Holy cow Batman! I thought I could handle alot of lewd and foul language but this kicked my butt. Much more than "Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck Unabridged." I couldn't finish the book.
Outside of that, the plot and the viewpoint were interesting and unique; probably because I've never read Shakespeare's "King Lear."
A deceptive and slow start with a boatload of world building and "see how tough a person has it before things change." I just about dropped the reading when I realized I was only about 10% in to the 16 hours; wondering "Is the rest of that 16 this slow and no real plot? And if so, what can the author have to say? But if you hang in there the pace slowly builds, and you get an education in politics, strategy, psychology, sociology, extreme makeovers, and more.
Well written and unexpected as a class in 'ologies'. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.
The summary says the storyline starts out dark but then shifts after awhile. The beginning is just too dark for where I am right now and there are so many people wanting to read this next, that I returned it.
What I did read was well written, especially when trying to describe the technologies involved in the world. The main character's longing for her family is described in a way that is very clear and convincing.
It's been a long time since I read my last Shannara book. All that sounded familiar in this new book is bits of the geography and the fact this world is post-apocalypse. But it was really nice to get back to the author's writings and the universe.
It wasn't the murder mystery element that interested me but the dynamics of the cities. The beginning is great as you try to understand the rules, the middle is quite slow because it's mainly the murder, but the really interesting part of the story is towards the end; during the big reveal. The pace is, of course, quicker but trying to keep up with both the reveal and the dynamics is to fascinating part.
A strange read for me; it was good enough for me to get well past the 25% mark where I will drop a book that's just not grabbed my attention and yet I'm not sad that I'll be returning the book to the library before getting to the 50% mark.
It's a huge book! 13 hours, and I'm not even halfway in. Based on the storyline so far, alot of books would be at the back side of the highpoint and winding down to the finish by now. What the heck more does this author intend to present?
I will say the storytelling is really good, very creative environments and characters, but these characters aren't really drawing me in and this is the main reason I'm not sad about not completing this book.
This book is not a continuation of the prior book's main character's story but does mention him in passing. It is in the same universe and does include one of the characters from the prior book but this books main character is new.
Still alot of interesting technology and ethics to contemplate, still good writing.
This is the type of science fiction and young adult that I enjoy; alot of technology and not alot of young adult angst. It also has a plot that moves along, no side tracking for topics that aren't relevant or pausing for too long, and characters that have some depth to them.
I don't really have a desire to revisit my teen years so I'm not fond of listening to that age-based anxiety in my books. It's not the majority of the book so I was able to wait through these parts to enjoy the rest of the story.
One of the better Robin Cook books because not alot of time is spent on describing the technology / biology. Though, I wish there wasn't a requirement to visit the incredibly darker side of some people, to have a good mystery.
Just a cameo from Mr. Cook's medical examiner's team.
Amazing read! The author is also the narrator and he has a great speaking voice; his timing and modulation keep your focus well.
The material is broken into chapters that designed for relatively short reads over a seris of days. And I like that he's interspersed some of his own story into the telling.
I highly recommend this for folks wanting to get a new take on US history.
For some reason I thought this might be humorous but it was more a study in a life extinction event. Not a bad thing but definitely not expected.
Great characters and more great storytelling on an unusual topic.
Focused on three male characters, Luke, Corwin and Merlin. It's been a long time since I read the series but it sounds like these are all towards the end of both series.
I'm not a fan of short stories but I give 3 stars as the stories give you enough information to know who the main character is and their blood relationship, at least, to the other characters.
Lots of interesting factoids, history and unique individuals.
I'm so glad someone else went there, came back, and wrote a book about it so I could check it off the list of places I'm curious about. I hate the cold and don't deal well with many days of darkness.
Contains spoilers
My favorite fiction books are those focused on unique, well-crafted, characters who interact in a small area. In this book there are plenty of characters to choose from and all the story is within an environment I would be so happy to have access to. A bookstore that has tea and wants their customers to get comfortable and stay awhile.
There are some moments where the story stalled a bit but then picked back up. It was nice to see people mature, grow, and improve over the several years of the storyline.<spoiler>Also glad the store owner's sadness at the very beginning of the story was spelled out at the very end, rather than upfront, as so many authors like to do.</spoiler>
Sort of funny but definitely not laugh out loud. It actually makes my head ache, trying to keep up with the jumping back and forth between stories and time periods and the science (or science fiction).
I was really looking forward to some humor but there wasn't much of it in the first quarter of the book, nor did the storyline really peak my interest; alot of prose and not much action.
Light-hearted, intriguing characters, lots of interesting interactions between characters, intriguing growth in most characters, interesting twists, and a mystery that stretches out for quite some time.
The only drawback is alot of the above is drawn out overly, creating alot of 'keep it moving' hand gestures on my part.
Interesting concept, interesting people, well written, no sidetracking but the author lost me with the plot. At the halfway mark there doesn't seem to be any forward motion. It seems to be people living their lives, trying to deal with disconnects and unrequited desires, and interacting with others. And maybe a hint of mystery.
I do love good stories about unique characters and their interactions with each other but this story isn't about that.
Contains spoilers
I was Very surprised to find this was pretty much a different story than the movie. I was happy to have some gaps in the movie's world building, filled in; especially regarding animals and the origami.
Still not sure what the title has to do with the plot, sounds like a throw of word magnets at a fridge door.
Another good plot I didn't catch on to, and thanks for the timeline at the end to answer all questions. Interesting that the series is called Leaphorn & Chee but Chee has yet to make an appearance. I'll continue the series.
There was alot of good storyline and I was just starting to understand the new environment and main character when a new character was introduced. Then there was so much stalling of the storyline, introducing backstory (which didn't apply to anything told so far) that I dropped the book.
I see there's another book that just came out. The title is about a character I'd love to understand better and it seems to carry on from this book. Can't decide if I give it a try or call this series quits.
I just loved Chrisjen Avasarala for her no holds barred speaking and the fact that the author had her telling you exactly what political intrigue was about to happen. I HATE when the author has folks sneaking around in the background generating trouble. I think, they think they're creating anticipation but all they do is make me want to stop reading their work.
Pacing was even better than [book:Leviathan Wakes|8855321] and I was at first disheartened to see my favorite character from it was gone but I took a keen interest in Bobbie Draper.
I'll be reading the next in the series.
Another whale-sized book, another read-through-the-night plot, more interesting characters and surprising twists. It's getting darker and sadder.
And the aliens' goings-on are taking up more of the pages. These my eyes glaze over, there are too many groups and members of those groups, too many mythologies, gods, demi gods, inferior gods that are sisters and wives of the same junior god. So confusing! I just slide over it and hope it doesn't trip me up somehow, later.
I'm caught up now. I think the latest book has just been released so I'll probably have to wait several years before the San Francisco library will let it out of there hands. I find it shocking that the nearest library that has this book in any format is on the other coastline from me!