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A review by dream_seeker
Chasm City by Alastair Reynolds
3.0
World-building: 5/5
Story line: 5/5
Plot progression: 3/5
Character building: -5/5
Character development: non-existent
Before you pick up an Alastair Reynolds book, you should be absolutely certain what you are looking for. If you enjoy books with carefully crafted characters that are realistic and undergo development, stop right here; this author is not for you. The characters are like two-dimensional stick figures. They exist just to push the plot along. You know how some books are clearly about the character(s)? Reynolds' books are not among them. Chasm City is among the worst ones, because we clearly have a group of very different characters, with different backgrounds and motivations, but that doesn't come through. The characters are not even true to their basic nature- I always kept thinking "that's so unlike a mercenary/merchant/druglord etc etc etc." In fact, in Chasm City, the reptilian population is much better described than the characters.
If you don't care much about the protagonists, and are looking for some some cool sci-fi feast for your imagination, Reynolds is truly one of the most magnificent authors I have come across. The world-building is phenomenal. Reynolds is not satisfied with "here's a planet and here are its inhabitants". He will talk about how that planet was formed and why the inhabitants evolved to be the way they are. Millennia of evolution are so skillfully conveyed that the description never gets overwhelming. He painstakingly describes the architecture of space-ships and buildings; I am hardly an engineer, yet it is so easy to imagine his creations. What made Chasm City really enjoyable for me was that Reynolds revealed a lot of background and details about things that were introduced in Revelation Space. This extends to the planetary history, cultural nuances and quirks of the inhabitants.
Revelation Space, in many ways, was a very straightforward story. Chasm City is slightly more complex, but the plot is well thought out. Reynolds is very clear what the purpose and outcome of the tale is. In fact, I felt in many places he wrote the players to act out of character just to fit the narrative- "the story needs to go from point A to point B, which can only happen if this guys does X, never mind that it would be against his nature/professional training to do so". You can tell I'm really sour about the character development thing.
Something I have sensed in all the Reynolds books I have read: he rushes to finish them. The story progresses at a certain pace, and then suddenly everything moves to climax in the last chapter. This, in my opinion, is grave injustice to the plot. It stands out in Chasm City, because, as mentioned earlier, this is a complex tale. You have 80-85% of the book where characters are trying to figure out what's going on. You have people with a mission, with existing loyalties, convictions etc. And you have spent a lot of time trying to understand what motivates a certain character. Then suddenly, everyone comes together and agrees on a particular outcome. Explanations are rushed through, unexpected alliances are formed, people forget what drove them in the first place, and the story ends.
*potential spoiler begins*: Chasm City uses a lot of flashbacks to weave the story. Flashbacks from at least three different perspectives. And in the last few pages, we are rushed through all flashbacks just so that the story can end. It is mental whiplash. *End of potential spoiler*
The book manages to avoid plotholes until the very end. There are a few questions which remain unresolved. But otherwise it is a very airtight story, and that is another sign of a good author.
All-in-all an interesting book. Good enough to keep me engaged, bad enough to not make feel sad when I got done with it, so there's that!
Story line: 5/5
Plot progression: 3/5
Character building: -5/5
Character development: non-existent
Before you pick up an Alastair Reynolds book, you should be absolutely certain what you are looking for. If you enjoy books with carefully crafted characters that are realistic and undergo development, stop right here; this author is not for you. The characters are like two-dimensional stick figures. They exist just to push the plot along. You know how some books are clearly about the character(s)? Reynolds' books are not among them. Chasm City is among the worst ones, because we clearly have a group of very different characters, with different backgrounds and motivations, but that doesn't come through. The characters are not even true to their basic nature- I always kept thinking "that's so unlike a mercenary/merchant/druglord etc etc etc." In fact, in Chasm City, the reptilian population is much better described than the characters.
If you don't care much about the protagonists, and are looking for some some cool sci-fi feast for your imagination, Reynolds is truly one of the most magnificent authors I have come across. The world-building is phenomenal. Reynolds is not satisfied with "here's a planet and here are its inhabitants". He will talk about how that planet was formed and why the inhabitants evolved to be the way they are. Millennia of evolution are so skillfully conveyed that the description never gets overwhelming. He painstakingly describes the architecture of space-ships and buildings; I am hardly an engineer, yet it is so easy to imagine his creations. What made Chasm City really enjoyable for me was that Reynolds revealed a lot of background and details about things that were introduced in Revelation Space. This extends to the planetary history, cultural nuances and quirks of the inhabitants.
Revelation Space, in many ways, was a very straightforward story. Chasm City is slightly more complex, but the plot is well thought out. Reynolds is very clear what the purpose and outcome of the tale is. In fact, I felt in many places he wrote the players to act out of character just to fit the narrative- "the story needs to go from point A to point B, which can only happen if this guys does X, never mind that it would be against his nature/professional training to do so". You can tell I'm really sour about the character development thing.
Something I have sensed in all the Reynolds books I have read: he rushes to finish them. The story progresses at a certain pace, and then suddenly everything moves to climax in the last chapter. This, in my opinion, is grave injustice to the plot. It stands out in Chasm City, because, as mentioned earlier, this is a complex tale. You have 80-85% of the book where characters are trying to figure out what's going on. You have people with a mission, with existing loyalties, convictions etc. And you have spent a lot of time trying to understand what motivates a certain character. Then suddenly, everyone comes together and agrees on a particular outcome. Explanations are rushed through, unexpected alliances are formed, people forget what drove them in the first place, and the story ends.
*potential spoiler begins*: Chasm City uses a lot of flashbacks to weave the story. Flashbacks from at least three different perspectives. And in the last few pages, we are rushed through all flashbacks just so that the story can end. It is mental whiplash. *End of potential spoiler*
The book manages to avoid plotholes until the very end. There are a few questions which remain unresolved. But otherwise it is a very airtight story, and that is another sign of a good author.
All-in-all an interesting book. Good enough to keep me engaged, bad enough to not make feel sad when I got done with it, so there's that!