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erebus53's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I picked up this read because it was mentioned in the afterword for Native Tongue by Suzette Haden Elgin (which was a bookclub read) and I had a challenge to read a book that I had read about in a book! Also a little amused that this version was published Apr 17, 2007 and I started it on April 17.. heh.
What happens when you find out that within our cells is coded a bunch of information that isn't recognised by our genetic science? This expands upon some of the ideas that were just becoming popular in the start of the century, about the symbiotic relationships that keep organisms alive. Where do humans stop and their microbiome begin anyway? and what happens if you expand on that dumb guy's idea about the selfish gene...
The relationships in this story are.. odd. It deals with human reproduction and I did find it odd having a bloke writing about labour and child birthing. The bonding in this a little surreal.. not really a love story, so that element of it was a bit strange, but not too out-there if you think of humans being driven by biological imperatives and instincts racked up to 11.
I found it really interesting that it focused on the smells of everything. I noticed this right from the start that every new environment is explored in sounds, looks, and olfaction... smelling clean, or crisp and cool, or the smell of a throng of people.. I'm not sure that it's obvious but as someone who pays attention to that sort of thing, I noticed it instantly.
So yeah this is yet another take on the question of what it is to be human, and growth and change and all that. It also has facets of what happens when the government wants to control reproductive rights, and who "owns" children. I found it interesting, and parts of it reminded me of the ice excavation parts of How High We Go in the Dark.
The relationships in this story are.. odd. It deals with human reproduction and I did find it odd having a bloke writing about labour and child birthing. The bonding in this a little surreal.. not really a love story, so that element of it was a bit strange, but not too out-there if you think of humans being driven by biological imperatives and instincts racked up to 11.
I found it really interesting that it focused on the smells of everything. I noticed this right from the start that every new environment is explored in sounds, looks, and olfaction... smelling clean, or crisp and cool, or the smell of a throng of people.. I'm not sure that it's obvious but as someone who pays attention to that sort of thing, I noticed it instantly.
So yeah this is yet another take on the question of what it is to be human, and growth and change and all that. It also has facets of what happens when the government wants to control reproductive rights, and who "owns" children. I found it interesting, and parts of it reminded me of the ice excavation parts of How High We Go in the Dark.
mutinyfan's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Would bf great if you cut 100 pages out of it. Very realistic science and government reaction to a virus, especially in the wake of COVID
joaniffer's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
smkingsland's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
nancy33's review against another edition
3.0
Sigh. It was an interesting scientific thriller for most of the book - clever premise, intriguing twists and turns and then...a romance between two characters brought the level of writing down to a 1 star movie on the Lifetime channel. The author wrote dialog for the female scientist saying, "I want you to be my man and I want to have your baby" and worse drivel than I can bear to type.
Well, it was a good 3/4 of a book.
Well, it was a good 3/4 of a book.
emma_thorne's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
A decent piece of speculative fiction! The story follows three different stories which intertwine in a complex way that was engaging to read. The premise of the book is amazing — a biological twist on science fiction that was rather incredible. The idea of a flu leading to a whole new generation of humans is both intriguing and actually quite terrifying to read.
I’m glad I read this book now. I had sufficient biological knowledge to understand the complex terms and scientific jargon in this book, but for someone who has very little scientific understanding I can see how this boom could become confusing and too much.
The premise of this book was really heavy. It took a while for me to get through because there are so many long paragraphs just bombarding you with science and the background knowledge and it held the plot down a little. Also reading about failed births over and over gets a little too much. There isn’t much action, it’s definitely a slow burn in terms of how everything plays out and I don’t think the ending was amazing but it was certainly interesting.
My favourite thing about this book is reading it just after coming out of a pandemic. The parallels between how we reacted to COVID and how those in the book reacted to Herod’s was so spot on and shocking that it was actually scary and jarring to read. Considering this was written in 1999, Bear predicted how we’d react to such a widespread disease in a frighteningly accurate way.
I didn’t love the relationships between the characters and I thought it was too long for the plot that Bear was aiming for, but it was good enough!
I’m glad I read this book now. I had sufficient biological knowledge to understand the complex terms and scientific jargon in this book, but for someone who has very little scientific understanding I can see how this boom could become confusing and too much.
The premise of this book was really heavy. It took a while for me to get through because there are so many long paragraphs just bombarding you with science and the background knowledge and it held the plot down a little. Also reading about failed births over and over gets a little too much. There isn’t much action, it’s definitely a slow burn in terms of how everything plays out and I don’t think the ending was amazing but it was certainly interesting.
My favourite thing about this book is reading it just after coming out of a pandemic. The parallels between how we reacted to COVID and how those in the book reacted to Herod’s was so spot on and shocking that it was actually scary and jarring to read. Considering this was written in 1999, Bear predicted how we’d react to such a widespread disease in a frighteningly accurate way.
I didn’t love the relationships between the characters and I thought it was too long for the plot that Bear was aiming for, but it was good enough!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abortion
Moderate: Death
kitsuneheart's review against another edition
4.0
The current accepted models of evolution emphasize small changes perpetuated over many generations, taking thousands, if not millions, of years to change one species into another. But what if that is wrong? What if there's more like a...switch. A sudden, drastic change in the genetic makeup of a species, creating an instant branch on the evolutionary tree, and the arrival of a new species that exists in direct competition to the original?
What if this once happened to humans?
What if it starts happening again?
Bear has us follow various scientists as the switch is flipped and humanity enters the next stage of its evolution. And the non-evolved members of humanity take it...about as well as you'd expect. Quarantines, abortions, murders...it's all the drama you see in the more gruesome storylines of Marvel's X-Men, but this time, the new species isn't showing themselves at puberty, but can be detected in their mother's own womb.
Greg Bear took the ethical debate of “how can we co-exist with aliens on a resource-scare planet” and changed it to “how can we co-exist with our own alien children.” And it's terrifying to the reader on both sides: the original humans, who will soon find themselves either controlled by these new creatures or edged out of their niche in the environment, or through the eyes of the mutated children, barely here, but already humanity's greatest threat.
I will definitely be going on to the second book in the series! Bear gives you a satisfactory ending, for those who aren't quite into the series and with no plans of continuing, but there's enough left there at the end to make you curious and come back.
What if this once happened to humans?
What if it starts happening again?
Bear has us follow various scientists as the switch is flipped and humanity enters the next stage of its evolution. And the non-evolved members of humanity take it...about as well as you'd expect. Quarantines, abortions, murders...it's all the drama you see in the more gruesome storylines of Marvel's X-Men, but this time, the new species isn't showing themselves at puberty, but can be detected in their mother's own womb.
Greg Bear took the ethical debate of “how can we co-exist with aliens on a resource-scare planet” and changed it to “how can we co-exist with our own alien children.” And it's terrifying to the reader on both sides: the original humans, who will soon find themselves either controlled by these new creatures or edged out of their niche in the environment, or through the eyes of the mutated children, barely here, but already humanity's greatest threat.
I will definitely be going on to the second book in the series! Bear gives you a satisfactory ending, for those who aren't quite into the series and with no plans of continuing, but there's enough left there at the end to make you curious and come back.
rproaudio's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
mnapoleon's review against another edition
4.0
This book was part hard-scifi part Michael Crichton book. At times I felt like was reading some airport bestseller.