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A review by janareviewsfromthestacks
The Nothing Within by Andy Giesler
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
3.5
I knew from the beginning that this would be a difficult review to write. The Nothing Within constantly defied my expectations while I read it, shifting the story from one understanding to another, only to destroy that understanding a few chapters later - it's almost like the story itself is a chimera. But is it one that destroys, or heals?
This is a wonderfully crafted book. Some of the central characters are called Weavers, and like a weaver the author brings together vastly different accounts of the world. Somehow, these accounts successfully merge to become something incredible which held my attention. It is difficult for me to really like many of the characters, as they all show flaws as well as beauty, but they are thoroughly created and work together well.
I was hooked from the very beginning. I loved the process of puzzling out what has happened, who became whom, and what the foreshadowing meant. The vulgarity of the language is a big turn off, almost to the point of abandoning the story altogether, but I had to find out what happened in the end (and, consequently, what had happened before). There are a lot of interesting philosophical concepts sprinkled throughout, if you know what to look for, but they are not so obvious or dry that they take away from the simple enjoyment of reading a novel. I probably will not reread The Nothing Within, but I am glad to have read it once. I've pretty well settled on giving it 3.5 stars on Goodreads, although I would not be surprised if that changes as I continue to think on it. There are certainly people who I would recommend this book to, and others who I would not. I recommend 15 and up due to the combination of vulgarity and deeper philosophical content. Fans of post-apocalyptic science fiction/speculative fiction with a philosophical bent will most likely enjoy The Nothing Within.
This is a wonderfully crafted book. Some of the central characters are called Weavers, and like a weaver the author brings together vastly different accounts of the world. Somehow, these accounts successfully merge to become something incredible which held my attention. It is difficult for me to really like many of the characters, as they all show flaws as well as beauty, but they are thoroughly created and work together well.
I was hooked from the very beginning. I loved the process of puzzling out what has happened, who became whom, and what the foreshadowing meant. The vulgarity of the language is a big turn off, almost to the point of abandoning the story altogether, but I had to find out what happened in the end (and, consequently, what had happened before). There are a lot of interesting philosophical concepts sprinkled throughout, if you know what to look for, but they are not so obvious or dry that they take away from the simple enjoyment of reading a novel. I probably will not reread The Nothing Within, but I am glad to have read it once. I've pretty well settled on giving it 3.5 stars on Goodreads, although I would not be surprised if that changes as I continue to think on it. There are certainly people who I would recommend this book to, and others who I would not. I recommend 15 and up due to the combination of vulgarity and deeper philosophical content. Fans of post-apocalyptic science fiction/speculative fiction with a philosophical bent will most likely enjoy The Nothing Within.