Review: The Burning God

The Burning God by R.F. Kuang
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Burning God is a perfectly serviceable ending to a trilogy I enjoyed overall. I'll outline my issues with it, but I still say this is a book series most need to read. While nothing eclipses the first book in terms of quality, this is not a typical book series that drops the ball after the first volume. If you've already read the first two books, you should at least be somewhat happy with the last edition.

Things like pacing, prose, and characters are still top-tier here. Flaws aside, TBG can at least maintain your attention. Not perfect, but also never boring. Being more of the same is both a blessing and a curse as what the same is also pretty good while not being surprising either.

I would say it has two big problems. First, it doesn't add anything new in terms of characterization or plot. It's roughly just a continuation of the previous book without many steps taken to outline a grander story. Two, the author more or less writes herself into a corner where the mangled bittersweet reminding-me-of-Game-of-Thrones-though-not-quite-as-bad is the only option left available. I know what the author is trying to say because she literally spells it out to the reader, but I felt there should have been a few more drafts on the table. At least she didn't go for a redemption arc. That would have been even worse.

Pet peeve: The epilogue isn't an epilogue, it's a conclusion to the unnecessarily abrupt ending of the last chapter. That's not what epilogues are for. Not being used properly is a big reason why I generally dislike prologues and epilogues.

I, admittedly, had this final volume on my 'To Read' list for a couple of years in between reading the second book. I can't help but think if I had read this closer to the last book I might have had a better opinion of it. But books, if nothing else, should last the test of time. I should put at least some onus on my memory, but it also shouldn't be completely to blame. I still liked it, just not as much as the first two.

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Review: The Seeds

The Seeds by Ann Nocenti
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I'll be honest, I only read this because the art was done by David Aja. After reading it though, I still can say it should only be read for the art. It's short though, so it won't take up too much of your time. I would like to see a quote like that in a follow-up printing of this book. It's badly written, but at least it's short.

There's not much praise to be had for this book. Even the primary reason, the art, isn't a strong contender. The art is good from a technical aspect but lacks any creativity I might have come to expect from David Aja. The art just felt dull and underutilized. Though, given the story he had to work with, I wouldn't blame him.

The writing here is just bad. Plain old-fashioned bad. People talk without much meaning behind their words as if they are having slightly different conversations. Or, to put it another way, it's as if one person is replying to a conversation that is taking place five minutes in the future while the other person is still in the present. Characters also randomly (and repeatedly) mention things meant for world-building but don't affect the story in any conceivable way. I know it's setting the scene and tone, but it's just so badly done.

There's also no real beginning or no real end to the story. And I mean that in a narrative sense. Plenty of great books begin and/or end in unresolved spots, but you can at least affirm that it was the beginning and/or end. This book just kind of begins and just kind of ends, as if the writer didn't care about it.

This review turned out longer than I had planned. I was just going to make a few notes and be on my way. Turns out I had some issues to get off my chest. I didn't care for this book if you couldn't tell by now. I fully recommend the works of David Aja, but there are much better examples than this.

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Review: Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting by in America

Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting by in America by Barbara Ehrenreich
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Socialists are middle class. The working class don't want a revolution, they just want more money.

Paraphrasing Alan Moore aside, I wouldn't say I 'enjoyed' this book. It's far too depressing for that. The reason being is because of how little has changed in previous decades. Not only since the book came out, but since before the book was even released. This book could have been released in the 1980s, 2000s, or 2020s and would be relevant regardless. It's upon that realization that the depression really sets in. So I wouldn't say people should read it because they would 'like it', because they won't, but rather it will likely challenge their worldview. And people should always read books that perform that rare feat.

The ground-level focus of the book is its strength and its weakness. The micro-level experience gives a real human face to the issues facing the underpaid but the macro-level statistics only work if you assume everyone's perspective is the same. And I always maintain that you can't use the micro to justify the macro (and vice versa). Just because one person survives cancer doesn't mean it isn't a deadly disease.  This is further complicated by two out of the three cities being heavy tourist hubs that are viewed during their off-seasons. While her points aren't invalid, it does skew the results. It would be like taking global temperature readings where one test was on the equator and the other was on the north pole.

To get the objective portion out of the way, the book is well written. It's everything you'd expect from someone who was educated in the most mayo of liberal arts colleges. I mean this both in a technical and artistic level. Not only does the book communicate all the information clearly but it also makes you feel it emotionally. One glance at many of the other basic bitch reviews shows judgment being heavily swayed by cognitive dissonance, but, regardless of how your lukewarm evolutionary leftovers make you feel about the subject matter, no one can successfully argue it isn't at least well written.

I could make several arguments for and against this book, but I think that would miss the overall point. I don't think anyone without rotten karma would disagree that the working poor has a terrible time of it. The point of the book being to expose how bad it truly is and how we're being less and less aware of it from the socially forced segregation of the classes. The main underlying issue with the book is the power of assumption that there needs to be a dramatic change to fix things. But, if there's anything one can learn from this book, is that the working poor doesn't have the time or inclination for revolution. They just don't want to be poor.

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Review: Six Wakes

Six Wakes by Mur Lafferty
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I dislike disliking things. Honestly, I wished everything was good. It's not, we know this, but I somehow hope that every book, movie, and album is good in some way. That's the best way to describe how I feel about this book. I want to like it, but it's not good enough for me to justify any kind of stamp of approval. I can't even say this book is only mediocre as it's good in some elements but bad in completely different others.

The reason I felt bad about disliking this book is because it actually has a brain in it. Much of the book, at least in terms of world-building, is smart and thought out. It's everything else about it that just kind of sucks. It takes the Heinlein question of "What if (clones)?" and runs through its logical paces. The problem is that the story isn't well constructed and is mostly vapid on a creative level.

The plot is supposed to be a murder mystery but the author doesn't seem to know how to write one. This is clear in its lack of focus on the actual plot and tends to make up less interesting subplots to pad out what is already a book that is below average in length. It kind of sort of all connects at the end, but the ending feels uninspired and unearned. The structure might have worked as a fictional memoir or other less thriller-derived plot. It's like someone showed up to a Halloween party dressed as Santa Clause. They got the idea but missed the point.

Perhaps the biggest problem with the book is its tone. It's kind of the same problem I had with the "Murderbot Dairies". A flat uninterested tone that could have been engaging if it wasn't also so tiresome. Here, the tone is fairly nonchalant about everything. The problem is that I can't tell if it's supposed to be the point or if it's just bad writing. And if you can't tell if something is done purposely or if it's just bad, always put your money on it being bad.

This book is smart but badly written on almost every metric. And I like smart books, they tend to be my favorite kind, which left me struggling to determine how I felt. I want to like it, but it's just not good. Not even remotely.

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Review: The Jasmine Throne

The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Meh.

If that review is good enough for you, then don't read any further. For those who require some context of discontent, please proceed.

There are books that get middling reviews because I don't get them and fail to connect to the final product. Then, there are middling reviews when I get it exactly as intended but feel it wasn't particularly good. This is the latter. It's not bad in many ways, but it's also not good in just as many.

Prose-wise, it's fairly good in this department. Everything is correct and written creatively. The writing doesn't become fully engaging, but I feel that isn't the prose's fault. There is plenty of blame to spread around. The characters, for example, are trope and just not that interesting. The book writes in a way that tries to convince you to care about them but fails to understand that this has to happen organically. A reader either cares about the characters or they don't, and no amount of the characters complaining about their feelings/problems will change that.

I think the book's biggest problem is the pacing. It starts too early and feels like it's taking its time. And it's not in a wasting time kind of pacing, but rather a slow burn sort of way. Imagine talking to two people. One takes random pauses because they don't have much to say, and the other speaks slowly, words are pronounced in a long drawn-out fashion, and takes forever to get to the point. This book is the second person.

The sluggish plot seems to be a result of either bad writing or deliberate padding to make a thin story into a book series. Because everything has to be a fucking series/trilogy. Protip: Don't write three books when a novella will do.

To be honest, the southeast Asian influences are the only thing it has going for it. Strip all that out, and you have just another mediocre book in an endless sea of mediocrity. If you get something from it, good for you. Just don't @ me saying it's good, because it's not. It's meh.

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Review: The Sins of Our Fathers

The Sins of Our Fathers by James S.A. Corey
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This novella really only exists to answer a couple of questions. Your interest will vary based on how badly you want those questions answered. Pacing is a little on the slow side but it is otherwise competent in its writing. Personally I feel what happens towards to the end should have been more of a middle act that unfolds a more interesting adventure. What we get is more of a non-ending that tries to be cool as it walks away while putting its sunglasses on.

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Review: Leviathan Falls

Leviathan Falls by James S.A. Corey
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The entire plot of this book is to very slowly hang a 'Sorry, We're Closed" sign on the universe. Because (spoiler I guess?) that's pretty much what happens. There really isn't that much of an overall plot that doesn't directly involve ending the series. And I don't mean a plot that drives us to an ending, but rather an ending that drives the plot. This is particularly true in the latter half where it feels like the book is looking at the plot and wordlessly taps its watch in a passive-aggressive way to tell it to hurry up we got to go.

Honestly, I was just disappointed in the book overall. The aliens that killed off the ring builders had always been left as super vague and I was hoping for at least something in the way of explaining who, what, and why. Vagueness can be used to generate intrigue but it can also be a symptom of lacking in creativity or simple laziness. It feels more like the latter in this case. Add in a slow plot that mostly involves hacking Amos's dreams in a series that flaunts white-knuckle space battles, and we have a book that isn't 'bad' but just kind of a loose letdown.

Since endings, especially to long-running series, can make or break one's emotions on it, I'll skip over more nuanced critiques and focus mainly on that. Bottom line: It's okay. It's one of those endings that looks great in a one-page synopsis or outline. As it plays out, however, it feels trope and more of a purposeful ending than a genuine one. Or maybe it's just because everyone feels surprisingly chill about what is going on that it prevents the narrative from selling it. The ending feels more correct than it does good.

I think that sums up my feelings on this particular book. I want to write up an overall review of the series, but I have one more novella to get through. Also, I have to find the time for it. The two people who follow my blog might skim it but that doesn't mean I don't have thoughts on the subject. I also watched the TV series and might have thoughts on comparing that as well. We'll see.

I know this kind of ended on me just talking about my blog plans, but it was still a more genuine ending than to the Expanse.

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