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purpledragonfly48's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
A convent of nuns navigates through space in a slug-like living ship decades after a bloody war between space colonies and the Earth Central Governance.
I felt like this could have been a full-length book, rather than a novella. It seemed that there could have been enough story, and the pacing almost seemed more like a full-length book than a shorter story. There is a bit of action, but it's all crammed into the last 20 or so pages.Also, I liked Gemma a lot, and resonated with her, so I was sorry to see her go. Would recommend for people looking for a short, sci-fi book with an intriguing setting. I did like the attention paid to detail with regards to the biology of the ship. Also, it contains surprisingly little religion for a book about a group of nuns.
I felt like this could have been a full-length book, rather than a novella. It seemed that there could have been enough story, and the pacing almost seemed more like a full-length book than a shorter story. There is a bit of action, but it's all crammed into the last 20 or so pages.
hb_bookworm's review against another edition
5.0
wow. this was such a phenomenal read - so much packed into such a small novella. so excellently crafted with many twists and turns, such rich worldbuilding, such fascinating characters! for a "nuns in space" premise this was more serious and touching than I thought it would be. very much hope to read more from this world and this author!!
wisecraic's review against another edition
adventurous
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
3.5
kurumipanda's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
sad
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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Blood, and Death
Moderate: Genocide, Animal death, Colonisation, Pandemic/Epidemic, Medical content, and Police brutality
Minor: Sexism and Xenophobia
kushniro's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
readerbot_lu's review against another edition
adventurous
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? Yes
Did I like it? Yes
Do I recommend it? Yes
Do I recommend it? Yes
Favorite Quote
"This was love, wasn’t it? For a woman who was so fundamentally uncomfortable with gentleness to try and be gentle with you?" (101)
Positives
I absolutely love the concept of living spaceships! The descriptions of the ship itself, seeing the crew interact with it, and how they thought of it differently (beast vs holy vs agent with free will) really hooked me into the story.
I also really enjoyed following the four nuns the story focused on. Their stories of their faith were all different and were intrinsic to understanding them as characters and their motivations.
There was also some great discussion about how religion and entertainment can be harnessed by governments for political agendas.
Negatives
I did guess one of the major plot twists early on, but I mostly wish we got to spend more time with Vauca’s crew before the final action took place.