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3.52 AVERAGE
3.52 AVERAGE
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The second book in the Mass Effect series takes place between the events of the first and second game. It has an interesting new angle that is sufficiently different from the first book to keep things interesting. I was a fan of both the new and the recurring characters and their evolving relationships. I especially loved Grayson, with his conflicting ideals and his complicated relationship with his daughter Gillian. Moreover, it was amazing to learn so much more about the Quarians and the inner workings of their culture on the flotilla. Also, the respect and care that some characters showed towards the heavily autistic character of Gillian was heartwarming.
At times the book looses its drive a bit, and some of the descriptions of violence seem unnecessarily detailed to me, but I still very much enjoyed reading this book! I am looking forward to the third one once I finish playing Mass Effect 2.
At times the book looses its drive a bit, and some of the descriptions of violence seem unnecessarily detailed to me, but I still very much enjoyed reading this book! I am looking forward to the third one once I finish playing Mass Effect 2.
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
emotional
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:
No
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Pretty decent, though I wish I'd read the other Mass Effect novel first. A warning for those who intend to play the games - this book takes place after the events of the first game and does contain spoilers.
adventurous
medium-paced
What the hell did I just read?
This book should be called The Author's Whim, because not a single character makes a logical true to self decision. The MC, Grayson, is a Cerberus operative in charge of one of the organization's largest investments. But get this, Grayson is a drug addict. WHY THE HELL WOULD THE ILLUSIVE MAN PUT HIM IN CHARGE OF DECADES OF BIOTIC RESEARCH?! The Illusive Man is not a moron, he is very aware of Grayson's addiction yet somehow he is the only choice. Not to mention Grayson is kind of a loser all around. It's not til the end does he show off his operative training when the author needs him to effortlessly escape. Now on to Kahlee Sanders and Hendel, or whatever his name was. Why the HELL, WHY THE ACTUAL FUCK would these two suddenly dump their careers for one child? They acted like they gave such a shit for the kids in the Ascention program only to abandon them when Gillian is being taken away after injuring multiple other children. Why else than the Author's Whim to push the plot, of course. Then these two decided they REALLY needed to get involved in the defence of a quarian ship, instead of protecting Gillian. Whaaaaaaat? Kahlee just says, go fuck off for a bit, Gillian, while we stop these professional Operatives from kidnapping you. Whaaaaaat? Beyond the inconsistant characters, the rest of the book just feels so un-Mass Effect. Hell, quarian culture and livelyhood is almost copy/ paste Japanese and the Acsention project is dropped halfway throught the book and served no real purpose besides a bland setting. The first book was at least done in a fun action movie style, this one is just a mess caught between the continuity of two massive games. Don't feel left out on not reading it.
This book should be called The Author's Whim, because not a single character makes a logical true to self decision. The MC, Grayson, is a Cerberus operative in charge of one of the organization's largest investments. But get this, Grayson is a drug addict. WHY THE HELL WOULD THE ILLUSIVE MAN PUT HIM IN CHARGE OF DECADES OF BIOTIC RESEARCH?! The Illusive Man is not a moron, he is very aware of Grayson's addiction yet somehow he is the only choice. Not to mention Grayson is kind of a loser all around. It's not til the end does he show off his operative training when the author needs him to effortlessly escape. Now on to Kahlee Sanders and Hendel, or whatever his name was. Why the HELL, WHY THE ACTUAL FUCK would these two suddenly dump their careers for one child? They acted like they gave such a shit for the kids in the Ascention program only to abandon them when Gillian is being taken away after injuring multiple other children. Why else than the Author's Whim to push the plot, of course. Then these two decided they REALLY needed to get involved in the defence of a quarian ship, instead of protecting Gillian. Whaaaaaaat? Kahlee just says, go fuck off for a bit, Gillian, while we stop these professional Operatives from kidnapping you. Whaaaaaat? Beyond the inconsistant characters, the rest of the book just feels so un-Mass Effect. Hell, quarian culture and livelyhood is almost copy/ paste Japanese and the Acsention project is dropped halfway throught the book and served no real purpose besides a bland setting. The first book was at least done in a fun action movie style, this one is just a mess caught between the continuity of two massive games. Don't feel left out on not reading it.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
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
Compared to the first book, I really enjoyed this! Though admittedly, because of Mass Effect's history with writing autistic characters are quite problematic (though understanding considering the time it came out I suppose). So, I wasn't keen on having an autistic character in the book. But considering the character is a girl (when most of the time autistic characters are often boys/men) she is written quite well. While she does sit on the token autistic character side, there was a lot to her that I saw in my autistic friends and family members.
Anyways, kind of want to replay Mass Effect now...
Anyways, kind of want to replay Mass Effect now...
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Bullying, Chronic illness, Torture
adventurous
dark
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:
No
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A lot of the problems I had with the writing of the first Mass Effect novel were resolved in this one, and the story telling felt both more natural and more consistent. It was really interesting to learn more about the Ascension program and Cerberus's activities--I've got a lot of time for the Illusive Man being The Worst. I also really enjoyed how much we got to see of life for the quarians. (Though I still feel like Kahlee Sanders is a bit underdeveloped, as a character.) Over all, I really enjoyed it.
That said, this book is very...heavy, in a way. Many of the pov characters are unpleasant or difficult to tolerate, and I feel like Karpyshyn depicted that very well. Still, Grayson's arc was really interesting. And, as an autistic person, I sympathised a lot with Gillian; it was difficult to deal with how the majority of the cast either pathologised or used her (or both).
That said, this book is very...heavy, in a way. Many of the pov characters are unpleasant or difficult to tolerate, and I feel like Karpyshyn depicted that very well. Still, Grayson's arc was really interesting. And, as an autistic person, I sympathised a lot with Gillian; it was difficult to deal with how the majority of the cast either pathologised or used her (or both).
This plot diverged enough from the storyline of the games to be much more fun. It had some nerdy info-dumps, but I found it interesting.