Reviews

Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel

jaydeecepticon's review against another edition

mysterious reflective 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? Yes

4.5

apobec's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious fast-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? It's complicated

4.0

A great little science fiction novel about a set of characters dealing with a wrinkle in time. We move quickly through several characters’ stories, each ~200 years apart, with a mysterious recurring character in each. Finally we follow that recurring character’s story to tie everything together. It’s a quick read and a fun story; a great vacation book. 

The realest setting — and most enjoyable, if disorienting — is the successful fiction author’s discombobulating book tour, something we assume St John Mandel knows all too well. The other stories are fun, compelling, but a bit light and flimsy. They don’t pull you in like the author’s does. I’d have loved a bit more cutting commentary on human nature in St John Mandel’s telling of the future. Future stories traditionally reflect back critically on the present, and that’s my favorite part of the genera.

Without that, the story was fine, fun, cute. Would recommend to a friend seeking an interesting little read. Like a more fun Cloud Atlas, where the stories actually get tied together.

klsriley's review against another edition

adventurous challenging mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

youngthespian42's review against another edition

4.0

Powerful and hard to read. Felt like a time travel back to the chaos of 2020. The audio book was amazing and the performances and different voice for each pov enhanced the experience.

katharim's review against another edition

adventurous challenging mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

reverienb's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

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

3.5

izzylashley's review against another edition

5.0

I can totally understand why this was voted best science fiction of the year, I was guessing all the way until the end

sararose_cozy's review against another edition

3.0

Having finished the book, I would say I like the story.
Starting the book however was difficult for me. So many characters were introduced in such a short span amount of time with a lot of background detail I couldn’t really follow. I didn’t have any intrigue until about 50%. It felt like the story was rushed and it could have been longer! But it was poetically written.

trackingtimee's review against another edition

3.5

I guess I don’t get it. It was a cool concept by the end but I found myself thinking a few times in the middle … okay why should I care? I feel like I wanted to spend more time with each character at the beginning. I liked following Gaspery on his journey with the characters in the second half but again I’m just thinking … why? Overall liked it but it was missing something for me. 

alanacca123's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

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

5.0