Review also posted on my blog! :)

What an interesting concept for a book. If there's anything that this book can be given major kudos for, it would be its unique story, and the way it's presented.

Sleeping Giants begins when Rose Franklin falls in a pit as a very young girl, landing on a giant metal hand. Now an adult, with a PhD in physics, Rose finds herself led back to the hand. As it turns out, there are more pieces out there... the hand is not a stand alone piece, but the part of a larger whole – namely, a giant metal robot. A mysterious individual, representing the United States government, wants Rose's expertise in studying the hand, and finding the rest of the pieces which are spread across the planet. What does the robot look like? What is its purpose? As these questions are uncovered, the characters begin to realize that there's no way humanity could have achieved such a feat.

I found the plot of Sleeping Giants to be quite unlike anything else I've seen or heard of lately, both in subject matter and presentation. It definitely gave me some X-Files/Iron Giant vibes, but other than that, it's quite a unique work. It is told primarily through interviews via an anonymous interviewer, who periodically gathers data from Rose, her associates and others. Also thrown into the mix are diary entries, newspaper articles, satellite reports... etc. We learn next to nothing about the interviewer, except that he has an awesome amount of power – even the president of the United States acquiesces to him. Not gonna lie, I had the picture of a certain someone stuck in my head as the interviewer the whole time I was reading...



(Moving away from my obligatory X-Files reference... ;) ) The unusual presentation and story combine to make a really refreshing read, and that was one of the major reasons I enjoyed it. The interviews and other tidbits become more and more rewarding as the story progresses, because you begin to connect dots and discover clues to what is happening or will happen. There were a lot of "a-ha!" moments as I was reading. While certain segments may not make sense or seem important at first, they all have an importance to the plot at some point.

The robot itself was really fascinating – the way Neuvel describes it created great images for me as I was reading. I found myself sharing in the sense of wonder that the characters portrayed. I couldn't wait for them to assemble all the pieces... to see what would happen. There is a great suspense factor to this story. Not only is there the excitement of seeing the robot whole, and learning what it's capable of, but there is a much more real political suspense to the story as well. Searching for the pieces leads to political unrest... and later on we learn of the robot's true capabilities. Fears of unrest with Russia, and North Korea are cleverly included in the story, which frankly made it feel more realistic to me, since these are things we hear and worry about in real life.

Despite everything I liked, there were some things I disliked. Most notably, I didn't honestly feel that invested in the characters. They were just... a little boring. I found myself not caring what was going to happen to them. I was more interested in seeing their interactions with the robot, and discovering more about the mystery of it all. Another aspect I disliked was that you are given perhaps too much information at once, which made the story hard to follow and confusing at times. It isn't until you're able to connect those dots that all that information starts to make sense. Maybe these factors should have been a deal-breaker for me, but there are so many other fascinating things about this story that makes it worthwhile.

Overall, I did enjoy this book, and it was actually a pretty quick read. I do plan on reading the sequel coming out next year, (because I have to find out what is going to happen with this robot), but I hope that Neuvel works on the flaws with the story. Some more character development is definitely necessary, and perhaps having information spread out throughout the story. I would definitely still recommend this, despite its minor flaws. I think it's a really uniquely thought-out story, and the plot really feels different from anything else.

Final Rating: ★★★★ ( )

Beginning with an intriguing mystery, Sleeping Giants uses interviews, journal entries, transcripts and articles to slowly inform the reader. I quite enjoy this style of epistolary-like storytelling, though I would have liked to see stronger "voices". It was a fine read, but because the plot ultimately didn't particularly interest me and I hadn't come to care for or about any of the characters, I probably won't read the sequels. I'm just not invested enough. ( )

Not sure about this. Picked it up on sale when I saw the comparison to World War Z (so good -- read that one if you haven't yet!) and this is written in a similar style but it's not nearly as gripping.

I wish it was a stand alone instead of the first in a series because I'm not sure I care enough about anybody in the story to continue even though the idea of investigating alien technology on earth and the political ramifications of such an undertaking are something I'd like to read more about. ( )

This book is mind blowing good. Read the summary to know what it is about. I will say the writing isn't great literature, but the story, plotting, character development, and action is completely engrossing. Now I have to wait almost a year in anticipation for the second book. This is why I don't like to read new books!
If you can get the audiobook (which we have in WVREADS), then you are in for an even better experience. The whole book is a collection of files, with interviews, recordings or diary entries. The audio production used several people to do the different characters with accents, stutters and such. One of the best audiobooks I have heard produced, and I have listened to over 200.
If any of this sounds appealing to the reader in you, than read this book. It may be sold as sci-fi, but don't let that deter you. I guarantee you will love it. ( )

I thought this was an interesting alien story, the storytelling style was unique and mostly worked, although the things the characters were willing to tell their unnamed government official was a stretch. I finished it, so that is something. ( )