georgiasharkey's review
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
livjhooper's review against another edition
3.0
I love Cynan Jones’ writing so I wanted to love this; but wanting didn’t make it so. I normally love me a disjointed, fragmented narrative, but something about this didn’t work for me. It felt like only some of the parts made a whole, and the other parts were just... there. The writing itself is beautiful as ever, unsurprisingly, but you can tell that it was written as separate pieces for Radio 4. I’d be intrigued to listen to it to see if it feels more cohesive when read out loud. The world building was almost there, but not fully realised - Stillicide feels like the first bricks of a great idea being built, and could make a wonderful full-length novel, but didn’t wholly work for me as a slim little thing.
lbw's review
dark
reflective
tense
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? It's complicated
I listened to the audiobook.
It was short which was the only reason I finished it.
I chose it for the cli-fi theme. It was too abstract for me. I thought that maybe I should have read instead of listened to this book, but then I found out this was originally produced as short pieces broadcast on the radio….so, maybe not.
It was short which was the only reason I finished it.
I chose it for the cli-fi theme. It was too abstract for me. I thought that maybe I should have read instead of listened to this book, but then I found out this was originally produced as short pieces broadcast on the radio….so, maybe not.
ipb1's review against another edition
2.0
I was hugely impressed with [b:Cove|32313099|Cove|Cynan Jones|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1476094719l/32313099._SY75_.jpg|52942210], but found this completely underwhelming. A sequence of a dozen superficial and forgettable narratives unified both by the near future eco-crisis setting and by the experience of waiting for each tedious episode to be over so that you could start the next (as an excercise in hope over experience).
brebdob's review against another edition
3.0
Liked the writing and the premise, but it felt incomplete . It ended right as I was starting to get a sense of this world and wanting to see where things went.
umbrellaladyreads's review
adventurous
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.0
christynhoover's review against another edition
tense
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? It's complicated
3.0
It deserves another reading -- more of a novella. Many of the novel's paragraphs consist of ONE sentence with the slim "paragraphs" separated by double or triple spacing. Kind of a bizarre format, IMO. Without all that extra spacing it may have been more like 80 pages long. Enough on format.
But the ending left me thinking, "Huh?"
Like I said, it's a quick read so I should definitely give it the benefit of the doubt and reread it so it has a chance to come together for me.
But the ending left me thinking, "Huh?"
Like I said, it's a quick read so I should definitely give it the benefit of the doubt and reread it so it has a chance to come together for me.
drsoup's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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
4.0
bjr2022's review against another edition
3.0
I'm a reading purist who prefers reading to listening to audio recordings and knowing little about a book's story before reading it. In the case of Cynan Jones's Stillicide, the opposite is preferable:
These short stories were originally written for BBC radio, then compiled for publication by Granta, and now due for release November 17th in what most likely will be a beautifully designed book by Catapult. (It was Catapult's gorgeous publication of Jones's Cove that made me request an ARC of Stillicide).
I suspect hearing these stories might be the most powerful way to receive them. And comprehension is definitely improved by reading the book's blurb: this is collection of stories about a perhaps not-so-distant future when water is commodified and people are fighting in the streets to protest the hauling of broken glaciers through their towns, displacing their homes.
I enjoyed these stories, but a Kindle ARC is not a good way to read them. They felt fragmented and confusing at times, nevertheless compelling by the end. But if you are Jones fan, consider buying the Catapult paperback in November. They do exquisite books, and Jones is a fine writer.
These short stories were originally written for BBC radio, then compiled for publication by Granta, and now due for release November 17th in what most likely will be a beautifully designed book by Catapult. (It was Catapult's gorgeous publication of Jones's Cove that made me request an ARC of Stillicide).
I suspect hearing these stories might be the most powerful way to receive them. And comprehension is definitely improved by reading the book's blurb: this is collection of stories about a perhaps not-so-distant future when water is commodified and people are fighting in the streets to protest the hauling of broken glaciers through their towns, displacing their homes.
I enjoyed these stories, but a Kindle ARC is not a good way to read them. They felt fragmented and confusing at times, nevertheless compelling by the end. But if you are Jones fan, consider buying the Catapult paperback in November. They do exquisite books, and Jones is a fine writer.