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A review by zober
The Just City by Jo Walton
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
I had really high hopes for this one - I assumed it was in the vein of Ada Palmer's Terra Ignota series, since both authors have stated that they've been helped/influenced by each another. The premise is fun - use some time traveling to bring together people from different eras to try and create Plato's idea of a Just City. Some of the characters are interesting, and I love the mesh of fantasy and philosophy.
There were three narrators with alternating viewpoint sections, but the narrative voice was very similar for all of them. Dialogue felt stilted; I suppose if I'm being generous I'd say it's to invoke the feeling that this has been translated from characters speaking in Greek and Latin, but it makes for a really dry read.
The ending was abrupt and very unsatisfying. I suppose something does happen that can be described as the climax of the book, but despite that it felt anti-climactic as a whole. I found out this is actually the first book in a trilogy, but I don't like it enough to keep reading. If you want to read, check content warnings.
There were three narrators with alternating viewpoint sections, but the narrative voice was very similar for all of them. Dialogue felt stilted; I suppose if I'm being generous I'd say it's to invoke the feeling that this has been translated from characters speaking in Greek and Latin, but it makes for a really dry read.
The ending was abrupt and very unsatisfying. I suppose something does happen that can be described as the climax of the book, but despite that it felt anti-climactic as a whole. I found out this is actually the first book in a trilogy, but I don't like it enough to keep reading. If you want to read, check content warnings.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape and Sexual assault