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adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-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
dark
medium-paced
I would give my life FOR you, but not TO you.
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
It didn't stand out to me that this is Octavia Butler's first novel. It was great!
It is a tense journey with an interesting power struggle at the centre of it.
I only wished that the Clayark people played a bigger part than just being a one-dimensional adversary to the patternists.
It is a tense journey with an interesting power struggle at the centre of it.
I only wished that the Clayark people played a bigger part than just being a one-dimensional adversary to the patternists.
So looking at the Patternist novels as a whole, I'd say that Wild Seed is the best, then Clay's Ark, Mind of My Mind, and finally, this Patternmaster.
I think I would feel differently if I'd read in publication order. The oomph of the world building here is lost because I have so much more more detail and context than a first time 1976 reader. Similarly, I love Parable of the Sower, and I have already seen an "on the road" story done really well. Which brings me to my last point: Patternmaster's male protagonist is much less interesting and powerful than her many women main characters. He isn't really all that nice either.
I think I would feel differently if I'd read in publication order. The oomph of the world building here is lost because I have so much more more detail and context than a first time 1976 reader. Similarly, I love Parable of the Sower, and I have already seen an "on the road" story done really well. Which brings me to my last point: Patternmaster's male protagonist is much less interesting and powerful than her many women main characters. He isn't really all that nice either.
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I read Wild Seed first, then jumped to Patternmaster - the "first" of the series (but final story chronologically). I rather enjoyed seeing the end result of Doro's efforts to breed people with powers. Although this book dragged a little bit and wasn't particularly interesting plot-wise, I am still looking forward to going back and reading the rest of the prequels to see what happened to Doro and Anyanwu.
dark
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
this was an okay book. The third book is so divergent from the original story and then this book dovetails back in - so things came back together A but i still felt like it was all a little disjointed.
I rather liked the sphinxes and would have liked to know more abut then - their perspective - there a couple whole other books that could have been written…
sigh
over too soon.
I rather liked the sphinxes and would have liked to know more abut then - their perspective - there a couple whole other books that could have been written…
sigh
over too soon.
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-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
Very quick read. Felt like a chapter out of a larger book, and made me want to read more in the series. I liked the connection to wild seed.
I thought the magic / battle mechanics were cool, if sometimes a bit confusing (the barrier between attacking the mind vs. attacking the body sometimes strict but other times not). Feels like the Force but more cerebral.
Brutal power dynamics throughout, but that tracks with Butler's other work. Love the Bi representation
I thought the magic / battle mechanics were cool, if sometimes a bit confusing (the barrier between attacking the mind vs. attacking the body sometimes strict but other times not). Feels like the Force but more cerebral.
Brutal power dynamics throughout, but that tracks with Butler's other work. Love the Bi representation
Author Octavia E. Butler's debut novel was later followed by a number of loose prequels, detailing how the world arrived at the future civilization depicted here, with humanity divided into three warring tribes: 'Clayark' mutants infected with an alien pathogen, regular people, and psychics linked in a global hierarchical 'Pattern.' These titles don't form a series in the traditional sense, and indeed, it's a little disappointing to read them in chronological order, reach the conclusion of this volume, and realize how poorly it functions as a capstone to the sweeping story that's come before, spanning lightyears and millennia of history.
Still, this is a fine piece of science-fiction in its own right, presenting one telepath's journey to free himself from the abusive coercion of a stronger foe. Race is not as central a theme as it sometimes is in this writer's work, but there are clear parallels to antebellum slavery in the Patternist society, where subjugated individuals can be traded between households, separated from a spouse, viciously beaten, and pressed into sexual service. The protagonist ultimately learns how to wield his power to unseat one particular tyrant, but the terrible might-makes-right system overall is left unaltered and his own cruelties are excused by circumstance. The narrative thus treads a path that is triumphant on the surface yet altogether bleaker in subtext, as will become common in many of Butler's subsequent works.
My biggest critique of this tale is that I want more from its franchise, especially sequels that explore what happens next and tie in all the diverse threads introduced elsewhere. But as a semi-standalone adventure, this is pretty great.
[Content warning for gun violence, amputation, and biphobia.]
--Subscribe at https://patreon.com/lesserjoke to support these reviews and weigh in on what I read next!--
Find me on Patreon | Goodreads | Blog | Twitter
Still, this is a fine piece of science-fiction in its own right, presenting one telepath's journey to free himself from the abusive coercion of a stronger foe. Race is not as central a theme as it sometimes is in this writer's work, but there are clear parallels to antebellum slavery in the Patternist society, where subjugated individuals can be traded between households, separated from a spouse, viciously beaten, and pressed into sexual service. The protagonist ultimately learns how to wield his power to unseat one particular tyrant, but the terrible might-makes-right system overall is left unaltered and his own cruelties are excused by circumstance. The narrative thus treads a path that is triumphant on the surface yet altogether bleaker in subtext, as will become common in many of Butler's subsequent works.
My biggest critique of this tale is that I want more from its franchise, especially sequels that explore what happens next and tie in all the diverse threads introduced elsewhere. But as a semi-standalone adventure, this is pretty great.
[Content warning for gun violence, amputation, and biphobia.]
--Subscribe at https://patreon.com/lesserjoke to support these reviews and weigh in on what I read next!--
Find me on Patreon | Goodreads | Blog | Twitter