Reviews and Comments

I'm enjoying this series, but not enjoying how the LGBT characters are portrayed, nor am I particularly a fan of what seems to be the main moral quandary of the series: do fetuses have the right to be born at the expense of their host? Or, should we harvest the organs of the comatose to save the life of another person? Very Philosophy 101 Utilitarianism questions, the angle of which seems to imply a forced-birth conclusion. I doubt it's intentional.

There are some deeper philosophical questions arising, but I'm at a point where I kinda just want the series to be done so I can read something where the LGBT characters aren't all dead or evil.

Capitalism is the real monster. Except, maybe a zealous pursuit of science for the sake of science is the real monster. Or maybe parasitic brain worms are the real monster.

I read this when it first came out, but had forgotten most of it. Rereading it was worth it. Themes of what it means to be human, the importance of agency and self determination, and cute dogs.

The real horror is capitalism.

The main character is a lesbian, the pacing is great, I was certain I knew what was going to happen and then suddenly I had no idea, just like the main character, my certainty shattered. I loved every second of this book.

It held my attention for the bits I read because I expected it to get scary or thrilling and was anticipating that, but the prologue and first novella didn't deliver, so I'm abandoning this book. 2 stars, because I wouldn't hate finishing it if I had to.

Poetic Justice, but in our pandemic age it feels a bit naive.

The world is ending, so we might as well destroy humanity. A nihilist revenge fantasy.

There is no character development, no nuance, and the story feels emotionally flat despite the subject matter.

Gay, and progressive in a liberal way. The gayness is explicit but not plot relevant, which is prefect. The end of the book was a bit clunky, but the plot wrapped up satisfactorily while still having enticing plot hooks for the next book.

I didn't finish this book, so I will refrain from rating it. I was expecting a more general analysis of rural society, but instead it is very specifically about French peasant societies during the transition from feudal to capitalist relations. It's interesting, but also dry reading, and I was hoping to apply what I learned in this book to my analysis of local conditions. There are no peasants, and as far as I'm aware no French villages, in the Pacific Northwest, so I'm going to turn my attention to other resources. Perhaps someday I will return to this.

Sadly this report is still relevant and still reflects much of the political landscape today, although the power of socialists has decreased and the major fascist threat of the day is gone (Fascist Italy, Germany, Spain, and Japan).

Excellent analysis of fascism across the world, excellent analysis of how to work towards the defeat of fascism. I'd say that anyone who wants to defeat fascism should read this, but especially anyone who considers themself a Marxist-Leninist (since it is from a very Bolshevik perspective).

An excellent read, I can already see how my work as a communist is going to improve with this knowledge, especially now understanding the difference between organizing and mobilizing, and activists vs leaders.

I didn't get through more than 11 chapters of this book (14%) because as cool as the concept is... It's boring. This book is boring. I read some other reviews and they indicate that it never picks up, so I'm putting it down.

If you like reading endless exposition and really pretentious (and yet forgettable) characters then this book might be up your alley, but if you want things to happen then give this one a pass.