rockobeige's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-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
4.5
rain_97's review against another edition
I was excited to read this book because it explored themes without lives after lives I was deeply interested in. However, I could not get into the writing style, didn’t care about the characters, and was confused about everything that was happening. I initially tried to physically read it because I knew that there are many time periods and I didn’t want to get lost but I couldn’t get past the writing. The audio made it worse, it was just noise. Maybe one day I’ll get back to it once my head is in a different space.
ryanrask's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
It's a really cool story concept that I think Mitchell executes on it fairly well, but the concept holds it back from ever being truly great. The book lacks a strong emotional throughline and never gains much momentum. Interrupting stories halfway through is never going to feel cohesive and the connections between the stories is dubious at best. The birthmark thing is dumb and doesn't really add anything message/theme wise. Also the connection between the 4th and 5th story is loose at best and it the setting of the 5th story doesn't feel realistic in relation to the prior ones (though I did like this story more than most of the others). I was impressed by the writing and the story's were generally entertaining, but ultimately the thing that makes it what it is holds it back and that was always going to happen with a story like this
miss_twiddle's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
chloe_loves_books_'s review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
robdabear's review against another edition
5.0
All I can say is wow...I am quite simply blown away by this book, the interconnected stories, and the book‘s message. I can’t quite compare it to anything else I’ve read, and I’m glad. Loved it, and will continue to love it.
hanzy's review against another edition
3.0
I started reading this a couple of years ago and remember putting it down, unable to finish. I managed to reread and complete reading it this year. It wasn't the book... perhaps it wasn't meant to be read then. Or perhaps, it just wasn't my cup of tea. The intricacies and the uniquely shaped story-line require you to be engrossed within the world that's created. However, that wasn't the case for me as I didn't find myself engrossed enough for the pages to turn themselves. I appreciated the thought-process put into creating this book. All the shorter stories each had their own stylistic approach which was interesting, given that it was written by the same author, within the same book. Traveling through time, the interlocking lives... I found it to be a pretty unique concept.
ramajenny's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0