A review by adancewithbooks
Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh

dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

  After having read the authors Novella duology I was excited but also hesitant for this full novel. Because a fantasy novella is quite a different thing than a full novel science fiction story. And I didn't love it. Right away.

The thing about Some Desperate Glory is that you aren't going to like the characters, especially our main character Kyr. She was raised to be a facist, radicalized. It was the only view she knew and she never questioned it. There was no room. It isn't until her brother dissapears and she doesn't get the assignment she wants (breeding factory instead of soldier) that there is slight room for critique.

Kyr spends this book trying to unlearn everything she has been raised to believe and it takes quite a few different realities for her to be able to discard some of that. The saving of the universe is just a backdrop to that. It shows an interesting look at how internalized some of those teachings can be and how hard it can be to realize, analyze and then actually do something about it. The mind is a funny thing. It also deals with all kinds of abuse and suicide. In that way it can be a hard book to read.

'The wisdom was a transtemporal and pandimensional intelligence capable of shaping the fates of trillions. I am a pleasure yacht.
"Seriously?"
I intend to experiment with unseriousness. I am finally of a size appropiate for levity.'

That doesn't mean it is all seriously. There is a whole lot of bonding between the characters and room for some humor as well. And that created a whole book that I ended up loving for a variety of reasons. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings