A review by mysimas
The Outside by Ada Hoffmann

adventurous reflective 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

3.0

The title of the book refers to the Outside of our reality — the true state of things hiding behind the veneer of what our senses perceive as the truth. It could, however, be applied to other things as well:

  • At one point, two of the main characters venture outside the sphere of influence of the omnipotent supercomputers/Gods. Another character spends much of the book hiding in their blind spots.
  • All of the main characters somehow stand outside the norm, and they cope with it in different ways. Yasira, for example, is autistic and often struggles to fit in; on top of that, she starts the story in a peculiar working position that sparks all kinds of reactions in people; and then, of course, there’s the influence of the Outside on her life. 
  • People who stand outside the Gods’ ideology and have conflicting ideas are either mad or heretics (generally both) and need to be either ‘terminated’ or converted.

So really, what is it like to be an outsider?

I could say that it is a miracle she functions and connects to the world so well, but I think it is really the reverse: she is so connected, so in tune with what is around her that she cannot help but connect in heretical ways too.
It is a pity, then, that we will need to beat all of that out of her.

I enjoyed the exploration of this question, I loved the way things got resolved, and the setting with the Gods and the Outside was amazing too. The writing style was good, made for an easy, captivating read.
Ultimately, though, I wished the plot was a bit more complex or eventful. For most of the book, Yasira was confined in small places, thinking, or she was being manipulated by other characters; the focus was on her inner turmoil, and it was well done, but not quite that well done to warrant 5*. It also didn’t help that a decent chunk of Yasira’s motivation was powered by her love for Tiv, but we as readers never get the opportunity to feel this love. If anything, Yasira’s incessant comments at the start of the book, when Tiv was still around, about how ‘good’ Tiv was, made me suspect that Yasira was actually annoyed with Tiv, but that turned out not to be the case. It is also one of the reasons why the book didn’t have as much of an emotional impact on me as it could have; I wasn’t able to entirely feel with Yasira, and the other POV character Akavi was utterly unlikeable to begin with, despite the author’s efforts to at least somewhat endear him to the reader.

In other words, I enjoyed the book and especially liked the setting and the presented ideas, but didn’t get invested emotionally. I’m not sure if it’s something I’d like to read again. I will definitely read the sequel though.
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