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A review by fipah
City of Stairs by Robert Jackson Bennett
1.0
1 star = did not like it DNF at roughly 50%
This is a beloved book yet for me it does not work – it fails to establish a connection. Why should we care when its drama is a combination of random levity and brutality? It's like an average TV series where an epic premise often feels both stilted and cliché. A traditional-length film can (more likely) make fantasy believable, and such a film indeed has enormous work behind it, while many TV series feel forced, amateur, and just... not believable, you know what I mean? Like you see behind the production and acting (think new Charmed series). This is it for me.
I think we can partly blame the conversational blazé talking-to-your-friend dialogue. I hate when a book can't decide where it stands – is it funny? Humourous? Or savage with crude depictions of brutality? A country colonising another country? This jack-of-all-trades attitude makes everything so TV-series-ish here. The hidden agenda of the protagonist's native country slowly revealed? No suspense, it does not feel uncanny, but it should! – it's sooo conversational and "cool" – as a reader you just expect it all. It's like writing [b:Annihilation|17934530|Annihilation (Southern Reach, #1)|Jeff VanderMeer|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1403941587l/17934530._SX50_.jpg|24946895] in a conversational tone with few jokes thrown in here and an overall levity-attitude. Wouldn't work.
Everything serves the plot conveniently. A rampant murder spree? No real repercussions for our main protagonist. A problem to be solved? Not an issue since our protagonist is flawless and can solve everything. Also, this book makes colonisation and a nation ruling over another the good guys.
Ultimately, for me, this book provides no answer to the question "why should I care?" There's no connection for me to keep my interest. Not recommended.
This is a beloved book yet for me it does not work – it fails to establish a connection. Why should we care when its drama is a combination of random levity and brutality? It's like an average TV series where an epic premise often feels both stilted and cliché. A traditional-length film can (more likely) make fantasy believable, and such a film indeed has enormous work behind it, while many TV series feel forced, amateur, and just... not believable, you know what I mean? Like you see behind the production and acting (think new Charmed series). This is it for me.
I think we can partly blame the conversational blazé talking-to-your-friend dialogue. I hate when a book can't decide where it stands – is it funny? Humourous? Or savage with crude depictions of brutality? A country colonising another country? This jack-of-all-trades attitude makes everything so TV-series-ish here. The hidden agenda of the protagonist's native country slowly revealed? No suspense, it does not feel uncanny, but it should! – it's sooo conversational and "cool" – as a reader you just expect it all. It's like writing [b:Annihilation|17934530|Annihilation (Southern Reach, #1)|Jeff VanderMeer|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1403941587l/17934530._SX50_.jpg|24946895] in a conversational tone with few jokes thrown in here and an overall levity-attitude. Wouldn't work.
Everything serves the plot conveniently. A rampant murder spree? No real repercussions for our main protagonist. A problem to be solved? Not an issue since our protagonist is flawless and can solve everything. Also, this book makes colonisation and a nation ruling over another the good guys.
Ultimately, for me, this book provides no answer to the question "why should I care?" There's no connection for me to keep my interest. Not recommended.