The narrator was so-so; I didn't really care for their voice. The story was okay; very weird with a lot of stuff going on. It was somewhat difficult to piece together all the characters and storylines at times and I kept wondering why the author was focusing on some of the threads, but I guess it all tied up at the end...? I liked the underlying message.

I really appreciate that the ending to this story wasn't as bleak as I was sure it would be about halfway in. The story is interesting, and the author is a good writer, but unfortunately not much of a storyteller? I don't know. I felt like I was reading a psychology textbook full of interesting examples, not a fully fledged novel. That said, I am glad I read it and I wouldn't warn anybody off of reading it. If I'm honest, it was a little too bloody, and the whole slave ship plotline felt extremely disconnected from the rest of the story and ultimately unnecessary.

I DNF’d this one. I really just… didn’t vibe with the narrator. It seemed like a really interesting concept and the writing is good from what i heard but the voice just… idk. Didn’t like it.

I really appreciated the opportunity to review the audiobook version of The Mountain in the Sea. Ray Nayler can really write. This is compact prose that packs so much into every sentence. I see that he has previously published a lot of short fiction, and it seems that was good training for sharp, concise writing.

The book explores many of my favorite science fiction themes and does it very well. What is consciousness? How can vastly different conscious species communicate? Can artificial intelligence be conscious? There is a wonderfully fleshed out future world here with many avenues for exploring these questions. My one complaint is that there were so many wonderful avenues explored that I didn't quite get as much of the octopuses as I was hoping for.

The Mountain in the Sea was one of my top 5 books of 2022, and one of my 2023 Hugo Nominations for best novel.

I see parallels to R.F. Kuang's Babel here (besides the language/translation element). The joy of academic pursuit and research into Ha’s chosen field and academic passion, balanced against what that research is serving— the corporation that is remorselessly killing anyone who gets in the way of its goal.

My full review is in the form of a podcast episode published on October 4, 2022: https://narratedpodcast.com/episodes/172

"The Mountain in the Sea" has some of the best prose I have ever read. While I was interested in reading the book for the science-fiction aspects of the synopsis. I was delighted by how much I enjoyed the well developed characters in this book. I also really enjoyed the passages from the scientific journal that were highlighted throughout.

A wonderful near-future sci-fi about the first contact with an octopus species that have developed communication and culture. It has delightfully short snack sized chapters which leads it to feel like a quick read. I highly recommend this book!

I don't think I've ever read anything like this, it was unique and my brain had to adjust to the newness of it all. It all centers on the study of a species of octopus along with artificial intelligence that's sentient. There were enough breaks in the story from the heavy science to add in a bit of humour. There is so much in this book we can relate to, especially when we think of how we as humans treat the environment and all non-human creatures within. Thought-provoking, smart and "new to me" Sci-Fy

The Mountain in the Sea hit all the high points for me that I love in a story. The sci-fi, thriller, and world building aspects were wonderful.

This book should have been a home run for me! Parts of it I really enjoyed. The idea of octopuses gaining higher consciousness and evolving was so fascinating. Unfortunately, I just felt like the main plot of the book left something to be desired, and none of the characters were memorable at all. I think this was interesting in an intellectual sense, but really left me in the cold in terms of telling a good story.

4/5

I am not a normal sci-fi reader but once I heard it was about a sentient and hyper-intelligent octopus, I knew I wanted to read this book.

This book flashes between the perspectives of a couple of different characters that eventually intertwine. It explores consciousness thought the octopuses and through on of the main characters who happened to be an AI.

Every chapter begins with a quote from an imaginary books written by a couple different characters. These quotes alone made me more interested in the chapters and I often wished I could read the books referenced.

The themes explore what it means to be sentient, environmental activism, slavery, all while telling a first-contact story about an octopus.

This was a great read although it might be a little too much for people who are not normally into science fiction.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

After reading one other book this year about a beloved octopus, I've actually become a bit obsessed, and was excited to read this Sci Fi/Fantasy featuring an octopus.

Humankind discovers intelligent life in an octopus species with its own language and culture, and sets off a high stake global competition to dominate the future.

This debut was one of the most original stories I've read lately, but it was just an okay read for me in the end.

*many thanks to Macmillan Audio for the gifted copy for review

2.6 stars

I think this wasn't the book for me but I'm sure other readers will enjoy it very much because of the themes it explore.

If you like sci-fi that explores themes such as the nature of "consciousness" and "intelligence", ecology, artificial intelligence and corporate power/world domination you will probably enjoy this book.... IF you don't mind too much that there is A LOT of telling and repetition and too many characters that didn't seem to add to the story so I think it would have benefit from some a much better editing.

While I really liked the premise of the book there were aspects that I found problematic and in the end I had really mixed feelings about the story overall..

Thank you to netgalley for the ARC.

This was one of those books I decided to give a try on a whim and I'm glad I did. It was interesting and I just couldn't stop because I wanted to see where it was going. The characters are interesting, the plot kept me interested and the cover was what caught my eye originally.

This is an engaging, fascinating more slow-paced philosophical scifi book. It grapples with questions about consciousness, intelligence, evolution, and communication. It is partially a first contact story, but that is only a bit of it. The story takes us through a number of pov's giving us an idea of how different parts of the world are working. I found all of the pov's really interesting. They all brought up really interesting ethical questions.

The reason I'm not rating this higher is that it did feel like a bit of a slog at times. It is not one of those books where you can't wait to pick it up and it took me a long time to get through.

I listened to the audio version and while I wasn't blown away by the audio performance, I have no complaints.

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the audio arc.

Content warnings? Slavery, animal cruelty, poverty.

The Mountain in the Sea was a great way to hear the story on audiobook. I really loved the concept of aliens coming from the ocean and not outer space. I liked the group of octopi the best. I liked the themes of consciousness, humanity, and climate change.

What if the first alien culture we truly come into contact with is from the deep of the ocean and not the deep of space? This is the question that Nayler proposes in his gripping new novel about a future world of technology and climate change.

Nayler delves into themes of consciousness, humanity, and culture through the story of 2 new forms of intelligence emerging: an android that has fully passed the Turing Test and a community of octopi who have discovered their own way of communicating and passing information along to future generations.

The world Nayler develops feels fully realized and like one of the possible quantum worlds in our future. He explores facets of this world through a few stories that slowly weave together into an action-packed ending.

Review THE MOUNTAIN. IN THE SEA by Ray NAYLER
Published 10/04/2022 by MCD/ Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Pages: 464 pages
Audiobook: 11 hours, and 5 minutes
Narrated by: Eunice WONG

Ray Nayler is known for his highly acclaimed short fiction across many genres …. this is his highly anticipated literary full length novel debut. He has chosen to weave his real life work as a scientist working with environmental conservation projects in the Con Dao Archipelago with a fascinating exploration of consciousness and communication with other species. In this case it’s equivalent to communicating with “alien” species … when a pod of octopuses is discovered in Con Dao that appear to possess intelligence and ability to communicate. Marine biologist Dr. Ha Nguyễn has spent her life studying the possibility of advanced cephalopod intelligence and has penned the definitive book on the subject ( it is frequently quoted as an intro to chapters ). She readily accepts an invitation and job to further study this new group of sentient beings for the transnational tech corporation DIANIMA, which has acquired and sealed off the archipelago. She is joined on a remote island by the mysterious and physically battle-scarred security agent, Altantsetseg and the nongendered ultimate AI, Evrim. Evrim was created by Dr. Arnkatla Minervudottir-Chan the brains behind DIANIMA. Evrim not only thinks like a human being (however, never forgets anything) but also believes it is conscious ( and has passed multiple Turing tests … truly suggesting sentience). The drama unfolds in a near-future setting populated by bee-size drones, AI auto monks with three fingered hands and an array of light receptors for eyes, and AI operated slave ships that mine and pillage the oceans for a dwindling supply of viable protein. And, in a similar fashion, some of the chapters are introduced with quotes from the celebrated book written by Dr. Arnkatla. Two suspenseful subplots are interwoven into the narrative of Dr. Ha Nguyễn. They eventually will converge and provide insight and a deeper meaning. Rustem, the premiere black-hat hacker is hired by a woman wearing a digital mask to cloak her identity, and that of the shadowy organization she represents . His task is to find a portal … a back door … into the intricate neural network of Evrim. Also thrust into the fray is Eiko, who was attempting to obtain a scientific position with DIANIMA, when he was shanghaied in a brothel, and enslaved on one of the slave ships poaching off the coast of the Con Dao archipelago. Will the crews’ plan for a mutiny stand a chance at success ?
Nayler masterfully explores consciousness, selfhood, and the multifaceted ramifications of communication and culture and the fear of humanity that AI’s will achieve sentience. Naturally also explored is possibility of other corporations or organizations, sabotaging or stealing the research for exploitation or monetary gain. The unlocking of these underwater secrets will culminate in a myriad of unintended but fascinating consequences. This story depends on difficulty with communication and relationships with interspecies and culminates in a surprising and satisfying denouement. Hopefully Ray Nayler will continue to add further novels to his already existent oeuvre of highly acclaimed short stories.
I personally switched back and forth between the audio and kindle version of this wonderful novel. I especially enjoyed Eunice Wong’s narration that brought to life and meaning to the many divergent characters in the theater of my mind. Thanks to NetGalley and MCD/Farrar, Straus and Giroux for providing an Uncorrected Proof and Audiobook in exchange for an honest rev

Not what I was expecting.

I think this didn't translate well to audio. The chapter beginnings with quotes get confused with the narrative, and the writing sounded like it was meant to be lyrical.

The story itself didn't quite feel like science fiction so much as literary fiction trying to draw in Sci-fi readers. I dislike this notion that authors need to draw in readers from other favorite genres instead of respecting the expectations of the genre.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review, which this is indeed. The story has a very unique feel to it, but it still was reminiscent of another great read, [book:A Tale for the Time Being|15811545], in an atmospheric sense. I had the audio version and I highly recommend it for one of the little plot points. My favorite part was the use of excerpts from the main character's fictional work of non-fiction in between chapters because it was so well written and accessible. So much is spun off around a scientist's discovery of a previously (mostly, yikes!) undiscovered species of octopus that has developed language (and more), and most of it is about humanity. I suppose it is reasonable that these questions would arise if we ever have the opportunity to encounter another being, from Earth or elsewhere, that has the same qualities we humans believe to be singular to us. Or what if we could create a being that would pass for human - maybe even be better than one? Would we regret it? Various forms of isolation are also explored throughout - and if that wasn't intriguing enough, a delicious plot twist awaits. A really engrossing, thought provoking read - I will be checking out his other work.