C.L. Polk is one of my favorite authors of the past few years. I liked everything about this. The concept, the characters, the setting. A4.5ish stars.
C.L. Polk is one of my favorite authors of the past few years. I liked everything about this. The concept, the characters, the setting. A beautiful novelette. ...more
Erudite almost to the point of being esoteric, with a lot of heavy worldbuilding packed into a short frame. Overall: creative with an inte4ish stars.
Erudite almost to the point of being esoteric, with a lot of heavy worldbuilding packed into a short frame. Overall: creative with an interesting Holmes/Watson-as-lovers dynamic between the lead characters....more
Delightfully meta, both in the sense that Kuang obviously parodies herself in both of the prominent characters, and because I am a Goodread4ish stars.
Delightfully meta, both in the sense that Kuang obviously parodies herself in both of the prominent characters, and because I am a Goodreads reviewer who has not infrequently panned various books, which plays a prominent role in the narrative. (I tend to stay off Twitter because I am easily rage-baited - I still can't stand Sarah Dessen, an author who I otherwise know nothing about, for the self-indulgent shitstorm she stirred up a few years ago).
It's funny that Kuang makes Athena such a well-respected and idolized figure when she very apparently shares many characteristics with Kuang herself. From what I can tell based on pictures and videos of awards speeches I've seen, she's a young, thin, generally pretty Chinese woman. She published her first novel at 22 to hype, critical acclaim and $$, even being nominated for a Nebula award and World Fantasy Award like Athena. I can't help but wonder whether her decision to make Athena insufferable is lampooning criticisms she's heard of herself, particularly on Goodreads and Twitter.
I'm also curious how much of herself she inserts into June. I know only vaguely about controversy that Kuang herself has been involved in from her Poppy Wars novels. I also know (because I had to look it up after reading this) that Kuang does not believe in the notion that authors should only write about characters of their own race. I thought that satirizing the current identity politics policing the issue was a clever choice, especially when June is unconsciously racist and actually stole someone else's story.
Overall I have a lot more respect for Kuang who I have in the past found to be preachy and laborious. There was a little more nuance in this book and it was a lot more digestible than the slog-fest that was Babel....more
This is a good volume 1 with a cool, BA heroine (view spoiler)[(slash villain?) (hide spoiler)] and some of the art, especially the issue 3ish stars.
This is a good volume 1 with a cool, BA heroine (view spoiler)[(slash villain?) (hide spoiler)] and some of the art, especially the issue covers and full-page panels, is pretty beautiful.
At first the story seems like your typical epic fantasy, race wars, magic, Chosen One. It ends up a lot stranger and creepier than that, which is a good thing. The heroine/monstress, Maika Halfwolf is super cool and not a typical heroine. Other interesting characters include cute little fox-girl Kippa (I just want to take her home and keep her and pinch her cheeks and love her forever) and various talking cats.
The setting professes to be "1900’s Asia, in a richly imagined world of art deco-inflected steampunk" which I think is misleading. The artist, Sana Takeda, definitely incorporates some art-deco inspired elements but I didn't get 1900s Asia or any steampunk. I didn't think the villains were that cool except for the monster-thing. Whatever's going on with that is crazy and disturbing and I love it.
The art is mostly beautiful. Certain characters are especially well-drawn throughout and a lot of the architecture and indoor layouts are really impressive and highly detailed. I feel like the artwork gets a little sloppy as it goes on and impacts the storytelling especially because the plot itself gets confusing at times, but whenever there are large or full-page panels, they're stunning.
Overall a solid first collection worth checking out.
Merged review:
3ish stars.
This is a good volume 1 with a cool, BA heroine (view spoiler)[(slash villain?) (hide spoiler)] and some of the art, especially the issue covers and full-page panels, is pretty beautiful.
At first the story seems like your typical epic fantasy, race wars, magic, Chosen One. It ends up a lot stranger and creepier than that, which is a good thing. The heroine/monstress, Maika Halfwolf is super cool and not a typical heroine. Other interesting characters include cute little fox-girl Kippa (I just want to take her home and keep her and pinch her cheeks and love her forever) and various talking cats.
The setting professes to be "1900’s Asia, in a richly imagined world of art deco-inflected steampunk" which I think is misleading. The artist, Sana Takeda, definitely incorporates some art-deco inspired elements but I didn't get 1900s Asia or any steampunk. I didn't think the villains were that cool except for the monster-thing. Whatever's going on with that is crazy and disturbing and I love it.
The art is mostly beautiful. Certain characters are especially well-drawn throughout and a lot of the architecture and indoor layouts are really impressive and highly detailed. I feel like the artwork gets a little sloppy as it goes on and impacts the storytelling especially because the plot itself gets confusing at times, but whenever there are large or full-page panels, they're stunning.
Overall a solid first collection worth checking out....more
Fonda Lee is an insta-read for me. Her Green Bone Saga is all-time. This was obviously different, and very creative, and I'm glad I read it3ish stars.
Fonda Lee is an insta-read for me. Her Green Bone Saga is all-time. This was obviously different, and very creative, and I'm glad I read it, but I wasn't moved by it. I honestly couldn't tell you what the main character's name is, or anything about her other than her circumstances as a victim and how that motivated her.
As truncated as it is, I actually thought it was the right length because I don't think there was any more story left to tell. Just a neat concept one-and-done. And I'm cool with that....more
I love the simplicity, especially that there is so little exposition, so the art can do its job telling the story. Didn’t quite live up to4ish stars.
I love the simplicity, especially that there is so little exposition, so the art can do its job telling the story. Didn’t quite live up to the hype, but good nonetheless. ...more
Imagine writing two novels, the first is a Pulitzer finalist, the second is a Pulitzer winner. Not bad. (I also really enjoyed Diaz's fi4.25ish stars.
Imagine writing two novels, the first is a Pulitzer finalist, the second is a Pulitzer winner. Not bad. (I also really enjoyed Diaz's first novel, In the Distance) This novel is similar in structure and title to Susan Choi's Trust Exercise which I also loved. In both cases, it took me a little while to settle in and appreciate things, but it's much more meaningful by the end. It isn't until Trust's third section, its heart, that it becomes truly enjoyable, but reading it makes the first two sections more impactful in hindsight. Overall, clever, wise, and unexpected....more
An other-planet mirror of racial violence and injustice on earth (particularly in the US), told with a veil thinner than paper and a ha3.25ish stars.
An other-planet mirror of racial violence and injustice on earth (particularly in the US), told with a veil thinner than paper and a hand heavier than Mjölnir. Jamal Campbell’s art is pretty but busy.
As always, Jemisin’s worldbuilding is top-notch, her dialogue is refreshing, and her lead character is dynamic. She explores her ideas in a creative way and I do love the Green Lantern mythos, but the narrative feels like it’s shoehorned into a very loose interpretation of GL and is more complicated than strictly necessary. With Jo saying something like “this is exactly like earth” several times each issue, the metaphor becomes less and less meaningful to the point that it might as well have taken place on earth in the first place.
And for a planet of beings ostensibly without any emotions, they’re all sure emotional.
I started out liking the creativity of the premise, the intriguing lead character, and Nghi's classical prose, but at some point I became d2ish stars.
I started out liking the creativity of the premise, the intriguing lead character, and Nghi's classical prose, but at some point I became disillusioned.
I go back-and-forth between thinking it was unnecessary to expand and complicate the source material (The Great Gatsby) - a slim, simple, straightforward book; and thinking it followed too closely to the original and should have leaned into the fantasy elements to differentiate itself and justify its existence. The fact that it didn't quite stay in either lane was frustrating and confusing.
I can't help but notice some parallels to Rebecca Roanhorse's 2020 book Black Sun. 1) Multiple POV epic fantasy in a non-Euro-inspired wo3.5ish stars.
I can't help but notice some parallels to Rebecca Roanhorse's 2020 book Black Sun. 1) Multiple POV epic fantasy in a non-Euro-inspired world. 2) Features two lead women - one is an oppressed royal in a political battle for a throne, the other is magical, street smart, and has her own agenda. 3) Includes a magical, male anti-hero whose machinations include derailing the political plans of the first female lead. 4) Influenced by various Gods and destiny/prophecy, etc.
I especially enjoyed both of them for their distinct settings. Suri's India-influenced world is incredibly well-researched and detailed. She does a good job juggling several different factions from various cities and lands. However, of the two books I happen to like Suri's less. A big factor is that I feel like Jasmine Throne does less while using more words. And, while I like the characters and their arcs well enough, the best character (Bhumika) doesn't get nearly enough page time, despite the significant length.
Suitably epic and impressive but a little slow for a book of which I wasn't enthralled by the plot in the first place.
An impressive and thought-provoking lecture framed, unnecessarily, as fiction (let alone fantasy fiction), with characters who only serv2.5ish stars.
An impressive and thought-provoking lecture framed, unnecessarily, as fiction (let alone fantasy fiction), with characters who only serve as sounding boards for the author’s research. Good, but not entirely enjoyable....more
Ishiguro is never short on ideas. He's as creative as they come and his works always have layers upon layers. There's so much to reflect on4ish stars.
Ishiguro is never short on ideas. He's as creative as they come and his works always have layers upon layers. There's so much to reflect on and discuss. Of course, part of this is because he leaves out so many details and explanations. Intentionally? Probably.
I also love his characters, but again, most of them are opaque and cold. Possibly because Ishiguro is pretty bad at writing dialogue.
But possibly because Klara, as an artificial being, is never completely capable of understanding and relating to human inner thoughts and emotional struggles, despite the fact that Mr. Capaldi asserts that there is nothing about human behavior which cannot be simulated perfectly. And while Klara herself develops growth and complexity, she is never capable of hiding anything, of keeping any part of herself and treasuring it privately and intimately which, in my opinion, prevents her from becoming truly relatable.
“There was something very special, but it wasn't inside Josie. It was inside those who loved her.”
I love that quote, but I feel it has two very distinct meanings.
Still, while The Mother is adamant that "Klara deserves better," (view spoiler)[she is relegated to a utility closet and then a scrap yard, slowly fading away without the people she has truly become family with. Very discomfiting. Nursing home vibes, tbh. (hide spoiler)] she gets a bittersweet ending, but one that lends itself to a lot of theory and discussion.
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