Als der Seelenmeister starb
Ratings19
Average rating3.6
Not as good as Wild Seed. That really trumps every other book in this series. Still decent though.
Not as fun as the other books in this series imo, but we do finally get a badass bisexual character from Butler who survives. So, major points. (I wish we had spent more time on that!!!!! Butler spends so much time interrogating and imagining sexual and romantic dynamics between men and women. Imagine if she had spent more time on queer women?!)
The patternmaster series is interesting in that the books are really only tangentially related, the first two more than the last. Wild Seed was probably the best one. Patternmaster had to spend way more time on the world building; Clay's Ark had an absolutely bleak and almost gratuitously gorey ending. At least Patternmaster ends on a high note.
Reading the conclusion and understanding the publication order of the series makes a lot of things clearer. The strange transformation of Anyanwu into Emma, the vague reference to Doro here, the unspecified nature of the Clayarks. I think the effect is still somewhat diminished, nevertheless; the series feels like it moves in the wrong direction. Wild Seed is an epic generational tale, Patternmaster instead is merely a vignette into the conflict and society that we expect to have been built up. It is fun to see how the powers shape the society but nevertheless seems somehow disappointing after all of the build-up. There is a balance between theme and worldbuilding, and the latter felt a little lacking.
I was really surprised to learn that this last in the series was actually the first book written. The five stars is really for the series as a whole because it sweeps its themes of humanity, slavery, and tradition from pre-colonial Africa to a distant and terrifying dystopia of a future. Three strains of humanity, one cast aside as prey for one group and pack animals for another, struggle to survive in a world where even your mind isn't safe. This is what Doro's great labor wreaks, and it is definitely nothing like I would have predicted. Butler was a master, and even when I find myself getting angry at the characters for their bizarre notions, I see how their inclusion in the story highlights themes that are sadly always relevant.
Thought-provoking and engaging plot. This book—perhaps predictably, as it's her first—is not as well-developed as other books I've read by Butler. If reading this series, I recommend starting with Wild Seed.
Book Review: Patternmaster (Patternist #4) by Octavia Butler - Once I realized that this is the last book in the series, but the first written (actually Butler's first ever book that she started when she was 10) the series makes a lot more sense. The rest of the book in the series are really to fill in the holes in this book more than a traditional series that progresses on a timeline. Not her best book, but still worth reading.
Click through for the full review on my blog at http://bookwi.se/patternmaster/