Reviews with content warning for War - Sea of Tranquility

Reviews tagging 'War'

Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel

75 reviews

bloomingpear's review against another edition

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mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

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emilywemily6's review against another edition

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mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

I really enjoyed this book! The author’s writing is really captivating and I loved how all the storylines connected. This was strange sci fi but in a more approachable way than other strange sci fi novels (ex. Annihilation). I also really like the things that I reflected on as the reader and the things that the characters learned through their experiences. I just wish I had more of everything this novel has! More character depth for some of the characters that were skimped out on and more details about the impacts of time travel would have made this perfect. I thoroughly enjoyed myself the whole time I listened to this book.

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maddie_can_read's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Found it a bit slow to get into.
The writing and the characterization is so good that even though you're only with each of the initial characters for a short period of time (time both in terms of chapters, and time in terms of a very short period of their lives), you care for them and get a sense of who they are. Loved the writing style. Loved how everything came together at the end.

The only thing I want from this book is more

more details about the colonies, how the time travel works, more about the time institute, more about the characters

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dinipandareads's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful mysterious reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

Whoa. That's how this book left me feeling by the end. I was concerned for a minute that maybe I wasn't smart enough for this book because I found myself getting confused by what was happening around the 66% mark. The writing kept me gripped though and I'm glad that I didn't waver because when it did click, it was wow. How clever and neat and entirely not what I expected! As I was reading two books of similar genres and styles came to mind: The Chronicles of St. Mary by Jodi Taylor and Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell and I think that's what made me love this more.

The synopsis is vague and for good reason. There's not much I can say about this that won't give the plot away entirely but I thoroughly enjoyed this "cosy-esque" science fiction about time travel. Despite my initial confusion around halfway through, this was a relatively accessible SF story that doesn't get overly technical about the physics or mechanics of time travel as a concept, which I appreciated. This was (somehow) my first book by Emily St. John Mandel but I can say that it won't be the last. Her writing has a dreamy and hypnotizing quality to it that, at times, makes you question what's real and what's not, but it's entirely captivating and I was easily swept along for what turned out to be a wonderfully thought-provoking ride! I found the images played out like a movie in my head and even though each character's chapters weren't long, I found myself fully immersed in their settings and stories and I felt emotionally connected to all of them.

Overall, I think this is going to be a story that sticks with me for a while after I finish reading it. As it is, I'm still thinking about how brilliantly St. John Mandel wove everything together for that ending. I loved it and I would definitely recommend it if you're curious, enjoy science fiction or would like to dip your toe into a genre that you're not entirely comfortable with.

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sramac's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

4.25

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caroisreading's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful mysterious reflective medium-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? It's complicated

4.0

This is a series of individual stories from different timelines that start out unrelated, but end up beautifully and neatly interwoven. The ending leaves you with that "ah ha" moment that's so satisfying.

The build-up is slow, so don't give up on it. There are unconventional chapter setups and changes of POV that you adjust to.

I have mixed feelings on how time travel and the future are illustrated in this story. I caught myself being too picky about realism and tiny details (like, why is there an overpopulation problem when that clearly is not where we're trending?) -- but appreciated the focus on pandemics, very clearly inspired by COVID. It's like we progress, but our nature stays the same.

There's a moment where a character muses in front of an audience why we are so focused on pandemic literature. Our inherent narcissism is brought up, but dismissed quickly. I think that's so funny, given how this story is tied up.

You'll enjoy this if you normally like time travel / futuristic stories, pensive reads.

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