thestarman's review
3.0
VERDICT: 3.1 feathers, because I couldn't decide if it deserved 2.5 or 3.5. (The +0.1 is for the nice artwork).
A vague short story that didn't quite satisfy, but I sort of liked it. It gets points for oddity, a pervasive low-level uneasiness, and.
A vague short story that didn't quite satisfy, but I sort of liked it. It gets points for oddity, a pervasive low-level uneasiness, and
Spoiler
reverse chronologyjovvijo's review
4.0
Now I'm not the greatest fan, Pompoms and RAR RAR RAR, for books written in reverse chronological order, but this book had enough interesting "meat" to it that I am willing to over look this. (And will probably re-read it from bottom to top just for the fun of it!)
What did I like?
Well!
1. I like that the winged women are never fully explained, they stay a shadowy mystery. Why are they so loved? What is it about those wings that enchant people so?
2. For all there was a warning of 'violent sexual content' it wasn't done graphically, and while you are left in no doubt how awful the encounter was for the main character, it's not rubbed in your face either. You are left to imagine what they did and, if you have a good imagination, it leaves you unsettled...
3. I like that in the end/beginning the narrator begins to realize she has to start raising her son right or he could well end up being one of the Brothers or even just a violent man. I'm glad she does start to see sense and actually does tell him off for his mistreating of others, herself included!
What I didn't like?
Hmmm....
1. How we didn't find out about the winged women! It's mysterious and yet...argh, I did want to know! But fine, fine, I can deal.
2. The protagonist is a wee bit of a man basher, but she does seem to genuinely love her husband and her son, and lets face it, if we went through such utter trauma, well, we'd probably not come out of it all warm and fluffy towards the gender that did us in. Towards the end/beginning we do see that she is at least trying to sort herself out.
So would I recommend this teeny tiny story?
Yes, yes I would!
It's not an easy read, and it will work your braincells something fierce, but I think getting to mull the story over and getting to understand the good, the bad and the What The Heck? of it, is worth it!
What did I like?
Well!
1. I like that the winged women are never fully explained, they stay a shadowy mystery. Why are they so loved? What is it about those wings that enchant people so?
2. For all there was a warning of 'violent sexual content' it wasn't done graphically, and while you are left in no doubt how awful the encounter was for the main character, it's not rubbed in your face either. You are left to imagine what they did and, if you have a good imagination, it leaves you unsettled...
3. I like that in the end/beginning the narrator begins to realize she has to start raising her son right or he could well end up being one of the Brothers or even just a violent man. I'm glad she does start to see sense and actually does tell him off for his mistreating of others, herself included!
What I didn't like?
Hmmm....
1. How we didn't find out about the winged women! It's mysterious and yet...argh, I did want to know! But fine, fine, I can deal.
2. The protagonist is a wee bit of a man basher, but she does seem to genuinely love her husband and her son, and lets face it, if we went through such utter trauma, well, we'd probably not come out of it all warm and fluffy towards the gender that did us in. Towards the end/beginning we do see that she is at least trying to sort herself out.
So would I recommend this teeny tiny story?
Yes, yes I would!
It's not an easy read, and it will work your braincells something fierce, but I think getting to mull the story over and getting to understand the good, the bad and the What The Heck? of it, is worth it!
jokoloyo's review
2.0
The story can be read here.
It is a reverse chronology short story. This story is so short, so easy for re-reading if you don't accustomed to this kind of storytelling.
Well, maybe I am biased here, rating this story as an okay story. The reason is I feel the conclusion is flat.
It is a reverse chronology short story. This story is so short, so easy for re-reading if you don't accustomed to this kind of storytelling.
Well, maybe I am biased here, rating this story as an okay story. The reason is I feel the conclusion is flat.
Spoiler
At the end, I don't feel any progress of the protagonist. No active role, no impact of her presence that changed the fiction universe, or at least her inner growth (beyond the wings).ellie_bell's review
4.0
"She doesn’t care, doesn’t feel the wound, only gathers her son in her arms and takes in his wet, algal smell, and her urge to protect him is so strong that it does not occur to her to wonder if someone someday will need protecting from him."
crunden's review
5.0
Maggie sees the Sisters gliding through campus, their wings trailing ethereally behind them. She sees everyone who scrambles to give them things, to get other things out of their way, and she wants her life to be that easy. Only later—much later—does she wonder why she never questioned whether they could fly.
The prose in this is so achingly beautiful, but the story is so, so brutal, too. I am still collecting my thoughts. Mostly, though, WOW.
The prose in this is so achingly beautiful, but the story is so, so brutal, too. I am still collecting my thoughts. Mostly, though, WOW.
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