Reviews

Not a problem with the book. i LOVE the premise. It was just all a bit too hard to read when i am as tired as i am now. Very complicated compared to my usual reads. Will come back to it. This is something that would be great on audio, but i can't see it out there atm.

Content Warnings

nakedsushi's review against another edition

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5.0

All aboard the Orient Express...in space! Holy moly, what a ride. Part science fiction, part psychological thriller, part closed-room mystery, I couldn't put this book down. I loved how it weaved philosophical ideas around cloning with more real-world human-interaction problems. This was one of the best sci-fi books I've read all year.

charlibirb's review against another edition

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4.0

Agatha Christie in space with clone rules.
A great time.

schnaucl's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

It's a little unclear how cloning works. The expectation seems to be that clones will all have access to wealth, although I don't think it's ever said explicitly that only the very wealthy can afford it. Sometimes there seems to be an assumption by writers that anyone who lives long enough must eventually amass a fortune (contrary to how the real world seems to work).

Spoiler

Unfortunately, the main premise doesn't really hold up that well. Some of the six don't seem to have done anything worse to their patron than just telling her no, which doesn't seem like it should be enough to get on some kind of hated enemies list. And if these six are the only ones who are awake, it would seem like they should be the worst of the lot in terms of the wrongs they'd done her. Maybe you can make a case for Wolfgang or Joanna, but not the others.

And if the point is to give her enemies hope and then take it away they would need to be awake for that. Most of them would seem to go into cryosleep and then just wake up on earth (if everything had gone wrong and IAN returned them, as intended). They'd be disappointed after, and down some cash, but it wouldn't be ongoing suffering.

Maybe the idea is supposed to be that these six has the worst combination of personalities to fly the ship together? But again, I fail to see how some of them "deserved" to be on that ship in the first place.

Content Warnings

deservingporcupine's review against another edition

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4.0

I liked this book more than I thought I would. Even though the solution to the mystery was weak and I didn't really buy the motive, the cloning pieces and backstory were very well done. A good space mystery, overall.

crystalweaver's review against another edition

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Bad timing. will revisit later.

superdrea's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? No

3.5

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