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ClareR (5916 KP) rated The End of the Ocean in Books

Nov 6, 2019

The End of the Ocean

Maja Lunde | 2019 | Dystopia, Fiction & Poetry

7.7

(3 Ratings)

Book Rating

The End of the Ocean by Maja Lunde is Climate Fiction (Cli-Fi) at its best and most stark. At its best, because everything that happens feels as though they are the reasonable consequences of what we are predicted now; most stark, because this is truly a terrible version of the future.

In the present day(2019), 69 year old environmental activist Signe discovers that her home town, and in particular her ex-boyfriend, is responsible for cutting up and shipping off ice from their glacier to sell to the rich, so that they can have glacial ice in their expensive cocktails. She decides to sabotage the shipment, and steals some of it - or what she can carry in her boat. She sails her ship through a terrible storm with the intention of taking it to the person responsible.

In 2041, David and his daughter Lou, arrive at a refugee camp after escaping from war and fire in their French home. There is little water and food, but David is hopeful that his wife and infant son (who they’ve been separated from) will be there or arrive soon.

The two stories are linked when David and Lou find Signe’s boat in the garden of one of the abandoned houses.

This is such a powerful book. It takes current scientific research and arrives at the extreme end of its prediction: drought, famine and war. I had to read it in short chunks, because I found the story so moving and intensely depressing, to be honest. It doesn’t feel exaggerated: I didn’t read it thinking “Well that would NEVER happen”. It’s all too plausible, in fact. I really liked how the two stories ran parallel to one another and joined up in the latter half of the book, with the boat as some sort of symbol of hope.

It’s not all depressing though. There is an element of hope, and we see the enduring strength of the human spirit. I have The History of Bees on my bookshelf, which I will read now - and I’ll definitely look out for the third in this quartet of books.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster UK for my copy of this book.

Kudos

KalJ95 (25 KP) rated the PlayStation 4 version of Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice in Video Games

Jan 4, 2020

Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

2019 | Action/Adventure

8.7

(3 Ratings)

Video Game Rating

Fluid and fantastic combat system. (2 more)

Another FromSoftware Classic.

Best game of 2019.

DEMON. OF. HATRED. (0 more)

My first experience with a FromSoftware game was Bloodborne. I played fifteen minutes, and gave up due to its difficulty. Time and time again, I just couldn't get past its first area, but with perseverance, I conquered the mountain, and Bloodborne became one of my favourite games. Fast forward just over three years, I destroyed Dark Souls III, and obliterated Nioh. Challenging games had become an addiction I couldn't quit. Enter Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, FromSoftware's latest, very much story orientated entry in their catalogue of fine games.

First things first, Sekiro is most definitely a mountain to climb. If you don't grasp the rhythm of parrying and deflecting your opponents attacks, you are finished. Unlike previous FromSoftware entries, attacking is not the aim of this game. It takes time, but once you begin to understand the combat, the reward is so gratifying, especially with the boss battles, which will often want to make you throw the controller through a concrete wall.
Each boss is strategically different with how they plan to beat you, some opting to go all out attack on you, others playing the waiting game by throwing objects or firing arrows. Variety is key, and progressing and gaining new skills will help you beat each enemy as they come.

Sekiro also just happens to be one of the most beautiful games I've ever played. Its culture is rich, and its vibrancy through colour is breathtaking. While no modifications can be done with your Shinobi, it doesn't matter as you'll be too busy taking in each detail the world has to offer.

But nothing is without fault. Sekiro sometimes feels like certain boss fights are rigged in their favour, and that pure luck gets you to beat them, and that felt all too often with the infamous, Demon of Hatred. This certain boss felt so out of place, and I felt it didn't need to be included whatsoever. However, this never bogged the games standard down, as by this point the fluidity and grace of Sekiro had already confirmed what I was thinking two thirds of the way through;

Sekiro is 2019's best game.