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The Silvers
This edition is no longer available. A revised 2nd edition is available HERE.
B, captain of the first crewed mission to the Silver Planet, does not think of the planet’s native race as people. Silvers may look human, but their emotional spectrum is severely limited. B allows his team to capture, study, and even kill the creatures. When B bonds with a Silver called Imms, everything changes. B’s not sure if Imms’s feelings are genuine or imitation, but B’s growing friendship with Imms becomes his anchor in a strange world. Following a shipboard fire that kills most of B’s team, B takes Imms back to Earth. He sanitizes the story of the fire—for which Imms bears some responsibility—so that Imms is recast as its hero rather than its cause. Life on Earth threatens the fragile connection between the two men. As Imms seeks independence from a bureaucracy that treats him like a test subject, he begins to experience the gamut of emotions—including a love B is frightened to return. And as B and Imms’s story about the fire threatens to unravel, Imms must use all he’s learned about being human to protect B.
B, captain of the first crewed mission to the Silver Planet, does not think of the planet’s native race as people. Silvers may look human, but their emotional spectrum is severely limited. B allows his team to capture, study, and even kill the creatures. When B bonds with a Silver called Imms, everything changes. B’s not sure if Imms’s feelings are genuine or imitation, but B’s growing friendship with Imms becomes his anchor in a strange world. Following a shipboard fire that kills most of B’s team, B takes Imms back to Earth. He sanitizes the story of the fire—for which Imms bears some responsibility—so that Imms is recast as its hero rather than its cause. Life on Earth threatens the fragile connection between the two men. As Imms seeks independence from a bureaucracy that treats him like a test subject, he begins to experience the gamut of emotions—including a love B is frightened to return. And as B and Imms’s story about the fire threatens to unravel, Imms must use all he’s learned about being human to protect B.
269 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 16, 2014
13 people are currently reading
457 people want to read
About the author
Jill Smith
1 book9 followersJill Smith grew up in Sandusky, Ohio. She holds an MFA in creative writing from the University of Alabama and a BA in theater arts from Case Western Reserve University. Jill currently lives in Chicago.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews
August 31, 2015
“a silver’s heart drifts through its body, bumping softly against walls and other organs. sometimes it’s illuminated, and you can see it beneath the bruised skin, floating along like a lantern underwater.”
and just like that, i knew the hand at the tiller was sure.
this book is amazing.
so much subtle craft in the characterization i was left gobsmacked in admiration.
an alien behaving more humanely than a human is no novelty—but here, smith manages the ridiculously difficult feat of writing every character with the same thoughtful depth and richness and the capacity to surprise or appall you—all of them in a state of constant flux—acting and reacting to one another, changing...
...growing.
y'know.
like real human people.
a terrific story with marvelous tension and powerful imagery as boldly stark as it is beautiful.
the best sci-fi stories use the fantastical to remind us of the reality of who we are today, the hope of who we may become tomorrow, and the shame of who we were yesterday.
this is one such story.
without any hesitation whatsoever: recommended.
and just like that, i knew the hand at the tiller was sure.
this book is amazing.
so much subtle craft in the characterization i was left gobsmacked in admiration.
an alien behaving more humanely than a human is no novelty—but here, smith manages the ridiculously difficult feat of writing every character with the same thoughtful depth and richness and the capacity to surprise or appall you—all of them in a state of constant flux—acting and reacting to one another, changing...
...growing.
y'know.
like real human people.
a terrific story with marvelous tension and powerful imagery as boldly stark as it is beautiful.
the best sci-fi stories use the fantastical to remind us of the reality of who we are today, the hope of who we may become tomorrow, and the shame of who we were yesterday.
this is one such story.
without any hesitation whatsoever: recommended.
April 5, 2016
“a silver’s heart drifts through its body, bumping softly against walls and other organs. sometimes it’s illuminated, and you can see it beneath the bruised skin, floating along like a lantern underwater.”
and just like that, i knew the hand at the tiller was sure.
this book is amazing.
so much subtle craft in the characterization i was left gobsmacked in admiration.
an alien behaving more humanely than a human is no novelty—but here, rock manages the ridiculously difficult feat of writing every character with the same thoughtful depth and richness and the capacity to surprise or appall you—all of them in a state of constant flux—acting and reacting to one another, changing...
...growing.
y'know.
like real human people.
a terrific story with marvelous tension and powerful imagery as boldly stark as it is beautiful.
the best sci-fi stories use the fantastical to remind us of the reality of who we are today, the hope of who we may become tomorrow, and the shame of who we were yesterday.
this is one such story.
without any hesitation whatsoever: recommended.
and just like that, i knew the hand at the tiller was sure.
this book is amazing.
so much subtle craft in the characterization i was left gobsmacked in admiration.
an alien behaving more humanely than a human is no novelty—but here, rock manages the ridiculously difficult feat of writing every character with the same thoughtful depth and richness and the capacity to surprise or appall you—all of them in a state of constant flux—acting and reacting to one another, changing...
...growing.
y'know.
like real human people.
a terrific story with marvelous tension and powerful imagery as boldly stark as it is beautiful.
the best sci-fi stories use the fantastical to remind us of the reality of who we are today, the hope of who we may become tomorrow, and the shame of who we were yesterday.
this is one such story.
without any hesitation whatsoever: recommended.
July 14, 2016
It could have been but it wasn’t.
I can’t really decide what to think about this book.
This novel is depressing. It’s grey. It’s full of those inexplicable gaps experimental movies from the 60-70s had in order to show off their supposed intellectuality and fanciness. Those movies that usually end up making you roll your eyes with all that enormous effort to give that façade an philosophical and existential background that explains it all when indeed it’s not that profound. Moments and scenes thrown at you so you figure it all yourself what it all means, the creator saying it’s art, saying nothing at all so you put the pieces together in your head.
That’s fun when it’s intelligently done, when the author gives you enough clues so as it doesn’t feel like cheating for the reader, but also not too many, so as to maintain the mystery and the sense of wonder.
It’s happened to me in movies. But I can count those with the fingers of one hand. When the ending is coming and I still don’t understand. And suddenly a sentence, or a glance, or a gesture, from one of the characters, makes it all pristine and clear like water. Suddenly I feel blood pumping in my ears, louder than the music flooding into them. Suddenly everything fits and everything makes sense. Like a blindfold being untied and watching your reflection on the mirrow after a very long time.
The problem is that most people fuck it up. And it results in this arrogant and pretentious shell.
That’s exactly what happened to me. Here I was “What the hell has happened?”, “I don’t understand”, “Why don’t they talk, why don’t they communicate, for God’s sake?”. I guess this book kind of shows a meant-to-be relationship that seems to be doomed before it starts and unavoidably and slowly coming to an end. Until it’s not, until there is a turn that makes it all right again. Like a car that just needed fixing so it begins working smoothly at last and then it can carry you everywhere. Then everything seems possible. With the exception that I never really felt this was a meant-to-be relationship, I never felt this shouldn’t come to an end. I felt the car should be broken forever. This love story was depressing and grey to me. Like I don’t really gasp where is the magic in this, I don’t find the magic in them being together and belonging to each other.
It’s kind of frustrating when someone writes a book like this one. Those minutes of your time when you are left thinking about something that shouldn’t be a mystery at all. Minutes which could have not been wasted if the author ever cared about investing her time, not mine, in giving one or two or more conscientious paragraphs so I could understand the characters and their motivations. So I could understand their evolution and their hopeless feeling of an ending approaching.
I feel so profoundly cheated I don’t even know what to begin with.
B is a scientist studying the Silvers in their planet, whose behaviour arises more questions than not. They are a curious mix of dogs, kids and robots. They look like humans, but don’t have the whole human emotional spectrum. Their world is dichromatic and dull to human standards.
B finds a moribund Silver close to their spaceship, and saves him. He doesn’t know why, as no Silver has ever made him worry about them before. But he saves him.
I didn’t understand the pull towards each other. If it ever existed.
I felt nauseated, in fact. I felt B was a rapist, a molester. I felt uncomforable in his presence, in his head. I couldn’t shake the feeling that we has taking advantage of Imms’ innocence and purity. B struck me as a cold and distanced bastard. And what happens in the following pages doesn’t make me like or love him whatsoever.
The author intended to build a character with issues, with problems in dealing with his emotions, a character that needs saving, a character only Imms’ selflessness could read and save. But I only felt repulse and rejection. I never learnt to comprehend B, I never wanted to save him. I never understood why he lets Imms suffer, why he lets them both suffer.
I only wanted for Imms to be happy, to feel loved, to feel cocooned. But B never fulfilled that role. B was there for him but he wasn’t there at all.
Imms, on the other hand, represents the culmination of the human being in all senses of the word. He’s not human, but he’s more human than most. He doesn’t feel anger or jealousy, but he gets to know them quickly while on Earth. He’s awed at the variety of colors, of tastes, of sounds on Earth. I could live every little discovery with him, like the wise/crazy man coming out from the cave for the first time in his life and learning what real food tastes like. Like a The Matrix without a defined purpose, because life is like that.
And I absolutely loved how the “after” is displayed. Once the Earth knows he’s there, there are questions, anger, anxiety, wonder, and above them all, there is fear. And when the human being fears something, they want to control it, to defeat it, to govern it. I liked seeing how he is watched and required to make test after test in the scientific facility, how people manipulate B and Imms into indulging them, or else. How people “dehumanize” a non-human being.
I loved the TV programs, the Halloween disguises, the kid pictures, the alien coming into a restaurant or a grocery story or a big cat shelter and saying “hello”. The reactions he provokes with his mere presence but also the ones people answer with just with interacting with them. Family, videogames, Christmas, dogs, cliff diving and other unimaginable activities he sees everywhere and they are all normal and they are all amazing. Above all, I loved seeing it all through his eyes.
Maybe I love E.T. too much.
What I couldn’t comprehend was the desperation to be together. The “rightness” of being together. The love story. It was unbalanced, unhealthy, un-everything. It was missing, it was wrong.
So, yes, the book is not exactly a bad book, and that’s what upsets me the most. This book has a good premise, and the writing is very good, so it’s disheartening seeing the result. The failing in the execution. Or maybe it’s meant to be that way and I’m simply not supplied with the proper antennas to catch these intangible waves.
*****
*****
Tag Review with Cupkita!
***Copy provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.***
I can’t really decide what to think about this book.
This novel is depressing. It’s grey. It’s full of those inexplicable gaps experimental movies from the 60-70s had in order to show off their supposed intellectuality and fanciness. Those movies that usually end up making you roll your eyes with all that enormous effort to give that façade an philosophical and existential background that explains it all when indeed it’s not that profound. Moments and scenes thrown at you so you figure it all yourself what it all means, the creator saying it’s art, saying nothing at all so you put the pieces together in your head.
That’s fun when it’s intelligently done, when the author gives you enough clues so as it doesn’t feel like cheating for the reader, but also not too many, so as to maintain the mystery and the sense of wonder.
It’s happened to me in movies. But I can count those with the fingers of one hand. When the ending is coming and I still don’t understand. And suddenly a sentence, or a glance, or a gesture, from one of the characters, makes it all pristine and clear like water. Suddenly I feel blood pumping in my ears, louder than the music flooding into them. Suddenly everything fits and everything makes sense. Like a blindfold being untied and watching your reflection on the mirrow after a very long time.
The problem is that most people fuck it up. And it results in this arrogant and pretentious shell.
That’s exactly what happened to me. Here I was “What the hell has happened?”, “I don’t understand”, “Why don’t they talk, why don’t they communicate, for God’s sake?”. I guess this book kind of shows a meant-to-be relationship that seems to be doomed before it starts and unavoidably and slowly coming to an end. Until it’s not, until there is a turn that makes it all right again. Like a car that just needed fixing so it begins working smoothly at last and then it can carry you everywhere. Then everything seems possible. With the exception that I never really felt this was a meant-to-be relationship, I never felt this shouldn’t come to an end. I felt the car should be broken forever. This love story was depressing and grey to me. Like I don’t really gasp where is the magic in this, I don’t find the magic in them being together and belonging to each other.
It’s kind of frustrating when someone writes a book like this one. Those minutes of your time when you are left thinking about something that shouldn’t be a mystery at all. Minutes which could have not been wasted if the author ever cared about investing her time, not mine, in giving one or two or more conscientious paragraphs so I could understand the characters and their motivations. So I could understand their evolution and their hopeless feeling of an ending approaching.
I feel so profoundly cheated I don’t even know what to begin with.
B is a scientist studying the Silvers in their planet, whose behaviour arises more questions than not. They are a curious mix of dogs, kids and robots. They look like humans, but don’t have the whole human emotional spectrum. Their world is dichromatic and dull to human standards.
B finds a moribund Silver close to their spaceship, and saves him. He doesn’t know why, as no Silver has ever made him worry about them before. But he saves him.
I didn’t understand the pull towards each other. If it ever existed.
I felt nauseated, in fact. I felt B was a rapist, a molester. I felt uncomforable in his presence, in his head. I couldn’t shake the feeling that we has taking advantage of Imms’ innocence and purity. B struck me as a cold and distanced bastard. And what happens in the following pages doesn’t make me like or love him whatsoever.
The author intended to build a character with issues, with problems in dealing with his emotions, a character that needs saving, a character only Imms’ selflessness could read and save. But I only felt repulse and rejection. I never learnt to comprehend B, I never wanted to save him. I never understood why he lets Imms suffer, why he lets them both suffer.
I only wanted for Imms to be happy, to feel loved, to feel cocooned. But B never fulfilled that role. B was there for him but he wasn’t there at all.
Imms, on the other hand, represents the culmination of the human being in all senses of the word. He’s not human, but he’s more human than most. He doesn’t feel anger or jealousy, but he gets to know them quickly while on Earth. He’s awed at the variety of colors, of tastes, of sounds on Earth. I could live every little discovery with him, like the wise/crazy man coming out from the cave for the first time in his life and learning what real food tastes like. Like a The Matrix without a defined purpose, because life is like that.
And I absolutely loved how the “after” is displayed. Once the Earth knows he’s there, there are questions, anger, anxiety, wonder, and above them all, there is fear. And when the human being fears something, they want to control it, to defeat it, to govern it. I liked seeing how he is watched and required to make test after test in the scientific facility, how people manipulate B and Imms into indulging them, or else. How people “dehumanize” a non-human being.
I loved the TV programs, the Halloween disguises, the kid pictures, the alien coming into a restaurant or a grocery story or a big cat shelter and saying “hello”. The reactions he provokes with his mere presence but also the ones people answer with just with interacting with them. Family, videogames, Christmas, dogs, cliff diving and other unimaginable activities he sees everywhere and they are all normal and they are all amazing. Above all, I loved seeing it all through his eyes.
Maybe I love E.T. too much.
What I couldn’t comprehend was the desperation to be together. The “rightness” of being together. The love story. It was unbalanced, unhealthy, un-everything. It was missing, it was wrong.
So, yes, the book is not exactly a bad book, and that’s what upsets me the most. This book has a good premise, and the writing is very good, so it’s disheartening seeing the result. The failing in the execution. Or maybe it’s meant to be that way and I’m simply not supplied with the proper antennas to catch these intangible waves.
*****
*****
Tag Review with Cupkita!
***Copy provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.***
Read
November 24, 2021ALL THE STARS. YOU SHOULD READ THIS.
I’m going to start this review by saying simply: you should read this book. As in the right the heck now. Go.
While technically queer SF rather than m/m romance, The Silvers is sci-fi in the speculative, rather than sciency sense. It’s a story about otherworlds that is actually about inner worlds, and an exploration of some very human ideas: love and freedom, and the compromises we make for them. While the “introduction of an alien to teach us about ourselves, ah d’you see” is a common enough sfnal premise, The Silvers does it exceptionally well.
It’s partially the writing, which possesses a stark and devastating poetry, partially the fundamental nature of the themes themselves and the book's commitment to them, but also the unusual intimacy of its focus. For a story about the meeting of two alien cultures, it’s really only about one alien and one human, and they ways they change, ruin and save each other. It’s not in the conventional sense a romance, but it is a story about love (among other things). It’s also unflinchingly harsh and unflinchingly hopeful at the same time – my heart didn’t quite know what to do with itself while I was reading, though by the end I was simply celebrating that this book exists.
A Silver’s heart drifts through its body, bumping softly against walls and other organs. Sometimes it’s illuminated, and you can see it beneath the bruised skin, floating along like a lantern underwater.
I’m going to start this review by saying simply: you should read this book. As in the right the heck now. Go.
While technically queer SF rather than m/m romance, The Silvers is sci-fi in the speculative, rather than sciency sense. It’s a story about otherworlds that is actually about inner worlds, and an exploration of some very human ideas: love and freedom, and the compromises we make for them. While the “introduction of an alien to teach us about ourselves, ah d’you see” is a common enough sfnal premise, The Silvers does it exceptionally well.
It’s partially the writing, which possesses a stark and devastating poetry, partially the fundamental nature of the themes themselves and the book's commitment to them, but also the unusual intimacy of its focus. For a story about the meeting of two alien cultures, it’s really only about one alien and one human, and they ways they change, ruin and save each other. It’s not in the conventional sense a romance, but it is a story about love (among other things). It’s also unflinchingly harsh and unflinchingly hopeful at the same time – my heart didn’t quite know what to do with itself while I was reading, though by the end I was simply celebrating that this book exists.
September 9, 2016
I have incredibly mixed emotions about this book. While I read the story quickly and thought that it was well-written, I can't say that I truly enjoyed the book. I had a lot of issues with it, which I'll try to fully explain.
If you are looking for a romance, I don't think you'll find it here. There is a love story... sort of... in the context of a sci-fi book, but the love story was almost painful for me to read. Imms, the Silver character, and B, one of the astronauts, end up in a relationship of sorts. They are romantically involved, but the relationship is fraught with tension and almost abusive-like tendencies. I did NOT enjoy the relationship between Imms and B, and I'm not sure if we are really supposed to. I still can't tell, even after finishing the story, if the romance was supposed to just highlight the way we to try to change and push people (or aliens, in this case) into little boxes, of if the relationship was actually supposed to be viewed as romantic. I can't tell! I found Imms's situation to be sad, dangerous, and unfulfilling, and I sort of hated B, even though the author lets us know of his "good intentions."
And their sexual relationship was really difficult for me. I felt like Imms was asexual, or at least on the asexual spectrum, and that he got nearly no enjoyment out of sex. Whenever Imms has sex, he is doing so to make B happy, and I didn't get any sense of sexual desire from him. I was disturbed by the whole thing, and it actually read a little non/dub-con to me.
I also found the whole plot, with the assorted family issues and political troubles, to be greatly depressing. There is a real reason that I prefer romance, and that reason is that I don't like reading about families/couples arguing all the time. I just don't. I don't like a lot of conflict and drama, and that doesn't mean that I like simple books with no tension. I simply just don't like when reading a book makes me feel crappy inside. This book made me feel crappy inside.
What kept me going with this book was the very interesting world that J.A. Rock created. The world-building and concept for this story were excellent, and I was impressed with the author's imagination. I admired this book a lot, and though I sort of wanted to stop reading, I found myself not able to stop until the end. In fact, I stayed up waaaay late to finish it.
There was a lot of depth to this story, but I think that I just wasn't the correct type of reader to appreciate it. I can see what other see in this one, but I left this story feeling mopey and upset, which isn't what I strive for in my leisure reading.
*Copy provided in exchange for an honest review*
If you are looking for a romance, I don't think you'll find it here. There is a love story... sort of... in the context of a sci-fi book, but the love story was almost painful for me to read. Imms, the Silver character, and B, one of the astronauts, end up in a relationship of sorts. They are romantically involved, but the relationship is fraught with tension and almost abusive-like tendencies. I did NOT enjoy the relationship between Imms and B, and I'm not sure if we are really supposed to. I still can't tell, even after finishing the story, if the romance was supposed to just highlight the way we to try to change and push people (or aliens, in this case) into little boxes, of if the relationship was actually supposed to be viewed as romantic. I can't tell! I found Imms's situation to be sad, dangerous, and unfulfilling, and I sort of hated B, even though the author lets us know of his "good intentions."
And their sexual relationship was really difficult for me. I felt like Imms was asexual, or at least on the asexual spectrum, and that he got nearly no enjoyment out of sex. Whenever Imms has sex, he is doing so to make B happy, and I didn't get any sense of sexual desire from him. I was disturbed by the whole thing, and it actually read a little non/dub-con to me.
I also found the whole plot, with the assorted family issues and political troubles, to be greatly depressing. There is a real reason that I prefer romance, and that reason is that I don't like reading about families/couples arguing all the time. I just don't. I don't like a lot of conflict and drama, and that doesn't mean that I like simple books with no tension. I simply just don't like when reading a book makes me feel crappy inside. This book made me feel crappy inside.
What kept me going with this book was the very interesting world that J.A. Rock created. The world-building and concept for this story were excellent, and I was impressed with the author's imagination. I admired this book a lot, and though I sort of wanted to stop reading, I found myself not able to stop until the end. In fact, I stayed up waaaay late to finish it.
There was a lot of depth to this story, but I think that I just wasn't the correct type of reader to appreciate it. I can see what other see in this one, but I left this story feeling mopey and upset, which isn't what I strive for in my leisure reading.
*Copy provided in exchange for an honest review*
December 11, 2015
Re-read on 12/11/2015
I don't do much rereading in general. Mostly because I'm always looking for the next great read, which won't happen if I keep digging into the past. But my revisit to The Silvers was a reminder that the next great read can be something you've already read before. Something to re-experience.
I love this book to death.
But upon my second read, I noticed how unconventional the relationship is (and I'm not just talking about interspecies romance). I think we get caught up in all the endearments and typical ways that love is portrayed, that we forget that it can be witnessed in all the pain and grief and loneliness that comes from it.
This isn't necessarily a happy book. But it's a very honest one, that IS romantic, but not in the conventional sense. It's a book that puts much hope on the future after realizing that some forms of love blossom in isolation from the rest of the world.
A love under bright earth and dark skies.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Original review: 5/11/2014
Rating: 4.5 stars
The Silvers is divided into two parts. Part 1 takes place on the the Silvers planet, where Captain B and his crew of men and women are responsible for preliminary investigation of an unknown lifeform named Silvers. Humanoid with skin the color of their namesake, and eyes like glass, Silvers are an enigma to humans with their inability to feel hatred.
Captain B hates them.
This is just the beginning though, and one Silver among many (named Imms) forms a tenuous relationship with the good Captain.
Part 2 comprises the majority of the book, and takes place on planet Earth. It deals mostly with Imms trying to acclimate to Earth, the political impact of his integration into society, his relationship with B and B's family, and self discovery into his own identity.
What makes The Silvers such a magnificent book? To me, it was Jill Smith's ability to create a book that gives us so many different facets of being an outsider looking in. Imms is such an interesting character, with thoughts and concepts that make many quote-worthy moments to highlight on my ereader. You see a change in his character, and his own conception of “self” that by the time you've reached the last two chapters of Part 2, you can't help but be amazed at the full circle Imms has made. How a 360 degree turn doesn't always mean you're back at the beginning, but at a new starting point.
But then there was also B. I couldn't figure him out. He came off as a simple, two-dimensional character during Part 1. But the dynamics between the Silvers planet and Earth scrambled something in his character. He became something else, and I couldn't put my finger on it. His motivations, his desires, the hollowness in going through the motions that screams for the desire to just be lost. All of a sudden, his emptiness was a well of gravity sucking me in beyond his event horizon. And while he isn't by any means the most original or complex character I've ever read, he had a certain magnetism that made me crave reading the portions told from his POV.
There was also a nice cast of characters surrounding B and Imms. Jill Smith did a good job at including these characters and making them great secondary characters without taking the spotlight away from Imms.
The biggest complaint I have with this novel was the amount of time it took to acclimate Imms to Earth. Most of Part 2 seemed to be Imms just doing human things with one of the characters in the book (usually, Brid) with some very interesting introspective thinking from Imms himself. It kept the book from becoming boring (Imms thoughts, I mean), but I felt these moments could have been shorter to keep the pace going. I also wished there was more Imms and B interaction in Part 2. A lot of the interaction that takes place is usually with Imms and a secondary character, but by the end, the focus was back on the two main MCs (thank goodness).
I should also through out there that there is no explicit sex in this book. It's all fade-in-the-dark and off-page stuff, but I could have cared less. And that takes a lot for a pervert like me to admit, but the book was so smart and thoughtful, I couldn't imagine it being any other way. There is also a lack of action, so don't expect guns blazing, and exploding factory buildings.
Instead, The Silvers is a book of exploration into one's identity. About one's own contradictions and realizing the cost of reaching that ending beyond The End.
I never heard of this author before, but I'm definitely keeping my eyes open for her future releases.
“When you live in one big dream about the future, you can justify your disdain for the present. And the dream of the future ends at achievement, at gratification – it never goes as far as consequences.”
I don't do much rereading in general. Mostly because I'm always looking for the next great read, which won't happen if I keep digging into the past. But my revisit to The Silvers was a reminder that the next great read can be something you've already read before. Something to re-experience.
I love this book to death.
But upon my second read, I noticed how unconventional the relationship is (and I'm not just talking about interspecies romance). I think we get caught up in all the endearments and typical ways that love is portrayed, that we forget that it can be witnessed in all the pain and grief and loneliness that comes from it.
This isn't necessarily a happy book. But it's a very honest one, that IS romantic, but not in the conventional sense. It's a book that puts much hope on the future after realizing that some forms of love blossom in isolation from the rest of the world.
A love under bright earth and dark skies.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Original review: 5/11/2014
Rating: 4.5 stars
The Silvers is divided into two parts. Part 1 takes place on the the Silvers planet, where Captain B and his crew of men and women are responsible for preliminary investigation of an unknown lifeform named Silvers. Humanoid with skin the color of their namesake, and eyes like glass, Silvers are an enigma to humans with their inability to feel hatred.
Captain B hates them.
This is just the beginning though, and one Silver among many (named Imms) forms a tenuous relationship with the good Captain.
Part 2 comprises the majority of the book, and takes place on planet Earth. It deals mostly with Imms trying to acclimate to Earth, the political impact of his integration into society, his relationship with B and B's family, and self discovery into his own identity.
What makes The Silvers such a magnificent book? To me, it was Jill Smith's ability to create a book that gives us so many different facets of being an outsider looking in. Imms is such an interesting character, with thoughts and concepts that make many quote-worthy moments to highlight on my ereader. You see a change in his character, and his own conception of “self” that by the time you've reached the last two chapters of Part 2, you can't help but be amazed at the full circle Imms has made. How a 360 degree turn doesn't always mean you're back at the beginning, but at a new starting point.
But then there was also B. I couldn't figure him out. He came off as a simple, two-dimensional character during Part 1. But the dynamics between the Silvers planet and Earth scrambled something in his character. He became something else, and I couldn't put my finger on it. His motivations, his desires, the hollowness in going through the motions that screams for the desire to just be lost. All of a sudden, his emptiness was a well of gravity sucking me in beyond his event horizon. And while he isn't by any means the most original or complex character I've ever read, he had a certain magnetism that made me crave reading the portions told from his POV.
There was also a nice cast of characters surrounding B and Imms. Jill Smith did a good job at including these characters and making them great secondary characters without taking the spotlight away from Imms.
The biggest complaint I have with this novel was the amount of time it took to acclimate Imms to Earth. Most of Part 2 seemed to be Imms just doing human things with one of the characters in the book (usually, Brid) with some very interesting introspective thinking from Imms himself. It kept the book from becoming boring (Imms thoughts, I mean), but I felt these moments could have been shorter to keep the pace going. I also wished there was more Imms and B interaction in Part 2. A lot of the interaction that takes place is usually with Imms and a secondary character, but by the end, the focus was back on the two main MCs (thank goodness).
I should also through out there that there is no explicit sex in this book. It's all fade-in-the-dark and off-page stuff, but I could have cared less. And that takes a lot for a pervert like me to admit, but the book was so smart and thoughtful, I couldn't imagine it being any other way. There is also a lack of action, so don't expect guns blazing, and exploding factory buildings.
Instead, The Silvers is a book of exploration into one's identity. About one's own contradictions and realizing the cost of reaching that ending beyond The End.
I never heard of this author before, but I'm definitely keeping my eyes open for her future releases.
“When you live in one big dream about the future, you can justify your disdain for the present. And the dream of the future ends at achievement, at gratification – it never goes as far as consequences.”
October 28, 2014
A different, hang on tight read.
A thoughtful reflection of us with all that that entails.
Shades of Grey vs Colour
Quiet vs Noise
Calm vs Emotions
Alone vs Love, family, togetherness
Openess vs Hidden
The juxtaposition presented by The Silvers and humans continues throughout the book, showcasing what being human means. What freedoms we give up to enter the cage of togetherness, where might is most often right. How our idols turn out to have feet of clay and how we are all in the same boat, all floundering about and that’s ok and that we all have possibilities to be heroes, to rise up and stand and do.
Being human means a lot of different cages, Imms thinks. Caught beneath covers, between walls. Bounded by yards, towns, regions, countries. Even the human heart is shrouded in ribs.
I had to deal with a feeling of apprehension throughout the book because I did not trust humans, I did not trust us. I know this sounds bad. But knowing our history, reading our newspapers, would you trust us as far as you could throw us. Sorry I cannot. But then I realised that there is always a price to pay, that I cannot have what is beautiful here without a bit of the sad bits, the dangerous, the painful. It’s all mixed up together and I just have to take a step after another, try to avoid the pitfalls, get up when I fall and continue.
This journey will be different. He will not be alone. He will keep his eyes open as much as he can. To see the color, the life. The danger.
BR with Irina 21.10.14 - thankyou for star gazing with me Ira
July 9, 2016
This is one of the books that you could spend ages thinking about, talking about... WOW! This was awesome!
A Silver's heart drifts through its body, bumping softly against walls and other organs. Sometimes it's illuminated, and you can see it beneath the bruised skin, floating along like a lantern underwater.
Silvers go into the ground and into lakes. They avoid danger. They run from humans. They are fast, good at vanishing, at closing their eyes, at pretending there is no danger.
On the Silver Planet, nobody says what they are thankful for. If you are thankful for someone, you curl up next to them. You take their hand.
Silver children stay underwater for eight years. Nobody knows what happens to them during that time. Some of them never resurface. The ones who do don't remember.
Once, long ago, Imms went into the water. He closed his eyes. He breathed only when necessary. He didn't mind the cold.
This journey will be different. He will not be alone. He will keep his eyes open as much as he can. To see the color, the life. The danger.
That is all... Enjoy! :-)
Kidding.
Somehow, very few have read 'The Silvers', but those who have usually absolutely love it. Not one of my friends didn't like it and there isn't a single one-star rating on GR. I'd say the reason for the lack in popularity is that somehow people do not like to read science fiction. Yeah, right... Why is that?
I must say, I haven't read a book—a contemporary book—that has taught me as much about life, about love, about myself as 'The Silvers' for a really long time. So, for all of you who feel scifi is but a ridiculous construct of the mind, you are wrong. There is so much in this book, I don't even know where to start.
What was absolutely mind-blowing, challenging, funny, sad, cute, and so, so loveable was the alien race, the Silvers, and especially Imms, in whose head we are most of the time.
If you want to learn about yourself, you often have to get a view from the outside—funny how I just read an essay about this for my studies today—because you are often blind to what makes you special. In 'The Silvers' this is done is such a smart and eye-opening way, it was heart-breaking the one minute and had me laugh out loud the other.
Imms is someone really special, so I think you should meet him. These are some of my favourite quotes. I know they are a bit random, but they show his personality, and also the stunning writing and choice of words.
I didn't mean to shut it [a drone from earth] off. It was following me, and it fell off the rocks. It seemed hurt, so I thought it might help to put it in the water.
Imms forgets about the fire, about death, because there is a future waiting for him in a place no Silver has been before, a place Alone can't find.
Imms discovers he hates people laughing when he is not.
Imms also thinks he sometimes likes to make B just a little angry because he enjoys the contrast when B is kind later.
So he says he wants B inside him. He says B can be a little rough, because B likes that, and sometimes Imms does, too—likes the ways something they both want can hurt only one of them, and the way he can keep that pain a secret, pretend it's something else.
He's wanted to dream for a long time, but now that he has, he hopes he never does again. It is too cruel, the tricks the mind plays when it slips out for the night.
I guess you see that I could go on and on :-) I'm restraining myself, really...
I love how Imms thinks completely different to us, how he is good and selfless. Meeting humans, coming to Earth... it rubs off on him. He learns and experiments with feelings and reactions. He learns to protect himself, to stop running away. I think I'm in love. And I think B doesn't deserve him and I want him for myself. But when I think about it, probably no one is good enough for Imms :-/
It's amazing, though, how this book doesn't come off as preaching or condescending. Not at all.
Since I've already approached the topic of Imms's and B's relationship... Let's start with this song text that Imms listens to in the book:
Your love is all kinds of poisonous,
Your touch, the rush of heat
On this night,
It's right,
My body is lit with the delight of us.
You're all kinds of poisonous.
For me, this is just perfect. It describes what Imms and B have together brilliantly. I was and still am torn because I can't figure out if I want them together or not. I mean, this was definitely a good deal for B, but... this was also kinda the only possible deal for Imms, and yes, I think it was all kinds of poisonous, but it was also right. I didn't love this book for the romance, and yet I did. The sex was also nearly non-existent and not overly descriptive, and it wasn't romantic, and I'm glad, actually. This is not a traditional love story, yet it is one.
I'm coming to the end now, since I've already written so much. Feel free to talk to me in the comments, though, since there is much I could still talk about. I want to add that I loved the present tense writing, there are great secondary characters, and the world and character building is superb. The plot, the story, that ending... it was amazing. I won't forget this book, ever. Highly recommended and all the stars.
***
Halfway through, I decided to find out more about the author, and was devastated because it seemed 'The Silvers' was Jill Smith's only book. —> :-( That was me!
But I am happy to know now and be able to announce that Jill Smith is J.A Rock :-) Squeeeeee :-) Not only have I already read some of her work with Lisa Henry, I also already own two of her co-written books, and can now look forward to more goodness. —> :-) That is me now! Happy dance...
A Silver's heart drifts through its body, bumping softly against walls and other organs. Sometimes it's illuminated, and you can see it beneath the bruised skin, floating along like a lantern underwater.
Silvers go into the ground and into lakes. They avoid danger. They run from humans. They are fast, good at vanishing, at closing their eyes, at pretending there is no danger.
On the Silver Planet, nobody says what they are thankful for. If you are thankful for someone, you curl up next to them. You take their hand.
Silver children stay underwater for eight years. Nobody knows what happens to them during that time. Some of them never resurface. The ones who do don't remember.
Once, long ago, Imms went into the water. He closed his eyes. He breathed only when necessary. He didn't mind the cold.
This journey will be different. He will not be alone. He will keep his eyes open as much as he can. To see the color, the life. The danger.
That is all... Enjoy! :-)
Kidding.
Somehow, very few have read 'The Silvers', but those who have usually absolutely love it. Not one of my friends didn't like it and there isn't a single one-star rating on GR. I'd say the reason for the lack in popularity is that somehow people do not like to read science fiction. Yeah, right... Why is that?
I must say, I haven't read a book—a contemporary book—that has taught me as much about life, about love, about myself as 'The Silvers' for a really long time. So, for all of you who feel scifi is but a ridiculous construct of the mind, you are wrong. There is so much in this book, I don't even know where to start.
What was absolutely mind-blowing, challenging, funny, sad, cute, and so, so loveable was the alien race, the Silvers, and especially Imms, in whose head we are most of the time.
If you want to learn about yourself, you often have to get a view from the outside—funny how I just read an essay about this for my studies today—because you are often blind to what makes you special. In 'The Silvers' this is done is such a smart and eye-opening way, it was heart-breaking the one minute and had me laugh out loud the other.
Imms is someone really special, so I think you should meet him. These are some of my favourite quotes. I know they are a bit random, but they show his personality, and also the stunning writing and choice of words.
I didn't mean to shut it [a drone from earth] off. It was following me, and it fell off the rocks. It seemed hurt, so I thought it might help to put it in the water.
Imms forgets about the fire, about death, because there is a future waiting for him in a place no Silver has been before, a place Alone can't find.
Imms discovers he hates people laughing when he is not.
Imms also thinks he sometimes likes to make B just a little angry because he enjoys the contrast when B is kind later.
So he says he wants B inside him. He says B can be a little rough, because B likes that, and sometimes Imms does, too—likes the ways something they both want can hurt only one of them, and the way he can keep that pain a secret, pretend it's something else.
He's wanted to dream for a long time, but now that he has, he hopes he never does again. It is too cruel, the tricks the mind plays when it slips out for the night.
I guess you see that I could go on and on :-) I'm restraining myself, really...
I love how Imms thinks completely different to us, how he is good and selfless. Meeting humans, coming to Earth... it rubs off on him. He learns and experiments with feelings and reactions. He learns to protect himself, to stop running away. I think I'm in love. And I think B doesn't deserve him and I want him for myself. But when I think about it, probably no one is good enough for Imms :-/
It's amazing, though, how this book doesn't come off as preaching or condescending. Not at all.
Since I've already approached the topic of Imms's and B's relationship... Let's start with this song text that Imms listens to in the book:
Your love is all kinds of poisonous,
Your touch, the rush of heat
On this night,
It's right,
My body is lit with the delight of us.
You're all kinds of poisonous.
For me, this is just perfect. It describes what Imms and B have together brilliantly. I was and still am torn because I can't figure out if I want them together or not. I mean, this was definitely a good deal for B, but... this was also kinda the only possible deal for Imms, and yes, I think it was all kinds of poisonous, but it was also right. I didn't love this book for the romance, and yet I did. The sex was also nearly non-existent and not overly descriptive, and it wasn't romantic, and I'm glad, actually. This is not a traditional love story, yet it is one.
I'm coming to the end now, since I've already written so much. Feel free to talk to me in the comments, though, since there is much I could still talk about. I want to add that I loved the present tense writing, there are great secondary characters, and the world and character building is superb. The plot, the story, that ending... it was amazing. I won't forget this book, ever. Highly recommended and all the stars.
***
Halfway through, I decided to find out more about the author, and was devastated because it seemed 'The Silvers' was Jill Smith's only book. —> :-( That was me!
But I am happy to know now and be able to announce that Jill Smith is J.A Rock :-) Squeeeeee :-) Not only have I already read some of her work with Lisa Henry, I also already own two of her co-written books, and can now look forward to more goodness. —> :-) That is me now! Happy dance...
October 28, 2014
My mum always said that kids are so pure and unpolluted by lies and deception that you can read every emotion on their faces like an open book. They are innocent, honest, trusting and unconditional. They are like a clean sheet of paper that gets filled up slowly. That's Imms. But he is not a child. He is a Silver.
He was born on the Silver Planet, where people resemble humans in their looks but are void of many vital human emotions, such as anger, jealousy, grief, love. Their life is simple under the black sky. There are no colours on Silver Planet.
B is a human captain of the team of scientists researching the newly discovered population on the different planet. Silvers might have meant nothing more to him than a project but when he meets Imms, B starts questioning his previous beliefs.
This book has made me hurt. It had also made me think and question a lot of things too. Every page here is full of meaning, making a reader step out of our usual existence and take a different look at what we are taking for granted every day of our lives. It gives us an eye-opening glimpse at the humanity from the eyes of the outsider.
So this is a story about an alien with the visible glowing heart (even better than worn on his sleeve) travelling to the new planet, discovering Earth and adapting to a new life. It's a story about two men as different as can be, coming from two absolutely different worlds, trying to build something together and holding on to it, learning to sacrifice, reconcile and compromise.
Reading Silvers, I was lost in my thoughts.
Where is out true home? Where we grew up and everything is familiar, where we've had thousands of our 'firsts', where we left our families, friends? Or is the home where the person you love is? A new home, where you create new memories, and build a new life, where you're actually happy too? Is it possible to have two homes, so far away from one another and be content?
Do you adopt a new identity and squash your old one as deep down as possible so it never resurfaces, just to blend in, or do you try to hold on to your nature, your past, your real personality? Where's the balance between the two?
Imms's going away from home, adapting to a brand new existence from zero, and like a newborn, learning, exploring new textures, emotions, sensations, all for the sake of being with B, and B undertaking a huge responsibility over Imms, uprooting and bringing him to his world, fighting the consequences of his lies. Trying to keep his head above water. Theirs is the most heartbreaking and beautiful story I've ever read. I don't think I can even do its justice.
But after finishing it, I was left bereft. Throughout the book, I felt the heaviness around my chest grow. I needed it to be lifted so desperately by the end of the book. The story had nearly broke me to pieces but failed to put me back together. I was left without some answers or had any sort of satisfactory closure. My other complain is that we didn't get to find out B's name. It was almost clinical, impersonal somehow, I couldn't connect to their intimate moments either. The story being told in 3rd person, present time, didn't help. It felt as if I was being held at the arm's length distance, slightly detached, on purpose.
However, the book is nothing less of brilliant. I'm very glad I read it, and I'm sure I'll be thinking about Imms and B for a while yet. I just feel slightly bewildered at the moment and need to come to terms with what I've been given in the end. But I would definitely recommend The Silvers to those who like thought-provoking books from time to time. This will make you highlight quite a lot!
***4.5 stars***
Thank you, my dear Sofia, for being patient and reading it with me!
He was born on the Silver Planet, where people resemble humans in their looks but are void of many vital human emotions, such as anger, jealousy, grief, love. Their life is simple under the black sky. There are no colours on Silver Planet.
B is a human captain of the team of scientists researching the newly discovered population on the different planet. Silvers might have meant nothing more to him than a project but when he meets Imms, B starts questioning his previous beliefs.
This book has made me hurt. It had also made me think and question a lot of things too. Every page here is full of meaning, making a reader step out of our usual existence and take a different look at what we are taking for granted every day of our lives. It gives us an eye-opening glimpse at the humanity from the eyes of the outsider.
“Studying Imms has helped us shed light on what it means to be human.”
So this is a story about an alien with the visible glowing heart (even better than worn on his sleeve) travelling to the new planet, discovering Earth and adapting to a new life. It's a story about two men as different as can be, coming from two absolutely different worlds, trying to build something together and holding on to it, learning to sacrifice, reconcile and compromise.
Reading Silvers, I was lost in my thoughts.
Where is out true home? Where we grew up and everything is familiar, where we've had thousands of our 'firsts', where we left our families, friends? Or is the home where the person you love is? A new home, where you create new memories, and build a new life, where you're actually happy too? Is it possible to have two homes, so far away from one another and be content?
Do you adopt a new identity and squash your old one as deep down as possible so it never resurfaces, just to blend in, or do you try to hold on to your nature, your past, your real personality? Where's the balance between the two?
Imms's going away from home, adapting to a brand new existence from zero, and like a newborn, learning, exploring new textures, emotions, sensations, all for the sake of being with B, and B undertaking a huge responsibility over Imms, uprooting and bringing him to his world, fighting the consequences of his lies. Trying to keep his head above water. Theirs is the most heartbreaking and beautiful story I've ever read. I don't think I can even do its justice.
But after finishing it, I was left bereft. Throughout the book, I felt the heaviness around my chest grow. I needed it to be lifted so desperately by the end of the book. The story had nearly broke me to pieces but failed to put me back together. I was left without some answers or had any sort of satisfactory closure. My other complain is that we didn't get to find out B's name. It was almost clinical, impersonal somehow, I couldn't connect to their intimate moments either. The story being told in 3rd person, present time, didn't help. It felt as if I was being held at the arm's length distance, slightly detached, on purpose.
However, the book is nothing less of brilliant. I'm very glad I read it, and I'm sure I'll be thinking about Imms and B for a while yet. I just feel slightly bewildered at the moment and need to come to terms with what I've been given in the end. But I would definitely recommend The Silvers to those who like thought-provoking books from time to time. This will make you highlight quite a lot!
***4.5 stars***
Thank you, my dear Sofia, for being patient and reading it with me!
May 21, 2020
May 21, 2020: free on Amz today!!!
***********************
This is my kind of sci-fi. Though, is that what this is? This one defies categorization while simultaneously filling many. Sort of like us human types. This is a running theme, both in the book and this review.
Anything identified as alien is only done so because it’s specifically not of our earth. Otherwise, any physical characteristics, creature and planet both, are highly relatable. Emotional. This is another running theme in this book and this review. I mean, Imms, he may be an alien but everything about him is complex, transparent, unpredictable, patterned, habitual and unique to him. He walked right into my heart and took a fucking lawn chair of a seat. Open. Obvious. Weaved from many colors, not just the silver you can see.
And then we have B. Closed off, shut down, looking for an escape, literally, to another planet. He gets that and so much more, but doesn’t remember to open the door to his own heart and leave it that way. History and pain and the unavoidable moth-to-the-flame effect that routine and the familiar can have on us all keep him from being able to completely open that door and let Imms in. Sort of. Almost. Sometimes. Yes. And no.
This book is complicated and yet so simple in the presentation of that complication. Being human is messy. We’re selfish and yet incredibly giving, shirt-off-your-back giving. We’ll do just about anything for those we love. This is the very definition of selfish and self-sacrifice living together under one roof that looks oh so suspiciously like a beating heart.
The depth of emotion in this book grabs a hold and refuses to let go. It didn’t let me go. It kept its grip on me through the entire story, no letdown, no respite. There was no mirage to which I could pin my hopes of taking a breath of something familiar, uncomplicated, something that didn’t demand such raw attention and admission of my own bruises and scars.
Imms and B have come full circle, but it’s only one of many circles they’re going to encounter. There will be many broken, imperfect circles in need of time and hard work and healing. Only after having survived this one are they now in a place, together, to deal with the rest surely to come. At least, that’s how things appear, only to disappear, and then struggle back to life for another chance. That’s what happens when you cast your lot with someone, running into more circles, but you’re no longer Alone in dealing with them. Essentially, like Imms and B, I never felt like I was on solid footing, getting tossed around along with their continually changing reality. So, so good.
As emotionally unsteady as it was to connect in the way this book forced me, it also made me feel… good. I actually feel compelled to use the word “gooey” and I don’t usually do gooey when it comes to the books I read. But that’s the thing, gooey is a part of real life, just like everything else in this story. It’s all reflected in that silver lake in the bathtub, but it dives deep below the surface, trying to work out the great mystery that is us human type things.
I could go on about the writing (it’s quality), the supporting characters (just as varied as anything else), the settings (I could see and smell and feel and hear it all) and everything else technical about this book. Believe me, they’re all there. You just need to be reading this story already. Git to it. G’on.
***********************
This is my kind of sci-fi. Though, is that what this is? This one defies categorization while simultaneously filling many. Sort of like us human types. This is a running theme, both in the book and this review.
Anything identified as alien is only done so because it’s specifically not of our earth. Otherwise, any physical characteristics, creature and planet both, are highly relatable. Emotional. This is another running theme in this book and this review. I mean, Imms, he may be an alien but everything about him is complex, transparent, unpredictable, patterned, habitual and unique to him. He walked right into my heart and took a fucking lawn chair of a seat. Open. Obvious. Weaved from many colors, not just the silver you can see.
And then we have B. Closed off, shut down, looking for an escape, literally, to another planet. He gets that and so much more, but doesn’t remember to open the door to his own heart and leave it that way. History and pain and the unavoidable moth-to-the-flame effect that routine and the familiar can have on us all keep him from being able to completely open that door and let Imms in. Sort of. Almost. Sometimes. Yes. And no.
This book is complicated and yet so simple in the presentation of that complication. Being human is messy. We’re selfish and yet incredibly giving, shirt-off-your-back giving. We’ll do just about anything for those we love. This is the very definition of selfish and self-sacrifice living together under one roof that looks oh so suspiciously like a beating heart.
The depth of emotion in this book grabs a hold and refuses to let go. It didn’t let me go. It kept its grip on me through the entire story, no letdown, no respite. There was no mirage to which I could pin my hopes of taking a breath of something familiar, uncomplicated, something that didn’t demand such raw attention and admission of my own bruises and scars.
Imms and B have come full circle, but it’s only one of many circles they’re going to encounter. There will be many broken, imperfect circles in need of time and hard work and healing. Only after having survived this one are they now in a place, together, to deal with the rest surely to come. At least, that’s how things appear, only to disappear, and then struggle back to life for another chance. That’s what happens when you cast your lot with someone, running into more circles, but you’re no longer Alone in dealing with them. Essentially, like Imms and B, I never felt like I was on solid footing, getting tossed around along with their continually changing reality. So, so good.
As emotionally unsteady as it was to connect in the way this book forced me, it also made me feel… good. I actually feel compelled to use the word “gooey” and I don’t usually do gooey when it comes to the books I read. But that’s the thing, gooey is a part of real life, just like everything else in this story. It’s all reflected in that silver lake in the bathtub, but it dives deep below the surface, trying to work out the great mystery that is us human type things.
I could go on about the writing (it’s quality), the supporting characters (just as varied as anything else), the settings (I could see and smell and feel and hear it all) and everything else technical about this book. Believe me, they’re all there. You just need to be reading this story already. Git to it. G’on.
February 6, 2015
”He wants to reach into that Silver body, grab the floating heart, and hold it in place. He wants to find what’s buried. You can’t be alive and never heave with rage or loathing, never be stung a thousand places by jealousy. Roach[Imms] is an impossibility. B wants to make him possible.”
So many good quotes to pick from, I re-read at least half of the chapters trying to choose one and re-living the emotions the words in this book gave me.
It’s not perfect – I found it much easier to connect with Imms than with B, and it felt weird how easily people accepted that B and Imms are in a relationship (because Imms is an alien, not because they are both male). I needed more at the end. But none of these really mattered - it’s an amazing, beautifully written book and there wasn’t a moment in it that left me indifferent or uncaring.
Like B says, it’s impossible to fully understand other species no matter how much we study them. Especially if they are intellectually similar to us, if not better. And it’s true that we, humans, do the most horrible things driven by strong negative emotions – we lie, we are cruel and greedy. But it’s also true that we love fiercely, we protect, we are compassionate, we are curious. We build our own boundaries and we break them.
The Silvers do none of these. Their emotional spectrum is very limited, just like everything is simple and grey on their planet, there’s no colour in their feelings, too. So, I understood why B and his team felt superior to the Silvers, why they tried to ‘improve’ them, but it also made me extremely sad. People like playing Gods.
I know I’m not discovering hot water here, and neither is the book. I think the reason it moved me so much was the way it's written – so many threads woven into each phrase, each sentence. If I had to simplify the issues this book discusses and the questions it raises it would be to ask: Would we be able to love the way we do if we didn’t have to fight for it, if we didn’t feel anger? But again, there’s much more to it, I’m just miserably failing with this review.
One thing I couldn’t figure out is . For some reason I really wanted to know it.
4.5 stars
May 1, 2014
Takes the classic sci-fi premise of a simple, innocent alien altered by contact with humans and makes it fresh and new and so heart wrenching. My gut was tied in knots through the whole thing!
The book takes a close look at the casual cruelty of humans – some horrific acts, but also things we don’t even think about because it’s just the norm for us. In this case, becoming more human is definitely not a good thing.
Then, too, there’s the turmoil between B and Imms as they alternately pull each other close and push each other away, both incapable or unwilling to communicate their needs and fears. And they must do this relationship dance while facing constant threat from the NASA-like agency that B works for.
I enjoy all kinds of sci-fi, but I loved the spare worldbuilding here. It’s really just a handful of key details about the Silvers and their home planet, but so effective at painting a clear picture without lots of sciency stuff. It’s sweet, gentle Imms and his attempts to fit in that quietly provide that sense of ‘other’.
This has a satisfying conclusion but I sure wouldn't mind another book to continue their story. Highly recommended.
The book takes a close look at the casual cruelty of humans – some horrific acts, but also things we don’t even think about because it’s just the norm for us. In this case, becoming more human is definitely not a good thing.
Then, too, there’s the turmoil between B and Imms as they alternately pull each other close and push each other away, both incapable or unwilling to communicate their needs and fears. And they must do this relationship dance while facing constant threat from the NASA-like agency that B works for.
I enjoy all kinds of sci-fi, but I loved the spare worldbuilding here. It’s really just a handful of key details about the Silvers and their home planet, but so effective at painting a clear picture without lots of sciency stuff. It’s sweet, gentle Imms and his attempts to fit in that quietly provide that sense of ‘other’.
This has a satisfying conclusion but I sure wouldn't mind another book to continue their story. Highly recommended.
August 12, 2016
5 INCREDIBLE STARS and my brain hurts, yet I want more
This book is so multifaceted and also filled with such diversity at the same time, I simply couldn't put it down, let alone even begin to review it because I can't. The multitude of situations and cerebral concepts involved simultaneously has my head spinning. It was an incredible read.
It is sci-fi, but in saying that it psychologically reverses the tables back on us as a race and makes us stare at the brutal truth of who and what we really are as a race. The heinous choices that some make in life, how you'd expect some governments to react, but also how we, as individuals, conduct ourselves by the way we perceive others. It is very intense and J.A. Rock please write more books like this.
The last paragraph bought it all screaming home. It really got into my head and I doubt I'll be able to shake it off for a very long time. I will be honest and say I don't think it's everyone's cup of tea but if you accept this challenge, do not stop until you finish it. Well that doesn't even begin to do this book justice.
This book is so multifaceted and also filled with such diversity at the same time, I simply couldn't put it down, let alone even begin to review it because I can't. The multitude of situations and cerebral concepts involved simultaneously has my head spinning. It was an incredible read.
It is sci-fi, but in saying that it psychologically reverses the tables back on us as a race and makes us stare at the brutal truth of who and what we really are as a race. The heinous choices that some make in life, how you'd expect some governments to react, but also how we, as individuals, conduct ourselves by the way we perceive others. It is very intense and J.A. Rock please write more books like this.
The last paragraph bought it all screaming home. It really got into my head and I doubt I'll be able to shake it off for a very long time. I will be honest and say I don't think it's everyone's cup of tea but if you accept this challenge, do not stop until you finish it. Well that doesn't even begin to do this book justice.
May 13, 2014
Love it
Love everything, plot, the alien specie (sooo original!), the sweet romance... I love everything, but the cover.
So, yes, it's one remarkable book, read it... And you will see.
Imms and B... What a wonderful couple!
Love everything, plot, the alien specie (sooo original!), the sweet romance... I love everything, but the cover.
So, yes, it's one remarkable book, read it... And you will see.
Imms and B... What a wonderful couple!
May 20, 2020
5/20/20 Currently FREE via Amazon: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B...
January 22, 2015
Absolutely amazing.
One of those alien stories that are actually telling more about humans; with subtle messages under the surface of bare plot; kind of book that makes you think.
It's not a romance, but there is love in several different forms.
It's not really science fiction; but it is speculative.
Reminiscent to Stranger in a Strange Land and maybe even The Word for World is Forest in some parts, but social commentary is not so overt. It actually made me look for my paperbacks.
And while this kind of books would usually be followed by "it's not for everyone" I would say this book *IS* for everyone since it's at the same time very relateable and easy to read.
For a message that was trying to convey, this book was simply executed flawlessly. It actually took me by surprise as a reader and fan(and maybe even ashamed a little for not noticing it before) just what kind of reach J.A. Rock has as a writer. I hope to see her branching even more and in even bolder direction.:)
July 16, 2016
He came here to avoid Alone, but Alone is under his skin and branches through all of him.
This book is a study in contrasts. Beauty contrasted with ugliness. Kindness contrasted with cruelty. Selfishness contrasted with benevolence.
There were things I enjoyed and things I hated and more often than not I felt melancholy while reading it. Rock's critique of humanity is harsh and discommodious. She's turned a mirror on contemporary society and revealed the dark underbelly, the places that none of us want to dwell on and how that obliviousness allows atrocities to continue. How we judge people on first appearance. How we pigeonhole them. How xenophobic we can be. How violent we can become in forcing those anomalies to conform. And how through that forced conformity a little bit of that person dies each day. How that oppression engenders shame. How it can foster mental illness and a violence unto its own.
Imms is her vehicle in this story. Imms is a Silver and as a race the Silvers do not hate or fear nor do they love. They have somewhat of a hierarchical clan society that instills survival rather than interdependence. They are highly intelligent, though not emotional. They excise those that do not conform as they could pose a threat to the clan. They are more comfortable with numbers than abstract concepts, so the question then becomes can you teach someone seemingly incapable of emotionality emotions? Hate? Love? Anger? Sadness? Shame?
Imms is a bit of an anomaly in that he wants to be human, but can never be physiologically, though he is more humane than many humans. He possesses a childlike wonder and that enthusiasm is both infectious and denounced in someone considered to be an adult. He needs to "grow up", "act his age", not trust people, don't talk to them, danger lurks around every corner; yet, most of the interactions he's allowed with strangers are positive.
He and B must maintain a clandestine relationship that's built on lies. They can't show affection towards one another. They are constantly being monitored by the NRCSE (National Research Center for Space Exploration) with the threat ever looming that Imms will be taken away to be "studied". For his own protection, of course.
Imms and B's relationship is a quiet one; they do care for each other, but they are both complicit in the dysfunction present in their relationship. This is not a romance and if you're looking for it to be you'll be disappointed. There are romantic elements, but it's more of a dissection of how a relationship can sustain itself inside the pressure cooker of societal expectations. How these circumstances can alter the trajectory of a relationship. How they can sour a relationship by keeping someone in a cage. How secrets and lies can poison even the purest of emotions, even when those secrets are kept for benevolent reasons.
Doesn't it stand to reason that the nuances of love are lost when it is forced through two atmospheres?
It's well known that I've become something of a J.A. Rock fangirl over the past year and half; she's virtually an auto-read for me. However, I don't think this is her best work. It's brilliant and insightful and filled with the metaphors and analogies that always inspire introspection, but it didn't grip me like The Grand Ballast or Take the Long Way Home.
The writing style has a simplistic quality that I thought befitting Imms but felt incongruous from B's perspective. Also, I couldn't reconcile how Joele could've passed what I imagine had to be rigorous physical and psychological testing to be approved to go on a mission of this magnitude. And do the Silvers call themselves Silvers and their planet the Silver Planet? I would've liked knowing what they called it, but at the same time I wasn't surprised that no one ever asks. The secondary characters both added and detracted from the story and I found some of the mundanities of their lives tedious.
Even though I didn't love the characters and the story could've been tighter I still think The Silvers is a gestalt. Sometimes the experience of having read it, taking something away from it and finding that valuable, maybe even being enriched by it supersedes all else.
A copy was provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
November 1, 2015
This is a very depressing read. Not dark and depressing. Dark hides things: colorful things, black things, grey things, white things, scary things, pretty things, monster things, unicorns, spice worms and who knows what else. This? This is just grey. Everything's the same color. Even human emotions seem grey and bland, the whole planet Earth is colorless, "I don't give a shit" place. Like I said, grey and depressing. In my opinion.
I get now why the book is written in Present Tense. Silvers live in the present and process everything accordingly. They don't think "what's next", they get through one moment at a time, tho conceivably, I think, Imms is capable of extending his mind that way, just like he expanded on his feelings after moving to Earth...
Which, sadly, is the most depressing part of the book for me. I loved Silver Planet much better, even with human team being bullies (put mildly) and B "The Captain" being a complete push-over. WHO in their right mind selected and put together those idiots? Oh... right.
One and a half positive stars for the amazing world of Silver Planet and Imms. The rest I can't care less.
I get now why the book is written in Present Tense. Silvers live in the present and process everything accordingly. They don't think "what's next", they get through one moment at a time, tho conceivably, I think, Imms is capable of extending his mind that way, just like he expanded on his feelings after moving to Earth...
Which, sadly, is the most depressing part of the book for me. I loved Silver Planet much better, even with human team being bullies (put mildly) and B "The Captain" being a complete push-over. WHO in their right mind selected and put together those idiots? Oh... right.
One and a half positive stars for the amazing world of Silver Planet and Imms. The rest I can't care less.
April 27, 2016
I received an ARC NET-GALLEY. This is a MUST READ! What a beautiful, fascinating and thought provoking story. The writing was so well done I have endless quotes that I were so razor sharp. Although this is said to be a sci-fi book, it did not feel that way.
This story is a heartbreaking view at a range of human emotions, relationships, loneliness and isolation. I loved the M/C Imms, he was vulnerable, selfless, daring naive and brave. Hearing his perspective is funny, bittersweet and painful. It was difficult watching both M/C's struggle with overwhelming guilt and how they each cope with it, and learning to communicate with each other.
J.A. Rock ceases to amaze me with her writing. This book was very different from her others, but just as brilliant. This is a unforgettable story. I loved it!
This story is a heartbreaking view at a range of human emotions, relationships, loneliness and isolation. I loved the M/C Imms, he was vulnerable, selfless, daring naive and brave. Hearing his perspective is funny, bittersweet and painful. It was difficult watching both M/C's struggle with overwhelming guilt and how they each cope with it, and learning to communicate with each other.
J.A. Rock ceases to amaze me with her writing. This book was very different from her others, but just as brilliant. This is a unforgettable story. I loved it!
August 11, 2016
The Silvers isn't the type of book I usually read. Had it not been written by J.A. Rock, I probably never would have read it. That would've been my loss because like everything else I've read by this author, this book was incredible. I was once again blown away. This was my fifth J.A. Rock book, and I am amazed by how differently written they were, and how each time it was perfect for the main characters.
Some of Rock's books were so much fun to read, and some were more serious and emotional. The Silvers was one of the saddest, definitely the most thought-provoking. I had tears in my eyes for the bigger part of the book, but I didn't mind. I do like to read something with that effect from time to time, and in any case I couldn't mind it even if I tried because this book introduced me to Imms, a sentient being from another planet who could teach the human race a thing or two about humanity. Imms was what I loved most in this book. I doubt I'll ever forget his character.
The story begins on the planet humans called the Silver Planet where a crew from Earth came for its water. There they found a race of humanoids living simple, peaceful lives, and of course humans being humans they couldn't leave them alone; they had to examine them more closely. One crew member spent time with them in their habitat and read them books, and taught them a language they didn't know, but that wasn't enough for them. They went as far as cutting them open alive. The Silvers quickly learned it was best to keep away from the humans, but one was too curious to stay away. Imms. His curiosity was repayed with cruelty. That was when B, the captain of the mission, stepped in to save him, and hide him from the other crew members. From there on B and Imms became closer. They became so close that when an opportunity to bring Imms to Earth presented itself, B grabbed it, and curious to find out what Earth was like, and feeling affection towards B, Imms accepted. There was also the fact that if he had stayed on his home planet he would've been alone and forgotten forever, so the remaining members of the crew and Imms went to Earth, where the second part of the book is set.
Imms on Earth was anxiety-inducing for me. Even if he had been presented to humans as a hero, they wanted to perform tests on him. Many tests. And they were willing to do anything to get him to consent. Spending time in public places wasn't great for him either. At least he lived with B who was assigned to look after him, but even that wasn't too easy as they were both learning how to be in a relationship with each other while dealing with the rest of the world who demanded more and more of Imms, when B's protection of him became less effective. And all that time Imms was discovering human emotions, some of which weren't pleasant experiences. The reason why all this caused me anxiety and why I was so teary-eyed while I was reading The Silvers was because of Imms. He reminded me of a sweet, innocent child, one I wanted to lock away someplace to protect him from the dangerous world. Unfortunately, I couldn't, and things kept getting more complicated and unsafe. There were some parts with the side characters I didn't fully understand. I think it was because Imms didn't understand it. No matter, all I cared about was Imms's safety and happiness. That's why I choose to believe he found those things.
Overall, this was a beautiful piece of fiction, and Imms was a wonderful character, and I seriously doubt I've managed to do this book justice with this review, but at least I tried.
As always, I have to say I look forward to reading more books by this talented author.
***ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.***
September 20, 2014
The Silvers
By Jill Smith
Four stars
I am not a big reader of sci-fi stuff, but this came highly recommended to me, and I took it with me on vacation. It is a remarkable book, lyrical and literal in the same breath.
“The Silvers” is not, ultimately, a story about aliens. It is, rather, a profound and moving analysis of what it is to be human.
With aliens.
Or, actually, with one particular alien, known as Imms, who has the misfortune to fall in love with a human spaceship captain who we only know as B.
Smith simply and beautifully creates for us vivid images of the Silver Planet, and of its gentle, intelligent race of humanoids who differ from humans in four crucial ways: they cannot feel fear, anger, hate or love. At least, they don’t seem to need to feel those things—until the humans arrive.
This is no scientific nerdfest explicating the minute details of life on the Silver Planet; although Smith gives us more than enough information to comprehend the essential character of this place and these people. She also gives us more than enough data to recognize the very worst and best in who we are as humans, and to feel in our bones the deeply conflicted position in which being human places us when we confront beings who are almost like us, but not.
B’s initial disgust and hatred for the Silvers is a mask for his inability to believe that these are people (because they are, indeed, people) who cannot covet, who cannot hurt anything or anyone. Their very gentleness provokes cruelty and violence in the humans, even as it intensifies the humans’ awareness of their own inescapable badness.
This is not an easy romance; but it is romantic. It is not about the power of love to solve problems, but the potential of love to offer alternatives. It is not about space exploration, but about the vagaries of the heart—human or otherwise. I had far more trouble coming to care about B, for all his anxious human complexity, than I did for Imms, whose courage and determination to survive moved me to tears more than once.
By the end of the book, there was a bright clarity in my mind. In the standoff between humans and Silver, I was on the side of the Silvers.
Or was it on the side of the angels?
By Jill Smith
Four stars
I am not a big reader of sci-fi stuff, but this came highly recommended to me, and I took it with me on vacation. It is a remarkable book, lyrical and literal in the same breath.
“The Silvers” is not, ultimately, a story about aliens. It is, rather, a profound and moving analysis of what it is to be human.
With aliens.
Or, actually, with one particular alien, known as Imms, who has the misfortune to fall in love with a human spaceship captain who we only know as B.
Smith simply and beautifully creates for us vivid images of the Silver Planet, and of its gentle, intelligent race of humanoids who differ from humans in four crucial ways: they cannot feel fear, anger, hate or love. At least, they don’t seem to need to feel those things—until the humans arrive.
This is no scientific nerdfest explicating the minute details of life on the Silver Planet; although Smith gives us more than enough information to comprehend the essential character of this place and these people. She also gives us more than enough data to recognize the very worst and best in who we are as humans, and to feel in our bones the deeply conflicted position in which being human places us when we confront beings who are almost like us, but not.
B’s initial disgust and hatred for the Silvers is a mask for his inability to believe that these are people (because they are, indeed, people) who cannot covet, who cannot hurt anything or anyone. Their very gentleness provokes cruelty and violence in the humans, even as it intensifies the humans’ awareness of their own inescapable badness.
This is not an easy romance; but it is romantic. It is not about the power of love to solve problems, but the potential of love to offer alternatives. It is not about space exploration, but about the vagaries of the heart—human or otherwise. I had far more trouble coming to care about B, for all his anxious human complexity, than I did for Imms, whose courage and determination to survive moved me to tears more than once.
By the end of the book, there was a bright clarity in my mind. In the standoff between humans and Silver, I was on the side of the Silvers.
Or was it on the side of the angels?
April 16, 2015
This book was freaking amazing, SPECIAL, in a class by itself, transcends genre. Complete review to follow, hopefully sometime soon. In the meantime, read the one Alexis Hall did over at Prism Book Alliance, wonderful review, as always, & it's what prompted me to read this book & I'm so glad I did!
July 1, 2020
Latching on, holding fast, letting go. This is how the heart moves.
This was wonderful. Not a typical romance in a lot of ways, because it did deal in detail with the humanity and nature of our two main characters a bit more than it dealt with their actual romance. That said, I did love all the ups and downs and intricacies of Imms and B's relationship. The ways they're good for each other and bad for each other, their selfishness and bravery, everything they teach one another. I love the concept of Silvers as a species, and all the details about their culture and physiology. The book gets downright ugly at times when it looks at human nature, and neither of these characters are perfect. The writing captured that perfectly, with the kind of poetry that just works really well for sci-fi. A lot about this book made me doubt that
I've had this on my radar for a while, and I'm really glad I got to it.
This was wonderful. Not a typical romance in a lot of ways, because it did deal in detail with the humanity and nature of our two main characters a bit more than it dealt with their actual romance. That said, I did love all the ups and downs and intricacies of Imms and B's relationship. The ways they're good for each other and bad for each other, their selfishness and bravery, everything they teach one another. I love the concept of Silvers as a species, and all the details about their culture and physiology. The book gets downright ugly at times when it looks at human nature, and neither of these characters are perfect. The writing captured that perfectly, with the kind of poetry that just works really well for sci-fi. A lot about this book made me doubt that
I've had this on my radar for a while, and I'm really glad I got to it.
February 27, 2014
I finished this practically in one go and at the last line I found myself somewhat sad and empty because it was the end. I have become so attached to the Silver named Imms that it was hard to let this alien character go. There is a profound message here even if it is not new. The scifi plot of how an innocent and simple minded alien is "polluted" by men has been done before but the way it is told here is deeply moving and emotionally searing. The story started in the alien planet and this first part of the story is fascinating but not easy to read as I was horrified with the monstrosity that is men and distressed with what happened to the Silvers. Men might have advanced leaps and bounds but their basal nature remains. To take and destroy as it suited them. A sense of suspense also permeated the first part as I was worried for Imms fate. When Imms was taken to earth and struggled to live among humans while being exploited by men in the name of science, I was apprehensive for fear of tragedies happening to this so likable alien yet unable to stop reading. I just need to find out what happen next!
Imms' developing love and relationship with B is absorbing and thoughtful even as I wanted to shake B hard. Yet when the story shifted from Imms' to B's viewpoint I understand this complex character, forgive and accept his weaknesses. I love how Imms embraced all that was alien to him yet sad that he could experience the basic human emotions called fear, pain, anger and love. Just a little niggle is that plot wise I could do without the drama revolving around B 's sister as I found it distracting even if it might be the writer's way of teaching Imms about humans' fragility and failures. I could not even guess how the story could end for Imms and B and I just have to say I was satisfied with how it ended,. But I love Imms and hope the writer would give us a sequel. On the other hand could a sequel measure up to the depth, profoundness and originality of this story? Love this one and highly recommended for those of us wanting so much more in our MM scifi romance. Definitely watching out for more from this writer and I hope this story will also be appreciated by the general scifi readers.
Imms' developing love and relationship with B is absorbing and thoughtful even as I wanted to shake B hard. Yet when the story shifted from Imms' to B's viewpoint I understand this complex character, forgive and accept his weaknesses. I love how Imms embraced all that was alien to him yet sad that he could experience the basic human emotions called fear, pain, anger and love. Just a little niggle is that plot wise I could do without the drama revolving around B 's sister as I found it distracting even if it might be the writer's way of teaching Imms about humans' fragility and failures. I could not even guess how the story could end for Imms and B and I just have to say I was satisfied with how it ended,. But I love Imms and hope the writer would give us a sequel. On the other hand could a sequel measure up to the depth, profoundness and originality of this story? Love this one and highly recommended for those of us wanting so much more in our MM scifi romance. Definitely watching out for more from this writer and I hope this story will also be appreciated by the general scifi readers.
March 28, 2014
(I received a free copy of this book from Bold Strokes Books, through NetGalley, in return for a review).
(This review may contain spoilers).
Ideally, I'd give this book 4.5 stars, but since I can't give half stars...
This was a book I particularly wanted to read. The blurb sounded really interesting and the cover really attracted me.
The plot of the story managed to keep me reading and I really did like the romance that developed between Imms and B. I thought the author did a really good job of showing how Imms developed as a character.
The contrast between the Silvers' planet and Earth came across really well, as did how different people reacted to Imms when he was on Earth. One thing that really struck me was that no one cared enough about what was happening to Imms to try and stop it, even when they said they didn't agree with it. Sadly, I feel that's all too true of the world we now live in. People rarely step in when they think something's wrong.
The relationships that Imms formed with others came across really well, but it was sad that he was forced to change and that people wanted to provoke him. Because we need more violence in the world.
I can see this happening if we discovered aliens. The romance between B and Imms was sweet at times, but Imms was the only one who seemed to have to change.
I would definitely be interested in reading a sequel to this book. I think there's still so much of the story to be told.
(This review may contain spoilers).
Ideally, I'd give this book 4.5 stars, but since I can't give half stars...
This was a book I particularly wanted to read. The blurb sounded really interesting and the cover really attracted me.
The plot of the story managed to keep me reading and I really did like the romance that developed between Imms and B. I thought the author did a really good job of showing how Imms developed as a character.
The contrast between the Silvers' planet and Earth came across really well, as did how different people reacted to Imms when he was on Earth. One thing that really struck me was that no one cared enough about what was happening to Imms to try and stop it, even when they said they didn't agree with it. Sadly, I feel that's all too true of the world we now live in. People rarely step in when they think something's wrong.
The relationships that Imms formed with others came across really well, but it was sad that he was forced to change and that people wanted to provoke him. Because we need more violence in the world.
I can see this happening if we discovered aliens. The romance between B and Imms was sweet at times, but Imms was the only one who seemed to have to change.
I would definitely be interested in reading a sequel to this book. I think there's still so much of the story to be told.
September 5, 2017
his was a unique sci fi story. A bit different than anything I've read before. Humans have gone to the Silver Planet to look for water. They find native people and they are so placid that the human crew does not think they are intelligent and they justify that as a reason it's alright to experiment on them. B is the captain of his spaceship and over time he begins bonding with one of the Silvers, Imms. After a fire kills of most of his crew, B decides to take Imms and return to Earth. Once there things take a widely different turn for the two men.
This was a really well written story. The world building was unique and it all felt very atmospheric. Now that is not necessarily a positive thing. There was a bleakness that permeated the entire story. The relationship was also different. It was definitely not a traditional romance but I think there was a love story woven through this.
I had mixed feelings when I finished this. I wouldn't say I was happy when I came to the end. I might have even been a bit sad. But the story was still haunting in it's own way. It's not the type of story I would want to read all of the time but overall I did enjoy it.
As I said, I do not consider this a romance. More of a queer sci-fi. If you're enjoy that then you should check this out. It's both unique and well written.
This was a really well written story. The world building was unique and it all felt very atmospheric. Now that is not necessarily a positive thing. There was a bleakness that permeated the entire story. The relationship was also different. It was definitely not a traditional romance but I think there was a love story woven through this.
I had mixed feelings when I finished this. I wouldn't say I was happy when I came to the end. I might have even been a bit sad. But the story was still haunting in it's own way. It's not the type of story I would want to read all of the time but overall I did enjoy it.
As I said, I do not consider this a romance. More of a queer sci-fi. If you're enjoy that then you should check this out. It's both unique and well written.
April 23, 2015
This book could basically have been about anything and it would still have been amazing. The writing was some of the most beautiful I've read in a long time. The prose is spare but also weirdly rich and evocative.
As a science fiction novel, it's not too weird a concept, but it is one of the stranger executions. Humans find intelligent life on another planet and bring back an alien who then lives in weird a domestic arrangement with his human lover. There's lot of absolutely mundane earth things that happen and I found this a strange juxtaposition to the bizarreness of the situation. Like, imagine there was a actual alien in the public eye. What would we do? It raises a lot of interesting ethical issues. I don't think the plot is particularly riveting, nor are the characters very likeable. It's just that there were such pretty turns of phrase. That said, if you are wanting to give it a read, be forewarned that it is a bit of a HFN. Maybe not even that.
As a science fiction novel, it's not too weird a concept, but it is one of the stranger executions. Humans find intelligent life on another planet and bring back an alien who then lives in weird a domestic arrangement with his human lover. There's lot of absolutely mundane earth things that happen and I found this a strange juxtaposition to the bizarreness of the situation. Like, imagine there was a actual alien in the public eye. What would we do? It raises a lot of interesting ethical issues. I don't think the plot is particularly riveting, nor are the characters very likeable. It's just that there were such pretty turns of phrase. That said, if you are wanting to give it a read, be forewarned that it is a bit of a HFN. Maybe not even that.
September 9, 2016
I think I had too high expectations on this one. It was interesting, what Imms’s encounter with humans showed about the human race, and how nasty we are:-)
However, I would like to have had a bit more romance.. I really didn’t get what made B fall for Imms, expect nursing him back to health. It’s not like they talked a lot during that time. Also, overall, their relationship gave me the impression of sticking together just because. Just because they have each other, as different as they are. I wish I would have had more information as to WHY they wanted to be together.
I also never felt that their relationship developed, just that Imms got more human, which was to be expected. Maybe if the second part would have had more from Bs POV, I would have been happier.
The whole thing just made me feel kind of miserable, ending included.
However, I would like to have had a bit more romance.. I really didn’t get what made B fall for Imms, expect nursing him back to health. It’s not like they talked a lot during that time. Also, overall, their relationship gave me the impression of sticking together just because. Just because they have each other, as different as they are. I wish I would have had more information as to WHY they wanted to be together.
I also never felt that their relationship developed, just that Imms got more human, which was to be expected. Maybe if the second part would have had more from Bs POV, I would have been happier.
The whole thing just made me feel kind of miserable, ending included.
August 30, 2014
So fucking beautiful, could not stop reading. The characters felt real, the SF story and the world-building was so fascinating, the language so poetic. And it did not even need much hot gay sex to keep me interested. I loved it.
March 17, 2014
Well done, really nice world building and an outstanding alien character. Who could help going a bit native?
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