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incrediblemelk's review
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is the third of Coleman's novels I’ve read and I enjoyed it a lot, but it’s the softest and most hopeful of Coleman’s three novels, which meant that I enjoyed it as escapism but its political critique doesn’t have the same bite as her previous work and doesn’t challenge the reader’s genre expectations as much.
I really enjoy her style of writing – at times gripping, direct and propulsive, at times vividly lyrical, full of run-on sentences – which harnesses the genre styles and tropes of science fiction to commentate on contemporary Australian political issues.
This was compared to The Handmaid's Tale a lot, which is a pretty lazy comparison. To be honest I think that story has become so well known as to blunt its political critique. There are so many similar stories, from John Wyndham's Chrysalids on, riffed on so many times – especially in dystopian young adult fiction, which genre Coleman is specifically tapping here. Obviously when we're introduced to Christine's oppressive life we understand immediately, long before she does, that she's being imprisoned in her walled city rather than protected from the horrors outside, and that she will escape and thrive once she leaves it. (I don't really think that's a spoiler.)
Conversely, Coleman's descriptions of a still-possible utopian future Melbourne surprised me with how tender they made me feel. They had me yearning for what my home city could be, even as I fatalistically accept that it won't ever come to pass: the world of the enclave is our real world and we can't escape it as Christine does, because our world has no containing wall, no boundary outside which something better can grow. Am I in the grip of Mark Fisher's "capitalist realism" – the feeling that no alternative to capitalism is even possible, even if it's conceivable?
I really enjoy her style of writing – at times gripping, direct and propulsive, at times vividly lyrical, full of run-on sentences – which harnesses the genre styles and tropes of science fiction to commentate on contemporary Australian political issues.
This was compared to The Handmaid's Tale a lot, which is a pretty lazy comparison. To be honest I think that story has become so well known as to blunt its political critique. There are so many similar stories, from John Wyndham's Chrysalids on, riffed on so many times – especially in dystopian young adult fiction, which genre Coleman is specifically tapping here. Obviously when we're introduced to Christine's oppressive life we understand immediately, long before she does, that she's being imprisoned in her walled city rather than protected from the horrors outside, and that she will escape and thrive once she leaves it. (I don't really think that's a spoiler.)
Conversely, Coleman's descriptions of a still-possible utopian future Melbourne surprised me with how tender they made me feel. They had me yearning for what my home city could be, even as I fatalistically accept that it won't ever come to pass: the world of the enclave is our real world and we can't escape it as Christine does, because our world has no containing wall, no boundary outside which something better can grow. Am I in the grip of Mark Fisher's "capitalist realism" – the feeling that no alternative to capitalism is even possible, even if it's conceivable?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Homophobia, Vomit, Abandonment, Lesbophobia, Racial slurs, Sexual violence, Alcoholism, and Gaslighting
litchyn's review
challenging
dark
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
kumquats87's review
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
archytas's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Coleman is great at plot and structure, and this is an enjoyably tense book which keeps you reading to learn more, but about the mysteries and to see what happens to our plucky if slightly clueless protagonist. Coleman also has strong social commentary, not exactly subtle, but definitely apt. She has a sharp eye for the connections between colonialism, power, wealth, gender and the Anthropocene and here there is a welcome celebration of the potential of queer activists of colour to build better things. I found myself a little distracted by parts of the book that I found implausible - this could be because, despite saying I want to read more hopeful books, I am leaning too hard on cynical pessimism rather than being Coleman's fault. I am also impressed by how Coleman manages to have a distinct style, but produce quite different variations of sf in her three novels. Given she doesn't seem likely to run out of tricks soon, I am intrigued by where she will go next.
traceyanderson's review
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Classism, Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Homophobia, Racism, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, and Transphobia
freya's review
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
amelia_o_reads's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Oops. I didn't mean to finish that one quite so quickly... What a page turner!
Claire Coleman introduces us to the terrifying world of Safetown, it is all the convenience of algorithms and AI paired with constant surveillance and yes, that is as terrifying as it sounds.
We follow Christine, who has always felt uneasy in her society as she starts to realise that she might not be as safe as she has always been told.
Kind of dystopian, definitely a warning but also a message of hope about climate change and a great cast of diverse characters.
There are so many interesting concepts in Enclaves that could be fleshed out further but also, I am a big fan of getting to the point so that is not necessarily a criticism in my mind.
Claire Coleman introduces us to the terrifying world of Safetown, it is all the convenience of algorithms and AI paired with constant surveillance and yes, that is as terrifying as it sounds.
We follow Christine, who has always felt uneasy in her society as she starts to realise that she might not be as safe as she has always been told.
Kind of dystopian, definitely a warning but also a message of hope about climate change and a great cast of diverse characters.
There are so many interesting concepts in Enclaves that could be fleshed out further but also, I am a big fan of getting to the point so that is not necessarily a criticism in my mind.
jouljet's review
adventurous
relaxing
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0