Riders of Leviathan

Riders of Leviathan. Sigh.

I read and reviewed Typhon's Children for the WOGF Challenge, and said that while I didn't much care for the characters or the plot, I found the world of Typhon itself very interesting.

Unfortunately, the same did not hold true for the second book. Ms. Anzetti did something a lot of sci-fi writers do: she made her aliens more reltable by making them more human. Not biologically, but socially and culturally. There were plot specific parallels between the genetic tampering of the humans and that of the Great People (what the aliens were called). I couldn't help but feel, however, that the sea creatures I found so fascinating in the first book were shoved aside in favor of the morally grey amphibious humanoids.

It didn't help that my girlfriend has some sort of virus, and kept asking me to get her boxes of tissues off the top shelf while I was trying to finish. She was all like, "Jack, could you get me some more tissues, I'm so weak and can't move."

And I'd be all like, "Ugh, fine."

Anyway, the issues I had with the first book are still prevalent. Per, even though he's a disembodied god now, is still a snob with an identity crisis. Delani is still mad about being deaf, even though she isn't anymore. That guy who didn't have any legs now has legs. That's about all the character development he was given. Also, all three of these main characters are put on the backburner. We hardly get any time with them, in favor of someone new. It's weird.

Who's this new person, you ask? Why, it's Sofron! Per's long lost love who is actually alive! She's been taking care of a bunch of helpless newgens on an island for years, waiting for rescue. Boy, oh boy, did I hate these kids. At least with the teenage newgens, I could deal with the angst. But these five year old newgens were a pain to read, and when they disappeared, I honestly didn't care.

This was a sequel I felt compelled to read. I mean, I read the first book, so it's only natural to continue on, right? Plus, it's been on my reading list for weeks and I have a superstitions about taking things off said list.

Would I recommend it?

Well, maybe. It's not terribly written, though Ms. Anzetti switches POV without breaks, which I can't stand. I suppose if you're into this kind of story you'd like it. It's a nice little adventure, full of twists and turns. It's just that I wasn't interested in the characters. There was too much angst and not enough pep. I like dark characters and anti-heroes well enough, but there needs to be something present to balance out all the damn brooding.

Whatever, it's finally Memory of Light time!