Sleeping Giants

I won a print copy of Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neuvel in a Goodreads giveaway.

This is the first time I have read a book presented in this particular format; interviews and journal entries. I can see how this would be a detriment to many stories, but it works well for me here.

I liked Sleeping Giants, although to be fair, it did not turn out to be the kind of story I expected. I expected the story to focus on the Giants, but it is more of a political intrigue story. This was not a deal breaker for me as I enjoy political conspiracy theory type books, but I was expecting a sci-fi/aliens story. So I wound up feeling a little misled.

Sleeping Giants is the first book in the Themis Files series, so perhaps we'll get more true sci-fi in future installments. The characters were well realized in my view. The creepy man pulling all the strings was sufficiently evil and dispassionate. The main female character has a serious attitude problem, especially for a military person. Perhaps a little more on her back story would have made her more sympathetic, but that's really quibbling when you get down to it.

The rest of the supporting cast is well done, and not cliche. It does have a cliffhanger ending, but at least not obnoxiously so. I can live with it (big of me isn't it?).

So, we have the beginnings of an ancient alien story (where's Giorgio Tsoukalos when we need him?), a secretive and sinister manipulator of people and countries, a hint at romance, a little bit of sex, and several scientific interventions to contend with.

All in all, I think Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neuvel is worthy of your time, as long as you understand what it's true genre is. By extension, the Themis Files will be worth following as well. Enjoy!

Mike