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hkg 's review for:
Alien Clay
by Adrian Tchaikovsky
challenging
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
This book was such a chore. I loved Children of Time (although I plodded through the second and only enjoyed the third because I accidentally read a spoiler) and the very inventive biology of this book is very reminiscent of that series. Tchaikovsky is brilliant at creating preposterously novel yet evolutionarily logical societies and organisms you’ve never dreamt of before.
But the self-important narration, positively idiotic foreshadowing, and deeply unfunny sarcasm made this book pretty agonizing to finish. His descriptions were also laboriously created and difficult to picture, which limited my ability to appreciate the complexity of the world he created.
I will give him a shoutout for having non-binary characters. But none of his characters are believable or interesting enough to merit the investment this book requires.
I regret the time I spent on this book. I rarely DNF, and ultimately wanted to know how he resolved the mad dystopian prison society he created, so I carried on, but I wouldn’t suggest you read it. Spend your precious time with Octavia Butler’s Xenogenesis series instead!
But the self-important narration, positively idiotic foreshadowing, and deeply unfunny sarcasm made this book pretty agonizing to finish. His descriptions were also laboriously created and difficult to picture, which limited my ability to appreciate the complexity of the world he created.
I will give him a shoutout for having non-binary characters. But none of his characters are believable or interesting enough to merit the investment this book requires.
I regret the time I spent on this book. I rarely DNF, and ultimately wanted to know how he resolved the mad dystopian prison society he created, so I carried on, but I wouldn’t suggest you read it. Spend your precious time with Octavia Butler’s Xenogenesis series instead!