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3.92 AVERAGE
3.92 AVERAGE
This book reminded me a lot of Little Nemo in Slumberland in that each chapter was a new fantastical expansion to the world often with new characters introduced who weren't seen or heard from again. I really enjoyed it for a while, but by halfway through I was ready for things to start adding up to some kind of meaningful progress and I eventually gave up.
The main character, who has a great premise, also got less and less interesting as the book went on. Perhaps I should have stuck it out, some very prominent authors and publications sing it's praises, but ultimately I did not have the will power to power through.
The main character, who has a great premise, also got less and less interesting as the book went on. Perhaps I should have stuck it out, some very prominent authors and publications sing it's praises, but ultimately I did not have the will power to power through.
Strangest fantasy sci-fi I've read since Dune, I think. Lots of people seem to love this, which makes me feel like I'm the dafty who didn't understand the punchline. The first book was pretty good, setting out the main character's backstory and giving us someone sympathetic to root for. The second one: almost incomprehensible at times, plus our protagonist starts acting like a bit of a dick. It was a struggle to finish.
Really: lots of great ideas, let down (for me) by the disjointed narrative style and barely-understandable second volume. Greater minds than mine can enjoy this - I didn't.
Really: lots of great ideas, let down (for me) by the disjointed narrative style and barely-understandable second volume. Greater minds than mine can enjoy this - I didn't.
Overall, the two books presented here as volume one of The Book of the New Sun were pretty interesting. Severian was a well fleshed out guide to the events, though maybe not exactly a well fleshed out character in some ways. He was unreliable and a bit full of himself sometimes, a womanizer, and a failed torturer. Some of his story so far has been distasteful (mostly because of the womanizing and casual disregard for the women), but overall it's engagingly enough told that I'm likely to look into volume two at some point. Of the two books collected here, I prefer Shadow of the Torturer.
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I would have enjoyed this a lot more if I wasn't trapped inside the head of man musing about how he wants to fuck, or perhaps hurt and destroy, all the very fuckable women he encounters. And if he used his sword less often in action scenes. It gives the whole things a certain air of the juvenile fantasy it aims not to be.
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Wanted to like it so badly, but the plot is just uninteresting and confusing. My thought for most of the book was, “Why is this being told to me?” And I thought maybe at some point it would make sense. It did not.
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
slow-paced
When you veer off an expected course, you can find the unexpected discovery.
"The Book of New Sun" is one of the most expressive, exquisite and thoughtul books i've read this year. Employing a post-human language, Wolfe mixes mythology, history and futurology together to share the story of Severian, a torturer and his picaresque adventure. As a friend shared with me, this is a book that could never be filmed, its character occupying spaces that are more imaginative than real at times. Critical plot pieces are the hay in this overfloying stack, and it makes reading difficult but rewarding.
Most enjoyable was the playful language, that was humorous and caused me eye strain. Characters crop up, with histories, motives, and langauges unique to themselves. What a strange world, from white statuous giants, to mystical magicians, ribald performers to our leading guy, the violent and reflective Severian. Fantasy is not a genre I claim to be knowledgable in, but I will say this reminded me a great deal of "Canticle for Leibowitz", for it's wide scope. Fantastic read.
"The Book of New Sun" is one of the most expressive, exquisite and thoughtul books i've read this year. Employing a post-human language, Wolfe mixes mythology, history and futurology together to share the story of Severian, a torturer and his picaresque adventure. As a friend shared with me, this is a book that could never be filmed, its character occupying spaces that are more imaginative than real at times. Critical plot pieces are the hay in this overfloying stack, and it makes reading difficult but rewarding.
Most enjoyable was the playful language, that was humorous and caused me eye strain. Characters crop up, with histories, motives, and langauges unique to themselves. What a strange world, from white statuous giants, to mystical magicians, ribald performers to our leading guy, the violent and reflective Severian. Fantasy is not a genre I claim to be knowledgable in, but I will say this reminded me a great deal of "Canticle for Leibowitz", for it's wide scope. Fantastic read.
There are books that are not meant for everyone and this one is not for me. I would have DNFed it if it's not because of a group read.
It started out quite interesting, with the main character being a torturer-in-training meeting with a mysterious rebel leader but when the torturer successfully lost his first love (and v-card) and began his travel, well, it just went downhill. I could not understand 3/4 of this book. Almost everything feels disjointed, random and confusing.
I could not relate to the MC anymore after 30% progress then completely lost interest in him and other characters until the end. The female characters were bland and infuriating if not annoying. There are parts that made me uncomfortable because they involve objectifying women. Same uneasy feeling when I read Dune and one of Elric's stories.
The world building...well a mix between SF and fantasy has always been a tricky combo (in which only Hyperion that really grabbed my attention from all science fantasy I read so far). The SF parts - as little as they were - in this were quite intriguing but the confusing, uninteresting plot just drowned what's left of my interest until it suffocated and died miserably.
It started out quite interesting, with the main character being a torturer-in-training meeting with a mysterious rebel leader but when the torturer successfully lost his first love (and v-card) and began his travel, well, it just went downhill. I could not understand 3/4 of this book. Almost everything feels disjointed, random and confusing.
I could not relate to the MC anymore after 30% progress then completely lost interest in him and other characters until the end. The female characters were bland and infuriating if not annoying. There are parts that made me uncomfortable because they involve objectifying women. Same uneasy feeling when I read Dune and one of Elric's stories.
The world building...well a mix between SF and fantasy has always been a tricky combo (in which only Hyperion that really grabbed my attention from all science fantasy I read so far). The SF parts - as little as they were - in this were quite intriguing but the confusing, uninteresting plot just drowned what's left of my interest until it suffocated and died miserably.