Scan barcode
yak_attak's reviews
759 reviews
How High We Go in the Dark by Sequoia Nagamatsu
3.0
How High We Go in the Dark was a book that I was *sure* for so much of it that I would end up liking quite a bit. It presents as a series of interconnected short stories, that build and weave together, telling stories surrounding an incredibly deadly outbreak of an ancient virus, the social changes that it influences, and how humanity continues and lives on through and becomes more than its grief and pain. The stories are decently written, told in a nice straightforward style, and a couple of them in particular are fairly heart wrenching.
The thing that really dragged on me is, unfortunately, how samey they ended up being.
Nagamatsu is working with a lot of good stuff. He's particularly focused on damaged or estranged families, grief, loss and coming to terms with death, on immigrant asian experiences, and lastly some simple but sci-fi technological ideas to base things around - a robot dog that records your loved one's voice, a black hole generator, a roller coaster that kills you.... It's a wonderful mix of great themes that lead to a number of great stories and poignant moments, it's just that... it's kinda always the same theme done the same way. If you read one or two of the stories, I don't know that any of the others are going to surprise you.
I think the themes hit their apex early with 'Elegy Hotel', a story about an estranged son who works at a death hotel, who's being asked by his brother to care for his dying mother. Partially I think things are at their most straightforward here, and there's no sci-fi twist to really get in the way. Nothing wrong with those stories, but this is the core of things. 'Pig Son' is the other big standout, and I quite liked the generation ship story nearer to the end as well.
But more and more it felt like reading repeats. The same ideas, the same tone, the same outcome - these are beautiful things to deal with, but I'm not sure Nagamatsu *does* enough with it over the course of the stories. We weave together stories and characters meet each other, but it doesn't matter because they all seem homogenous, bland.
This is likely a me thing, I think if you read the first few stories and love them and weep (very likely) you'll love the rest of the book. Most seem to. And don't get me wrong, I think on the whole these are great stories, I just wanted more from this - a book that's poignant and moving on the surface, but that I'll walk away from and forget about pretty darn quick.
The thing that really dragged on me is, unfortunately, how samey they ended up being.
Nagamatsu is working with a lot of good stuff. He's particularly focused on damaged or estranged families, grief, loss and coming to terms with death, on immigrant asian experiences, and lastly some simple but sci-fi technological ideas to base things around - a robot dog that records your loved one's voice, a black hole generator, a roller coaster that kills you.... It's a wonderful mix of great themes that lead to a number of great stories and poignant moments, it's just that... it's kinda always the same theme done the same way. If you read one or two of the stories, I don't know that any of the others are going to surprise you.
I think the themes hit their apex early with 'Elegy Hotel', a story about an estranged son who works at a death hotel, who's being asked by his brother to care for his dying mother. Partially I think things are at their most straightforward here, and there's no sci-fi twist to really get in the way. Nothing wrong with those stories, but this is the core of things. 'Pig Son' is the other big standout, and I quite liked the generation ship story nearer to the end as well.
But more and more it felt like reading repeats. The same ideas, the same tone, the same outcome - these are beautiful things to deal with, but I'm not sure Nagamatsu *does* enough with it over the course of the stories. We weave together stories and characters meet each other, but it doesn't matter because they all seem homogenous, bland.
This is likely a me thing, I think if you read the first few stories and love them and weep (very likely) you'll love the rest of the book. Most seem to. And don't get me wrong, I think on the whole these are great stories, I just wanted more from this - a book that's poignant and moving on the surface, but that I'll walk away from and forget about pretty darn quick.
Falling Free by Lois McMaster Bujold
4.5
If Lois McMaster Bujold doesn't ever get a movie pitch for Falling Free, what are we even doing as a society. Grizzled seen-it-all engineering instructor comes into the company's secret project, has to essentially teach rowdy children, gets his heart melted by their plight, ends up leading them on a revolution against the exploitative company who thinks to own them, and helps them out with an ever increasing series of crazy one-in-a-million science experiments.
It fits almost too precisely into a 90's teen science adventure type thing. You know exactly the vibe I mean. You know exactly the plot beats and moments that will happen - this doesn't mean it's all by the numbers, Bujold does fantastic job with the children here, giving them a lot of life, sense of self and agency, while still keeping them as essentially kids who don't really get it yet. This spins into a lot of great commentary about bio-experimentation, corporate overreach, unionization, and general ethics.
The side she does a lesser job with is Leo, the Engineer's character - I think mainly in that the book is too short. This is also to its benefit, I don't know if a plot this simple needs to stick around longer, but we also don't get quite as much time to see how things are at present before they all go to shit. Leo doesn't discover the kids' plight so much as... is 100% on board with breaking them out the second he meets them. That means he's a cool guy, but also means he doesn't get much character development through the story. He's more a vehicle to deliver Science! and Speeches!
Cool scenes, big science, blue collar, anti-corporate, feel good... yeah. Can't complain about this one.
It fits almost too precisely into a 90's teen science adventure type thing. You know exactly the vibe I mean. You know exactly the plot beats and moments that will happen - this doesn't mean it's all by the numbers, Bujold does fantastic job with the children here, giving them a lot of life, sense of self and agency, while still keeping them as essentially kids who don't really get it yet. This spins into a lot of great commentary about bio-experimentation, corporate overreach, unionization, and general ethics.
The side she does a lesser job with is Leo, the Engineer's character - I think mainly in that the book is too short. This is also to its benefit, I don't know if a plot this simple needs to stick around longer, but we also don't get quite as much time to see how things are at present before they all go to shit. Leo doesn't discover the kids' plight so much as... is 100% on board with breaking them out the second he meets them. That means he's a cool guy, but also means he doesn't get much character development through the story. He's more a vehicle to deliver Science! and Speeches!
Cool scenes, big science, blue collar, anti-corporate, feel good... yeah. Can't complain about this one.
Second Foundation by Isaac Asimov
3.0
Second Foundation takes the format of book two and improves on it in a couple of ways - Unlike that book's bifurcation, here the two stories deal with and build on each other well. There's an overriding mystery at the center of the book that, while its conclusion is utterly banal and annoying, the possibilities behind it are interesting while they last.
The first half was probably my preference, and while it's very much rife with Asimov's annoying "Hahaha! But you don't suspect it was actually I who solved everything from the very beginning!" oneupmanship that is just horridly shot through in these books, it has one of the better character beats in the whole thing. Han Pritcher's interesting situation where he's been mind-controlled by one character and knows about it, but *possibly* mind controlled by a second and is unsure... there's a lot of great little moments provided by that. Given a good character's rarity, this really helps.
The second half is messier, juggling a number of plotlines each of which aren't too stellar. Again some ridiculous Xanatos Gambit shit abounds to the point where you just don't care about the conclusion at all (and in fact, the *most interesting* option is one of the earliest thrown away. Ah well.) This at least better expands the galaxy than book 2, and gives some somewhat stronger characters. At least they're not directly irritating.
Not a great review, but there's just not tons to say here. You already know how you're going to feel about this book by the time you get done with the original Foundation book. It's more of the same, even if a bit lesser.
The first half was probably my preference, and while it's very much rife with Asimov's annoying "Hahaha! But you don't suspect it was actually I who solved everything from the very beginning!" oneupmanship that is just horridly shot through in these books, it has one of the better character beats in the whole thing. Han Pritcher's interesting situation where he's been mind-controlled by one character and knows about it, but *possibly* mind controlled by a second and is unsure... there's a lot of great little moments provided by that. Given a good character's rarity, this really helps.
The second half is messier, juggling a number of plotlines each of which aren't too stellar. Again some ridiculous Xanatos Gambit shit abounds to the point where you just don't care about the conclusion at all (and in fact, the *most interesting* option is one of the earliest thrown away. Ah well.) This at least better expands the galaxy than book 2, and gives some somewhat stronger characters. At least they're not directly irritating.
Not a great review, but there's just not tons to say here. You already know how you're going to feel about this book by the time you get done with the original Foundation book. It's more of the same, even if a bit lesser.
Hotel Transylvania by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro
4.0
Hotel Transylvania seems to have been, along with contemporary Interview with a Vampire, on the bleeding edge of 'sympathetic vampire as hero' technology, and comparing it to its famous cousin reveals some interesting differences. Yarbro's book(s) seem to be much pulpier, campier, and dare I say fun, as we see dashing Edmund Dantes-esque master of all situations Saint-Germain worm his way into the hearts of Parisian society, woo and romance the ladies with his particular charms, and battle the vile Satan cult brewing in the subterrain.
In some ways this almost approaches flat wish-fulfullment, but, let's be honest, who doesn't deserve that at times? All the men in this book (barring the dashing hero) are venal, petty, wretched monsters who would abuse a woman at the drop of a hate. All the women are charming, intelligent, spunky, daring, and unfortunately put upon by the patriarchal hierarchy keeping them in place - Yarbro smartly uses Saint-Germain as a lens upon this time period (and our own), examining gendered prejudices and matters of control and expectation of women. Not bad for an otherwise tawdry scene-chewer.
In another smart move, Yarbro takes the vampiric traditions and turns *some* of them on their head, keeping enough to give her hero a sense of mystery, of otherness and of sensuality, but then applying said traits to other characters instead, building out her world. Saint-German can hold crosses because he is a good christian, it's instead the Satanic cult who cannot stand their sight. Etc. It's all very clever and works in her world. Prop all this up with quite a well researched (or enough so that I can't tell) history, rife with all sorts of textual detail...
Lastly, it's punctuated all over with spots of the most amazing violence, the villains realized in about as evil detail as you could want. It is to some degree a book I would even warn people against - rapes and sexual violence abound, and even with the otherwise light tone, there's an underlying threat and hint of consequence. The one thing that doesn't work too well is how closely homosexuality, sodomy, and violence are tied together here. I choose to think Yarbro does better later in the series, but this book is... pretty direct about the tie.
All in all, a great read - a charming pulpy historical horror romance with all the scenes and characters you'd expect, with just enough depth and detail to really bring it all to life.
In some ways this almost approaches flat wish-fulfullment, but, let's be honest, who doesn't deserve that at times? All the men in this book (barring the dashing hero) are venal, petty, wretched monsters who would abuse a woman at the drop of a hate. All the women are charming, intelligent, spunky, daring, and unfortunately put upon by the patriarchal hierarchy keeping them in place - Yarbro smartly uses Saint-Germain as a lens upon this time period (and our own), examining gendered prejudices and matters of control and expectation of women. Not bad for an otherwise tawdry scene-chewer.
In another smart move, Yarbro takes the vampiric traditions and turns *some* of them on their head, keeping enough to give her hero a sense of mystery, of otherness and of sensuality, but then applying said traits to other characters instead, building out her world. Saint-German can hold crosses because he is a good christian, it's instead the Satanic cult who cannot stand their sight. Etc. It's all very clever and works in her world. Prop all this up with quite a well researched (or enough so that I can't tell) history, rife with all sorts of textual detail...
Lastly, it's punctuated all over with spots of the most amazing violence, the villains realized in about as evil detail as you could want. It is to some degree a book I would even warn people against - rapes and sexual violence abound, and even with the otherwise light tone, there's an underlying threat and hint of consequence. The one thing that doesn't work too well is how closely homosexuality, sodomy, and violence are tied together here. I choose to think Yarbro does better later in the series, but this book is... pretty direct about the tie.
All in all, a great read - a charming pulpy historical horror romance with all the scenes and characters you'd expect, with just enough depth and detail to really bring it all to life.
The Guest by Emma Cline
3.5
in The Guest, Emma Cline deftly submerges you into the fully transitory life of Alex, an aimless nobody who wheels and deals her way into the good graces of person after person, hanging on and using them for food, shelter, drugs... The graceful flowing from situation to situation is so well done, each rich bozo we're introduced to is well realized as the sole thing important in their horribly vapid world, and the ways Alex plays on (or fails to) their insecurities is great to watch. You root for her well, even if her ultimate goal is clearly a mistake.
Thing is, as well done as this aspect is - Great Gatsby as done by Eliza Clark, if you'll permit me the dumb blurb - I just wanted a little more? A heightening of tension, an explosion of debauchery, a horrific finale driving everything home, but instead it floats along, pushed and pulled by the tides until it just kinda... ends, little resolved, and Alex clearly continuing her unstable ways ad infinitum. It's a powerful ending, but one that will make this book disappear in the rearview mirror in the long run. Alex will disappear from my mind the same as she tries to disappear from others lives.
Thing is, as well done as this aspect is - Great Gatsby as done by Eliza Clark, if you'll permit me the dumb blurb - I just wanted a little more? A heightening of tension, an explosion of debauchery, a horrific finale driving everything home, but instead it floats along, pushed and pulled by the tides until it just kinda... ends, little resolved, and Alex clearly continuing her unstable ways ad infinitum. It's a powerful ending, but one that will make this book disappear in the rearview mirror in the long run. Alex will disappear from my mind the same as she tries to disappear from others lives.
Too Like the Lightning by Ada Palmer
4.0
This review might feel more negative than I intend, but coming back to this book there's just so much that's on the border of totally irritating that it's hard not to nitpick and complain, despite the book being, on the whole, quite good. On the surface, Too Like the Lightning presents as a mystery/thriller, a crime has been committed and the protagonist must go around, interview suspects, make connections, come up with theories, and uncover deep secrets. In reality, a number of things stand in the way of making this work - intentionally though, let's me clear.
First, the crime is completely opaque. Ada Palmer (to her credit) throws you in the deep end, and much of this strange future/past world is left for you to discover on the way yourself. This is fine. The problem is once things do get explained, the crime is so particular to the world it's hard to see exactly how it affects things. Fine though, it's world stuff. Second, the narrator himself is intricately wrapped up in the crime himself, and a tangled web of politics we have to discover. Again, this is really cool.
But. What this means is that the structure of the book is a mystery without a mystery, a crime without a plot, and an investigation in which no characters are actually interested in solving things. Instead, we get a revolving door of characters, new ones every chapter many of whom are hard to distinguish from each other - every character is exceptionally hot (this book is horny as hell), every character has a very particular philosophy that we dive into in detail. In the end we don't get many answers or much plot has happened. We go into book two, where the real action occurs.
Instead, this feels like Palmer's personal dollhouse to show off her knowledge and writing ability, mixing in enlightenment thinkers and science fiction tech. This is a delightful book to read, Mycroft's voice is so strong, present, and vivid, and so many of the future ideas are just fantastic, how they've evolved, how they interplay with each other, and the ideas of the past revived.
But that's the end - a world built, but to what end? There's so much good here, but it feels unsatisfying. Maybe this is just due to the break in the novels, and the two really should've lived as one. We end off and... I guess I gotta read another book now.
First, the crime is completely opaque. Ada Palmer (to her credit) throws you in the deep end, and much of this strange future/past world is left for you to discover on the way yourself. This is fine. The problem is once things do get explained, the crime is so particular to the world it's hard to see exactly how it affects things. Fine though, it's world stuff. Second, the narrator himself is intricately wrapped up in the crime himself, and a tangled web of politics we have to discover. Again, this is really cool.
But. What this means is that the structure of the book is a mystery without a mystery, a crime without a plot, and an investigation in which no characters are actually interested in solving things. Instead, we get a revolving door of characters, new ones every chapter many of whom are hard to distinguish from each other - every character is exceptionally hot (this book is horny as hell), every character has a very particular philosophy that we dive into in detail. In the end we don't get many answers or much plot has happened. We go into book two, where the real action occurs.
Instead, this feels like Palmer's personal dollhouse to show off her knowledge and writing ability, mixing in enlightenment thinkers and science fiction tech. This is a delightful book to read, Mycroft's voice is so strong, present, and vivid, and so many of the future ideas are just fantastic, how they've evolved, how they interplay with each other, and the ideas of the past revived.
But that's the end - a world built, but to what end? There's so much good here, but it feels unsatisfying. Maybe this is just due to the break in the novels, and the two really should've lived as one. We end off and... I guess I gotta read another book now.
Dead Astronauts: A Novel by Jeff VanderMeer
2.5
Sorry Jeff. I trust in you, I fully believe in what I think you were going for, but I don't know if you can count on me to back you up on this one. I'm just too small brained for it. The experience of reading Dead Astronauts is a atmospheric, bizarre, and surprising one, it's just also a dense, obscure, aggravating one as well.
The first half of the book brings us back into the world described in Borne, and follows three.... people... travelers we'll say in an instantiation of doing. something. We're given visceral sensory description of so much, VanderMeer's ability to write a shocking, creepy, smelly sentence is unmatched. But to be sure, here unlike in Borne (or even Annihilation) there's *so* much less clarity to latch onto that it becomes a more sensual, poetic experience. It fills out the world of The City and The Company, but I don't know if any of it is very meaningful in the long run, or tells us anything that wasn't already present. I don't need this to be an "explanation of Borne" or anything like that, but - I guess I'm just saying whatever he was trying to get to in this half of the book went fully, utterly, beyond me.
Luckily, then we get to the second half, where the narrative switches and more importantly the writing switches from a detached omniscient 3rd person (if even something as vague as what's in the first half can be called a perspective) to a more direct, reflective 2nd person (and then 1st in the final chapter)... and this connected so much better. Unfortunately by that point I was fairly lost as to what these symbolic characters were meant to represent. I loved the chapter from Sarah's point of view. I Loved loved loved the chapter from the Fox's point of view, but having been introduced to them, and given information about them in the first section... well it's just not something I know how to put together.
So... I dunno. Weird review, not very meaningful, or poignant, and I'm not sure sticking this book with these meager stars is fair. I didn't understand this, but that's not to say that there isn't something to understand here. Or that I didn't have a good time (because again, the final chapter is brilliant!)... but to get there I had to read so much total nonsense it really had me questioning my choices pretty hard.
I'll read more VanderMeer, but.... please Jeff, please be more gentle with me.
The first half of the book brings us back into the world described in Borne, and follows three.... people... travelers we'll say in an instantiation of doing. something. We're given visceral sensory description of so much, VanderMeer's ability to write a shocking, creepy, smelly sentence is unmatched. But to be sure, here unlike in Borne (or even Annihilation) there's *so* much less clarity to latch onto that it becomes a more sensual, poetic experience. It fills out the world of The City and The Company, but I don't know if any of it is very meaningful in the long run, or tells us anything that wasn't already present. I don't need this to be an "explanation of Borne" or anything like that, but - I guess I'm just saying whatever he was trying to get to in this half of the book went fully, utterly, beyond me.
Luckily, then we get to the second half, where the narrative switches and more importantly the writing switches from a detached omniscient 3rd person (if even something as vague as what's in the first half can be called a perspective) to a more direct, reflective 2nd person (and then 1st in the final chapter)... and this connected so much better. Unfortunately by that point I was fairly lost as to what these symbolic characters were meant to represent. I loved the chapter from Sarah's point of view. I Loved loved loved the chapter from the Fox's point of view, but having been introduced to them, and given information about them in the first section... well it's just not something I know how to put together.
So... I dunno. Weird review, not very meaningful, or poignant, and I'm not sure sticking this book with these meager stars is fair. I didn't understand this, but that's not to say that there isn't something to understand here. Or that I didn't have a good time (because again, the final chapter is brilliant!)... but to get there I had to read so much total nonsense it really had me questioning my choices pretty hard.
I'll read more VanderMeer, but.... please Jeff, please be more gentle with me.
The Assassins of Thasalon by Lois McMaster Bujold
2.0
Assassins of Thasalon might be the first time I'm genuinely disappointed with a work by Bujold - for much of the Penric and Desdemona series, though I don't think they're particularly more interesting than an amusing trifle, I've been looking forward to this book, particularly for its length. Many of the Penric stories are fun little vignettes, but end far too quickly or tamely to be much of note. The hope was that the full length would let Bujold stretch out a bit, get wild, and get to something a little stranger, more like Chalion, or Paladin.
Unfortunately, Assassins of Thasalon is honestly just another Penric story, only long. It bears no further insight, or weight from the strength of its length, and though it serves as somewhat of a capstone to this particular story arc, there isn't more of a sense of theme or importance than before. Penric goes through his task blithely and in a described orderly manner, and much of the action is literally left to divine intervention. Much of the length of the novel is instead padded with the characters describing to each new person they meet, the events of the novel, up to that point. And then again with the next set. And again with the next. Add in Penric's incessant need to explain the magic system (which we've gotten in all 9 other novellas, and shorter) and it's just boring. The first Bujold book to be so. And Hopefully the last.
Unfortunately, Assassins of Thasalon is honestly just another Penric story, only long. It bears no further insight, or weight from the strength of its length, and though it serves as somewhat of a capstone to this particular story arc, there isn't more of a sense of theme or importance than before. Penric goes through his task blithely and in a described orderly manner, and much of the action is literally left to divine intervention. Much of the length of the novel is instead padded with the characters describing to each new person they meet, the events of the novel, up to that point. And then again with the next set. And again with the next. Add in Penric's incessant need to explain the magic system (which we've gotten in all 9 other novellas, and shorter) and it's just boring. The first Bujold book to be so. And Hopefully the last.
Ethan of Athos by Lois McMaster Bujold
4.0
Ethan of Athos is a fast, riveting story throwing a fish-out-of-water character into intergalactic intrigue and spy vs. spy. Though things get dangerous at times, it's broadly a more lighthearted fare from Bujold, the main quirk being that, in her typical fashion she gives us an unexpected and carefully crafted main character - a conservative, religious, misogynist man from a planet with no women. Though this sounds about as dour as possible, Bujold balances expertly both pairing him with the go-getter lady who upstages him constantly, but also not pushing things too far. This isn't a story about a man *entirely* learning he's wrong from start to finish, it's simpler than that. More realistic, and the hesitancy pays off in the end.
As always, Bujold tells a great story. Maybe not the best in the Saga, but a highlight for sure in its own way.
As always, Bujold tells a great story. Maybe not the best in the Saga, but a highlight for sure in its own way.
Exordia by Seth Dickinson
4.5
Gone is the Seth Dickinson of Traitor Baru. I mourn for him. After the sequels and this, I'm not sure I'm confident he'll deliver as razor honed a book as that again. But if the only thing bad about a book I really have to say is "well it's not quite as good as Traitor Baru Fucking Cormorant," well we're on to something here huh. No, this Seth Dickinson is evolved beyond mortals. His hippocampi swelling to enormous proportions, he looks down at us with his distended psychic cranium and laughs.
(And if your experience with Traitor Baru Cormorant was to find it plodding and dull, just run away from this book entirely. Trust.)
No, instead this Seth Dickinson is painfully smart, and wants you to know it. This is sheerly impressive, a joy to read, and also aggravating, in turn. Exordia is absolutely packed. Seth Dickinson knows physics. He knows Biology. He knows the worldwide political intricacies under the Obama administration, he knows religious beliefs of Kurdish refugees, he knows nerdy trivia from the 2000's, he knows military callsigns and technical details of battleships, he knows existential philosophy and narratology. Moreover, he wants you to know it all - not necessarily that he knows it, though in part it does become more self-serving that you'd hope - but because it all combines, coalescing into this marvelous messy ball of thought, of pattern, of culture, of detail, and creates.... well I'm not quite sure in the end if the juice is worth the squeeze, but you bet your ass I'm going to be thinking about this book for ages.
This is a modern book, with modern characters, a range of people, beliefs, truly world-wide in a way many stories claim to be and fail at, and Dickinson manages to sell it believably. There are two main drawbacks here - one, because it's a modern book, there's that annoying tendency to drop in callbacks to cultural in-jokes and memes (There's a damn 'jet fuel can't melt steel beams' pun I groaned at), and depending on your taste for this, this book could certainly be very annoying. I think he's aware, and managed a good balance overall, but, still, more than I'd like personally. Secondarily, this is a book full of Smart People Talking. All the topics in that previous paragraph - science, philosophy, and what not? Everyone in the book discusses them at length, continuously and constantly, to the point where your eyes will glaze over a bit, and all the characters become just a *bit* more samey than you'd like. Ah well - the thing is, what he does with it is genius.
This is an alien invasion story, and one of the coolest things is he treats the aliens, and their inherently unknowable being as... just another topic to expound upon. Rather than having the affect of trivializing them, it instead makes them as real as anything else, forcing you to really come to grips with whatever the fuck horrifying technology they have next- whether that's an electron thin, kilometer long sword, or (literally) Narrative Destiny.
... and yeah, it's all building to talk about stories. How we as a people interact with them, find ourselves as the heroes, villains, or expendable bodies in each others stories, and the ways Dickinson plays with that are incredible. The ways he presents alien body horror and the hell of warfare are incredible. The ways he brings together a truly wonderful international cast that you root for (even at the expense of each other), and then absolutely destroys them... incredible. This book will make you feel as big brain as Seth Dickinson, and have a blast along the way... as long as you can keep up with the rambling at the same time.
The last note I'll make is basically that I hope this is a standalone? Not because I want more Baru (I do) but even though we're left on more of a cliff-hanger than you'd typically like, I don't know that this story will work to continue... Drawing out the conflict... what will it add? I'm not sure if there's more there. But Seth Dickinson has proven me wrong before.
(And if your experience with Traitor Baru Cormorant was to find it plodding and dull, just run away from this book entirely. Trust.)
No, instead this Seth Dickinson is painfully smart, and wants you to know it. This is sheerly impressive, a joy to read, and also aggravating, in turn. Exordia is absolutely packed. Seth Dickinson knows physics. He knows Biology. He knows the worldwide political intricacies under the Obama administration, he knows religious beliefs of Kurdish refugees, he knows nerdy trivia from the 2000's, he knows military callsigns and technical details of battleships, he knows existential philosophy and narratology. Moreover, he wants you to know it all - not necessarily that he knows it, though in part it does become more self-serving that you'd hope - but because it all combines, coalescing into this marvelous messy ball of thought, of pattern, of culture, of detail, and creates.... well I'm not quite sure in the end if the juice is worth the squeeze, but you bet your ass I'm going to be thinking about this book for ages.
This is a modern book, with modern characters, a range of people, beliefs, truly world-wide in a way many stories claim to be and fail at, and Dickinson manages to sell it believably. There are two main drawbacks here - one, because it's a modern book, there's that annoying tendency to drop in callbacks to cultural in-jokes and memes (There's a damn 'jet fuel can't melt steel beams' pun I groaned at), and depending on your taste for this, this book could certainly be very annoying. I think he's aware, and managed a good balance overall, but, still, more than I'd like personally. Secondarily, this is a book full of Smart People Talking. All the topics in that previous paragraph - science, philosophy, and what not? Everyone in the book discusses them at length, continuously and constantly, to the point where your eyes will glaze over a bit, and all the characters become just a *bit* more samey than you'd like. Ah well - the thing is, what he does with it is genius.
This is an alien invasion story, and one of the coolest things is he treats the aliens, and their inherently unknowable being as... just another topic to expound upon. Rather than having the affect of trivializing them, it instead makes them as real as anything else, forcing you to really come to grips with whatever the fuck horrifying technology they have next- whether that's an electron thin, kilometer long sword, or (literally) Narrative Destiny.
... and yeah, it's all building to talk about stories. How we as a people interact with them, find ourselves as the heroes, villains, or expendable bodies in each others stories, and the ways Dickinson plays with that are incredible. The ways he presents alien body horror and the hell of warfare are incredible. The ways he brings together a truly wonderful international cast that you root for (even at the expense of each other), and then absolutely destroys them... incredible. This book will make you feel as big brain as Seth Dickinson, and have a blast along the way... as long as you can keep up with the rambling at the same time.
The last note I'll make is basically that I hope this is a standalone? Not because I want more Baru (I do) but even though we're left on more of a cliff-hanger than you'd typically like, I don't know that this story will work to continue... Drawing out the conflict... what will it add? I'm not sure if there's more there. But Seth Dickinson has proven me wrong before.