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adamq's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
It's an interesting setup that, while entertaining and well-written in parts, is poorly executed in both the neo-noir mystery and the cli-fi environmental message.
In terms of the mystery, the first two thirds are a slog. There's no compelling reason why the protagonist gives up so much over what is, to her and the reader's knowledge, merely an intriguing curiosity. Eventually the stakes get raised, but not in a way that explains the motives from earlier. Some plot points satisfyingly connect by the end, but along the way the mystery feels very artificial (some clues are written out directly to the protagonist, others she just arbitrarily finds on an assortment of dead bodies). Most side characters are very under-developed, leading some major moments to fall flat.
Unfortunately this book (especially the final act) doubles down on the worst impulses of VanderMeer's environmental politics. In other VanderMeer books I've read, there's a lurking sense that he desires a return to a mythologized nature uncorrupted by humans - here he makes that more explicit and more front-and-center. The conclusion of the bookfeatures the protagonist first trying to escape the climate apocalypse by living in a wilderness that gradually gets corrupted by the existence of more people, then trying to solve the climate crisis by injecting herself with a poison that will make her physically feel pollution and therefore make humanity empathize with nature more. This frames the climate catastrophe as the result of humanity's innate bodily limitations or the corruption of human nature rather than, say, capitalism or colonialism. VanderMeer's message looks like the dated, exclusionary radical environmentalism of the 20th century, viewing humanity's very presence as inherently destructive and largely ignoring environmental justice. There is an uncontroversial critique of poaching along the way as well, but nothing that will make you see the issue in a new light.
I do think VanderMeer is onto something with the climate noir premise - hopefully we'll see that get better executed soon.
In terms of the mystery, the first two thirds are a slog. There's no compelling reason why the protagonist gives up so much over what is, to her and the reader's knowledge, merely an intriguing curiosity. Eventually the stakes get raised, but not in a way that explains the motives from earlier. Some plot points satisfyingly connect by the end, but along the way the mystery feels very artificial (some clues are written out directly to the protagonist, others she just arbitrarily finds on an assortment of dead bodies). Most side characters are very under-developed, leading some major moments to fall flat.
Unfortunately this book (especially the final act) doubles down on the worst impulses of VanderMeer's environmental politics. In other VanderMeer books I've read, there's a lurking sense that he desires a return to a mythologized nature uncorrupted by humans - here he makes that more explicit and more front-and-center. The conclusion of the book
I do think VanderMeer is onto something with the climate noir premise - hopefully we'll see that get better executed soon.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death and Injury/Injury detail
fox_at_the_circus's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
This novel is more rooted in reality than the others I read by Vandermeer and arguably is scarier due to that. So much in this book is things that are happening or can easily happen in our world in a few years and that is really unsettling. This is really a crime noir book with the crime being the disctruction of the environment.
The main character in the beginning gave me the vibes of a headmistress teaching a valuable lesson. and then she slowly becomes more frantic and personal and it is harder to follow, harder to distiguish where the 'now' ends and her retelling of past stories starts. it really grips you and makes you keep reading. Her childhood trauma and family trouble work really well with the noir feeling and also explain why she would follow this path. Her slow descend into some kind of madness (or maybe just clarity of mind) is so well-written.
I always felt a bit lost and a few steps behind everyone while reading, but so was the main character often times, and it really improved the noir reading experience.
I also learned a lot about humingbirds and salamanders in this book.
The main character in the beginning gave me the vibes of a headmistress teaching a valuable lesson. and then she slowly becomes more frantic and personal and it is harder to follow, harder to distiguish where the 'now' ends and her retelling of past stories starts. it really grips you and makes you keep reading. Her childhood trauma and family trouble work really well with the noir feeling and also explain why she would follow this path. Her slow descend into some kind of madness (or maybe just clarity of mind) is so well-written.
I always felt a bit lost and a few steps behind everyone while reading, but so was the main character often times, and it really improved the noir reading experience.
I also learned a lot about humingbirds and salamanders in this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, and Gun violence
Moderate: Animal death, Kidnapping, Torture, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, and Stalking
Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic
scytheria's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Stalking, Abandonment, Murder, Death, Gun violence, Domestic abuse, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Animal death, Pandemic/Epidemic, Vomit, and Torture
Minor: Sexual content and Alcohol
pterodog's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This book took me a little while to get into because it was slightly confusing at the start. Jeff VanderMeer's writing style is pretty unique and it took time to adjust to it, but once I sat down to start reading it properly with plenty of free time (almost 8 months after I started it, oops) I found it super gripping and pretty much impossible to put down and ended up finishing it that day.
To me, this is a book about change, both personal and ecological. It's about what happens when you're not looking, or when you're looking so hard at something else that you fail to keep an eye on the world around you. It's also about humanity's impact on the planet, ecoterrorism, climate change and the futility of expecting (or hoping) for one person to 'fix' everything.
What I really liked about this book was how all-consuming it is. Silvina Vilcapampa was consumed by her quest to save the planet. Jane Smith was consumed by Silvina's story and by her own traumatic childhood. Hellbender is consumed by his need to know what Silvina's final achievement was. One way or another, the main characters have a goal that they are willing to give up everything for, whether that goal is good or not - and one way or another, it does in the end consume them. Jane loses her family, Hellbender loses the woman he loves and Silvina loses her life. Despite this, reading it felt hopeful in a way, especially the last quarter of the book. Despite the world around Jane arguably starting to end (a briefly mentioned pandemic, white supremacist militias rising, air pollution and unchecked climate change) she spends 5 years of her life living with nature, and nature does endure. I found it strangely hopeful in the end, especially with Jane's final sacrifice.
I also liked how it really held onto the mystery aspect. VanderMeer gives you bits and pieces of the story but it doesn't all tie together until the final pages. Some of the reveals I wasn't too shocked by (Jane killing her grandfather, for example) but some of them genuinely took me by surprise (Silvina and the farm! What the hell!) and it was a really fun ride once Jane started putting all the pieces together.
A lot of other reviews have mentioned that they didn't like Jane, but I found her fun to read about. She is completely unapologetic about any of her choices, even the objectively terrible ones, and she's so methodical and straight-shooting that it takes a while before you start to notice how often she admits she hasn't been forthcoming with the reader and wonder how much else she's keeping back. She's not necessarily a likeable character but she is engaging and I was rooting for her overall, even if I was rooting for her husband and daughter much more.
Overall I really really enjoyed this book. I found the Southern Reach trilogy difficult because there was so much about it I didn't understand, and Hummingbird Salamander was similar to that but had enough of the plot set in stone and firmly explained that I didn't end up frustrated at the end. It's sad, but deeply gripping and very topical.
To me, this is a book about change, both personal and ecological. It's about what happens when you're not looking, or when you're looking so hard at something else that you fail to keep an eye on the world around you. It's also about humanity's impact on the planet, ecoterrorism, climate change and the futility of expecting (or hoping) for one person to 'fix' everything.
I also liked how it really held onto the mystery aspect. VanderMeer gives you bits and pieces of the story but it doesn't all tie together until the final pages. Some of the reveals I wasn't too shocked by (Jane killing her grandfather, for example) but some of them genuinely took me by surprise (Silvina and the farm! What the hell!) and it was a really fun ride once Jane started putting all the pieces together.
A lot of other reviews have mentioned that they didn't like Jane, but I found her fun to read about. She is completely unapologetic about any of her choices, even the objectively terrible ones, and she's so methodical and straight-shooting that it takes a while before you start to notice how often she admits she hasn't been forthcoming with the reader and wonder how much else she's keeping back. She's not necessarily a likeable character but she is engaging and I was rooting for her overall, even if I was rooting for her husband and daughter much more.
Overall I really really enjoyed this book. I found the Southern Reach trilogy difficult because there was so much about it I didn't understand, and Hummingbird Salamander was similar to that but had enough of the plot set in stone and firmly explained that I didn't end up frustrated at the end. It's sad, but deeply gripping and very topical.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Child abuse, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Gun violence
Moderate: Kidnapping, Death of parent, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Infidelity, and Alcoholism
Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic
readingrampage's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Gun violence, Pandemic/Epidemic, Violence, Emotional abuse, and Physical abuse
smaravetz's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Animal death, and Murder
Moderate: Pandemic/Epidemic, Physical abuse, and Violence
teaxmillions's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death and Violence
Moderate: Death
lynxpardinus's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Physical abuse, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Gun violence, Suicide, Child abuse, Death, Stalking, and Torture
Moderate: Toxic friendship, Blood, Child death, Cursing, Death of parent, Dementia, Medical content, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Confinement, Religious bigotry, Body shaming, Infidelity, and Mass/school shootings
Minor: Police brutality, Ableism, Drug abuse, Fatphobia, and War
crowcore's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
4.5
I finished this book on a train ride from California to Washington-- a hurricane was hitting southern California and everywhere north of there was on fire, all the way up to Canada. The smoke was so thick at some points on the track that the only thing we could see out of the windows were the powerlines, and some parts of the track were too hot to go at top speed safely so we spent an extra few hours breathing in smoke.
So the book felt a little on the nose š¬
So the book felt a little on the nose š¬
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Violence, Chronic illness, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Grief, Sexism, Stalking, Death of parent, Dementia, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Classism, Colonisation, Death, Animal death, Blood, and Misogyny
Moderate: Toxic friendship, Body shaming, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Forced institutionalization, Ableism, Deportation, Confinement, Infidelity, Medical content, Torture, and Genocide
erin_s's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Certain action sequences are written with quick pacing and detail that motivate you to keep reading, but the story dragged on way too long. After a while, the climate change/environmental apocalypse themes felt cliched. Overall, the book thinks it is more clever and interesting than it actually is. By the end, I was reading it just to finish it, not because I was particularly invested in the characters or the mystery.
Mentions of things like pandemics, political unrest, wildfires, species extinctions, etc. were probably included to make the collapse of our planet feel current or plausible, but it came off as obvious and unoriginal. Also after all the plot twists and build up, the ābig revealsā werenāt that surprising or very interesting (E.g., An āarkā to outlast humans and the environments weāve ruined, preserved animal DNA). As much as the plot is driven by Janeās obsession with Silvina and Silvinaās mission, I never found Silvinaās character compelling..
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Violence, and Gun violence