itslaurenmae's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
elturko64's review against another edition
2.0
I've never been so conflicted on a book before. I'm halfway through this book and I'm not enjoying it. The urge to read this dwindled as the days went on. It sucked too because it's right up my alley. Superpowers, conspiracy and a mixture of science fiction. The writing and the idea for the story are fantastic and in that sense it flows well. However the pacing and the characterization are weak. 3/4's of the characters were awful with very little positive traits. That and with the pacing where it just dragged on. The worst thing about this was that stuff was happening but not going anywhere. Again its upsetting because this had a lot of potential to be great. But as the pages kept going I couldn't keep investing in it.
chukg's review against another edition
3.0
This book might have been a little too metaphorical and literary for what I was expecting. Kind of like magical realism but where the 'magic' is science fiction and super powers. And the literary part didn't really feel all that deep, either, I didn't get a real connection to the characters or anything. Still it had good prose and different viewpoint characters, worth reading if you think it sounds interesting.
mirshad's review
2.0
Urgh. I really wanted to like this book and I stuck with it but... I just felt disconnected from it the whole way through. None of the characters are even remotely likeable and as a result it was difficult to feel anything for them.
wordnerdy's review against another edition
2.0
I have been reading this book since Tuesday and finally realized that at 50 percent in, I was just not at all feeling it. It should have been right up my alley-- people with superpowers, mysterious happenings, a sort of thriller element-- but I felt like Maazel was not revealing anything to the reader in a timely manner, so it was just STUFF happening and not leading anywhere. Really bogged down for me and I did not care enough to invest more time in it.
smithakp's review against another edition
3.0
Loved Maazel’s writing style, and the overall “SF/fantasy elements in a realistic setting” trope.
But the story didn’t come together for me. I tried to recall the reasons why Phil was pulled into this elaborate scheme and just couldn’t connect the dots, nor could I do so with the roles, motivations, and cap/abilities of the mysterious blackmailers. And the same goes for (that other character)’s reason for getting involved, and pulling in so many people in the process. I could see that Maazel was hinting strongly at various connections, then blazed onto the next revelation before they could click.
Additionally, it ended so abruptly that it left me dissatisfied. I literally sat back and was like, “Wait...that’s it?”
It was a fun romp, truly. But a fun writing style can’t make up for a rough and slipshod plot progression.
But the story didn’t come together for me. I tried to recall the reasons why Phil was pulled into this elaborate scheme and just couldn’t connect the dots, nor could I do so with the roles, motivations, and cap/abilities of the mysterious blackmailers. And the same goes for (that other character)’s reason for getting involved, and pulling in so many people in the process. I could see that Maazel was hinting strongly at various connections, then blazed onto the next revelation before they could click.
Additionally, it ended so abruptly that it left me dissatisfied. I literally sat back and was like, “Wait...that’s it?”
It was a fun romp, truly. But a fun writing style can’t make up for a rough and slipshod plot progression.
jriad's review against another edition
1.0
Attend my pontification on the demerits of this tome. Allow me to pour vitriol upon it like the syrup that graced golden breakfast waffles on the day your first son was born.
Did these sentences make you gag? cringe? laugh condescendingly? If so, stay away: this book is basically 346 pages of that. It feels like the original draft of the book was run through a thesaurus and this is what came out.
To add insult to injury, the characters are not relatable (a little ironic given the book's title) and the plot is full of holes and conveniences.
Did these sentences make you gag? cringe? laugh condescendingly? If so, stay away: this book is basically 346 pages of that. It feels like the original draft of the book was run through a thesaurus and this is what came out.
To add insult to injury, the characters are not relatable (a little ironic given the book's title) and the plot is full of holes and conveniences.
schipmoney's review against another edition
3.0
I thought the concept was good, but the execution left me a little confused. Maybe that was the point? Intentional obfuscation! Overall not bad, some legit twists, but for the amount I felt left in the dark, I'm gonna stick with 3 stars.
susanw's review
5.0
Really a 4.5 but I'm feeling generous. It had me turning pages and constantly guessing, and frankly a little scared of future technology and drug companies!
michellehogmire's review
5.0
Read my review here at Columbia Journal: http://columbiajournal.org/anti-escapist-literature-anxiety-fiona-maazels-little-human-michelle-hogmire/
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