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beachesnbooks 's review for:
Zoo City
by Lauren Beukes
2.5 stars
I really liked the original premise of this South Africa-set urban fantasy: when a person commits a serious crime, they magically obtain an Animal, which is sort of a companion and living representation of their guilt. There are a lot of theories about why this is happening and when it first started, but when the book is set, those with Animals are being driven into slums and have difficulty finding good jobs and homes (and in some countries are killed or imprisoned). The Animal is also sort of a guardian against a mysterious and deadly force called the Undertow, which takes a person if their Animal is killed.
It's a very unique premise, and I liked learning about all of the aspects of this concept, but unfortunately I didn't like the story itself nearly as much. I found all of the characters to be very unlikable, but not necessarily in interesting ways (I don't mind unlikable main characters as long as they're done well) and the story meandered quite a bit before (in my opinion) a really unpleasant and unsatisfying ending. I wouldn't really recommend this one, and I don't think I'll be picking up more from this author in the future. I like urban fantasy and am always looking for UF with a unique premise, but this was a disappointment for me.
I really liked the original premise of this South Africa-set urban fantasy: when a person commits a serious crime, they magically obtain an Animal, which is sort of a companion and living representation of their guilt. There are a lot of theories about why this is happening and when it first started, but when the book is set, those with Animals are being driven into slums and have difficulty finding good jobs and homes (and in some countries are killed or imprisoned). The Animal is also sort of a guardian against a mysterious and deadly force called the Undertow, which takes a person if their Animal is killed.
It's a very unique premise, and I liked learning about all of the aspects of this concept, but unfortunately I didn't like the story itself nearly as much. I found all of the characters to be very unlikable, but not necessarily in interesting ways (I don't mind unlikable main characters as long as they're done well) and the story meandered quite a bit before (in my opinion) a really unpleasant and unsatisfying ending. I wouldn't really recommend this one, and I don't think I'll be picking up more from this author in the future. I like urban fantasy and am always looking for UF with a unique premise, but this was a disappointment for me.