A review by andreiasereia
Mickey7 by Edward Ashton

4.0

This book for me was just under a 4 star read but I think I'm going to be generous and round up. The premise was interesting and promising, and the worldbuilding and scattering of history was intriguing. The tone was dry though and while this worked for characterisation, and was still easy and enjoyable to read as a facet Mickey 7, it had the unfortunate effect of removing emotion and conflict precisely where it was needed. The conflict between Mickey 7 and 8 never felt deep or urgent and it was frustrating that all their arguments pretty much always devolved into Mickey 8 getting his way about needing sleep. This story worked best when debating Mickey's right to life and personhood and there was so much that could have been done with Mickey 8 - instead of him feeling like an actual person with wants and needs and a life and how that would be negotiated by being a multiple, he just felt flat and (ironically) lifeless. I know we were in Mickey 7's head for the narration but I wish we'd got more emotion and conflict and introspection from Mickey 8 and the two of them together reckoning their existence and what it meant. There were glimpses of it but not enough. All of this to say though, I still thoroughly enjoyed the story and what it did manage to do with its look on mortality and I'm a sucker for "alien" contact (in however that contact extends) and the end really picked up and made me so eager to pick up the next book.