Reviews with content warning for Kidnapping - Station Eleven

Reviews tagging 'Kidnapping'

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

76 reviews

sandysmith's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional 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

3.5

So hard to decide where to start with the review of this one, published in 2014, the book explores a dystopia world of those who survive a flu that kills 99.6% of the population within 3/4 hours of contracting the virus. So within 20 years young people are unable to know a time when there was electricity, mobile phones, air travel the internet, cars and so forth and how different people react to this change. The book does hop around different times and different characters, of which there are many, my favourites being Kirsten a child actress, who was 8 when the flu hit. There is a travelling symphony that she d part of, which goes from town to town, in a circuit, giving shows of music with their orchestra or plays, including Shakespeare. On their wagons is the slogan, "Survival is inefficient." From Star Trek Voyager. For me, parts of the book were slow, and I enjoyed the second half of the book more than the first, although it was a bit of a disappointing ending. But boy, does this book make you think and appreciate all of the things we have. I'm just glad I read this now and not when the global pandemic was at its peak. Interesting, thought-provoking, and well written.

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pagesfromhome's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful tense medium-paced

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

4.0

I picked this book for my book club this month and even though I had read it before, I feel like I had a totally different experience reading it this time.

St. John Mandel does an incredible job of spanning time and characters to build a world that feels realistic and haunting at the same time. Although, I found some characters less “necessary” to the story than others, I rarely regretted the moments spent with them on the page.

I love how she toyed with the timeline of the events in the book and teased growth and hope in the perfect amount throughout the story. I’d been avoiding pandemic/dystopian fiction for a long time (for a pretty obvious reason) but I’m grateful that I dove back in with this one.

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zillareaper's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful reflective sad 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

4.5

I was surprised how much I liked this book. I’m leaving a review several days from finishing it and the more I reflect, the better I thought it was. It’s a relatively slow book, but I didn’t feel like I was dragging through, but instead just enjoying it at its own pace. And then watching the horrible storytelling of the HBO series after reading, it made me realize how well-webbed this book was.

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izzyrbell's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful reflective slow-paced

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

4.75

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fedorasommora's review against another edition

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dark mysterious slow-paced

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

2.5

The writing was meh. The story was interesting enough to keep me reading, but I’ve DNFed better books.

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potassiumk's review against another edition

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adventurous dark sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Wow!! What a book. At the end, I could NOT put this book down! Parts of the book made me a little emotional, especially the section taking place in the airport. At first I thought the random time skipping was annoying, but now after reading the book I think it was a really great way to write it.

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ivelisse's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

This novel unraveled and tied together in such a satisfying and interesting manner. There is an elegance to what avenues were fleshed out and those that were left with unknown outcomes, mirroring the realities of the reality of the world of Station Eleven.

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parfait52's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.75

It took me several months to get through this book, which is saying something because it's fairly short. Every time I picked it up, I was interested enough. Once I put it down, though, I didn't feel the need to pick it back up. This book doesn't really have a plot so much as it has a story. And once you figure out how the story is forming and the author is doing, it's very easy to know where it's going to go. At times, I found the writing to be beautiful and profound. I found the concept fascinating, but the execution was stifling at points. There were several parts of the book that I personally found very boring and wanted to get past immediately. Overall, not a bad read. There are just books I've enjoyed more.

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reggiethebird's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

4.5

I very much preferred this to Sea of Tranquility. Those first 30 or so pages are a tough read, and hit a little too close to home (the toilet paper line got me [ I'm very glad I read this after covid]), but the rest is nicer. Jumps around the timeline a ton, but once you know to expect it it works beautifully.

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kbz_22's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

I just finished “Station Eleven” by Emily St. John Mandel, and I’ve got to say, it’s a solid 5/5 from me, and that’s a big deal considering I’m not usually into dystopian stuff.

The writing is just next level. It’s so beautifully crafted that it’s hard to put down. Mandel’s narrative style, jumping back and forth in time, might seem confusing, but it’s like a jigsaw puzzle that slowly comes together. You start noticing these tiny threads and easter eggs, and it’s mind-blowing how it all connects. It’s not just the story itself, but how she weaves it all together. It’s a masterpiece.

I’m officially a fan and can’t wait to read more by Mandel.

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