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A review by mweis
The Stars Undying by Emery Robin
3.0
*I received an eARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*
I really do not know how I feel about this book, so forgive me if this review is rambling. Billed as a political space opera inspired by the lives of Cleopatra and Julius Caesar, The Stars Undying has a lot going for it but ultimately fell apart for me in its execution.
I think where I struggled the most is in the choice to have each of the perspectives in the first person. There was a lot of "I did x,y,z" and none of the voices felt distinct enough for me to remember whose perspective I was actually in. It was slow to start and unfortunately never fully hooked me into the plot, which made it feel even slower and more meandering. I do love the inspiration and found myself researching some of the historical events this book takes inspiration from. Thematically, I think this is doing some interesting things with AI and the concept of immortality. Maybe if I had known more about the real life counterparts to these characters I would have been more invested.
I think A Memory Called Empire is a good comp title to this, though as that is one of my favorite books I'd personally rather reread that. I've seen so many people rave about this though so maybe if I'll come back to it before the sequel is released with more tempered expectations.
I really do not know how I feel about this book, so forgive me if this review is rambling. Billed as a political space opera inspired by the lives of Cleopatra and Julius Caesar, The Stars Undying has a lot going for it but ultimately fell apart for me in its execution.
I think where I struggled the most is in the choice to have each of the perspectives in the first person. There was a lot of "I did x,y,z" and none of the voices felt distinct enough for me to remember whose perspective I was actually in. It was slow to start and unfortunately never fully hooked me into the plot, which made it feel even slower and more meandering. I do love the inspiration and found myself researching some of the historical events this book takes inspiration from. Thematically, I think this is doing some interesting things with AI and the concept of immortality. Maybe if I had known more about the real life counterparts to these characters I would have been more invested.
I think A Memory Called Empire is a good comp title to this, though as that is one of my favorite books I'd personally rather reread that. I've seen so many people rave about this though so maybe if I'll come back to it before the sequel is released with more tempered expectations.