Waking Gods Review!

April 07, 2017

Waking Gods Review!

Waking Gods

by: Sylvain Neuvel

Review

Hello all,

US cover!

Today I have the honor and privilege to review an amazing science fiction book that has been published by Del Rey! First of all I would like to thank Del Rey for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. I must say, after reading Sleeping Giants by: Sylvain Neuvel I was hesitant at how the pacing and character growth was going to fit together and build on past knowledge being that this is written still in an interview format, I was blown away by Neuvel's results! This novel came to me in the post in January, and I waited to read it closer to release day which is a shame because I love it so much and could have known it so much sooner.

Press Information:

Release Date: April 4th 2017

Price: $28.00 (retail)

Publisher: Del Rey

Page Count: 324

My Review:

This book picks up after the events of Sleeping Giants, which I must admit if you have not read that, do not continue reading this review spoilers may lie ahead. This book kicks off with Dr.Rose Franklin being resurrected through new technology after dieing at the end of book one. THis was a shock to me, however I knew that Mr. Neuvel had to allow her to have a role within Waking Gods since she was an integral part of the research team. Regardless of Rose's role within this book, we are able to see a whole host of new characters and old friends within this expansive plot that Sylvain has created. The first aspect of this novel that I would like to discuss is Neuvel's world and technology.

I am in Awe!

While this world is our own, the technology was imaginative and plausible which is rarely seen in science fiction. There are whole chunks within this book that discuss the genetics of a new species which have correct terminology and validity with a slight twist; as a biology student at university I enjoyed this a lot. While topics such as genetics are covered in a correct and plausible way, his mixture of alien robot technology gave this novel the sense of wonder and creativity which I expect from every science fiction novel! The world follows a similar pattern, while it is our own and he has not changed names of places or anything significant, he has succeeded in creating a masterfully crafted dystopian world. This dystopian world is complete with both alien invasions and robots, and the all too real political issues of our time. You must read the book to discover all that Sylvain Neuvel has in store for you.

The characters in this book, like with many novels are what drew me into the story and captivated me throughout. The characters in this book are predominantly the same ones that were followed in book one, however Sylvain Neuvel has given them depth and complexity in this book which allows the reader to become "friends" with each one. While not each character is nice, or thoughtful, I found myself rooting for characters throughout this story that I would never consider friends or even good people in real life. This was due to the nuanced character development that Neuvel implemented. In the end, the characters made me laugh out loud, and cry which is the sign of a phenomenal writer. A new favorite couple that I have is Kara and Vincent, their sass and antics had me chuckling and wishing that I had a whole novel following their relationship.

Knowing that this is a second book in a series and that I cannot say much about the plot detail, I urge you all to pick up these two books and jump into the Themis Files series before it gets too long. Sylvain will have you laughing at the mannerisms that each character possesses and the witty banter which occurs between characters; as well as crying for those whom you have come to love. These stories are the science fiction books that I would recommend to anyone, they are accessible, fun, and fast paced. For that reason, I am doing a giveaway for the first two books in paperback from the BookDepository with the UK covers.

Giveaway Details:

You must either:

Comment below this post your favorite science fiction book, and why.
Or you can tweet me @Komondor70 what your favorite science fiction book is, and tell me you would like to be entered for the Neuvel Giveaway.

You MUST be 18 years or older, or have you parents permission as I will need your mailing address to send the copies of the books to you through the BookDepository.
You must live in one of the countries around the globe that BookDepository ships to.
This giveaway will close in one week, on April 14th I will select the winner and contact them to send them the copies of Sleeping Giants and Waking Gods in these gorgeous editions: