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A review by v_larr
Scythe by Neal Shusterman
5.0
WOW I LIKED THIS BOOK A LOT ACTUALLY.
I don't know. The premise has had me hooked for AGES and I finally got around to reading this book and well. It's kind of obvious what the point of the book is? I mean you give a select group of people the ability to kill others, obviously there's going to be discussions about morality and mortality and how can some people get put on such a high pedestal with the power over life and death, possibly connecting that to things in real life like death row and suicide and-
Well anyways, the book itself almost reaches the intensity of its premise. Almost there, truly. Like you know when you have a book and the summary makes it seem so SO interesting and then you read it and you're like, blegh (The Midnight Library, yes I'm name-dropping). Well this isn't like that. It's pretty good. The only issue I have is taking teenagers as apprentices. That's so dumb! I understand you have to train them early but like. Hormones!!! Which was proven with these two protagonists.
Romance? There is none. There are just a few dumb sentences where they say they want to kiss each other but other than that there is absolutely no chemistry between them. Bit of a weak point.
Speaking of weak points, I think one of the main issues this book has is its conflict. I think it's clear that this series will likely be about dismantling the Scythedom because of the corruption in it due to human nature. So this book introduces that by having scythes that abuse their power. Simple enough. The issue is, the main antagonist doesn't feel as threatening as the book makes him out to be. He's supposed to have this view of changing the status quo, getting rid of tradition, and I guess he's supposed to be morally grey, but he really isn't. He's obviously a sick sadist that likes murdering people so the audience can't take his attempts at making a point seriously. He's like those bullies in kids shows that are mean to the main characters then suck up to adults and other kids so they never get in trouble in a horrible fit of illogical injustice. It's exactly the same here. It makes no sense that Goddard became as powerful as he did. There should've been more of an attempt to make it seem like his way of thinking was correct, making the audience as upset as say, Rowan was in agreeing.
That's another issue! Rowan! He reminds me of Alina Starkov: a failed attempt at hero corruption in which the character spends more time worrying they're being corrupted than they do actually becoming corrupt. And again, since Goddard doesn't feel like much of a threat, it feels like Rowan's downhill path is forced and kind of dumb. Also I don't trust him anymore.
But that's really it in terms of things I didn't like. I LOVE how scythes name themselves after historical figures! And of course, the strong suit of this book is really its side characters, Scythes Curie and Faraday in particular. I might be biased since they're named after famous scientists, but I absolutely adored them. They seem to me the most interesting characters, I mean they're for the most part calm and collected but you can tell through their journal entries that they have a great burden on their shoulders. The entries in particular are wonderfully written and offer lots to think about, not only in the context of the book but in the real world as well. You can tell these people have been through so much because of their work, and there's no way of opting out. They must continue killing for the sake of the world. But they have to worry about unintentional biases and making the wrong decisions. Feels bad!
I love Scythe Curie in particular. I mean, reading the signatures of the journals I knew she was named after notable scientist Marie Curie, who basically invented chemistry (ok maybe just an element or two) and got two, TWO Nobel prizes and was lab partners with her husband which is totally couple goals and-
Anyways, the character! I love her composure and her intelligence. The Grande Dame of Death, what a title! But she hates it. She has a legacy and she regrets it and that's incredible. To be as powerful as she is yet so humble...She's a great character to have as a mentor figure
Faraday as well. His way of living was great, I liked how when it came to his decisions he focused on statistics from the Age of Mortality. It prevented his own internal bias. Although, one could say there is still a bias since mortality rates across the world are definitely related to poverty and thus certain regions of the world and population and-hmm. Another thing to consider when reading. Not even Faraday is immune to bias.
I mean overall it's a pretty good scifi. I love the Thunderhead, it's pretty funny that's it's just the cloud but omniscient. That's funny, but I wonder if I'd be okay with that. Like, you think your privacy's been invaded already? Wait till you find out there's a huge cloud thing that knows literally everything! And it's interesting what a society without death looks like. They talked about how no one ever does things for excitement anymore. If you basically have all the time in the world, then what's the point? After some time you just won't look forward to things anymore. And how many things do people do because of the thrill that comes with the fear of death? What's the fun in jumping off a building when you know you'll be fine after hitting the ground? Pretty interesting discussion.
I'm excited to continue on with this series!
I don't know. The premise has had me hooked for AGES and I finally got around to reading this book and well. It's kind of obvious what the point of the book is? I mean you give a select group of people the ability to kill others, obviously there's going to be discussions about morality and mortality and how can some people get put on such a high pedestal with the power over life and death, possibly connecting that to things in real life like death row and suicide and-
Well anyways, the book itself almost reaches the intensity of its premise. Almost there, truly. Like you know when you have a book and the summary makes it seem so SO interesting and then you read it and you're like, blegh (The Midnight Library, yes I'm name-dropping). Well this isn't like that. It's pretty good. The only issue I have is taking teenagers as apprentices. That's so dumb! I understand you have to train them early but like. Hormones!!! Which was proven with these two protagonists.
Romance? There is none. There are just a few dumb sentences where they say they want to kiss each other but other than that there is absolutely no chemistry between them. Bit of a weak point.
Speaking of weak points, I think one of the main issues this book has is its conflict. I think it's clear that this series will likely be about dismantling the Scythedom because of the corruption in it due to human nature. So this book introduces that by having scythes that abuse their power. Simple enough. The issue is, the main antagonist doesn't feel as threatening as the book makes him out to be. He's supposed to have this view of changing the status quo, getting rid of tradition, and I guess he's supposed to be morally grey, but he really isn't. He's obviously a sick sadist that likes murdering people so the audience can't take his attempts at making a point seriously. He's like those bullies in kids shows that are mean to the main characters then suck up to adults and other kids so they never get in trouble in a horrible fit of illogical injustice. It's exactly the same here. It makes no sense that Goddard became as powerful as he did. There should've been more of an attempt to make it seem like his way of thinking was correct, making the audience as upset as say, Rowan was in agreeing.
That's another issue! Rowan! He reminds me of Alina Starkov: a failed attempt at hero corruption in which the character spends more time worrying they're being corrupted than they do actually becoming corrupt. And again, since Goddard doesn't feel like much of a threat, it feels like Rowan's downhill path is forced and kind of dumb. Also I don't trust him anymore.
Spoiler
However, I love how he became a bit of a vigilante at the end, killing Goddard and taking his ring and robe to wreak havoc among the corrupt scythes. That's another thing, since Goddard didn't feel like a threat, his death meant nothing to me. Hoping the conflict amps up a bit more in future books.But that's really it in terms of things I didn't like. I LOVE how scythes name themselves after historical figures! And of course, the strong suit of this book is really its side characters, Scythes Curie and Faraday in particular. I might be biased since they're named after famous scientists, but I absolutely adored them. They seem to me the most interesting characters, I mean they're for the most part calm and collected but you can tell through their journal entries that they have a great burden on their shoulders. The entries in particular are wonderfully written and offer lots to think about, not only in the context of the book but in the real world as well. You can tell these people have been through so much because of their work, and there's no way of opting out. They must continue killing for the sake of the world. But they have to worry about unintentional biases and making the wrong decisions. Feels bad!
I love Scythe Curie in particular. I mean, reading the signatures of the journals I knew she was named after notable scientist Marie Curie, who basically invented chemistry (ok maybe just an element or two) and got two, TWO Nobel prizes and was lab partners with her husband which is totally couple goals and-
Anyways, the character! I love her composure and her intelligence. The Grande Dame of Death, what a title! But she hates it. She has a legacy and she regrets it and that's incredible. To be as powerful as she is yet so humble...She's a great character to have as a mentor figure
Spoiler
(lucky for Citra, huh?)Faraday as well. His way of living was great, I liked how when it came to his decisions he focused on statistics from the Age of Mortality. It prevented his own internal bias. Although, one could say there is still a bias since mortality rates across the world are definitely related to poverty and thus certain regions of the world and population and-hmm. Another thing to consider when reading. Not even Faraday is immune to bias.
Spoiler
And MAN what a life he's led, huh? I honestly thought he did die but I knew it couldn't have been Goddard since it seemed too easy. I thought it was Curie for a bit but I didn't want her to be evil! I mean, I feel bad for Faraday. He faked his death to give Citra and Rowan a chance to not die and they got fucked over anyways. He has to live a life of solitude and be careful not to expose himself. Oh my. I think people should be able to opt out of the Scythedom without having to kill themselves but alas. We shall see what happens.I mean overall it's a pretty good scifi. I love the Thunderhead, it's pretty funny that's it's just the cloud but omniscient. That's funny, but I wonder if I'd be okay with that. Like, you think your privacy's been invaded already? Wait till you find out there's a huge cloud thing that knows literally everything! And it's interesting what a society without death looks like. They talked about how no one ever does things for excitement anymore. If you basically have all the time in the world, then what's the point? After some time you just won't look forward to things anymore. And how many things do people do because of the thrill that comes with the fear of death? What's the fun in jumping off a building when you know you'll be fine after hitting the ground? Pretty interesting discussion.
I'm excited to continue on with this series!