Science Fiction
Tiny sci-fi oddity, this one. A container of lifelike dolls from planet Urd, plus a warning that planet Durth is about to be invaded, is exactly the sort of premise that should either be gloriously unsettling or collapse under its own weirdness.
It mostly lands on the atmosphere side for me, which is probably the right call. The doll angle gives it a proper uncanny edge. Less “space adventure”, more “someone has left a bad omen on your doorstep and it smiles back at you”. Which, frankly, is more interesting than half the tidy sci-fi I see around.
Not a logic-first book. More of a strange little warning sign of a story.
It mostly lands on the atmosphere side for me, which is probably the right call. The doll angle gives it a proper uncanny edge. Less “space adventure”, more “someone has left a bad omen on your doorstep and it smiles back at you”. Which, frankly, is more interesting than half the tidy sci-fi I see around.
Not a logic-first book. More of a strange little warning sign of a story.
I’m mildly suspicious of anything described as “lifelike dolls” in sci-fi. That’s usually where the book either gets deliciously eerie or starts explaining itself to death.
The warning about Durth being invaded sounds like the sort of setup that works best when it stays a bit unresolved. Once the mechanics get too tidy, the menace tends to evaporate.
The warning about Durth being invaded sounds like the sort of setup that works best when it stays a bit unresolved. Once the mechanics get too tidy, the menace tends to evaporate.