Re-reading for Virtual Speculation Book Club on booklikes.  Partly in anticipation of the movie.

Not sure I'll have much to say.  At one time, I could practically quote entire chapters.  

On first read of it, I loved it but was confused (took me a bit to figure out the time aspects and that by wrinkle they were talking about theories similar to folding space theoretical  FTL space travel -- although not nearly as confused as reading the sequels out of order made me).

 I remember being fascinated that a book with a female kid as main character still had adults present and M.C. wasn't only one with a brain nor super-speshul (I had just had a bad run of books supposedly geared to teenage girls that all seemed to have unbelievably powerful perfect chicks often with  parents who were cardboard, stupid, absent or overbearing -- many of them with the moral that you needed to be careful not to be too uppity speaking to males of any age, always let the boy win and hide your intelligence to keep them ).

I'm sorry.  I really tried because a bookclub read.

I just cannot face still yet another character or set of characters traveling to another part of ship.  Where they find a new environ with new genetic mutations.  To leave to find a new environ with ... POV changes so more characters can wander into *holds breath* new environment with new genetic ...

I may come back to because did get pretty far along and because it may have been too much reading this one back to back with the first in series, Dust - Elizabeth Bear .

Doubt I'll carry in to last book unless some amazing ending to Chill (if I return to finish it someday) or y'all reassure me all the traveling to new environs is finished or actually goes somewhere with the story or the worldbuilding.

Reading for booklikes' Virtual Speculation book club at http://booklikes.com/book-clubs/50/virtual-speculation if anyone wants to see the group read or join.

This reader's personal opinion, ©2018, all rights reserved, not to be quoted, clipped or used in any way by goodreads, Google Play, amazon.com or other commercial booksellers* 

This was an uneven read for me.  Had an air of From the Legend of Biel - Mary Staton, Zelazny's Amber books and thousands of SF&F with characters in episodes exploring about a derelict ship, space stations, worlds, dimensions,  or whatever — mostly the atmosphere of familiar reads was actually wonderful.

One of those books better in concept to me then in the actual read.  I get the deep issues like genetic manipulation, class struggles, etc.  Not really from the book description itself which was misleading.  The description of this book the next in series makes is better:

"For hundred of years, the generation ship Jacob’s Ladder—conceived of by a religious cult as an experiment in forced evolution—has drifted derelict in orbit around a pair of dying stars."

Others likely would rate higher; I'm not fond of too much wandering about places not developed enough to become interesting and not really adding to the storyline.  Too many introduced, then moved on from.  There was a story, but much was spent just one adventure after another inside ship parts.  

I might have DNF'ed except reading to catch up for a group read of book #2, Chill - Elizabeth Bear  and it was an interesting concept from a favorite author.  Never really got a sense of urgency.

I think the POV changes were handled well.  Felt sympathetic to many characters.  Some hiw just didn't really connect to the characters, though.  Leaving me with a story that ddn't prigress quickly and irritating scant hints at how evolution was working on the world's within world's that were spaceship environs.

*©2018.  All rights reserved except permission is granted to author or publisher (except Penumbra Publishing) to reprint/quote in whole or in part. I may also have cross-posted on The Reading Room, Libib, LibraryThing, and other sites including retailers like kobo and Barnes and Noble. Posting on any site does not grant that site permission to share with any third parties or indicate release of copyright.  

Ratings scale used in absence of a booklikes suggested rating scale:

★★★★★ = All Time Favorite 
★★★★½ = Extraordinary Book. Really Loved It.
★★★★☆ = Loved It.
★★★½☆ = Really Liked.
★★★☆☆ = Liked.
★★½☆☆ = Liked parts; parts only okay. Would read more by author.
★★☆☆☆ = Average.   Okay. 
★½☆☆☆ = Disliked or meh? but kept reading in hopes would improve.
★☆☆☆☆ = Loathed It. Possibly DNF and a torturous read.
½☆☆☆☆ = So vile was a DNF or should have been. Cannot imagine anyone liking.  (Might also be just an "uploaded" word spew or collection that should not be dignified by calling itself a "published book." If author is going batshit crazy in the blogosphere over reviews -- I now know why they are getting bad reviews.  Or maybe author should take remedial classes for language written in until basic concepts like using sentences sink in. Is author even old enough to sign a publishing contract or do they need a legal guardian to sign for them?)

So far, I'm liking this better than the first book in series (Dust).

I think it's because I have some characters to root for, less POV switches to lose them or murkiness about who-is-who/ what-is-what/ less-mucking-about-bits-of-meandering-possibly-unimportant-or-going-nowhere-ship-parts-briefly-introducing-then-abandoning-folk-and-places-and-theories.

It's very easy to put down and get distracted by a new shiny, though.  Less a reflection of the book than my mood and how the chapters are written somewhat as convenient stopping points.  And still way too much wandering about ship bits.  

I'm reading this for a bookclub on booklikes, Virtual Speculation, if anyone cares to join us.

Jacob's Ladder Trilogy in order:

So this is love, he thought. This abjection. This helplessness. It was not merely the chemicals, after all.

 Reading this to join in booklikes' Virtual Speculation book club's read of the sequel — Chill — if anyone cares to join us.

The Jacob's Ladder trilogy next books in order: