As a sci-fi romance thriller, this was about as far from my comfort zone as it's possible to get. I rattled through it in just a few days and will now happily go back and read the first in the series. Despite reading them out of order, I had no problems picking up enough of the backstory to enjoy this book.
I believed in the characters - all complex and rounded; no cartoon baddies here! I cared about their plight, was thoroughly creeped out by the elements that were thoroughly creepy, and enjoyed travelling to other worlds with them. The ideas around artificial intelligence, personhood, and belonging were thoughtfully done without ever becoming laboured. The second half of the book moved more into thriller territory, with plenty of twists to keep me engaged.
And then there's the ending. !!. Just !!. I'll probably need to read the next one as soon as it's released.
I believed in the characters - all complex and rounded; no cartoon baddies here! I cared about their plight, was thoroughly creeped out by the elements that were thoroughly creepy, and enjoyed travelling to other worlds with them. The ideas around artificial intelligence, personhood, and belonging were thoughtfully done without ever becoming laboured. The second half of the book moved more into thriller territory, with plenty of twists to keep me engaged.
And then there's the ending. !!. Just !!. I'll probably need to read the next one as soon as it's released.