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3.98 AVERAGE
3.98 AVERAGE
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-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
DNF @ page 292
This was one of my most anticipated reads this year and here I am throwing in the towel with 150 pages left. The overall premise was intriguing and it focused on important social justice issues but I just couldn't get into it. Maybe it's because I'm not familiar with the boroughs of NYC that the characters are portraying so I didn't feel any attachment.
This was one of my most anticipated reads this year and here I am throwing in the towel with 150 pages left. The overall premise was intriguing and it focused on important social justice issues but I just couldn't get into it. Maybe it's because I'm not familiar with the boroughs of NYC that the characters are portraying so I didn't feel any attachment.
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Oh this one has layers. These are not going to be fully formed thoughts so stream of consciousness it is. That capitalism, individualism, commodification, gentrification (obviously), and other factors combine to kill what makes cities (and people) unique. Somehow individualism is the death of individuality (not somehow the connection is there).
Classic complex and meaty characters you find with Jemisin. I want to know more about all of them, but especially Manny, as well as Queens who was definitely the one least explored in this. Jemisin's mind 😍😍😍 I love the worlds she makes, the idea here - that cities develop souls - is so fascinating and the commentary on what cities develop souls - and how those potential Cities are stillbirthed - so much to dive into there. I wish that I loved New York as much as she does, this was dripping with reverence for the city and I wish I could have gotten as much out of this as I could have if I was more familiar with the city.
I hope.... every time..... that the white woman does not fall through..... And every time..... I fear it is inevitable 😩😩😩. That you can suffer injustices from the system while clinging to that same system bc you think it provides safety - safety that ultimately fails bc the foundation is unsteady. There is no true safety in whiteness.
This is one of those where I want to read it with someone and then discuss after each chapter.
Classic complex and meaty characters you find with Jemisin. I want to know more about all of them, but especially Manny, as well as Queens who was definitely the one least explored in this. Jemisin's mind 😍😍😍 I love the worlds she makes, the idea here - that cities develop souls - is so fascinating and the commentary on what cities develop souls - and how those potential Cities are stillbirthed - so much to dive into there. I wish that I loved New York as much as she does, this was dripping with reverence for the city and I wish I could have gotten as much out of this as I could have if I was more familiar with the city.
I hope.... every time..... that the white woman does not fall through..... And every time..... I fear it is inevitable 😩😩😩. That you can suffer injustices from the system while clinging to that same system bc you think it provides safety - safety that ultimately fails bc the foundation is unsteady. There is no true safety in whiteness.
This is one of those where I want to read it with someone and then discuss after each chapter.
adventurous
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
As always, Jemisin displays her mastery of world-building and character creation, this time all the more impressive because it’s based on real life! While I felt that the story was a bit slow at times, it was still an enjoyable read. I especially appreciated the diversity of characters, and especially that she did extensive research to make sure each character was a respectful representation of their cultures.
adventurous
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
First read I had to set it down and idk if that's more because I've never been a big fantasy person but when I gave it another shot it just flowed! Looking forward to the next one
Initial thoughts were:
1. This is a very weird concept
2. I do not know enough about NYC to grasp the intricacies at play here.
But still I was reeled in. I've read 2/3 of the Broken Earth trilogy, and NK Jemison is talented at making very complicated fantasy worlds feel inviting.
However, the momentum wained from about halfway through… I don’t feel enough of a plot existed here, and nothing really “happens” as such. It felt like it was more setting the stage for things to come, but I don’t know if I connected enough with any character, to continue this trilogy journey.
2.5/5
1. This is a very weird concept
2. I do not know enough about NYC to grasp the intricacies at play here.
But still I was reeled in. I've read 2/3 of the Broken Earth trilogy, and NK Jemison is talented at making very complicated fantasy worlds feel inviting.
However, the momentum wained from about halfway through… I don’t feel enough of a plot existed here, and nothing really “happens” as such. It felt like it was more setting the stage for things to come, but I don’t know if I connected enough with any character, to continue this trilogy journey.
2.5/5
adventurous
slow-paced
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
This was decent, but there were a few parts that bothered me. What this book did best imo was being a response to Lovecraft racism/some of the racism in Lovecraftian horror. Like, I had already read The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor LaValle which was a “The Horror at Red Hook” by H.G. Lovecraft (which I also read), and I found it a bit unsatisfying because The Ballad of Black Tom focuses a lot on the experiences of Black Americans in 1920s New York, but a lot of the racism of Lovecraft's writing isn't about hating Black people in particular, it's about fear of racial mixing (and immigration comes with that). This is something that Jemisin did a much better job at because her book is about people of multiple races (some of whom are also immigrants) coming together, which is exactly what Lovecraft feared. But she also managed to make it make sense from a plot perspective (it's not just different races coming together, but New York coming together) and managed to integrate these fears with more modern forms of racism as well. I also think that The City We Became did a much better job with the subversion part of things, because it had the Lovecraftian horror be metaphorical white supremacy, where as The Ballad of Black Tom had the subversion be how even the Lovecraftian monsters are better than white racists, and empower Tommy by having him choose that, but it kind of backpedals and obscures that towards the end which didn't really work that well for me.
So like I previously mentioned, the antagonist of the story is white supremacy, and the book isn't particularly subtle about that. The villainous characters are white, and most of the sympathetic characters (and all of the most sympathetic characters) are people of color. I think this makes sense for a book about white supremacy, but I guess if you're hoping for a token good white character or a token evil PoC villain, there's not one here. I will say that Jemisin is really direct about these themes so if you tend to dislike that sort of directness and find it preachy, you're probably not going to have a great time with it.
One of the POVs (the one representing Staton Island) was a racist white woman, and while I don't have a problem with the idea of her character, the execution felt a bit off to me at times. Like, I can clearly see why Jemisin wrote her the way she did (daughter of a racist policeman because that'll be a good lead in to how white women are often taught to fear of other races, make her the victim of the patriarchy (her father) to make her a bit sympathetic, make her Irish-American because that's like the perceived underdog of white people while they still actually benefiting from white privilege, make her Catholic because religion can reinforce the patriarchy, etc). But all these aspects didn't really come together or always make sense to me. Probably the most glaring example of this was when Aislyn's mother just casually admits to having an abortion (makes sense from a white woman as victims of the patriarchy perspective (I think Jemisin was trying to make Aislyn and her mother seem more sympathetic to liberal readers), absolutely does not make sense from a devout/more traditional leaning Catholic perspective. Like yes, devout Catholic women have had abortions before, but I'd have a hard time imagining one that would treat it so casually, because that's seen as casually admitting to having murdered someone from a devout Catholic perspective. Even if she doesn't see it that way, she knows that a lot of the people around her will, which is why people don't casually talk about it.) Anyway, IDK if there were other little things in the other POVs (although the way Bronca referred to Two Spirit people felt a little odd to me at times, but I'm definitely not an authority on that topic).
Aislyn was also portrayed as being pretty stupid fortrusting the Woman in White so much. Which yeah, didn't really make sense to me either because it was portrayed like of course she'd trust a white woman. Can I see a racist white woman raised in a patriarchal family trusting another white woman over a random collection of POC people (the other POVs)? Sure. Can I see her trusting another white woman just in general as a friend without question even as that friend repeatedly talks about destroying the world while being really condescending? Definitely not, white women in those settings don't get along that well (the patriarchy doesn't exactly incentivize it), and you'd have to be really stupid to fall for that.
Aislyn was also portrayed as being pretty stupid for
The book is also has themes about sacrificing some people for other people, and I though that was handled inconsistently. When is people being killed for more people to survive ok? Like, universes of people die for cities, and in that case bigger number dying for smaller number is a good thing, but the borough avatars are supposed to be sacrificing themselves for the city (smaller number for bigger number is a good thing). Despite none of the avatars liking either of these ideas, no one pointed out that these are mutually incompatible/inconsistent, which I thought was odd.
Here's a lot of quick thoughts:
- Plotwise, the entire book was very much a getting the gang together, which did get kinda slow and annoying at times. That's not my favorite type of book.
- I can't say much about how accurately Jemisin portrays the different New York boroughs because I've never lived there.
- The magic was mostly fine, but Padmini had math superpowers which is a trope I dislike. Most of the main characters are at least a little unlikable at times, which I feel like is consistent with Jemisin's writing in general.
- I've seen reviews about other Jemisin books where people thought the way she handled queer men was weird, and yeah, I definitely saw that come across pretty clearly in this book (it felt kind of fetishizing? like not to a super obvious degree but definitely to the point were it felt uncomfortable to me).
- The audiobook was pretty interesting in that background sounds and music would occasionally be playing, which I liked (it felt a bit closer to an audiodrama). It wasn't really a full production thing, but I liked that touch.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Hate crime, Racism, Sexual assault, Violence, Xenophobia, Toxic friendship, Classism
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Police brutality
Minor: Ableism, Addiction, Cancer, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Abortion, Alcohol, Deportation
A creatively written, multicultural sci-fi, which is the first novel I’ve read in the genre and will probably be my last. Not my cup of tea ☕️
adventurous
slow-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
Very creative bit of fantasy/sci-fi - it was super slow to get through, but I enjoyed it overall. Looking forward to seeing where the next half of the story goes.