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splitdice 's review for:

Orbital by Samantha Harvey
2.5
challenging informative reflective slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

tbh this would have been way better as a series of essays OR with half of the characters. i understand why it won the booker prize because of topicality, but i feel like as a work of fiction it does nothing. not sure why this is labeled as sci-fi though...? 

there are some reflective isolated thoughts that i enjoyed, but everything was so underdevolped and unnuanced that i feel like it failed on its message. i also feel like the lack of diverse characters (mainly white, one japanese woman) meant the lack of a lot of nuance about humanity. all in all i like the idea, but horrid execution.