A review by rachaelarsenault
Out of the Dawn by P.C. Cast
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
0.25
YouTube review can be found here:
https://youtu.be/_U4Ild7coCU
Full written review can be found on Medium:
https://medium.com/p/ab9c8a978fb4
Here's the abridged version.
What I Liked
-The setup with the group from Timberline Lodge making their way toward the core group's camp, forcing them to accelerate in getting shelter properly established.
-The ending, with Mother Earth awakening to protect herself.
What I Didn't Like
-P.C. Cast used -like 40 times, including cave-like 12 times
-There's a ridiculous number of far too similar character names, leading to Gemma and Georgie getting mixed in dialogue a couple times
-So many excessively long sentences, including a 78 word sentence.
-Slow pacing and, for most of the book, no sense of stakes.
-Al and Eva were completely ineffectual villains who spent most of the book having zero impact on the protagonists.
-Al and Eva developed new powers out of nowhere during the climax.
-Though the ending was interesting and thematically consistent with the series, there wasn't a proper build-up, so it didn't feel like an actual pay-off to anything.
-The world-building continues to be paper thin and falls apart at the slightest questioning.
-Constant inclusion of racist language and microaggressions for the sole purpose of reminding readers that the villains are bad.
-Ableism, victim blaming, fatphobia, and ageism.
-Despite being a feminist apocalypse for and about women, the main characters are constantly getting saved by a man.
-There is an entirely unnecessary and extremely triggering rape subplot that could have been entirely cut with minimal impact to the overall story and character arcs.
-Chad Condon could have been completely cut out of the story.
-One of only three people of colour in this book is physically changed by the mist, becoming part goat. He says he feels more himself and at home in his body than he ever has before. Yeah... Maybe don't have a person of colour say they feel more like their true self in the body of an animal.
-There is exactly one very brief conversation about trans women and nonbinary people in this book. In it, the author hand waves all concerns about erasure and questions about how a biological weapon like the mist works when sex is not two discrete categories by saying, "It's about spirit, not biology!" This not only doesn't grapple with the actual nuance of the issue, but also causes the entire premise of the plot to fall apart.
https://youtu.be/_U4Ild7coCU
Full written review can be found on Medium:
https://medium.com/p/ab9c8a978fb4
Here's the abridged version.
What I Liked
-The setup with the group from Timberline Lodge making their way toward the core group's camp, forcing them to accelerate in getting shelter properly established.
-The ending, with Mother Earth awakening to protect herself.
What I Didn't Like
-P.C. Cast used -like 40 times, including cave-like 12 times
-There's a ridiculous number of far too similar character names, leading to Gemma and Georgie getting mixed in dialogue a couple times
-So many excessively long sentences, including a 78 word sentence.
-Slow pacing and, for most of the book, no sense of stakes.
-Al and Eva were completely ineffectual villains who spent most of the book having zero impact on the protagonists.
-Al and Eva developed new powers out of nowhere during the climax.
-Though the ending was interesting and thematically consistent with the series, there wasn't a proper build-up, so it didn't feel like an actual pay-off to anything.
-The world-building continues to be paper thin and falls apart at the slightest questioning.
-Constant inclusion of racist language and microaggressions for the sole purpose of reminding readers that the villains are bad.
-Ableism, victim blaming, fatphobia, and ageism.
-Despite being a feminist apocalypse for and about women, the main characters are constantly getting saved by a man.
-There is an entirely unnecessary and extremely triggering rape subplot that could have been entirely cut with minimal impact to the overall story and character arcs.
-Chad Condon could have been completely cut out of the story.
-One of only three people of colour in this book is physically changed by the mist, becoming part goat. He says he feels more himself and at home in his body than he ever has before. Yeah... Maybe don't have a person of colour say they feel more like their true self in the body of an animal.
-There is exactly one very brief conversation about trans women and nonbinary people in this book. In it, the author hand waves all concerns about erasure and questions about how a biological weapon like the mist works when sex is not two discrete categories by saying, "It's about spirit, not biology!" This not only doesn't grapple with the actual nuance of the issue, but also causes the entire premise of the plot to fall apart.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault and Rape