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kadomi's review against another edition
3.0
This SF novel leaves me feeling kind of conflicted. I overall enjoyed reading it, but it also frustrated the heck out of me. The story is set on the planet Eden where a human colony has existed for over 160 years. Apparently three dudes stole a spaceship, were chased by the Earth Police and crash-landed on Eden. Three dudes then went back to earth, leaving two people behind, Angela and Tommy. The colony are descendants of those two, waiting for a rescue troop from Earth to pick them up. The society has devolved into hunter gatherers on a planet that is inherently ill-suited to serve as home for humans. The planet is far away from the sun, so the only illumination are lumiscent flowers and trees. As their society is also inherently incestuous (the original couple had like 4 daughters and one son. Do the math), there are mutations, so called batfaces and clawfeet.
In comes John Redlantern, shit-stirrer and progressive. He is not satisfied with the status quo of life in their valley, the 560 people that they are. Supplies are running low. He wants to travel over The Dark, the snowy mountainside, to see what else is on Eden. And so he and his little group of rebels set out to see what's out there.
It's pretty much a sociological study as their society changes from peaceful matriarchy to more aggressive patriarchy.
My main issue is that all the viewpoint characters, but especially John, are entirely unrelatable. John is an unlikeable asshole, his sort of love interest Tina was entirely unrelatable for me as well. The ending didn't satisfy me either. My favorite part was probably the expedition, the trip into the unknown, but the rest? Not interested in the sequel.
2.5 stars for me
In comes John Redlantern, shit-stirrer and progressive. He is not satisfied with the status quo of life in their valley, the 560 people that they are. Supplies are running low. He wants to travel over The Dark, the snowy mountainside, to see what else is on Eden. And so he and his little group of rebels set out to see what's out there.
It's pretty much a sociological study as their society changes from peaceful matriarchy to more aggressive patriarchy.
My main issue is that all the viewpoint characters, but especially John, are entirely unrelatable. John is an unlikeable asshole, his sort of love interest Tina was entirely unrelatable for me as well. The ending didn't satisfy me either. My favorite part was probably the expedition, the trip into the unknown, but the rest? Not interested in the sequel.
2.5 stars for me
mikime's review against another edition
4.0
This is a novel about both the future and the past of humanity, in a way. The small group of people forming the "Family" were all originally born of the same couple of astronauts from Earth who crashed on the so-called Eden planet and decided to stay, while three other astronauts left on a not entirely reliable spaceship to try and go back to Earth, or at least call for help. Their story, the origin story of the people on Eden, is told and retold every year, and words and devices left by them are shown, repeated and revered as sacred and fundamental to the Family's survival, even though most of their meaning and functioning are lost. The Family follow the rules set by their original parents literally, in the hope of seeing some spaceship come back to pick them all up and take them back to Earth, where there is light from the sky and so many facilities and life is supposedly easy. Theirs is a dark world, an upside down, inside out world in a way, where all light and warmth come from the underground, the underwater, and from the inside of trees, flowers, and animals. The people lead a hunters&gatherers life mostly, and innocently and meekly follow the rules and the organisation in tribes with different schedules and living zones, but never too far from the original landing site, even as food resources are getting scarcer and scarcer ... until a restless kid, John, shockingly, decides to speak up and suggest a new course, a move from their valley, to at least explore and possibly settle in, a place beyond the dark and cold mountains around them..... He thus starts a series of events that will lead to the separation of a small group from Family and to a number of unheard of actions by some of the people, against all rules and reason. But they all also find out that Eden has a lot more to offer than they imagined, and a different truth about the past will emerge, changing everything for the people in Eden.
One of the most interesting things of this novel is the way the characters speak (and think), the way they adapted the language of their foreparents and changed it and sometimes just distorted its words for total lack of knowledge of what they refer to, what they really mean. It's really like children's speech, trying to talk of things beyond even their capacity of pronounciation, let alone understanding, thus reinforcing the idea of the people in Eden as innocent children.
One of the most interesting things of this novel is the way the characters speak (and think), the way they adapted the language of their foreparents and changed it and sometimes just distorted its words for total lack of knowledge of what they refer to, what they really mean. It's really like children's speech, trying to talk of things beyond even their capacity of pronounciation, let alone understanding, thus reinforcing the idea of the people in Eden as innocent children.
eowyns_helmet's review against another edition
3.0
There is a lot of this I really liked -- the world, the imagery, the language (seemed much less problematic and more grounded in the story than, for example, [b:The Country of Ice Cream Star|22350219|The Country of Ice Cream Star|Sandra Newman|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1406043997s/22350219.jpg|25591193]. But I started to lose interest about halfway, in part because the resolution (no spoilers) seemed so predictable. The world exploration got a little old (we get it) almost as a way of prolonging the arrival at the conclusion. A novella masquerading as a novel. But certainly worth a read.
forlorncorn's review against another edition
5.0
I read this one a few years ago and never returned to it but in many ways the book keeps returning to me. It haunts me. Its dark and near hopeless world, its broken (sometimes literally) characters and their impossible plight.
There has yet to be a novel to leave such a lasting impression on me. I would not want to live in Dark Eden but I'm glad it exists.
There has yet to be a novel to leave such a lasting impression on me. I would not want to live in Dark Eden but I'm glad it exists.
barbells_and_bookshelves's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-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? It's complicated
5.0
crlpedigo's review against another edition
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest
Moderate: Violence and Sexual harassment
sineadcarney's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
4.0
This was a really interesting book, I really enjoyed that the setting was at once so unlike earth but also so recognisable. You could really feel the uncertainties and frustrations of the characters throughout the story. I found all the constant references to slipping over the top, but otherwise a really enjoyable story.
A bit unsatisfying to have it end on such a cliffhanger though.
eososray's review against another edition
1.0
A random pick from the library that didn't work for me. I quit reading after chapter 7 due to a low opinion of the writing and the world building.
a_o's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-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? Yes
4.0