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3.97 AVERAGE
3.97 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The writing, while as bloated as some of the characters, paints a distinct visual setting for an environment in which you experience race, culture, socioeconomic, mafia, crime, "science" and other conundrums.
This felt a bit like an everything bagel topped with every possible cream cheese or a garbage plate. What this book needed was a few less elements so that the key items could breath and develop or needed to be a series of smaller books to explore the characters in the depth that he explores the setting.
This felt a bit like an everything bagel topped with every possible cream cheese or a garbage plate. What this book needed was a few less elements so that the key items could breath and develop or needed to be a series of smaller books to explore the characters in the depth that he explores the setting.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It's engrossing, detailed, at times visceral, occasionally pretentious. The hours and pages flew by. Miéville's worldbuilding, imagination, interlocking of the plot and unsubtle parallels with contemporary society are similar in scope and achievement to Discworld. It's a beautiful, sprawling mish mash of Pratchett, Ursula Le Guin, Paul Auster, and Neuromancer. Mostly written well, with sparing but vivid descriptions. I both enjoyed and slightly resented having to look up words for the first half of the novel. The characterisation of Isaac's internal world was wonderful - his dialogue was jarring and I mostly disliked it.
A lot of reddit reviews described this as "the plot is secondary to the portrayal of the city". I disagree. The last third of the novel is a prolonged action sequence. The city and worldbuilding take backstage. In fairness I enjoyed this section the least, and would have preferred a novel where almost nothing happens other than a normal day in New Crobuzon.
Still, here I am, 900 Kindle pages later, about to buy The Scar and immediately start reading it.
Wow. It's not often that I find a fantasy novel that completely engulfs me in its world and characters. Mievilles writing is a little... wordy... but his ability to create a clear image of a disgusting, broken city is awe-inspring. I can't wait to read the next story in Bas-Lag.
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
So much imagination and thoughtful world building. However, when the plot emerges at the halfway point the book totally lost me. The stakes are either shrug-worthy or removed entirely. A bizarre turn in a book that starts so strong and will stay with me for a long time!
challenging
dark
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The world-building in this book is like something I’ve never encountered before! I loved how imaginative and vivid the city felt, and the pace with which the reader unlocks all different parts of the map. The story itself, however, was a little disappointing. I mean let’s be honest, it really didn’t need all 800 pages. I rarely read male authors and this book reminded me why. I am tired of male protagonists and helpless lovers. It is true that the book has some strong female characters and plays with the notion of diversity on other fronts, but the gendering of its protagonists was noticeable. I was impressed how seamless it felt to get through the whole book (it didn’t quite feel like it took me 3 months!), I felt like a slow burn as I didn’t quite notice myself reaching for it at every possible moment. I am glad I’ve read the book and I would probably recommend it to keen readers who want to experience a completely different wold (and I will say, the ending pushed my ratings of this book up), but I can’t say it was my favourite.