I have very mixed feelings about this book. It started out as a straight satire of sci-fi tropes, which I really enjoyed. But it very quickly changed into a very different kind of self-referential story. And then, near the conclusion, the meta-ness of it all is bumped all the way up.

I still can't decide if I liked that or not. It wasn't hard to follow in any way (although the time travel part introduced a pretty glaring plot hole that was never resolved). The story was clear and understandable, despite the meta-ness. The characters were likable, and the story compelling.

But the plot is so weird, that even after finishing the book, I still don't know if it was a good weird, or a bad weird.