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madelynfrank's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Unreliable narrator, twists. Gone-girl era vibes made it a page turner although ultimately none of the many twists were too shocking. The near future mass extinction setting was ominous. Very atmospheric and adventurous. Interesting and diverse characters attempted, many of the secondary characters were left disappointingly underdeveloped. Some of the prose was really wonderful. Read tag warnings cuz omigod. Also the dog dies.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Animal death, Car accident, Cursing, Mental illness, Animal cruelty, Abandonment, Death, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, and Death of parent
kathaarinaa's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Child death, Death, Mental illness, Pregnancy, Sexism, Miscarriage, and Animal death
semeyers's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
When I picked this up, I was excited to dig into it. Station Eleven is one of my favorite books, so seeing all of the comparisons being made between the two earned Migrations a spot on my reading list. By the end of the book, I was confused by the comparisons and the high ratings that this book is receiving.
Franny Lynch (née Stone) is about as unreliable as a narrator as they come and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Aside from being constantly reminded about how ~wild~ she is and how she must always be ~free~, I think her story was well done. My frustration was her trauma is never fully explored. We learn early on that she suffers from night terrors specifically surrounding choking and her sleepwalking is sometimes violent, yet we never really learn the answer as to why that is for sure.
The novel bounces back and forth in time, but I enjoyed this and thought it was well and clearly done. It helped to build up the suspense and answer some questions that are raised about Fanny in the beginning.
My main frustrations were with the issues surrounding the environment. Migrations, we find out in the first few pages, takes place in dystopian present or a not-so-distant future where 80% of animal life has gone extinct due to climate change and human activity. Forests are so endangered that there are years long waiting lists for people to visit them. All megafauna (elephants, rhinos, hippos, pandas, etc.) are extinct. There are no large predators left. All birds, aside from a few species of sea birds are gone. With ecosystems degraded so dramatically, you'd expect the world to be unrecognizable. Coastal cities wiped out. Large refugee populations. Food systems disrupted. Landscapes dramatically changed. Violent storms whipping up frequently, but unpredictably. Remaining animal populations moving in to fill voids (for example, insect populations are expected to skyrocket with climate change and most pest species would fair well, if not thrive).
But, in this novel, the world itself seems fairly unaffected. Coastal cities are still thriving. Village life continues as normal. Ireland is still a lush, green, livable, landscape. Seas are still easily navigable with regular currents and predictable storm patterns. All animal life is just...gone. It's weird. It was frustrating to read.
The book was also fairly disjointed in the writing style. It felt as if the author was still developing as the novel progressed. As a result, in my opinion, the last 10-15% of the novel was far superior than the first majority. I loved the ending. It actually upped my review slightly. I just wish we got more of a conclusion for the crew members.
Franny Lynch (née Stone) is about as unreliable as a narrator as they come and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Aside from being constantly reminded about how ~wild~ she is and how she must always be ~free~, I think her story was well done. My frustration was her trauma is never fully explored. We learn early on that she suffers from night terrors specifically surrounding choking and her sleepwalking is sometimes violent, yet we never really learn the answer as to why that is for sure.
The novel bounces back and forth in time, but I enjoyed this and thought it was well and clearly done. It helped to build up the suspense and answer some questions that are raised about Fanny in the beginning.
My main frustrations were with the issues surrounding the environment. Migrations, we find out in the first few pages, takes place in dystopian present or a not-so-distant future where 80% of animal life has gone extinct due to climate change and human activity. Forests are so endangered that there are years long waiting lists for people to visit them. All megafauna (elephants, rhinos, hippos, pandas, etc.) are extinct. There are no large predators left. All birds, aside from a few species of sea birds are gone. With ecosystems degraded so dramatically, you'd expect the world to be unrecognizable. Coastal cities wiped out. Large refugee populations. Food systems disrupted. Landscapes dramatically changed. Violent storms whipping up frequently, but unpredictably. Remaining animal populations moving in to fill voids (for example, insect populations are expected to skyrocket with climate change and most pest species would fair well, if not thrive).
But, in this novel, the world itself seems fairly unaffected. Coastal cities are still thriving. Village life continues as normal. Ireland is still a lush, green, livable, landscape. Seas are still easily navigable with regular currents and predictable storm patterns. All animal life is just...gone. It's weird. It was frustrating to read.
The book was also fairly disjointed in the writing style. It felt as if the author was still developing as the novel progressed. As a result, in my opinion, the last 10-15% of the novel was far superior than the first majority. I loved the ending. It actually upped my review slightly. I just wish we got more of a conclusion for the crew members.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Animal death, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Death, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Gore and Suicide
Minor: Pregnancy and Miscarriage
hollyd19's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This atmospheric and suspenseful novel centers on Franny Stone as she follows the last migration of Arctic terns south from Greenland in a near-future world where we are deeper into the climate crisis and only a handful of wild animal species remain. To do so, she talks her way onto one of the few remaining commercial fishing vessels and convinces them to track the terns as a last-ditch effort to find whatever fish are left in the sea.
McConaghy has crafted an eerie and emotionally charged novel wrapped around an uneasy narrator. Franny’s past unspools slowly in flashbacks throughout the book, delivered like a slowly dispersing fog. Her unfettered, willful nature ties the years together as we learn about her unconventional marriage to Niall Lynch, a disarming professor passionate about conservation.
I found the start of the book a little slow, in part because the characters were so nebulous that it was hard to grasp onto anything. However, as the story and its players came into clearer focus, I only became more intrigued. I was specifically struck by the nature of Franny and Niall’s relationship: at once capricious and remarkably committed, their tenderness and mutual understanding was such a beautiful ember in the midst of an otherwise cold and gray world.
Part of the power of this novel is the way McConaghy’s writing evokes the visceral nature of Franny’s pull to wander and the depth of her self-condemnation. Her split desires and war with her own body are memorably crafted. There were quite a few excerpts I wrote down because the writing was both beautiful & sharp. Also, the setting is remarkably unsettling, conjuring an ambience of entirely-realistic destruction.
McConaghy has crafted an eerie and emotionally charged novel wrapped around an uneasy narrator. Franny’s past unspools slowly in flashbacks throughout the book, delivered like a slowly dispersing fog. Her unfettered, willful nature ties the years together as we learn about her unconventional marriage to Niall Lynch, a disarming professor passionate about conservation.
I found the start of the book a little slow, in part because the characters were so nebulous that it was hard to grasp onto anything. However, as the story and its players came into clearer focus, I only became more intrigued. I was specifically struck by the nature of Franny and Niall’s relationship: at once capricious and remarkably committed, their tenderness and mutual understanding was such a beautiful ember in the midst of an otherwise cold and gray world.
Part of the power of this novel is the way McConaghy’s writing evokes the visceral nature of Franny’s pull to wander and the depth of her self-condemnation. Her split desires and war with her own body are memorably crafted. There were quite a few excerpts I wrote down because the writing was both beautiful & sharp. Also, the setting is remarkably unsettling, conjuring an ambience of entirely-realistic destruction.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Grief, and Car accident
Moderate: Abandonment, Suicide, and Death
Minor: Child death and Pregnancy
andrea2813's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Miscarriage, Death of parent, Death, Child death, and Car accident
Minor: Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Death, Murder, and Pregnancy
marywahlmeierbracciano's review
adventurous
challenging
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Franny has always longed to be like a bird—free, wandering wherever she likes. In a future world where most animal species have become extinct, her last wish is to follow a flock of Arctic Terns along their last migration—from North Pole to South. She talks her way onto a commercial fishing boat named for the Raven and faces a treacherous journey alongside the crew. But while the sailors aim to take more than their share of the ocean’s remaining fish, all Franny wants is to give—to the nature that has sustained her, to the nature that has died at human hands. A heart-wrenching tale, Migrations roars like the reckless waves of the sea.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, and Car accident
Moderate: Suicide attempt, Animal death, and Pregnancy
Minor: Suicide, Death of parent, and Abandonment
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