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maddie_can_read's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
I really liked the premise of the book, some in interesting ideas, but didn't love the execution.
I didn't think the characterization was great Wished Jason felt more developed/ more science-y. He felt very dude-bro to me. Didn't like that he didn't feel guilty about Jason 2's Daniella dying. Wished Daniella was more developed, I didn't feel like I knew her at all. Really didn't appreciate that the only other female character, Amanda, was seemingly just chucked in with Jason so that he'd have someone to freak out with/ talk to during his adventure and was not fleshed out as a real character. Like she just gave up her entire world for a colleague? .
The main character felt like he was making really stupid decisions a lot of the time which took me out of the book a bit because it made me think about why tf he wasn't doing something else like him continuing to go into a quarantined world, him and Amanda not trying to find more ampoules - like they can go into any world, so they could've definitely found some more go bags with more ampoules ? Why didn't they ever try to find the friend that made the secret ingredient?
The writing felt a bit clunky sometimes, felt like it was written more to be a screenplay for tv show or movie like when Jason goes into his other self's house and it just goes on and on repeatedly "like this is different in my house" . But this did make the novel easy to visualize.
Pacing was a bit inconsistent, felt like it wrapped up too quickly given how much build up there was.
A bit too predictable.
I was hoping the romance plotline was going to be more engaging/ interesting and felt disappointed.
I didn't think the characterization was great
The main character felt like he was making really stupid decisions a lot of the time which took me out of the book a bit because it made me think about why tf he wasn't doing something else
The writing felt a bit clunky sometimes, felt like it was written more to be a screenplay for tv show or movie
Pacing was a bit inconsistent, felt like it wrapped up too quickly given how much build up there was.
A bit too predictable.
I was hoping the romance plotline was going to be more engaging/ interesting and felt disappointed.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Blood, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Medical content, Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Stalking, Torture, Alcohol, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, Drug use, Gore, and Violence
Minor: Abortion and Rape
ababytapir's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Like Recursion, Dark Matter is fantastically mind-bending and all too easy to read in a day. It's incredibly violent and thought provoking. If you like your sci fi thrillers tinged with horror, existential dread and romance, this is the book for you.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Abandonment, Blood, Body horror, Kidnapping, Gore, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Stalking, Drug use, Gun violence, Murder, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Torture, Child death, Abortion, Self harm, War, Violence, Death of parent, Suicide, Car accident, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Cancer, Pregnancy, Rape, and Terminal illness
If you struggle with derealisation, dissociation or depersonalisation, or any sort of identify disorder, this book could potentially be incredibly triggering. Proceed with extreme caution. Violence warning: There is an incredibly detailed description of a gory epidemic/pandemic. There are multiple gory descriptions of dead bodies, murder, and horrific natural disasters. There is a long kidnapping scene. There's multiple instances of stalking.iono's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Pandemic/Epidemic, Stalking, Confinement, Drug use, Child death, Sexual content, Blood, Abortion, Gun violence, Rape, Medical content, Violence, and Infidelity
Minor: Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Death of parent, and Forced institutionalization
fkshg8465's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Rounding up to five. This is the third of hood books I’ve read, and each one hits the sweet spot for me. I love this author’s mind. The way he writes opens up my mind. I’m going to read every one of his books between this year and next.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abortion, Death, Grief, Abandonment, Rape, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Drug use, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Gore, Gun violence, Pandemic/Epidemic, Violence, and Sexual content
wickedgrumpy's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.75
The good: I enjoyed the UberChat. I felt that right when that was introduced a different ending could have spawned that turned into a lighthearted rom-com and I like to imagine that.
The bad: I knew pretty early on that this was not going to be a favorite. I don't read a lot of thrillers in general but I enjoy sci-fi so I figured I would give it a shot. I couldn't stand the main character. And thus, the book was doomed in my eyes. The pacing was jumpy, and the plot was predictable (as in, I guessed what really happened in the first chapter and the main character didn't figure it out until the ~50% mark). There was some promise for some thoughtful introspection but the approach was heavy-handed at best. Some of the descriptions were vivid and others were flat out whacky.
I don't know if I will try another book by the author, but I don't think I was the intended audience for this work so who knows what the future holds.
The bad: I knew pretty early on that this was not going to be a favorite. I don't read a lot of thrillers in general but I enjoy sci-fi so I figured I would give it a shot. I couldn't stand the main character. And thus, the book was doomed in my eyes. The pacing was jumpy, and the plot was predictable (as in, I guessed what really happened in the first chapter and the main character didn't figure it out until the ~50% mark). There was some promise for some thoughtful introspection but the approach was heavy-handed at best. Some of the descriptions were vivid and others were flat out whacky.
I don't know if I will try another book by the author, but I don't think I was the intended audience for this work so who knows what the future holds.
Content Warnings
Minor: Abandonment, Body horror, Classism, Confinement, Torture, Pandemic/Epidemic, Rape, Self harm, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Toxic friendship, Drug use, Gaslighting, Gore, Kidnapping, Medical content, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Alcohol, Blood, Body shaming, Bullying, Death, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Sexism, Violence, Alcoholism, Cancer, Car accident, Child death, Infidelity, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, and Toxic relationship
allisnbc's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Rape
dellydoos's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
1.0
And this is why I don't often read books written by men. Because Dark Matter absolutely reeked of pale, stale male syndrome. It didn't pass the Bechdel test to say the least. In fact, I'd be surprised if it passed any tests just because of how stupid this book was.
Let's start with the writing, shall we? Prepare yourself for a masterclass in corny writing and vague description, because all attempts at creating suspense and intrigue fell flat in this book. It's as if the author was trying to be mysterious and profound, but instead ended up being frustratingly unclear and monotonous. He repeatedly slaps you in the face with the message that life is valuable and that we shouldn't take things for granted, like thank you Dr Phil, now let me get back to my Love Island reruns. The same phrases and descriptions are regurgitated ad nauseam and felt weak. And sometimes my man Crouch didn’t even like to write in full sentences sometimes. Using full stops and line breaks like he’s writing poetry for 7th grade.
I hate.
This.
Book.
As a reader, I expected a book called Dark Matter to explore the wonders of science, but instead, there’s not one reference to dark matter, or any fucking matter for what it’s worth. This is a pitiful attempt at science fiction, where the science is painfully simplified, and the author seems more interested in throwing around random scientific terms to impress rather than educate. Take our main character for instance, Jason. He’s supposed to be this incredibly intelligent physics lecturer and scientist. So why was it, that I was piecing everything together well before he was? If you enjoy witnessing a main character being touted as intelligent only to witness them make one stupid decision after the other, then have I got a book for you.
But wait, there's an additional insult to injury for those who value feminist storytelling. Because Dark Matter fails here on multiple levels. Daniela, the so-called “the wife character,” (quotation marks to indicate how stereotypical it all was) is reduced to a mere caricature, enduring a horrific fate that includes being killed, raped by deception, and shamelessly sexualized. What I love most of all about these aspects is the way that Crouch does not address them or even really acknowledges them at all in his writing. It’s almost as there was no critical thinking, or even a sensitivity reader for this book. So if someone wants to tell me what the hell, “dark Spanish eyes,” means, that’d be great. I’d also like to point out that I wasn’t entirely sure if Daniela was a WOC or not (I skim-read majority of this book), but if she is that then makes this representation all the shittier.
I just wasn’t impressed with this book. The plot may have been more interesting if it wasn’t super predictable. Jason was a pain in my ass and played too much into the “everyman” trope to be memorable. And you know what the saddest part about this review is? I originally was only going to give this book 2 stars, but then I got to the rape-by-deception bit and said no way buddy.
1/5 stars.
Let's start with the writing, shall we? Prepare yourself for a masterclass in corny writing and vague description, because all attempts at creating suspense and intrigue fell flat in this book. It's as if the author was trying to be mysterious and profound, but instead ended up being frustratingly unclear and monotonous. He repeatedly slaps you in the face with the message that life is valuable and that we shouldn't take things for granted, like thank you Dr Phil, now let me get back to my Love Island reruns. The same phrases and descriptions are regurgitated ad nauseam and felt weak. And sometimes my man Crouch didn’t even like to write in full sentences sometimes. Using full stops and line breaks like he’s writing poetry for 7th grade.
I hate.
This.
Book.
As a reader, I expected a book called Dark Matter to explore the wonders of science, but instead, there’s not one reference to dark matter, or any fucking matter for what it’s worth. This is a pitiful attempt at science fiction, where the science is painfully simplified, and the author seems more interested in throwing around random scientific terms to impress rather than educate. Take our main character for instance, Jason. He’s supposed to be this incredibly intelligent physics lecturer and scientist. So why was it, that I was piecing everything together well before he was? If you enjoy witnessing a main character being touted as intelligent only to witness them make one stupid decision after the other, then have I got a book for you.
But wait, there's an additional insult to injury for those who value feminist storytelling. Because Dark Matter fails here on multiple levels. Daniela, the so-called “the wife character,” (quotation marks to indicate how stereotypical it all was) is reduced to a mere caricature, enduring a horrific fate that includes being killed, raped by deception, and shamelessly sexualized. What I love most of all about these aspects is the way that Crouch does not address them or even really acknowledges them at all in his writing. It’s almost as there was no critical thinking, or even a sensitivity reader for this book. So if someone wants to tell me what the hell, “dark Spanish eyes,” means, that’d be great. I’d also like to point out that I wasn’t entirely sure if Daniela was a WOC or not (I skim-read majority of this book), but if she is that then makes this representation all the shittier.
I just wasn’t impressed with this book. The plot may have been more interesting if it wasn’t super predictable. Jason was a pain in my ass and played too much into the “everyman” trope to be memorable. And you know what the saddest part about this review is? I originally was only going to give this book 2 stars, but then I got to the rape-by-deception bit and said no way buddy.
1/5 stars.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape and Sexism
Minor: Sexual content
rocwood1105's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- 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? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use
Minor: Rape
ggcd1981's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Rating: 4.0 estrelas
Dark Matter foi bom, não foi ótimo, mas foi bom. Este livro foi indicado por VÁRIOS Booktubers, mesmo assim não tinha as expectativas altas porque o resumo em si foi apenas moderadamente interessante para mim. O que me fez ler esse livro na verdade foi o fato de que Ewerton o escolheu para ler junto comigo, assim para incentiva-lo a leitura adiantei Dark Matter na minha lista. Ler comentando junto com Ewerton foi divertido, porém fora essa experiência não tenho sentimentos fortes pelo livro em si. Isso não significa que achei o livro medíocre ou ruim. Na verdade, o enredo é original e posso dizer que nunca vi um filme/livro sobre dimensões paralelas parecido com Dark Matter. Por mais da metade do livro eu genuinamente não conseguia prever como Jason Dessen, o protagonista, resolveria o problema. Então o principal ponto a favor da obra é sua originalidade.
Pontos negativos houveram alguns poucos, nenhum realmente grave. O primeiro foi a escrita seca e fragmentada. Crouch escreveu a história em frases diretas e curtas, sem espaço para muita fluidez no texto. O segundo ponto fraco foi o personagem do filho do protagonista, Charlie. Eu não entendo porque sequer ele existia no livro. A todo momento o protagonista nos lembrava de seu amor pela esposa Daniela. Seu desespero em voltar para Daniela foi expresso em diversos momentos. Contudo os sentimentos expressados de Jason por Charlie eram pálidos em comparação do fervor do seu amor por Daniela, ao ponto que Charlie foi relegado a um dispositivo do texto para quando o autor precisava que uma ação fosse realizada por alguém que não Jason ou Daniela (Exemplo: Ligar o celular para que outros Jasons fossem capazes de rastrear o aparelho até a família). Por último, um ponto negativo subjetivo, porém foi um fator, não consegui me conectar a nenhum personagem, logo não estava investida em nenhum deles.
Apesar dos problemas mencionados a história foi original e manteve meu interesse. Não foi previsível e foi bastante cinematográfica (assistiria uma adaptação do livro para o cinema). No geral foi uma obra sólida de ficção científica que me entreteve e proporcionou boas conversas com Ewerton.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping, Murder, and Drug use
Moderate: Alcohol, Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Infidelity, Rape, Violence, and Stalking
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