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A review by kp_hobbitreads
The Vital Abyss by James S.A. Corey
3.0
#1 Leviathan Wakes: ★★★★☆ | 4 stars
#1.5 The Butcher of Anderson Station: ★★★★☆ | 4 stars
#2 Caliban's War: ★★★★✮ | 4.5 stars
#2.5 Gods of Risk: ★★★☆☆ | 3 stars
#2.7 Drive: ★★★★✮ | 4.5 stars
#3 Abaddon's Gate: ★★★★☆ | 4 stars
#3.5 The Churn: ★★★✮☆ | 3.5 stars
#4 Cibola Burn: ★★★★✮ | 4.5 stars
#5 Nemesis Games: ★★★★★ | 5 stars
#5.5 The Vital Abyss: ★★★☆☆ | 3 stars
I think this was even more depressing than The Churn which honestly I didn't think was possible in this series. This is a short story told from the POV of one of the research scientists on Phoebe and Thoth Stations. The scientists were basically turned into sociopaths, and after their capture live in permanent captivity.
Three Things:
1. The dual timeline of learning about Cortázar's past interspersed with his time in captivity was well done. Even though you knew how it was going to end, I still wanted to keep reading.
2. Reading about Cortázar basically being tricked into giving up his humanity when he isn't capable of realizing the cost was horrifying, but also was a great way to show how this medical change truly affected the scientists.
3. I found myself feeling bad for Alberto. He seemed to have retained some of his humanity, but I don't know how much of that was true to the character and how much was me just desperately wanting their to be a single character in the story with some redeeming qualities.
This is one that definitely needs to be read in publication order. And, I'm interested to know what the impact of the end of this story is going to be on the series going forward. I have a feeling it won't be anything good.
content warnings: captivity, dehumanization, loss of a parent to Huntington's disease, depression, grief, drug use, violence, death, medical experimentation, body horror
#1.5 The Butcher of Anderson Station: ★★★★☆ | 4 stars
#2 Caliban's War: ★★★★✮ | 4.5 stars
#2.5 Gods of Risk: ★★★☆☆ | 3 stars
#2.7 Drive: ★★★★✮ | 4.5 stars
#3 Abaddon's Gate: ★★★★☆ | 4 stars
#3.5 The Churn: ★★★✮☆ | 3.5 stars
#4 Cibola Burn: ★★★★✮ | 4.5 stars
#5 Nemesis Games: ★★★★★ | 5 stars
#5.5 The Vital Abyss: ★★★☆☆ | 3 stars
I think this was even more depressing than The Churn which honestly I didn't think was possible in this series. This is a short story told from the POV of one of the research scientists on Phoebe and Thoth Stations. The scientists were basically turned into sociopaths, and after their capture live in permanent captivity.
Three Things:
1. The dual timeline of learning about Cortázar's past interspersed with his time in captivity was well done. Even though you knew how it was going to end, I still wanted to keep reading.
2. Reading about Cortázar basically being tricked into giving up his humanity when he isn't capable of realizing the cost was horrifying, but also was a great way to show how this medical change truly affected the scientists.
3. I found myself feeling bad for Alberto. He seemed to have retained some of his humanity, but I don't know how much of that was true to the character and how much was me just desperately wanting their to be a single character in the story with some redeeming qualities.
This is one that definitely needs to be read in publication order. And, I'm interested to know what the impact of the end of this story is going to be on the series going forward. I have a feeling it won't be anything good.
content warnings: captivity, dehumanization, loss of a parent to Huntington's disease, depression, grief, drug use, violence, death, medical experimentation, body horror