Circular Motion by Alex Foster
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

First, the things I really enjoyed in the novel: the worldbuilding. The contraction of time for everyone on Earth as a consequence of a corporation's rising tech that supposedly made everyone's lives so much better. That was very cool.

Also, I think I quite enjoyed the slow, detailed LitSF pacing that was ALL about characters, their lives, their hopes and dreams, their failures and little successes. In this regard, it was very much a mainstream piece couched in a cool SF complication.


But that leads me to the things I enjoyed a bit less: the end was probably the biggest gripe. No spoilers, but it really irked me. As for the other things, I could have done with a little less sex, endless sex. What are we, writing in the 70's? And third, the plot wasn't so much going anywhere, but existing, swirling, like the titular circular motion. Shall we say--a downward spiral?

But the last shouldn't be all that surprising. It is a dystopia. And as for my actual enjoyment of it, I enjoyed many aspects of it--but at the moment, a dystopian future isn't exactly on my list. I'm trying to be objective here for the sake of the author's obvious engagement in his work, but I simply got depressed as I read it.

Still, it was worth reading.


My synesthesia tastes the sweet rain of a hurricane.


Personal note:
If anyone reading my reviews might be interested in reading my own SF, I'm going to be open to requests. Just direct message me in goodreads or email me on my site. I'd love to get some eyes on my novels.

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