I think as compared to [b:Mind of My Mind|116254|Mind of My Mind (Patternmaster, #2)|Octavia E. Butler|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1389676159s/116254.jpg|111957], this novel felt a little out of left field. I think I can see where the series is headed, but to have a nominal sequel feature an entirely new cast and mechanic was jarring. I also felt that the action takes place over a strangely limited time span and area, but then I have always been a sucker for expansiveness. I think what I'm getting at with that last point though, is that the characters in [b:Wild Seed|52318|Wild Seed (Patternmaster, #1)|Octavia E. Butler|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1388462753s/52318.jpg|1330000] and [b:Mind of My Mind|116254|Mind of My Mind (Patternmaster, #2)|Octavia E. Butler|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1389676159s/116254.jpg|111957] change a ton because they are given the time to develop themselves. Here, it feels like in the span of a day or two Rane and Keira go from being naive and shy/foolhardy girls (despite their experience they still grew up walled and Blake says so, with the possible excuse that he would be overprotective) to managing rapid and brutal escapes from their captors. Perhaps this is me just underestimating either female characters or the ability of the alien microbe to rapidly change its hosts. Nevertheless, I think something was missing that prevented me from really getting into this one. Still a great read though, and has its moments. ( )

probably one of the most horrifying books ive ever read.

I spent most of this book wondering how it connected to the rest of the Patternist series. And the first connection I noticed happend 72% of the way through it. I couldn't help but wonder where the Patternists were and what they were doing.

Since the book took place in 2021 and was written in 1984, I was amazed at the things Butler predicted that turned out to be true, like the video phones.

This book seems to be a mix of both Dawn and the Parables, having the society of the Parables and the alien reproductive interference of Dawn. I am interested to see how Clay's Ark plays into the next Patternist novel. ( )

Too brutal for me. Had to stop reading it. ( )

This is part of the Patternist series, but works as a standalone; I presume it is setting up for more intriguing clashes further on in the series. Clay's Ark doesn't seem related to the first book of the series at all (I'm out of order, haven't read book 2).
This tells the story of a doctor and his two daughters driving along a road in the near future US, where society seems to have somewhat but not completely broken down. The family is kidnapped and brought back to the isolated ranch of a strange group of people, who appear emaciated but are super-strong and super-fast. We learn soon that they have become infected with a virus from space, through the lone survivor of the mission that was out exploring. The virus is easily passed, and the community is attempting to remain isolated so as not to pass it to the population as a whole, while still increasing their numbers a bit so as to remain viable.

This book is a bit similar to Fledgeling, Butler's final novel, and suffers some of the same weaknesses. It's long on explication, violating that classic writing rule: "show don't tell". Her other books I've read (Wild Seed, Kindred) don't have this problem.

But what I found most troubling is that the theme seems to be that this community is doing what it can to avoid destroying the world, which is clearly a hopeless endeavor in the long term if they continue to live on the same planet. They have some ethical boundaries they won't cross, but apparently kidnapping innocent passersby and forcibly infecting them is not quite over the line! Maybe future books will reveal Butler has a similar point of view, but it doesn't seem like it. ( )