Profil

As always with SciFi or dystopian stories, when there are unfamiliar names of people, places and such it takes a bit until I am in the story, not only reading it.

Can't put my feelings into words only so much. Worth the read.

A society built after a nuclear war. Male and female separated, coming together only to breed.

And a society treating women like inferior sh!t. Only to "do their duty". And if the women can't anymore, they get mistreated, children are killed if they don't suit the Elders. Inbreds, which will - eventually - extinct themselves.

So much, Sheri S. Tepper put into this story, still valid ... and unfortunately, still existent in the 21st century.

Great read.

A friend of mine recommended the book to me. Not a story I'd have picked by myself. It was on my shelf for almost a year before I started to read it. I should have started it way earlier. This is a book that made me happy. The story is captivating. A coming of age story, a love story, a thriller, a way of life unimaginable for the most of us. I got pulled in the story and couldn't put it away. I admired how sensitive the story is being told by the author. The thrill, the heartbeat, the rooting for the woman. Won't include anything that could give away the story line. Just let me say that at no point I could have guessed the outcome. After some time has passed I will watch the movie. So far, I heard good things about it.

It was a nice read and I definitely will read the entire series. But ..

The story went too fast. Introduction of too many characters in the first chapter. The hidden agenda of every character was confusing plus the building up on the bond between Elizabeth and Nathaniel was not enough to get lost in it.

The book ended abruptly. As if the author stopped in the middle of the story to finish it ... and it wasn't even a cliffhanger.

I found it hard to really get sucked in to the story. The series got acclaimed as the legit successor of Outlander. Diana Gabaldon promoted the series. IMHO it might have a third of it.

That said I want to end my feedback for this first book in a positive way. It is a good read and not boring at all. Interesting characters (once you are way in the book), great stories behind the characters (even if all challenges get solved very smoothly). I did like reading it and am truly curious about the 2nd one.

My hope to learn more about Rhett's side of the story was only half fulfilled. Donald McGaig is a wonderful story teller and very knowledgeable when it comes to the civil war. If you are interested it lots of facts about the time, almost listed facts with many names dropped you've found the right novel to learn while reading. The first half was strenuous to read since there were so many names, people, places and constellations to consider. What I missed the most was that the author didn't succeed in creating a story where you bond with at least one the protagonists. In the end it was Belle Watling's death what moved me the most. For me it was a bit disappointing that Rhett himself didn't play the big role I thought he would in this story. However, the extended part of the story, the part after "..and I don't give a damn" propitiated me after reading the ordinary "Rosamunde Pilcher"-like story "Scarlett" by Alexandra Ripley.

A story about what makes an empire run is thrilling, although not surprising. Babel is a fantasy novel you can totally apply to the real world. Money, (modern) colonialism and slavery, wars ... all the tools of economic power. I also loved to learn about etymology and language in general. As one who reads a lot and loves to read it doesn't come as a huge surprise that magic lies in words.

The reason for my mediocre rating is the book itself. I like the way she writes but she uses a ton of footnotes. Some of them necessary, most of them not. those would have fitted in one way or another in the text itself. For me, the footnotes hindered the flow of reading so it was really hard - especially in the beginning of the book - to get "into the zone".

Especially the ebook version is awful since you are jumping back and forth. For that I preferred the paperback since it made it easier to stick to it.

It's a pity that the book only got interesting during the last third.

A story full of thrill, action, wit and relationships. Enjoyed the dialogues a lot and totally fell in love with Scorpius.

Didn't expect to enjoy reading a playwright that much.

Reading the series again after 25 years made me realise how much I didn't get the first time and how much was altered for the movies.

From all books I liked "The Order of the Phoenix" the least. Not sure why but I thought it quite chewy to read through. Not as gripping or thrilling as the others.

Nonetheless, I love the series. Guess, I will read them again in 20+years or so ;).

and I am really curious about #8 now.