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ryndleto's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.5
God this is gonna feel so mean author pls don’t read this review.
This is the worst book I’ve read in a long time. It tries to do so many things at once but doesn’t really accomplish any of them in a meaningful way. There’s kinda romance, kinda sci fi, kinda family drama, kinda suspense, but none of them are done well. This book felt like it was trying too hard to have a diverse cast of characters, which I think is neat, but no character was well fleshed out, so the topics touched on (chronic disease, polyamory, queer issues, etc.) all came off as super preachy to me. The pacing of the book is weird, there are major plots holes, and the world isn’t well fleshed out. Also, I understand why the physics presented isn’t possible after my physics 101 class in undergrad so that was another huge turn off for me. I honestly can’t think of anything this book did well. Finished it because I needed one for my reading challenge, but I would not recommend this book to anyone.
This is the worst book I’ve read in a long time. It tries to do so many things at once but doesn’t really accomplish any of them in a meaningful way. There’s kinda romance, kinda sci fi, kinda family drama, kinda suspense, but none of them are done well. This book felt like it was trying too hard to have a diverse cast of characters, which I think is neat, but no character was well fleshed out, so the topics touched on (chronic disease, polyamory, queer issues, etc.) all came off as super preachy to me. The pacing of the book is weird, there are major plots holes, and the world isn’t well fleshed out. Also, I understand why the physics presented isn’t possible after my physics 101 class in undergrad so that was another huge turn off for me. I honestly can’t think of anything this book did well. Finished it because I needed one for my reading challenge, but I would not recommend this book to anyone.
flapjacks's review
2.0
I think I found this title when I was searching for diverse romances, and while this book had very diverse characters (just look at the cover!), I thought it was more a sci-fi/fantasy/adventure story than romance. But who knows? There was so much going on plot wise that I had a really hard time connecting to any of the characters or the world the author was trying to create.
readingwithhippos's review
4.0
Cool worldbuilding alert! Ascension takes place in a universe where spaceship mechanics are called “sky surgeons” and the work is more personal and intuitive than cranking inanimate gears. Thus when Alana, a sky surgeon who’s never been off planet, stows away on a ship, she hopes to build a relationship not just with the crew but with the ship itself. As an uninvited guest, it takes her some time to ingratiate herself with the wildly varied cast of characters that call the ship home, but Alana craves adventure and new experiences and she won’t let her (devastatingly sexy) new captain drop her off back home without a fight. Considering the chronic illness that causes her serious pain even with medication, it would be easier for Alana to stay in her safe little bubble, but now that she’s had a taste of space flight, she’s hooked. This book is effortlessly inclusive, with all kinds of diverse characters and relationships, and while it’s not as polished, I think it would be a good pick for fans of Becky Chambers.
docpacey's review
3.0
I found this romance/space-opera in my search for 'other voices' in fiction. Koyanagi represents several marginalized groups, and uses that perspective to create a world that isn't much like the run-of-the-mill male dominated multiverse of most sci-fi.
Ascension is a light, quick read, a bit heavy on flowery prose and romance, but not at the expense of some decent sci-fi.
Alana Quick stows aboard a space cargo ship because she's ill and wants an adventure before her life has been wasted. She's a mechanic, a sky-surgeon, and the ship she boards has called to her. The crew is a rag-tag bunch of marginalized misfits, with more problems than solutions, but the whole ends up being greater than the sum of its parts and the story is well paced and nicely told.
I grew up on sci-fi like this in the 70's and Ascension has a bit of a nostalgic feel of those free-love, psychedelic days. Worth the read.
Ascension is a light, quick read, a bit heavy on flowery prose and romance, but not at the expense of some decent sci-fi.
Alana Quick stows aboard a space cargo ship because she's ill and wants an adventure before her life has been wasted. She's a mechanic, a sky-surgeon, and the ship she boards has called to her. The crew is a rag-tag bunch of marginalized misfits, with more problems than solutions, but the whole ends up being greater than the sum of its parts and the story is well paced and nicely told.
I grew up on sci-fi like this in the 70's and Ascension has a bit of a nostalgic feel of those free-love, psychedelic days. Worth the read.
erosabsens's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
antithesis's review
adventurous
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
emdowd's review
4.0
Delightful, entertaining, progressive science fiction adventure with some philosophy mixed in. So where's #2?
It could have used some better world building and descriptions (How exactly do these ships work? Is it typical for ships to be so strongly personified in the eyes/hearts of sky surgeons as The Tangled Axon is for Alana? How far in the future are we? Are we in the future? Can somebody explain wtf is going on with not-a-wolf-but-also-a-wolf Ovie?) but I didn't come here for explicit realism. I'm here for adventure and queer romance and this delivered.
It could have used some better world building and descriptions (How exactly do these ships work? Is it typical for ships to be so strongly personified in the eyes/hearts of sky surgeons as The Tangled Axon is for Alana? How far in the future are we? Are we in the future? Can somebody explain wtf is going on with not-a-wolf-but-also-a-wolf Ovie?) but I didn't come here for explicit realism. I'm here for adventure and queer romance and this delivered.
schobsie's review
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
helalost's review
adventurous
slow-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
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder and Death of parent
essinink's review
2.0
I very much wanted to like this book.
There were, in fact, many things that I *did* like about it, particularly in the beginning of the book. Alana Quick is a determined, working woman of color, hampered but not conquered by a degenerative disease. The descriptions of her life before the Tangled Axon could very well be set in the here-and-now. I loved the frankness with which class struggle, poverty, and disability were (at first) addressed.
And then I got further into the book. Alana is supposedly in her thirties, but she reads like a teenager. It wears quickly.
By the time the romance subplot came to fruition, I found myself frustrated. The romance seemed... not exactly out of place, but just sort of... hollow. Try as I might, I couldn't figure out why these people were falling together beyond the fact that they found each other attractive. There were hints of 'development,' but nothing that really allowed them to get to know each other as characters.
My original review mentioned 'insta-love/lust' as something I disliked, but it's more than that. The relationship between Alanna and the captain (whose name I no longer recall), was fraught with a lack of communication. Alanna is (understandably) confused by the crew's dynamic, but every time she seeks clarification, the conversation is turned back on her. Because as far as they're concerned, she's the problem. They shouldn't have to explain how their relationship(s) work. She should just go with the flow. This is unhealthy.
And it doesn't stop there. Alanna's sister participates in ritual starvation defined in-text as anorexia, and no one in-text seems to find this problematic. In fact, the 'escape' from one's earthly form plays a critical role in the train-wreck of an ending (see original review).
At the end of the book, I was left uncertain about what the message of the story was meant to be. Clearly it wanted to be more than a fun adventure story, but it couldn't seem to decide if it was science fiction or science fantasy. Did it want to be a commentary on societal class problems? Sexuality? Religion? Was the ending meant to be some manner of 'love conquers all'? I just don't know.
Ascension shows up on a lot of rec lists because of its cast. It's how I found it in the first place. But every time I've heard it recommended over the two years since I last picked it up I've cringed. Despite the diversity of the cast, despite whatever good intentions the author may have had, I just don't think it's a very good book.
There were, in fact, many things that I *did* like about it, particularly in the beginning of the book. Alana Quick is a determined, working woman of color, hampered but not conquered by a degenerative disease. The descriptions of her life before the Tangled Axon could very well be set in the here-and-now. I loved the frankness with which class struggle, poverty, and disability were (at first) addressed.
And then I got further into the book. Alana is supposedly in her thirties, but she reads like a teenager. It wears quickly.
By the time the romance subplot came to fruition, I found myself frustrated. The romance seemed... not exactly out of place, but just sort of... hollow. Try as I might, I couldn't figure out why these people were falling together beyond the fact that they found each other attractive. There were hints of 'development,' but nothing that really allowed them to get to know each other as characters.
My original review mentioned 'insta-love/lust' as something I disliked,
Spoiler
(Idk, something about falling in love with a woman who'd "poisoned" you five minutes before rubs me the wrong way)And it doesn't stop there. Alanna's sister participates in ritual starvation defined in-text as anorexia, and no one in-text seems to find this problematic. In fact, the 'escape' from one's earthly form plays a critical role in the train-wreck of an ending (see original review).
At the end of the book, I was left uncertain about what the message of the story was meant to be. Clearly it wanted to be more than a fun adventure story, but it couldn't seem to decide if it was science fiction or science fantasy. Did it want to be a commentary on societal class problems? Sexuality? Religion? Was the ending meant to be some manner of 'love conquers all'? I just don't know.
Ascension shows up on a lot of rec lists because of its cast. It's how I found it in the first place. But every time I've heard it recommended over the two years since I last picked it up I've cringed. Despite the diversity of the cast, despite whatever good intentions the author may have had, I just don't think it's a very good book.