The Vanished Birds

I had high expectations for this book because the author's other novel 'The Spear Cuts Through Water' was utterly amazing. Then I started reading and I couldn't grasp where this was going at all. I finished the first half of the book but still nothing really intrigued me. The overall idea seemed interesting and eventually I started to like some of the characters and their stories, but the storytelling itself didn't engage me at all. After about two thirds of the book, that changed entirely. All of a sudden, i was met with the style of writing I remembered from the author's other novel. Only then could I no longer put this book down, and I sat there with my mouth open as I rushed through the pages. From that point onwards, it was definitely a tear-inducing and heartbreaking ride of emotions. For me, this is a story about deep regrets as well as the exploitation of others' for one's own gain. This book may be sci-fi, but don't go into it thinking you're going to get epic space battles or anything like that. In a way, this is a story about humanity. But since I had to read through more than half of the book to actually enjoy it, I can't just praise it. As I mentioned before: I'm conflicted.