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A review by macroscopicentric
A Complicated Love Story Set in Space by Shaun David Hutchinson
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Douglas Adams-esque worldbuilding, of the cheerfully absurd variety, although here it’s an updated version that’s more about the excesses of capitalism than bureaucracy.
It takes a while to get to the payoff (I think I was 77% of the way through the audio book), but very worth it. The book revels in its ridiculous yet dystopian worldbuilding the entire time, which makes for an entertaining read even when you don’t know what’s going on, but really picks up and becomes a lot more cohesive 3/4 of the way through in a way that very satisfactorily explains the first part. Ridiculous fun.
I think my only major hesitation in recommending/reviewing this is therape subplot, which felt more unnecessarily cruel once you learn what’s going on. I understand the point in-universe is that the backstory provided _is_ unnecessarily cruel, but I don’t think that justifies its usage within the story, and I think something else could’ve been used as an effective substitute without losing the emotional depth or meta discussion. In the end, the big reveal felt like it inadvertently trivialized the rape.
It takes a while to get to the payoff (I think I was 77% of the way through the audio book), but very worth it. The book revels in its ridiculous yet dystopian worldbuilding the entire time, which makes for an entertaining read even when you don’t know what’s going on, but really picks up and becomes a lot more cohesive 3/4 of the way through in a way that very satisfactorily explains the first part. Ridiculous fun.
I think my only major hesitation in recommending/reviewing this is the
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape
Minor: Suicide
The main character was raped before the events of the story, but retells it within the span of the story, and then other references to it are made periodically (in name or allusion but without detail after the first retelling) when it interferes with his ability to trust his crew members or himself.