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kgmay25's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
sad
slow-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
emianner's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-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
3.0
ugoglen's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
"The Book of Flora" is the third in "The Road to Nowhere" trilogy. Like the preceding books, it is very difficult to read, and deals extensively with themes of slavery and sexual violence. Caveat emptor.
The premise of the trilogy is that there was some kind of 'Plague' that primarily affected women, and especially woman during childbirth. This book takes place significantly later than the first book, so the gender imbalance in the US has become extremely significant. The book opens directly after "The Book of Etta," the second in the trilogy. It is another road tale, told via flashbacks between the group's departure from Ommun and a much later date in a new settlement.
Overall, I can't exactly say I liked these books. The first one read fairly quickly and there were so many things I wanted to figure out. The next two have been much harder to engage with, as a reader. All three of them depicted so many horrifying occurrences that I basically refused to read them after dark. None of that is to say that Elison's worldbuilding seems outlandish -- worse, it's that it felt realistic to my sense of humans and that was scary. I did think a lot about gender (biological gender, and the ways our culture uses it as a shortcut or a way to keep people outside), and that was fascinating.
The premise of the trilogy is that there was some kind of 'Plague' that primarily affected women, and especially woman during childbirth. This book takes place significantly later than the first book, so the gender imbalance in the US has become extremely significant. The book opens directly after "The Book of Etta," the second in the trilogy. It is another road tale, told via flashbacks between the group's departure from Ommun and a much later date in a new settlement.
Overall, I can't exactly say I liked these books. The first one read fairly quickly and there were so many things I wanted to figure out. The next two have been much harder to engage with, as a reader. All three of them depicted so many horrifying occurrences that I basically refused to read them after dark. None of that is to say that Elison's worldbuilding seems outlandish -- worse, it's that it felt realistic to my sense of humans and that was scary. I did think a lot about gender (biological gender, and the ways our culture uses it as a shortcut or a way to keep people outside), and that was fascinating.
immabehazzie's review
3.0
‘The Book of Flora’ is the third installment in the ‘Road to Nowhere’ series, it delves deeper into the post-apocalyptic world that nearly decimated women and children. This book follows Flora, a transgender woman, as she navigates a world that oppresses women and is ruled by dangerous men. She fights for her freedom and the freedom of others like her. This installment explores themes of power, personal identity, and autonomy as well as resistance in a world where women’s bodies are commodified and controlled.
The storytelling in ‘The Book of Flora’ is just as strong as the others and Flora is a compelling and complex character. This novel adds gender identity into the lord of this series and the struggle for autonomy in a dystopian society is deeply resonant.
However, this was my least favorite book of the series. Not because it was bad but because at this point this story feels repetitive. I still stand by thinking that ‘The Book of The Unnamed Midwife’ should have been a stand-alone and with each novel, the compelling and intense nature of the story feels like it fades away with each book. Other than the addition of gender identity being introduced into the story this book doesn’t add anything to the world that has been crafted in the previous ones.
Overall, it’s a good book. It’s well-written and the characters are well developed but the story has been dragged on for too long.
The storytelling in ‘The Book of Flora’ is just as strong as the others and Flora is a compelling and complex character. This novel adds gender identity into the lord of this series and the struggle for autonomy in a dystopian society is deeply resonant.
However, this was my least favorite book of the series. Not because it was bad but because at this point this story feels repetitive. I still stand by thinking that ‘The Book of The Unnamed Midwife’ should have been a stand-alone and with each novel, the compelling and intense nature of the story feels like it fades away with each book. Other than the addition of gender identity being introduced into the story this book doesn’t add anything to the world that has been crafted in the previous ones.
Overall, it’s a good book. It’s well-written and the characters are well developed but the story has been dragged on for too long.
laurarhds's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
yevolem's review against another edition
3.0
Flora was the best character to me in second book, so this didn't have the problems with the protagonist I had in the second book. The frame story has returned, with a bit forty years in the future, but with the vast majority taking place immediately after the end of the second book. This one doesn't have a plot. It's literally "let's travel all over the United States in search of a community that can accept us for who we are." That was fine by me. Sexuality continues to reign supreme.
A lot certainly happens in a relatively short time in books 2 and 3. There's an antagonist, but it's irrelevant really. The characterizations are somewhat messy and inconsistent. There are also questionable decisions made as well. This is the probably least dark of three, unless of course some of the specific offensive material is especially offensive to you.
Overall, there wasn't really anything too much either way for me to strongly like or dislike. The ending was well, whatever, so if that's what Elison wanted to do, why not. It doesn't make much sense, but eh, I guess mitigating the bleakness was necessary. I have to say, this series really lived up to its title. It's unfortunate the two following books weren't anywhere as enjoyable as the first for me and it almost makes me to lower the score of the first, but I probably won't. I could've done without reading these, but it's just as well that I did.
A lot certainly happens in a relatively short time in books 2 and 3. There's an antagonist, but it's irrelevant really. The characterizations are somewhat messy and inconsistent. There are also questionable decisions made as well. This is the probably least dark of three, unless of course some of the specific offensive material is especially offensive to you.
Overall, there wasn't really anything too much either way for me to strongly like or dislike. The ending was well, whatever, so if that's what Elison wanted to do, why not. It doesn't make much sense, but eh, I guess mitigating the bleakness was necessary. I have to say, this series really lived up to its title. It's unfortunate the two following books weren't anywhere as enjoyable as the first for me and it almost makes me to lower the score of the first, but I probably won't. I could've done without reading these, but it's just as well that I did.
aserra's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.25
Foremost, I appreciate what this series strives to accomplish and its abundant, casual diversity. More books should implement this. At the very least, such representation illustrates humanity with much greater accuracy, thus making it easier to suspend disbelief, place faith in the author's world-building and character development skills. Whatever else I (or anyone else) has to say about this book and this trilogy as a whole, Elison's proficiency in this skills is undeniable.
I had high hopes for the finale to The Road to Nowhere trilogy, especially after The Book of Etta evoked such visceral discomfort and emotion from me. The main issues I find in this installment lie in the pacing, nonbinary and transmasc representation, and book blurb. Elaboration follows below, with spoilers.
The strengths of this book: the selection and positionality of the narrator, the world-building, its balance of callbacks and independent narrative, the digestible writing style (some of the analogies in the book are very unique and really shine), andthe execution of a nonlinear narrative .
All characters made at least one choice I didn't like, but respected and recognized as true to each individual's personality. Elison doesn't sugarcoat the unsavory aspects of humanity and emphasizes the greyness inherent to human behavior. If someone were to ask me for my favorite character of the series, I would choose no one--I like the trilogy and this book no less for that. In fact, I'm delighted to walk away from a series (mostly) pleased with no characters I truly adore. This is a novel and precious experience to me as a reader and writer.
To elaborate on what I believe to be The Book of Flora's glaring shortcomings (again, spoilers ahead):
Book Blurb
The back cover blurb for this book is somewhat misleading in regards to the book's major focuses and beats. The first full paragraph is fine, no issues there.
The first sentence of the second paragraph is okay, but could be improved.
I had high hopes for the finale to The Road to Nowhere trilogy, especially after The Book of Etta evoked such visceral discomfort and emotion from me. The main issues I find in this installment lie in the pacing, nonbinary and transmasc representation, and book blurb. Elaboration follows below, with spoilers.
The strengths of this book: the selection and positionality of the narrator, the world-building, its balance of callbacks and independent narrative, the digestible writing style (some of the analogies in the book are very unique and really shine), and
All characters made at least one choice I didn't like, but respected and recognized as true to each individual's personality. Elison doesn't sugarcoat the unsavory aspects of humanity and emphasizes the greyness inherent to human behavior. If someone were to ask me for my favorite character of the series, I would choose no one--I like the trilogy and this book no less for that. In fact, I'm delighted to walk away from a series (mostly) pleased with no characters I truly adore. This is a novel and precious experience to me as a reader and writer.
To elaborate on what I believe to be The Book of Flora's glaring shortcomings (again, spoilers ahead):
Book Blurb
The back cover blurb for this book is somewhat misleading in regards to the book's major focuses and beats. The first full paragraph is fine, no issues there.
The first sentence of the second paragraph is okay, but could be improved.
Now navigating a blighted landscape...
The ambiguity here could belie readers. What is the catalyst for this navigation? Is it purely because
The second sentence of the blurb's second paragraph isn't inaccurate on its own (though I argue gender is not as fluid on the boat as the blurb claims). My issue is the emphasis on this that derives from the significant space it occupies. This sentence is half the second paragraph in a blurb that is 6/7 sentences total. The book doesn't spend half of the time on the boat (mentioned in the blurb). To me, that leg of the journey felt belated in the grand scheme of things. This relates to the next issue--
Pacing
The book blurb doesn't properly set the reader's expectations, in my opinion. It's better to go into the book not reading the blurb at all.
That, however, was not my experience, so the time and attention devoted to certain beats in the story confused me.
Returning to Connie, who felt disappointingly underdeveloped, ushers this lengthy review to the last issue--
NB + Transmasc Rep.
If this book were published in a literary milieu rife with good genderqueer and trans (especially BIPOC trans) representation, this would likely diminish dissatisfaction with this qualm. However, and unfortunately, this book does not enter into a literary canon with good representation of many marginalized groups. Great strides have been made, are being made, but the issue remains.
The last time we see Eddy,
Then there's Connie, who feels more like an embodied plot device than a person on their own. Already, that's not great, but add to it that Connie is the only explicitly nonbinary character in the cast, and nonbinary characters are woefully rare in literature. Moreover,
Yes, the world is hyper-gendered in the wake of the Dying (some places less so than others), but no place in the trilogy, as Flora observes multiple times, is truly accepting of all gender expression.
Yes, that factor would undoubtedly weigh heavy on a nonbinary person (identifying as nonbinary myself, I can only begin to imagine).
Yes, that would result in some nonbinary people developing views and acting in ways that are kindred with Connie.
However, we do not get to see nonbinary people. We get one nonbinary person, and that person
The result of this (plus the lack of insight we get into Connie's past, inner dialogue, etc.) is a character that is confounding on a scale that interrupts one's suspension of disbelief. The result is that Connie
TLDR; Ultimately, the book earns 2.25 stars, not for deficient worldbuilding or poor quality writing, but for the aforementioned reasons, exacerbated by the fact that this concludes what was a very promising trilogy. (It doesn't ruin the trilogy for me, but I will reread the first two books and not this one in the future)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Trafficking, and Death of parent
Minor: Cursing, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Infertility, Misogyny, Sexism, Grief, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Dysphoria
73pctgeek's review against another edition
3.0
I was very much looking forward to reading the third instalment of the Road To Nowhere trilogy, and thanks to NetGalley I got to do it even earlier than I’d hoped.
The Book of Flora continues the tale first started in The Book of the Unnamed Midwife, and links directly to events from The Book of Etta. Fair warning to those new to the series, I’m not sure I’d have enjoyed this book as much as I did had I not actually read the two preceding novels.
Though the Road to Nowhere series is set in a very grim dystopia, The Book of Flora felt less dark to me. Flora, the protagonist and narrator’s journey is the main focus, and we follow her exploration of the world, her place in it and how it relates to her. I loved learning more about Flora, she was such an interesting character in the previous novel. I just wish (as always) life wasn’t so hard for her. Elison and her world can be very rough on her characters. I did feel the end was a little rushed, and I really wanted to delve into both the happier, more peaceful times implied in Flora’s retrospective narrative passages, as well as the revelatory change discovered at the very end.
I find the Road To Nowhere novels quick reads, but not because they are easy. On the contrary they are set in a grimdark world full of terror and violence which strike me as uncomfortably plausible. Even so, the first novel, The Book of the Unnamed Midwife, remains my favourite of the trilogy, and one of my all-time favourite novels.
Anyone who has enjoyed any of the other novels in the series should definitely read The Book of Flora, and those who haven't should give them a try! Meg Elison’s writing is compelling, flows well, and her ideas are as fascinating as always.
The Book of Flora continues the tale first started in The Book of the Unnamed Midwife, and links directly to events from The Book of Etta. Fair warning to those new to the series, I’m not sure I’d have enjoyed this book as much as I did had I not actually read the two preceding novels.
Though the Road to Nowhere series is set in a very grim dystopia, The Book of Flora felt less dark to me. Flora, the protagonist and narrator’s journey is the main focus, and we follow her exploration of the world, her place in it and how it relates to her. I loved learning more about Flora, she was such an interesting character in the previous novel. I just wish (as always) life wasn’t so hard for her. Elison and her world can be very rough on her characters. I did feel the end was a little rushed, and I really wanted to delve into both the happier, more peaceful times implied in Flora’s retrospective narrative passages, as well as the revelatory change discovered at the very end.
I find the Road To Nowhere novels quick reads, but not because they are easy. On the contrary they are set in a grimdark world full of terror and violence which strike me as uncomfortably plausible. Even so, the first novel, The Book of the Unnamed Midwife, remains my favourite of the trilogy, and one of my all-time favourite novels.
Anyone who has enjoyed any of the other novels in the series should definitely read The Book of Flora, and those who haven't should give them a try! Meg Elison’s writing is compelling, flows well, and her ideas are as fascinating as always.
silenttardis's review against another edition
3.0
Just finished the audiobook, did like that the person reading was a transexual, that gave dept to flora, that is also one, at first the story was good, but it kind of lost me in the middle, and the frag thing was the last drop... Is not a bad book, but the first one is the best of the three, if for some reason one stops in the first volume one, that's the best of the trilogy anyway.