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A review by nixter
Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I’m kind of let down by this novel to be honest. I saw so many great reviews that led me to believe this was going to be a life changing read, and honestly, a whole bunch of nothing happened for a majority of the book. Nothing about this book was groundbreaking or revolutionary like i was expecting. I was intrigued enough to keep going, hence the 3 stars but it’s more like a 2.5 rounded up because I wanted to DNF at one point.
The vampires very much fit established vampire lore in some capacity. The experimental part of it wasn’t well explained, in my opinion. I didn’t connect with any of the characters or have any affection for them, which includes our MC, Shori. She was just bumbling around clueless the whole book, which tracks because she suffered from amnesia, but for once, I wanted her to be in the know or have some clue as to what the hell is going on. There were also too many complicated relationships and dynamics to keep track of in such a short period of time, and I often found myself confused and having to think back and remember who is who in relation to someone else.
Finally, my biggest issue was the most glaring part of the book for me — the thing I could not simply get over — which is the fact that she is a literal child, engaging in these sexualized behaviors with adults. Not only is she child appearing to humans, but even by vampiric standards, she’s a kid. So the whole thing made me uncomfortable from the beginning, which may have been a goal of Butler, but I didn’t enjoy it. There were multiple times when I had to put it down and take a break because reading it forced me to imagine a 10 year old appearing person in these compromising situations when I simply rather not.
The vampires very much fit established vampire lore in some capacity. The experimental part of it wasn’t well explained, in my opinion. I didn’t connect with any of the characters or have any affection for them, which includes our MC, Shori. She was just bumbling around clueless the whole book, which tracks because she suffered from amnesia, but for once, I wanted her to be in the know or have some clue as to what the hell is going on. There were also too many complicated relationships and dynamics to keep track of in such a short period of time, and I often found myself confused and having to think back and remember who is who in relation to someone else.
Finally, my biggest issue was the most glaring part of the book for me — the thing I could not simply get over — which is the fact that she is a literal child, engaging in these sexualized behaviors with adults. Not only is she child appearing to humans, but even by vampiric standards, she’s a kid. So the whole thing made me uncomfortable from the beginning, which may have been a goal of Butler, but I didn’t enjoy it. There were multiple times when I had to put it down and take a break because reading it forced me to imagine a 10 year old appearing person in these compromising situations when I simply rather not.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship
Moderate: Pedophilia and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Racism and Racial slurs