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izzyhardern's review against another edition
tense
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
3.0
The end slightly saved it because it had a more personal touch but I think this type of disjointed narrative just doesn’t really work for me.
ameliasbooks's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Very unsettling dystopian story. I liked the writing, but the style was sometimes a bit hard too follow.
100pagesaday's review against another edition
3.0
Fresh water has become scarce and is now a commodity. The Water Train brings water to the city, but is constantly being sabotaged and must be closely guarded. Glaciers are now being towed in as a source of fresh water. An Ice Dock must be constructed to support the giant glacier, moving entire communities in its wake. As news of the displacement from the Ice Dock spreads, the lives of several people become entwined by the element that keeps us alive.
Stillicide is defined as: a continual dripping or the servitude of eavesdrop binding a servient tenement to receive from the dominant tenement rainwater from the eaves of a building located on the latter.Stillicide is a collection of short stories all taking place within the same time frame around a future dystopian city in England struggling to receive fresh water. At first, the stories all seem a bit disjointed, but they do give a good sense of place. Through the eyes of the storytellers, a world where humans continue to live their daily lives as yet another catastrophe of our own making threatens to dismantle everything. To make coffee, we harvest the respiration from trees, protests emerge as the impact of the Ice Dock is made imminent. The writing creates the feeling of a slightly off-kilter normal or a boring dystopia. Despite the world crashing down and the inherent risk of running out of fresh water, people are continuing on with their own drama, motivations and human needs. As the stories continue, the connectedness becomes apparent and the power of nature over human life is shown.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
Stillicide is defined as: a continual dripping or the servitude of eavesdrop binding a servient tenement to receive from the dominant tenement rainwater from the eaves of a building located on the latter.Stillicide is a collection of short stories all taking place within the same time frame around a future dystopian city in England struggling to receive fresh water. At first, the stories all seem a bit disjointed, but they do give a good sense of place. Through the eyes of the storytellers, a world where humans continue to live their daily lives as yet another catastrophe of our own making threatens to dismantle everything. To make coffee, we harvest the respiration from trees, protests emerge as the impact of the Ice Dock is made imminent. The writing creates the feeling of a slightly off-kilter normal or a boring dystopia. Despite the world crashing down and the inherent risk of running out of fresh water, people are continuing on with their own drama, motivations and human needs. As the stories continue, the connectedness becomes apparent and the power of nature over human life is shown.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
megatsunami's review against another edition
4.0
Beautiful and haunting, lightly interconnected stories around water as a commodity in a future landscape.
ichirofakename's review against another edition
3.0
Almost unreadably clipped. Who's talking? To whom? How much time has past? Etc.
Superb setting leads nowhere. Dystopian future lacks water, fetches icebergs and sends other water via special Water Train with auto-firing defensive weaponry.
Superb setting leads nowhere. Dystopian future lacks water, fetches icebergs and sends other water via special Water Train with auto-firing defensive weaponry.
georgiasharkey's review
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
livjhooper's review against another edition
3.0
I love Cynan Jones’ writing so I wanted to love this; but wanting didn’t make it so. I normally love me a disjointed, fragmented narrative, but something about this didn’t work for me. It felt like only some of the parts made a whole, and the other parts were just... there. The writing itself is beautiful as ever, unsurprisingly, but you can tell that it was written as separate pieces for Radio 4. I’d be intrigued to listen to it to see if it feels more cohesive when read out loud. The world building was almost there, but not fully realised - Stillicide feels like the first bricks of a great idea being built, and could make a wonderful full-length novel, but didn’t wholly work for me as a slim little thing.