A review by abyissmal
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Oh, boy. I was on the brink of bawling before I even finished the book. 

When I had a couple of pages left, my eyes were blurry. 

My heart's a thunderous storm of joy, sadness, anger, and relief. As Piranesi discovers peace, I, too, found peace. It'd too been a bittersweet peace because how do you make peace with the World you'd known as home yet being far from comfort? How do you make peace with a World you had never known that turns out to be a small fraction of a bigger world? How do you make peace knowing a part of yourself from the past was taken? How do you live with that?

There is just something magical about the way Clarke weave words together. She strings you along to the mystery of this strange world. Giving enough for you to be curious, but not so much that it completely spoils it. Her meticulous world-building never cease to amaze me. It's a well-realized world, lifting Piranesi's (the architect) intricate etchings to life. The seemingly never-ending stairs; the curves and corners that leads to nowhere; the lack of life itself.

I have smiled, cried, and laughed at every page when Piranesi is being Piranesi. He is a bright, curious soul with simple desires and a whole lot of hope. I wanted to hold his hands when he ventures to parts of The House filled with fear, to protect that very hope he holds until the very end. Needless to say, I'd grown affectionate towards Piranesi and I was left broken bearing witness to the immense changes he had to go through. His World can never be the same because he's no longer the same. He needed to make peace with that. And that really hurts.


All in all, "Piranesi" is a story about belonging. I should also say this book might not be for everyone. It spends plenty of its narrative with Piranesi wandering through this world almost aimlessly and making observations that's left unanswered. But, the journey of belonging, too, requires patience. So, be patient with it. Let yourself flow through the story. Enjoy the magic of it all.
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