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3.92 AVERAGE
3.92 AVERAGE
Epic Scifi/Fantasy is a term that's thrown around a ton these days, in part because it's what started the genre (Narnia, Lord of the Rings) and is what has given the genre new life coming into the 21st century (The Inheritance Cycle, Stormlight Archives).
In reality, there are very few books or series that can live up to the mantle that the "epic" tag implies. The Book of the New Sun is one of those books. I understand that I rave about books a lot on here (most of the reason why I made an account to begin with is to fulfill that impulse), but I can't not talk about how kick-ass this book is.
There is so much to unpack in each and every sentence of this novel, and following Sevarien through the dying, decaying world of Urth is like reading a dream. There is so much mystery and allure to the world in every page, and trying to make sense of it all along with the protagonist is part of the book's charm. There are very few worlds in any medium, novels and movies and TTRPGs combined, that feel like they exist beyond the story they are trying to tell. Gene Wolfe's Urth is the antithesis of this: the world couldn't care less that you're reading a story in which Urth happens to be the setting, and even the narrator offhandedly mentions species of animals or uses words that are archaic or inventions of the author. Each time I had to look up a word (of which there were many, many instances) I quickly discovered that the use of such a word was intentionally put there to bring a certain connotation to mind. There's so much care taken, in every single sentence, and so much of the novel feels meticulously planned. This book feels like an edgy literature major's stab at writing the fantasy/scifi genre, and it works so, so well.
Did I mention that this novel was very intentional in how it says things? There are tons of allusions and callbacks to previous moments in the books, and little throwaway lines that, due to how quickly I read the book, made me want to go back and start over again. Aside from a few classics and Marcus Aurelius' Meditations, I rarely ever reread any books. I don't get much value from rereads personally. This series might change that. I felt like I missed so much that a reread would be nearly as enjoyable as reading it through for the first time. Which isn't to say the book is intentionally opaque; just that this book feels so wide and multi-layered that a reread would be justified.
When I first started, and at several points throughout the book, the prose caught me off guard as extremely dry. I got used to it very quickly though, thanks in part to the perspective, and after a while it became much easier to digest than I had originally anticipated. The writing is thick and hard to get used to, but when you do it flows so nicely and so well together that it's worth the initial discomfort.
The plot feels dangerously simple at times, and at other times so complex it makes me want to open up Google and crack the whole story wide open with a plot synopsis. I like having to dig to reveal information about the world and the characters and the plot; that is a large part of the reason why I played the Dark Souls series so often, and was eventually led to this book. The plot and the characters might not be as exciting or as out in the open as some would want, but the extra work required on my end makes it so much more rewarding.
On the topic of Dark Souls, one of my favorite things about the games is how they can so succinctly portray an atmosphere and a feeling with their world design. Gene Wolfe does this in prose probably better than From Software ever could in a videogame. The world and the atmosphere feels so consistent throughout, whether the protagonist is in a foggy graveyard by twilight or in the lush gardens of a metropolis. There's so much lost knowledge and entropy throughout, which helps fuel my own questions on the world and its characters. Urth is dying. That statement makes itself felt throughout the entire novel.
If any of this sounds appealing to you, read the book.
In reality, there are very few books or series that can live up to the mantle that the "epic" tag implies. The Book of the New Sun is one of those books. I understand that I rave about books a lot on here (most of the reason why I made an account to begin with is to fulfill that impulse), but I can't not talk about how kick-ass this book is.
There is so much to unpack in each and every sentence of this novel, and following Sevarien through the dying, decaying world of Urth is like reading a dream. There is so much mystery and allure to the world in every page, and trying to make sense of it all along with the protagonist is part of the book's charm. There are very few worlds in any medium, novels and movies and TTRPGs combined, that feel like they exist beyond the story they are trying to tell. Gene Wolfe's Urth is the antithesis of this: the world couldn't care less that you're reading a story in which Urth happens to be the setting, and even the narrator offhandedly mentions species of animals or uses words that are archaic or inventions of the author. Each time I had to look up a word (of which there were many, many instances) I quickly discovered that the use of such a word was intentionally put there to bring a certain connotation to mind. There's so much care taken, in every single sentence, and so much of the novel feels meticulously planned. This book feels like an edgy literature major's stab at writing the fantasy/scifi genre, and it works so, so well.
Did I mention that this novel was very intentional in how it says things? There are tons of allusions and callbacks to previous moments in the books, and little throwaway lines that, due to how quickly I read the book, made me want to go back and start over again. Aside from a few classics and Marcus Aurelius' Meditations, I rarely ever reread any books. I don't get much value from rereads personally. This series might change that. I felt like I missed so much that a reread would be nearly as enjoyable as reading it through for the first time. Which isn't to say the book is intentionally opaque; just that this book feels so wide and multi-layered that a reread would be justified.
When I first started, and at several points throughout the book, the prose caught me off guard as extremely dry. I got used to it very quickly though, thanks in part to the perspective, and after a while it became much easier to digest than I had originally anticipated. The writing is thick and hard to get used to, but when you do it flows so nicely and so well together that it's worth the initial discomfort.
The plot feels dangerously simple at times, and at other times so complex it makes me want to open up Google and crack the whole story wide open with a plot synopsis. I like having to dig to reveal information about the world and the characters and the plot; that is a large part of the reason why I played the Dark Souls series so often, and was eventually led to this book. The plot and the characters might not be as exciting or as out in the open as some would want, but the extra work required on my end makes it so much more rewarding.
On the topic of Dark Souls, one of my favorite things about the games is how they can so succinctly portray an atmosphere and a feeling with their world design. Gene Wolfe does this in prose probably better than From Software ever could in a videogame. The world and the atmosphere feels so consistent throughout, whether the protagonist is in a foggy graveyard by twilight or in the lush gardens of a metropolis. There's so much lost knowledge and entropy throughout, which helps fuel my own questions on the world and its characters. Urth is dying. That statement makes itself felt throughout the entire novel.
If any of this sounds appealing to you, read the book.
fast-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
A truly mysterious book filled with beings that cannot be identified, spaces that cannot be understood, and people who cannot be trusted. Rereading this after a decade it is both astounding and unsurprising how little of this book I internalized or understood on my first read. A work of labyrinthine and alien charms.
Did not finish. I got to seven percent before I couldn't handle the injured dog storyline. Besides that, I really didn't feel the character or the war (or get a strong sense of what was going on), and I hated how the author used so many words for only the sake of making himself look smart.
Severin is quite an unlikeable narrator, but one of the things I appreciated the most about this is just how passive he feels here. While he certainly has a big ego (tell me again Mr. Unreliable Narrator about your perfect memory and how many women want your hot bod), his narrative feels much more like that of a bumbling fool, bouncing from one misguided adventure to another, rather than the typical "brave knight battling all the baddies" that fantasy can so often be reduced to.
The language here is both a plus and a minus -- it is beautiful, and by using archaic English, Wolfe channels an otherworldliness here that is simultaneously right at home with the distant past which the style of the Middle Ages, technology-deficient world understood by our narrator as well as the distant future in which the story takes place. At the same time, by combining this archaic, wordy prose with a narrator that gets mired in quandary after quandary, the book can at times read quite slow.
This book frequently feels just out of reach, which I really enjoyed -- by having the central character be someone who seems to be slightly behind/unaware, there's a dreamlike quality here that works really well as a fantasy story.
The language here is both a plus and a minus -- it is beautiful, and by using archaic English, Wolfe channels an otherworldliness here that is simultaneously right at home with the distant past which the style of the Middle Ages, technology-deficient world understood by our narrator as well as the distant future in which the story takes place. At the same time, by combining this archaic, wordy prose with a narrator that gets mired in quandary after quandary, the book can at times read quite slow.
This book frequently feels just out of reach, which I really enjoyed -- by having the central character be someone who seems to be slightly behind/unaware, there's a dreamlike quality here that works really well as a fantasy story.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Sexual harassment
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I first read this book as a young teen and had only very strange, fragmented memories of it. I assumed that this was due to the dozen or so years that have passed since then, but upon the re-reading it has become clear that my memory served me better than I realised: this is a very strange and fragmented book.
I am very fond of fantasies set in an incomprehensibly distant future, futures where science and magic have become interchangeable (Jack Vance's The Dying Earth stories are all time favourites). This is another fantastic example of the genre. The imagination of Wolfe's world is astonishing, with the layers of created history forming a thick and immersive crust of internal reality. His "Notes on the Translation" device (that treats the novel as a found manuscript) feels almost believable in so rich a universe.
It is definitely the imagery and description that makes this book, not the plot - like Lovecraft, Wolfe is happy to show but not explain - so if you are looking for a classic high fantasy then I'd recommend looking elsewhere. But if you want to read a beautifully written, remarkable flight of fancy, this could be the novel for you.
I am very fond of fantasies set in an incomprehensibly distant future, futures where science and magic have become interchangeable (Jack Vance's The Dying Earth stories are all time favourites). This is another fantastic example of the genre. The imagination of Wolfe's world is astonishing, with the layers of created history forming a thick and immersive crust of internal reality. His "Notes on the Translation" device (that treats the novel as a found manuscript) feels almost believable in so rich a universe.
It is definitely the imagery and description that makes this book, not the plot - like Lovecraft, Wolfe is happy to show but not explain - so if you are looking for a classic high fantasy then I'd recommend looking elsewhere. But if you want to read a beautifully written, remarkable flight of fancy, this could be the novel for you.
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated