Reviews

The Citadel of the Autarch by Gene Wolfe

zhusl33's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

wingedvictories's review against another edition

4.25

This book is not bad-on the contrary, I really enjoyed most of it. While Gene’s late stage Catholic conversion has been a clear theme throughout the whole series, he really digs deep into it here, and incorporates what seems to be his own musings about faith, death, fate, and what it means to be a human, especially in the last 40 or so pages. Combined with the straight up war novel that’s in the  front half, I think he does some interesting things. However, there’s a lot that feels incongruent with the first three books. There’s a lot that feels like filler-which, to my understanding, the series was originally a trilogy, and the last book was split into 2 and padded. The most interesting things that happened here were the wrapping up of things we knew were coming from the first book. While Gene’s thoughts on war and combat were cool, they seemed at times shoehorned in, and did not contribute to Severian’s overall arc. 

angus_mckeogh's review against another edition

3.0

Thus far probably my least favorite of the series, but still better than 80% of other stuff I’ve read. In comparison, just not as mysterious or as quirky as regards Severian’s epic quest until the final 40 pages. The overall reveal was expected but still pretty amazing. All the books in the series were well above average and really good. I’d wrap it up by saying the first three books were equally good and on a 4-star level, the final book was just below them in quality, and therefore a 3-star read, but the series as a whole would be 5-star when compared to other series.

somebody_else's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This books biggest problem is that it needs to end the series.

glaurung's review against another edition

slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

Actual garbage. Incoherent ramblings. Just barely comprehensible. Attempts to salvage a plot out of the complete chaos resulting from the last few "books". The world could be interesting, were it not written so atrociously. 

thebestmark's review against another edition

dark emotional medium-paced

I would never say Citadel of the Autarch is a bad book - I enjoyed it quite a bit, and had fun picking over the denser thematic stuff as well as the final answer to many of the series' bigger questions and plot maneuvers. However, it would be impossible to appreciate Citadel as much as the other books in the series in the abstract. This is the only book in the series so far which has actually pulled the breaks on Wolfe's seemingly ever-expanding conceptual abilities, preferring instead to place its protagonist, Severian, into an anti-collective/anti-communist war novel that just so happens to take place on Urth instead of Earth. Religious faith and the series' increasingly direct Christian mythology, which previously imbued much broader concepts in the book with a more specific meaning, rushes to fill the gaps in the narrative like a biblical flood. 

As a consequence, there's just less for Wolfe to do in this space. Christian mythology is a complete narrative with a predefined finale, and American anti-communist novels always seem to be filled with the same incoherent anxiety about the erasure of the internal individual, leading writers to exoticize and reactively dehumanize the characters who embody collectivism, just as the writers, themselves, fear the very same dehumanization. Still, there's a lot here worth caring about, and the books few creative asides ('few' relative to the other books in the series, at least), including  a metafictional storytelling contest and a quantum tower that can only exist depending on certain conditions manifested in its observer. This is a solid, but unfulfilling final chapter of this series, carried almost entirely by the inertia of its excellent prequels.

hakimbriki's review against another edition

5.0

When Gene Wolfe wrote The Book of the New Sun, he embodied the perfectionism that the likes of Johannes Brahms or Maurice Ravel were known for... composers who spent their entire lives making sure that every note of each symphony or orchestral work was perfect. This is why rereading this saga is so engrossing and fun. Every seemingly anecdotal event, description, and character matters. This is rare and bewitching. The number of hours I have spent thinking about these books, the enigma that is Severian, and even minor characters is astounding. I recommend this to the adventurous reader who is ready to embark on the voyage of a lifetime, for The Book of the New Sun will stay with you forever.

gipanu's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing 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

5.0

tpalmi's review against another edition

challenging mysterious reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

5.0

alexklop's review

adventurous challenging slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A

1.0

1 star

This is the final book I plan to read in this series, and I have only continued this far into the series because my grandpa recommended it to me. I felt like each book in this series got a little more like a fever dream. I just didn’t enjoy this book unfortunately…