Gritty.
New York Times More than just a portrait of a bleak future, this novel is of course a trenchant critique of modern Egypt. In Robin Moger's deft translation, Rabie's deployment of irony is skillfully rendered, a tool he uses to invert his country's contemporary characteristics in an attempt to underscore the absurdity of his narrative.
Culture Trip Reading Otared ... Read moreis by and large like having a hand grasping the back of your head, forcing you to look through photos from hell.
Marcia Lynx Qualey, The National Part early Ian McEwan, part Philip K. Dick, Mohammad Rabie's apocalyptic take on the Arab Spring in Egypt is an expressionist coupurgent, disturbing, and eminently readable.
Youssef Rakha, author of The Crocodiles and The Book of the Sultan's Seal A book of perverse and stomach-curdling violence that would have been unthinkable before the 2011 revolution, which inspired it.
Times Literary Supplement A fulfilling read that is honest in its depictions and provides a haunting look at the effect of war and at people who have seen too much of it.
Portland Book Review The world Rabie paints reminds me very much of the insane landscape in Paul Auster's 'In the Country of Last Things, ' with its violence, its cruelty, and its bizarre customs. . . . No science fiction novel has gut punched me this hard for a long, long time. . . . Mohammad Rabie is an emerging force in Egyptian letters
Sean McLachlan, Black Gate blog Show Less