Perdido Street Station by Mieville

[Dr. Ivor Yeti]

Quite possibly the best, most thoroughly imagined fantasy/steam-punk/horror novel I have ever read. Amazing depth. A grittier, political, London-based Dr. Norrell and Mr. Strange, Dickens writes cyber-punk with the tools of his time, race-relations, minor characters vivid enough to have their own novels...

Anyway, a very, very good read. Very dark, but very good.

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

I'm kind of waiting for the plot to kick in. I sense it, but it seems China is in no hurry to get to it. Or am I supposed to revel in the atmosphere of squalor? It's brilliantly imagined. I just need something beyond fetid water and insect love.

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

Now, I can take a bath. Sometime around page two hundred the book finally took off (It's a pun!)

I got to read about 150 pages thanks to the help of a battery operated night light. Wind took out our power last night and I was forced to improvise. I was surrounded by candles and the only real light on the page came from a tiny LED light that I balanced on my stomach and focused on the page. What fun. It added a lot to the atmosphere of the book. I highly recommend it.

What a weird twisted tale. Very dark and disturbing, kind of Lovecraft meets Wells meets Dickens. Maybe Verne instead of Welles. It's the kind of book that is going to sit with me.

[Dr. Ivor Yeti]

Yup. Mag-fucking-nificent. The "horror" parts were truly horrific, the world was unbelievable in its depth and breadth. For those that say genre-writing isn't literature, I say: "Fuck off and read this book. Wanker."

Read a few more of his. Enjoyed them. Think "Perdido" is still his best. Yup, "China" is a "him". He has a sister named "Jemima". Really.

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

This book was far more accessible than Perdido. It's set in the same world but out at sea on a floating pirate city called the Armada.. It's still than strange amalgam of Dickens and Verne with a dash of magic thrown in for good measure. All the creatures are strange and wonderful. (Don't visit the Island of the Mosquito woman) The boundaries between universes are still tenuous.
The story was better in Perdido but I didn't need to bathe as much during the Scar.
The great thing about Mievilles is the interesting byways and backstories he creates for every character and monster. Everything has depth.

The Scar was an adventure novel rather than a horror novel. You travel the world of Bas Rang aboard the floating city of the Armada which is a jumble of ships tied together in search of a way of gaining the great power of the Scar. It's all wierd, but enjoyable.

[Dr. Ivor Yeti]

Iron Council should be next on your list. Another damn good read. Futility of revolution? Futility of maintaining status quo? Entropy in all human endeavors?

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

Currently we are running through the wastelands trying to find the Golem or Clay man. Whose idea was it to bring a voydenoi along? Stupid water barrel.

[El Dingo]

I almost gave up on this book. The first couple hundred pages just kind of meander about, describing an oppressed, filthy city in excruciating detail. The characters were unlikeable, the plot was razor-thin and the pacing was like sap flowing in winter.

I forced myself to pick it up again because you all would not stop singing its praises. Around page 200 (as someone else noted), the action kicks in. I could not put this book down and plowed through the story for hours at a time.

The end ruined it for me. No reward, no redemption, no triumph. Companions abandon each other, heroes die (or worse) and the world remains a dark and suffocating place. The message seemed to be "No matter how hard you try to atone for past deeds, you will be punished for eternity". Nice.

I think I'll skip the rest of his books.

[Dr. Ivor Yeti]

Yup. Grand, wasn't it? kinda like life. It is gonna echo 'round your skull for a while. One of the survivors of that book features strongly in another of his books. C'mon, just one more!

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

All your friends are doing it. Well, the Yeti and I are. And we would never steer you wrong.

[Dr. Ivor Yeti]

Redemption? Darwin doesn't know redemption.