Scan barcode
A review by readingoverbreathing
The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
What a journey this was! And one not even remotely aligned to what I thought it was about before I picked it up. I thought it was some kind of literary sci-fi; it is definitely very literary, but otherwise not that.
Though I've seen this book all over the place for years, I wasn't aware until recently that Catton based each of the 12 primary characters on different Zodiac signs and used their charts to fabricate the plot. A very cool concept if you ask me, and, reading this, it makes sense. It would honestly be difficult to come up with this complex a plot without any kind of heavenly guidance.
The first few chapters definitely had me hooked. The mysterious gathering, Walter Moody's unintended entrance upon it, the dark, rainy night outside the smoky, close atmosphere of the pub as the circumstances behind the meeting slowly reveal themselves.
That first part takes up probably half the book, but from there, everything else felt like a bit of a letdown, apart, perhaps from the courtroom scenes. Almost all of the core information was covered in that first half, so the rest felt rather superfluous. The last 100 pages especially, after the courtroom bit, just did not add much at all and were generally pretty frustrating. I thought the flashbacks to Dunedin were building up to something that would return us to the present and connect everything in one final, flourishing twist, but that just never happened.
The other thing that was annoying here was how male-focused this plot is. I get that this was the New Zealand frontier in the 19th century and that there weren't many women around to begin with. But the only three female characters are all effectively just sexual plot devices, for the men of Hokitika to project upon and take advantage of. For a book written by a woman, this was all the more disappointing.
I did really enjoy Catton's writing style. It is, again, very literary and flowery, but good, detail-packed writing just really gets me going, though I recognize that it can be a bit of turn-off for others.
Overall, an interesting concept and excellent writing, but the plot could have been reined in a bit more and the women caught up in it better treated. This has, however, really piqued my interest in Eleanor Catton's work, as I think she is someone with a fascinating imagination and a gorgeous writing style with which to share it.
Though I've seen this book all over the place for years, I wasn't aware until recently that Catton based each of the 12 primary characters on different Zodiac signs and used their charts to fabricate the plot. A very cool concept if you ask me, and, reading this, it makes sense. It would honestly be difficult to come up with this complex a plot without any kind of heavenly guidance.
The first few chapters definitely had me hooked. The mysterious gathering, Walter Moody's unintended entrance upon it, the dark, rainy night outside the smoky, close atmosphere of the pub as the circumstances behind the meeting slowly reveal themselves.
That first part takes up probably half the book, but from there, everything else felt like a bit of a letdown, apart, perhaps from the courtroom scenes. Almost all of the core information was covered in that first half, so the rest felt rather superfluous. The last 100 pages especially, after the courtroom bit, just did not add much at all and were generally pretty frustrating. I thought the flashbacks to Dunedin were building up to something that would return us to the present and connect everything in one final, flourishing twist, but that just never happened.
The other thing that was annoying here was how male-focused this plot is. I get that this was the New Zealand frontier in the 19th century and that there weren't many women around to begin with. But the only three female characters are all effectively just sexual plot devices, for the men of Hokitika to project upon and take advantage of. For a book written by a woman, this was all the more disappointing.
I did really enjoy Catton's writing style. It is, again, very literary and flowery, but good, detail-packed writing just really gets me going, though I recognize that it can be a bit of turn-off for others.
Overall, an interesting concept and excellent writing, but the plot could have been reined in a bit more and the women caught up in it better treated. This has, however, really piqued my interest in Eleanor Catton's work, as I think she is someone with a fascinating imagination and a gorgeous writing style with which to share it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Racial slurs
Moderate: Miscarriage