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bookph1le's review against another edition
4.0
This was a pretty great book for me to break my fast from science fiction. Considering I seem to live in a scifi novel, I haven't had much interest in reading them lately, but I did very much enjoy the way this book transported me to space.
One of the things I liked best about this book was that its story played out at its own pace. This is a reflective book, one that delves deeply into Naomi's character and what made her who she is. This surprised me, since I was expecting something more of a thrill ride, but I very much appreciated that characterization doesn't end up taking a back seat to the action, as happens too often in some of the more action-oriented books I read.
That's not to say this book doesn't have tense moments that make the narrative speed by, because it does. I'm a big fan of closed mysteries, and an environment doesn't get much more closed than a spaceship near Mars with only five inhabitants. Once the mystery kicks into gear, the book becomes pretty nail-biting.
There were a few aspects of the book I didn't like quite as much. The way women had been stripped of their rights felt a little underdeveloped, and while given what's currently going on in U.S. culture, I didn't find the concept too hard to believe, it also didn't feel fully fleshed to me. I also would have liked some more detail about the nationalism that got Cochran elected.
Lastly, the resolution felt a bit rushed to me. I didn't want it to be drawn-out, but the ending felt a bit like a race to the ending.
Still, overall this was a very good read that totally transported me whenever I picked it up.
One of the things I liked best about this book was that its story played out at its own pace. This is a reflective book, one that delves deeply into Naomi's character and what made her who she is. This surprised me, since I was expecting something more of a thrill ride, but I very much appreciated that characterization doesn't end up taking a back seat to the action, as happens too often in some of the more action-oriented books I read.
That's not to say this book doesn't have tense moments that make the narrative speed by, because it does. I'm a big fan of closed mysteries, and an environment doesn't get much more closed than a spaceship near Mars with only five inhabitants. Once the mystery kicks into gear, the book becomes pretty nail-biting.
There were a few aspects of the book I didn't like quite as much. The way women had been stripped of their rights felt a little underdeveloped, and while given what's currently going on in U.S. culture, I didn't find the concept too hard to believe, it also didn't feel fully fleshed to me. I also would have liked some more detail about the nationalism that got Cochran elected.
Lastly, the resolution felt a bit rushed to me. I didn't want it to be drawn-out, but the ending felt a bit like a race to the ending.
Still, overall this was a very good read that totally transported me whenever I picked it up.
kat7890erina's review against another edition
3.0
I was intrigued by the premise of this one, but the execution didn't thrill me.
lost_between_worlds's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
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
3.0
Quick read and a fun book. Unfortunately the author does a lot of telling instead of showing.
It puts a lot of emphasis on what might happen on our earth, some of the things that at first seem like a big story thing, don't influence the story overly much and was never touched upon / resolved by the end.
It puts a lot of emphasis on what might happen on our earth, some of the things that at first seem like a big story thing, don't influence the story overly much and was never touched upon / resolved by the end.
l0c3's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
kizzabell's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
amyliz2008's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
alienstory's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
jverm's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-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
3.5
Super interesting story, different perspective than other SFF.
being_b's review against another edition
2.0
Goldilocks is a thriller with sci-fi, dystopian, environmental crisis, and feminist trappings, but only one of those elements ia actually intrinsic to the story.
The premise of Goldilocks is that four woman scientists, led by charismatic entrepreneur Dr. Valerie Black, steal a spaceship to explore a new habitable exoplanet named Cavendish. Habitable exoplanets are critical because earth’s biosphere is 30 years from collapse. The women steal the spaceship because rising anti-woman sentiment has edged them out of opportunities to go to space, and the all-male crew meant to take the ship are not as thoroughly trained.
The stage is set for a claustrophobic psychological thriller where the women begin to wonder whether they can trust one another, and what each woman’s true motives are for being on this voyage.
The problem is that there’s no real reason, plot-wise, to have an all-woman crew. The plot would have proceeded exactly the same with a mixed-gender crew. Thematically, the challenges of being a smart, driven woman in a time of growing anti-woman sentiment are entirely told rather than shown, aside from one rather pat incident. It’s also weirdly blinkered to frame banning abortion and blocking women from the workplace as largely a problem because it thwarts the ambitions of professional women such as female astronauts. So the whole issue lacks relevance or urgency, and comes across as an attempt to grab onto a trend.
The environmentalist angle is better done, with more work put into showing the urgency of the problem and how it impacts peoples’ lives in real ways. I’d have been happier with more environmentalism and less oppression of women.
Finally, the sci-fi angle. Here, my problem isn’t with the space ship, or the space science. My problem comes from the women’s plans for their time on Cavendish.
So basically the plan is to have an alien planet with five women and... hundreds of children? A ratio of one adult for every 15 kids, across the entire planet? Who’s going to grow food, conduct science, even perform basic maintenance on the settlement, when they’re all going to be busy babysitting? It makes aboslutely no sense, and it’s what ultimately sank the book for me.
As a thriller, it’s fun and suspenseful. As a science fictional story, it fails basic tests of consistency and plausibility. As a Handmaiden’s Tale style anti-woman dystopia, it is shallow and unnecessary.
The premise of Goldilocks is that four woman scientists, led by charismatic entrepreneur Dr. Valerie Black, steal a spaceship to explore a new habitable exoplanet named Cavendish. Habitable exoplanets are critical because earth’s biosphere is 30 years from collapse. The women steal the spaceship because rising anti-woman sentiment has edged them out of opportunities to go to space, and the all-male crew meant to take the ship are not as thoroughly trained.
The stage is set for a claustrophobic psychological thriller where the women begin to wonder whether they can trust one another, and what each woman’s true motives are for being on this voyage.
The problem is that there’s no real reason, plot-wise, to have an all-woman crew. The plot would have proceeded exactly the same with a mixed-gender crew. Thematically, the challenges of being a smart, driven woman in a time of growing anti-woman sentiment are entirely told rather than shown, aside from one rather pat incident. It’s also weirdly blinkered to frame banning abortion and blocking women from the workplace as largely a problem because it thwarts the ambitions of professional women such as female astronauts. So the whole issue lacks relevance or urgency, and comes across as an attempt to grab onto a trend.
The environmentalist angle is better done, with more work put into showing the urgency of the problem and how it impacts peoples’ lives in real ways. I’d have been happier with more environmentalism and less oppression of women.
Finally, the sci-fi angle. Here, my problem isn’t with the space ship, or the space science. My problem comes from the women’s plans for their time on Cavendish.
Spoiler
Apparently five astronauts are meant to establish Earth’s first colony on an alien planet, and make it sufficiently robust that it will be able to take settlers within a couple years. This is the original mission plan, which is just... absurd. Even more absurd is Dr. Black’s plan to keep Earth’s people from repeating their environmental and gender-based sins on the new planet, which is to either a) blackmail Earth into sending shiploads of children (1 carer for every 15 kids, if I remember correctly) to be the first settlers, or b) grow settlers for Cavendish in artificial wombs using the thousands of frozen fertilized embryos that have been hidden on the ship.So basically the plan is to have an alien planet with five women and... hundreds of children? A ratio of one adult for every 15 kids, across the entire planet? Who’s going to grow food, conduct science, even perform basic maintenance on the settlement, when they’re all going to be busy babysitting? It makes aboslutely no sense, and it’s what ultimately sank the book for me.
As a thriller, it’s fun and suspenseful. As a science fictional story, it fails basic tests of consistency and plausibility. As a Handmaiden’s Tale style anti-woman dystopia, it is shallow and unnecessary.