Reviews with content warning for Mental illness - Piranesi

Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

180 reviews

chelly_reads's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

thisislaura's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Oof, first I love/hated it, then I couldn’t put it down, then I was like “This better have a happy ending Susanna Clarke!” Then I was really taken with how beautiful it was. Excellent writing and all the feels.

Content Warnings

tifftastic87's review against another edition

Go to review page

mysterious reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Piranesi lives in what he calls "the House" collecting data and making notes. There is no one living with him, just the Other, who visits twice a week and asks questions. One of these questions is strange and Piranesi starts looking back over his data and everything starts slowly coming to light.

The story was definitely slow, atmospheric and mysterious. We only find things out as Piranesi does and are just as confused as he is most of the time. I honestly didnt put it together until near the end and was so pleased with it.

Another "just vibes" book but any attempt at describing vibes would spoil the book.

Content Warnings

myiscoh's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Could not put it down for the entire book, intriguing world-building throughout with a really interesting mystery plot. Would drag for the first 60~ pages if you’re not as interested in the world-building but stick with it!!

Spoiler

The House is valuable because it is the House. It is enough in and of itself. It is not the means to an end.

The beauty of the House is immeasurable; its Kindness infinite.

I dont think anything could have prepared me for this. Already mentioned how amazing the world-building of the House is, especially for me the hall Piranesi (for lack of a better name for him) travels to for the Other with the huge door revealing the moon and the hundreds of statues reaching out towards it from the dark - all very evocative.

Another thing i loved was the ending, specifically how the almost split personalities of Piranesi and Matthew Rose Sorensen end up as just two aspects in a new personality that Piranesi (again, for lack or a better way to refer to him) takes on when returning to the old world. I feel like it would not have suited either side of his character to keep Piranesi dominant in the mind or to have Matthew come back in full, so i love that it was kept “split” (though not really as both are now part of a new whole)

I wish i was in a place where i could analyse the more philosophical parts of this book, but for now the two excerpts i quoted at the start really hit me. I have so many thoughts but i cant find worlds that really convey them in the way i mean without sounding like i'm rambling. But especially the relationship between those two passages that i immediately think of is this: we are all reflections of the House (our world) and it, like everyone, should be treated with the same endless love, empathy, care, and respect that Piranesi shows the statues and the dead and the House as a whole.

Other notes: wish i could have known Raphael for longer, she seemed like such a nice person. The journals used as a device to exposit about the events from the old world was really interesting. Unfortunately(? maybe not unfortunate, not sure) i did see most of the reveals coming from way off, though they were still enjoyable and the twist that Piranesi was actually trapped by the Other (like how James Ritter was trapped by Arne-Sayles) was not what i was expecting, even if i never really did trust the Other at all.

Content Warnings