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A review by storyorc
The City & the City by China Miéville
challenging
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Unsettling. Exciting. Levels of denial and doublethink to make 1984 look like mental clarity. Kafka himself would be jealous.
Despite an ambiguous geography and time, the book is thick with a smoky noir atmosphere. A little too much for my tastes, even. The brutish cops and their bitchy bureaucrats are intentional obstacles but I resented them for it. I wanted to charge ahead to the next intercity oddity rather than wait for our detective to sift clues from their shit. Never held it against him though; too likeable for that.
Where does Miéville come up with this absurdity, and have the gall to make it mundane enough to be believable? I'll have what he's having.
Despite an ambiguous geography and time, the book is thick with a smoky noir atmosphere. A little too much for my tastes, even. The brutish cops and their bitchy bureaucrats are intentional obstacles but I resented them for it. I wanted to charge ahead to the next intercity oddity rather than wait for our detective to sift clues from their shit. Never held it against him though; too likeable for that.
Where does Miéville come up with this absurdity, and have the gall to make it mundane enough to be believable? I'll have what he's having.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny