Review: Metro 2033

Metro 2033 by Dmitry Glukhovsky
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Metro 2033 feels more like a tour than a story. A well-realized world that is equally well written, but lacks certain quantities. The previous statement being what is good about the novel, but I'm also about to break down what issues it has in much further detail. Because me.

I noticed, pretty much in the beginning, that there was a lack of overarching plot. Sure, there is the threat of the 'Dark Ones', but the foil to a plot isn't the same as a plot. Our main character, Artyom, just kind of goes from place to place getting into trouble while having no real goal. Imagine if Frodo and Sam left the Shire and had no ring to destroy. There would still be plenty of adventure and world-building, but little purpose behind it.

Then, by the end of the novel, I started to notice how Artyom isn't really a character. He has a little bit of back story, but no real personality to speak of. He is mostly just an observer thrown from dangerous scenario to scenario. Taking us on a tour of the Metro. Any traits he exhibits are just vague reactions to whatever is happening to him at that moment. I didn't dislike the character, but that was mostly because there wasn't anything to attach to.

I will say the characters Artyom meets are far more interesting. But they have the innate flaw of being a part of the world-building. A novel can't live off of secondary characters alone. They also all have a similar I've-been-down-here-too-long vibe. The religious nut character also rambles on for too long, but I suppose that's typical of zealots.

Good writing and great world-building. Sadly, there isn't much else to it. The book does a lot of things right by the end, but you can't wait for wrapping things up to exhibit things like plot and character. It's paced well enough that I enjoyed myself to the last page, but I probably not going to revisit the Metro any time soon.

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Do It Like Montresor

I've made a decision. It seems pretty insignificant considering everything that's been going on. You know, the world coming to an end. But, I feel it has to be done. And there's no talking me out of it either. It is like I've walked through a door, closed it behind me, and then bricked it up like Montresor. And, for the love of God, I don't even care if it blows up in my face.

I'm going to self-publish. I could go into a rant about the publishing industry but I would just sound like a jaded neckbeard. I've just come to my last breaking point with not being a published author. I know there's a good chance that only a hand full of people will read my book if I self-publish. And most of them will be my friends and family. But, fuck it, I have to try.

That's all I really have to say this month. I've been a daze for the last couple of months as Earth spirals down the uncaring universal drain. Just hoping there's a flipside of this. Humans, for all our faults, are crafty little shits. We'll probably be alright. 

All cynicism punctuated with vague optimism aside, the daze is why I've been silent the last couple of months. Still doing book reviews as I'm still reading. But it feels mostly out of habit and self-therapy than anything else. Step one to getting self-published is finding myself an editor to work with. It'll cost money and might take a few tries to find someone. Time and money always find a way to include themselves in any equation.

On the actual writing side of things, I've picked up my Colony Earth project again as I slowly comb over the tome. Just something to do as I wait for responses from the leads I'm chasing down. Once I finish editing and familiarizing myself with what I've already written, it'll finally be time to start new work. I've been trying to sell Variant War for so long hopefully I'll remember how it's done. Either way, it's been a long time coming.

 Until next time, and at all times, be kind.