from LadyIndigo as birthday exchange - unfortunately got same book from someone else, too

for linguistkris

Thank you so much -- I started reading this on the train, and while it couldn't stop me from sleeping through most of the journey, it did both entertain and impress me for the remainder. I didn't manage more than four of five chapters in that time, but I can feel the compelling pull of New Crobuzon tugging at me to read on already. Beautiful, dense writing of the kind that will horrify any translator.

I'm more or less about to finish this epic book. Reserved for Diamondlucy and Feloris.

An absolutely amazing book, although I find it very hard to comment upon. I don't even want to start talking about the plot, but both characters and language absolutely amazed me.

I had a bit of trouble finding my way into the story, or, more exactly, into the very weird world this book is set in. It's hard to describe -- neither fantasy, nor post-apocalyptic, nor classical steam-punk either. After a few chapters I felt my bearings were firm enough, but I found I then had to go back and skim over the initial descriptions again and make sure I remembered who belonged to what name belonged to which race and description. Initially, the change in narrative perspective didn't help either, although I later found that a very clever tool to involve me as a reader emotionally. Talking of emotional involvement -- Yagharek certainly got under my skin! But then, everybody else did too, maybe they just took a few chapters more.
I've rarely read a book populated with such engaging characters, and a reality thought up so intricately and conclusively. Talk of suspension of disbelief!

An amazing read.

Found a new temporary home at my place - to become the perfect summer literature. Come July, I swar I'll do nothing for a month but read 'epic books'. ;D

Oops, that means I could have given the book to Diamonlucy yesterday...? Hmmm, better luck/thinking next time!

I heard many things about this book before starting to read, but it seems that for me it felt a little different. I thought it quite engaging from the start - getting to know the city and its people, some ideas that are important for the rest of the novel etc. Everything is set up very nicely in the first 200 pages or so. Then things start happening. A LOT! the part of the book which I most enjoyed was definitely the middle. Towards the end it got a bit too much - the only downfall in a novel so full of ideas! There were simply too many things, and not all of them explained in depth, and too many things which, for me, felt incomplete. I loved the book, the richness of imagination this author evidently has, the many clever ideas; and I think that not everything was explained in-depth because there are several books set in the same world and probably dealing with some of the aspects only mentioned in passing here.
I had one other problem though. For whatever reason - whether I simply couldn't see them before my eye well enough or because the world was so very different from what I know - I couldn't really engage emotionally with the characters. they were certainly worth it, but it just didn't properly happen. For me, the book was highly entertaining intellectually, but not SO much emotionally. There were certain parts, yes, but overall...sadly no.

So highest grade for world-creation and exciting ideas (Palgolak! The Weaver!), and also kudos for being really scary sometimes, and making me want to read more novels set in New Crobuzon and the world around it. :)

WILD RELEASE NOTES:

Released at the last meeting - I think it may have found a fine new home. :)

I took the book home long ago, and I've been trying to read it since then, but it just won't catch me. Off cause it's full of interesting ideas and characters, and of cause it is very well written, but still I don't manage to read more than a few pages at a time.
The reason might be - as Feloris said - that this world is too different from ours to get deeply involved or maybe the language is too complicated for me to read it easily.
I might give it another try some time later, but for now I don't really like it.