Since reading other things by Cassandra Khaw, I have realized that this author really just isn't for me. Their writing style and plot setup is always just something I struggle through

First off...DISCLAIMER: I requested this title on NetGalley and Edelweiss, and got approved for it on both sites. Thanks to Erewhon Books for providing a temporary ecopy. This didn't influence my review in any way.

It pains me to give a bad review to a title I was approved for by the publisher (twice!), especially when the author is a POC and the title in question is their debut book - but I had to throw my towel after reading the first chapter. Though English is an acquired language for me, I've honestly never had a problem with a book's reading level or an author's writing style...until now. On the contrary, I enjoy complex, imaginative prose and the random unusual word I have to look into a dictionary to unlock. But this book turned out to be too much for me (and, judging from the first Goodreads reviews, for a number of native speakers as well). The first chapter was full of convoluted sentences and/or metaphors that seemed to try too hard, besides having a fondness for mixing up different kinds of sensory experiences* ("Her voice is the boreal wash of moonlight upon the bulwark of their ship-in-orbit"; "Ayane looks like the last cold gulp of water before the sun goes supernova"). It got old pretty quickly, and most of all, it felt disorienting, because it was getting in the way of the plot for me. It's a pity, because I'm sure there's a great story buried under the labyrintine (some might say evocative) prose and concocted figures of speech, but I don't have the patience to uncover it.

*To the best of my knowledge, this isn't due to the author suffering from synestesia, since I didn't find any reference to that in their bio - so it must be a poetic licence.

Not all authors are for everyone. Cassandra Khaw, I have decided, is one of those for me. Just not a fan of her diction and prose. I will give this 3 stars because I did not make it past the first chapter and I need it off my list. The storyline sounded great but the language and descriptions just make my head hurt.

Thanks for the e-arc I received via NetGalley.

Cassandra Khaw has been on my TBR for quite a while now, and I was excited to dive in on this.

The remnants of a badass crew come together for one last job. To rescue the crewmate they all thought lost long ago.

There was a lot I liked about this. We‘re dropped right into a huge amazing world with a diverse & grizzled cast of women. Khaw is exceptionally talented at giving us information about the scope of this world without it seeming like an info dump. And I really appreciated having an older cast, although they never really acted as old as I had felt they were.

But also, the action is almost non stop with really no breathing room. There‘s an about turn in goals in the last 15% that kind of threw me for a loop. And there was a lot more body horror than I was expecting. At least as far as the body horror, I think if I had known what I was getting into, I wouldn't have needed to start and stop so often. So, I'm looking forward to trying something else from Khaw eventually.

Thank you to NetGalley and Erewhon Books for this ARC.

I have wanted to try Cassandra Khaw’s books for some time now and loved this. Khaw has an amazing writing style and this dreamy, weird dark sci fi novel just worked in all the ways. Five stars!!

[trying to clean up some old NG books I never got around to reviewing...]

This was my first Cassandra Khaw and at the time of reading it I was pretty on-the-fence about it-- I think there was a lot going on that was hard to follow, and at a lot of times it wasn't quite clear what was happening. But honestly, it's been two years since I read this and I still have a pretty good idea what happened, so that is absolutely a testimony to its uniqueness and quality. What I really think about all the time with this book is how EXCELLENT Khaw's body horror is. I'm obsessed with it. This book proves they can write the fuck out of body horror, and I hope they write lots more of it.

Cassandra Khaw's "The All-Consuming World" is a mind-bending and captivating journey that immerses readers in a realm where technology and mythology entwine in a cosmic dance.

Khaw's prose ignites like a celestial fire, blending lush descriptions and evocative imagery that transports readers to breathtaking worlds. The narrative pulses with energy, seamlessly merging thrilling action and profound introspection.

"The All-Consuming World" introduces a diverse cast of characters, each with their own quirks and complexities. Their relationships and personal journeys unfold against a backdrop of cosmic mysteries and moral dilemmas.

Khaw's world-building is awe-inspiring, crafting a rich tapestry where deities and artificial intelligences coexist. The fusion of technology and mythology creates a unique and thought-provoking exploration of humanity's relationship with the universe.

This visionary and enthralling tale will leave readers contemplating the nature of existence and the power of collective stories.

I liked a lot of the ideas and concepts goings on in this book, but the execution was really lacking. I didn't feel like I understood the characters or their motivations, nor did I have a total handle on the world this took place in by the end. I'm more than okay with being thrown into a story and trying to figure out what's going on, but this, ultimately, felt very lackluster and confusing. So many things ended feeling unresolved and there were multiple times throughout the book where I felt like, "okay, so <i>why</i> is this happening?" or "what's even the end goal here?"

There was also this pervasive feeling of being told what I should think of the characters (i.e., Rita is manipulative and charismatic) instead of just...being shown how those characters act. I really had trouble buying into why any of these characters had ever bonded with one another, let alone trusted each other for this final mission.

A lot of Cassandra Khaw's works sound promising to me, but after this and <i>Nothing But Blackened Teeth</i>, I just don't think their writing is for me, unfortunately.

A gang of badass women taking on “the Collector” from Guardians of the Galaxy in a massive body-switching adventure.

The All-Consuming World is the heist story that you need in your life! As I mentioned above this story, has enough body-switching that many readers are going to love it and are going to want to go along with the ride. Once you figure out the basic structure this adventure breezes through and on a major thrill ride. I don't want to give too much away, but you will love this book!


Give it a shot! It was good!

Thanks to the author, the publisher and Netgalley for the advanced reading copy.

A chaotic and dark adventure following some truly nasty characters. Packed with references and rich language.

The operation of the world is strange and intriguing with AI that are massive, domineering and fully-fleshed out.

Recommended for readers who like dark stories and adventure

I was interested because of Khaw's game writing, but I found the characters, their points of view and their use of language not to my taste.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC on this book. I just realized I did not send my feedback, but that might be because I unfortunately did not finish this book and DNF'd at 60%. I am not turned off by profanity, it does not scare me away, but at the same time I did feel like the extent of it in this novel really took away from the world building, characters, plot, etc.

I don't like to give a book that someone put a lot of time and heart into a bad review, but I really just personally could not connect with this novel. I really loved the premise but I felt the specific writing style wasn't for me and overshadowed the story that Khaw was trying to tell. This was my first book by Khaw and I do hear she has other books that are fantastic so I will certainly be open to checking out other novels by her.

This was a bit different for me, I struggled getting through it but I was able to finally finish it after awhile.

I've loved all of Khaw's work that I've read so far, especially These Deathless Bones, so I assumed The All-Consuming World would be equally as enjoyable. I was incorrect.

Khaw has a tendency to break out the thesaurus as well as being extremely descriptive. That doesn't bother me. I have a pretty good feel for rarely used words and enjoy when an author makes me consult the dictionary. In this novel, Khaw's stylistic writing was more of a hinderence than a help. Whatever was happening to the main character was absolutely incomprehensible with the piled-on obscure verbiage. Unfortunately, the dense writing led me to bury The All-Consuming World in my DNF graveyard.

I won't stop reading Khaw but I will be more choosy on the subject matter.

I’m going to share the publisher summary, because it’s a difficult one to describe.

CW: Abusive Relationships, Co-Dependency

Maya has died and been resurrected into countless cyborg bodies through the years of a long, dangerous career with the infamous Dirty Dozen, the most storied crew of criminals in the galaxy, at least before their untimely and gruesome demise. Decades later, she and her diverse team of broken, diminished outlaws must get back together to solve the mystery of their last, disastrous mission and to rescue a missing and much-changed comrade . . . but they’re not the only ones in pursuit of the secret at the heart of the planet Dimmuborgir.

The highly evolved AI of the galaxy have their own agenda and will do whatever it takes to keep humanity from ever regaining control. As Maya and her comrades spiral closer to uncovering the AIs’ vast conspiracy, this band of violent women—half-clone and half-machine—must battle their own traumas and a universe of sapient ageships who want them dead, in order to settle their affairs once and for all.

Welcome to The All-Consuming World, the debut novel of acclaimed writer Cassandra Khaw. With this explosive and introspective exploration of humans and machines, life and death, Khaw takes their rightful place next to such science fiction luminaries as Ann Leckie, Ursula Le Guin, and Kameron Hurley.

This book was a wild ride, and even though I didn’t love the characters, I appreciated that they were deeply flawed and human, despite being clones with mostly reconstructed parts.

It was fast-paced and changes perspectives each chapter. Diverse characters who are determined to do one last thing for themselves and their kind. Queer, cyberpunk love abounds, and I wouldn’t read this type of book every day, but it was very cool.

I ended up DNFing this one. I never thought I'd DNF a novella, but here I am.

I love books that have criminals as the main characters, so I was expecting to love this one, Not the case. I honestly cannot tell you what was happening in this book. Yes, there is a synopsis, and I assume it was accurate. But while reading there was no way to tell. The writing in this was SO dense and hard to follow that I found myself having to read parts over and over again to try to get the gist of what was going on. Didn't make for an enjoyable reading experience at all. There's also the overabundance of the word f**k. Now, I'm not offended by some cussin' (as we say in the South lol). But it has to serve a purpose, and it just didn't in this instance. It just became annoying and it honestly just served to make the confusion of the plot and sentence structures stick out even more. What could have been an entertaining and engaging story was bogged down with so many unnecessary elements.

I started reading this book and found that it was not for me. I didn't think it was fair to review a book I didn't finish.

I wish I could love every book by every favorite author, but alas, it’s not to be. I love Khaw’s writing; they have such a way with words that just fits in with what I like. This book was just okay for me; I think I much prefer their horror (I loved Nothing but Blackened Teeth).

I absolutely loved Cassandra Khaw's novella, Nothing But Blackened Teeth, and their story, These Deathless Bones. However, some of their older work (Food of the Gods) didn't jive as well with me. After reading this one, I think their work tends to be hit or miss for me. Unfortunately, this one was a miss. Between the sci-fi lingo and stylistically dense sentences, I couldn't understand what was going on at all. I ended up DNF-ing the book at 20%. However, I'm definitely still a fan of Cassandra Khaw and plan to read more books by them in the future. This one just wasn't for me. Thank you Erewhon Books for providing an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

I have loved so many of Cassandra Khaw's other books and short stories, but this didn't feel like her - instead of the punky, rebelliously ornate scifi that I think it was meant to be, it just felt like a mess.

Plenty of other reviewers have covered the points I want to say, so I'll keep this brief, because I hate writing negative reviews for books - no matter what else, writing a book is deeply personal, hard work, and reading is so subjective that just because I didn't like it doesn't make it bad (in most cases - bad books absolutely do exist). But The All-Consuming World feels like Cassandra Khaw attempting Tamsyn Muir and not finding her own voice within it, losing the writing that makes her usually so excellent in the process.

If you're new to the author, don't start here - she's written so many excellent works, and I'd hate for them to be missed if this doesn't catch your imagination.