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3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
DNF.
I might return to this one given Le Guin's popularity, but not before I read a different book of hers.
It could be that this is just not my taste.
I might return to this one given Le Guin's popularity, but not before I read a different book of hers.
It could be that this is just not my taste.
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I'm not really sure I followed this one very closely. It was tough to understand who the characters were and what their attributes were. After reading the summary, I feel like I didn't even absorb this book at all.
adventurous
dark
reflective
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:
Complicated
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
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
Still gathering my thoughts on this but overall loved it. Le Guin's first published novel, it blends fantasy and sci-fi in a way that feels so creative and seamless. Honestly my only qualm is that it wasn't longer. I could have spent much more time in this world she created. I'm going to come back to this review later because I want to write my thoughts out in more detail and I'm currently in the break room at work, which isn't the best place to think about things.
adventurous
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
For such a short book, this was an absolute slog to finish. Something about the writing style just made it difficult to read. There's a lot going on, and moves from plot beat to plot beat very quickly, but without saying anything interesting or engaging at any point to keep you invested. The characters get no personality or development.
There's one scene which is interesting, where the protagonist (using his cool sci-fi tech) is impervious to attempts to kill him by burning him alive. This leads to his attackers, as well as other characters later on, seeing him as some kind of god. It's a cool concept which is not explored nearly enough and goes basically nowhere.
There's one scene which is interesting, where the protagonist (using his cool sci-fi tech) is impervious to attempts to kill him by burning him alive. This leads to his attackers, as well as other characters later on, seeing him as some kind of god. It's a cool concept which is not explored nearly enough and goes basically nowhere.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
A story in the Hainish cycle, about an off-worlder ethnologist who discovers other off-world enemies on the planet. He undertakes a perilous journey with some companions to remove the danger, discovering more people groups and strange events along the way. It is a story which demonstrates how certain actions can get turned into stories, legends and myths, and it is superbly done.