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A review by ninegladiolus
Floating Hotel by Grace Curtis
emotional
mysterious
reflective
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
While Grace Curtis’ Floating Hotel didn’t necessarily deliver on the cozy, low-stakes story it promised, I still really enjoyed it for what it did offer: a beautifully interwoven character study with an interesting mystery and an equal mix of bitter and sweet vibes.
Floating Hotel follows a large range of characters, most usually only getting one PoV chapter, through a series of events aboard the luxury space hotel they all live and work aboard. The structure was one of my favourite things about this novel. Rarely have I seen so many different points of view used to such great effect to tell a greater story. It’s fascinating to see characters through each other's eyes and captures the found-work-family vibes admirably. Sometimes you love the people you spend most of your life with, and sometimes you can’t stand them, and sometimes tragedy strikes and you band together to deal with it in the best way you know how.
If you’re looking for a straightforward, happy ending, Floating Hotel probably isn’t the novel for you. But I will say by the last page I felt a sense of emotional catharsis. It made sense given the events of the novel and felt earned.
Grace Curtis has earned a spot in my sci-fi rotation and I eagerly await whatever comes next. If you think you’d like a character-driven sci-fi set in a hospitality environment with a backbone of mystery and unusual narrative structure, I recommend giving Floating Hotel a try.
Thank you to DAW and NetGalley for an advance reader copy. All opinions are my own.
Floating Hotel follows a large range of characters, most usually only getting one PoV chapter, through a series of events aboard the luxury space hotel they all live and work aboard. The structure was one of my favourite things about this novel. Rarely have I seen so many different points of view used to such great effect to tell a greater story. It’s fascinating to see characters through each other's eyes and captures the found-work-family vibes admirably. Sometimes you love the people you spend most of your life with, and sometimes you can’t stand them, and sometimes tragedy strikes and you band together to deal with it in the best way you know how.
If you’re looking for a straightforward, happy ending, Floating Hotel probably isn’t the novel for you. But I will say by the last page I felt a sense of emotional catharsis. It made sense given the events of the novel and felt earned.
Grace Curtis has earned a spot in my sci-fi rotation and I eagerly await whatever comes next. If you think you’d like a character-driven sci-fi set in a hospitality environment with a backbone of mystery and unusual narrative structure, I recommend giving Floating Hotel a try.
Thank you to DAW and NetGalley for an advance reader copy. All opinions are my own.