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mapo's review
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
3.5
I liked this quite a bit, but around the midway point I feel like the action slowed down too much and made it difficult to finish — my desire to see what happened in the end was enough to pull me through though thanks to the characters and world building! Fun space adventure story with just a few too many subplots for me!
robotswithpersonality's review against another edition
Well shucks. In reading this review, take into account the fact that I skimmed the last third because I just couldn't take it anymore. I like the idea of a found family crew, a badass female protagonist, various hijinks, emotional investment in relationships between characters. But I don't enjoy so much bad luck heaped on our heroes that the jam-packed action scenes leave me nothing but tense, especially when they are frequently accompanied by the self-flagellation shame spiral of the protagonist, and the frequent vacillation of interpersonal relations. It took four missions for Eva to realize things had to change; considering the risk to her crew mates in missions two and three, that is an absurd buildup for no other reason than bulking up the text and ratcheting up the tension, at which point, I just get pissed off and impatient. When the plot shifted to accompany the inevitable eventual epiphany of Eva that she couldn't keep this up, yet more shit hit the fan, again in an emotionally overwrought fashion. Somehow this character has time to get in and out of all kinds of trouble despite the amount of time she spends worrying about family, crew, friends and potential lovers, upcoming plans, recent and past mistakes, etc... it's just exhausting. I fear I'm failing to convey what bothered me because it all looks reasonable typed out. Maybe there are those who have the patience/temperament for it, but this wasn't leisure/entertainment reading for me, it was big ball of stress reading and I don't need that from my erroneously pitched as wacky 'it's got psychic cats and fish emperors!' sci fi. No, I will not be reading the sequel.
2ndbooktotheright's review
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
dads2tired's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
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
4.0
scalygusgus1993's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
tense
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 is a really fun space adventure that reminded me a bit of Firefly and Mass Effect. Love!
chinama's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
tense
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? Yes
5.0
I've inflated my rating slightly because this book is still kind of finding its feet, but it really pays out over the course of the trilogy. The adventures in this series are just FUN and wild, and it's the first time I've ever read a sci-fi novel with a Latina main character. It was really cool to see. Eva is obviously a flawed person, and while I initially found her a little abrasive, she's balanced by her deep loyalty and love for her found family. She grows a lot over the series, and I came to appreciate the author's choice to let her be a f*ck up sometimes instead of an easy hero. And for people who were disappointed that the psychic cats didn't get a starring role in Chilling Effect--just keep reading. You'll be very happy you did.
evenstar04's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
wobbleffet's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
faroreness's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
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? It's complicated
4.0