ofbooksandechos's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
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? Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Violence, Gore, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Medical trauma, Toxic friendship, Death, Gun violence, and Medical content
Minor: Slavery and Deadnaming
thenonbinaryc's review
4.5
the type of book where you’re thrown into a world and pick details up along the way. you get most of the big picture at the end but honestly theres still quite a bit im confused about.
hellishhoneybee's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
I feel like the world building wasn't well explained. It took me a long time to figure out what things meant and what was actually happening, but once I did I enjoyed the story
macroscopicentric's review
Just really… overwrought? Has the melodrama of noir but like if you imagined how a deeply uncool teenage boy wrote his internal monologue about a fantasy life in which he was very cool and did cool things. I found the style grating, and the verbosity meant the plot happened at a glacial pace.
ahab_jr's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
fast-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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide, Grief, Toxic relationship, Suicide, Violence, and Body horror
jordandotcom's review
4.0
Actual rating more like 3.5 stars. Very beautifully written, but to the point of being distracting - I had the dictionary pulled up on my phone and would use it repeatedly on every few pages. It kinda threw you out of the storyline, and made it a bit jarring to go back in. Otherwise it was fun!
inthebelljar's review
2.0
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.
I liked a lot of the ideas and concepts goings on in this book, but the execution was really lacking. I didn't feel like I understood the characters or their motivations, nor did I have a total handle on the world this took place in by the end. I'm more than okay with being thrown into a story and trying to figure out what's going on, but this, ultimately, felt very lackluster and confusing. So many things ended feeling unresolved and there were multiple times throughout the book where I felt like, "okay, so why is this happening?" or "what's even the end goal here?"
There was also this pervasive feeling of being told what I should think of the characters (i.e., Rita is manipulative and charismatic) instead of just...being shown how those characters act. I really had trouble buying into why any of these characters had ever bonded with one another, let alone trusted each other for this final mission.
A lot of Cassandra Khaw's works sound promising to me, but after this and Nothing But Blackened Teeth, I just don't think their writing is for me, unfortunately.
I liked a lot of the ideas and concepts goings on in this book, but the execution was really lacking. I didn't feel like I understood the characters or their motivations, nor did I have a total handle on the world this took place in by the end. I'm more than okay with being thrown into a story and trying to figure out what's going on, but this, ultimately, felt very lackluster and confusing. So many things ended feeling unresolved and there were multiple times throughout the book where I felt like, "okay, so why is this happening?" or "what's even the end goal here?"
There was also this pervasive feeling of being told what I should think of the characters (i.e., Rita is manipulative and charismatic) instead of just...being shown how those characters act. I really had trouble buying into why any of these characters had ever bonded with one another, let alone trusted each other for this final mission.
A lot of Cassandra Khaw's works sound promising to me, but after this and Nothing But Blackened Teeth, I just don't think their writing is for me, unfortunately.
joshgauthier's review
5.0
If I had any doubt about appreciating Cassandra Khaw as a writer, this book did away with it. Written in lush prose, with a complex world, and a ragtag team of deeply flawed characters to root for, The All-Consuming World is a delightfully gritty sci-fi adventure.
First, a couple caveats. Khaw delves into the richness of language and imagery in much of their work. While the beginning of the novel feels a bit overwritten, the language on the page quickly finds its footing. And from the first page to the last, Khaw delivers so many fantastic lines, striking images, turns of phrase that grip you and allow you to glimpse a familiar thing in a new way.
The second caveat will be more familiar for genre readers. The universe of The All-Consuming World is strange and complex, and while there is plenty of worldbuilding, it is not handed to the reader. Sentient AIs rove the universe in massive ships, controlling legions of religiously devoted followers. Clones upload their consciousnesses to new bodies, clinging to immortality even as their files degrade and they replace flesh with bionics. It is an ever-changing existence an a brave new world of technology, and our heroes scrape out a living on its fringes. Fit together in bits and pieces as the story progresses, the scope of the novel feels large and sometimes uncertain, but never so much as to get in the way of understanding the story.
And what a story it is. The Dirty Dozen, a team of clone criminals burning their names into history over the decades as they fight and die and return again to take what they want--until it all went wrong. With many of their Dozen dead and gone, fractured and scarred by the past, there is only one thing that could bring the surviving members back together. One last heist, a rescue mission, a giant middle finger to the AIs that have torn their lives to ribbons. If they can stop fighting amongst themselves, perhaps the remaining members of the Dirty Dozen can atone for the sins of their pasts and leave their blazing mark on the universe. But their are powerful interests pulling their strings. Not every ally can be trusted, and it will take everything they have to pull of the job none of them wants to be part of.
Khaw's novel is a pleasure to read. As so much sci-fi is positioned to do, the story delves deep into questions of identity. Gender, sexuality, identity, self--these things take on new light, new form as characters move between bodies, shaping themselves in new ways and adjusting to new circumstances. It's a cutting edge of technology and self-determination, woven naturally into the fabric of the world Khaw has created.
Amidst the rich language, Khaw's novel is also a gritty crime story and an epic adventure. As the characters deliver new lessons in creative profanity and the action turns in occasionally gruesome directions, the story rockets across the universe as all the relevant players charge toward the final conflict. And right into the final pages, Khaw delivers--not the ending I expected, but the ending that works for all that has come before.
In the end, The All-Consuming World is one of those stories that I loved for reasons I cannot fully articulate. It's distinct enough in style and content that it won't be everyone's cup of tea. But each time this novel finds its right audience, readers will discover just how much there is to be enjoyed in Khaw's work. I delighted in the entire reading experience, and I look forward with great excitement to whatever Khaw releases next.
First, a couple caveats. Khaw delves into the richness of language and imagery in much of their work. While the beginning of the novel feels a bit overwritten, the language on the page quickly finds its footing. And from the first page to the last, Khaw delivers so many fantastic lines, striking images, turns of phrase that grip you and allow you to glimpse a familiar thing in a new way.
The second caveat will be more familiar for genre readers. The universe of The All-Consuming World is strange and complex, and while there is plenty of worldbuilding, it is not handed to the reader. Sentient AIs rove the universe in massive ships, controlling legions of religiously devoted followers. Clones upload their consciousnesses to new bodies, clinging to immortality even as their files degrade and they replace flesh with bionics. It is an ever-changing existence an a brave new world of technology, and our heroes scrape out a living on its fringes. Fit together in bits and pieces as the story progresses, the scope of the novel feels large and sometimes uncertain, but never so much as to get in the way of understanding the story.
And what a story it is. The Dirty Dozen, a team of clone criminals burning their names into history over the decades as they fight and die and return again to take what they want--until it all went wrong. With many of their Dozen dead and gone, fractured and scarred by the past, there is only one thing that could bring the surviving members back together. One last heist, a rescue mission, a giant middle finger to the AIs that have torn their lives to ribbons. If they can stop fighting amongst themselves, perhaps the remaining members of the Dirty Dozen can atone for the sins of their pasts and leave their blazing mark on the universe. But their are powerful interests pulling their strings. Not every ally can be trusted, and it will take everything they have to pull of the job none of them wants to be part of.
Khaw's novel is a pleasure to read. As so much sci-fi is positioned to do, the story delves deep into questions of identity. Gender, sexuality, identity, self--these things take on new light, new form as characters move between bodies, shaping themselves in new ways and adjusting to new circumstances. It's a cutting edge of technology and self-determination, woven naturally into the fabric of the world Khaw has created.
Amidst the rich language, Khaw's novel is also a gritty crime story and an epic adventure. As the characters deliver new lessons in creative profanity and the action turns in occasionally gruesome directions, the story rockets across the universe as all the relevant players charge toward the final conflict. And right into the final pages, Khaw delivers--not the ending I expected, but the ending that works for all that has come before.
In the end, The All-Consuming World is one of those stories that I loved for reasons I cannot fully articulate. It's distinct enough in style and content that it won't be everyone's cup of tea. But each time this novel finds its right audience, readers will discover just how much there is to be enjoyed in Khaw's work. I delighted in the entire reading experience, and I look forward with great excitement to whatever Khaw releases next.
spellmannn's review
1.0
DNF
Thought the previous reviews were joking a bit - the language was distracting and I wasn't totally sure of what was even happening.
Thought the previous reviews were joking a bit - the language was distracting and I wasn't totally sure of what was even happening.