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c_dmckinney's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Abandonment, Kidnapping, Cancer, Grief, Slavery, Xenophobia, Gun violence, and Murder
Minor: Animal death, Death, Gaslighting, Grief, Gun violence, Trafficking, Body horror, Death of parent, Murder, Confinement, Gore, Terminal illness, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Blood
krysley's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
Thank you to NetGalley and Tantor Audio for allowing me to listen to this audiobook in exchange for an honest, unbiased opinion. This review is for the audiobook narrated by Rachel F. Hirsch.
Square³ is a fast-paced, novella-length story with plenty of momentum and interesting characters. It feels like the beginning of a solid science fiction series, and that may be one of its flaws.
Square³'s short length keeps moving so quickly from one incident to the next that you don't get to linger or get to know the characters as well as you want to. The characters that you do get to know? They're the start of something great: the wild child sister who has to become a rule follower, the neglected sister who becomes a force, the young scientist who infiltrates the government labs, the children from the other side with - let's be honest - superpowers. The story is there, I just wish it had been longer.
Rachel F. Hirsch does a very good job narrating the story, and I honestly think she was the perfect voice for Susan. The only issue with her narration were the scenes between Susan and Kitty - Hirsch does not give the sisters different voices, which makes their conversation completely confusing. However, that was the only issue I had with her performance, which was very enjoyable.
Square³ is a fast-paced, novella-length story with plenty of momentum and interesting characters. It feels like the beginning of a solid science fiction series, and that may be one of its flaws.
Square³'s short length keeps moving so quickly from one incident to the next that you don't get to linger or get to know the characters as well as you want to. The characters that you do get to know? They're the start of something great: the wild child sister who has to become a rule follower, the neglected sister who becomes a force, the young scientist who infiltrates the government labs, the children from the other side with - let's be honest - superpowers. The story is there, I just wish it had been longer.
Rachel F. Hirsch does a very good job narrating the story, and I honestly think she was the perfect voice for Susan. The only issue with her narration were the scenes between Susan and Kitty - Hirsch does not give the sisters different voices, which makes their conversation completely confusing. However, that was the only issue I had with her performance, which was very enjoyable.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death of parent and Injury/Injury detail
schnaucl's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This book is more optimistic about people than I am while still being pretty cynical about government. QAnon is briefly acknowledged, but a conspiracy doesn't grow around the incursions because not enough people believe it. At this point I'm not sure what you couldn't get large segments of the population to believe. Surely some people would be absolutely convinced it was the work of one or more enemy countries (who naturally had false flag operations on their own population so they wouldn't be blamed).
I'm also not sure one or more countries wouldn't take the incursions as an excuse to go to war. Maybe they were too busy cleaning up the aftermath and were afraid there would be more incursions. Or maybe the novella was just too short to get into it.
I do wish we'd spent a little more time with Katharine and Susan before they were separated because I liked their interaction and would have liked to see more of it, but again, novella.
As always, it was very well written. The science seems well thought out (though I'm a lay person so maybe it just sounds convincing). I did think the detail about the creatures having to bring their own physics with them to exist in our world was interesting and I remember the author talking about how an animal that large would collapse under its own weight in reality, hence the laws of physics being rewritten to allow it to happen.
I'm also not sure one or more countries wouldn't take the incursions as an excuse to go to war. Maybe they were too busy cleaning up the aftermath and were afraid there would be more incursions. Or maybe the novella was just too short to get into it.
I do wish we'd spent a little more time with Katharine and Susan before they were separated because I liked their interaction and would have liked to see more of it, but again, novella.
As always, it was very well written. The science seems well thought out (though I'm a lay person so maybe it just sounds convincing). I did think the detail about the creatures having to bring their own physics with them to exist in our world was interesting and I remember the author talking about how an animal that large would collapse under its own weight in reality, hence the laws of physics being rewritten to allow it to happen.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Violence and Blood
Minor: Death, Kidnapping, and Death of parent
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