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3.49 AVERAGE
3.49 AVERAGE
So the start of this book drew me in very easily. I am lucky to be on school holidays from work right now and therefore able to indulge in my love of the late night. I was up until 4am greedily devouring about 150 pages. It continued for a while when I picked it up again the next day.
But then I started to get a niggling feeling in my mind- not that I wasn’t enjoying it, but that more and more things were being pushed to the back of my mind that I hoped would be explained or further explored later on. As the pages dwindled, I began to realise that I was still left in the dark about many aspects of the story. It’s nothing I could put my finger on but *something* felt unexplored.
The final part made that feeling grow exponentially. I know exactly what was happening in terms of storyline, and without spoiling anything, it involves a bête chip transferring through a few levels. But I was left with a distinct feeling that I’d missed something.
This was my main issue with the book- I felt like I had missed something. I’m sure this could be waved away with a dismissive “authors don’t need to provide answers to everything”, which they don’t of corse, but they need to provide a satisfying ending.
To summarise the above, I read another review on here which mentioned that it never seemed to justify its own length. It is a fascinating idea, and in the first marathon reading session, I was convinced this was a sure fire for my favourites list, but it never really came to anything. Still, I will certainly be reading more of his work in the future.
(As a side note, I was pleasantly surprised to see that I have read a few Roberts book in the past, in my early teenage years- he wrote The Soddit, The Da Vinci Cod and The Matrix Derided that I used to hunt for in Waterstones!)
But then I started to get a niggling feeling in my mind- not that I wasn’t enjoying it, but that more and more things were being pushed to the back of my mind that I hoped would be explained or further explored later on. As the pages dwindled, I began to realise that I was still left in the dark about many aspects of the story. It’s nothing I could put my finger on but *something* felt unexplored.
The final part made that feeling grow exponentially. I know exactly what was happening in terms of storyline, and without spoiling anything, it involves a bête chip transferring through a few levels. But I was left with a distinct feeling that I’d missed something.
This was my main issue with the book- I felt like I had missed something. I’m sure this could be waved away with a dismissive “authors don’t need to provide answers to everything”, which they don’t of corse, but they need to provide a satisfying ending.
To summarise the above, I read another review on here which mentioned that it never seemed to justify its own length. It is a fascinating idea, and in the first marathon reading session, I was convinced this was a sure fire for my favourites list, but it never really came to anything. Still, I will certainly be reading more of his work in the future.
(As a side note, I was pleasantly surprised to see that I have read a few Roberts book in the past, in my early teenage years- he wrote The Soddit, The Da Vinci Cod and The Matrix Derided that I used to hunt for in Waterstones!)
A novel with glimmers of greatness, a fantastic premise but ultimately tries and fails to explore too many concepts. Clickbate-scifi 80% of the time but if the book was like the last chapter it would have been a solid read. In summary, a disappointing quick read.
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Pretty decent read. The concept is genius but sadly doesn't take up the lion's share of the plot, which is conversely comprised with an ex-farmer - a thoroughly unliveable protagonist - contemplating his navel and his place in this new society. But the prose itself reads sublime; it's the literary equivalent of a great vodka, how fluidly and literature Roberts writes. I'm definitely going to give some of his other work a go.
a rather interesting book, something between "Animal farm" (for the tone) and "Planet of the Apes" (for the story), I give it 3.5 =) . it's not just about veganism and realising that animals are not just meat but also being (I'm vegetarian it also why, I was really existed by this book !), it's also about how you can fit in a society who's moving to fast for you.
A good and interesting reading.
A good and interesting reading.
challenging
dark
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
An interesting concept, but not quite what I expected! This book explores how the world (or more specifically England) might change were animals to begin talking, and the resulting future is interesting. Unfortunately, we spent a lot of time in one dislikeable character's head, with him travelling in circles and seeing very little of this future, which I found frustrating and slow at times. This book really isn't about animal rights, so I wouldn't go into this expecting a nuanced take on vegetarianism, and there are some grisly descriptions of animal slaughter so not for everyone! In the end a plot did reveal itself, and I did find the ending satisfying enough so rated this 'ok' overall.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood
A very interesting read, I'm still not sure what to think of it. But I guess that's a good thing with this book. It is very powerful and like nothing i've read before.
The knowledge and techniques Adam Roberts displays in his 15th novel, Bête, are as admirable as they are varied. https://theforgottengeek.wordpress.com/2015/06/11/bete-by-adam-roberts/