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4.29 AVERAGE
4.29 AVERAGE
Extremely well written but couldn’t get into it. Took way too long to finish which was endlessly irritating. Apparently I just don’t like space operas
Gotta bail on this one. Almost halfway through and there’s not a single interesting character, and virtually nothing has actually happened. The world-building is unique, but that’s about all there is to it. Not worth another 400 pages of my time.
adventurous
dark
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I really enjoy Vinge books. This is my second. He has an amazing skill for creating interesting alien cultures in a way that explores how we define "other" or "alien." And he tells big stories with such personal details. The books are long, but I never get that draggy feeling that sometimes hits a longer novel. They're packed with action and interesting ideas.
I haven't read a Fire Upon the Deep in a while so I'm not totally sure I get how this is a prequel. Anyways, there were so many parts of this book I loved but this book is sooooooooo long and encompasses so much history and context. There were probably like 300-500 pages of just, stuff happening that had nothing to do with the main plot. Like, life goes on and here's what life is like. Oh and a brief foray into human history and what Pham Nuwen was up to like 800 years ago.
The parts I liked though - the Spiders and their history and culture. I think Vinge was going for building up a lot of empathy and humanization of the spiders to juxtapose it suddenly when the humans see the spiders for the first time. The humans think they look like monsters but we, the readers, know they're not! It was very well done.
Honestly my favorite part of A Fire Upon the Deep was the world building of the culture and biology of the Tines and I felt the same way about this book. Sherkaner Underhill and his family had such a gut wrenching arc.
The parts I liked though - the Spiders and their history and culture. I think Vinge was going for building up a lot of empathy and humanization of the spiders to juxtapose it suddenly when the humans see the spiders for the first time. The humans think they look like monsters but we, the readers, know they're not! It was very well done.
Honestly my favorite part of A Fire Upon the Deep was the world building of the culture and biology of the Tines and I felt the same way about this book. Sherkaner Underhill and his family had such a gut wrenching arc.
Reading this book felt like climbing Mount Everest. I would have DNF'd if not for book club. Great premise and ideas, but large sections were incredibly boring
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
tense
fast-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
I was captivated by this story! The Qeng Ho trading clans have found another sentient race of that's on the verge of technological advance and are excited to trade with a developing market. Another human civilisation with less benevolent motives is also heading for Arachna. The three cultures plot with and against each other in a complicated mix of insurgencies and counterinsurgencies. Great characters-human and spider alike-try to move their ad-hoc society at the end of space towards what they believe is right. Just amazing, can't wait to read book 3.
Great world building, so-so story.
Vernor Vinge proves once again that he's a master in thinking sci-fi concepts. This story has some very solid yet unique sci-fi ideas. Even if he ignores the (brilliant) main concept of "zones of thought" in this one, ideas like the "Focus" are equally powerful given how plausible they sound. This is a concept that will stay with me for a long time!
Unfortunately, he also shows once again he's just an ok storyteller, in my opinion. One-sided characters, goofy happy endings, and absolutely unnecessary loose ends marred this one a bit for me.
Vernor Vinge proves once again that he's a master in thinking sci-fi concepts. This story has some very solid yet unique sci-fi ideas. Even if he ignores the (brilliant) main concept of "zones of thought" in this one, ideas like the "Focus" are equally powerful given how plausible they sound. This is a concept that will stay with me for a long time!
Unfortunately, he also shows once again he's just an ok storyteller, in my opinion. One-sided characters, goofy happy endings, and absolutely unnecessary loose ends marred this one a bit for me.
adventurous
challenging
dark
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A Deepness in the sky keeps everything positive from A Fire Upon the deep, and shaves down some of the more slow moving pieces that tended to drag. Much like AFUD, there is an alternating viewpoint between a 'higher tech' and 'lower tech' species, but a core difference is the attempt to 'skill-up' that these lower tech species make. In Deepness, it is fun to watch a hyper intelligent species held back by environmental factors pursue the stars.
Deepness is an absolutely stellar science fiction book in a lot of regards. It has technology that can be recognized, and stuff that can be imagined as plausible. It does suffer from an issue (my opinion) common to older sci-fi in that it doesn't really care for character growth. The characters we start with are mostly the ones we end with. It does examine them, their flaws, and their mistakes in an attempt to understand how we got here, but in the end the book is a battle of competing species and technology.
As is also common with older sci-fi, there is a real lack of serious women in this book, and that combined with a fairly graphic depiction of sexual assault that I felt didn't move the needle much in terms of character growth, nor plot, caused me to doc a little bit off my final rating.
The books is gripping from prologue to epilogue, and it can leave you feeling inspired to learn. There is a very core theme of perseverance, and how when the right minds are given space to flourish the impossible is just a construct of society. There is a piece towards the end where a character ponders how a low tech society was able to exceed the ability of the main high tech society just because they hadn't ever questioned whether their pursuits were possible or not, they simply tried until they succeeded. That feels like it could sum up the message of the book.
Deepness is an absolutely stellar science fiction book in a lot of regards. It has technology that can be recognized, and stuff that can be imagined as plausible. It does suffer from an issue (my opinion) common to older sci-fi in that it doesn't really care for character growth. The characters we start with are mostly the ones we end with. It does examine them, their flaws, and their mistakes in an attempt to understand how we got here, but in the end the book is a battle of competing species and technology.
As is also common with older sci-fi, there is a real lack of serious women in this book, and that combined with a fairly graphic depiction of sexual assault that I felt didn't move the needle much in terms of character growth, nor plot, caused me to doc a little bit off my final rating.
The books is gripping from prologue to epilogue, and it can leave you feeling inspired to learn. There is a very core theme of perseverance, and how when the right minds are given space to flourish the impossible is just a construct of society. There is a piece towards the end where a character ponders how a low tech society was able to exceed the ability of the main high tech society just because they hadn't ever questioned whether their pursuits were possible or not, they simply tried until they succeeded. That feels like it could sum up the message of the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault