Oh, that is so interesting that you had the same reaction to An Accident of Stars. TBH your thoughts on it (particularly the bit about the work being shown too obviously -- that absolutely makes sense and I think puts my reaction into words more clearly) are making me not want to continue. Which sounds dramatic, but I'm a slow reader and a book this length is a 2-3 week time investment for me. And there is so much I want to read!