A review by abmochapman
Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler

dark funny informative mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

I’m a huge fan of Octavia Butler but I don’t know what compelled her to create a world that would make relationships between a adult humans and vampire children a moral grey area.

I mean, I can’t lie and say that I hated Fledgling; its overarching conflict was extremely compelling and slow world-building super interesting. I was literally — and a little ironically — hooked. 

This could easily be one of my favorites, but the uncomfortable grey area in the relationships central to the book is a hard sell. Sure, it makes some sense within the confines of the book and its world, but I just don’t understand why she decided to write it so that
the young protagonist appears as a prepubescent child who has sexual relationships with adults
. Like, pray tell, what does this say about society?

A lot of other readers have mixed feelings about the book and I honestly don’t know how to feel, but I wouldn’t say that it’s simply not worth reading at all (unless the topic matter is triggering to you — then please skip this one). However, if you choose to read with a grain of salt, maybe you’ll understand Butler’s intentions better than I could.
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