Scan barcode
angus_mckeogh's review against another edition
2.0
Somehow this book won the PKD Award. I wasn’t overly impressed. The first third to a half was very good mystery sort of plotting, and then the final half devolved into some dreamland sequence involving a miffed set of friends fighting over the same girl. Extremely confusing and long sequences of utter boredom. Took me an eternity to navigate 300 pages. Not one of my favorites.
awwcripes's review against another edition
2.0
interesting first half. loved the Neighborhoods. the second half got a little too surreal for my taste and I ended up quitting the book with about an hour left to go. just lost my interest.
hakimbriki's review against another edition
5.0
This was... glorious.
Imagine the humor of the TV series Red Dwarf, the surreal and ethereal tone of Michel Gondry and Terry Gilliam movies, the heroism of James Bond films, the heart and endearing characters of Stephen King novels... and a humongous dose of originality. Only Forward is all that, and much more.
Only Forward combines (very) fast-paced, groundbreaking plots with intelligent character development and noirish/science fiction themes. The novel's events take place in two fascinating locations: The City, a bizarre yet spellbinding place divided into several autonomous and extremely eccentric neighborhoods. There is a neighborhood for crazy workaholics, another one where any kind of noise is outlawed, and others which are populated by cats and where people keep trying to fling themselves into heaven by jumping on trampolines because they think their souls are frisby-shaped. The second place is called Jeamland, and it's where peple go when they dream. Our protagonist, known as Stark, lives in Color neighborhood; a district where a computer controls dynamic murals to complement the moods and clothes of the residents. He is a lovable, funny and fearless private investigator that is a wee bit secretive about his life in general. As the plot unweaves, we learn more and more about him, and at one point discover that the cheeky bastard is quite unreliable on the narration front... which I flat-out loved. Other than being the ideal son-in-law, Stark has access to Jeamland. He takes us with him on an adventure to save a citizen of the Center, the workaholic neighborhood, who was assumedly kidnapped in unclear circumstances. An adventure that will keep you guessing until the very, very end.
Aside from the incredible story-telling, fast pacing and sense of humor, Only Forward offers a lot of heartfelt moments, which complement a very solidly built story. Michael Marhsall Smith tugs at your heartstring in the most perfect moments, which make you want to hug the protagonist. This does not happen to me a lot. As you approach the end, you get a sense that the story is somehow incomplete... that the author will not be able to give us a decent ending in the 10 pages left, but fear not. He does a great job of keeping you awake until the very last chapter.
This book has immense poignancy and pathos. It is the kind of Sci-Fi which makes you oblivious to the actual science fiction (and fantasylike) elements in it. All you care about is Stark and his friends... and foes.
orianaber0940's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
purplestones's review against another edition
5.0
This book was incredibly close to gaining 5 stars from me and it just might by the end of 24'.
This is my first sci-fi read in a very long time and I'm struggling to tell if I am nostalgic to the genre so rate this super highly and/or this book is bloody terrific and a 5-star.
For now, I rate as four as the only downfall is that I would on occasion have to re-read some areas as to understand but that makes sense because of the complexity of the surrounding world we are brought into. I found this book quite simply incredible, the writing, the characters, the plot and the worlds as to which we were introduced gripped me from the very beginning. The small details truly make this book what it is, for example the talking elevators and the quirks every town has of their own. I loved how unique this felt and to me I haven't felt so enjoyable reading in quite some time. This was such a fun read and I would love to read more similar to this in the future.
Excited to start the hunt for futuristic, weird world, talking object plot-based books.
This is my first sci-fi read in a very long time and I'm struggling to tell if I am nostalgic to the genre so rate this super highly and/or this book is bloody terrific and a 5-star.
For now, I rate as four as the only downfall is that I would on occasion have to re-read some areas as to understand but that makes sense because of the complexity of the surrounding world we are brought into. I found this book quite simply incredible, the writing, the characters, the plot and the worlds as to which we were introduced gripped me from the very beginning. The small details truly make this book what it is, for example the talking elevators and the quirks every town has of their own. I loved how unique this felt and to me I haven't felt so enjoyable reading in quite some time. This was such a fun read and I would love to read more similar to this in the future.
Excited to start the hunt for futuristic, weird world, talking object plot-based books.
billymac1962's review against another edition
5.0
This is probably going to be the worst review I've written.
There is so much to say about this novel, but I can't really tell you anything without spoiling it.
So, where to start?
How about the story? Well, the less you know, the better. Suffice it to say, our hero's travels take on some strange turns.
This is the second book I've read by Smith. His thriller Straw Men, under the name Michael Smith, was quite good, but the story wasn't one I wanted to keep following for two more novels.
Only Forward was enough to convince me that I have to read everything else by this guy.
Not only was the story outstanding, but this is some of the finest writing you will come across. There were a couple of times he made me laugh out loud, but many more times when he made me marvel at his poignant observances on the human condition.
The only thing that irked me was that there were a couple of things that I would have liked explained further, like Cat Neighbourhood, for instance. But maybe he meant to leave that to the imagination.
I need to make this a short review, otherwise I'll start ranting and raving and giving too much away.
Read Only Forward. It's only 300+ pages, an easy read, and it will take you on a mind trip.
Enjoy the ride.
There is so much to say about this novel, but I can't really tell you anything without spoiling it.
So, where to start?
How about the story? Well, the less you know, the better. Suffice it to say, our hero's travels take on some strange turns.
This is the second book I've read by Smith. His thriller Straw Men, under the name Michael Smith, was quite good, but the story wasn't one I wanted to keep following for two more novels.
Only Forward was enough to convince me that I have to read everything else by this guy.
Not only was the story outstanding, but this is some of the finest writing you will come across. There were a couple of times he made me laugh out loud, but many more times when he made me marvel at his poignant observances on the human condition.
The only thing that irked me was that there were a couple of things that I would have liked explained further, like Cat Neighbourhood, for instance. But maybe he meant to leave that to the imagination.
I need to make this a short review, otherwise I'll start ranting and raving and giving too much away.
Read Only Forward. It's only 300+ pages, an easy read, and it will take you on a mind trip.
Enjoy the ride.
jmoses's review against another edition
4.0
A super weird journey into our collective psyche and that of the narrator. I'm not even kidding this is strange as hell. It would have been interesting if it was just the setting of The City, and the extra twists and turns only made it more so. A bit hard to follow in the later chapters, but otherwise good.
hank's review against another edition
4.0
No wonder this won the Philip K. Dick award. First it is weird but understandable with a fun little adventure. Then it gets weirder, you can still wrap your head around it and follow the story. The MC gains some depth the quest gains some purchase. Then at the end it gets PKD weird. I am still not entirely sure what happened at the ending or what I am supposed to think but I enjoyed it. There was a bit too much "tell" and not enough "show" at the end or it would have been 5 stars.
I will probably read the next one.
I will probably read the next one.
suzemo's review against another edition
4.0
I thought I was going to hate this book, and initially, I didn't care for it. The slow build up or explanation of the world that is not-quite-ours was a little tedious and boring. A little too cliche, until the cliches worked.
It's a (murder?) mystery-thriller-psychological horror -thing. It is very imaginative, and once I got past the fact that it wasn't a real world (as far as I'm concerned), it got interesting. I think the p-sychological bits of it were the most interesting, and I did end up loving the book.
As for a proper review? Look elsewhere, because I am just not up to the task.
It's a (murder?) mystery-thriller-psychological horror -thing. It is very imaginative, and once I got past the fact that it wasn't a real world (as far as I'm concerned), it got interesting. I think the p-sychological bits of it were the most interesting, and I did end up loving the book.
As for a proper review? Look elsewhere, because I am just not up to the task.