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A review by erbium
Across the Void by S.K. Vaughn
Did not finish book. Stopped at 56%.
Listen, I don't DNF books easily. I almost always fight until the end, even if only to form a full opinion on why I didn't like the book. But this one was so bad I could only manage to read around half of it. I'll tell you more: I think it's safe to say I've been a bookworm my whole life. There was never a time in my life that I didn't read books, that I didn't find reading them the greatest pleasure this planet has to offer. And yet, during 25 years of my love for books, I didn't write a single review - until today. This book is so bad it made me impulsively download StoryGraph just so I can ease my frustration and perhaps save somebody from wasting their time and money.
Where do I begin? There is nothing about this book that could make it salvageable. The plot is painfully obvious. I know, how many ways are there to write about a person being stranded in space? But this thing is so predictable it's criminal. When I wasn't figuring out what was going to happen next, I was fighting against an intense feeling of deja vu. Honestly, it has all been done before. This book is completely unoriginal.
And actually, that isn't always unforgivable. Sometimes it isn't about the plot being gripping and surprising, sometimes it's about other things, sometimes the strength of a book is in its characters.
That isn't the case here. Goodness gracious, this book is a compilation of the most stereotypical characters you can think of. The hot-headed, sarcastic pilot, the clumsy, awkward scientist, the rich poser in charge, you name it. These characters aren't just boring, they are unbearable. Worse yet, they are inconsistent. May - either professional or emotional, that only seemed to depend on what the author wanted her to be at any given moment. Stephen - the epitome of nerd (again, so stereotypical he might've just been a parody) but somehow navigating his early relationship with May with ease. Buddy, you can't have it all.
What's next? The jokes are so cringeworthy that they made me shudder on public transport. Nearly every chapter reads like a movie scene and this isn't a compliment. Zero chemistry between the characters. I didn't like them separately and I didn't root for them together. They were flat, one-dimensional, annoying, devoid of any solid personality. I have never in my whole life thrown a book in the garbage can but I am currently considering trying it.
Where do I begin? There is nothing about this book that could make it salvageable. The plot is painfully obvious. I know, how many ways are there to write about a person being stranded in space? But this thing is so predictable it's criminal. When I wasn't figuring out what was going to happen next, I was fighting against an intense feeling of deja vu. Honestly, it has all been done before. This book is completely unoriginal.
And actually, that isn't always unforgivable. Sometimes it isn't about the plot being gripping and surprising, sometimes it's about other things, sometimes the strength of a book is in its characters.
That isn't the case here. Goodness gracious, this book is a compilation of the most stereotypical characters you can think of. The hot-headed, sarcastic pilot, the clumsy, awkward scientist, the rich poser in charge, you name it. These characters aren't just boring, they are unbearable. Worse yet, they are inconsistent. May - either professional or emotional, that only seemed to depend on what the author wanted her to be at any given moment. Stephen - the epitome of nerd (again, so stereotypical he might've just been a parody) but somehow navigating his early relationship with May with ease. Buddy, you can't have it all.
What's next? The jokes are so cringeworthy that they made me shudder on public transport. Nearly every chapter reads like a movie scene and this isn't a compliment. Zero chemistry between the characters. I didn't like them separately and I didn't root for them together. They were flat, one-dimensional, annoying, devoid of any solid personality. I have never in my whole life thrown a book in the garbage can but I am currently considering trying it.