Zoë’s Reviews > Antimatter Blues > Status Update

The process of interacting with and negotiating with an alien species could be so interesting, if only the emphasis were on the negotiations! Instead it's mainly people complaining that it's taking too long and it would be better just to start shooting.

But I have to accept that what I want from this book is somewhat contradictory: I really appreciate that it's easy to read, even if that comes at the cost of depth.

The good news: These past couple of days, I've actually been able to read a few pages while B is playing in the room nearby.

The bad news: There's a character in this book who's so annoying. She's impatient and rude, quick to get angry and turn to violence, and somehow she insisted on coming along on a diplomatic mission. Poor aliens.

Gah, I'd really like to enjoy this story, if the author could just stop interrupting every moment of high excitement with pages of relatively tedious background info.

I never skim over pages in a novel, but I'm sorely tempted here.