Books Read

Only Human

Only Human (Themis Files, #3)Only Human by Sylvain Neuvel
Published: 2018
Narrated by: Full Cast
Series: Themis Files #3
Length: 08:43 (336 pages)

This is the final novel in the Themis Files trilogy, and I’m really happy with the way Sylvain Neuvel wrapped things up. I was curious about where the series would go after the cliffhanger in the second book, but he handled that perfectly.

In this series, a group of scientists find pieces of a giant robot buried underground throughout the world and try to reassemble them, and doing so has consequences they could have never imagined. The story is full of surprises and major events, you really aren’t sure how things are going to play out while reading, but it’s not an action-packed story by any means, particularly for a novel essentially featuring Gundam. I personally think that’s a good thing, though, as the strength is in the characters and the mystery of it all. It’s told through video entries and recordings, which is a format that works exceptionally well in audiobook, especially when done with a full cast.

This varies slightly from the previous two novels in that it’s split between flashbacks and current day, which can often get on my nerves, but Neuvel really pulls it off. Throughout the story, the flashbacks are slowly revealing the motivations behind that’s happening in the current day, which I know is standard fare for flashbacks, but he does a great job with the pacing. It worked much better, I think, than if the scenes had played out sequentially.

I’m looking forward to seeing what Sylvain Neuvel will come out with next.

  1. Themis Files #1: Sleeping Giants
  2. Themis Files #2: Waking Gods

11 Comments

    • Rob

      If you enjoyed Sleeping Giants, I think you’ll most likely enjoy the rest of the series too! The second two novels feel a bit more complete in their plot arcs too.

      • raynotbradbury

        Yep i saw it in the store, but I decided Ill pass & read something else. I just don’t feel i can read one more interview-book about “secret findings”. But it was a very easy book, I liked it

    • Rob

      Yeah, when I started blogging, I felt a bit weird calling these posts reviews, so I left off the ratings. I was thinking of them more as impressions, sometimes just using the novel as a prompt for a particular thought and barely mention the book itself. I’ve recently admitted to myself that I’m now pretty much just writing reviews, though.

      I star books on Goodreads, but I’ve always had issues with numerical ratings. How some people reserve ‘2 out of 5 star’ ratings for books they think should be thrown in a fire and how others use it for books they didn’t hate but just found okay. I also find it implies a comparison between other rated books when that’s not necessarily the case. I have five star books that I wouldn’t consider to be better books than some of my four or even three star books, but I just happened to connect with them more at that time and found them great for what they were, if that makes sense.

      Wow, that’s too long of an answer, sorry haha. Funnily enough I was just trying to decide earlier today whether I should start adding ratings or even just a recommend yes/no at the end of these reviews.

      • Bookstooge

        Thank you for explaining.
        Personally, I’m a big fan of star ratings. And a star rating page that explains it all. Mainly because sometimes I’ll enjoy a book but then talk nothing about the negatives in my review and so want people to realize I did actually enjoy it.

        And I do know exactly what you mean about the book comparison.

        • Rob

          That’s a very good point, actually. I’ll also focus on a specific element of the story at times, negative or positive, that may leave a skewed impression. I’ll have to think about this.

          • Bookstooge

            Ultimately, your reviews are for you. So just think, will a rating help in 5 years? As an experiment, go read some of your reviews from ’11 or ’12 and see if it is good enough for you. If it is, then I wouldn’t worry about a rating.

  • pcochrun

    Just went and read your review of #2 also… makes me want to complete the series. I only read the first one and the ending had me a little hesitant to keep going.

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