Reviews

The January Dancer by Michael Flynn

vailynst's review against another edition

3.0

Notes:

Yay for libraries!

I'd recommend reading this one vs listening. I love that Stefan Rudinicki is one of the main narrators for a lot of the SF/F novels. He's a great narrator. However, this story did not transfer well to audio. Not enough visuals and active scenes to make the story engaging by ear. Great characters & the potential for a well developed setting.

theartolater's review against another edition

2.0

I first tried to read this book sometime in late 2008/early 2009, and it didn't grab me for a lot of reasons. I picked it up because it was pushed as sort of the literary equivalent of Firefly, and that's not completely false - there's plenty to see with the comparisons as sort of a rebel sci-fi story.

The issue is the same as it was last time I tried it, though. I can't pinpoint exactly where I lost the plot a bit, or at least sort of strayed from interest, but it never really got me back. It's not really a fault of the book itself - it's an interesting read, for sure, with some interesting cultural and political conflicts, but I've read different and read others that I've enjoyed a lot more.

I can't say whether it's me or the book, which makes me think it's just me.

bent's review against another edition

4.0

A very enjoyable book. I thought the plot was good, the characters strong, and that it moved at a good clip. I was reading another book with a similar plot at the same time that I read this, and it made the book a little more disorienting than it otherwise would have been, but otherwise, I thought it was very well done.

tdeshler's review against another edition

3.0

This book featured some impressive world-building, but I found it really hard to keep track of the various players and factions. Plus, the the driver behind the plot wasn't really that compelling. I don't think I'll continue with the series.

aee9488's review

adventurous medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

canadianbookworm's review

4.0

http://cdnbookworm.blogspot.com/2016/04/the-january-dancer.html

kn1tt3r's review

4.0

It's a sprawling space opera of adventure, politics, romance, and one of the best endings I've read all year.

thisisdrzed's review

5.0

This book caught me completely by surprise. I can't really describe it all that effectively, but it's a frame story with interesting characters and some great science-fantasy action.

athenalindia's review

3.0

I feel like there are very few moments when it is not a mistake to have a character or the narrator declaim about the intrinsic difference between men and women, particularly when it's used lazily to limit women's emotional range. When it's off the cuff, that's annoying. When it then goes on to shape the women characters in the book because apparently that's really what the author thinks about women, then the irritation grows.

Note: The rest of this review has been withheld due to the changes in Goodreads policy and enforcement. You can read why I came to this decision here.

In the meantime, you can read the entire review at Smorgasbook

chymerra's review

3.0

This book was a struggle for me to get through. Mainly because I had problems following the plot (which almost never happens) and the switching from present to past really confused me (even though it was in different font). It was written beautifully and the author did give a lot of detail to the characters. Like I said above, personally it was a struggle for me to get through. Will I read it again....maybe.