Scan barcode
subtlymelancholy's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide, Gore, Suicide attempt, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, War, and Injury/Injury detail
shetland_pone's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide, Violence, Suicide, Murder, Gore, War, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, and Death
Moderate: Misogyny
bookcaptivated's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-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? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, Violence, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, War, and Genocide
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Cursing, Death of parent, Grief, and Homophobia
memoriast's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
1.0
I really wanted to like this book. I liked the movie Edge of Tomorrow (with some caveats) and I found the first chapter of this book enjoyable. But it was pretty much downhill from there.
My main problem with the book is the women. Specifically, the characterization of Rita Vrataski. Cuteness is not a substitution for a personality. And Rita doesn't really have a personality, or interiority, at all. She's very good at killing, and she opens up to Keiji, but there's no substance to it. She engages in an umeboshi eating contest with him and her face gets all puckered up at the sour taste, but I don't know what that shows about her? It feels like these scenes that could be moments of vulnerability are instead just written to show her being... cute. It frustrated me, because there's this extremely competent, aloof female soldier who everyone fears, and yet the secret depths that we discover about her are just... that she's cute? Even though we get Rita's point of view and learn about her past, it doesn't feel like I really know anything about her.
This also extends somewhat to Keiji. Keiji fares a little better with characterization; it's a little thin, but pretty standard for the average shounen hero. But here the problem with the portrayal of women shows up again. Why is Keiji fighting? He wants to find himself - he didn't know who he was and thought that the crucible of battle or whatever would show him his true self (sure, okay). But he always follows this up with hating himself for not being able to "keep the woman he loved". I can't remember if she dumped him and moved on to someone else or they were never together in the first place, but dude, she just wasn't that into you. She is a person with agency who wanted something else in life, not an object to be coveted.
(Look, I tried really hard to understand the characters' personalities because I wanted to write some fic and I needed a thorough understanding of them. It was sad that when I tried to dig further there just wasn't that much there.)
One thing I did like was Rita teaching Keiji about coffee and how they bonded over that:how her now-dead father loved coffee even though true coffee was nearly impossible to find, especially in their small town; how it's one of the few things she really gets to enjoy outside of battle; how it's a symbol of everything the mimics have taken away from her. Including it in the last scene with his newly painted suit was a lovely touch as well. I just wish we'd had more of this bonding throughout the book.
My main problem with the book is the women. Specifically, the characterization of Rita Vrataski. Cuteness is not a substitution for a personality. And Rita doesn't really have a personality, or interiority, at all. She's very good at killing, and she opens up to Keiji, but there's no substance to it. She engages in an umeboshi eating contest with him and her face gets all puckered up at the sour taste, but I don't know what that shows about her? It feels like these scenes that could be moments of vulnerability are instead just written to show her being... cute. It frustrated me, because there's this extremely competent, aloof female soldier who everyone fears, and yet the secret depths that we discover about her are just... that she's cute? Even though we get Rita's point of view and learn about her past, it doesn't feel like I really know anything about her.
This also extends somewhat to Keiji. Keiji fares a little better with characterization; it's a little thin, but pretty standard for the average shounen hero. But here the problem with the portrayal of women shows up again. Why is Keiji fighting? He wants to find himself - he didn't know who he was and thought that the crucible of battle or whatever would show him his true self (sure, okay). But he always follows this up with hating himself for not being able to "keep the woman he loved". I can't remember if she dumped him and moved on to someone else or they were never together in the first place, but dude, she just wasn't that into you. She is a person with agency who wanted something else in life, not an object to be coveted.
(Look, I tried really hard to understand the characters' personalities because I wanted to write some fic and I needed a thorough understanding of them. It was sad that when I tried to dig further there just wasn't that much there.)
One thing I did like was Rita teaching Keiji about coffee and how they bonded over that:
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexism and Violence
Minor: Racism
It's casually mentioned that some soldiers forced Shasta Ryelle (an Indigenous American character) to dress up in war paint and a headdress. She's upset but the main character only acknowledges it for one line before moving on to other plot things.charleyroxy's review
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, and Violence
booknug's review
adventurous
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
More...