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tellthebeeees 's review for:
The City & the City
by China Miéville
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.