lisas_bookshelf's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
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
5.0
_treatyoshelves_'s review
Really enjoyed this to begin with - great concept and thought it would give me ‘Tell Me an Ending’ vibes. Unfortunately it was a bit too slow and confusing / complex, and I didn’t find myself drawn back to it.
gotlostinpages's review
4.0
Nostalgie tötet
Prophet von Sin Blanché und Helen MacDonald, aus dem Englischen von Thomas Gunkel, ist ein seitenstarker Thriller mit vielen Science-Fiction Elementen.
Ich habe Prophet wirklich gerne gelesen: In meinen Augen war diese Geschichte eine gute Mischung aus klassischem Thriller und Elementen, die eben nicht ganz in unserer Welt spielen – irgendetwas seltsames ist im Busch und alle versuchen schleunigst herauszufinden was vor sich geht. Dazu eine gute Portion Slow-Burn Romance mit schlagfertigen Protagonisten – ich hatte Spaß!
Zu klären ist das Auftauchen von nostalgischen Dingen (die Lieblingspuppe aus der Kindheit, das amerikanische Diner), die nach Einnahme der Substanz „Prophet“ auftauchen und nur der menschliche Lügendetektor Rao und US Armee Offizier Adam können den Fall lösen. Natürlich haben diese beiden eine Vergangenheit und diese wird in Rückblenden erzählt.
Prophet ist zu Anfang ziemlich verwirrend: Charaktere, die nicht detailliert durch die Autorinnen eingeführt werden, Sprünge auf verschiedene Zeitebenen und immer die Frage im Hintergrund, was zur Hölle eigentlich gerade passiert. Ich habe mich an weiten Stellen wie in guter Fanfiction gefühlt: Die Geschichte ist spannend, sie ist gut geschrieben, aber die Charaktere und deren Hintergründe kennen die Leser ja schon – also muss keine Zeit mit langen Erklärungen verbracht werden.
Ist Prophet ein Jahreshighlight für mich? Fast! Dafür gab es ein paar Längen zu viel und manche Hintergründe blieben doch zu nebulös.
Und trotzdem empfehle ich dieses Buch uneingeschränkt, denn es zu lesen macht wirklich Spaß.
Und trotzdem empfehle ich dieses Buch uneingeschränkt, denn es zu lesen macht wirklich Spaß.
perax_01's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
emendelowitz's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
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
4.75
My brain is now swiss cheese because these tragic little gay men are worms crawling around in there [affectionate].
Yes yes sci fi aspects and plot are all well and good but the true beauty of this book and the real propulsion of it all at the end of the day is the relationship between the main characters, Rao and Adam. Rao has an uncanny and unexplained ability to tell what the truth is when someone speaks or whether or not something is real or a fake. This power works on everything. Except Adam Rubenstein. Adam is a soldier who’s very stoic and, well, soldier-y. Rao has been used by various governments to help with various sketchy assignments and Adam is his partner/babysitter. And Rao looooves to push his buttons and flirt like the disaster he is. This dynamic is simply unmatched. The dialogue and banter they have is next level and the last chapter of this book will simply leave you feeling like the rock scene in everything everywhere all at once.
Now for the sci fi element and plot. This book follows Rao and Adam as they investigate this mysterious substance called Prophet that uses the power of nostalgia to create various effects including creating constructs made by people exposed to it from their minds and memories. The sci fi aspect of it is a little more of a “soft science” I’d say, but this works because at the end of the day the book is about Rao and Adam, they are the endgame they are the end all he all soul consuming element of this book.
The authors, Helen MacDonald and Sin Blaché, met on Twitter and bonded over fandom; they have talked extensively (in the Washington post even) about how fanfiction has influenced this book and it definitely shows. I mean this in a good way. The relationship feels like 400 pages of the best slowburn fanfic you’ve ever read. And if you’re not a fanfic aficionado, don’t be deterred because the writing is also amazing, there are some amazing, soul-crushing lines in here.
PS I need this book to find it’s right audience (because I know it’s out there) so people will make fanart or I’ll explode.
casuallyraisingcain's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
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
5.0
redporchinverter's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I'm torn between admiring how well-crafted the slow burn of the central romance is (oh my god do they draw it out) and wishing the narrative scope expanded more beyond these two people, as distinctive as they are. All the people who "discovered" This Is How You Lose the Time War earlier this year better read Prophet when it comes out.
ladymacbeth_1985's review
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.
A sci-fi mystery with X-Files vibes and a queer romance, Prophet raises interesting questions about nostalgia.
This book is so hard to review because there are some things about it that are superb, but they are surrounded by distanced prose and a somewhat meandering plotline.
The aspect that really kept me reading was the romance subplot. This part of the novel is excellent in that it really keeps you on your toes. I loved the dynamic between the characters, the history they had together, the way the novel throws red herrings at you near the start regarding their love lives, and the passages of longing and care. I also liked the juxtaposition that these tough-as-nails military dudes are afraid to take risks in this aspect of their lives. I also love a chaotic + lawful / sunshine + grumpy dynamic. I shipped them so hard.
The concept behind the novel is also really interesting. Along with the kind of classic X-Files feel of the mystery, it also seems to be raising a point about how clinging to nostalgia can be harmful. Yet, while Prophet has a very strong start, it starts to peter off in the middle and then ends in a way I didn’t find satisfying.
The prose also didn’t really work for me. It kept me at a distance, and I often found there were long stretches that didn’t really say or do anything and then a few pages that went by too fast. The prose might work for some readers, but it just didn’t mesh with me.
Yet, it was an interesting and complex sci-fi with a very robust love story. People who like slower sci-fi thrillers, like Crighton’s Sphere, might enjoy this.
A sci-fi mystery with X-Files vibes and a queer romance, Prophet raises interesting questions about nostalgia.
This book is so hard to review because there are some things about it that are superb, but they are surrounded by distanced prose and a somewhat meandering plotline.
The aspect that really kept me reading was the romance subplot. This part of the novel is excellent in that it really keeps you on your toes. I loved the dynamic between the characters, the history they had together, the way the novel throws red herrings at you near the start regarding their love lives, and the passages of longing and care. I also liked the juxtaposition that these tough-as-nails military dudes are afraid to take risks in this aspect of their lives. I also love a chaotic + lawful / sunshine + grumpy dynamic. I shipped them so hard.
The concept behind the novel is also really interesting. Along with the kind of classic X-Files feel of the mystery, it also seems to be raising a point about how clinging to nostalgia can be harmful. Yet, while Prophet has a very strong start, it starts to peter off in the middle and then ends in a way I didn’t find satisfying.
The prose also didn’t really work for me. It kept me at a distance, and I often found there were long stretches that didn’t really say or do anything and then a few pages that went by too fast. The prose might work for some readers, but it just didn’t mesh with me.
Yet, it was an interesting and complex sci-fi with a very robust love story. People who like slower sci-fi thrillers, like Crighton’s Sphere, might enjoy this.