vintage_b's review against another edition
reflective
medium-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
3.0
Marked as the third short story in the Black Stars collection. Darden and Catherina are moving to their designated 40 acres of land under the sea. This land has been promised to them and all like them as reparations. We join them on their journey as they are outfitted with gear to be able to live underwater, essentially turning them into merpeople. This read was rather confusing and hard to stay focused on. There was a lot going on, and I can’t help but feel that if this were perhaps extended into a longer novel, it may have been better.
cherndon's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
melismatic's review
challenging
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
adaobi_tobias's review
adventurous
informative
inspiring
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
taaya's review
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Maybe if this was a 150+ pages novella ...
But this way with close to no worldbuilding and no explanations whatsoever - not to mention lots of words that are probably part of a sociolect that one simply doesn't learn in school -, I had no idea what was going on. I mean, I got the big bits, persecution and racism. But everything around it was a blur.
But this way with close to no worldbuilding and no explanations whatsoever - not to mention lots of words that are probably part of a sociolect that one simply doesn't learn in school -, I had no idea what was going on. I mean, I got the big bits, persecution and racism. But everything around it was a blur.
Graphic: Racism
uogabunbuckis's review
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
wrongwayhome's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
witchivor's review against another edition
1.5
This story had an interesting concept but poor execution. There are a lot of terms that are introduced and used with no explanation, making it hard to follow what is actually happening in the story. I spent most of the story wondering what things were or meant, and characters were named but in some cases only once and never mentioned again. The last few scenes were almost completely unintelligible to me.
There were good ideas here - the underwater settlements, land reparation under the sea, body modification and white supremacy, but it could have done with being more fleshed out.
mladd28's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0