Reviews with content warning for Suicidal thoughts - The Death I Gave Him

I really wanted to like this more than I did. I loved the premise and the format and the opening sections, but it ultimately veered away from the original text too fiercely without putting enough material in to fill the gaps. It’s a remarkably short text for its page length, and I just wanted more of everything. Hamlet shines in its winding twists and drawn out march to tragedy, and this book has a super truncated timeline and squarely refuses to condemn its Hamlet. Or it’s Ophelia.

Or it’s Claudius.

My favorite parts were the alien consciousness of Horatio and his tender and heartbreaking dynamic with Hayden, and the little moments that so closely echo the play, but I wish there had been more adherence to the conventions of tragedy, or a grander world to explore.

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temperamentalprotagonist's review

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-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

4.5

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nithya_natalya's review

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dark mysterious 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

5.0

I was looking for something moody and brooding and angsty, and this fit that need perfectly. I have always been a fan of how angsty Hamlet is, and Liu's interpretation was spot on. I loved the way they played up his obsession with death. At first, I was not at all into the footnotes and the premise that this story is being compiled by a researcher in some distant future. But it eventually really grew on me. The footnotes eerily hinted at an incredibly sinister future, but in such a nonchalant, clinical way. Placing this family drama within the broader context of scientific advancements related to immortality and AI was very cool. And the fact that this was set only 20-ish years in the future actually felt believable. I feel like we are not far off from neuromapping, and inserting AI right into our brains. ALSO

the AI sex scenes were incredible. The idea that AI inside your brain is using its control of your brain to make you feel certain things, or controlling the environment around you to get an embodied response. SO COOL AND INTERESTING.

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tifftastic87's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

A retelling of Hamlet set in the future. Hayden finds his father dead in their lab where a major breakthrough in the study of extending life has just been made. The lab goes into lockdown, everyone suspects Hayden and his Uncle Charles, both accusing one another. The story is told through excerpts of memoirs, transcripts, camera footage, and letters all compiled and put together by a researcher.

Honestly, I was bored through most of it. If the story had stayed being through Felicia's PoV I think I would have enjoyed it more. But Hayden's perspective was convoluted and confusing. I also was not the biggest fan of Horatio being an incorporial AI who is in love with Hayden. But that could just be me. The writing was lovely though and kept me from DNFing.

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cryptofauna's review

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

it was pretty strong! idk if it lived up to my expectations because the concept is incredibly cool, but i generally still enjoyed reading it. as usual, obsessed with a sentient ai and also gay people so a win for me. i thought i knew the plot of hamlet better than i did, so i feel like i for sure missed some references and allusions, but it was still strong without me knowing the hamlet lore. honestly i just don’t really have very strong feelings on this one in any direction
this is a dumb criticism because it’s literally a retelling but the plot felt a little boring and predictable? i also had problems keeping the characters straight even though there’s like five total

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ellis7e3ad's review

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challenging dark emotional sad tense 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

5.0

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woolerys's review

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dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.0

As a retelling of Hamlet, it did interesting and original things, and hit a good balance of same/different as far as telling the same story differently. As a novel, it was poorly paced and way, way too long. So much detail, mostly serving to add tension to each and every scene, but when used with such abundance it backfired and I ended up slogging through at a snail’s pace instead. I didn’t care for the “reconstructed from research” format as a reading experience, either, though it was a cool concept in theory. That said, I did really appreciate the rotating point of view and the way it allowed us to get close to three main characters, and I also enjoyed the reworked ending with new takes on the old themes of justice and purpose.

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