jpraska006's review against another edition
This book had many absolutely fascinating and novel concepts, interesting situations, and fresh ideas. There is a lot to love here, but for me the biggest detractor is that I simply struggled to find really any of the characters that likable.
kodermike's review against another edition
3.0
This book began with a great hook - an office bet on who can find the most interesting and unique ways to kill media darling, showman, and all around jerk to be around, Henri Kerlerec. Nobody foresaw the agency of his death (less than a dozen pages into the book) at the claws of the native Ilmatar, who naively dissect him thinking him an unintelligent animal.
And then the book trips over itself for a while. Cambias becomes lost in setting the stage, something he could have forgone without any loss to the story. Not helping the story is that our other space faring species, the Sholan, read more like a foreign culture than a foreign species. While there are some physiological differences noted, they feel like TV aliens with pointed ears and green blood - different, but only in culture. Otherwise they are just humans with rubber suits, bent on protecting us from repeating their own mistakes.
What really saves this book - from the portraying an alien species perspective - are the natives of the ocean depths themselves, the Ilmataran. It's not a fair analogy, but reading their POV is like being in the head of a sonar wielding lobster. I was reminded of Vinge's Spiders from A Deepness in the Sky, especially with the ease with which Cambias relates the world of a blind, ocean vent dwelling creature. Cambias really shines when dealing with the Ilmataran, and you get a sense of the potential here. As a first novel, it was good, and I look forward to seeing what else Cambias writes in the future.
The ARC of this novel was provided for review by Tor.
And then the book trips over itself for a while. Cambias becomes lost in setting the stage, something he could have forgone without any loss to the story. Not helping the story is that our other space faring species, the Sholan, read more like a foreign culture than a foreign species. While there are some physiological differences noted, they feel like TV aliens with pointed ears and green blood - different, but only in culture. Otherwise they are just humans with rubber suits, bent on protecting us from repeating their own mistakes.
What really saves this book - from the portraying an alien species perspective - are the natives of the ocean depths themselves, the Ilmataran. It's not a fair analogy, but reading their POV is like being in the head of a sonar wielding lobster. I was reminded of Vinge's Spiders from A Deepness in the Sky, especially with the ease with which Cambias relates the world of a blind, ocean vent dwelling creature. Cambias really shines when dealing with the Ilmataran, and you get a sense of the potential here. As a first novel, it was good, and I look forward to seeing what else Cambias writes in the future.
The ARC of this novel was provided for review by Tor.
mjfmjfmjf's review against another edition
4.0
Interest sf alien contact book. The aliens are pretty alien on the surface, unfortunately both sets of aliens are portrayed as fairly human. That said, doing alien aliens is hard and can be hard to read. The book seemed somewhat shallow but it got deeper as it went on and the pace picked up pretty well towards the end. Certainly this is the first set of aliens I've seen set in deep-water vents and their society was interestingly odd. The humans were a bit cardboard. 3.5 of 5.
missyreads's review against another edition
adventurous
3.0
Sci-fi about the interactions of humans with two alien species on an alien planet. I liked one alien character, Broadtail, but the overall conflict and the ways the humans and other advanced aliens reacted to things were frustrating. I think I prefer either a more optimistic take on alien relations or a more terrifying one.
essinink's review against another edition
2.0
Meh... it was okay, I suppose.
Here's the thing, I like that it was a first contact novel, and the author has some great ideas. His actual writing has potential, he just needs to refine it.
For me, this book falls short on a number of levels.
The worldbuilding is a bit sloppy. There's a lot of great concepts here (Blind high-pressure evolved lobster people! Six-limbed sex-crazed space otters!) that just aren't followed through. The absurdity of the Ilmatarans behavior (which came across as humans in lobster suits) made it seem far more like being blind was a side feature, not an actual function of their species. Their behavior just didn't fit their body type. The Sholen have a similar problem.
In addition, for all the events of the book, it really didn't feel like it was tied to any sort of wider universe. What's with human-sholen relations? Why didn't the humans tell them to back off? Why is this outpost important? Why didn't anyone attempt to call for help? Etc.
It's not a bad book, but if the author really wanted to spend as much time as he did setting the stage for the actual story, he might have spent his words more wisely. Should he release another book, I look forward to seeing how he grows as a writer.
2.5/5. Won't be rereading, but I won't actively discourage anyone from trying it out. And if James Cambias feels like releasing another novel, I'd be willing to give it a chance.
Here's the thing, I like that it was a first contact novel, and the author has some great ideas. His actual writing has potential, he just needs to refine it.
For me, this book falls short on a number of levels.
The worldbuilding is a bit sloppy. There's a lot of great concepts here (Blind high-pressure evolved lobster people! Six-limbed sex-crazed space otters!) that just aren't followed through. The absurdity of the Ilmatarans behavior (which came across as humans in lobster suits) made it seem far more like being blind was a side feature, not an actual function of their species. Their behavior just didn't fit their body type. The Sholen have a similar problem.
In addition, for all the events of the book, it really didn't feel like it was tied to any sort of wider universe. What's with human-sholen relations? Why didn't the humans tell them to back off? Why is this outpost important? Why didn't anyone attempt to call for help? Etc.
It's not a bad book, but if the author really wanted to spend as much time as he did setting the stage for the actual story, he might have spent his words more wisely. Should he release another book, I look forward to seeing how he grows as a writer.
2.5/5. Won't be rereading, but I won't actively discourage anyone from trying it out. And if James Cambias feels like releasing another novel, I'd be willing to give it a chance.
stephilica's review against another edition
This was okay. I am a reader who likes puzzling through prose--I firmly believe novels should take full advantage of the medium and do something beautiful with it, the same way a filmmaker plays with shadow and color to not only convey the story but to do so with style. This book did not do the equivalent with its prose, which isn't an indictment so much as a statement of something that could have, but didn't, rescue the other parts of the novel.
The plot is the most interesting portion, and the development of a society of blind underwater aliens was also a point in the book's favor. Most characters, however, have little skin on their metaphorical bones and act stupidly to get the plot-ball rolling. None of them are particularly relatable, except Broadtail (though I am rather well-disposed towards characters who just want to Do the Science). I am convinced switching main character status from Rob, whose entire personality is cheesecake, pranks, and anime, to his girlfriend Alicia would have greatly improved the feeling of flat characters. She spends 99% of the book working to fix Rob's messes while he decides to commit further international (intergalactic?) incidents.
In all, the plot was neat even if characters and most of the setting (except the underwater aliens) were lacking, but in a way, that's damning it with faint praise.
The plot is the most interesting portion, and the development of a society of blind underwater aliens was also a point in the book's favor. Most characters, however, have little skin on their metaphorical bones and act stupidly to get the plot-ball rolling. None of them are particularly relatable, except Broadtail (though I am rather well-disposed towards characters who just want to Do the Science). I am convinced switching main character status from Rob, whose entire personality is cheesecake, pranks, and anime, to his girlfriend Alicia would have greatly improved the feeling of flat characters. She spends 99% of the book working to fix Rob's messes while he decides to commit further international (intergalactic?) incidents.
In all, the plot was neat even if characters and most of the setting (except the underwater aliens) were lacking, but in a way, that's damning it with faint praise.
khrystalynne's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
thistlechaser's review against another edition
3.0
(Book given free for review by Tor Books.)
First: I love the title so much. I wanted to read this book as soon as I saw it!
The description sealed the deal:
On the planet Ilmatar, under a roof of ice a kilometer thick, a team of deep-sea diving scientists investigates the blind alien race that lives below. The Terran explorers have made an uneasy truce with the Sholen, their first extraterrestrial contact: so long as they don’t disturb the Ilmataran habitat, they're free to conduct their missions in peace.
But when Henri Kerlerec, media personality and reckless adventurer, ends up sliced open by curious Ilmatarans, tensions between Terran and Sholen erupt, leading to a diplomatic disaster that threatens to escalate to war.
Let's cover the good parts first:
I loved the aliens. The Ilmataran (think lobster-ish folk) were so interesting. I bought them as a race, I loved their culture and language. The whole world-building about them worked.
The Sholen (think giant otter-people with an extra set of limbs) were interesting in their own way. Again, I fully believed them as a people, and I wanted to know more about them.
Those two races made up two-thirds of the book (until the end of it).
What I didn't like:
The humans. I didn't buy them as people. I didn't enjoy reading about them at all. I did not believe that characters like that would be sent to a tiny research station on another planet. (Look at the testing that goes into checking people who go to the Antarctic station. There's no way that high school-ish loose cannons would be sent off to a station with a couple dozen people on another planet, let alone someone like the media star!)
The only female character with any more characterization than a name fell in love with the male lead for no reason that I could see. One day they don't know each other. Next day the male lead goes off with the media star and breaks every rule set out for the humans, the star getting killed. Then four days later the woman is in love with him, when they had no more interaction than her leaving him paper dolls to cheer him up.
The humans just acted so badly. I didn't buy that adult humans would act that way at all, let alone ones that should have been hand-picked to go to this other planet.
I loved the beginning of the book, when it was mostly about the Ilmataran. I enjoyed the middle, since it was two-thirds about the aliens and only one third about the humans, but unfortunately the end was very human-centric and I enjoyed it least of all.
It's possible I wasn't the right audience for A Darkling Sea. The men were Macho Men and the women swooned before them (okay, maybe not swooned, but fell in love for no reason). The Macho Men tried to protect their swooning women from all dangers. There was plenty of action and adventure, fighting and bandits and battles, so if that's your thing, pick up A Darkling Sea!
First: I love the title so much. I wanted to read this book as soon as I saw it!
The description sealed the deal:
On the planet Ilmatar, under a roof of ice a kilometer thick, a team of deep-sea diving scientists investigates the blind alien race that lives below. The Terran explorers have made an uneasy truce with the Sholen, their first extraterrestrial contact: so long as they don’t disturb the Ilmataran habitat, they're free to conduct their missions in peace.
But when Henri Kerlerec, media personality and reckless adventurer, ends up sliced open by curious Ilmatarans, tensions between Terran and Sholen erupt, leading to a diplomatic disaster that threatens to escalate to war.
Let's cover the good parts first:
I loved the aliens. The Ilmataran (think lobster-ish folk) were so interesting. I bought them as a race, I loved their culture and language. The whole world-building about them worked.
The Sholen (think giant otter-people with an extra set of limbs) were interesting in their own way. Again, I fully believed them as a people, and I wanted to know more about them.
Those two races made up two-thirds of the book (until the end of it).
What I didn't like:
The humans. I didn't buy them as people. I didn't enjoy reading about them at all. I did not believe that characters like that would be sent to a tiny research station on another planet. (Look at the testing that goes into checking people who go to the Antarctic station. There's no way that high school-ish loose cannons would be sent off to a station with a couple dozen people on another planet, let alone someone like the media star!)
The only female character with any more characterization than a name fell in love with the male lead for no reason that I could see. One day they don't know each other. Next day the male lead goes off with the media star and breaks every rule set out for the humans, the star getting killed. Then four days later the woman is in love with him, when they had no more interaction than her leaving him paper dolls to cheer him up.
The humans just acted so badly. I didn't buy that adult humans would act that way at all, let alone ones that should have been hand-picked to go to this other planet.
I loved the beginning of the book, when it was mostly about the Ilmataran. I enjoyed the middle, since it was two-thirds about the aliens and only one third about the humans, but unfortunately the end was very human-centric and I enjoyed it least of all.
It's possible I wasn't the right audience for A Darkling Sea. The men were Macho Men and the women swooned before them (okay, maybe not swooned, but fell in love for no reason). The Macho Men tried to protect their swooning women from all dangers. There was plenty of action and adventure, fighting and bandits and battles, so if that's your thing, pick up A Darkling Sea!
majkia's review against another edition
4.0
Rating: Interesting and quite complex first contact story with the added element of happening in an environment exceedingly dangerous to Terrans.
Exploration has found intelligent life at the bottom of a sea on a moon. Earth has protocols: no first contact. Observe, do not interfere. But then contact is made accidentally and things go particularly pear-shaped when the other species Terrans share the skies with arrives. And they are definitely pissed off.
A little slow to start, but once the other aliens arrive, things heat up and the action keeps you reading.
The world building is interesting and complex. The characters are pretty well-drawn given that humans don't really get either alien species very well. The decisions by the Terrans are a bit hard on the imagination, in that I wonder if real people would be that willing to risk their lives in so hostile an environment. But definitely intriguing nonetheless.
Exploration has found intelligent life at the bottom of a sea on a moon. Earth has protocols: no first contact. Observe, do not interfere. But then contact is made accidentally and things go particularly pear-shaped when the other species Terrans share the skies with arrives. And they are definitely pissed off.
A little slow to start, but once the other aliens arrive, things heat up and the action keeps you reading.
The world building is interesting and complex. The characters are pretty well-drawn given that humans don't really get either alien species very well. The decisions by the Terrans are a bit hard on the imagination, in that I wonder if real people would be that willing to risk their lives in so hostile an environment. But definitely intriguing nonetheless.