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mandi4886's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Violence, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Medical content, Blood, Gun violence, Child abuse, Death, Deportation, Grief, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail, and Mental illness
kickthe89's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide, Mental illness, and Violence
massivepizzacrust's review
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.25
This is just the kind of weird (but not to the point where I don't understand what's happening) book I love. And Emily St. John Mandel really knows how to write them. I think I might be cured of my book slump because for the first time in a month I actively wanted to get off work as fast as possible so I could finish reading. It's a book that'll sit in the bottom of my chest and I'm happy about it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Violence
Moderate: Confinement and Forced institutionalization
starrysteph's review
mysterious
reflective
slow-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
3.25
I'm a little torn on this one. I enjoy stories about time travel – and I enjoy stories about time travel with lyrical, dream-like writing and complex questions. But some of the actual content fell flat.
We cross huge spans of time in this novel, but the writing style stays the same. I wanted more differentiation between the voices of characters in 1912 and 2020 and far into the future. I also felt that there was a lack of creativity or perhaps "realism" when we go far into the future. Why are things EXACTLY the same as they are in 2020? Yes, people live on the moon, but there isn't any nuance here.
I also felt some frustration at the recklessness and thoughtlessness of Gaspery's decisions. It's hard to explain without spoilers, but the choices he made and the shifting of timelines felt too simplistic and didn't make sense. And in general, I didn't find myself making deep emotional connections to any of the characters. (And there was some content around Olive as a writer of pandemic stories that felt like a clear self-insert and was a little silly.)
Overall, I enjoyed the concept. I enjoyed the weaving together of the stories (though it became a little cliche by the end). I enjoyed the writing style. But once I zoomed in and thought a bit more critically about the material, I found myself disappointed.
CW: chronic illness, confinement, death, colonisation, murder, gun violence, suicide, war, alcohol, pandemic, sexism
We cross huge spans of time in this novel, but the writing style stays the same. I wanted more differentiation between the voices of characters in 1912 and 2020 and far into the future. I also felt that there was a lack of creativity or perhaps "realism" when we go far into the future. Why are things EXACTLY the same as they are in 2020? Yes, people live on the moon, but there isn't any nuance here.
I also felt some frustration at the recklessness and thoughtlessness of Gaspery's decisions. It's hard to explain without spoilers, but the choices he made and the shifting of timelines felt too simplistic and didn't make sense. And in general, I didn't find myself making deep emotional connections to any of the characters. (And there was some content around Olive as a writer of pandemic stories that felt like a clear self-insert and was a little silly.)
Overall, I enjoyed the concept. I enjoyed the weaving together of the stories (though it became a little cliche by the end). I enjoyed the writing style. But once I zoomed in and thought a bit more critically about the material, I found myself disappointed.
CW: chronic illness, confinement, death, colonisation, murder, gun violence, suicide, war, alcohol, pandemic, sexism
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Terminal illness, Violence, Chronic illness, Gun violence, Mental illness, Murder, Colonisation, Confinement, Death, Medical content, and War
Minor: Death of parent, Suicide attempt, Forced institutionalization, Colonisation, Car accident, Gun violence, Sexism, and Suicide
literarylion's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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? It's complicated
4.5
Pros:
- St. John Mandel is all-around good at what she does.
- Well-crafted and executed impeccably. No unsatisfying loose ends.
- Perfect pacing and length, unique concept.
- The character development is unreal. Even minor characters felt lived-in.
Cons:
- I'd like to see her expand into a different genre. She's excellent in her element, but her past three books have been very similar to each other (not to say that I found them tedious or derivative)
- I don't think that this story needed to be
tied to The Glass Hotel . I can see how it might be satisfying to make that connection but it could easily stand alone. - Maybe I've been reading too many pandemic-focused books, but the details of the
SARS 5 pandemic felt a bit tired--maybe too similar to COVID-19
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Violence, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Alcohol, Colonisation, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, and Gun violence
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