, but I would certainly wish to possess the traits they have.
I feel it's also worth making note of Leisha's character, because I felt a little torn about her. On the one hand, I loved her; she's an incredibly compassionate person, and it's really admirable that she refuses to take sides in the Sleeper/Sleepless debate, despite being a Sleepless herself and being subjected to prejudicial treatment because of this (which is something she also never chose.) She refuses to see Sleepers as the enemy and will help them just as readily as she would help the Sleepless. Now, while that's all very noble and stuff, it was also frustrating because she really did come off as naive, or just plain delusional sometimes. She would constantly defend Sleepers who were being very discriminant against Sleepless, and while I realize that not ALL Sleepers were hate-mongerers, I just sometimes wished she acknowledged those who DID more.
I *really* loved the end of this first book, when Leisha and Alice rescue Stella Bevington from her abusive home. It really drove home the whole theme of "beggars" and completely changed Leisha's view on things. The whole metaphor of the "beggars in Spain" was really awesome actually, and I loved it. I especially loved when Tony brought it up, because I remember writing down in my notes that I was confused about Leisha's reasoning: she doesn't mind helping the Sleepers because she feels like she needs to contribute to society in order to fulfill her moral obligations, as stated by her belief in the political system inplemented by that Yagai guy. However, the whole system relies on trade, and I just couldn't see Sleepers being able to trade (fairly) with the Sleepless, so in turn, I couldn't see how Leisha thought she was going to negotiate with the Sleepers. (Of course, all these notions are sort of turned on their heads at the beginning of book one.)
I think it's *also* worth mentioning that Beggars in Spain was originally written as a novella (and won the Hugo I believe) and that that novella constituted the first part of this book. It was easily my favorite part of the book, and I can see why it won the Hugo -- it's really well done.
The whole court case in the second part of the book also really engaged me as well though. Especially the end, when it's revealed that the doctor has been lying the whole time, and it's discovered that that asshole at the scooter place planned everything -- that was all a bit of an OMG moment for me.
One more thing I want to mention about the first half of the book (and this part actually applies to the book as a whole, because it's present throughout) is the relationship between Leisha and her twin sister Alice. The two are fraternal twins, so Alice was never subjected to the gene-altering that Leisha was, making her a Sleeper. This made things... strainged between the two sisters (to say the least.) At the beginning of the book, I thought Alice was a real bitch, but I understood WHY she was a bitch. As the novel progressed though, so too did the relationship between these two sisters change and evolve. It was all so complicated and messy, and ultimately, it ended well, which made me happy. I really wanted to see these two reconcile, and for the most part, I think they did.
So, the first two parts of the book (which constitutes about half the novel) was all fine and dandy. It had a lot going for it: a mostly likable protanist, some interesting philosophy, some fairly complicated ethics and ethical questions, and a court case that had enough intrigue to keep me glued to my e-reader.
The third and fourth parts of the novel is where things really started to sloooww down for me.
Don't get me wrong; there's quite a bit to like about these next two sections as well, but I find they were dragged out a little too much, and I found myself wishing that the book would just END ALREADY.
I liked some of the issues brought up in the second half; the whole idea of there being another tier of Sleepless who are even more powerful (mentally) than the first batch of Sleepless was interesting, though very, very predictable. I found it quite obvious from the get-go that the Sleepless were going to start discriminating against the Super-Sleepers, are least start trying to exert some kind of control over them, which is exactly what happened. I predicted that these Super-Sleepers would notice and resent that and would in turn rebel and cause a shit-storm of epic proportions, which is exactly what happened. However, I liked Miranda's character, which certainly helped matters.
Another qualm I had was with the villain of (most) of the novel, Jennifer Sharifi. She definitely wasn't one-dimensional, but she was just... too evil I guess? I get that she was just trying to keep her people safe, but I don't know. She goes to the extremes sometimes, and by the end, she went a little over-board. I guess that was the point though; we're supposed to watch her spiral out of control, from having a fairly reasonable idea and just taking it way too far.
Ultimately though, this second half really, REALLY suffered from the length. I can't stress that enough. It's very likely just a personal thing, but I loved the first half of this book so much that I really was sad to see it lose steam in its second half. There were some interesting bits, but it just felt too weighed down by the length.
Final Verdict: This is a bit of a tough call. I *really* liked the first half of this book. It's really engaging (especially the first part of the book, though the second part was pretty good too, I thought) and the awesome premise pulled me right in. Kress paints a very realistic picture of how things would probably turn out if people could be born as Sleepless. Leisha is a bit naive and on the verge of being delusional, but she's such a nice and compassionate character that I couldn't help but like her anyway. Her strained relationship with her sister was also really well done, and I very much enjoyed reading about that and watching it change and grow. Where the book *really* faltered for me was in its second half. I'm not sure why, but it just felt LONG, despite introducing a great new character (Miranda) and presenting different philosophical and ethic ideas concerning the Sleepless. However, I found many of the events in the second half of the novel to be fairly predictable, and for the most parts, things played out just as I predicted they would, which made the plot feel even longer than it really was. So yeah, it wasn't ALL bad, but compared to the AWESOME beginning, I felt a bit let down and disappointed. I would still whole-heartedly recommend reading this though, but perhaps just the novella form (which was only the first part [out of four] from this novel), as it was definitely my absolute favorite chunk of the story.
I liked this book. I read it on kindle, which is my preferred format. I didn't know until I finished it that the sequel, Beggars & Choosers, is NOT available in kindle format. That doesn't lose it any points in the review, but I thought you should know, since it annoyed me.
This book had me hooked in the very beginning - the beginning of the story is very compelling and offers many questions right away that you'll want to keep reading to find the answers to. However, as soon as the main character, Leisha, starts to grow up, it hits a rough patch. It did for me, anyway. Here's what happens: every time Leisha opens her mouth, she becomes less of a character and more of a mouthpiece for the author's sociopolitical soapbox. It doesn't bother me that her views are apparent in the story...but it does bother me that she sacrificed having good characters for the sake of this statement. The characters of that generation never do become very deep.
Now, if you keep reading, the soapbox becomes less apparent, the dialogue becomes less preachy, and the characters do develop a little depth - especially the next generation of genemod children - the "Supers". By the end of the book, the plot had me pretty well hooked, so I really want to continue to read this series to see what happens.
The kindle edition is well-formatted and free from noticeable errors or typos.
This book had me hooked in the very beginning - the beginning of the story is very compelling and offers many questions right away that you'll want to keep reading to find the answers to. However, as soon as the main character, Leisha, starts to grow up, it hits a rough patch. It did for me, anyway. Here's what happens: every time Leisha opens her mouth, she becomes less of a character and more of a mouthpiece for the author's sociopolitical soapbox. It doesn't bother me that her views are apparent in the story...but it does bother me that she sacrificed having good characters for the sake of this statement. The characters of that generation never do become very deep.
Now, if you keep reading, the soapbox becomes less apparent, the dialogue becomes less preachy, and the characters do develop a little depth - especially the next generation of genemod children - the "Supers". By the end of the book, the plot had me pretty well hooked, so I really want to continue to read this series to see what happens.
The kindle edition is well-formatted and free from noticeable errors or typos.
¿Qué pasaría si existieran personas que no necesitan dormir? Esa es la cuestión central en Mendigos en España, la cual es abordada con profundidad e ingenio.
La autora nos presenta los cambios sociales, económicas, políticas y personales que podrían presentarse en caso de que un grupo de seres humanos fueran capaces de ser productivos durante 24 horas del día, todos los días de su vida.
Este es un libro un poco enciclopédico, pues presenta largas explicaciones sobre economía y política. La autora, aparentemente, es partidaria del utilitarismo, pero es difícil descubrirlo a partir de lo que lees aquí. Tampoco existen personajes con los que puedas identificarte, incluso la protagonista tiene una personalidad plana y rara vez hace algo que mueva la historia.
Sin embargo, Mendigos en España por momentos es interesante, inteligente y original. Si eres aficionado a la ciencia ficción, puede ser una lectura que disfrutes, al menos en parte.
Puedes escuchar una reseña completa de este libro en el episodio 94 de mi podcast, A la aventura, en el siguiente enlace:
http://alaaventura.net/94-mendigos-en-espana
La autora nos presenta los cambios sociales, económicas, políticas y personales que podrían presentarse en caso de que un grupo de seres humanos fueran capaces de ser productivos durante 24 horas del día, todos los días de su vida.
Este es un libro un poco enciclopédico, pues presenta largas explicaciones sobre economía y política. La autora, aparentemente, es partidaria del utilitarismo, pero es difícil descubrirlo a partir de lo que lees aquí. Tampoco existen personajes con los que puedas identificarte, incluso la protagonista tiene una personalidad plana y rara vez hace algo que mueva la historia.
Sin embargo, Mendigos en España por momentos es interesante, inteligente y original. Si eres aficionado a la ciencia ficción, puede ser una lectura que disfrutes, al menos en parte.
Puedes escuchar una reseña completa de este libro en el episodio 94 de mi podcast, A la aventura, en el siguiente enlace:
http://alaaventura.net/94-mendigos-en-espana
Couldn't finish the reading.
The premise is interesting: genetically modified babies are born without the need of sleep. What would this mean for a person, and for those around them?
Great example on how an idea can be great but the execution extremely poor. It got to a point where, although I was very curious about the development, I could not keep reading anymore.
The premise is interesting: genetically modified babies are born without the need of sleep. What would this mean for a person, and for those around them?
Great example on how an idea can be great but the execution extremely poor. It got to a point where, although I was very curious about the development, I could not keep reading anymore.
Beggars in Spain is incredibly good. Genetic engineering breeds people who don’t sleep that become a caste of humanity with whom normal humans can’t compete economically. It was written in 1993 but still captures the current social climate.
It has an Ayn Rand fake out! (the book is incredibly pro welfare)
It has memes! An incredibly noteworthy and important event happens and it gets turned into a meme!
It will make you sad! Every child seems to get at least one parent who didn’t want them and despises them.
Did I mention it will make you sad? Content warning: eugenics and forced abortions come up.
Definitely read it though. #booksof2020
It has an Ayn Rand fake out! (the book is incredibly pro welfare)
It has memes! An incredibly noteworthy and important event happens and it gets turned into a meme!
It will make you sad! Every child seems to get at least one parent who didn’t want them and despises them.
Did I mention it will make you sad? Content warning: eugenics and forced abortions come up.
Definitely read it though. #booksof2020
It’s hard to get immersed in a book when all of the hypothetical supergeniuses never seem to understand their fields at better than a high school level. Interesting concept, not hard sci-fi by a long shot, and I can’t figure out for the life of me whether the author really believes in “yagaiism” or is trying to make some sort of incredibly convoluted point to the tune of “everyone who has ever had an opinion is stupid and wrong”
An interesting sci-fi novel utilizing economics to show the disparity between two different classes, in this case classes of intelligence. I thought it interesting throughout, but found the first part, which was originally an award-winning novella, the most engaging and thought-provoking.
I suspect I would have been happier just reading the novella instead as the beginning was far more interesting to me than the rest of the book. While the concept of a "mutant" segment of humans being discriminated against is hardly original, Kress' particular take on it was fascinating to me for several reasons, some more personal than others. I could also identify with Leisha pretty well for the first part as well which was certainly helpful in keeping my interest.
The middle, on the other hand, was really fighting to hold my interest. I could kind of see what Kress was trying to do, and perhaps I'm just not cut out for legal/political stories, but the story and characters were a bit thin at times, and I kept wishing Kress would back off on the technical speak a bit. The plotline with the Supers was a bit more interesting, but sometimes I couldn't help wondering if even the author knew what they were thinking half the time. I also couldn't help feeling that some of the time jumps were half used as excuses to change someone's character around a bit or as a shortcut to fastforward through not-quite realistic changes in relationships. I'm not sure if this adequately describes why I couldn't get into this part of the book as I couldn't quite put my finger on any particular reason, but those were a few possible reasons at least.
It finally wrapped up with a decent ending with enough action to bring it back to being an enjoyable read. I'm still debating whether I want to read the rest of the series eventually, but at least it did leave me curious as to where things would be going next. So for me, a great beginning and a decent ending might not quite make up for the less-than-exciting middle and other iffy points, but they at least keep me from thinking of it as a bad book by any means, and I can certainly see how the novella version was considered to be so good.
The middle, on the other hand, was really fighting to hold my interest. I could kind of see what Kress was trying to do, and perhaps I'm just not cut out for legal/political stories, but the story and characters were a bit thin at times, and I kept wishing Kress would back off on the technical speak a bit. The plotline with the Supers was a bit more interesting, but sometimes I couldn't help wondering if even the author knew what they were thinking half the time. I also couldn't help feeling that some of the time jumps were half used as excuses to change someone's character around a bit or as a shortcut to fastforward through not-quite realistic changes in relationships. I'm not sure if this adequately describes why I couldn't get into this part of the book as I couldn't quite put my finger on any particular reason, but those were a few possible reasons at least.
It finally wrapped up with a decent ending with enough action to bring it back to being an enjoyable read. I'm still debating whether I want to read the rest of the series eventually, but at least it did leave me curious as to where things would be going next. So for me, a great beginning and a decent ending might not quite make up for the less-than-exciting middle and other iffy points, but they at least keep me from thinking of it as a bad book by any means, and I can certainly see how the novella version was considered to be so good.