katekate_reads_'s review against another edition
DNF at 7%. I enjoyed The Nobody People but needed more of a refresher at the start of this book. It jumped right back in and was a lot to keep track of/remember. Ultimately not what I’m looking to read right now but may return at another time. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advance reading copy.
kezia1312's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
_pauline_m_'s review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
takamalaika's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
leftylauren's review against another edition
4.0
Sequel story about superpowers. Can feel a little choppy at times, but good.
markyon's review against another edition
3.0
Last year I reviewed The Nobody People, a superhero origin story that took a savvy fresh look at the superhero genre. I liked it a lot more than I initially thought I would, (because superheroes – what is there more to say, right?) so much so in fact that it was one of my favourites of the year.
Since then, a lot has happened – Covid has made the last 18 months or so seem like an age and my reading of the first book seems even longer ago. (I know it's not.)
And yet I was pleased to find that I settled back into this surprisingly quickly, especially as there is no summary, no list of characters, no reminder of what has gone before.
In his afterword acknowledgements, Bob has said that this is not really a second novel but simply the second half of one (admittedly long) novel, and that is true. (So, Warning: spoilers for the first book here.)
At the end of the first book we had a showdown between the Resonants (the people with superpowers) and the Damp (those without.) Fahima Deeb activated The Pulse, which triggered the emergence of superpowers in those who had them, whether they knew or not. Here, seven years later, the story picks up again after that brief war. The world is fractured socially, with demarcation areas and no-go zones for all. Dr. Deeb now has the responsibility of trying to ease the process of integrating the disparate factions and running areas of the USA. The Bishop Academy school, where many of the mutants lived and studied and was one of the centres for all the activity at the end of the first book, has now become a safe haven. Sarah Davenport, headteacher at the school has now become near-catatonic because of her actions in saving the school in the previous book. The bad guy (now revealed) is Patrick Davenport, who is using his own powers for his own ends by influencing and manipulating these newly empowered people into committing horrible acts against their will. Patrick has built an army entirely under his control to wipe out all who oppose him – like his old friend Fahima.
To these older characters we now have added Carrie Norris, whose illusion of a normal life vanishes at Fahima's reappearance. Clay Weaver, a retired soldier fighting to keep his husband and son safe - and to keep Patrick from taking over his mind. And, finally, Emmeline Hirsch, adrift and untethered from her ability to travel through time.
Like before, the book centres on a core of key characters in a character-driven book, but this time around I found that it was the wider consequences, the bigger picture that was most intriguing.
Of course, it does help if you feel that you have got to know the characters, and we have through Bob’s careful plotting both in the first book and continued into this.
But I found that this new bigger scale – looking at a world divided, post-Pulse - was rather numbing. Whist bigger, it also felt more disparate. The characters I had generally grown to love in the first book were being replaced by others, although some are still important, but much of this book deals with people and places that are new.
Most worryingly, I found that the new characters and what happened to them was uninteresting, even boring. In the middle of this big book, I was struggling to keep going. The bigger scale meant that I felt no connection with what was happening, no feeling that my investment in these characters and situations was worthwhile. I was reading but was getting no joy from reading about these characters. I began to lose track of who was doing what and where, and more crucially I didn’t really care. It’s never a good thing when I find myself drifting away and being attracted to other books when in the middle of another, and yet this is what happened here.
There’s no denying that the writing is good, and Bob does well to describe huge events in this brave new world we find ourselves in. Bob is interested in unravelling a complicated issue – what do you do when you are given power and how do you deal with the world afterwards?
But for me there was none of the excitement, the enthusiasm, the interest that I found in the first book. Whatever the first book had that I liked – no, loved – it seemed to be in short supply here.
Of course, the book ties things together by the end, and yes, there could be more, though things seem pretty much tied up by the end of this one. But in the end, I struggled to finish it. An ambitious book that tackles big issues, but sadly lost me a little in the middle to the point where I struggled to finish. It’s not bad, but it did not have the impact of the first for me.
Since then, a lot has happened – Covid has made the last 18 months or so seem like an age and my reading of the first book seems even longer ago. (I know it's not.)
And yet I was pleased to find that I settled back into this surprisingly quickly, especially as there is no summary, no list of characters, no reminder of what has gone before.
In his afterword acknowledgements, Bob has said that this is not really a second novel but simply the second half of one (admittedly long) novel, and that is true. (So, Warning: spoilers for the first book here.)
At the end of the first book we had a showdown between the Resonants (the people with superpowers) and the Damp (those without.) Fahima Deeb activated The Pulse, which triggered the emergence of superpowers in those who had them, whether they knew or not. Here, seven years later, the story picks up again after that brief war. The world is fractured socially, with demarcation areas and no-go zones for all. Dr. Deeb now has the responsibility of trying to ease the process of integrating the disparate factions and running areas of the USA. The Bishop Academy school, where many of the mutants lived and studied and was one of the centres for all the activity at the end of the first book, has now become a safe haven. Sarah Davenport, headteacher at the school has now become near-catatonic because of her actions in saving the school in the previous book. The bad guy (now revealed) is Patrick Davenport, who is using his own powers for his own ends by influencing and manipulating these newly empowered people into committing horrible acts against their will. Patrick has built an army entirely under his control to wipe out all who oppose him – like his old friend Fahima.
To these older characters we now have added Carrie Norris, whose illusion of a normal life vanishes at Fahima's reappearance. Clay Weaver, a retired soldier fighting to keep his husband and son safe - and to keep Patrick from taking over his mind. And, finally, Emmeline Hirsch, adrift and untethered from her ability to travel through time.
Like before, the book centres on a core of key characters in a character-driven book, but this time around I found that it was the wider consequences, the bigger picture that was most intriguing.
Of course, it does help if you feel that you have got to know the characters, and we have through Bob’s careful plotting both in the first book and continued into this.
But I found that this new bigger scale – looking at a world divided, post-Pulse - was rather numbing. Whist bigger, it also felt more disparate. The characters I had generally grown to love in the first book were being replaced by others, although some are still important, but much of this book deals with people and places that are new.
Most worryingly, I found that the new characters and what happened to them was uninteresting, even boring. In the middle of this big book, I was struggling to keep going. The bigger scale meant that I felt no connection with what was happening, no feeling that my investment in these characters and situations was worthwhile. I was reading but was getting no joy from reading about these characters. I began to lose track of who was doing what and where, and more crucially I didn’t really care. It’s never a good thing when I find myself drifting away and being attracted to other books when in the middle of another, and yet this is what happened here.
There’s no denying that the writing is good, and Bob does well to describe huge events in this brave new world we find ourselves in. Bob is interested in unravelling a complicated issue – what do you do when you are given power and how do you deal with the world afterwards?
But for me there was none of the excitement, the enthusiasm, the interest that I found in the first book. Whatever the first book had that I liked – no, loved – it seemed to be in short supply here.
Of course, the book ties things together by the end, and yes, there could be more, though things seem pretty much tied up by the end of this one. But in the end, I struggled to finish it. An ambitious book that tackles big issues, but sadly lost me a little in the middle to the point where I struggled to finish. It’s not bad, but it did not have the impact of the first for me.
running2write's review against another edition
4.0
The world has collapsed and most of the US citizens now have super powers. At times, the story and characters drudged through their lives and problems with apathy, dragging down the story. This was a mixed ending to the duology, but a worthwhile read altogether.
breastanton's review against another edition
3.0
Should have reread The Nobody People right before I read this one because I struggled to remember things that happened. However, I enjoyed the story and final resolution for all of the characters.