Reviews

84K by Claire North

eoinmonty's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad 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? Yes

4.0

books_and_keys's review

adventurous challenging dark tense slow-paced

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

2.25

jbkep's review against another edition

3.0

It took me a few attempts to start this book. I enjoy Claire North's writing, but this one was harder for me to get into, something stylisticly that was more... esoteric? Not the word I want, but it's what I've got. Like it kept trying to fall into free verse poetry, and I'm not much of a fan of that.

I am happy that I was able to get into the story, even if I can see far too likely this as our own distopian future.

vmtonn's review against another edition

challenging hopeful mysterious sad slow-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

3.0

cakegeek's review against another edition

While I understand that the formatting (or at times complete lack thereof) was supposed to highlight the stream of consciousness of the narrative voice, I found that it made for this to be too difficult to settle in to read. I found myself actively avoiding reading it, and after a week break, I went back to it, only to be reminded why I needed the break after a page or two.

vip8888's review against another edition

1.0

1.5 stars. I really liked ‘First Fifteen Lives...’ and Touch was good, but this one felt like taking ten pages worth of plot for a short story and dragging it out to 400 pages. Considered ditching it 2/3rds through, but ended up skim reading the last 100+ pages and can’t see that I missed anything.

sevenlefts's review against another edition

3.0

I'm a sucker for dystopian novels. This one was frighteningly on the mark. The world described here is more of a likleytopia. In the not too distant future, much of the functions of the UK's government have been ceded to "The Company." Decisions about employment, education, justice, etc., are made based on social cost, and those who can't pay for their own upkeep must pay in other ways - basically, slavery. On the other end of the spectrum, the rich can indemnify themselves against pretty much anything, including murder.

A man who works in an office that assesses prices for crimes is contacted by people trying to change the system. As he becomes more involved, we learn how he got where he was and are treated to vignettes, disjointed in time, that explain how he got where he is.

It's a deeply depressing book, and quite well written, but I found that some of the expository parts ran long and overdetailed, while other portions where vague. I also had a hard time piecing together the timing of events. I'm sure this was on purpose, but I had a hard time letting go of this as a reader. I love Claire North's writing, but this one wasn't my favorite.

heim_weh's review against another edition

dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

anneessdee's review against another edition

dark sad tense

• Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.5

_viscosity_'s review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense slow-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

5.0