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challenging
mysterious
tense
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
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:
No
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
I'm not sure what I can say about this novel that hasn't already been said or written. It's mythical in its status as THE book of China Miéville's to read. It's won or been nominated for a crap-tonne of awards. And it's way smarter than me, or at least, Inspector Tyador Borlú of the Extreme Crime Squad of Beszel is way smarter than me.
At its heart, the story is a police procedural, as Borlú scours the city trying to solve a murder. But there's also the bizarre, strange location of the city - Beszel is twin city to the richer Ul Qoma, a literal stone's throw across the border. The two cities, Beszel and Ul Qoma, have bizarre rules of behavior for the border between the cities - there is no "seeing" of the other side, no touching, no recognizing, no eye contact. One side is Beszel and one side is Ul Qoma. Residents of the cities grow up learning to unsee the other side, ignoring even traffic noises. Any breaches of these unseen barriers are investigated by Breach, a boogie man organization that makes people who breach the barrier literally disappear.
The whole story is very heady and, well, weird. Borlú and his associates get caught up not just in the twin cities' politics, but also in the mythical existence of a city <i>in between</i> the cities, a place called Orciny. Thankfully, Borlú does all my thinking for me as I was reading the book. I was just along for the ride. And a wonderful ride it was.
At its heart, the story is a police procedural, as Borlú scours the city trying to solve a murder. But there's also the bizarre, strange location of the city - Beszel is twin city to the richer Ul Qoma, a literal stone's throw across the border. The two cities, Beszel and Ul Qoma, have bizarre rules of behavior for the border between the cities - there is no "seeing" of the other side, no touching, no recognizing, no eye contact. One side is Beszel and one side is Ul Qoma. Residents of the cities grow up learning to unsee the other side, ignoring even traffic noises. Any breaches of these unseen barriers are investigated by Breach, a boogie man organization that makes people who breach the barrier literally disappear.
The whole story is very heady and, well, weird. Borlú and his associates get caught up not just in the twin cities' politics, but also in the mythical existence of a city <i>in between</i> the cities, a place called Orciny. Thankfully, Borlú does all my thinking for me as I was reading the book. I was just along for the ride. And a wonderful ride it was.
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Me, enjoy a book about a man AND written by a man?? Unheard of.
The characters and plot, while adequate, took a backseat to the incredible world-building. Definitely one of the best settings I've read, even though I spent ages just trying to wrap my head around what the hell was going on. It's not a book with easy answers, even after you've gotten used to the setting and prose, and I feel like there are endless interpretations of what Miéville is trying to say.
Also although it didn't make for the most compelling character, having Borlú be so apolitical did make sense in order to explore all the facets of the setting.I did find it funny how he picked up Watsons everywhere he went and thought himself skeptical while still sharing pretty much everything he knows with whoever he happened to be partnered with (or kidnapped by) at the time. This character decision also made Borlú's ending unsatisfying but realistic.
Also the vocabulary goes hard, I'm so glad I was reading on Kobo and could just click a word to look it up.
The characters and plot, while adequate, took a backseat to the incredible world-building. Definitely one of the best settings I've read, even though I spent ages just trying to wrap my head around what the hell was going on. It's not a book with easy answers, even after you've gotten used to the setting and prose, and I feel like there are endless interpretations of what Miéville is trying to say.
Also although it didn't make for the most compelling character, having Borlú be so apolitical did make sense in order to explore all the facets of the setting.
Also the vocabulary goes hard, I'm so glad I was reading on Kobo and could just click a word to look it up.
the key plot element, and the tense lead up to explaining that element, is extremely well done. i was turning pages in the beginning trying to figure out what exactly was going on. a wonderful mixture of scifi and murder mystery. 4 stars because i wasn't blown away, but really solid!