book review: Fold Catastrophes by Peter Watts

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 3/5

Thank you Tachyon Publications for providing an ARC for review consideration via NetGalley! All opinions are my own.

As a lover of hard science fiction -- frequenting both Cixin Liu's fiction and Carl Sagan's non-fiction -- I was incredibly excited to dive into Fold Catastrophes, my first read from the acclaimed Peter Watts! However, I left this collection of short stories and novellas feeling deeply conflicted. While each storyline offers a highly unique take on complex scientific ideas and theories, and Watts uses an exceptionally precise vocabulary to establish his settings, I ultimately struggled to get past the prose style. 

Watts writes in sharp fragments, stripping his sentences down to their bare bones, forcing the reading to constantly piece his thoughts together. Normally, I can devour hard sci-fi novels because the underlying concepts fascinate me, but Watt's narrative structure made it difficult to actually enjoy his brilliant ideas. His writing relies heavily on the reader filling in what is missing, leaving no room to breathe. The prose results in a confusing paradox: it is densely descriptive, yet simultaneously sparse. Just as a new thought takes shape, the text abruptly shifts without any narrative transition to set up the change. As a result, I probably only fully comprehend a quarter of what I read, making the experience exhausting.

Based on pure conceptual ingenuity, Fold Catastrophes would easily be a five-star read for me. Unfortunately, I have to give it a three-star rating because the unapproachable prose made the journey a chore rather than an enjoyable read. That said, Watts has an undeniable fallowing, and I am still intrigued enough to try his famous novel Blindsight. My hope is that a longer, continuous piece will allow me to settle into his unique style.