Exhalation
Ratings450
Average rating4.3
TL;DR
There are 9 stories in this book. It hooked me in because the first and second stories are amazing. The problem is that after that all the rest are some of the most boring things I've ever read. It was very weird seeing how strong the first two are. The 6th story the parts with the missionary are good, the journalist one is boring. The other stories are very bad. I would not recommend this book seeing how 3/9 stories are worth reading.
My Scoring System
I have five things I look for in a book, if the book checks all five it's a 5/5 stars book, if it checks none it's a 1/5 stars and everything else is a combination:
X - Main Story: There is no main story.
X - Side Stories (if it applies): The stories 1,2 and 6 are the only good stories worth reading.
X - Characters: No character stands out in any of the stories.
✓ - Setting/Ambiance: I liked the world of the second story, it was really creative and nice to imagine.
X - Ending: There is no main ending.
Extensive Review
The only stories worth reading are the first, second and sixth. The rest in my opinion were very bland and uninteresting. I was skimming though them and it was very frustrating seeing how the good stories are 40/50 pages long and then the boring one are 140+. People keep talking about how a story from this book inspired the movie Arrival. Well it's not worth it, if you want some nice short science fiction stories, we have to look elsewhere.
TL;DR
There are 9 stories in this book. It hooked me in because the first and second stories are amazing. The problem is that after that all the rest are some of the most boring things I've ever read. It was very weird seeing how strong the first two are. The 6th story the parts with the missionary are good, the journalist one is boring. The other stories are very bad. I would not recommend this book seeing how 3/9 stories are worth reading.
My Scoring System
I have five things I look for in a book, if the book checks all five it's a 5/5 stars book, if it checks none it's a 1/5 stars and everything else is a combination:
X - Main Story: There is no main story.
X - Side Stories (if it applies): The stories 1,2 and 6 are the only good stories worth reading.
X - Characters: No character stands out in any of the stories.
✓ - Setting/Ambiance: I liked the world of the second story, it was really creative and nice to imagine.
X - Ending: There is no main ending.
Extensive Review
The only stories worth reading are the first, second and sixth. The rest in my opinion were very bland and uninteresting. I was skimming though them and it was very frustrating seeing how the good stories are 40/50 pages long and then the boring one are 140+. People keep talking about how a story from this book inspired the movie Arrival. Well it's not worth it, if you want some nice short science fiction stories, we have to look elsewhere.
