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baybooks's review against another edition
4.0
The premise of the story is absolutely brilliant. The story is fast paced. The characters are realistic, relatable and fun, albeit in a fantasy world.
One of my favorite quotes “You will embody a city of millions. You need not be them, but know they are part of you”
I hope to pick up the rest of the trilogy when they become available.
One of my favorite quotes “You will embody a city of millions. You need not be them, but know they are part of you”
I hope to pick up the rest of the trilogy when they become available.
libbyajt's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
slow-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
5.0
dinasamimi's review against another edition
4.0
This book is so fun and great and smart. If you're craving a quintessentially NYC read, as I was, you're in for a treat. Jemisin's fantasy worlds are so layered and disorienting, even more so as she takes us through the five boroughs, literally embodied by an array of human avatars. There's a lot to unpack with the Lovecraft commentary and racist overtones. It's all so deeply researched and well done.
deliadiaz's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
5.0
jess_mango's review against another edition
4.0
I am between 4 and 4.5 on this one.
A really creative and enjoyable read. What would happen if a city became alive? In this novel, people are "chosen" to become the personification of a NYC borough. They band together to help protect NYC from a mysterious power that wishes to see the city die.
What to listen to while reading...
Empire State of Mind (Part II) by Alicia Keys
New York, I Love You by LCD Soundsystem
Manhattan by Cat Power
The Bronx by Booker T Jones & Lou Reed
No Sleep Till Brooklyn by the Beastie Boys
Brooklyn in the Summer by Aloe Black
Boom Diggy by Zabk Night and Jasmine Walia
Crazy by Daniela Andrade
The Only Living Boy in New York by Kishi Bashi
Still New York by MAX & Joey BadA$$
A really creative and enjoyable read. What would happen if a city became alive? In this novel, people are "chosen" to become the personification of a NYC borough. They band together to help protect NYC from a mysterious power that wishes to see the city die.
What to listen to while reading...
Empire State of Mind (Part II) by Alicia Keys
New York, I Love You by LCD Soundsystem
Manhattan by Cat Power
The Bronx by Booker T Jones & Lou Reed
No Sleep Till Brooklyn by the Beastie Boys
Brooklyn in the Summer by Aloe Black
Boom Diggy by Zabk Night and Jasmine Walia
Crazy by Daniela Andrade
The Only Living Boy in New York by Kishi Bashi
Still New York by MAX & Joey BadA$$
lindsayaunderwood's review against another edition
4.0
Loved this weird book. Fantasy but also NY love. Reminded me of Neil Gaiman and The strain, which both got me back into reading! My concerns were that some parts were too long and some were too short!
nancydrewblood's review against another edition
3.0
I like the writing style but for most of the book, I just wasn’t sure about the concept. I’m intrigued enough to read the next book in the series to see if it gets a”better.
seymone's review against another edition
4.0
4.25 stars
Jemisin, you definitely got it, right! Accurate depiction of the various cities, personalities. I really enjoyed this story, which caused this Brooklyn girl, serious nostalgia.
Jemisin, you definitely got it, right! Accurate depiction of the various cities, personalities. I really enjoyed this story, which caused this Brooklyn girl, serious nostalgia.
fbroom's review against another edition
I'll come back to it. For now, I couldn't continue
dawntin's review against another edition
adventurous
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? Yes
2.0
This book was not for me. The book’s message was good but heavy-handed. Each character was introduced with the traits that made them special (race, ethnicity, sexuality, occupation, etc.) and they all had superpowers, due to being the avatars of major cities. There were also pop culture references and snappy dialogue. This was cool and all, but I felt like the author tried way too hard to be quirky and inadvertently ended up playing into some stereotypes in the process of making these super-quirky diverse characters. Like, did the main Indian character really need to have math-related superpowers? Additionally, the avatar of Hong Kong literally being named Hong Kong and his accent being described as “Chinese-inflected British English” was straight up weird. The Black characters were fine though, maybe because the author is Black herself. Pacing was weird and the book wrapped everything up in like the last 20 pages. It felt like there was so much build-up before they saved the day, and when they did, I wasn’t even sure what was happening.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia, Racism, and Racial slurs
Moderate: Child abuse, Sexual harassment, Alcoholism, and Sexual content