cinereus 's review for:

Sharks in the Time of Saviors by Kawai Strong Washburn

4.0

dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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A really beautifully done debut! The part that really shines here is the character work, each member of the family (mostly, which I'll get to later) really shines through in a way that feels incredibly nuanced and organic. The alternating points of view, often a really tricky thing for authors to pull off without characters feeling disjointed and same-y, really worked here with such distinct voices, personalities, motivations, and deep existential fears. I also loved all the setting work around Hawai'i, a place I've never been but which was evoked clearly and distinctly without any reliance on Standard Tropical Setting tropes, and the windows into culture and history and how all the characters interact with these things were enlightening. I wasn't expecting this to be a kind of solarpunk-esque fantasy but I am NOT COMPLAINING.

The main thing that didn't work so well for me was the ending, which felt rushed and like the author perhaps realized he hadn't fleshed out the father, Augie, near as much as any of the other characters. Having such a focus on him and his point of view appear so late in the game caused a bit of narrative whiplash that I feel like could have been avoided with him being a more established character earlier on, ending on a more open-ended note, or letting the ending come more slowly.