lumberingjuggernaut's review against another edition
4.0
The book is reminiscent of Salman Rushdie's Midnight Children in its tone, an attempt at an updated Midnight's Children if you will. What I liked about Samit Basu when I read the Gameworld Trilogy is his habit of taking fantasy or sci-fi tropes and turning them on their head. This book is no different. At many instances, the events in the book are predictable because the use of these tropes, but the motivation or internal monologue of the characters is where the flip comes. This trick is interspersed through the book and straddles the line between over-used self-awareness and comical irreverence. This makes this book a fresh read. There are obviously times when it was evident that the book is already 11 years old and some elements do feel dated right now. However, I could see how these elements would have been new to me had I not consumed other pop culture between then and now. Overall, a nice breezy quick-paced thriller that I finished in a day's worth of reading.
tacanderson's review against another edition
4.0
This was a really fun read. I was talking with an Indian friend about the lack of science fiction coming from developing countries and he recommended Samit Basu. It was a really fun read. It's like the TV show Heroes, but set in India. Good character development and writing that makes you wonder how you'd react to all of a sudden gaining super powers. I'm really looking forward to the second one, [b:Resistance|18666105|Resistance|Samit Basu|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1400894226s/18666105.jpg|26490095].
mothmans_mum's review against another edition
5.0
This book was really awesome. It's everything I wanted from a novel about superheroes. Whenever people try to give more depth to the superhero genre, they try two things: first, make it really realistic and have the characters immediately realize that super heroics just doesn't work in the real world, they get severely injured, sad, and basically give up, a la Kick-Ass; and second they make it ridiculously dark and gritty with lots of "mature" content like rape and murder, a la The Boys.
This novel shows how it's difficult, but maybe not impossible, to make a difference with superpowers. The characters constantly debate the merits of using their powers to change the world for the better, and despite many, many setbacks, keep on trying. This novel doesn't shy away from trying to use powers to combat real world systematic injustices, and for that I give it so much credit.
Plus, the characters are all Indian and (Pakistani-British) and it's really a nice change to have a superhero group with no pasty white guys in it!
This novel shows how it's difficult, but maybe not impossible, to make a difference with superpowers. The characters constantly debate the merits of using their powers to change the world for the better, and despite many, many setbacks, keep on trying. This novel doesn't shy away from trying to use powers to combat real world systematic injustices, and for that I give it so much credit.
Plus, the characters are all Indian and (Pakistani-British) and it's really a nice change to have a superhero group with no pasty white guys in it!
zazine's review
adventurous
funny
inspiring
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
sydstap24's review
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
geekmom's review
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
trike's review against another edition
4.0
This book is a lot of fun. Basu manages to have his cake and eat it, too, by both honoring traditional superhero stories and subverting them. By throwing the occasional monkey wrench into the story, he avoids it all feeling formulaic, and by mixing up the introspection with action he keeps the tale moving right along.
Superhero stories run the risk of being an author's power fantasy, but I didn't detect much of a Marty Stu here. The protagonists mess up colossally and their screw-ups don't get rectified with neat solutions. Usually the writer's avatar is the voice of reason, but here everyone makes mistakes as they learn about their powers and attempt to put them to use.
I'm in for the next one.
Superhero stories run the risk of being an author's power fantasy, but I didn't detect much of a Marty Stu here. The protagonists mess up colossally and their screw-ups don't get rectified with neat solutions. Usually the writer's avatar is the voice of reason, but here everyone makes mistakes as they learn about their powers and attempt to put them to use.
I'm in for the next one.
colophonphile's review against another edition
Enjoyable picture-less super hero comic (i.e., a novel) about a bunch of newly powered humans in India and their early attempts to make sense of their abilities and to self-organize.
Plot-wise my main issue was a central mystery, which is eventually resolved, at which time we learn that the answer to the mystery is a likelihood that had earlier been doubted away. Maybe that's called "hiding in plain sight," but it was the sole weak link in the plotting, I thought.
I learned about this via the excellent website superheronovels.com.
Plot-wise my main issue was a central mystery, which is eventually resolved, at which time we learn that the answer to the mystery is a likelihood that had earlier been doubted away. Maybe that's called "hiding in plain sight," but it was the sole weak link in the plotting, I thought.
I learned about this via the excellent website superheronovels.com.
badger1984's review
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0