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willow_or_wonton's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Not quite as good as lock in, but still a fun read
cinemazombie's review against another edition
5.0
Excellent future detective fiction. Robo-football conspiracies meet corporate espionage and murder. Very fun read.
thebrianikeda's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
zqylur's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
3.25
mmorris114's review
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
timinbc's review against another edition
3.0
Scalzi said he had trouble writing this. It shows. Apart from some good work developing the threeps concept, this one's weak. It doesn't stand out from a zillion other whodunits, or the million set in an SF frame.
Hilketa is wildly implausible, and less well developed than Quidditch. And yes, I saw the movie Rollerball, and it could happen. But still.
Chris is bland, and I won't vote yea or nay on Chris's gender, or even on Scalzi's handling of it, except to say that it is necessary to make an effort in that line these days, and he has done so.
Vann is cool, but she's just Diaz from Brooklyn Nine-nine.
A few I should hide:
There's a wild killing spree at the end, but no one seems concerned, as if
they were ALL threeps instead of some.
The Philly FBI was **obviously** compromised; that could have been hidden better.
"And Scalzi?"
"Yes?"
"Enough with the dramatic parting shots, already! At least three, maybe four; overdone!"
Hilketa is wildly implausible, and less well developed than Quidditch. And yes, I saw the movie Rollerball, and it could happen. But still.
Chris is bland, and I won't vote yea or nay on Chris's gender, or even on Scalzi's handling of it, except to say that it is necessary to make an effort in that line these days, and he has done so.
Vann is cool, but she's just Diaz from Brooklyn Nine-nine.
A few I should hide:
Spoiler
The data vault on the cat is just silly. Why would it be a good idea?There's a wild killing spree at the end, but no one seems concerned, as if
they were ALL threeps instead of some.
The Philly FBI was **obviously** compromised; that could have been hidden better.
"And Scalzi?"
"Yes?"
"Enough with the dramatic parting shots, already! At least three, maybe four; overdone!"
bookph1le's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 stars
I thoroughly enjoy this series. Chris and Vann are both such great characters, and I love the way they play off one another. Scalzi has created a very interesting near-future scenario that gives him a way to examine some very present issues like discrimination, sexism, how the disability community is treated, etc.
I could also sense there's some setup here for future conflicts, and I'm definitely on board with those. I enjoy police procedural novels as well, but there's just something about taking that concept and placing it in a scifi or fantasy setting that I find so appealing, possibly because contemporary police procedurals feel like they deal in microcosms of society--microcosms that reflect the larger society, to be sure, but yet still small in some way I can't quite put my finger on--while using a scifi or fantasy setting allows for a more macro view.
Here's hoping for more books in this series, and soon. (Though I totally get where the author was coming from when he talked in his acknowledgements about why this book took him longer than usual. Keep doing what you're doing, Scalzi. We need forward-thinking, insightful, and thoughtful authors like you.)
I thoroughly enjoy this series. Chris and Vann are both such great characters, and I love the way they play off one another. Scalzi has created a very interesting near-future scenario that gives him a way to examine some very present issues like discrimination, sexism, how the disability community is treated, etc.
I could also sense there's some setup here for future conflicts, and I'm definitely on board with those. I enjoy police procedural novels as well, but there's just something about taking that concept and placing it in a scifi or fantasy setting that I find so appealing, possibly because contemporary police procedurals feel like they deal in microcosms of society--microcosms that reflect the larger society, to be sure, but yet still small in some way I can't quite put my finger on--while using a scifi or fantasy setting allows for a more macro view.
Here's hoping for more books in this series, and soon. (Though I totally get where the author was coming from when he talked in his acknowledgements about why this book took him longer than usual. Keep doing what you're doing, Scalzi. We need forward-thinking, insightful, and thoughtful authors like you.)
ghostlyweeds's review against another edition
5.0
I love this world. I love these characters. I love the dialogue and the banter and how even though I don’t always understand the details, the author ties it all together at the end. I genuinely laughed out loud so many times. I want to be Vann when I grow up. I will absolutely be reading more by John Scalzi and maybe even stalk his socials in the hopes he’ll write more of the Haden universe and the characters in it.