Alien Influences

Rating:
Summary: Another winner
Review: A book that surprised me, from an author I have never read. A story told from multiple points of view, it reminded me of the style used in the film 'Pulp Fiction', through a large period of time. The author uses different character narration to examine one pivotal event in the book. This book is really a mystery. After every chapter it had me asking what the hell is going on and what is going to happen next. I didn't find any weaknesses in this book. A well told-story from start to finish. No wonder it was nominated for so many awards. I'm surprised it didn't win any. I highly recommend this one.

Rating:
Summary: Alien Influences offers disturbingly human characters
Review: Having heard rave reviews of Rusch's work, I picked up _Alien Influences_ with high expectations. Unfortunately, the book should have been a hundred pages shorter. Many elements could have been tightened up, and the "hanging suspense" endings invariably fizzled. I found myself being so annoyed with the overuse of the words "tangy" and "cinnamon" that I began keeping track of how many times each was used, and felt strongly that they were simply being repeated as convenient shorthand. Overall, I loved the book's concepts (with the exception of a slight sell-out at the ending regarding one of the Dancer Seven), but wished that Rusch's editor had sent back the manuscript one more time.

Rating:
Summary: Terrific, thought-provoking
Review: It's interesting. It starts off in a sun-scorched planet called Bountiful, where everything is not what it seems to be. There are interesting characters- seven children influenced by aliens (as the title implies),a psychologist who lives off the contact he made with the seven children before they were shipped off into various planets to serve time for their crimes, and a shadowy art dealer. The details of the characters read as being very real. The plot is great. What's missing? A good description of the environment. I never got the feel of where the characters are in, a certain characteristic that seems to be in all Kathryn Rusch books. And there is also the fact that there is not enough suspense- often the plot lags and lets one become bored. The good points make up for the bad points of this book, but still, there are better ones.

Rating:
Summary: Alien Influences
Review: This is the best book I've ever read. Descriptions were strikingly vivid and characters were excellently written and very human. The interesting and original plot kept me reading. I could not put it down!

Rating:
Summary: Alien Influences
Review: This is the best book I've ever read. Descriptions were strikingly vivid and characters were excellently written and very human. The interesting and original plot kept me reading. I could not put it down!

Rating:
Summary: Interesting, merely interesting
Review: While I found the basic themes of this book interesting, I felt that the characters, the plot and the realization of the alien race of "Dancers" were lacking in depth or power. They were described but not brought to life.

I therefore read through it to discover what happened, but was in no way gripped by it or compelled to become more involved in the story. I never did understand the "souls in bottles" phenomenon and found it simply a mechanical device to support the plot.

The conclusion brought with it a feeling of hmmmmmm, okay. I much prefer a resounding AHA! or at least some tugging at my feelings and understanding.

Interesting, merely interesting.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting, merely interesting
Review: While I found the basic themes of this book interesting, I felt that the characters, the plot and the realization of the alien race of "Dancers" were lacking in depth or power. They were described but not brought to life.

I therefore read through it to discover what happened, but was in no way gripped by it or compelled to become more involved in the story. I never did understand the "souls in bottles" phenomenon and found it simply a mechanical device to support the plot.

The conclusion brought with it a feeling of hmmmmmm, okay. I much prefer a resounding AHA! or at least some tugging at my feelings and understanding.

Interesting, merely interesting.