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A review by mrsbooknerd
Dark Eden by Chris Beckett
2.0
Sci-Fi novels would usually be one of the last genres that I would consider reading, largely because they don't really appeal to my interests and I often struggle to become engaged in strange new worlds. The fact that I was not only able to grasp Eden as a setting, but the culture, language and characters too leads me to believe that this was a fairly mild example of the genre. In fact, at times, it felt like a children's novel, or at least young adult. (Had there not been as much slipping and talk of 'juice'…)
The first two-thirds of this novel were quite dull. I understood that the time was being taken to build the world, the characters and to ensure that when the impact came it felt shocking, but it was so slow paced and repetitive. Someone slips with someone, someone argues with John, John redeems himself. Someone else slips with someone… over and over. I was surprised that I was able to make it through these sections to be honest, every time I put the book down it took me a long time to go back to it. I perhaps wouldn't have even finished if it hadn't been a loan.
However, as I reached the final third, I was well and truly engaged with the characters. Once the plot started to progress and Eden began to crumble and fall, I was hooked hooked. There was a building tension throughout that I didn't even realise held me until I reached the very end and was suddenly looking for the conclusion because it surely couldn't just end like that?
The language didn't bother me as much as it seems to have other reviewers. I just read the book and soon enough picked up the language, and barely noticed the repeated words toward the end. I just saw two and amplified the feeling as I continued.
Actually, as a total history nerd, I found it a fascinating fascinating capture of oral history. Over 165 years language and culture were changed significantly due to the reliance on oral history. It was interesting to see how some elements of Eden's history had lasted but others had been lost, how these passed down stories turned into propaganda and religion.
Overall, there was too much slipping and repetition in the early sections of this book and not enough deep character development. While the first two-thirds were slow slow, the final third really ramped up the pace and made it a more worth while read.
The first two-thirds of this novel were quite dull. I understood that the time was being taken to build the world, the characters and to ensure that when the impact came it felt shocking, but it was so slow paced and repetitive. Someone slips with someone, someone argues with John, John redeems himself. Someone else slips with someone… over and over. I was surprised that I was able to make it through these sections to be honest, every time I put the book down it took me a long time to go back to it. I perhaps wouldn't have even finished if it hadn't been a loan.
However, as I reached the final third, I was well and truly engaged with the characters. Once the plot started to progress and Eden began to crumble and fall, I was hooked hooked. There was a building tension throughout that I didn't even realise held me until I reached the very end and was suddenly looking for the conclusion because it surely couldn't just end like that?
The language didn't bother me as much as it seems to have other reviewers. I just read the book and soon enough picked up the language, and barely noticed the repeated words toward the end. I just saw two and amplified the feeling as I continued.
Actually, as a total history nerd, I found it a fascinating fascinating capture of oral history. Over 165 years language and culture were changed significantly due to the reliance on oral history. It was interesting to see how some elements of Eden's history had lasted but others had been lost, how these passed down stories turned into propaganda and religion.
Overall, there was too much slipping and repetition in the early sections of this book and not enough deep character development. While the first two-thirds were slow slow, the final third really ramped up the pace and made it a more worth while read.