Reviews

Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson

eliaa's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

rebesaurusrex's review

4.0

I really enjoyed most of this book; I found the characters to be compelling and understandable, the writing engaging, and the science believable. The only thing holding it back from 5 stars is that the last 10% needed some editing. But I genuinely enjoyed this book.

cortasty's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful 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? Yes

4.0

kengie13's review

adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

3.0

alex_watkins's review

5.0

So good! In fact a liked it better than 2312, which this book takes many cues from but seems not to be a strict sequel. It has much more narrative momentum and less wandering. The narrator is by far the most interesting part, really well done, and I think quite innovative.

andyshep's review

adventurous emotional reflective fast-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

3.5

bbuss's review against another edition

emotional informative inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.5

unmu's review

slow-paced

3.5

bsparks2112's review against another edition

adventurous challenging informative tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

In keeping with the other Kim Stanley Robinson works I've read, this was a brilliant and fascinating novel with just a few perplexing authorial decisions. I was really impressed by the technical rigor he showed in detailing all that would really go into creating and maintaining a generation ship intended for a century-plus space voyage; his attention to detail in all the things that could go wrong - and man, are there a lot of those - is equally impressive. I will say there are a fair amount of particularly info-dump-esque sections where Robinson shows his work on both counts; but this is balanced by some really harrowing stretches where the narrative is strung along with tension really effectively. All this technical detail is somewhat kept in check by keeping the emotional center of the story in Freya and her family and friends, following their growth and resiliency as they face these extreme circumstances. I also was really captivated by the integration of the ship's quantum computer AI into the story; the sections where this is brought forward as an important device (both literary and literally for the characters) and a character in their own right were the high marks of the story for me. Some plotting and story issues, especially regarding the ending section, were really the only parts that made me drop this to a 4-star read; it was still hugely enjoyable and rewarding.

joshhall13's review

5.0

Reminded me a lot of SevenEves. Such a good book . I loved the AI character development. Ingenious and a little funny at the same time...