Sleeping Giants (Themis Files, #1) in Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge

Jul 20, 2017 Maryam rated it it was amazing

Shelves: scifi-fantasy-2017, science-fiction, audiobook

I loved this book, I really liked how it formed into interviews.
will write more.

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Aug 02, 2016 Rafael Eaton rated it really liked it

Interview-style narrative I couldn't put down. I'm a sucker for those "secret history" stories. Excited for the next one! ...more

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Aug 10, 2016 Lacey Louwagie rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2016-aty-reading-challenge, sciencefiction, paranormal, mp3-audiobook

Around the Year Reading Challenge Item #26: A Book Everyone is Talking About

I usually don't explicitly review audiobook performances even though I listen to tons of audiobooks -- if something stands out, I'll mention it, but I focus my reviews on the things I would have noticed regardless of the medium.

I'm making an exception this time because this audiobook is *so damn good.* This is one of the rare cases where I'm honestly not sure I would have liked the book as much as I did if I read it the Around the Year Reading Challenge Item #26: A Book Everyone is Talking About

I usually don't explicitly review audiobook performances even though I listen to tons of audiobooks -- if something stands out, I'll mention it, but I focus my reviews on the things I would have noticed regardless of the medium.

I'm making an exception this time because this audiobook is *so damn good.* This is one of the rare cases where I'm honestly not sure I would have liked the book as much as I did if I read it the old-fashioned way.

The book is set up as a collection of "files" -- interviews, transcripts, diary entries, etc. -- surrounding research on a giant, ancient robot whose pieces are scattered throughout the world. I usually like this "self-aware" storytelling style, wherein the characters are aware that they are writing, being recorded, etc., as they tell their story. What this means in the audio version, however, is that each character is played by a different reader. And the readers, with their accents, quirks of inflection, rate of speaking, etc., all feel like real people, making this somewhat fantastical book ALSO feel as if maybe it *could* really happen. It's a totally immersive experience -- the kind that leaves you walking around in your normal life with your brain still living somewhere back in "book world." It's been a long time since I read a book that seeped so deeply into my subconscious, and that I wanted to sink into as much as I did this one. Perhaps I would have had the same experience if I had read it -- the book could not have done as well as it did if it were only audiobook listeners who liked it -- but I still think audio is definitely the way to go on this one.

So, why only four stars with all that gushing? One nitpicky thing is that this book does what a lot of "documentary," "epistolary," or "diary" books do -- there are places where it strains credibility that the characters would actually go into such detail when talking/writing about certain things, and you know the only reason the author did it is because he wants to reader to have that information, and his chosen medium has constrained the way that it can be delivered. There was only one place in here that I really noticed this, but it was big enough to jar me out of the story for a little bit.

Also, this isn't the type of sci-fi that I generally go for. I'm not a big fan of "giant robot" stories, and this one has a lot of military overtones, which is something else that is a turn-off for me in science fiction. And I kept feeling like there should be a bigger reveal at some point, like we were perhaps building up to something that never actually happened (although the epilogue was pretty cool.) So, I think it was not the story itself that captivated me, but rather its execution. This isn't the best story out there, but its execution is brilliant. And its audio adaptation is even brilliant-er. ...more

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May 27, 2016 Ms. McGregor rated it liked it

Shelves: sci-fi, political, mystery

If you're looking for a fun, fast read, Sleeping Giants is a great option. A group of political operatives, scientists, mathematicians, and military personnel work together to find the pieces to a giant puzzle that could turn out to be the most dangerous weapon ever known to mankind. It is easy to blaze through the pages of this sci-fi mystery as you are compelled to learn what they are looking for? Who made it? Why is it here? Will it advance humanity by hundreds of years or lead to our ultimat ...more

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