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obfuscatress's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This book has a remarkable narrative structure with a plot that develops across multiple narrative streams knitting together slowly over time. I was surprised to find that with a whopping fifteen different character perspectives shedding light on a complex series of events, the timeline and plot were still easy to follow. The name of the first part of the novel - a sphere within a sphere - really does describe the setup perfectly. Worth a read for that alone.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Violence, and Drug abuse
Moderate: Suicide attempt, Alcoholism, and Miscarriage
Minor: Gun violence
Repeated mentions & brief descriptions of physical violence towards a pregnant woman resulting in miscarriageeefmaoam's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I claimed to have read this book when I was a teenager, trying to be pretentious and well-read. I certainly didn’t as I remembered exactly nothing, not the plot or any of the characters, while reading it. But I’m *so* happy I didn’t read it back then, so I could enjoy it for the first time now, some years later.
This book was right up my alley, even though I wouldn’t have suspected it to be based on the genre/themes/descriptions. I love the way the story slowly unfolds, constantly switching perspectives, all the while being meta-critical of the genre itself AND the (developing) economic systems and its exploits (Yes, I wanted to be a pretentious teen while I wasn’t, but somehow still ended up becoming an adult who loves pretentious literature lol). The historical touches such as censoring some words, while using ‘whoring’ freely adds to the atmosphere and moody feel (haha, funny reference, so smart).
While reading I kept on whisking but also dreading Netflix would make this book into a limited-series; hoping because I wanted to see the world of Hokitika and all its residence and their stories come to life, dreading because I don’t think Netflix would or could do right by this beautiful story. Turns out the BBC did, so I’m off to watch that show!
I want to make more poignant points about the book and why you should read it, but I’m still a little bit too overwhelmed by the magnitude and beauty of this story. So, you should just read it yourselves if you want to know why I liked it so much ;)
This book was right up my alley, even though I wouldn’t have suspected it to be based on the genre/themes/descriptions. I love the way the story slowly unfolds, constantly switching perspectives, all the while being meta-critical of the genre itself AND the (developing) economic systems and its exploits (Yes, I wanted to be a pretentious teen while I wasn’t, but somehow still ended up becoming an adult who loves pretentious literature lol). The historical touches such as censoring some words, while using ‘whoring’ freely adds to the atmosphere and moody feel (haha, funny reference, so smart).
While reading I kept on whisking but also dreading Netflix would make this book into a limited-series; hoping because I wanted to see the world of Hokitika and all its residence and their stories come to life, dreading because I don’t think Netflix would or could do right by this beautiful story. Turns out the BBC did, so I’m off to watch that show!
I want to make more poignant points about the book and why you should read it, but I’m still a little bit too overwhelmed by the magnitude and beauty of this story. So, you should just read it yourselves if you want to know why I liked it so much ;)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, and Violence
Moderate: Drug use, Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, Abortion, Cultural appropriation, Drug abuse, Sexual violence, and Colonisation
heather_freshparchment's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Drug use, Addiction, Colonisation, Racism, Drug abuse, Physical abuse, Gun violence, and Miscarriage
Moderate: Pregnancy, Murder, Trafficking, and Infidelity
shayminxcx's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- 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 thought it was really really good and enjoyed reading it immensely. However… a few things in the last parts could have been expanded on further and there’s a cast of over 15 people and not one of them was even a bit fruity? Also I didn’t feel like Moody’s story was tied up as well as it could’ve been. Still was a great book, challenging but enjoyable.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Racial slurs, Addiction, Drug abuse, Xenophobia, Miscarriage, Racism, and Murder
Moderate: Antisemitism, Violence, Colonisation, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Infidelity, Sexual harassment, Classism, and Suicide attempt
emmonsannae's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
slow-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
5.0
As I was reading, I kept thinking how glad I was that this book was so long because it meant I would get to spend more time reading it… now that’s a good book! The plot was especially twisty, the pacing was exquisite, the characters were all dimensioned and flawed and brilliant. The ending was satisfying as well. Such a great read!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Racism, and Racial slurs
Moderate: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Colonisation, Hate crime, Murder, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Gun violence, Genocide, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, and Trafficking
serenspace's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Addiction, and Drug use
annahelle's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Domestic abuse, Racism, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Child death, Murder, and Racial slurs
lyndsayreads's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Listen, I know asking you to commit to an over 800 page book just to get all the answers is a big ask. But trust me when I tell you that this is one of the most satisfying reading experiences I've ever had. Essentially, this book is one big mystery and all of the characters are sort of using their combined knowledge to solve the mystery. But it's also an incredible character study on morals, rights and wrongs, and trusting yourself to know what's best and do the right thing. This book is like a puzzle and each chapter gives you a few more pieces. You won't be able to solve the puzzle until literally the very last chapter. But it's so engrossing and I really never wanted to put this down.
I haven't quite settled on a rating for this. I'm thinking either 4 or 4.5 but I'm going to sit with it for a little bit and then I'll come back and rate it. But in the meantime, if you don't mind a bit of a challenge and you are willing to be patient to get the end result, I really would recommend this book.
I haven't quite settled on a rating for this. I'm thinking either 4 or 4.5 but I'm going to sit with it for a little bit and then I'll come back and rate it. But in the meantime, if you don't mind a bit of a challenge and you are willing to be patient to get the end result, I really would recommend this book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Drug abuse, and Murder
bill369's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
slow-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
4.25
I read this book for The StoryGraph Reads the World 2022 challenge.
The characters were complex, gripping and overall perfect. Nevertheless, I didn't grow to like them. I was more interested in the plot than the characters.
Twists, illegitimate bastards, séances, past disputes and an immense amount of money missing. Contained. The plot is fabulous! I must acknowledge that it was hard getting into the book. Primarily because of the high number of characters and their detailed descriptions. However, once I remembered who each character was, I was hooked. The story has a tremendous quantity of details. I am firmly impressed by that.
Page 480, unrequited love.
„(...) Vykládali jsme nesmysly a já plácla nějakou hloupost o neopětované lásce. A on mne zastavil a řekl, že neopětovaná láska není možná; že to potom není láska. Prý, že lásku je třeba dávat achronologicaljímat, aby se dvě rovnocenné poloviny spojily v celek, v milenecký pár.“
I was hoping the book would end with chronilogical summary of the events yet it didn't. Thankfully, this summary exists online therefore I understood what I didn't understand.
I'm proud I managed to read this book and understand the more extensive portion of it since it wasn't an easy read. I'm glad I read it because it was a personal challenge.
The characters were complex, gripping and overall perfect. Nevertheless, I didn't grow to like them. I was more interested in the plot than the characters.
Twists, illegitimate bastards, séances, past disputes and an immense amount of money missing. Contained. The plot is fabulous! I must acknowledge that it was hard getting into the book. Primarily because of the high number of characters and their detailed descriptions. However, once I remembered who each character was, I was hooked. The story has a tremendous quantity of details. I am firmly impressed by that.
Page 480, unrequited love.
I was hoping the book would end with chronilogical summary of the events yet it didn't. Thankfully, this summary exists online therefore I understood what I didn't understand.
I'm proud I managed to read this book and understand the more extensive portion of it since it wasn't an easy read. I'm glad I read it because it was a personal challenge.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Trafficking, and Drug abuse
Moderate: Miscarriage, Addiction, Pregnancy, Sexism, Toxic friendship, and Violence
Minor: Alcohol, Blood, Classism, Drug use, Miscarriage, Murder, Sexual content, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
yolanda_h's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Drug abuse
Moderate: Murder, Pregnancy, and Miscarriage
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