Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - Little Eyes

Reviews tagging 'Sexual content'

Little Eyes by Samanta Schweblin

21 reviews

savvylit's review against another edition

dark reflective 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? Yes

5.0

Each chapter of Little Eyes features a perspective of either a kentuki keeper or dweller. What follows is possibly the best fictional take on human nature on the Internet. Kentukis serve as the perfect symbol for fully-online parasocial relationships. The concept of a kentuki seems exaggeratedly far-fetched at first -- who would want to let an anonymous stranger into their home in the form of a moving camera? However, how different is that from extremely online folks who chronicle most of their days for viewers? I'd say not very. Kentukis are the perfect vessel for Schweblin to explore socializing in the digital age and all of its motivations and consequences. Distilled to its essence, Little Eyes is an expertly crafted meditation on loneliness, voyeurism, cruelty, and projection.

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kaabtik's review against another edition

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challenging mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

Read this for the Book Lust Reading Guild's BOTM.

A very unique premise that was executed well. The beauty in it was that it gave the readers enough of a glance of the world from all angles, but still keeping the story within that of the characters. It mirrored reality in a way that didn't come off as pretentious or too on the nose, which I appreciated. Also had me changing and fixing up my digital footprint lololol.

BOTM Discussion:

Q1: Kentuki
Do you think that something similar to the kentuki could ever exist in the real world? Would you like it to be?

Though I wouldn't want there to be little anonymous people in my house, something similar to the Kentuki is definitely possible. Autonomous delivery robots already exist, and drones have become more commonplace.

Q2: Owner or dweller?
If the kentuki were real and you were to receive one (you can't say no!), would you prefer to be a dweller or to own one? Why?

Dweller, definitely, as I'm someone who liked to cut back on travel expenses as much as possible lolol. A pretty shallow reason but to be an owner and to have a stranger in my house at all times is something that would take years off my life every day.

Q3: The stories
Do you think the stories were easy to follow? Which ones did you like more? The creepy ones, the ones that gave just a glimpse of a connection, the sad ones...

The stories were pretty easy to follow, and I think I liked Emilia's and Grigor's the best as they were the most intriguing. Their stories were opposites, with Emilia having little tech experience to Grigor's wide understanding of it. I didn't like Marvin's a lot as I found the 'revolution' very meh and couldn't really get behind the whole cause. I did like the touch of how the kentuki would be involved in legal stuff though, but the whole "liberation" thing was... not it.

Q4: Characters
Which character (or characters) did you like best?

I liked Enzo the best as his interactions with his Kentuki were very sincere imo. Though it turned out for the worse, I still think he was acting out of a place of love for his son — and one out of loneliness.

Q5: The vibes
One thing I really enjoyed of this book was the subtle creepiness that emerged from time to time. What about you?

I liked how it didn't shy away from the darker aspects of the kentuki being used and what was in store for them. There had never been a moment in the book that I felt safe in the presence of the kentuki, yet I could see why the characters acted the way they did. Which made it more creepy and fun to read. A bit emotionally exhausting though, not going to lie.

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allyjshand's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

The concept behind the novel is brilliant. I was so intrigued by kentukis and their depicted global popularity. Whilst some argue that kentukis are unrealistic, I would disagree. Given the rate at which we have absorbed technologies into our homes that utilise voice recognition and cameras, I'd argue that the us machines like kentukis is not unlikely. The whole novel was reminiscent of the dystopian TV show Black Mirror which, like Little Eyes, uses futuristic technologies to reflect human nature. To top it off, the writing was extremely fluid and engaging - making it easy to fall into Schweblin's world. However, I found the novel quite dark and graphic at times (although, this is a matter of reader preference). Also, whilst the use of multiple perspectives was seamless, I felt that less POVs could have been included to allow for the remaining narratives to be developed more. Regardless, Little Eyes is a though-provoking novel that will definitely stay with me.

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elledanie's review against another edition

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dark reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

Content Warnings

carissa230's review

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mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.75

In this vision of the future people can live within another robot like object called Kentuki. They’re cute little stuffed animal like objects that can follow a person around. One person lives in the kentuki and the other person owns it and it follows them around if it wants. The persons that is within the kentuki becomes like a part of it.
People have strange relationships with the Kentuki. Some people use them as replacements for family, some as sex objects, some as a release valve for their anger.
I feel like something was lost in translation. While the concept was good overall it never really came together for me. I am still not sure how the person that is “within” the kentuki is there. How are they able to live their lives while being inside another object? Some are kidnapped and tortured, but for what purpose? Can they feel it, if yes how? These are a few things I don’t think translated well.

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ctrl_shift_dlt's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Content Warnings

literarylion's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Pros:

A really unique and compelling premise fleshed out perfectly
Structurally interesting -- vignettes that build off of one another but aren't interconnected
The amount of consideration Schweblin put into the concept of kentuckis is evident and relevant -- a minor and relatively simple piece of tech with the capacity to change the world in vital ways given enough popularity

Cons: