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A review by sonice
The Claw of the Conciliator by Gene Wolfe
4.0
4.5 stars. I loved it. I'm also so confused that my brain is trying to escape out of my ear. But you know. In a good way.
I'm only giving this a slightly lower score than Shadow, and I think it's because there was one part (the play) that I really struggled with. Most of the confusing WTF happenings so far feel like if you give them enough thought, you can at least come up with some theories or ideas. This is actually a big part of what makes this so special; the vagueness encourages you to use your imagination, and who can really say what the exact right answer is? That one scene, however, even after trying to read through it twice....I mean, I can kind of see what's going on, but it's written in such a confusing way that I felt myself becoming more frustrated with it that anything. I feel like I might have missed something important. I DO get the impression that it's the kind of thing that would be more clear on a second read through, however.
I'm only giving this a slightly lower score than Shadow, and I think it's because there was one part (the play) that I really struggled with. Most of the confusing WTF happenings so far feel like if you give them enough thought, you can at least come up with some theories or ideas. This is actually a big part of what makes this so special; the vagueness encourages you to use your imagination, and who can really say what the exact right answer is? That one scene, however, even after trying to read through it twice....I mean, I can kind of see what's going on, but it's written in such a confusing way that I felt myself becoming more frustrated with it that anything. I feel like I might have missed something important. I DO get the impression that it's the kind of thing that would be more clear on a second read through, however.