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3.92 AVERAGE
3.92 AVERAGE
World building was great, but I don’t feel like I ever connected to the characters even though it’s a monster book. The imagery is amazingly well-written, although more for the bad guys than the good guys. Also, I felt scenes were stretched out too long, especially dialogue, and could have benefited from some trimming.
This is the most regrettable moment of my book reading career so far. I should've loved this book, adored it even. A dark fantasy from Clive Barker set in my own city? Referencing places I visit all the time but giving them a magical spin? Sounds perfect for me. Well it was, for about 200 pages. Act One is one of the best book openers I've encountered, total perfection and I was madly in love. And then it dragged. And then I got worried. And then I stopped.
I hate stopping books, especially this late in the game (407/642 pages) but I just can't continue. The writing and story are fine, I just can't keep up with it anymore and the novelty has wore thin. Would've enjoyed it much more as a novella. Really disappointing. Maybe I'll try again some time in the future.
I hate stopping books, especially this late in the game (407/642 pages) but I just can't continue. The writing and story are fine, I just can't keep up with it anymore and the novelty has wore thin. Would've enjoyed it much more as a novella. Really disappointing. Maybe I'll try again some time in the future.
A rich complex magical story. Well written and sometimes confusing. Horrors, death, magic, love, friends… all there. Likable and hate-able characters, loss… a long story and worth a read.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
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:
No
This is one of the best fantasy books I've ever read. I was so bought in and involved in the world and the story, I felt like I was walking the forests of The Fugue alongside Calhoun and Suzanna. The story was so imaginative and perfectly wound together, the descriptions were unparalleled to anything I have ever read before this and I had such a joyous time creating the world in my mind. The notion of Uriel was one of my favourite things, the combination of awe and terror that the being creates was so intense - I was re-reading passages of it's description to experience those feelings over and over. The story was so fantastical with elements of real, relatable life. I loved every moment and the ending was perfect. I had so many feelings reading this - hope, longing, fear, on-edge, complete terror and total inspiration. What a journey lol.
This book came out in 1987 so it is a little reflective of that time but having this understanding prior to reading made it much easier to digest. Also, a LOT of body horror and gore but the descriptions and images it creates was so visceral and perfectly put me into the moment.
Clive Barker is a favourite of mine for sure
This book came out in 1987 so it is a little reflective of that time but having this understanding prior to reading made it much easier to digest. Also, a LOT of body horror and gore but the descriptions and images it creates was so visceral and perfectly put me into the moment.
Clive Barker is a favourite of mine for sure
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Gun violence, Rape, Murder
Moderate: Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment
Very graphic body horror and gore.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
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:
Yes
The story starts in Liverpool, England. A resident of Liverpool, Calhoun (Cal) Mooney raises carrier pigeons. On a day when a lot of birds in Liverpool are behaving strangely, one of Cal’s birds’ escapes. He tries to track it, but he loses sight of it. He goes to a location where a lot of birds are flocking to. At the location, he sees a house where the birds have gathered. Cal’s bird is amongst them. There are workman removing stuff from the house to pay for the expenses of the owner (an older woman named Mimi) who was recently taken to a local hospital. Cal climbs on a wall to try to get his pigeon. While he is doing this, the workmen remove a carpet from the house and unroll the carpet. Cal falls off the wall towards the carpet. When he falls, he briefly goes into the world that is concealed in the carpet. We learn that the world in the carpet is called the Fugue. It was concealed in the carpet because there are those who want to destroy the world. The beings in the Fugue are called the Seerkind. Mimi’s niece Susanna was summoned to Liverpool by Mimi. Mimi reveals some very surprising information about the Fugue and the Seerkind to Susanna. Cal and Susanna meet up. The story goes from there. The book has great world building. It has a great hero and a great heroine. It has very scary, powerful villains. The version I read had around 650 pages with small font. And yet, it never got boring. There are some very graphic sexual assault scenes. There are beings that are brutally killed. There is grieving. There is torture. There is police brutality. There is use of the n-word. The book came out in 1987. There are a few things that didn’t age well. I think it’s a great novel. It’s very impressive. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a great, dark fantasy. If any of the concerns I mentioned are a problem for you, you may not want to read the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Torture, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual harassment
challenging
dark
emotional
A strange book - very much a product of its time. Not as good as his other stuff.
adventurous
dark
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:
Yes
I loved this book but found it difficult to get through because of it's meandering style. On the plus side this made it very difficult to predict at any point what might happen next. The plot starts right from page one but diverts multiple times and I can't help but feel it would have been better as a trilogy. While the book is separated into parts it's still essentially one novel. A trilogy or series could have really built upon the characters. I would've liked to see more character development with our protagonists, although I did like the evolution of the relationship between them. The villains are the best written characters and really made this story for me personally.
The whimsy and the world building - ever unfolding worlds within worlds - were captivating and balanced the descriptive darker aspects nicely.
The whimsy and the world building - ever unfolding worlds within worlds - were captivating and balanced the descriptive darker aspects nicely.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
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:
Complicated
I absolutely loved this book, just disappointed there was never a sequel