Reviews

Redshirts by John Scalzi

jewelsjoy's review against another edition

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4.0

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and not just because of the obvious connections it made to a certain sci-fi television franchise. I thought the concept was wonderful. Everyone who watches these kinds of tv shows must wonder at some point or another why that crewman doesn't just say, "heck, no, I'm not going down to that planet with the command team!" I think what made me like this book the most was the banter between the characters, particularly Dahl, Duvall, and Kerensky. It felt like I was listening to my friends arguing, making fun of each other and having a laugh at each others' expense, all while trying to make sense of the dangerous world around them.

elizabethpero's review against another edition

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adventurous funny hopeful 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? No

3.75

seagullsaga's review

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adventurous funny lighthearted fast-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? No

4.25

saranies's review against another edition

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3.0

Fun and funny light sci fi read.
Spoiler I did hit a wall with this after the main characters went "back in time" to California and then came up with a solution to their problems because I thought I knew how it was going to end and stopped caring. I was relieved when Scalzi's Codas went back to Burbank and looked at the lives of the "real" non-Intrepid people who were affected by Andy et al's actions.

christianwheel's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted reflective 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

3.5

ethayden2's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted fast-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

2.0

zsazso's review against another edition

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adventurous funny fast-paced
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.25

zer0faults's review against another edition

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3.0

This is going to contain spoilers, so skip the whole thing if you don't want any.
Spoiler
I skipped the "second ending" CODA II, mainly because I was just done at that point, I didn't even need the "first ending" but it was a fun read. It did not add anything to the actual book, nor did it really take anything away, I almost took it as some fun thing the author threw out, like a philosophical exploration at a comic-con.

The parts all before the CODA's, and the mess, I loved. About halfway through the book I stopped reading the "jane said," etc and the reading was just flowing more naturally. The character started to fall into their places where it almost felt natural for Maia to be saying what I read, without me having to finish the sentence of "Maia said."

The story was great, but the book wasn't that great in terms of a read. I could have watched this in an hour as a TV special of some sort. It went by quick without me really caring about the characters, or was that the point as extra's? The hologram scene, touching, and even though you don't really get into Jenkins, and it seems as if Jenkins is really a main character, he has a back story and everything, his story is really the only thing gripping.

In the end, I loved the preposition, did not really care for the character development, completely ignored a ton of pages at the end in what I think was a wise choice. Its was a fun, quick read. Something I needed after my much more serious reading list.

dualmon's review against another edition

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2.0

Nerd humor in the genre of Off to Be the Wizard. But this isn't a very funny story.

cranuaed's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0