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mistersender's review
adventurous
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
manuphoto's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
This is my first novel by Robert J. Sawyer; I’ve been looking forward to it for quite some time.
The core idea of the book is very cool and is introduced in a punchy, effective way. It does feel a bit 90s TV (a sort of X-Files vibe), but it’s interesting nonetheless.
From the get-go, Sawyer’s prose is straightforward and efficient. Don’t expect anything lyrical—it’s not the point here—but it’s clear and easy to read without ever feeling dumbed down. Not an easy feat, as authors tend to be boring or frustrating when they try to be more readable. Sawyer manages to avoid these traps—nicely done!
I also liked the whole Canadian vibe of the book, which is fairly absent from most sci-fi novels. Everything that doesn’t happen in space is either in the USA, Europe, or Southeast Asia. It was nice to see some Canadians, Québécois, and local entities represented—I really enjoyed that. Although I felt that the Québécois slang was sometimes misused, I can imagine it’s very hard to place for a non-Québécois author. It’s really me being hard on him here.
Be aware that the book can surprise with its violence (only one real occurrence). It sort of comes out of nowhere, which is the intent, I guess, to intensify the effect. I don’t mind that actually, but some might, so I thought I should mention it.
The novel is fast-paced, a bit too much for my taste. As I’ve said, it feels very TV-like, like an episode unfolding before our eyes. On the one hand, it’s very entertaining and enjoyable; on the other hand, it lacks depth and gravitas, at least for me, but maybe I’m a snob.
It’s strange—I’ve read some John Scalzi stuff that is even faster-paced and worked a bit better, maybe because the core concepts are so bonkers that the fast pacing makes a lot of sense. Sawyer gives us a much more interesting premise than most of Scalzi’s work, but he treats it in a way that makes me want him to slow down and let me immerse myself more in the story. His ideas are great, his characters are great—they are also very diverse, which is fantastic—and it all happens in my country. All those are positives. But I always found myself wanting more attention to those elements, for a slower-paced tale.
It really comes down to me, the reader. I like a slower burn when exploring big ideas. Vernor Vinge does that beautifully, as does Kim Stanley Robinson. Sawyer is clearly aiming for something different here. Although I enjoyed reading this story a lot, I’m not sure that it’ll stay with me as much as it should have. It does feel like a missed opportunity in a way.
It explores very important themes—prejudice, social and sexual statuses, violence, our humanity, etc. And you can see Sawyer does have many things to say; he clearly thought all of it through and it transpires through the novel. I just wish it transpired a bit slower. It’s really a detail in his whole approach when you think about it, but one that mattered to me a lot.
In the second half of the book, Sawyer does slow down a bit and focuses on some aspects of our society, especially religion and physics. But even then, it feels a bit superficial and "too easy," if that makes sense.
I'm really torn here. This is an intelligent, thought-provoking book... that reads like a quick-paced adventure novel. It's a weird mix, and I think it’d be better served with a slower pace and more analytical plotting. Then again, maybe Sawyer did just that in the sequels—I don’t know.
Nevertheless, Hominids is very interesting, quite original, and very enjoyable to read.
katelynking12's review
adventurous
emotional
informative
mysterious
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? It's complicated
5.0
Phenomenal read. Definitely recommend it if you're into paleoanthropology.
Content Warnings
Minor: Rape
paperdreamsblog's review
emotional
informative
reflective
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
4.5
willaryreads's review
adventurous
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
x0pherl's review
3.0
Like everything I've read by Sawyer, I liked this book, even though I found much of the writing pretty cringe-worthy. The first two paragraphs should show pretty well what I don't mean:
The blackness was absolute.
Watching over it was Louise Benoît, twenty-eight, a statuesque postdoc from Montreal with a mane of thick brown hair stuffed, as required here, into a hair net. She kept her vigil in a cramped control room, buried two kilometers — “a mile an’ a quarder,” as she sometimes explained for American visitors in an accent that charmed them — beneath the Earth’s surface.
"statuesqe", "mane of thick brown hair"? seriously?
When He's not writing about Louise Benoît (and he doesn't, much) the story is quite engaging and fun speculation.
The blackness was absolute.
Watching over it was Louise Benoît, twenty-eight, a statuesque postdoc from Montreal with a mane of thick brown hair stuffed, as required here, into a hair net. She kept her vigil in a cramped control room, buried two kilometers — “a mile an’ a quarder,” as she sometimes explained for American visitors in an accent that charmed them — beneath the Earth’s surface.
"statuesqe", "mane of thick brown hair"? seriously?
When He's not writing about Louise Benoît (and he doesn't, much) the story is quite engaging and fun speculation.
arindrew's review
informative
reflective
fast-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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape
tonimmc's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape
trin's review
2.0
In a quantum computing accident worthy of a Stargate episode, a Neanderthal physicist from a parallel Earth where Homo sapiens died out while Homo neanderthalensis (or Homo sapiens neanderthalensis, if you prefer) thrived is sucked into our world. He's rescued from drowning by physics postdoc Louise Benoît, put under the medical care of Dr. Reuben Montego, and befriended by geneticist Mary Vaughan. Meanwhile, back in Ponter's, the Neanderthal's, world, his work and life partner Adikor is accused of his murder...
Most of this novel's focus is on comparing the Neanderthals' culture with ours: they live in a society where men and women are treated equally, but live separately; where everyone has two romantic partners, a man-mate and a woman-mate; and where crime has been almost eradicated through alibi cubes—monitoring devices implanted in everyone's wrists—chemical personality readjustment, and the forced sterilization not just of convicted criminals, but also of their immediate families. While I'll admit that our world is hugely fucked up—a fact Sawyer conveyed by having a man rape Mary when she's walking home from work; an event he dealt with well, I suppose, but which I still found traumatizing—Ponter's world didn't seem so great to me, either. Parts of this are addressed when Adikor is falsely accused and has to struggle to prove his innocence—oh yeah, was it mentioned that in Neanderthal land you're guilty until proved innocent?—but in general, Sawyer seemed to think that this alternate system he came up with was just AWESOME. Now, maybe this will be further addressed in the next two books in the series, but any society where forced sterilization = fantabulous legal policy is also pretty fucked in my mind. (I'm not so fond of the "women living separately from the men" idea, either.)
When the two societies were merely contrasted, I found this book very interesting; I also liked how Sawyer showed the rest of the world's reaction to Ponter. However, that the book seemed to come down so much in favor of the Neanderthal way was troubling to me. I mean, not only did Ponter have his "I am so ashamed of what you humans have done to this planet" moment, Mary had a "sterilization FTW!" one. I hope the next book readdresses this disparity; it would be much more interesting if the series were about how two societies can learn from each other, rather than how some Other can save us from ourselves. (With castration! It's fun for the whole family!)
Most of this novel's focus is on comparing the Neanderthals' culture with ours: they live in a society where men and women are treated equally, but live separately; where everyone has two romantic partners, a man-mate and a woman-mate; and where crime has been almost eradicated through alibi cubes—monitoring devices implanted in everyone's wrists—chemical personality readjustment, and the forced sterilization not just of convicted criminals, but also of their immediate families. While I'll admit that our world is hugely fucked up—a fact Sawyer conveyed by having a man rape Mary when she's walking home from work; an event he dealt with well, I suppose, but which I still found traumatizing—Ponter's world didn't seem so great to me, either. Parts of this are addressed when Adikor is falsely accused and has to struggle to prove his innocence—oh yeah, was it mentioned that in Neanderthal land you're guilty until proved innocent?—but in general, Sawyer seemed to think that this alternate system he came up with was just AWESOME. Now, maybe this will be further addressed in the next two books in the series, but any society where forced sterilization = fantabulous legal policy is also pretty fucked in my mind. (I'm not so fond of the "women living separately from the men" idea, either.)
When the two societies were merely contrasted, I found this book very interesting; I also liked how Sawyer showed the rest of the world's reaction to Ponter. However, that the book seemed to come down so much in favor of the Neanderthal way was troubling to me. I mean, not only did Ponter have his "I am so ashamed of what you humans have done to this planet" moment, Mary had a "sterilization FTW!" one. I hope the next book readdresses this disparity; it would be much more interesting if the series were about how two societies can learn from each other, rather than how some Other can save us from ourselves. (With castration! It's fun for the whole family!)
noodlerabbit88's review
adventurous
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
sad
tense
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
4.75