Reviews with content warning for Suicide - Migrations

Are the flaws of the main character a main focus of the book?
mmmm, well you could say that *flash through of all Franny's questionable decisions fueled by her immense trauma*

It's been a bit of a cold period in terms of my heart being truly shattered by a book. I haven't had the soul-crushing emotions that come from a devastating read, and I was beginning to think I'd become to tough; not to fret, I do indeed still have some semblance of a heart. And this book reminded me of that fragment I do have left.

god, this book. Migrations, you son of a bitch, how DARE YOU make me feel so many things. It's a rough journey, so if any of the content warnings are triggering, please take heed when reading this. Especially

car accidents, death of loved ones, suicide, and abandonment

. Plot wise, it does jump around a lot, and I did see from other reviews that it bothered some people, but I personally think the way McConaghy wove it all through so delicately, pieces fell into place so seamlessly. I hesitate to use the words "reveal" as that might indicate towards a "thriller mystery" sort of book which this is not. Don't come into this thinking the mystery of it all will be a shocking twist. It is and it isn't. The information that's given isn't really, in my opinion, trying to be like a thriller where it's keeping you on your toes with suspense. It's the way we, as the reader, become more and more understanding and increasingly stressed for Franny. And it is shocking. But not in a way that makes you gasp with glee. It's painfully human and real.

This futuristic dystopian-like world McConaghy created is honestly more terrifying then the most AI centered ones of past and recent. The idea of nearly ALL of wildlife going extinct, it's horrific. And not just because it feels so likely for our current world. The way she writes about silent forests, beaches with no seagulls and the magic of finding a cave with terns nesting. It's the conversations around conservation, but only of species that have a direct positive impact and desirability for humans. That sort of 'environmental savior' purely for the benefit of our own species.

Franny's desperate fight to see the terns, something that changes meaning with every chapter. And when we get to the end and see the birds, and we know what this means, it was just so hard to read. I have never been one to throw books across rooms with rage or intense passion, mostly because my books comes from the library, but I did gently nudge this book off my bed.

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oceanxbluess's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad

5.0

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americattt's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

“I don’t know the answers, not really, but I do my best and, anyway, it’s not really answers they want, it’s simply remembering what it feels like to love creatures that aren’t human. A nameless sadness, a fading away of the birds. The fading away of the animals. How lonely it will be here, when it’s just us.”

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amberinbookland's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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kateph's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging mysterious reflective sad tense medium-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

4.0

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lharper's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional sad slow-paced

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

2.5

Ehhhhh. The writing style of the book reflects the narrator: blunt, disjointed, abrupt, a little dissociated, and lacking detail. As far as unreliable narrators go it’s hard to love or like the main character in this book. There is an overarching theme of how environmental crises are caused by human selfishness. Yet, the main character is incredibly self-centered and will sacrifice many others on her path to destroy herself. This to me was the biggest contradiction in the authors story. Writing from the perspective of a women who in fairness has withstood unimaginable pain and suffering, who then inflicts the same to many others without remorse or empathy. The books pace was well set and kept me intrigued enough with the time jumps to continue reading to reveal the expected but sad twist.

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lilifane's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful reflective sad 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

5.0

What a beautiful book. I wasn’t expecting to fall in love with it.

Set in a probably not so far future where climate change has caused 80% of the earth’s animals to go extinct. The last flock of Arctic Terns is about to undertake its last migration from the Arctic to Antarctica, and Franny wants to follow them. We follow Franny on her journey and get flashbacks to her life so far occasionally.

Although Franny is not always the most likeable character, I was really immersed in her story. I always wanted to know what happens next or what happened in her past. Although it’s a very slow-paced plot, it never gets boring. The writing is beautiful, melancholic and atmospheric (it was hot outside, but I was freezing with the characters). I love how the title and the story go together, and just the structure of the plot. (Which is technically non-linear, but there are so many parallels.) The plot is not always the most believable or logical, and the characters make some questionable decisions along the way. But the plot isn’t the most important part of the book anyways in my opinion. Also, it’s a sad and depressing story, but there is hope.

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shannabanana6's review against another edition

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adventurous dark inspiring reflective sad medium-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

Such a good book, incredibly well written, the prose was almost lyrical at times. Franny was such an amazing character too, she had a lot of depth and complexity, and despite all her flaws, so much heart and love. A really great depiction of a wandering soul. Although facing the reality of our destruction of the world is difficult to do and quite bleak, it's also important that we acknowledge it and the understanding that the characters have of their impact is well done.

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