ryanteston's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
talbet's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
lovedayrobijn's review against another edition
5.0
Phantasmagoric, dust-dry and rust-red novel of the same Weird Frontier breed as the ʾAlf Laylah wa-Laylah, Stephen King's Wizard and Glass, and Gene Wolfe's The Fifth Head of Cerberus -- stories concerned with the empty spaces where wind and ghosts are more at home than are we ourselves. More than any other author I can name, I wish desperately for a new novel by Bishop. A masterful prose stylist with an immense and unique gift.
kizza's review against another edition
2.0
Beautifully written, devastatingly dull.
There's a reason literary and fantasy fictions are not the same genre. In both genres the reader expects certain tropes and cliches. In literary fiction, there's a certain amount of navel gazing and just moving about the world somewhat pointlessly. In fantasy, there's the expectation of a plot that gives the characters a reason to move about the world. See where the disconnect lies? This book is literary fiction with fantasy window-dressing.
This is for literary fans who don't read much fantasy. Everyone else should avoid it or expect, in some way, to be disappointed.
There's a reason literary and fantasy fictions are not the same genre. In both genres the reader expects certain tropes and cliches. In literary fiction, there's a certain amount of navel gazing and just moving about the world somewhat pointlessly. In fantasy, there's the expectation of a plot that gives the characters a reason to move about the world. See where the disconnect lies? This book is literary fiction with fantasy window-dressing.
This is for literary fans who don't read much fantasy. Everyone else should avoid it or expect, in some way, to be disappointed.
jsmney's review against another edition
3.0
My undergrad writing TA gave this to me as a prize for doing something well (I forget). It took me a year to read it and it was so crazy and surreal. It had been such a long time since I'd been reading for fun, because of college, but it was a really interesting book. I would say it's a somewhat unique book in my memory.
martydah's review against another edition
4.0
This was a strange novel - I've heard it referred to as Steampunk, sci-fi, fantasy. Really, I think fantasy is a better description for it than anything else. It's the story of Gwynn, a gun-slinger and Raule, a doctor, former rebels who fought on the losing side of a revolution in the Copper Country. Both find new lives in the city of Ashamoil. Gwynn becomes a strong arm/assassin for a notorious slaver and Raule opens a hospital for the poor.
The novel becomes ever more strange: who or what is Beth Constantin, Gwynn's lover and maker of beautiful but bizarre etchings that seem to come alive and transport the viewer into other realms? What is causing all the strange deformed fetuses that Raule feels compelled to collect and study? The reader is never quite sure what is going on, anymore than the main characters are. And that's part of the appeal - Bishop never completely resolves the mysteries of the Etched City. The epilogue raises more questions than it answers. I thought this was a fascinating read and would like to see more work from this author.
The novel becomes ever more strange: who or what is Beth Constantin, Gwynn's lover and maker of beautiful but bizarre etchings that seem to come alive and transport the viewer into other realms? What is causing all the strange deformed fetuses that Raule feels compelled to collect and study? The reader is never quite sure what is going on, anymore than the main characters are. And that's part of the appeal - Bishop never completely resolves the mysteries of the Etched City. The epilogue raises more questions than it answers. I thought this was a fascinating read and would like to see more work from this author.
yak_attak's review against another edition
5.0
"What does it all mean?" Gwynn asked, intrigued
"An unnatural history of existence in a state of flux," she said. "The midden of an old world, surfacing after a frost. A new world in a nymph-state, before its mature form is decided."
"And how will it be decided?"
"With inspiration and passion, and perhaps a little tragedy. Or perhaps cynically, in back rooms, behind closed doors. Time will tell."
I don't typically highlight quotes with my reviews but it seemed poignant in this case for two reasons - first, you can tell from the short snippet how excellently Bishop's prose can be when it hits its highs, a marked strength for a debut novel, vast, imaginative, strange, but capturing the grimy underbelly of its lawless protagonists well. I think at times it lapses to either side - either too florid, or too simplistic, but on the whole, the book is completely captivating.... even if evasive.
Secondly, it gives you a hint at the vague metaphysical nonsense in store here, and I do mean that in the most complementary way possible - The Etched City is a story of a battle for the soul of a man, for the life in a city, for the new world emerging from the ashes of a war into a early 19th century mirror of our own. The old west, mobsters, etc. - despite its overarching strangeness and pervasive magic the setting and story of the book aren't that odd at all, lulling you into thinking there's not much fantastical going on.... But don't be concerned, this book oozes strangeness, New Weird via Epic Magical Realism. Or something.
All together, this is a fantastic work, one grappling with modernity, art, self, and like so many of the great novels that grapple with shit like modernity, art, and self, it's also kinda a pain in the ass and confusing at times. But that's part of the fun. Give in, enjoy the ride, and you'll find something special.
"An unnatural history of existence in a state of flux," she said. "The midden of an old world, surfacing after a frost. A new world in a nymph-state, before its mature form is decided."
"And how will it be decided?"
"With inspiration and passion, and perhaps a little tragedy. Or perhaps cynically, in back rooms, behind closed doors. Time will tell."
I don't typically highlight quotes with my reviews but it seemed poignant in this case for two reasons - first, you can tell from the short snippet how excellently Bishop's prose can be when it hits its highs, a marked strength for a debut novel, vast, imaginative, strange, but capturing the grimy underbelly of its lawless protagonists well. I think at times it lapses to either side - either too florid, or too simplistic, but on the whole, the book is completely captivating.... even if evasive.
Secondly, it gives you a hint at the vague metaphysical nonsense in store here, and I do mean that in the most complementary way possible - The Etched City is a story of a battle for the soul of a man, for the life in a city, for the new world emerging from the ashes of a war into a early 19th century mirror of our own. The old west, mobsters, etc. - despite its overarching strangeness and pervasive magic the setting and story of the book aren't that odd at all, lulling you into thinking there's not much fantastical going on.... But don't be concerned, this book oozes strangeness, New Weird via Epic Magical Realism. Or something.
All together, this is a fantastic work, one grappling with modernity, art, self, and like so many of the great novels that grapple with shit like modernity, art, and self, it's also kinda a pain in the ass and confusing at times. But that's part of the fun. Give in, enjoy the ride, and you'll find something special.
bdorf's review against another edition
1.0
This was easily the worst book I've read this year. Self indulgent garbage, with a side of casual racism and misogyny. Avoid at all costs.