Reviews

The Absolute Book by Elizabeth Knox

emannuelk's review against another edition

3.0

Esse livro pode agradar quem gostou de "Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell", embora não seja tão bom. Ou quem está afim de ler um livro que junta uma fantasia intelectualizada com ritmo de thriller a la "Código da Vinci". Inicialmente eu gostei bastante, justamente por como o livro te compele a continuar lendo. Mas sofre de algo que tenho achado cada vez mais recorrente em livros de fantasia, que é ser muito genérico. Especialmente quanto a mitologia do livro se relaciona com mitos históricos, que sempre me parecem uma mistura de falta de criatividade com uma escolha muito seletiva. Por que fadas irlandesas? Por que Odin, de novo e de novo? E, conforme os elementos mágicos vão se tornando mais importantes nessa narrativa, menos interessante ela conseguia ser. Os personagens também não eram exatamente interessantes, e a motivação, mesmo da protagonista, era descompassada com os acontecimentos e com o arco como um todo. E, para fechar com chave de ouro, não bastava ser uma busca por um manuscrito mágico superpoderoso, o fim tinha que ser um jeito de "salvar o mundo". E esse é o nosso mundo, que é salvo do aquecimento global e de todos os problemas que nós humanos nos causamos. Como? Boa pergunta.

bookishneena's review against another edition

dnf @ 10%

bored and confused

lemouse's review against another edition

adventurous challenging mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

jrosenstein's review against another edition

2.0

I liked the dreamlike quality of much of the story but it was just way too long and towards the end it just went on and on. And then the ending didn't seem momentous enough for everything that came before, but the epilogue was hugely momentous. I will say that no one writes like Knox, somehow mystical and pragmatic at the same time.
After reading some other reviews I have to agree that the plot never seemed to make sense and some characters, particularly Berger, change completely and unexpectedly.

invisiblegoats's review against another edition

5.0

My favourite thing I've read so far this year. The interplay between hell and the fey is something I've thought a lot about when reading fairy tales and mediaeval stories and this is a really fun story around it, written by someone who clearly really loves books and libraries

blairmahoney's review against another edition

2.0

I don't usually rate books this low: if I'm interested enough to pick it up then it's probably going to be pretty decent. I was fine with this book initially, but my interest started to wane about half way through (300 pages in). I persisted until about page 550 or so and then realised I had absolutely no interest in reading to the end to find out the resolution of the plot, which is a pretty big indictment. I hardly ever fail to finish books. The fantasy world of the book is a mish-mash of the fairy world with Norse gods and Christian ideas of hell and purgatory and heaven, which is part of the problem. I feel like it wants to be something like Susanna Clarke's Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, but it fails to convince on every level.

writinwater's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious slow-paced

3.25

b00kh0arder's review against another edition

5.0

Slow to start but almost impossible to let go once it does get going. Brilliant and beautiful. Longer review to come for The Nerd Daily.

emberise's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

A strange meandering tale with an air of the uncanny about it. In a good way. The ending was maybe a bit too far for me personally, but a fascinating adaptation of myth.

ruthieru's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0