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sarahweyand's review
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
After my success with Elder Race, I decided to give another short book by Tchaikovsky a try, and unfortunately this was more of a miss for me. This novella started out strong and I really enjoyed the voice of our main character throughout. It reminded me a lot of Mark Watney from The Martian if he had been transplanted into a dark and wacky alternative exoplanet. I chuckled out loud at a couple lines, so props to the good writing and the good line delivery by the audiobook narrator.
Apart from the fun protagonist and interesting first few chapters, this book sort of lost me about halfway in. This book kind of had a hard time keeping my attention, but I'll admit that that might be on me for listening to an audiobook during a stressful time of year. Going to leave my rating where it is right now but could be convinced to give this one another go.
Apart from the fun protagonist and interesting first few chapters, this book sort of lost me about halfway in. This book kind of had a hard time keeping my attention, but I'll admit that that might be on me for listening to an audiobook during a stressful time of year. Going to leave my rating where it is right now but could be convinced to give this one another go.
Graphic: Cannibalism, Violence, and Gore
Moderate: Body horror
iono's review
adventurous
mysterious
fast-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
Graphic: Cannibalism
Moderate: Murder, Body horror, Death, and Violence
Minor: War
surdiablo's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
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? Yes
4.0
Okay, I am at a loss for words as it left quite a stunning impression on me. It's one of those books that's best experienced if you go in completely blind, but for the sake of me having to write something, we basically follow the first-person narrative of an astronaut stuck in an alien crypt. The pacing is good, atmospheric dread is impressive, flashbacks are intertwined without ruining the flow much, and the book is even funny/wholesome at certain points regardless of the subject matter, since the narrator doesn't take himself seriously. I didn't have many problems with the story except that it could have used more 'creative' moments perhaps, considering the setting. Perhaps it's not as well-written as Elder Race, and you may not find it as impressive as I did if you have read much sci-fi before, but I had a great time overall and the ending left me feeling disturbed . I wasn't aware of the whole Beowulf retelling part, and I think it worked out very well for me since I had no idea what to expect.
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, and Cannibalism
mar's review
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Cannibalism, Body horror, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: War
orangegroves's review against another edition
3.75
Graphic: Gore, Violence, Cannibalism, and Body horror
gilnean's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
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
2.75
Graphic: Violence, Gore, Body horror, Cannibalism, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Death, Murder, and Blood
Moderate: Cursing
Minor: Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Hate crime, Xenophobia, Genocide, Vomit, Homophobia, and War
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