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heartbrekker 's review for:
Sea of Tranquility
by Emily St. John Mandel
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
What does an exile, criminal's ex, bestselling author, and some scientists studying simulation theories via time travel in 2401 all have in common?
An unforgettable moment of pure, illustrious music spanning centuries.
"I think, as a species, we have a desire to believe that we're living at the climax of the story. It's kind of narcissism. We want to believe that we're uniquely important, that we're living at the end of history, that now, after all these millennia of false alarms, now is finally the worst that it's ever been, that finally we have reached the end of the world."
Emily St. John Mandel sold me as a talented writer the moment I read Station Eleven back in my first fiction class my freshman year of college. Her level of detail, symbolism, and commentary on the human spirit was music to my years— pun intended. I haven't read The Glass Hotel yet because I was nervous about the mixed reviews. It didn't seem like her writing, so I've been on the fence about it. Yet as soon as this was announced, I knew it would lean more towards Station Eleven.
Sea of Tranquility follows multiple POVs that upon first inspection seem entirely unrelated, especially cause some take place centuries apart, but as the story develops, the stories start to interlink and grow into a broader, all encompassing story. If you're a fan of Cloud Cuckoo Land or This Is How You Lose the Time War then I highly recommend that you pick this up.
The eeriest part of the novel is actually not what you'd initially expect. Sea of Tranquility is actually the first book I've read that actively discusses COVID-19. Granted, it's not directly in line with that year, but the book mentions it offhandedly during another pandemic time period. My mouth was hanging open as soon as that word crossed my line of vision, and I had to close the book for a second. The fact that so much time has passed that now we can read about it in currently published fiction... means A LOT of time has passed. I was taken aback, and I needed to grab my bearings. That realization makes me go back to the first quote i mention in this review, and I sat with those thoughts for a while. I wish I could be in my fiction class discussing this book in comparison to Station Eleven.
Some other interesting elements about this book involve music in a silent Canadian forest, morality of time travel, space colonization, and even some innate human rebellion. All you have to do is get past those initial confusing chapters, and then you'll be on your way reading this captivating speculative fiction piece.
Thank you to PRH for sending me a finished copy to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
An unforgettable moment of pure, illustrious music spanning centuries.
"I think, as a species, we have a desire to believe that we're living at the climax of the story. It's kind of narcissism. We want to believe that we're uniquely important, that we're living at the end of history, that now, after all these millennia of false alarms, now is finally the worst that it's ever been, that finally we have reached the end of the world."
Emily St. John Mandel sold me as a talented writer the moment I read Station Eleven back in my first fiction class my freshman year of college. Her level of detail, symbolism, and commentary on the human spirit was music to my years— pun intended. I haven't read The Glass Hotel yet because I was nervous about the mixed reviews. It didn't seem like her writing, so I've been on the fence about it. Yet as soon as this was announced, I knew it would lean more towards Station Eleven.
Sea of Tranquility follows multiple POVs that upon first inspection seem entirely unrelated, especially cause some take place centuries apart, but as the story develops, the stories start to interlink and grow into a broader, all encompassing story. If you're a fan of Cloud Cuckoo Land or This Is How You Lose the Time War then I highly recommend that you pick this up.
The eeriest part of the novel is actually not what you'd initially expect. Sea of Tranquility is actually the first book I've read that actively discusses COVID-19. Granted, it's not directly in line with that year, but the book mentions it offhandedly during another pandemic time period. My mouth was hanging open as soon as that word crossed my line of vision, and I had to close the book for a second. The fact that so much time has passed that now we can read about it in currently published fiction... means A LOT of time has passed. I was taken aback, and I needed to grab my bearings. That realization makes me go back to the first quote i mention in this review, and I sat with those thoughts for a while. I wish I could be in my fiction class discussing this book in comparison to Station Eleven.
Some other interesting elements about this book involve music in a silent Canadian forest, morality of time travel, space colonization, and even some innate human rebellion. All you have to do is get past those initial confusing chapters, and then you'll be on your way reading this captivating speculative fiction piece.
Thank you to PRH for sending me a finished copy to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.