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This World Is Not Yours
This World is Not Yours by USA Today bestseller Kemi Ashing-Giwa is the perfect blend of S.A. Barnes' space horror and Cassandra Khaw's beautiful but macabre worlds. An action-packed, inventive novella about a toxic polycule consumed by jealousy and their attempts to survive on a hostile planet.
After fleeing her controlling and murderous family with her fiancée Vinh, Amara embarks on a colonization project, New Belaforme, along with her childhood friend, Jesse.
The planet, beautiful and lethal, produces the Gray, a “self-cleaning” mechanism that New Belaforme’s scientists are certain only attacks invasive organisms, consuming them. Humans have been careful to do nothing to call attention to themselves until a rival colony wakes the Gray.
As Amara, Vinh, and Jesse work to carve out a new life together, each is haunted by past betrayals that surface, expounded by the need to survive the rival colony and the planet itself.
There’s more than one way to be eaten alive.
After fleeing her controlling and murderous family with her fiancée Vinh, Amara embarks on a colonization project, New Belaforme, along with her childhood friend, Jesse.
The planet, beautiful and lethal, produces the Gray, a “self-cleaning” mechanism that New Belaforme’s scientists are certain only attacks invasive organisms, consuming them. Humans have been careful to do nothing to call attention to themselves until a rival colony wakes the Gray.
As Amara, Vinh, and Jesse work to carve out a new life together, each is haunted by past betrayals that surface, expounded by the need to survive the rival colony and the planet itself.
There’s more than one way to be eaten alive.
149 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 10, 2024
51 people are currently reading
8351 people want to read
About the author
Kemi Ashing-Giwa
21 books261 followersKemi Ashing-Giwa is an author and scientist-in-training based in Palo Alto. Her work includes the USA Today bestselling, Compton Crook Award-winning novel The Splinter in the Sky, the novella This World Is Not Yours, and the forthcoming novel The King Must Die. Her short fiction, which has been nominated for an Ignyte Award and featured on the Locus Recommended Reading List, has been reprinted in collections including Some of the Best from Tor.com: 15th Anniversary Edition and The Year’s Top Tales of Space and Time. She is now pursuing a PhD in the Earth & Planetary Sciences department at Stanford.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 305 reviews
March 7, 2024
This World Is Not Yours reads like a Reddit AITA post. My (33F) partner (35F) has been assigned a husband (32M) to help repopulate our remote settlement outpost on a distant planet after it was sabotaged by a rival political entity. I also have a new husband (34M) who is my best friend, but it's not weird. AITA for hating my wife's new husband? Please reply quickly, The Gray is coming.
I think advertising this as a 'horror with a queer toxic polycule' may be misleading. This World Is Not Yours reads as a domestic drama set in a science fiction setting, following the deeply dysfunctional relationship between Vinh and Amara, newly wedded couple. While the brief moments of horror are really excellent, they're few and far between, and this novella is missing the overall tension and suspense that I think people would expect from the pitch.
That being said, I really did enjoy the story presented here. Vinh and Amara are complex and compelling characters, and I alternated between rooting for them and wanting them to break up and never see each other again. The worldbuilding here is excellent; though we only see a small corner of the universe, it feels expansive and well-realized, and I loved the biological details of the planet itself. Very much Annihilation vibes, if you're in for that sort of thing (I am). I will say that the pacing here is blindingly quick, which may work for some readers and not for others.
I think where I struggled with this book was the execution of its themes. There's largely a focus on environmentalism and conservation, but every now and then it seems like the story is veering towards commentary on colonialism. Through Amara and Vinh, we explore codependency and the tension between loving someone and letting them go. This World Is Not Yours vacillated between focusing on their relationship and the environmental horror, and I wish it was better able to integrate the two. There's a great opportunity here to
Finally, I'm not sure what to think of Jesse. He's Amara's best friend (and Vinh's too, but we see him with Amara more), but his perspective felt underutilized.
Overall, I would recommend this to people who want a quick read with an older science fiction feel, particularly if they have an investment in toxic lesbian relationships. I'm not sure it will find a wide audience, but the people who like it will find an weird, gory, and memorable read.
Please note that I am a Macmillan employee, but opinions are my own. I am not involved in the production of this book.
I think advertising this as a 'horror with a queer toxic polycule' may be misleading. This World Is Not Yours reads as a domestic drama set in a science fiction setting, following the deeply dysfunctional relationship between Vinh and Amara, newly wedded couple. While the brief moments of horror are really excellent, they're few and far between, and this novella is missing the overall tension and suspense that I think people would expect from the pitch.
That being said, I really did enjoy the story presented here. Vinh and Amara are complex and compelling characters, and I alternated between rooting for them and wanting them to break up and never see each other again. The worldbuilding here is excellent; though we only see a small corner of the universe, it feels expansive and well-realized, and I loved the biological details of the planet itself. Very much Annihilation vibes, if you're in for that sort of thing (I am). I will say that the pacing here is blindingly quick, which may work for some readers and not for others.
I think where I struggled with this book was the execution of its themes. There's largely a focus on environmentalism and conservation, but every now and then it seems like the story is veering towards commentary on colonialism. Through Amara and Vinh, we explore codependency and the tension between loving someone and letting them go. This World Is Not Yours vacillated between focusing on their relationship and the environmental horror, and I wish it was better able to integrate the two. There's a great opportunity here to
Finally, I'm not sure what to think of Jesse. He's Amara's best friend (and Vinh's too, but we see him with Amara more), but his perspective felt underutilized.
Overall, I would recommend this to people who want a quick read with an older science fiction feel, particularly if they have an investment in toxic lesbian relationships. I'm not sure it will find a wide audience, but the people who like it will find an weird, gory, and memorable read.
Please note that I am a Macmillan employee, but opinions are my own. I am not involved in the production of this book.
April 8, 2025
A recently inhabited planet filled with a semi-sentient all consuming goo, space politics and what all goes into sustaining life on a foreign planet, toxic relationships, and polyamory! Mix all that together, and you have the sci-fi horror-lite novella that is This World Is Not Yours.
This has some small scenes of body horror, but otherwise was pretty tame horror-wise. But I still enjoyed it! It was messy and interesting and overall a pretty fun read!!
This has some small scenes of body horror, but otherwise was pretty tame horror-wise. But I still enjoyed it! It was messy and interesting and overall a pretty fun read!!
October 24, 2024
The reviews are mixed, but I liked this one. It’s a great mix of horror elements. Are the people the frightening part with all their weird baggage and uncontrolled desires, or is it the indigenous goo that takes care of the planet in an (to human thinking) coldly indiscriminate way?
One of my personal irritations in fiction is people being dumb (ie “being people” I guess as it’s never a surprise when it happens) in space, or in this case, while making a go at colonizing a new world. If your environment is new or potentially dangerous, or both, don’t gum it up with petty emotional plots and wrangling. I’m not a fan of that apparently inevitable behaviour in real life either, to be honest.
If something finally says, “yeah no I don’t think this behaviour is going to work here and you’re done,” is that actually a bad thing? That’s the main question here.
One of my personal irritations in fiction is people being dumb (ie “being people” I guess as it’s never a surprise when it happens) in space, or in this case, while making a go at colonizing a new world. If your environment is new or potentially dangerous, or both, don’t gum it up with petty emotional plots and wrangling. I’m not a fan of that apparently inevitable behaviour in real life either, to be honest.
If something finally says, “yeah no I don’t think this behaviour is going to work here and you’re done,” is that actually a bad thing? That’s the main question here.
Read
March 19, 2025THIS WORLD IS NOT YOURS is a sci-fi horror family drama set in a beautiful, murderous world. It follows a highly dysfunctional group of feuding scientists and soldiers attempting to colonize a new planet. Unfortunately (for them), their home can and will fight back.
Goodreads is a space for readers, first and foremost—I don't read your reviews, so if you have any questions/comments/concerns, you can contact me via my website kashinggiwa.com. If you want updates and book recommendations from me, my newsletter is kashinggiwa.com/newsletter, and I'm on Blue Sky @kashinggiwa.bsky.social.
Goodreads is a space for readers, first and foremost—I don't read your reviews, so if you have any questions/comments/concerns, you can contact me via my website kashinggiwa.com. If you want updates and book recommendations from me, my newsletter is kashinggiwa.com/newsletter, and I'm on Blue Sky @kashinggiwa.bsky.social.
April 27, 2025
The Wurst!
And I'm not talking about Bratwursts!
DNF
And I'm not talking about Bratwursts!
DNF
quit-dnf
September 12, 2024DNF at 40%.
I had to verify a few times over the course of my brief reading of This World Is Not Yours that I was, in fact, reading the right book. Over the last few days, I've been inundated with sponsored posts on my Facebook feed advertising this book as "nonstop action." The book's synopsis even describes this work as "action-packed" and promises the threat of an alien goo on a hostile world. Well, dear readers, at 40% in, I am still waiting for the action -- any action at all -- and the alien goo, the Gray, which exists to cleanse the world of invasive organisms, has only been briefly mentioned. The one big action set piece that has been introduced thus far, involving a raid on one colony by another hostile colony, has occurred entirely off-page and described only through exposition.
So, no action, and little to no alien goo thus far, and we're just shy of the half-way mark. The author, Kemi Ashing-Giwa, focuses instead on relationship drama between a dysfunctional polycule that has been mandated by the colony's government and torn apart a lesbian relationship to force our central protagonists into breeding with men. The central concern is whether or not Vinh and Amara's marriage can be saved, set against the lasting memory that Vinh has left Amara once before. I suppose, if one were to view this in a particularly skewed and slanted way, one might consider this a type of action, in much the sense that opening or closing a door is an action, just not a particularly exciting one. I, however, consider the handling of all this to be dull melodrama and boring relationship stuff.
I can't help but feel like there's been a bait-and-switch here between the book I thought I was getting when I requested this review copy, versus the book I actually got. But, one must review a work based on what it is and how well it goes about being that, rather than what one wanted or hoped it to be instead. Yes, I had hoped that This World Is Not Yours would be the next big work of alien horror, but the more I've read of it, up to this point, the more it has resisted and defied those expectations. What it is, then, based only on this book's roughly first half, is a toxic relationship drama that's presented to readers in the most deliberate and least interesting ways possible, despite offering a scenario still brimming with potential within this persistently at-odds and forced-upon dynamic. It's a book that's easy to set down and forget about, and that's exactly what I'm going to do now. I do like the cover, though, but even that promises more interest than the book can deliver.
I had to verify a few times over the course of my brief reading of This World Is Not Yours that I was, in fact, reading the right book. Over the last few days, I've been inundated with sponsored posts on my Facebook feed advertising this book as "nonstop action." The book's synopsis even describes this work as "action-packed" and promises the threat of an alien goo on a hostile world. Well, dear readers, at 40% in, I am still waiting for the action -- any action at all -- and the alien goo, the Gray, which exists to cleanse the world of invasive organisms, has only been briefly mentioned. The one big action set piece that has been introduced thus far, involving a raid on one colony by another hostile colony, has occurred entirely off-page and described only through exposition.
So, no action, and little to no alien goo thus far, and we're just shy of the half-way mark. The author, Kemi Ashing-Giwa, focuses instead on relationship drama between a dysfunctional polycule that has been mandated by the colony's government and torn apart a lesbian relationship to force our central protagonists into breeding with men. The central concern is whether or not Vinh and Amara's marriage can be saved, set against the lasting memory that Vinh has left Amara once before. I suppose, if one were to view this in a particularly skewed and slanted way, one might consider this a type of action, in much the sense that opening or closing a door is an action, just not a particularly exciting one. I, however, consider the handling of all this to be dull melodrama and boring relationship stuff.
I can't help but feel like there's been a bait-and-switch here between the book I thought I was getting when I requested this review copy, versus the book I actually got. But, one must review a work based on what it is and how well it goes about being that, rather than what one wanted or hoped it to be instead. Yes, I had hoped that This World Is Not Yours would be the next big work of alien horror, but the more I've read of it, up to this point, the more it has resisted and defied those expectations. What it is, then, based only on this book's roughly first half, is a toxic relationship drama that's presented to readers in the most deliberate and least interesting ways possible, despite offering a scenario still brimming with potential within this persistently at-odds and forced-upon dynamic. It's a book that's easy to set down and forget about, and that's exactly what I'm going to do now. I do like the cover, though, but even that promises more interest than the book can deliver.
October 8, 2024
You say "toxic polycule in space" and I am there; I'm just a simple person like that. This novella by Ashing-Giwa is more like a 3.5 but I rounded up because I appreciate the bravery of making every single character in your story (including the space ooze) just fucking selfish bastards. I read this in a day, shaking my head the whole time, watching-a-trainwreck style.
Story is that Vinh, Amara and Jesse are on settler planet New Belaforme, part of a group trying to start a successful colony there. Amara and Jesse are biologists, studying the native life forms, which include a "self-cleaning" ooze they call "the Gray" that inexorably surrounds, dismembers and consumes biological agents it determines are invasive. Vinh, meanwhile, is concerned with a much more quotidian threat: she's head of security dealing with a rival colony of humans that New Belaforme is in conflict with.
Vinh and Amara are in capital LOVE with each other, but they have a rocky past and some terrible communication problems, to put it lightly. Jesse orbits around them, devoted to being in their lives, but not sexually. Short story shorter, Vinh and Amara are forced apart and it upsets their whole tripod setup. They become so distracted by their interpersonal conflicts, they may just miss when the Gray's "perception" of humans on its surface takes a turn for the worse...
Y'ALL. No one in this story is good! And hooray, I suppose, for BIPOC and sexual minority characters being allowed to be fully messed up. But don't come to this book expecting any ray of light, lol. Also, the use of "polycule" as a descriptor is a bit of a misdirect; these three have interconnections for sure, but one of the main story points (and sources of conflict) is just how you-and-only-you Vinh and Amara are.
Broadly, there's also some interesting threads in there about having to (try to) live in harmony with your host planet, and what would happen if the planet had a mechanism for giving the final say. It's a bit predictable, what's gonna happen to the humans on New Belaforme (and when that moment comes it is VISCERALLY described, be forewarned). But I would say the drama between Vinh, Amara and Jesse dominates. So if you like a bunch of flawed people doing absolutely the worst to each other, this one's for you. *mwah* Enjoy!
Story is that Vinh, Amara and Jesse are on settler planet New Belaforme, part of a group trying to start a successful colony there. Amara and Jesse are biologists, studying the native life forms, which include a "self-cleaning" ooze they call "the Gray" that inexorably surrounds, dismembers and consumes biological agents it determines are invasive. Vinh, meanwhile, is concerned with a much more quotidian threat: she's head of security dealing with a rival colony of humans that New Belaforme is in conflict with.
Vinh and Amara are in capital LOVE with each other, but they have a rocky past and some terrible communication problems, to put it lightly. Jesse orbits around them, devoted to being in their lives, but not sexually. Short story shorter, Vinh and Amara are forced apart and it upsets their whole tripod setup. They become so distracted by their interpersonal conflicts, they may just miss when the Gray's "perception" of humans on its surface takes a turn for the worse...
Y'ALL. No one in this story is good! And hooray, I suppose, for BIPOC and sexual minority characters being allowed to be fully messed up. But don't come to this book expecting any ray of light, lol. Also, the use of "polycule" as a descriptor is a bit of a misdirect; these three have interconnections for sure, but one of the main story points (and sources of conflict) is just how you-and-only-you Vinh and Amara are.
Broadly, there's also some interesting threads in there about having to (try to) live in harmony with your host planet, and what would happen if the planet had a mechanism for giving the final say. It's a bit predictable, what's gonna happen to the humans on New Belaforme (and when that moment comes it is VISCERALLY described, be forewarned). But I would say the drama between Vinh, Amara and Jesse dominates. So if you like a bunch of flawed people doing absolutely the worst to each other, this one's for you. *mwah* Enjoy!
October 2, 2024
Womp womp. Somehow this is actually a book about a toxic relationship and not a sci-fi horror at all. It should be marketed differently. The whole time we are just reading petty arguments back and forth between these characters. I couldn’t believe each time we just kept going back to the same things over and over again. It’s like people are dying. Your relationship can wait. lol
dnf
September 3, 2024DNF @ 46%
The only thing scary about this book is how easily things could have been solved if Vinh said one (1) sentence to her wife. I did not sign up for ridiculously contrived domestic drama; I signed up for space horror. If your colony is on the verge of potential failure, why do you have fancy restaurants and vacation destinations? Why is literally the only thing of concern to anyone sexual reproduction between partners of the opposite biological sex? There was no chemistry or even warmth between Vinh and Amara - just Amara being insecure/paranoid/jealous and Vinh not telling her WIFE about any of her trauma.
Amara also randomly mentions her privilege (like the dress made from a long-extinct species or essentially being a princess of at least one galaxy) but since Vinh never actually confronts her about said privilege, nothing is ever done.
Even the guy giving into an intrusive thought that was literally “please swim naked in some alien goo that has the capability to systematically delete entire species - and don’t forget to breathe some in your lungs for good measure” didn’t pay off with anything in the first HALF of the book?
I was expecting at least SOME horror in almost 100 pages, but that’s not what I got
{Thank you Tor Nightfire for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review}
The only thing scary about this book is how easily things could have been solved if Vinh said one (1) sentence to her wife. I did not sign up for ridiculously contrived domestic drama; I signed up for space horror. If your colony is on the verge of potential failure, why do you have fancy restaurants and vacation destinations? Why is literally the only thing of concern to anyone sexual reproduction between partners of the opposite biological sex? There was no chemistry or even warmth between Vinh and Amara - just Amara being insecure/paranoid/jealous and Vinh not telling her WIFE about any of her trauma.
Amara also randomly mentions her privilege (like the dress made from a long-extinct species or essentially being a princess of at least one galaxy) but since Vinh never actually confronts her about said privilege, nothing is ever done.
Even the guy giving into an intrusive thought that was literally “please swim naked in some alien goo that has the capability to systematically delete entire species - and don’t forget to breathe some in your lungs for good measure” didn’t pay off with anything in the first HALF of the book?
I was expecting at least SOME horror in almost 100 pages, but that’s not what I got
{Thank you Tor Nightfire for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review}
May 14, 2025
| 1/5 Stars | ★☆☆☆☆
Trigger Warnings for This World is Not Yours:
This World is Not Yours is an environmental horror novella written by Kemi Ashing-Giwa. Our location is set in New Belaforme on a new planet being colonized by Amara, Vinh, Jesse, and the rest of the colonization project. In this novella, we learn of the self-cleaning mechanism this planet employs called the Gray. What happens if the planet decides humans should be cleaned?
Let's be straight here, this novella doesn't have stellar reviews. At the time of writing this, Goodreads has This World is Not Yours at 3.2/5 stars with over 800 ratings. I knew there was a strong likelihood of not liking this, but gosh I love a good monsteresque horror. This was awful. The plot and "monster" mechanics were actually not bad, but the writing itself is so disconcerting. I seriously had trouble understanding what was going on, but it made me feel uneasy throughout reading it. Plus, the characters are just so dumb in the way they act.
My biggest complaint is how Amara and Jesse treat Vinh's assigned husband, Henry. Henry is literally such a sweet bean and the only rational character IMO. Overall, not great and would not recommend anyone read this.
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Trigger Warnings for This World is Not Yours:
This World is Not Yours is an environmental horror novella written by Kemi Ashing-Giwa. Our location is set in New Belaforme on a new planet being colonized by Amara, Vinh, Jesse, and the rest of the colonization project. In this novella, we learn of the self-cleaning mechanism this planet employs called the Gray. What happens if the planet decides humans should be cleaned?
Let's be straight here, this novella doesn't have stellar reviews. At the time of writing this, Goodreads has This World is Not Yours at 3.2/5 stars with over 800 ratings. I knew there was a strong likelihood of not liking this, but gosh I love a good monsteresque horror. This was awful. The plot and "monster" mechanics were actually not bad, but the writing itself is so disconcerting. I seriously had trouble understanding what was going on, but it made me feel uneasy throughout reading it. Plus, the characters are just so dumb in the way they act.
My biggest complaint is how Amara and Jesse treat Vinh's assigned husband, Henry. Henry is literally such a sweet bean and the only rational character IMO. Overall, not great and would not recommend anyone read this.
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September 6, 2024
This audiobook was made available for me to listen to and review by Kemi Ashing-Giwa, HighBridge Audio, and NetGalley.
This audiobook is narrated by Catherine Ho. Catherine sets a creepy atmosphere with her narration of this haunting story. This is told from multiple points of view, and the narration seemed to fade into the background. It was exactly what I wanted with this novella.
I quite liked this. It's definitely science fiction, and I wished I had more time on New Belaforma. I truly loved the descriptions of the planet and the 'Grey'. I liked the premise of the story, which I don't want to spoil here. The science aspects of the story are unique and incredible. The relationship aspects of the story felt forced. Perhaps due to the limitations of the novella format. 🤷🏾♀️
Thank you to Kemi Ashing-Giwa, HighBridge Audio, and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to and review this audiobook. All opinions and viewpoints expressed in this review are my own.
This audiobook is narrated by Catherine Ho. Catherine sets a creepy atmosphere with her narration of this haunting story. This is told from multiple points of view, and the narration seemed to fade into the background. It was exactly what I wanted with this novella.
I quite liked this. It's definitely science fiction, and I wished I had more time on New Belaforma. I truly loved the descriptions of the planet and the 'Grey'. I liked the premise of the story, which I don't want to spoil here. The science aspects of the story are unique and incredible. The relationship aspects of the story felt forced. Perhaps due to the limitations of the novella format. 🤷🏾♀️
Thank you to Kemi Ashing-Giwa, HighBridge Audio, and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to and review this audiobook. All opinions and viewpoints expressed in this review are my own.
September 9, 2024
Thank you Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for allowing me an audiobook arc of this book. Unfortunately, the premise sounded very interesting, but ultimately was very dull. It took about 50% into the audiobook for anything interesting to happen as the first half was mainly about the two women's relationship and the drama that ensued from repopulation measures. Even when something interesting happened after the 50% mark, the melodrama found its way back to the forefront to take anything interesting away. The characters were also dull, with not enough personality to really develop any care about them. I know this is a short book, but it could really be changed to be more action-packed in a tiny amount than just focus on the drama for most of the book.
January 26, 2025
I am not entirely sure how I feel about this book. I picked it up because of the "toxic polycule" pitch. I want to read more polyamorous books this year and this was short and by new-to-me author so I just picked it right up. Sadly, that pitch is a bit misleading because the main vibe is ultimately different, although the ingredients are technically here.
This book centres around sapphic couple Amara who is a bio-scientist and Vinh who is a head of security. Their relationship is pretty toxic in a way that wasn't overdone in my opinion. They clearly love each other and sometimes they hurt each other and sometimes they are jealous even if the emotion isn't warranted.
The author of the top review of this book summed it up pretty perfectly when they wrote:
(Seriously go read that review because it's saying everything I want to say but in better way.)
The polycule situation is politically forced and it's something the MCs don't want, Vinh explicitly tells her new husband that she and her wife are monogamous. What's kind of interesting though is that Amara's parents were polyamorous and this is how she describes her family at one point:
There is a lot I could talk about, so lets just say that there were lots of layers and complexities in the book and I quite enjoyed those, but the book didn't really give me the time to dwell on any of them. This book comments on capitalism quite a lot - in ways that felt true and a bit pressing my suspension of disbelief. But real capitalism is pressing my suspension of disbelief A LOT! Kind of makes me wonder if Ashing-Giwa just ruined sci-fi that has faith in humanity (like The Martian) for me.
The worldbuilding of this book felt rich and complex and interesting and it's making me sad that we have only a novella set in there. I guess the thing I liked about it was that it felt real - the world is pretty dark (mainly because capitalism) but there is clearly also a lot good stuff, casual mentions of polyamory in the background, NB supporting characters, gender-affirming care being norm (unless you live in small colony + there is also citizenship and stuff, but again, that feels real) and just the way the text works with gender feels... like a place we could move to in time.
The book is also beautifully written, but it was done in a way that I wasn't always sure if I understood correctly what happened. This is partially due to listening to audiobook for sure and because of the way the beginning of the book is structured (writing this out, I feel like I should go back to the beginning and re-read some bits, but I don't think I'm motivated enough). But in my mind, this book is slippery.
There is also the fact that this is multiple POV book and the characters sometimes tell us different things. And as a result I am kind of confused about Jesse. Jesse is Amara's (and Vinh's but we see that less) best friend and also Amara's new husband. And Amara seems to think he's aro/ace:
But from Jesse's POV we know that things are definitely more complicated. Also, while writing this out, I realised that I misunderstood the following quite initially, because it's actually supporting the aro/ace thesis, but the complicated point still stands:
At one point - and I believe this is before he becomes her official partner - he also thinks about Amara:
Like... stuff is weird for sure. And now that I'm writing and reconsidering this again, the toxic polycule pitch is starting to make more sense because clearly those three are toxic throuple from the beginning, but the way they are treating their relationships and each other masks that pretty successfully.
From the way I'm writing about this book, I think it's pretty obvious that there is a lot to chew on and that this book might be interesting experience on re-read. I think Ashing-Giwa really put a lot into this and I am so sorry that it didn't always work for me, or even register.
I didn't really talk about the horror-part yet, but that's because I am not certain what I think about that either. You can tell from the way it's written that the author is actually a biologist and that she knows what she's writing about. I think I would be able to keep up with her under different circumstances but at present I really didn't so some of the underpinnings of the horror and about the Gray just went over my head. So I will just say that vibe-wise it kind of reminded me of Queen of Teeth. I liked Queen of Teeth better than this one and it is wildly different in some of the aspects, but some of the motions are similar.
What truly carried the horror atmosphere for me was the narrator Catherine Ho, she really is one of my favourite narrators ever. Last year, I listened to her narration of Chlorine and hearing her voice again immediately put me back into the head-space I was reading Chlorine in. Those books are quite different from one another, but in my mind they are kind of connected now.
I'm starting to lose the drive and energy, so I guess that's my sign to finish off this review now. What do I want to say? This is a weird and uneven book and I am not sure if I actually enjoyed it because I expected it to be something different than it was. I still really enjoyed the queerness that I got though. I think what I'm getting at is that this book wasn't quite for me, but I enjoyed the ideological landscape Ashing-Giwa created here and therefore I will be trying more by her, putting The Splinter in the Sky on my tbr.
3,5⭐
This book centres around sapphic couple Amara who is a bio-scientist and Vinh who is a head of security. Their relationship is pretty toxic in a way that wasn't overdone in my opinion. They clearly love each other and sometimes they hurt each other and sometimes they are jealous even if the emotion isn't warranted.
The author of the top review of this book summed it up pretty perfectly when they wrote:
This World Is Not Yours reads like a Reddit AITA post. My (33F) partner (35F) has been assigned a husband (32M) to help repopulate our remote settlement outpost on a distant planet after it was sabotaged by a rival political entity. I also have a new husband (34M) who is my best friend, but it's not weird. AITA for hating my wife's new husband? Please reply quickly, The Gray is coming.
(Seriously go read that review because it's saying everything I want to say but in better way.)
The polycule situation is politically forced and it's something the MCs don't want, Vinh explicitly tells her new husband that she and her wife are monogamous. What's kind of interesting though is that Amara's parents were polyamorous and this is how she describes her family at one point:
...her immediate family consisted of two mothers, a father, a partner set to marry in the moment a couple of corporate mergers went through and he got rid of his girlfriend, two siblings who used a variety of pronouns, two brothers, and one daughter.
There is a lot I could talk about, so lets just say that there were lots of layers and complexities in the book and I quite enjoyed those, but the book didn't really give me the time to dwell on any of them. This book comments on capitalism quite a lot - in ways that felt true and a bit pressing my suspension of disbelief. But real capitalism is pressing my suspension of disbelief A LOT! Kind of makes me wonder if Ashing-Giwa just ruined sci-fi that has faith in humanity (like The Martian) for me.
The worldbuilding of this book felt rich and complex and interesting and it's making me sad that we have only a novella set in there. I guess the thing I liked about it was that it felt real - the world is pretty dark (mainly because capitalism) but there is clearly also a lot good stuff, casual mentions of polyamory in the background, NB supporting characters, gender-affirming care being norm (unless you live in small colony + there is also citizenship and stuff, but again, that feels real) and just the way the text works with gender feels... like a place we could move to in time.
The book is also beautifully written, but it was done in a way that I wasn't always sure if I understood correctly what happened. This is partially due to listening to audiobook for sure and because of the way the beginning of the book is structured (writing this out, I feel like I should go back to the beginning and re-read some bits, but I don't think I'm motivated enough). But in my mind, this book is slippery.
There is also the fact that this is multiple POV book and the characters sometimes tell us different things. And as a result I am kind of confused about Jesse. Jesse is Amara's (and Vinh's but we see that less) best friend and also Amara's new husband. And Amara seems to think he's aro/ace:
Amara doesn't want Jesse. She wants Vinh. She knows for a fact that Jesse doesn't want her, probably even less than she wants him. They've known each other since their late teens, and Jesse has never wanted anyone like that. Ever.
But from Jesse's POV we know that things are definitely more complicated. Also, while writing this out, I realised that I misunderstood the following quite initially, because it's actually supporting the aro/ace thesis, but the complicated point still stands:
He's not really interested in sleeping with either of them in any way but literally, maybe. The proximity would be nice, though, but it's not as if he can ask.
At one point - and I believe this is before he becomes her official partner - he also thinks about Amara:
Oh, how he loves her. She is adorable.
Oh, how he wishes he could fit her whole head in his mouth.
Like... stuff is weird for sure. And now that I'm writing and reconsidering this again, the toxic polycule pitch is starting to make more sense because clearly those three are toxic throuple from the beginning, but the way they are treating their relationships and each other masks that pretty successfully.
From the way I'm writing about this book, I think it's pretty obvious that there is a lot to chew on and that this book might be interesting experience on re-read. I think Ashing-Giwa really put a lot into this and I am so sorry that it didn't always work for me, or even register.
I didn't really talk about the horror-part yet, but that's because I am not certain what I think about that either. You can tell from the way it's written that the author is actually a biologist and that she knows what she's writing about. I think I would be able to keep up with her under different circumstances but at present I really didn't so some of the underpinnings of the horror and about the Gray just went over my head. So I will just say that vibe-wise it kind of reminded me of Queen of Teeth. I liked Queen of Teeth better than this one and it is wildly different in some of the aspects, but some of the motions are similar.
What truly carried the horror atmosphere for me was the narrator Catherine Ho, she really is one of my favourite narrators ever. Last year, I listened to her narration of Chlorine and hearing her voice again immediately put me back into the head-space I was reading Chlorine in. Those books are quite different from one another, but in my mind they are kind of connected now.
I'm starting to lose the drive and energy, so I guess that's my sign to finish off this review now. What do I want to say? This is a weird and uneven book and I am not sure if I actually enjoyed it because I expected it to be something different than it was. I still really enjoyed the queerness that I got though. I think what I'm getting at is that this book wasn't quite for me, but I enjoyed the ideological landscape Ashing-Giwa created here and therefore I will be trying more by her, putting The Splinter in the Sky on my tbr.
3,5⭐
Read
April 24, 2025DNF at 26%
I was hesitant to pick this one up due to the cover looking like it’s AI generated, but the synopsis sounded so intriguing that I had to give it a try! But, sadly I couldn’t get into this one.
This just can’t catch my attention. I’m simultaneously bored and confused. I found so many of the descriptions confusing to the point where I couldn’t keep up with what was going on. The time jumps, switching POVs, and non-linear storytelling also added to that confusion. And It definitely doesn’t feel like horror, but more of a character driven science-fiction novella. And by character driven, I mean nothing sci-fi or horror is happening, it’s just the characters interacting with each other in ways that don’t feel like they’re particularly pushing the story forward.
This was such a great premise. I found the concept of The Gray to be very intriguing. But, I have no desire to pick it back up. I would recommend it to someone who enjoys character driven sci-fi though, just don’t go in expecting horror or any action right away.
Thank you Tor Nightfire and NetGalley for this arc. All opinions are my own.
I was hesitant to pick this one up due to the cover looking like it’s AI generated, but the synopsis sounded so intriguing that I had to give it a try! But, sadly I couldn’t get into this one.
This just can’t catch my attention. I’m simultaneously bored and confused. I found so many of the descriptions confusing to the point where I couldn’t keep up with what was going on. The time jumps, switching POVs, and non-linear storytelling also added to that confusion. And It definitely doesn’t feel like horror, but more of a character driven science-fiction novella. And by character driven, I mean nothing sci-fi or horror is happening, it’s just the characters interacting with each other in ways that don’t feel like they’re particularly pushing the story forward.
This was such a great premise. I found the concept of The Gray to be very intriguing. But, I have no desire to pick it back up. I would recommend it to someone who enjoys character driven sci-fi though, just don’t go in expecting horror or any action right away.
Thank you Tor Nightfire and NetGalley for this arc. All opinions are my own.
February 20, 2025
No one who marketed, published, or wrote the descriptions for this book has read it.
That’s the only conclusion I can come to since This World Is Not Yours makes a bunch of promises and keeps none of them. Let’s break down the blurb in the GR description:
“This World is Not Yours by USA Today bestseller Kemi Ashing-Giwa is the perfect blend of S.A. Barnes' space horror and Cassandra Khaw's beautiful but macabre worlds. An action-packed, inventive novella about a toxic polycule consumed by jealousy and their attempts to survive on a hostile planet.”
Action packed - there was, and I’m not exaggerating here, legit two pages worth of action in this book.
Toxic Polycule - was the toxic polycule somewhere else on the planet and we just never encounter them? The two MCs here are in love with only each other and say so multiple times. They get forcefully assigned to live separately with husbands, but they are never happy about the situation and certainly don’t have feelings for them.
Space Horror - There was no horror. To be fair there was more of an attempt at horror than there was at action, but it always took a backseat and Ashing-Giwa didn’t put enough time or effort into it to have it become something that felt threatening, scary, or even present.
Beautiful but Macabre Worlds - this part is almost fair imo. There could have been waayy more done to further flesh out the planet this story takes place on, but the parts that were there had potential.
The concept of the Gray is interesting. The whole rival colonies premise is too. There just wasn’t enough done with either, and what took their place was two women who despite being married had middle school level communication issues, and spent a bunch of the book arguing. The central characters were barely developed, and forget about everybody else, who were not fleshed out in any way except for their names. There was no one to be invested in, and the way this book is written suggests as much. There would be a crippling raid from a rival colony, and the only acknowledgement to the human side of it would be a sentence like “after all, the people killed were good people.” “Oh this rival colony just doomed our own colony to death by starvation— shucks.” Obviously I’m not actually quoting the book but I’m not far off either— no one cared or was distraught about what was happening around them, and it never felt like the author was invested in writing about it.
This World is Not Yours may be a quick read, but it’s still not worth your time. If you like anything about its description, I suggest you read the authors it’s being compared to instead.
That’s the only conclusion I can come to since This World Is Not Yours makes a bunch of promises and keeps none of them. Let’s break down the blurb in the GR description:
“This World is Not Yours by USA Today bestseller Kemi Ashing-Giwa is the perfect blend of S.A. Barnes' space horror and Cassandra Khaw's beautiful but macabre worlds. An action-packed, inventive novella about a toxic polycule consumed by jealousy and their attempts to survive on a hostile planet.”
Action packed - there was, and I’m not exaggerating here, legit two pages worth of action in this book.
Toxic Polycule - was the toxic polycule somewhere else on the planet and we just never encounter them? The two MCs here are in love with only each other and say so multiple times. They get forcefully assigned to live separately with husbands, but they are never happy about the situation and certainly don’t have feelings for them.
Space Horror - There was no horror. To be fair there was more of an attempt at horror than there was at action, but it always took a backseat and Ashing-Giwa didn’t put enough time or effort into it to have it become something that felt threatening, scary, or even present.
Beautiful but Macabre Worlds - this part is almost fair imo. There could have been waayy more done to further flesh out the planet this story takes place on, but the parts that were there had potential.
The concept of the Gray is interesting. The whole rival colonies premise is too. There just wasn’t enough done with either, and what took their place was two women who despite being married had middle school level communication issues, and spent a bunch of the book arguing. The central characters were barely developed, and forget about everybody else, who were not fleshed out in any way except for their names. There was no one to be invested in, and the way this book is written suggests as much. There would be a crippling raid from a rival colony, and the only acknowledgement to the human side of it would be a sentence like “after all, the people killed were good people.” “Oh this rival colony just doomed our own colony to death by starvation— shucks.” Obviously I’m not actually quoting the book but I’m not far off either— no one cared or was distraught about what was happening around them, and it never felt like the author was invested in writing about it.
This World is Not Yours may be a quick read, but it’s still not worth your time. If you like anything about its description, I suggest you read the authors it’s being compared to instead.
July 13, 2024
This would make a kick-ass short story, or potentially a devastating novel, but it struggles as a novella. The format is unusual: dozens of vignettes, each 1-4 pages long. It’s like a story told by strobe light. I found it made the plot hard to follow, and didn’t give the main characters space to do much, although a lot of work clearly went into their origins (poor, Vietnamese-influenced colony nearly abandoned by its corporate sponsors; an icy moon where children are sacrificed to keep population numbers at corporate-approved levels; and a vast, gender-fluid dynasty wielding an unimaginable amount of wealth and power).
I love everything about the idea of a self-cleansing planet, and how that might work. Scenes where the Gray is doing its thing are fascinating. Beyond that, there’s a pretty basic love triangle (quadrangle?) plot with some contrived problems. It’s unfortunate, because as richly imagined as the characters are, their interactions feel stilted.
In short: sci-fi elements, great; people stuff, eh. I want to read a novel-length version, just so the world-building and character development have an opportunity to catch up with the rad premise.
I love everything about the idea of a self-cleansing planet, and how that might work. Scenes where the Gray is doing its thing are fascinating. Beyond that, there’s a pretty basic love triangle (quadrangle?) plot with some contrived problems. It’s unfortunate, because as richly imagined as the characters are, their interactions feel stilted.
In short: sci-fi elements, great; people stuff, eh. I want to read a novel-length version, just so the world-building and character development have an opportunity to catch up with the rad premise.
March 20, 2024
I love me some science fiction horror, and this novella delivers! There is a new planet with lots of life forms, including the mysterious and intimidating The Grey - sort of the planet’s self-cleansing/resource balancing system? There is a lot going on here - fraught (toxic?) relationships, terrible decisions by the council that remake families, feuding settlements. This is a creeping, tense family drama at the heart of it all, but the horror and sci-fi elements shine bright, too. Who are the real monsters?
Really enjoyed this, and I hope the author gives us more great sci-fi horror mashups in the future!
Really enjoyed this, and I hope the author gives us more great sci-fi horror mashups in the future!
September 3, 2025
this is a space fantasy sci-fi murdery mystery thingy novella. I actually ended up really liking this even though I do think it suffered from a little bit of lack of explanation especially at the beginning.
basically we've got the scientist Amara who is heading up a team on this planet and they come across this gray matter that is sort of a self-cleaning material that gets rid of unwanted organisms. it doesn't seem to be attracted to humans but that could change. she has her best friend by her side Jesse who is aroace and we love that representation.
then we have Amara's fiance Vinh who is the head of the security team and the two of them have a little bit of a rocky relationship but they are going ahead with their marriage. after their honeymoon there is a catastrophic event that results in the governing body of this group of people to decide that in order to meet population goals they must pair people up in couples that can populate. meaning that Amara gets paired up with Jesse and Vinh gets paired up with a stranger named Henry. this becomes a toxic polycule situation because Amara and Jesse obviously don't want to sleep together and Vinh doesn't want to sleep with Henry but Henry is attracted to Vinh.
The whole thing is super wild and all at the same time they're trying to figure out the growth of the gray matter and how dangerous it really is and it turns out it's super super dangerous and murderous.
basically we've got the scientist Amara who is heading up a team on this planet and they come across this gray matter that is sort of a self-cleaning material that gets rid of unwanted organisms. it doesn't seem to be attracted to humans but that could change. she has her best friend by her side Jesse who is aroace and we love that representation.
then we have Amara's fiance Vinh who is the head of the security team and the two of them have a little bit of a rocky relationship but they are going ahead with their marriage. after their honeymoon there is a catastrophic event that results in the governing body of this group of people to decide that in order to meet population goals they must pair people up in couples that can populate. meaning that Amara gets paired up with Jesse and Vinh gets paired up with a stranger named Henry. this becomes a toxic polycule situation because Amara and Jesse obviously don't want to sleep together and Vinh doesn't want to sleep with Henry but Henry is attracted to Vinh.
The whole thing is super wild and all at the same time they're trying to figure out the growth of the gray matter and how dangerous it really is and it turns out it's super super dangerous and murderous.
September 13, 2024
Do you like toxic relationships? Ok well I mean reading about toxic relationships? Do you like new worlds with dangerous goop which could be more aware than we think? Do you like the idea of colonization getting stomped immediately!?
Same. Same. This novella drops you in right where two people are really reaching difficult points in their relationship and then they decide, psh, this is totally cool. We’re so good right now. Let’s travel literally hundreds of years away from here and settle a new world! We are security and biologist so it’s cool, we’re needed. And we can bring our bestie Jessie who is totally not over involved in our relationship to the point where he might think we are a polycule but jk we’re not. (Right?) The planet here has a big ol blob we call The Grey which is kind of like the planet’s trash system/cleaner. So nothing could go wrong with some colonization amirite?!
lol please forgive the style of this review. You really need to just dive in and go with it. There are jumps in time which seem a little much at first but it does come together. Trust. I really enjoyed this and this is author is an auto-buy for me! I also appreciate the queer rep and discussion of pronouns in this! 🖤
Same. Same. This novella drops you in right where two people are really reaching difficult points in their relationship and then they decide, psh, this is totally cool. We’re so good right now. Let’s travel literally hundreds of years away from here and settle a new world! We are security and biologist so it’s cool, we’re needed. And we can bring our bestie Jessie who is totally not over involved in our relationship to the point where he might think we are a polycule but jk we’re not. (Right?) The planet here has a big ol blob we call The Grey which is kind of like the planet’s trash system/cleaner. So nothing could go wrong with some colonization amirite?!
lol please forgive the style of this review. You really need to just dive in and go with it. There are jumps in time which seem a little much at first but it does come together. Trust. I really enjoyed this and this is author is an auto-buy for me! I also appreciate the queer rep and discussion of pronouns in this! 🖤
December 4, 2025
I thought the world and the concept were great, but needed some more fleshing out. I’m not a big sci-fi person, and making it longer probably would have put it in a heavier territory, but it felt a little rushed and not well explained. There is no interaction with the other colony, and the decision to go to this planet feels really rushed. There are a few flashback scenes, but I feel like if you’re going to make that decision you need to provide more or put it all out there in one scene.
I hated almost every character. They all claim to like each other but there really is no companionship, just a possessive need. I wish there was at least a spark of affection to start any of these relationships, rather than jumping to the toxic circumstances they’re in.
I just wanted a little more. It’s very short and definitely had room to add to the story. Or it could have been stripped down some and felt a little more complete. The middle ground this tries to be at doesn’t quite hit the mark
I hated almost every character. They all claim to like each other but there really is no companionship, just a possessive need. I wish there was at least a spark of affection to start any of these relationships, rather than jumping to the toxic circumstances they’re in.
I just wanted a little more. It’s very short and definitely had room to add to the story. Or it could have been stripped down some and felt a little more complete. The middle ground this tries to be at doesn’t quite hit the mark
February 20, 2025
A two star read not deserving of a rant but just dissappointment. Multiple problems for me, obvioulsy, most of which stems from Ashing-Giwa not really knowing what she wanted this book to be. Is it a romance, is it horror, is it sci-fi? Or is it a tepid piece of all of them. The romance was junior high school level with perhaps a bit of an interesting twist thrown in. The sci-fi was a combo of been there done that and not explained very well. The horror had the most potential but never really got going.
Strange that a two star does not put me off an author but it held enough promise that I will try another from her at some point.
Edit: Ok, hilariously, I have already read another of hers that I did like so my dementia ready brain is already taking a go at utter confusion.
Strange that a two star does not put me off an author but it held enough promise that I will try another from her at some point.
Edit: Ok, hilariously, I have already read another of hers that I did like so my dementia ready brain is already taking a go at utter confusion.
April 27, 2024
This book was such an interesting premise, and an absolutely stunning and vivid world with a couple of flaws and execution for my personal taste.
As far as the things that I loved about this book, it was extremely well written. The prose was lush and rich, and gave wonderful imagery for the planet and the characters. I love that the characters were flawed from the beginning, and their flaws played a major part in the storyline. I feel like a whole lot was accomplished within this shorter story and I feel like, this could definitely have been made into a longer book and I still would've read it. I was very interested in the Gray and I wish we had gotten more explanation of what that was.
I stuck through this book simply because the characters in the story were so well done that I had to know what happened at the end. But getting through it was difficult due to the numerous POV changes with literally no warning and the flashbacks to different points in time within the book that were just thrown in there with absolutely no warning as well. It made it very hard Whose point of view was from as well as whether or not I was reading the current timeline or in an alternate.
I was also surprised by some of the content that was in the book that was not depicted in the synopsis. I had no idea it was a forced poly relationship that was against the wants of the characters. I kind of wish that had been described better in the synopsis it made it sound like it was consensual. Overall, I was able to get past that, but it was kind of surprising.
Despite these inconsistencies within the writing, I really enjoyed the story and the characters and easily finished novel. I'd read more by the author.
As far as the things that I loved about this book, it was extremely well written. The prose was lush and rich, and gave wonderful imagery for the planet and the characters. I love that the characters were flawed from the beginning, and their flaws played a major part in the storyline. I feel like a whole lot was accomplished within this shorter story and I feel like, this could definitely have been made into a longer book and I still would've read it. I was very interested in the Gray and I wish we had gotten more explanation of what that was.
I stuck through this book simply because the characters in the story were so well done that I had to know what happened at the end. But getting through it was difficult due to the numerous POV changes with literally no warning and the flashbacks to different points in time within the book that were just thrown in there with absolutely no warning as well. It made it very hard Whose point of view was from as well as whether or not I was reading the current timeline or in an alternate.
I was also surprised by some of the content that was in the book that was not depicted in the synopsis. I had no idea it was a forced poly relationship that was against the wants of the characters. I kind of wish that had been described better in the synopsis it made it sound like it was consensual. Overall, I was able to get past that, but it was kind of surprising.
Despite these inconsistencies within the writing, I really enjoyed the story and the characters and easily finished novel. I'd read more by the author.
August 17, 2024
Nope. Got 42% of the way in and I want out. I usually love Tor titles but this one just isn't doing it for me. It's too heavily focused on the lives of two married women and the men their home colony "pairs" them with in order to propagate and keep the human species going after a rival settlement stole their genetic regeneration whatevers. Ugh. It oozes toxic relationship stuff when I thought it was going to ooze pissed off alien goop stuff.
There's a strong part of me that wants to continue pushing through just in case the focus shifts and crazy alien stuff starts happening because you know, DNFing is such a hard thing for me. But I'm going to try to fight the urge to keep picking it up...
... ... ... ... ... ... ...
... Ok, I am a weak DNFer. I picked it back up and finished it. It got better. Not immensely so, but right after the place I was going to DNF, the book did what I thought it was going to do and shifted focus.
Was it worth not DNFing? Eh. Am I glad I went back to it? Eh. But at least it's finished and I don't have to worry about whether I DNFd too soon and didn't give it a fair shot, right?!
There's a strong part of me that wants to continue pushing through just in case the focus shifts and crazy alien stuff starts happening because you know, DNFing is such a hard thing for me. But I'm going to try to fight the urge to keep picking it up...
... ... ... ... ... ... ...
... Ok, I am a weak DNFer. I picked it back up and finished it. It got better. Not immensely so, but right after the place I was going to DNF, the book did what I thought it was going to do and shifted focus.
Was it worth not DNFing? Eh. Am I glad I went back to it? Eh. But at least it's finished and I don't have to worry about whether I DNFd too soon and didn't give it a fair shot, right?!
Read
July 28, 2024Gotta love a slowly rising sense of inevitable doom with occasional flashes of gruesome and uncanny - it's an uncomfortably relevant mood, these days.
December 5, 2024
3.5 ⭐️ for the ending which managed to surprise me, even though i thought i saw it coming. uneven but i LOOOVE toxic yuri and i love narratives of love as obsessive cannibalism/embodiment . yummy
June 8, 2025
gay! gripping! gory! just what i want in a sci fi horror. kemi DELIVERS on the atmosphere once again. her stories just have that special vibe i am looking for.
January 5, 2025
I probably would have enjoyed this more had it been better written and the characters had their own POV instead of being cluttered together. Which made it confusing at times.
September 22, 2024
(3.75) if a grey sludge offered to rebirth me and unlock the secrets and powers of the planet and nature i would do it too!
May 27, 2024
3.5 stars.
I love codependency to a toxic degree!! Tied up with environmental horror and I’m sold.
I did enjoy the concepts here, but as I feel with many a novella, I could use more. Loved Vinh and Amara being absolutely awful for each other, recognizing that, and committing to each other even harder. Hot and cool, frankly. Jesse being the aroace addition to round out their group made for a fascinating dynamic. I, for one, don’t mind that the focus here is mostly on interpersonal relationships rather than the Gray. Overall though, do I know these people? Do I care about why they care about each other? Mm, meh, maybe. I know it’s hard to accomplish in this shorter format, but it end up just contributing to the “I-want-more”-ness of it all.
I kind of want more science stuff. I know the author is an actual genius scientist, but constructing an entirely new fictional ecosystem and biohazard undoubtedly makes it hard to flesh out 100%, but I’m SO interested in the aftermath. Will keep an eye out for more of her releases in the future regardless, as this hit so many things I crave in my reading.
Thanks NetGalley again ♡
I love codependency to a toxic degree!! Tied up with environmental horror and I’m sold.
I did enjoy the concepts here, but as I feel with many a novella, I could use more. Loved Vinh and Amara being absolutely awful for each other, recognizing that, and committing to each other even harder. Hot and cool, frankly. Jesse being the aroace addition to round out their group made for a fascinating dynamic. I, for one, don’t mind that the focus here is mostly on interpersonal relationships rather than the Gray. Overall though, do I know these people? Do I care about why they care about each other? Mm, meh, maybe. I know it’s hard to accomplish in this shorter format, but it end up just contributing to the “I-want-more”-ness of it all.
I kind of want more science stuff. I know the author is an actual genius scientist, but constructing an entirely new fictional ecosystem and biohazard undoubtedly makes it hard to flesh out 100%, but I’m SO interested in the aftermath. Will keep an eye out for more of her releases in the future regardless, as this hit so many things I crave in my reading.
Thanks NetGalley again ♡
September 18, 2024
2.25/2.50 rounded down
I’m not entirely sure what to make of this novella, I didn’t enjoy it nor did I find it particularly horrifying or scary. Confusing and focused, in my opinion , on all the wrong things. Jesse…was a character whose role I cannot begin to comprehend! I wanted to love this, I simply didn’t. Like someone else said, this would’ve made a better short story or full novel but struggles as a novella.
I’m not entirely sure what to make of this novella, I didn’t enjoy it nor did I find it particularly horrifying or scary. Confusing and focused, in my opinion , on all the wrong things. Jesse…was a character whose role I cannot begin to comprehend! I wanted to love this, I simply didn’t. Like someone else said, this would’ve made a better short story or full novel but struggles as a novella.
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