Cute Mutants Vol 5: Galaxy Brain by S.J. Whitby
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Had low expectations going into this, but was pleasantly surprised.
Galaxy Brain is the fifth entry in SJ Whitby’s Cute Mutants series and things go from bad to worse when humans declare war on mutantkind. Then a Bible-obsessed artificial intelligence named Michael gains sentience, enslaves the world, and tries to wipe out mutants as it believes they are an abomination.
While this book was the darkest in the series, there was a ton of hope to be found within its pages. I loved this book focused less on relationship drama, which was my issue with Vol. 4, and dealt more with moral/ethical questions and the toll war takes on you.
I also loved how much more action-packed this was than the previous two books in the series and how deftly Whitby dealt with the issues of grief, loss, betrayal, and finding hope in the darkest of times.
I thought the plot went off the rails a bit toward the ends, but not so much that it detracted from my overall reading experience. I also thought the ending was bittersweet, as a main character dies.
Though this book could serve as the series finale, Whitby left things open enough for a sequel.
My biggest complaint is how easily everyone forgave Emma for putting them in suspended animation and using their powers for an entire year without their consent.
I also thought Dylan forgave Emma too quickly for taking away her powers, and I thought Emma was a giant jerk throughout this book and tipped toward Mary Sue territory power wise and how everyone overlooked her crappy actions.
I enjoyed the world building in this book and the back story we got on mutants and how they’ve always been around in one form or another.
If Whitby continues the series, I struggle to see how they can up the ante without going into comic book levels of conflict and the associated ridiculousness that would bring.
But even given Galaxy Brain’s faults, I loved it and bought the other spin-off books in the series and will read them in due course. I give Cute Mutants Vol. 5: Galaxy Brain 5.0 out of 5.0 stars and can’t recommend it enough.