Neuvel, Sylvain. Waking Gods. New York: Del Rey. 2017. Print.
First Sentences:
Description:
Well, that's an opening sentence that will either excite you or completely turn you off. For me, I'm all in for a wild ride.
Sylvain Neuvel's new sci-fi novel Waking Gods is the second in the Themis alien robot series, (who knew that the fantastic Sleeping Giants would spawn more books?). And it's a worthy continuation of the original story in which pieces of a huge robot are discovered buried throughout the Earth, painstakingly assembled into a gigantic humanoid shape, and actually made to work.
Waking Gods takes over from here when twelve even larger robots appear (fully assembled and ready for action) in the major cities around the world - and they are not friendly. Although they don't move an inch, they demonstrate an ability to destroy large swatches of people and buildings in a few seconds, are impervious to any counter-attacks by Earth forces, and are non-communicative about their intentions. Only Themis, the original robot, might possibly be used to stand in their way.
Unfortunately, Themis can only be operated by two specific people. Without them, Themis is a 12-story statue. But can the governments of the world first uncover the intention and motivation behind the new robots? Will Earth choose communication or weaponry to address them? Can Themis again be made operational and if so, to what effect?
The story unfolds through memos, reports, conversations, and personal diaries that subtly give insights into individual thinking and plots. Slowly, slowly these lead to a very unusual but satisfying and logical conclusion. Full of surprises on every page, Waking Giants is a highly entertaining, mentally challenging, and thoroughly engrossing story full of unpredictable characters and activities.
And even better, Waking Gods has one of the best final sentences I have ever encountered, with a completely unexpected (by me) shock, but also the tingling promise for a new fantastic adventure for Themis and its operators.
While Waking Gods refers to the events that happened previously, make sure you read Sleeping Giants first. It's equally as good (maybe even better?) and will help explain many people, relationships and complexities that arise in the newer novel. Both books are definitely worth the time of any reader looking for outstanding reads.
Neuvel, Sylvian. Sleeping Giants
A twenty-story-tall metallic figure appeared in the middle of Regent's Park this morning.
Description:
Well, that's an opening sentence that will either excite you or completely turn you off. For me, I'm all in for a wild ride.
Sylvain Neuvel's new sci-fi novel Waking Gods is the second in the Themis alien robot series, (who knew that the fantastic Sleeping Giants would spawn more books?). And it's a worthy continuation of the original story in which pieces of a huge robot are discovered buried throughout the Earth, painstakingly assembled into a gigantic humanoid shape, and actually made to work.
Waking Gods takes over from here when twelve even larger robots appear (fully assembled and ready for action) in the major cities around the world - and they are not friendly. Although they don't move an inch, they demonstrate an ability to destroy large swatches of people and buildings in a few seconds, are impervious to any counter-attacks by Earth forces, and are non-communicative about their intentions. Only Themis, the original robot, might possibly be used to stand in their way.
Unfortunately, Themis can only be operated by two specific people. Without them, Themis is a 12-story statue. But can the governments of the world first uncover the intention and motivation behind the new robots? Will Earth choose communication or weaponry to address them? Can Themis again be made operational and if so, to what effect?
The story unfolds through memos, reports, conversations, and personal diaries that subtly give insights into individual thinking and plots. Slowly, slowly these lead to a very unusual but satisfying and logical conclusion. Full of surprises on every page, Waking Giants is a highly entertaining, mentally challenging, and thoroughly engrossing story full of unpredictable characters and activities.
And even better, Waking Gods has one of the best final sentences I have ever encountered, with a completely unexpected (by me) shock, but also the tingling promise for a new fantastic adventure for Themis and its operators.
While Waking Gods refers to the events that happened previously, make sure you read Sleeping Giants first. It's equally as good (maybe even better?) and will help explain many people, relationships and complexities that arise in the newer novel. Both books are definitely worth the time of any reader looking for outstanding reads.
Happy reading.
Fred
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If this book interests you, be sure to check out:
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If this book interests you, be sure to check out:
Neuvel, Sylvian. Sleeping Giants
Pieces of a gigantic robot are found buried throughout the world. Eventually these are assembled into a metallic figure with unknown capabilities, unresponsive to all who try to control it except for one man and woman who slowly learn a few of its secrets. (previously reviewed here)
