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Kyera (8 KP) rated Red Rising in Books

Feb 1, 2018  
Red Rising
Red Rising
Pierce Brown | 2014 | Dystopia, Fiction & Poetry, Young Adult (YA)
8
8.4 (34 Ratings)
Book Rating
I did not immediately fall in love with Red Rising. Rather the storyline slowly built over the first third of the book and then I found myself wanting to know what happens next. Darrow’s life as a Red is important to experience so you know what made him the man he is today, but didn’t captivate my attention.

The world that he knows is a lie. He is not the sacrificing pioneer his society led him to believe, but rather little more than a slave. His entire outlook and being is altered so that he may fight his way to the top, and maybe change the Society.

Darrow is filled with love for his people and his family, but does not understand the world at large. He must learn, and quickly, to fit into this new world without losing himself in the process. Each character in the book is unique and contributes differently to the story. Some force Darrow to question his resolve to the cause, others show him a different side of humanity, while a rare few make him wonder if all Golds are bad.

Mustang and Sevro are probably my two favourite supporting characters. Mustang is smart, strategic and caring even though she was not raised to be that way. Her father is the leader on Mars, so she led a sheltered but harsh childhood. Sevro is a strange human, but he grows on you over the novel and his dark humour is infectious.

The most fascinating parts of the book were when he was attending the Institute and proving that he had what it took to become a Peerless Scarred. It was almost a study on the absolute lowest that humanity can sink to, the darkness they can embrace when there are no consequences to their actions and the leaders that can rise despite it. It was disgusting and horrifying at times, but you can’t put it down.

Relationships form and are torn asunder, lies build and fester, and humanity sinks lower. The book was well written and I kept picking it up, needing to know what happened next, despite the darkness. I would recommend it to older young adult/teen readers, or adults, who enjoy science fiction novels.
  
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ClareR (5784 KP) rated Emily Eternal in Books

Apr 12, 2022  
Emily Eternal
Emily Eternal
M G Wheaton | 2019 | Dystopia, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Thriller
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Emily Eternal is a lot of what I love about science fiction. M. G. Wheaton has taken something that is pretty unbelievable (the end of the sun five billion years early) and made it perfectly believable. That, and the sentient computer programme, Emily.

Emily has been developed in order to help humanity. Primarily, she is supposed to counsel people who had been through trauma - and there’s a lot of it going around with all the impending doom, climate catastrophes etc. But this counselling has been used as a way of Emily teaching herself to become more human. She learns, constantly. I say “she”, because Emily is portrayed as a normal human being. She has daily routines, washes her hair, sleeps, eats. She learns from the people she counsels and watches through the various security cameras. And she forms attachments with her programmers and the other people she encounters.

But things go horribly wrong, and Emily escapes just in time. She is helped by her human companions for most of the book: Jason and Myra.

I don’t want to say too much more, because if you’re going to read this, I wouldn’t want to spoil it. It was a gripping story of a computer programme who has taught ‘herself’ how to care for humanity and to do her best for them. I loved it.
Recommended to all those who like Sci-Fi that’s light on the science and heavy on the personal relationships.
  
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Maddie (37 KP) rated Dark in TV

Dec 11, 2017  
Dark
Dark
2017 | Crime, Film-Noir, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Cinematography (2 more)
Complex characters
Well acted
Confusing at times (1 more)
Dubbed is terrible, watch it subbed
German Fairytale meet Sci/Fi
This is a beautiful show. It pulls you in with characters that have understandable flaws and tangible humanity, with just the right amount of time travel and nuclear power thrown in.

It's not Stranger Things, don't compare the two. The only similarity is missing kids, and it ends there.

Watch it, but be prepared to focus. The layers of story are artfully crafted, spanning three generations and each one is vital to the story. Also, be prepared to not understand everything. That's okay, let the story peel itself apart slowly and deliciously. Very excited to see where this show goes.
  
We Are Legion (We Are Bob): Bobiverse, Book 1
We Are Legion (We Are Bob): Bobiverse, Book 1
Dennis E. Taylor | 2016 | Fiction & Poetry, Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
8.5 (6 Ratings)
Book Rating
Epic sci-fi with hints of existential philosophy
Dennis E Taylor hits legend status with We Are Bob, creating an entire universe based on essentially a godlike figure who happens to be a computer with the implanted memories and humanity of an ordinary man named Bob.

The character is hugely witty, intelligent and his former project management position makes the listener question is this how a higher being does it? Creating clones and minions of himself, Bob 1.0 delegates them to saves millions of civilians as earth is no longer a viable planet.

It's claustrophobic, creepy at times but mostly wonderfully engaging and humorous. Prepared to be confused by the various Bobs about.