Mika Becktor Becktor থেকে Santa Maria da Serra - SP, Brazil
I will start this review with a couple of confessions. First session, the author is a childhood friend, so my review may be a little biased. Second confession, I am usually a fantasy over SciFi reader. I often lose patience with over zealous social commentary and/or the over-explanation of advanced/weird technology. Onto the actual review: I'm not a writer. I muddle through some creative writing, world-building, and the like in an effort to find some creative outlet for the ideas that float around in my head. With that said, my opinion is hardly educated or refined. With that said, I would classify this review as an "eye-ball" or "gut" test. I know when I like something, maybe not the nuisances that resulted in my reaction, but I am aware of the stylistic things that I enjoy. When I finished God's War this morning, I can definitively say that I enjoyed the book from cover to cover. I never lamented a scene that didn't fit, a character action that didn't fit. Two things stood out to me. God’s War avoided the two pitfalls I mentioned above. Despite some weird tech, powered by bugs and magic, the author never mires the story in a long, dissertation on how the stuff worked. For the world and its characters, it was normal, as normal as a car or a microwave is for us. So why interrupt the story to explain tech that probably doesn’t make sense in terms of our science and engineering. Congrats to Kameron for avoiding that trap and maintaining the suspension of disbelief by not explaining a damn thing! Now, God’s War is chock full of social commentary. But it’s done in such a way where you get sucked out of the story and scream at the book “ OK! I get it… Our planet/society/cultured is effed up! Move along, nothing to see here!!!!” In fact, it challenges a lot of our mores and morals by intricately weaving the world and characters together and never breaking the 4th wall. I’ll use the example of Avatar. It was a beautiful movie visually but I was knocked out of the story and world about 15 minutes in as the stream of commentary on our world, e.g. the raping of the world for resources, treatment of indigenous peoples, etc. Not that these things don’t belong in our literature, and entertainment. I just appreciate them more when I’m not bludgeoned about the head and neck with them while I enjoy a moment’s entertainment. Again, Hurley avoids the trap while delivering a blistering look at our world. In particular, I loved the strong, independent Nyx and her struggles throughout the book to find herself in a world that said she should be something different. So, in my inexpert opinion, Hurley’s work was both imaginative and thought provoking. It entertained and taught with flair and style. I know that I haven’t been critical of any aspects in this book but let’s face it, it’s easier to say what you didn’t like about something than articulate what worked well. I wouldn’t say that this book is for everyone, you have to be ready to have your comfort zone tested and your buy-in to the world ready in order to enjoy God’s War.