Scan barcode
grafious's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is one of the most challenging books I have read in a while. The second part drug a bit for me and it was all very challenging to tie together but it was super inventive and left me with a ton to think about.
jdmckern's review against another edition
3.0
Eh. An interesting set of intertwined novellas but a bit too much old school misogyny for me. People seem obsessed with Gene Wolfe being great but I really don't see it. This book didn't do much of anything for me. Read for sci-fi book club.
book___fiend's review against another edition
4.0
Even though The Fifth Head of Cerberus is what is known as a "fix-up" novel, i.e. a whole constructed of several original and previously published pieces - in this case, three novellas - the whole does, indeed, work surprisingly well. This may not become apparent in the transition from the first into the second part, but the third novella does an excellent job of connecting everything into an effective whole. Although i am not yet very familiar with the sci-fi and fantasy genres, i have found the images, themes and ideas within this book both provocative and thought-provoking. The style is quite accomplished and literary, characters sharply drawn and eerily mysterious, and the philosophical underpinning sound and pertinent.
mitchellreed's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
jmmcneese's review against another edition
2.0
I really wanted to like this, but couldn’t. I love The Book of the New Sun and The Long Sun series... but this one was too opaque and boring despite the intriguing setting.
baldanders's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
ronpayne's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
A collection of three interconnected novellas set in the far future on a pair of binary worlds. The first about young man coming of age and learning his heredity, the second a story purportedly told to an anthropologist by aboriginals, and the third a set of documents about an expedition and the imprisonment of the same anthropologist. I enjoyed reading this but can’t say I really understood it, which means, as usual with Wolfe, I need to reread it.
post_hawk's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0