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A review by simply_sam
Tears in Rain by Rosa Montero
2.0
***2.5 Stars***
That's right folks, I am done. It only took me a year to finish it but here it is.
This book suffered from too many words. That's right, too many words. It has got to be the longest 400 page book ever. There were pages and pages of info-dumps that I eventually just skipped through. Honestly, it should have been about 100 pages shorter. This time, just like last time, I made it to the 50% mark and began constantly checking my progress.
However, there were some really neat concepts mentioned in this book. The idea of walking billboards, people made to wear talking advertisements that they couldn't mute and were only allowed to take off for 9 hours a day? It was one that made me incredibly sad, but at the same time I was like, "Wow, that's a diabolically ingenious form of torture." There were also lung parks with artificial trees that absorbed more carbon dioxide and increased the oxygen level in those areas. Clean air was scarce and was luxury that had to be paid for. That could be our future too, right? It was those little details, and I say little because they are literally mentioned in passing, that added to
the story for me.
Part of the problem with this story is that the whole concept behind the replicants or "reps" was confusing to me. I'm not sure what made them all that different from people. The term replicant and android was used interchangeably, but when I think of an android, I think of a machine made to look human. You know, covered in synthetic flesh but inside they are a jumble of whirring parts, tubes, and cables. Not so with these reps. They bleed like humans, suffer from concussions like humans, and apparently develop cancer like humans. So is a replicant just a genetically modified human similar to a clone? That would make that term make sense. And if so, how is that an android? Does it not make sense because I've never seen Bladerunner? I don't know. I just ended up going with it, but it was one point of contention I had with the overall world building.
Anyway, there's more I want to say but haven't the time at the moment. Maybe I'll come back and do a more thorough review. I'll just say this, overall, I think there could have been a good story and world in this work, it was just overshadowed by the tediousness of the unnecessary filler.
That's right folks, I am done. It only took me a year to finish it but here it is.
This book suffered from too many words. That's right, too many words. It has got to be the longest 400 page book ever. There were pages and pages of info-dumps that I eventually just skipped through. Honestly, it should have been about 100 pages shorter. This time, just like last time, I made it to the 50% mark and began constantly checking my progress.
However, there were some really neat concepts mentioned in this book. The idea of walking billboards, people made to wear talking advertisements that they couldn't mute and were only allowed to take off for 9 hours a day? It was one that made me incredibly sad, but at the same time I was like, "Wow, that's a diabolically ingenious form of torture." There were also lung parks with artificial trees that absorbed more carbon dioxide and increased the oxygen level in those areas. Clean air was scarce and was luxury that had to be paid for. That could be our future too, right? It was those little details, and I say little because they are literally mentioned in passing, that added to
the story for me.
Part of the problem with this story is that the whole concept behind the replicants or "reps" was confusing to me. I'm not sure what made them all that different from people. The term replicant and android was used interchangeably, but when I think of an android, I think of a machine made to look human. You know, covered in synthetic flesh but inside they are a jumble of whirring parts, tubes, and cables. Not so with these reps. They bleed like humans, suffer from concussions like humans, and apparently develop cancer like humans. So is a replicant just a genetically modified human similar to a clone? That would make that term make sense. And if so, how is that an android? Does it not make sense because I've never seen Bladerunner? I don't know. I just ended up going with it, but it was one point of contention I had with the overall world building.
Anyway, there's more I want to say but haven't the time at the moment. Maybe I'll come back and do a more thorough review. I'll just say this, overall, I think there could have been a good story and world in this work, it was just overshadowed by the tediousness of the unnecessary filler.