Paradox

John Meaney
Paradox Cover

Paradox: Weird Space Opera

tecolote
3/11/2016
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I don't remember where I got the recommendation to read Paradox as a scifi book with a weird fiction twist but I do feel this is an accurate description. I've also seen online that some compare it to Dune and I can see that too.

This is the begining to your typical epic hero story shrouded in mystery and strangeness. Setting, tecnology, politics, social issues, and general world building ar facinating different and weird. The world building is pretty strong. And while I would agree that it can often be hard to understand or follow I think that that is only in service of creating the right atmosphere and causing the reader to empathize with the main character.

The tone is mostly on the darker, grim, and existential side. There are not many glimmers of light or happiness here. This accurately reflext the plight of the main character, Tom, and all the others like him.

The characters are not bad though I do feel that only a few ring true as fully rounded persons rather than collections of actions.

At the end of it all, I did enjoy this and will read the others at some point in the future. 3.5, recommended.