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johnayliff's review against another edition
4.0
This is an omnibus edition of three novels and one short story collection. The original books are quite different from one another, and the collection does not feel like a unified work, even though in this edition the short stories are interspersed with the novels. Overall it was not an easy collection to read, but I'm glad I did.
THE PASTEL CITY is a fairly conventional fantasy quest novel, albeit an absolutely beautifully written one. The distant future setting is portrayed not as ruined so much as polluted, with vast swamps and deserts made of the industrial wastes of dead civilisations.
A STORM OF WINGS is also a fantasy quest story, in which the city must be defended from insect invaders, but the story is overwhelmed by one conceit, that reality is largely determined by perceptions, and the clash of perception between humans and insects causes reality to break down. The protagonists wander, barely sane, through grotesque, mutating landscapes, and it sometimes feels as if the author is using the reality-warping conceit as an excuse to delay explaining to the reader what is going on.
IN VIRICONIUM is the only novel set mainly inside the city, and its plot feels less important than the picture it paints of the setting.
The short stories vary in style and I'm not sure I understood all of them. For the most part they feel more similar to IN VIRICONIUM than to the other two novels.
THE PASTEL CITY is a fairly conventional fantasy quest novel, albeit an absolutely beautifully written one. The distant future setting is portrayed not as ruined so much as polluted, with vast swamps and deserts made of the industrial wastes of dead civilisations.
A STORM OF WINGS is also a fantasy quest story, in which the city must be defended from insect invaders, but the story is overwhelmed by one conceit, that reality is largely determined by perceptions, and the clash of perception between humans and insects causes reality to break down. The protagonists wander, barely sane, through grotesque, mutating landscapes, and it sometimes feels as if the author is using the reality-warping conceit as an excuse to delay explaining to the reader what is going on.
IN VIRICONIUM is the only novel set mainly inside the city, and its plot feels less important than the picture it paints of the setting.
The short stories vary in style and I'm not sure I understood all of them. For the most part they feel more similar to IN VIRICONIUM than to the other two novels.
dantastic's review
3.0
I was on a dark fantasy kick for a few weeks. I like the first story in this one a lot.
lauregul's review against another edition
1.0
DNF nach 200 Seiten
Während die erste Geschichte noch aufgrund ihrer Seltsamkeit interessant war, konnten die nächsten zwei Geschichten mich überhaupt nicht begeistern. Das Buch beginnt nach der ersten geschichte in die Richtung von 0815-Fantasy-Geschichten abzudriften, wenn auch mit recht guten Twists
Für mich drehte sich außerdem viel zu wenig um Viriconium, die titelgebende Stadt. Ich hatte ursprünglich den Eindruck, das Buch würde eine genaue Beschreibung der Eigenheiten von Viriconium und ihrer sonderbaren Gestalten liefern. Dem war, zumindest in der zweiten und dritten Geschichte, absolut nicht so.
Leider ist Viriconium für mich ein eher unbeeindruckendes Buch. Schade, denn die erste Geschichte legt eine spannende Grundlage und der Schreibstil ist insgesamt auch gut.
Während die erste Geschichte noch aufgrund ihrer Seltsamkeit interessant war, konnten die nächsten zwei Geschichten mich überhaupt nicht begeistern. Das Buch beginnt nach der ersten geschichte in die Richtung von 0815-Fantasy-Geschichten abzudriften, wenn auch mit recht guten Twists
Für mich drehte sich außerdem viel zu wenig um Viriconium, die titelgebende Stadt. Ich hatte ursprünglich den Eindruck, das Buch würde eine genaue Beschreibung der Eigenheiten von Viriconium und ihrer sonderbaren Gestalten liefern. Dem war, zumindest in der zweiten und dritten Geschichte, absolut nicht so.
Leider ist Viriconium für mich ein eher unbeeindruckendes Buch. Schade, denn die erste Geschichte legt eine spannende Grundlage und der Schreibstil ist insgesamt auch gut.
shane_tiernan's review
3.0
The Pastel City (Very Cool monsters and Tomb rocked!!! So did the old man. For some reason I like the old technology in this one.)
-
A Storm of Wings (Very cool plot and big ideas, long parts of surreal gibberish made me want to give up. Overall not bad.)
-
In Viriconium (Absurdist, but I wasn't expecting it to be. No big plots here just very strange occurrences and characters.)
-
The Lamia and Lord Cromis (Not bad, like the idea of a monster that must be killed by each son in a line of succession like a blood feud)
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Viriconium Knights (Terrible, self indulgent crap. Same characters, same meaningless dribble. No plot.)
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The Luck in the Head (Verisimilitude is there but still no plot. Colorful.)
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Strange Great Sins (Not much of a plot, but at least it was short.)
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Lords of Misrule (Again nice writing, very real but no plot.)
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The Dancer from the Dance (Again nice writing, very real but no plot.)
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A Young Man's Journey to Viriconium (At least this one was different. About people in modern world trying to get to Viriconium.)
-
A Storm of Wings (Very cool plot and big ideas, long parts of surreal gibberish made me want to give up. Overall not bad.)
-
In Viriconium (Absurdist, but I wasn't expecting it to be. No big plots here just very strange occurrences and characters.)
-
The Lamia and Lord Cromis (Not bad, like the idea of a monster that must be killed by each son in a line of succession like a blood feud)
-
Viriconium Knights (Terrible, self indulgent crap. Same characters, same meaningless dribble. No plot.)
-
The Luck in the Head (Verisimilitude is there but still no plot. Colorful.)
-
Strange Great Sins (Not much of a plot, but at least it was short.)
-
Lords of Misrule (Again nice writing, very real but no plot.)
-
The Dancer from the Dance (Again nice writing, very real but no plot.)
-
A Young Man's Journey to Viriconium (At least this one was different. About people in modern world trying to get to Viriconium.)
h_berry0410's review
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
ratgrrrl's review
5.0
Truly spectacular and strange science fantasy!
The Pale City is wonderful, but A Storm of Wings is a poetic fever dream of sheer brilliance, which makes all the really great stuff that follows feel a little disappointing. But, this is all bloody brilliant and the first big work I've read the text of in many, many years due to my conditions, which was tough, but absolutely worth it!
The Pale City is wonderful, but A Storm of Wings is a poetic fever dream of sheer brilliance, which makes all the really great stuff that follows feel a little disappointing. But, this is all bloody brilliant and the first big work I've read the text of in many, many years due to my conditions, which was tough, but absolutely worth it!
thomasgoddard's review
4.0
I highly recommend Viriconium if you want a novel that features a rich landscape populated with interesting characters. Its not quite Gormenghast, but it was fascinating and a really interesting way to blend two genres in a way that felt really compelling. So yeah, if you like Dune, you'll love this.
peapod_boston's review
4.0
There's another kind of fantasy. One without borders. One without stable points of reference. One that deliberately resists our attempts to map it, to understand its cultures, to make guides to it. This is that kind of fantasy.
aaairm's review
1.0
Man I wanted to like this so much ... The Pastel City was fantastic in its portrayal of a doomed and decaying society but the rest of the stories are so .. out there... Neil Gaiman's intro, where he describes the books as baroque and having a theme of escapes, pretty much sums it up.