Reviews

Odalisca by Neal Stephenson

njyx's review against another edition

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4.0

Continuation of the Baroque cycle, it continues the stories of some fun characters. The pseudo-history is quite compelling, if a little too detailed sometimes. It's nice to see scientific concepts and discovery mixed together with a tale of individuals.

I did set this book aside for a while because it was too winding.

I can see this series dragged and being "just too much", but this is one of the better volumes!

johnny_o's review against another edition

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5.0

So this is my quick review of the first 3 volumes of The Baroque Cycle (8 volume version). I originally read the first book in this series when it first came out way back in 2003. I started the second book, the Confusion, shortly after it came out but for whatever reason I could not get through it. I listened to these on audio, and they are interesting but honestly it is hard to keep track of what is going on. They jump around in time and from character to character and it is hard to see how all the plot threads are connected. I had planned on just barreling through the whole series but I decided to take a break. I feel like maybe I should have been taking notes to help keep track of things, but that is not usually something I look for in my fiction. I will try the next book in a couple of weeks and see how it goes.

kchamis's review against another edition

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4.0

Love this series. Have I said that? And although I enjoyed this third installment immensely, it didn't capture me in the same way as the first two... Until the last three chapters. Will be working on the next book immediately!

jazzlw's review against another edition

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5.0

Definitely my favorite of the baroque cycle so far!really starting tot get into it and the characters etc. all of the stuff between Newton, Leibniz, etc was super fun and interesting.

its_boots_baby's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny informative mysterious reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

eaendter's review against another edition

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4.0

Ah, Eliza. A character who can make the foundations of modern currency exciting. What a woman.

obiwancass's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I love this world of characters and how Stephenson uses the time period, but this felt a bit more ponderous than the first two.

larsdradrach's review against another edition

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5.0

It's hard to praise the Baroque Cycle to high, maybe just as hard as it is to categorise, it's historic fiction, a little fantasy, adventure like Dumas and philosophical discussions about the nature of everything.

The marvel of it all is that Stephenson manages to hold it all together and even make it interesting, somehow the most outrageous plot developments seems reasonable.

The unabridged audible version is wonderful narrated, a joy to listen to.

On to "The Confusion" volume 4 and 5.

just_justin's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark funny informative slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

maitrey_d's review against another edition

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4.0

The final third of Quicksilver is every bit as good as the first two parts. It takes ahead the plotlines concerning Eliza, moving between Versailles, London and The Hague culminating in a long winded letter to Leibniz. Daniel's story is still a cliffhanger.

See my review in [b:Quicksilver|823|Quicksilver (The Baroque Cycle, #1)|Neal Stephenson|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1293342164s/823.jpg|1610031] for a more detailed review.