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authorallegra 's review for:
The Last Emperox
by John Scalzi
I have loved this series from the first word to the last. This was by far my most anticipated book in 2020 and... I have some very conflicted feelings about it. First of all: I loved it. I screamed, laughed until I cried, cried a bit, giggled so hard my husband got worried about my sanity, and whooped loud enough to scare my cat all the way across the room.
It was exactly what I come to expect from an author whose prose I enjoy, whose characters I love, whose humor I aspire to, and who has solidly cemented himself in my top five favorite authors of all time.
That said: complicated feelings.
I will try not to stray into the realm of spoilers, but here goes. The Last Emperox, in my inexpert opinion, was TOO perfect. Not perfect as in 'flawless' but perfect as in 'perfectly Scalzi.' I kept scratching my head and saying: "I love this plot twist, but didn't we see it before in Android's Dream? Or Redshirts? Or Old Man's War?"
Cardenia's plotline, in particular, left me fulfilled yet strangely hanging, waiting for the: and now what? It's not that any single piece of this even bordered on bad, but I think my expectations were so high that I wanted MORE. I wanted something as different as the endings of those earlier books were to everything else I've read.
In short: I think I'm spoiled. I've been on a Scalzi re-read kick for months, and so this just felt like: more Sclazi. Which it is. Which is the point. It was brilliant, and funny, and fast-paced, and wonderful.
So now, a challenge to myself: go read some other authors for a change, and then re-read the Last Emperox when I'm fresh. I expect I will enjoy it just as much, and not be nearly so conflicted. It's a great book, and the whole of the Interdependency series has become so much of a favorite that I can't play those 'let predictive text fill in the blank' because it ALWAYS suggests 'the Interdependency.'
I only have one actual gripe, and it is 100% still in jest: Dear Mr. Scalzi, HOW DARE YOU do the thing? You know what thing! I spent a whole two or three chapters biting my nails and screaming, wondering what had happened to my favorite fucking character of all time. *Insert long and creative string of curse words that Goodreads wouldn't like*
Alright. That is all. Long live the Last Emperox.
It was exactly what I come to expect from an author whose prose I enjoy, whose characters I love, whose humor I aspire to, and who has solidly cemented himself in my top five favorite authors of all time.
That said: complicated feelings.
I will try not to stray into the realm of spoilers, but here goes. The Last Emperox, in my inexpert opinion, was TOO perfect. Not perfect as in 'flawless' but perfect as in 'perfectly Scalzi.' I kept scratching my head and saying: "I love this plot twist, but didn't we see it before in Android's Dream? Or Redshirts? Or Old Man's War?"
Cardenia's plotline, in particular, left me fulfilled yet strangely hanging, waiting for the: and now what? It's not that any single piece of this even bordered on bad, but I think my expectations were so high that I wanted MORE. I wanted something as different as the endings of those earlier books were to everything else I've read.
In short: I think I'm spoiled. I've been on a Scalzi re-read kick for months, and so this just felt like: more Sclazi. Which it is. Which is the point. It was brilliant, and funny, and fast-paced, and wonderful.
So now, a challenge to myself: go read some other authors for a change, and then re-read the Last Emperox when I'm fresh. I expect I will enjoy it just as much, and not be nearly so conflicted. It's a great book, and the whole of the Interdependency series has become so much of a favorite that I can't play those 'let predictive text fill in the blank' because it ALWAYS suggests 'the Interdependency.'
I only have one actual gripe, and it is 100% still in jest: Dear Mr. Scalzi, HOW DARE YOU do the thing? You know what thing! I spent a whole two or three chapters biting my nails and screaming, wondering what had happened to my favorite fucking character of all time. *Insert long and creative string of curse words that Goodreads wouldn't like*
Alright. That is all. Long live the Last Emperox.