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Plague Birds
Glowing red lines split their faces. Shock-red hair and clothes warn people to flee their approach. They are plague birds, the powerful merging of humans and artificial intelligences who serve as judges and executioners after the collapse of civilization.
And the plague birds’ judgement is swift and deadly, as Crista discovered as a child when she watched one kill her mother.
In a world of gene-modded humans constantly watched over by benevolent AIs, everyone hates and fears the plague birds. But to save her father and home village, Crista becomes the very creature she fears the most. And her first task as a plague bird is hunting down an ancient group of murderers wielding magic-like powers.
As Crista and her AI symbiote travel farther from home than she ever imagined, they are plunged into a strange world where she judges wrongdoers, befriends other outcasts, and uncovers an extremely personal conspiracy that threatens the lives of millions.
Plague Birds is a genre-bending mix of science fiction and dark fantasy and the epic story of a young woman who becomes one of the future’s most hated creatures, with a killer AI bonded to her very blood.
And the plague birds’ judgement is swift and deadly, as Crista discovered as a child when she watched one kill her mother.
In a world of gene-modded humans constantly watched over by benevolent AIs, everyone hates and fears the plague birds. But to save her father and home village, Crista becomes the very creature she fears the most. And her first task as a plague bird is hunting down an ancient group of murderers wielding magic-like powers.
As Crista and her AI symbiote travel farther from home than she ever imagined, they are plunged into a strange world where she judges wrongdoers, befriends other outcasts, and uncovers an extremely personal conspiracy that threatens the lives of millions.
Plague Birds is a genre-bending mix of science fiction and dark fantasy and the epic story of a young woman who becomes one of the future’s most hated creatures, with a killer AI bonded to her very blood.
315 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 21, 2021
41 people are currently reading
1280 people want to read
About the author
Jason Sanford
59 books71 followersJason Sanford is three-time finalist for the Nebula Award and an active member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. Born and raised in the American South, he currently lives in the Midwestern U.S. His life's adventures include work as an archaeologist and as a Peace Corps Volunteer.
Jason's first novel Plague Birds will be released by Apex Books in September 2021. He has published dozens of short stories in Asimov's Science Fiction, Interzone, Analog: Science Fiction and Fact, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Fireside Magazine, and other places. Books containing his stories include multiple "year's best" story collections and The New Voices of Science Fiction.
Jason’s awards and honors include being a finalist for the Nebula Awards for Best Novella, Best Novelette and Best Short Story. He has also won two Interzone Readers' Polls for best story of the year and been a co-winner of a third Poll. Jason's other honors include receiving a Minnesota State Arts Board Fellowship, being nominated for the BSFA Award, and being longlisted for the British Fantasy Award. His stories have been named to multiple Locus Recommended Reading Lists along with being translated into a number of languages including Chinese, Spanish, French, Russian, Polish, Hungarian, Italian and Czech.
Jason's first novel Plague Birds will be released by Apex Books in September 2021. He has published dozens of short stories in Asimov's Science Fiction, Interzone, Analog: Science Fiction and Fact, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Fireside Magazine, and other places. Books containing his stories include multiple "year's best" story collections and The New Voices of Science Fiction.
Jason’s awards and honors include being a finalist for the Nebula Awards for Best Novella, Best Novelette and Best Short Story. He has also won two Interzone Readers' Polls for best story of the year and been a co-winner of a third Poll. Jason's other honors include receiving a Minnesota State Arts Board Fellowship, being nominated for the BSFA Award, and being longlisted for the British Fantasy Award. His stories have been named to multiple Locus Recommended Reading Lists along with being translated into a number of languages including Chinese, Spanish, French, Russian, Polish, Hungarian, Italian and Czech.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 111 reviews
August 11, 2024
This is an awesome Sci-Fi that reads like it's fantasy, well written. I like what the author did with the world-building and the sparing way he weaves it into the plot rather than the prosaic massive info-dump although I'm not averse to that either.
Conversely, the somewhat 'soft' way the author handles issues of AI Singularity and it's consequences is quite optimistic and nothing like Charles Stross' view in Singularity Sky/Iron Sunrise duology for example, which seems more plausible storytelling-wise, in here considering the Hard SciFi bent.
The protagonist is not as complex and introspective as I'd otherwise enjoy (more of a YA vibes like), but the whole plot was enjoyable all in all. It follows a young girl-wolf-hybrid ('gened' human with wolf blood) after the 'collapse' of mainstream humanity in a world set about 20,000 years into the future.
Basically a journey of self discovery and learning, and it could have been more complex. An interesting debut and a good book, albeit intermittently lagging and slow. Could have been shorter too, but I'll certainly look forward to his next work. Recommended.
2022 Read
Conversely, the somewhat 'soft' way the author handles issues of AI Singularity and it's consequences is quite optimistic and nothing like Charles Stross' view in Singularity Sky/Iron Sunrise duology for example, which seems more plausible storytelling-wise, in here considering the Hard SciFi bent.
The protagonist is not as complex and introspective as I'd otherwise enjoy (more of a YA vibes like), but the whole plot was enjoyable all in all. It follows a young girl-wolf-hybrid ('gened' human with wolf blood) after the 'collapse' of mainstream humanity in a world set about 20,000 years into the future.
Basically a journey of self discovery and learning, and it could have been more complex. An interesting debut and a good book, albeit intermittently lagging and slow. Could have been shorter too, but I'll certainly look forward to his next work. Recommended.
2022 Read
September 7, 2021
Plague Birds
by Jason Sanford
This book is an excellent science fiction book but it feels like it is a mix of sci-fi and fantasy. It's a futuristic book where mankind has traveled and has had settlements at one time on the moon. But this is in the far distant past to the characters of the story. The story has well plotted out with lots of twists and turns. NONE of which I figured out ahead of time. It were so unpredictable! I like a book that can surprise me.
Man has lost its humanity long ago. There are gene spliced hybrid people that are mixed with just about every animal you can think of. The few humans, pure ones, seemed to have been living on the moon. (If I understand it right.)
Some survivors made it off after a big disaster.
AIs are, and were, a big part of life. Automated people who has skin and their brain but enhanced with android like parts, and AI brains merged with theirs, can live 10,000s years. There is only one left. There are AIs that guard villages that are kind and helpful. There is one per village.
Then there are Plague Birds. They are people that are asked and except the duty, when one Plague Bird is dying, to take on the mission. They bond with the AI in the Plague Bird. Plague Bird's can live hundreds or thousands of years if no one kills them. They are extremely hard to kill! A Plague Bird goes around administering justice. They can wipe out a whole village in a minute if the wanted to.
This is just part of the world. But in this story, our gal of the story ends up being a Plague Bird to save her family and find her mom's killer. But she finds there are two other beings on this planet with even stronger powers than a Plague Bird! One could destroy the world! One is trying to destroy her!
I really, really loved this world and characters! Very unique and intriguing! I loved how there were so many twists! Someone set her up to be a Plague Bird 10,000 years before she was born! It blew me away! I am not giving anything away. The puzzle is finding out how!
I want to thank the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read this awesome book! Love the cover too!
by Jason Sanford
This book is an excellent science fiction book but it feels like it is a mix of sci-fi and fantasy. It's a futuristic book where mankind has traveled and has had settlements at one time on the moon. But this is in the far distant past to the characters of the story. The story has well plotted out with lots of twists and turns. NONE of which I figured out ahead of time. It were so unpredictable! I like a book that can surprise me.
Man has lost its humanity long ago. There are gene spliced hybrid people that are mixed with just about every animal you can think of. The few humans, pure ones, seemed to have been living on the moon. (If I understand it right.)
Some survivors made it off after a big disaster.
AIs are, and were, a big part of life. Automated people who has skin and their brain but enhanced with android like parts, and AI brains merged with theirs, can live 10,000s years. There is only one left. There are AIs that guard villages that are kind and helpful. There is one per village.
Then there are Plague Birds. They are people that are asked and except the duty, when one Plague Bird is dying, to take on the mission. They bond with the AI in the Plague Bird. Plague Bird's can live hundreds or thousands of years if no one kills them. They are extremely hard to kill! A Plague Bird goes around administering justice. They can wipe out a whole village in a minute if the wanted to.
This is just part of the world. But in this story, our gal of the story ends up being a Plague Bird to save her family and find her mom's killer. But she finds there are two other beings on this planet with even stronger powers than a Plague Bird! One could destroy the world! One is trying to destroy her!
I really, really loved this world and characters! Very unique and intriguing! I loved how there were so many twists! Someone set her up to be a Plague Bird 10,000 years before she was born! It blew me away! I am not giving anything away. The puzzle is finding out how!
I want to thank the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read this awesome book! Love the cover too!
August 2, 2022
Stars: 2 out of 5
If you are looking for a book with a story that keeps you on the edge of your seat and driven by memorable characters... this is not a story you are looking for. If you are looking for a mismatched bag of great ideas loosely wrapped into something resembling a story with characters that have the depth of cardboard, then by all means, give Plague Birds a try.
This was a very disappointing read. I was lured into this book by the excellent cover (I mean, seriously, look at this thing, it's gorgeous) and a blurb that promised an interesting story set in a unique world. The world is unique, alright, and that's why this gets 2 stars instead of 1, but the interesting story never materialized.
Instead, I felt like the author had a basketful of interesting concepts that he really wanted to play with and include in the story, but he couldn't quite figure out how to weave them into a coherent narrative, so he just tossed them all in, shook it a little and left the end result to chance. So we get villages governed by AI, cannibal monks in a monastery dedicated to preserving the knowledge of a lost human race, a forest that becomes sentient by torturing people who venture into it, and so on and so forth. Yes, those are fascinating and often horrifying concepts that were interesting to explore, but what they add to the main story is unclear.
Speaking of main story. I am still not sure what it was. What was the end goal here? Was it to discover the through behind the death of Crista's mother? Was it to reach the city of Seed? Was it to catch the villain killing plague birds? The stakes are not clear, and there is no sense of urgency, so the story meanders along with Crista seemingly without purpose. Yes, they need to stop the Veil, but there isn't a ticking clock to create a sense of urgency. They can hunt those people for hundreds of years without anything bad happening for all we know.
And I could have forgiven this lack of cohesive story if the characters I was forced to follow were interesting. Not the case here. I am still not sure I know Crista even after spending this journey with her. Despite this being told in first person from her point of view, the author does a very poor job actually showing us her thoughts, motivations and inner workings.
This goes for all the other characters as well. In fact, this book is all tell and almost no show. We get flashbacks and infodumps galore. People react in ways that often puzzle me because the author never explained what made them tick. Though in the case of the main villain, I am not sure even the author knew what made him tick, because his motivation is thinner then rice paper. I mean, he could have killed Crista several times over, but he chose to mess with her mind and/or even help her instead. Why? Never explained.
Another big disappointment for me was that this book reads like a YA story. With all the typical YA shortfalls and tropes. Including insta-love (or should I say insta-lust?). Yet it's not classified as YA on NetGalley or Goodreads. Had I seen that before I had requested this book, I would never have bothered. I have nothing against the YA genre. I just don't read it.
PS: I received a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
If you are looking for a book with a story that keeps you on the edge of your seat and driven by memorable characters... this is not a story you are looking for. If you are looking for a mismatched bag of great ideas loosely wrapped into something resembling a story with characters that have the depth of cardboard, then by all means, give Plague Birds a try.
This was a very disappointing read. I was lured into this book by the excellent cover (I mean, seriously, look at this thing, it's gorgeous) and a blurb that promised an interesting story set in a unique world. The world is unique, alright, and that's why this gets 2 stars instead of 1, but the interesting story never materialized.
Instead, I felt like the author had a basketful of interesting concepts that he really wanted to play with and include in the story, but he couldn't quite figure out how to weave them into a coherent narrative, so he just tossed them all in, shook it a little and left the end result to chance. So we get villages governed by AI, cannibal monks in a monastery dedicated to preserving the knowledge of a lost human race, a forest that becomes sentient by torturing people who venture into it, and so on and so forth. Yes, those are fascinating and often horrifying concepts that were interesting to explore, but what they add to the main story is unclear.
Speaking of main story. I am still not sure what it was. What was the end goal here? Was it to discover the through behind the death of Crista's mother? Was it to reach the city of Seed? Was it to catch the villain killing plague birds? The stakes are not clear, and there is no sense of urgency, so the story meanders along with Crista seemingly without purpose. Yes, they need to stop the Veil, but there isn't a ticking clock to create a sense of urgency. They can hunt those people for hundreds of years without anything bad happening for all we know.
And I could have forgiven this lack of cohesive story if the characters I was forced to follow were interesting. Not the case here. I am still not sure I know Crista even after spending this journey with her. Despite this being told in first person from her point of view, the author does a very poor job actually showing us her thoughts, motivations and inner workings.
This goes for all the other characters as well. In fact, this book is all tell and almost no show. We get flashbacks and infodumps galore. People react in ways that often puzzle me because the author never explained what made them tick. Though in the case of the main villain, I am not sure even the author knew what made him tick, because his motivation is thinner then rice paper. I mean, he could have killed Crista several times over, but he chose to mess with her mind and/or even help her instead. Why? Never explained.
Another big disappointment for me was that this book reads like a YA story. With all the typical YA shortfalls and tropes. Including insta-love (or should I say insta-lust?). Yet it's not classified as YA on NetGalley or Goodreads. Had I seen that before I had requested this book, I would never have bothered. I have nothing against the YA genre. I just don't read it.
PS: I received a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
October 11, 2021
Despite some intriguing ideas, Plague Birds proved a major disappointment. Early on there was too much information dumping by means of wooden dialogue filling in background. I got past that and was getting into the story of the dual consciousness of a woman taken over by a kind of AI implanted in her blood. The AI looks for people who must be punished by a release of blood that consumes the guilty victim, but the woman really only wants to rid her mind of false memories about her mother's death and find out the truth. Their journey takes them through a strange forest that first attacks and tortures people passing through then steals their consciousness. That'a great concept, but then we are led on a grisly diversion about cannibalistic siblings struggling to survive amid a deadly order of monks - and I really got lost and repulsed by all that. It broke up the main thread of the story, leapt around so much it was hard to follow and never succeeded in integrating the characters into the story. Rather than character-driven, the story surges on like a train its passengers struggle to catch up with. Also it has a lot of pedestrian writing. This book cried out for a fresh edit to achieve its considerable promise.
September 9, 2021
It’s as if Jason Sanford has reached into my soul and written the perfect book for me. It contains animal/human hybrids, powerful AIs, a wolf woman, a far distant world that has returned to a village/agricultural system. The plot is imaginative, complex, emotional, exciting and imaginative.
I loved every moment of this book. It took me by the hand and led me on an imaginative, intellectually and emotionally satisfying journey and I am sad to end my time in this world with these characters.
If you love fantasy and science fiction and deep multilayered stories, this book is for you.
Thank you to the author and the publisher for providing me with an arc and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.
I loved every moment of this book. It took me by the hand and led me on an imaginative, intellectually and emotionally satisfying journey and I am sad to end my time in this world with these characters.
If you love fantasy and science fiction and deep multilayered stories, this book is for you.
Thank you to the author and the publisher for providing me with an arc and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.
November 3, 2021
I wish I could give this book negative stars. Probably the worst book I've had the displeasure of reading. I seriously don't know how it got so many good reviews.
Pros
1. Some interesting concepts: AI/human melding, gene splicing, a "growing" city, humanity perserving it's knowledge
2. Not hard to read (is this a pro or con?)
3. There were a couple grisly parts that fit the halloween mood
Cons
1. No interesting concepts were ever explored properly; AI/human melding only surface explored, the main character Crista and her AI Red Day where simply "goody two shoes" and her "edgy teenage emo imaginary friend".
2. The AIs were not AIs, they were just magical ghosts. the AI powers include: memory manipulation of all other humans, heating up stone so much it turns to magma
3. A very random super powerful alien AI (who melded with a young girl thousands of years ago, a gigantic anime trope) who seemed only to exist to give the main character a lot of power and to setup a sequel maybe
4. A terribly written romance; Crista meets her lover and talks to him for a few pages before they somehow end up in love and have sex repeatedly through the book
5. A bunch of plots points not really explained; who really killed , why did he do what he did? Is this trying to hook me onto a sequel? Why didn't the main bad guy just... kill/get the main character? Why did the bad guy help Crista at points?
6. Could not relate to any of the characters and they were all bland and 1-dimensional. I think I'm more mad about the fact that it COULD have been interesting but instead no real character development.
7. Did I mention it's a book about furries? I feel like I was tricked by the summary + book cover. I personally hated all this "inner wolf" stuff the main character had.
8. The dialogue/characters felt like something out of a fanfic, and not in a good way. Is this a young adult book??
9. It was bloody to the point where it was just self-masturbatory
10. The main bad guy was just.. non-sensical. Maybe I'm dumb, I just did not understand why he was doing what he was doing. He was insane? He was angry? He had a inner soft side that made him make some of these decisions?
11. The most obvious betrayal in the history of betrayals.
TLDR: a YA furry novel with nonsensical plots points, terrible 1-dimensional characters, and bloody for the sake of bloody.
How this author ever got nominated for a Nebula, I don't know. He should definitely stick to short novels because long form doesn't suit him.
Pros
1. Some interesting concepts: AI/human melding, gene splicing, a "growing" city, humanity perserving it's knowledge
2. Not hard to read (is this a pro or con?)
3. There were a couple grisly parts that fit the halloween mood
Cons
1. No interesting concepts were ever explored properly; AI/human melding only surface explored, the main character Crista and her AI Red Day where simply "goody two shoes" and her "edgy teenage emo imaginary friend".
2. The AIs were not AIs, they were just magical ghosts. the AI powers include: memory manipulation of all other humans, heating up stone so much it turns to magma
3. A very random super powerful alien AI (who melded with a young girl thousands of years ago, a gigantic anime trope) who seemed only to exist to give the main character a lot of power and to setup a sequel maybe
4. A terribly written romance; Crista meets her lover and talks to him for a few pages before they somehow end up in love and have sex repeatedly through the book
5. A bunch of plots points not really explained; who really killed , why did he do what he did? Is this trying to hook me onto a sequel? Why didn't the main bad guy just... kill/get the main character? Why did the bad guy help Crista at points?
6. Could not relate to any of the characters and they were all bland and 1-dimensional. I think I'm more mad about the fact that it COULD have been interesting but instead no real character development.
7. Did I mention it's a book about furries? I feel like I was tricked by the summary + book cover. I personally hated all this "inner wolf" stuff the main character had.
8. The dialogue/characters felt like something out of a fanfic, and not in a good way. Is this a young adult book??
9. It was bloody to the point where it was just self-masturbatory
10. The main bad guy was just.. non-sensical. Maybe I'm dumb, I just did not understand why he was doing what he was doing. He was insane? He was angry? He had a inner soft side that made him make some of these decisions?
11. The most obvious betrayal in the history of betrayals.
TLDR: a YA furry novel with nonsensical plots points, terrible 1-dimensional characters, and bloody for the sake of bloody.
How this author ever got nominated for a Nebula, I don't know. He should definitely stick to short novels because long form doesn't suit him.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 27, 2022
4.5 stars
You can watch my video review on my booktube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rItPj...
I went into this knowing nothing except it was the only novel nominated for a Nebula this year that I hadn't read. My expectations were low. I'd never heard of this book or author. And I was underwhelmed by the other Nebula nominations. However, I ended up really enjoying this a lot!
The world building is unique and intriguing. The comparison that comes to mind is The Book of Koli in terms of world building. It is a far future where humanity and the world has been significantly genetically altered. And that is where the similarities to Book of Koli end.
Plague Birds are a class of human-AI hybrids tasked with determining and serving justice. There are also AI village guardians and we continue to discover other classes/factions as the story goes on.
Ultimately, this is a story about uncovering a mystery. As the story unfolds, the mystery only grows. In the end, everything is mostly explained and tied up, perhaps a little too quickly and tidily.
What really worked for me was how curious this story kept me. I wanted to learn more about the world and the mystery. Every new discovery was really unexpected and fascinating. And there are a lot of really sweet relationships and characters. It is easy to route for the main character and her friends.
I think this book deserves more attention than it has been getting and recommend picking it up!
Sexual violence? No. Other content warnings? Mind manipulation/control, cannibalism, body horror/gore, torture, death of a parent, genocide.
You can watch my video review on my booktube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rItPj...
I went into this knowing nothing except it was the only novel nominated for a Nebula this year that I hadn't read. My expectations were low. I'd never heard of this book or author. And I was underwhelmed by the other Nebula nominations. However, I ended up really enjoying this a lot!
The world building is unique and intriguing. The comparison that comes to mind is The Book of Koli in terms of world building. It is a far future where humanity and the world has been significantly genetically altered. And that is where the similarities to Book of Koli end.
Plague Birds are a class of human-AI hybrids tasked with determining and serving justice. There are also AI village guardians and we continue to discover other classes/factions as the story goes on.
Ultimately, this is a story about uncovering a mystery. As the story unfolds, the mystery only grows. In the end, everything is mostly explained and tied up, perhaps a little too quickly and tidily.
What really worked for me was how curious this story kept me. I wanted to learn more about the world and the mystery. Every new discovery was really unexpected and fascinating. And there are a lot of really sweet relationships and characters. It is easy to route for the main character and her friends.
I think this book deserves more attention than it has been getting and recommend picking it up!
Sexual violence? No. Other content warnings? Mind manipulation/control, cannibalism, body horror/gore, torture, death of a parent, genocide.
September 12, 2021
Read an ARC from the author
Content warning: blood, gore, body horror, self-harm for the purposes of magic, gaslighting, violence
You’ve heard of plague doctors, get ready for plague birds. Plague birds are people bonded with blood AI who exact justice by killing the wrong doer. They are very powerful and very feared. Crista bonds herself to one named Red Day and embarks on a journey to attempt to save her village from a rogue faction called the Veil. There are twists and turns and memory manipulation galore, while the real danger might be coming from inside the metaphorical house.
Deftly toeing the line between dark fantasy and science fiction, this book is perfect for those wanting to read compelling characters with science and technology that feels like magic.
The author Jason Sanford will be featured on the blog in an interview on September 14th, 2021.
The world-building of this book is super fun. AI watch over gene-modded humans while others contain deadly powers. It’s the perfect overlap of science fiction and fantasy, with several nods telling the reader that the story takes place on Earth in a post-post-apocalypse. People live extended lives in medieval-esque settings. The action and memory sequences in this book are also affecting, with Sanford masterfully propelling the story forward while contextualizing what the reader didn’t get to see in ways both mosaic and linear. The aesthetics are also top notch, with much attention given to color with the added unsettling that is the Veil themselves and their time-distorted faces.
The shining star here is Crista. I really enjoyed her as a main character. While very singularly driven, it was wonderful watching her try to stay true to herself and to her mission even though half the factions she encounters fear her to the point of attempted murder and the other half are incomprehensibly powerful. The banter between her and Red Day is a highlight for me because they are such polar opposites and they literally cannot get away from each other. Sometimes it’s funny, other times dangerous, and occasionally tender. Meeting other plague birds and other AI within the world solidified that Crista and Red Day are something special.
With reveals that made me scream, Plague Birds is intricate and epic in scope in ways that linger far after I finished reading.
Content warning: blood, gore, body horror, self-harm for the purposes of magic, gaslighting, violence
You’ve heard of plague doctors, get ready for plague birds. Plague birds are people bonded with blood AI who exact justice by killing the wrong doer. They are very powerful and very feared. Crista bonds herself to one named Red Day and embarks on a journey to attempt to save her village from a rogue faction called the Veil. There are twists and turns and memory manipulation galore, while the real danger might be coming from inside the metaphorical house.
Deftly toeing the line between dark fantasy and science fiction, this book is perfect for those wanting to read compelling characters with science and technology that feels like magic.
The author Jason Sanford will be featured on the blog in an interview on September 14th, 2021.
The world-building of this book is super fun. AI watch over gene-modded humans while others contain deadly powers. It’s the perfect overlap of science fiction and fantasy, with several nods telling the reader that the story takes place on Earth in a post-post-apocalypse. People live extended lives in medieval-esque settings. The action and memory sequences in this book are also affecting, with Sanford masterfully propelling the story forward while contextualizing what the reader didn’t get to see in ways both mosaic and linear. The aesthetics are also top notch, with much attention given to color with the added unsettling that is the Veil themselves and their time-distorted faces.
The shining star here is Crista. I really enjoyed her as a main character. While very singularly driven, it was wonderful watching her try to stay true to herself and to her mission even though half the factions she encounters fear her to the point of attempted murder and the other half are incomprehensibly powerful. The banter between her and Red Day is a highlight for me because they are such polar opposites and they literally cannot get away from each other. Sometimes it’s funny, other times dangerous, and occasionally tender. Meeting other plague birds and other AI within the world solidified that Crista and Red Day are something special.
With reveals that made me scream, Plague Birds is intricate and epic in scope in ways that linger far after I finished reading.
February 1, 2022
This book has a good premise, but I don't think the execution lived up to it. It's the story of an Earth approximately twenty thousand years in the future, with extreme genetic engineering, nanoteched AIs, and humans with animal genes. We have a post-collapse society in the aftermath of a war between those same AIs, who have demanded that humans leave their cities and global civilization behind to return to small villages, each watched over by an AI, until they have returned to a more "natural" (i.e. less engineered) state. So-called "plague birds" enforce this state of affairs: humans each bearing a nanotech AI in their body and blood, a bloodthirsty artificial intelligence with the power to judge and kill.
Crista of the village of Day's End is coerced and manipulated into becoming a plague bird, and the book is the story of her journey to find out about her past, about the mother who was killed by another plague bird years ago, and just who she is and the part she has to play in the world's future. This is all well and good, but neither the worldbuilding or the characterization in this book was deep enough or explored enough to suit its setup. Crista in particular was an annoyingly passive protagonist, dragged here and there by her AI, Red Day, and reacting to what others do to her instead of seizing the moment, laying down the law, and breaking free from the various and layered manipulations that have marked her life. The testy relationship between Crista and Red Day was also fairly shallow, and Red Day's admitting in the book's final pages that Crista had "changed" it didn't feel earned to me at all.
(Also, the characters in this book scream at each other way too much? It got on my nerves to the point where I wanted to do a search-and-replace for that word and eliminate almost all instances of it. And this may be a persnickety nitpick, but the font was too small and I believe contributed to my recent need to buy stronger reading glasses.)
I think this could have been a more interesting story if the author had dug deeper into his world and characters. As it is, it's just so-so, and won't stick with me for longer than it takes to donate it to the library.
Crista of the village of Day's End is coerced and manipulated into becoming a plague bird, and the book is the story of her journey to find out about her past, about the mother who was killed by another plague bird years ago, and just who she is and the part she has to play in the world's future. This is all well and good, but neither the worldbuilding or the characterization in this book was deep enough or explored enough to suit its setup. Crista in particular was an annoyingly passive protagonist, dragged here and there by her AI, Red Day, and reacting to what others do to her instead of seizing the moment, laying down the law, and breaking free from the various and layered manipulations that have marked her life. The testy relationship between Crista and Red Day was also fairly shallow, and Red Day's admitting in the book's final pages that Crista had "changed" it didn't feel earned to me at all.
(Also, the characters in this book scream at each other way too much? It got on my nerves to the point where I wanted to do a search-and-replace for that word and eliminate almost all instances of it. And this may be a persnickety nitpick, but the font was too small and I believe contributed to my recent need to buy stronger reading glasses.)
I think this could have been a more interesting story if the author had dug deeper into his world and characters. As it is, it's just so-so, and won't stick with me for longer than it takes to donate it to the library.
September 20, 2021
It seems that a number of other folks really liked Plague Birds and I can understand why, but, unfortunately, this book wasn’t really for me.
It is absolutely stuffed with creative ideas in the world building department, but loses me in its character development and the way the world building is conveyed.
The ideas are really the star of this book. The creativity and willingness to push the envelope shine in the various strange locations Crista visits and the glimpses we get of the wider world. Unfortunately, often the ideas don’t feel earned. Things happen that have the potential to destroy the world but as I haven’t really gotten to know the people within the world, it’s hard to feel invested. It feels a bit like the author is leading me from one cool idea to another and the ideas are really cool, but the story structure doesn’t keep me invested. It’s almost too expansive and, without boundaries, stakes don’t feel high.
Another thing which hurts stakes is that we don’t get to know Crista super well pre-Plague Bird status, so it’s harder to mourn alongside her at the loss of her previous life. Even though we spend the entire story beside her, I still don’t feel like I know her. Add in the level of mind manipulation going on in the story and, again, the stakes just don’t feel real. Reading along, I felt like the author could (and might) at any point just pop in and say “that whole thing you read? Mind manipulation!” and instead of feeling stunned by the twist, I’d just feel annoyed.
TLDR- SF set in an interesting world filled with creative locations and cultural ideas held back by a lack of grounding in character or story development.
Take my opinion with a grain of salt- I love character driven works and have a much easier time forgiving a less creative world with finely crafted characters than vice versa. Certainly not a bad book, just not for me.
2.5/5, rounded up for the interesting ideas.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review
It is absolutely stuffed with creative ideas in the world building department, but loses me in its character development and the way the world building is conveyed.
The ideas are really the star of this book. The creativity and willingness to push the envelope shine in the various strange locations Crista visits and the glimpses we get of the wider world. Unfortunately, often the ideas don’t feel earned. Things happen that have the potential to destroy the world but as I haven’t really gotten to know the people within the world, it’s hard to feel invested. It feels a bit like the author is leading me from one cool idea to another and the ideas are really cool, but the story structure doesn’t keep me invested. It’s almost too expansive and, without boundaries, stakes don’t feel high.
Another thing which hurts stakes is that we don’t get to know Crista super well pre-Plague Bird status, so it’s harder to mourn alongside her at the loss of her previous life. Even though we spend the entire story beside her, I still don’t feel like I know her. Add in the level of mind manipulation going on in the story and, again, the stakes just don’t feel real. Reading along, I felt like the author could (and might) at any point just pop in and say “that whole thing you read? Mind manipulation!” and instead of feeling stunned by the twist, I’d just feel annoyed.
TLDR- SF set in an interesting world filled with creative locations and cultural ideas held back by a lack of grounding in character or story development.
Take my opinion with a grain of salt- I love character driven works and have a much easier time forgiving a less creative world with finely crafted characters than vice versa. Certainly not a bad book, just not for me.
2.5/5, rounded up for the interesting ideas.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review
January 3, 2022
Plague Birds is a bare skeleton of a story. It lacks the muscles of vivid characters, the skin of meaningful dialogue, and the clothing of significant stakes. It feels like a television season pitch in book form. Anything beyond "what happens" is an afterthought - characters, dialogue, and dramatic tension are all absent.
INTERESTING SCI-FI PIECES
In a far-future world that's unique and potentially interesting, the technology is never explained to the point of establishing rules for the world. The opening page speaks of bioengineered steel oaks and networked forests. They pop up a few times throughout the text... and they aren't important. It's empty sugar. The book dresses up in the bangles of a deep sci-fi world and never leaves the house.
The plot revolves around Plague Birds. They're an inquisitor with an AI in their blood. Now, get this:
- A Plague Bird has to physically cut their skin to release their blood AI.
- But, without being released, the AI can edit senses and memories at a great distance to make the Plague Bird invisible.
- And, whether released or not, the AI can heal the Plague Bird.
So, how do the AIs work? Who knows. It doesn't make any sense.
The book tells us a lot of facts, but none of the reasoning behind the facts. Why do plague birds exist? Roving crimefighters a la Judge Dredd. Why were they created? Battle AIs were too strong and needed to get tamped down after a war. (But in the flashback we learn that they were already bound to hosts during the war... It's a contradiction that is endemic of the whole, as you will see.) Why does binding an AI to a human weaken it? Never explained.
The book should have established ritualistic rules between AI and carrier. The blood AIs are presented as feral, aggressive, and bloodthirsty. (Without critique of these attributes, notably.) Relying on the human carrier's judgement on when to release the AI seems like an obvious improvement. It represents a conflict of interests between carrier and AI, the conversation between them helps define personality and exposes both inner life and character motivations.
Plague Birds fails to use its science fiction for any purpose. This could have been a superhero book without any significant changes. It could have been a magical vampires versus werewolves versus frankensteins.
STRUCTURAL
Plague Birds uses time well. Characters take time to move from place to place, often walking hours in a day. It also uses time jumps well, as we plunge past mundane travel for a few weeks.
It also does a good job of establishing place. Blue's village, the Down Hope monastery, and Obsidian Rise all feel unique and different. They are described well, particularly in the feeling that the characters have toward them. Obsidian Rise is particularly well-realized because we get perspectives from Christa and Kenji.
TECHNICAL
On technical merit, Plague Birds is one of the worst books that I've ever read. It is poorly written, poorly edited, and even poorly proofread. (Naming a character Tufte/Tuft didn't do the proofreader any favors, admittedly.)
The book commits habitual sins:
* Characters frequently say the same things back-to-back. AI: "They have no memory of..." Protagonist: "You don't remember that!" The text is redundant, and it feels like the author couldn't decide who would represent an idea in the draft stage and ultimately never chose in revision either.
* Everyone is prickly as fuck. It might make sense for the blood AIs - they seem to have similar personalities but it is never discussed - but it's a poor choice to make every character react the same way. Christa and Red Day should have contrasted. Instead they both flip out for no reason. And they do it constantly with pathetically low stakes.
* Characters don't have inner lives. This makes the characters flat and self-similar, but more importantly:
* Characters emotions aren't supported in the text. They get simply get into an emotional state without a clear path. This is because:
* Character motivations are obtuse. No one has a reason for doing things. They go where the plot demands.
INTERESTING SCI-FI PIECES
In a far-future world that's unique and potentially interesting, the technology is never explained to the point of establishing rules for the world. The opening page speaks of bioengineered steel oaks and networked forests. They pop up a few times throughout the text... and they aren't important. It's empty sugar. The book dresses up in the bangles of a deep sci-fi world and never leaves the house.
The plot revolves around Plague Birds. They're an inquisitor with an AI in their blood. Now, get this:
- A Plague Bird has to physically cut their skin to release their blood AI.
- But, without being released, the AI can edit senses and memories at a great distance to make the Plague Bird invisible.
- And, whether released or not, the AI can heal the Plague Bird.
So, how do the AIs work? Who knows. It doesn't make any sense.
The book tells us a lot of facts, but none of the reasoning behind the facts. Why do plague birds exist? Roving crimefighters a la Judge Dredd. Why were they created? Battle AIs were too strong and needed to get tamped down after a war. (But in the flashback we learn that they were already bound to hosts during the war... It's a contradiction that is endemic of the whole, as you will see.) Why does binding an AI to a human weaken it? Never explained.
The book should have established ritualistic rules between AI and carrier. The blood AIs are presented as feral, aggressive, and bloodthirsty. (Without critique of these attributes, notably.) Relying on the human carrier's judgement on when to release the AI seems like an obvious improvement. It represents a conflict of interests between carrier and AI, the conversation between them helps define personality and exposes both inner life and character motivations.
Plague Birds fails to use its science fiction for any purpose. This could have been a superhero book without any significant changes. It could have been a magical vampires versus werewolves versus frankensteins.
STRUCTURAL
Plague Birds uses time well. Characters take time to move from place to place, often walking hours in a day. It also uses time jumps well, as we plunge past mundane travel for a few weeks.
It also does a good job of establishing place. Blue's village, the Down Hope monastery, and Obsidian Rise all feel unique and different. They are described well, particularly in the feeling that the characters have toward them. Obsidian Rise is particularly well-realized because we get perspectives from Christa and Kenji.
TECHNICAL
On technical merit, Plague Birds is one of the worst books that I've ever read. It is poorly written, poorly edited, and even poorly proofread. (Naming a character Tufte/Tuft didn't do the proofreader any favors, admittedly.)
The book commits habitual sins:
* Characters frequently say the same things back-to-back. AI: "They have no memory of..." Protagonist: "You don't remember that!" The text is redundant, and it feels like the author couldn't decide who would represent an idea in the draft stage and ultimately never chose in revision either.
* Everyone is prickly as fuck. It might make sense for the blood AIs - they seem to have similar personalities but it is never discussed - but it's a poor choice to make every character react the same way. Christa and Red Day should have contrasted. Instead they both flip out for no reason. And they do it constantly with pathetically low stakes.
* Characters don't have inner lives. This makes the characters flat and self-similar, but more importantly:
* Characters emotions aren't supported in the text. They get simply get into an emotional state without a clear path. This is because:
* Character motivations are obtuse. No one has a reason for doing things. They go where the plot demands.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 16, 2022
Thank you to Netgalley and Apex Books for providing me with this advanced reader copy to review. All of my ARC reviews are spoiler-free! Plague Birds is expected to release September 21st 2021.
Plague Birds is set in the far future, the epic tale of a young woman named Crista who is thrust into a life she never expected to live. Humans lost their humanity a long time ago, and are now gene spliced with animals and watched over by AIs. The Plague Birds are human hosts with AIs bonded to their blood, and are known for being merciless protectors, hunting down wrong-doers and examining their memories for signs of guilt before punishing them in whatever brutal, violent way they see fit. They are near indestructible creatures, hated but deemed a necessity. The book opens in the middle of disorientating action; a Plague Bird named Derena is attacked and mortally wounded in a way that shouldn’t be possible. She makes her way to the village of Day’s End, where she locates Crista and asks her to become her successor. At first, Crista refuses, but upon realising that she is not going to be given a real choice, Crista agrees and bonds with Derena’s blood AI, Red Day, setting out on what becomes an epic journey of clashing powers and hidden mysteries.
This is an enthralling novel with some stunning world building. The ideas in this book are captured well and structured to create something quite vivid and immersive. The world which the Plague Bird’s watch over is a clever blend of post-apocalyptic science fiction with dark and whimsical themes, and technological advancements that read like magic. The characters, both main and secondary, are all well written and believable from start to finish, and I felt for all of their struggles no matter how questionable. Crista especially is an incredibly engaging and nuanced character with a stable moral compass that serves to guide the narrative without it feeling forced or overly coincidental at any point. She is funny and clever and an absolute delight to follow, and I absolutely adored her banter with Red Day.
I didn't quite get the satisfaction I wanted out of the ending, and I feel that a lot of questions were left unanswered but in a way that felt more curious than it did frustrating. I hope that Sanford releases a sequel to this brilliant piece of work because I would absolutely love to dive further into the world of Plague Bird in the future.
Plague Birds is set in the far future, the epic tale of a young woman named Crista who is thrust into a life she never expected to live. Humans lost their humanity a long time ago, and are now gene spliced with animals and watched over by AIs. The Plague Birds are human hosts with AIs bonded to their blood, and are known for being merciless protectors, hunting down wrong-doers and examining their memories for signs of guilt before punishing them in whatever brutal, violent way they see fit. They are near indestructible creatures, hated but deemed a necessity. The book opens in the middle of disorientating action; a Plague Bird named Derena is attacked and mortally wounded in a way that shouldn’t be possible. She makes her way to the village of Day’s End, where she locates Crista and asks her to become her successor. At first, Crista refuses, but upon realising that she is not going to be given a real choice, Crista agrees and bonds with Derena’s blood AI, Red Day, setting out on what becomes an epic journey of clashing powers and hidden mysteries.
This is an enthralling novel with some stunning world building. The ideas in this book are captured well and structured to create something quite vivid and immersive. The world which the Plague Bird’s watch over is a clever blend of post-apocalyptic science fiction with dark and whimsical themes, and technological advancements that read like magic. The characters, both main and secondary, are all well written and believable from start to finish, and I felt for all of their struggles no matter how questionable. Crista especially is an incredibly engaging and nuanced character with a stable moral compass that serves to guide the narrative without it feeling forced or overly coincidental at any point. She is funny and clever and an absolute delight to follow, and I absolutely adored her banter with Red Day.
I didn't quite get the satisfaction I wanted out of the ending, and I feel that a lot of questions were left unanswered but in a way that felt more curious than it did frustrating. I hope that Sanford releases a sequel to this brilliant piece of work because I would absolutely love to dive further into the world of Plague Bird in the future.
September 11, 2021
Plague Birds is such a wild ride. I was torn between wanting to read it as fast as possible to find out what would happen and wanting to make it last. This book is worthwhile for the worldbuilding alone--the far-flung future setting populated by AI, automatons, and gene-spliced animal-human hybrids living in quasi-medieval villages feels truly unique and wholly engrossing--but it has so very much more than worldbuilding alone to offer.
While the immensely creative setting and all its details were particular highlights for me, I also very much liked most of those novel's characters. I appreciated the complexity of their relationships, and the space Sanford makes for multiple things to be true at once. The lack of straightforward answers available to most of the characters as they navigate the mysteries of right, wrong, and existence itself keeps things tense and gripping, and the grace the most sympathetic of the central characters afford one another as they learn to deal with impossible circumstances as best they can is portrayed in such a lovely and gentle manner.
Plague Birds is really just a fantastic book, and I'm so glad I got to read it. I'll be thinking about this one for ages, and I'll be looking forward to seeing what Sanford writes next.
I received a free e-ARC of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my review.
While the immensely creative setting and all its details were particular highlights for me, I also very much liked most of those novel's characters. I appreciated the complexity of their relationships, and the space Sanford makes for multiple things to be true at once. The lack of straightforward answers available to most of the characters as they navigate the mysteries of right, wrong, and existence itself keeps things tense and gripping, and the grace the most sympathetic of the central characters afford one another as they learn to deal with impossible circumstances as best they can is portrayed in such a lovely and gentle manner.
Plague Birds is really just a fantastic book, and I'm so glad I got to read it. I'll be thinking about this one for ages, and I'll be looking forward to seeing what Sanford writes next.
I received a free e-ARC of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my review.
November 23, 2021
Thank you Apex Books and NetGalley for granting me an arc of this book, in exchange for my honest review!
TW: Self-harm magic/powers, murder, SA and betrayal
I enjoyed this book in the first hundred pages; then it lost me!
This book started so strong, and then I had no idea what was going on with the plot for a hundred pages, and I almost had no clue with some characters PLUS the change in pov (I KNOW IT WAS THIRD PERSON BUT STILL) threw me.
This story was unique and combined human-animal hybrid initially and AI that work through blood and help keep justice in a new world; I loved that I never had read or heard of someone like that before. However, the execution fell flat as the written was tell and showed nothing.
It could have been more and wasn't, unfortunately.
TW: Self-harm magic/powers, murder, SA and betrayal
I enjoyed this book in the first hundred pages; then it lost me!
This book started so strong, and then I had no idea what was going on with the plot for a hundred pages, and I almost had no clue with some characters PLUS the change in pov (I KNOW IT WAS THIRD PERSON BUT STILL) threw me.
This story was unique and combined human-animal hybrid initially and AI that work through blood and help keep justice in a new world; I loved that I never had read or heard of someone like that before. However, the execution fell flat as the written was tell and showed nothing.
It could have been more and wasn't, unfortunately.
November 4, 2021
Incredible ideas with Plague Birds, very intriguing. It all just fell a little flat for me. The first few chapters were so uninteresting and slow, I genuinely considered a DNF. I am happy I stuck through it because it does pick up a bit.
This is a very interesting book and I do think its worth a read if you are intrgiued by the synopsis. It just overall came off as unpolished.
2.9/5
This is a very interesting book and I do think its worth a read if you are intrgiued by the synopsis. It just overall came off as unpolished.
2.9/5
September 25, 2021
“Plague Birds” by Jason Sanford is a stunning mix of sci-fi and fantasy readers must get their hands on. This highly imaginative novel is a wild ride full of AIs, animal/human hybrids, monks, and alien lifeforms. Readers will be fascinated by the realistic world-building, the unordinary creatures, and the terrifyingly vicious characters.
Plague birds are notorious for their merciless nature, giving them notoriety as powerful beings feared by everyone. They bond with a blood AI to exact revenge on wrong-doers however they see fit. Crista experiences a Plague Bird’s brutal nature when one murders her mother and again when she is forced to become one herself.
Crista and her AI, Red Day, embark on a life-threatening journey in which she must hunt down a rogue faction called the Veil who are bent on destroying everything that gets in the way of what they perceive to be their ultimate mission. In a world where sense can be manipulated and no one is who they appear to be, it’s impossible to know who to trust and who’s the enemy.
Readers will be enthralled by this gripping and compelling novel and all of its radiant characters. There aren’t too many novels with richly developed secondary characters, but Sanford has created multi-faceted characters with complex backgrounds that readers will easily hate, sympathize with, or love. One thing is for sure: these are characters readers will easily keep straight in their heads and won’t be forgetting anytime soon.
The world-building, lifeforms, science, and fantasy elements are 100% some of the most interesting and fascinating elements of the story. It’s a post-apocalyptic story set way in the future with a life that kind of resembles reality’s present-day except for all of the technologic advances and dark fantasy elements. It doesn’t take much to become immersed in Sanford’s world or to become addicted to Crista’s story.
Choosing not to read this book means missing out on an inventive sci-fi tale with an original outlook on the genre. Not to mention the beautiful addition of dark fantasy that adds a sinister atmosphere to the overall story. Add this book to your TBR shelves, pre-save the novel, and look for it on shelves on its expected publication date of September 21st, 2021.
Thank you to NetGalley and Apex books for providing me with a free e-arc of this novel and the opportunity to share my honest opinion in this review.
Plague birds are notorious for their merciless nature, giving them notoriety as powerful beings feared by everyone. They bond with a blood AI to exact revenge on wrong-doers however they see fit. Crista experiences a Plague Bird’s brutal nature when one murders her mother and again when she is forced to become one herself.
Crista and her AI, Red Day, embark on a life-threatening journey in which she must hunt down a rogue faction called the Veil who are bent on destroying everything that gets in the way of what they perceive to be their ultimate mission. In a world where sense can be manipulated and no one is who they appear to be, it’s impossible to know who to trust and who’s the enemy.
Readers will be enthralled by this gripping and compelling novel and all of its radiant characters. There aren’t too many novels with richly developed secondary characters, but Sanford has created multi-faceted characters with complex backgrounds that readers will easily hate, sympathize with, or love. One thing is for sure: these are characters readers will easily keep straight in their heads and won’t be forgetting anytime soon.
The world-building, lifeforms, science, and fantasy elements are 100% some of the most interesting and fascinating elements of the story. It’s a post-apocalyptic story set way in the future with a life that kind of resembles reality’s present-day except for all of the technologic advances and dark fantasy elements. It doesn’t take much to become immersed in Sanford’s world or to become addicted to Crista’s story.
Choosing not to read this book means missing out on an inventive sci-fi tale with an original outlook on the genre. Not to mention the beautiful addition of dark fantasy that adds a sinister atmosphere to the overall story. Add this book to your TBR shelves, pre-save the novel, and look for it on shelves on its expected publication date of September 21st, 2021.
Thank you to NetGalley and Apex books for providing me with a free e-arc of this novel and the opportunity to share my honest opinion in this review.
September 21, 2021
A raging war has reduced human civilization back to an agricultural society. Villages are overseen by a central governing AI, and plague birds—powerful AI merged with humans—are the arbiters of justice in the land. Crista’s mother was killed by one. However, when a wounded plague bird arrives at her doorstep and offers to give her information about her mother’s death in exchange for becoming a plague bird herself, she reluctantly agrees.
Engrossing and richly imagined, Plague Birds by Jason Sanford presents an interesting blend of sci-fi and dark fantasy. This is a world I really enjoyed getting sucked into. There are so many cool ideas here like monks who retain knowledge in their DNA, a sentient forest, and gene-spliced human/animal hybrids.
Asides from the inventive worldbuilding, I also loved how introspective and psychologically-driven this story is. It deals with unreliable memories and characters who must wrestle with their inner monsters … or in Crista’s case, a murderous AI living inside her that she must keep in check.
My one complaint though is that—due to the shorter page length—the resolution for the climax was rushed and feels sort of anti-climactic for all its built-up. However, despite its pacing issues at the end, I’m still giving this book five stars because I enjoyed reading it that much.
All in all, this is the dark horse sci-fi novel of the year for me since I hadn’t heard much buzz around it in advance. However, I’m glad I picked it up because Plague Birds offers a truly unique and emotionally-driven work of speculative fiction.
Thank you, NetGalley and Apex Books, for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Engrossing and richly imagined, Plague Birds by Jason Sanford presents an interesting blend of sci-fi and dark fantasy. This is a world I really enjoyed getting sucked into. There are so many cool ideas here like monks who retain knowledge in their DNA, a sentient forest, and gene-spliced human/animal hybrids.
Asides from the inventive worldbuilding, I also loved how introspective and psychologically-driven this story is. It deals with unreliable memories and characters who must wrestle with their inner monsters … or in Crista’s case, a murderous AI living inside her that she must keep in check.
My one complaint though is that—due to the shorter page length—the resolution for the climax was rushed and feels sort of anti-climactic for all its built-up. However, despite its pacing issues at the end, I’m still giving this book five stars because I enjoyed reading it that much.
All in all, this is the dark horse sci-fi novel of the year for me since I hadn’t heard much buzz around it in advance. However, I’m glad I picked it up because Plague Birds offers a truly unique and emotionally-driven work of speculative fiction.
Thank you, NetGalley and Apex Books, for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
September 18, 2021
Plague Birds opened solidly, with an inventive and engaging premise and a wonderful heroine in Crista. I enjoyed seeing her development during the story, especially regarding her relationship with Red Day, her bonded AI. The world building was nicely handled and the plot moved at a good pace. My attention and engagement did drift somewhat over the final sixty to seventy pages; however, I finished this book on a night when I was tired and had a bad headache, so that lapse of interest is likely due to my own concentration issues, rather than any problem with the book itself. Overall, Plague Birds is a sci-fi fantasy story with a fresh and captivating premise that is nicely developed and presented. Aside from my slight attention slip near the end, it held my interest throughout and kept me turning the pages to see what would happen next. It gets a solid four stars from me.
I received this book as a free eBook ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I received this book as a free eBook ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
May 30, 2022
Despite some interesting and grand ambitions, the world, characters and themes all felt disjointed. Exposition used to explain institutions in the world but the characters and people don't seem to know or believe those things. Almost felt like a teen novel in that the protagonist is on a coming of age journey in which she is the central pivot through which every other force in the world interact, and every other character felt a little less fleshed out or believable.
September 11, 2021
It is not possible to write a better introduction this novel than Jason Sanford himself did on his blog:
The far future is a post-apocalyptic blend of low-tech agrarian societies and advanced AI. The young woman is Cristina de Ane, a human-wolf hybrid who lives with her father and their stubborn donkey in Day’s End, a small village of gene-spliced humans.
When she was alive, Crista’s mother told her stories of massive cities and the high-tech moon colony where her ancestors once lived. The other people in Crista’s village consider these stories essentially fairytales. Long before any of them were born, “excessive genetic manipulation” caused a species-wide series of conflicts and disasters collectively known as the collapse, after which:
Plague birds are essentially wandering human-AI pairs that maintain the “three-fold balance” by ensuring no crimes go unpunished. By death.
When a plague bird confronts a suspect, they review the suspect’s memories to determine their guilt. The human host then draws their own blood in order to release the AI that lives within them. As a cloud of blood, the AI rains down upon the guilty, sometimes entire villages, killing them with agonizing slowness and creativity.
(This is why the human host is necessary: to temper the AI’s bloodlust as well as its black-and-white approach to justice.)
Obviously, plague birds aren’t exactly popular dinner guests, even though most people agree they’re necessary. Human hosts give up their village, everyone they know, and even their very connection to other humans in order to carry out their plague bird responsibilities. In exchange, their AIs enhance their senses, sustain them without the need for food or (much) sleep, heal even wounds that should be fatal, and greatly extend their lifetimes. Usually.
Read my full Plague Birds review on my blog.
Plague Birds is set in the far future and is the epic tale of a young woman betrayed into becoming one of her world’s hated judges and executioners, with a killer AI bonded to her very blood. While the novel is science fiction, it reads much like fantasy and is weird and dark.
The far future is a post-apocalyptic blend of low-tech agrarian societies and advanced AI. The young woman is Cristina de Ane, a human-wolf hybrid who lives with her father and their stubborn donkey in Day’s End, a small village of gene-spliced humans.
When she was alive, Crista’s mother told her stories of massive cities and the high-tech moon colony where her ancestors once lived. The other people in Crista’s village consider these stories essentially fairytales. Long before any of them were born, “excessive genetic manipulation” caused a species-wide series of conflicts and disasters collectively known as the collapse, after which:
… a horrible war was fought. Eventually, the three-fold armies won and laid down new rules for our world. The hunters [human-animal hybrids who give into their animal sides and form packs] could live their lives within certain constraints while AIs … would work with isolated villages to return [the rest of] humanity to your original state.
Plague birds are essentially wandering human-AI pairs that maintain the “three-fold balance” by ensuring no crimes go unpunished. By death.
When a plague bird confronts a suspect, they review the suspect’s memories to determine their guilt. The human host then draws their own blood in order to release the AI that lives within them. As a cloud of blood, the AI rains down upon the guilty, sometimes entire villages, killing them with agonizing slowness and creativity.
(This is why the human host is necessary: to temper the AI’s bloodlust as well as its black-and-white approach to justice.)
Obviously, plague birds aren’t exactly popular dinner guests, even though most people agree they’re necessary. Human hosts give up their village, everyone they know, and even their very connection to other humans in order to carry out their plague bird responsibilities. In exchange, their AIs enhance their senses, sustain them without the need for food or (much) sleep, heal even wounds that should be fatal, and greatly extend their lifetimes. Usually.
Read my full Plague Birds review on my blog.
October 7, 2021
Plague birds by @jasonsanfordsf
⭐️ 8/10 ⭐️
Sci-fi novel that’s set in the distant future, where humans are no longer quite human and are now gene spliced with animals and watched over by AIs. The Plague Birds are human with AIs bonded to their blood, and are savage protectors, hunting down wrong-doers and examining their memories for signs of guilt before punishing them in terrifying ways. Plaque bird, Deana, has been attacked and severely injured makes her way to the village of Day’s End, where she locates the heroine Crista and asks her to become her successor. At first, Crista refuses, but upon realising that she is not going to be given a real choice, Crista agrees and bonds with Derena’s blood AI, Red Day, setting out on what becomes an epic journey that could kill millions of people.
Unusual and original Sci-fi/fantasy book that delivers several unexpected shocks and twists throughout. The author does a great job at not only writing something truly original and creative but provides characters with surprising depth and complexity.
I would say I felt the start of the book was confusing to the point where I put it down and didn’t pick it up again for several weeks. Get through that hurdle and you’re in for a treat of a book!
Thanks to @rebeccatreasureschibler and @apexbookcompany for my ARC copy
⭐️ 8/10 ⭐️
Sci-fi novel that’s set in the distant future, where humans are no longer quite human and are now gene spliced with animals and watched over by AIs. The Plague Birds are human with AIs bonded to their blood, and are savage protectors, hunting down wrong-doers and examining their memories for signs of guilt before punishing them in terrifying ways. Plaque bird, Deana, has been attacked and severely injured makes her way to the village of Day’s End, where she locates the heroine Crista and asks her to become her successor. At first, Crista refuses, but upon realising that she is not going to be given a real choice, Crista agrees and bonds with Derena’s blood AI, Red Day, setting out on what becomes an epic journey that could kill millions of people.
Unusual and original Sci-fi/fantasy book that delivers several unexpected shocks and twists throughout. The author does a great job at not only writing something truly original and creative but provides characters with surprising depth and complexity.
I would say I felt the start of the book was confusing to the point where I put it down and didn’t pick it up again for several weeks. Get through that hurdle and you’re in for a treat of a book!
Thanks to @rebeccatreasureschibler and @apexbookcompany for my ARC copy
September 18, 2021
This book had a very chaotic and confusing start, I felt like I had been thrown into the middle of the story, but things soon became clearer.
The world building was great. The concept of human-animal hybrids and AIs living within them was super interesting. I loved learning more about the world and its history.
Crista is an interesting main character, as is Red Day. Their development as individuals and as partners as certain truths are revealed to them was riveting. I would have loved some more development of some of the side characters.
Overall, this is a great sci-fi book with a decently paced plot.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily
The world building was great. The concept of human-animal hybrids and AIs living within them was super interesting. I loved learning more about the world and its history.
Crista is an interesting main character, as is Red Day. Their development as individuals and as partners as certain truths are revealed to them was riveting. I would have loved some more development of some of the side characters.
Overall, this is a great sci-fi book with a decently paced plot.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily
December 20, 2021
This was a amazing book that is so imaginative and different from anything out there. On first look I thought it was going to be a rip off of "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman but that is not the case at all. There are plague birds who roam the land giving justice to those who they decide deserve it. They are guided by AI in their blood called "Red Day" and Crista, the main character is in contact communication with her Red Day. She is given the choice to become a plague bird in exchange for information about her mother who was killed by one.
The prose is very poetic, almost beautiful and I enjoyed reading it. I would rate it next to perfect but I did start trying to move my way to the ending because of the pacing. Otherwise a solid, highly recommended book!
The prose is very poetic, almost beautiful and I enjoyed reading it. I would rate it next to perfect but I did start trying to move my way to the ending because of the pacing. Otherwise a solid, highly recommended book!
September 29, 2021
Good first start of hopefully a series
I remember listening to the Dunesteef Podcast some of the Plague Bird short stories. So glad the author made a novel and I hope to read more stories soon
I remember listening to the Dunesteef Podcast some of the Plague Bird short stories. So glad the author made a novel and I hope to read more stories soon
June 3, 2022
This was just a slog. Perhaps it's me; perhaps I am tired of stories about libraries, but this just felt slow.
November 7, 2025
La historia tiene lugar miles de años en el futuro. La humanidad ha combinado su ADN con el de animales, lo que modifica en parte su aspecto y su comportamiento.
Tampoco existen las ciudades; la humanidad vive en pequeñas aldeas de unos cientos de habitantes, labrando el campo con mulas, y los viajes se hacen a pie, por lo que el comercio es escaso y pocos en su vida van más allá de las aldeas cercanas. Sin embargo, no es un escenario medieval, las aldeas tienen IAs, formas incorpóreas que pueden leer los pensamientos y que velan por sus habitantes.
El mundo es recorrido por las aves de la peste que dan título al libro, una forma de vigilante que vigila y castiga los crímenes con eficaz crueldad. Las aves de la peste son humanos ligados a una IA que habita en su sangre y que le otorga poderes extraordinarios y que regenera el daño de su cuerpo (las aves de la peste pueden vivir miles de años). Liberadas de su anfitrión, estas IAs sanguíneas son fabulosas máquinas de combate.
La protagonista es Crista, una adolescente en una aldea sin importancia alguna y que se ve forzada a convertirse en un ave de la peste. Sin embargo, a medida que la historia avanza se va perfilando que se ha involucrado en una trama compleja con enemigos poderosos que amenazan el equilibrio mismo del mundo.
La novela es tramposa. Estira demasiado la idea de la tercera ley de Clarke y bien podría haberse escrito en forma de novela de fantasía. Las IAs que rozan la omnipotencia y no son distinguibles de un espíritu mágico. Esta omnipotencia es también un recurso fácil que, a menudo, desemboca en deus ex machina.
Pese a todo, el libro es ameno, con personajes sencillos pero interesantes por los que es posible sentir un interés que anima a seguir leyendo.
[+] Reseña completa en Alt+64 wiki: https://alt64.org/wiki/index.php?titl...
Tampoco existen las ciudades; la humanidad vive en pequeñas aldeas de unos cientos de habitantes, labrando el campo con mulas, y los viajes se hacen a pie, por lo que el comercio es escaso y pocos en su vida van más allá de las aldeas cercanas. Sin embargo, no es un escenario medieval, las aldeas tienen IAs, formas incorpóreas que pueden leer los pensamientos y que velan por sus habitantes.
El mundo es recorrido por las aves de la peste que dan título al libro, una forma de vigilante que vigila y castiga los crímenes con eficaz crueldad. Las aves de la peste son humanos ligados a una IA que habita en su sangre y que le otorga poderes extraordinarios y que regenera el daño de su cuerpo (las aves de la peste pueden vivir miles de años). Liberadas de su anfitrión, estas IAs sanguíneas son fabulosas máquinas de combate.
La protagonista es Crista, una adolescente en una aldea sin importancia alguna y que se ve forzada a convertirse en un ave de la peste. Sin embargo, a medida que la historia avanza se va perfilando que se ha involucrado en una trama compleja con enemigos poderosos que amenazan el equilibrio mismo del mundo.
La novela es tramposa. Estira demasiado la idea de la tercera ley de Clarke y bien podría haberse escrito en forma de novela de fantasía. Las IAs que rozan la omnipotencia y no son distinguibles de un espíritu mágico. Esta omnipotencia es también un recurso fácil que, a menudo, desemboca en deus ex machina.
Pese a todo, el libro es ameno, con personajes sencillos pero interesantes por los que es posible sentir un interés que anima a seguir leyendo.
[+] Reseña completa en Alt+64 wiki: https://alt64.org/wiki/index.php?titl...
February 12, 2024
I like it when authors unite their main character with an anthropomorphic object that acts as a foil. In this story it is an AI and the main character, Christa, that provide comic relief in an apocryphal plot. The AI is a bloodthirsty, knowledgeable curmudgeon and the girl likes to not kill everything on site and laughs a lot. The monk that tells bad jokes had me snickering too. I love a good sci-fi book that makes me laugh while the protagonist is saving the world against impossible odds. Lots of twists and turns with great world building.
February 7, 2022
I could almost give this a five. It's a hair's breadth from it. It gets a little YA-y here and there, a little too cute. Nonetheless, it was hard to put down and I enjoyed the hell out of it. Fascinating world and mystery. Ancient AIs, gene-modded humans (a la TV's Dark Angel), some aliens lurking in the wings, and a 10,000 year-old unresolved war.
July 27, 2025
4,25/5. Me ha gustado un montón: muchas IA de verdad, movidas genéticas, monjes caníbales y aliens. What's not to like?
June 10, 2022
Recently, I decided to read all the books nominated for this year's Nebula and Hugo Awards; Plague Birds was the first book I chose. I found it quite compelling: an engrossing read that kept me guessing from start to finish. It is true that some readers might find the book a little "busy." In his effort to build an immersive world of fiction, author Jason Sanford seems to have used the "kitchen sink" approach, including many different elements, any two of which might have sustained a less ambitious novel. In spite of this "busy-ness," I found that the novel's different elements fit together nicely - and they all play meaningful parts in the book's final chapters. A very satisfying read. Sanford is an author I will look for in years to come!
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