gotossmycausticsalad's review against another edition
5.0
So very peculiar. There were points in the plot where my inner cringe cop was saying this is stupid, but it didn't really matter? By that point the novel was pulling me along so breathlessly it was like yes, and so what?
I've seen it called a love letter to London a few times and that is absolutely spot on. This book made me miss it viscerally.
A bit confused at to whether this is a two parter or just an open ended novel. I assumed the former, but other reviews are treating it like the latter.
I've seen it called a love letter to London a few times and that is absolutely spot on. This book made me miss it viscerally.
A bit confused at to whether this is a two parter or just an open ended novel. I assumed the former, but other reviews are treating it like the latter.
thescienceofcurls's review
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
rosekk's review
4.0
The use of graphics to enhance the story works well here. Most of them aren't really illustrations - few of them actually represent something in the story. Instead they're more there for the feel, and to add context. Occasionally they're funny, and add a twist of humour on top of the text. I appreciate it.
I enjoyed the story itself as well, although it had its flaws. The characters all felt distinct, and I felt like I never came to properly understand any of them (to varying degrees). I think this was a deliberate part of the style rather than a failing. It seemed as though the characters were supposed to be like people you meet, and might understand sides of, but never know inside out. All the same, this meant I wasn't quite so invested in the characters or what became of them.
The setting(s) were far more intricately characterized. The focus on space seemed intended to meditate on the impact of architecture on people, and the relationship between spaces and minds (and, from there, between different minds which can only know each other through external contact).
The plot was the weakest element of the whole package. It followed a fairly linear path, and ended quite abruptly, and ambiguously. Ambiguous endings can be amazing, but in this instance it felt more as though the book had said all it wanted to say before it had resolved the plot, and so wrapped it all up and ended then and there.
I tried not to compare the book to XX, because that didn't seem like a fair approach. However, I couldn't help it in the end. XX did everything this book did, but better - it had a stronger plot, more engrossing characters, and the graphical elements seemed to be more entwined with the story and events and none of that interfered with it's ability to pose questions about the real world. If I hadn't known their publication order, I would have assumed XX was the second book, with The Black Locomotive as the prototype/proof of concept, and XX as the polished, practiced follow-up. I think XX spoiled me a bit, because I'm fairly sure I would have appreciated the use of graphics in this more if I hadn't seen it done so well in XX.
This was still a good read though!
I enjoyed the story itself as well, although it had its flaws. The characters all felt distinct, and I felt like I never came to properly understand any of them (to varying degrees). I think this was a deliberate part of the style rather than a failing. It seemed as though the characters were supposed to be like people you meet, and might understand sides of, but never know inside out. All the same, this meant I wasn't quite so invested in the characters or what became of them.
The setting(s) were far more intricately characterized. The focus on space seemed intended to meditate on the impact of architecture on people, and the relationship between spaces and minds (and, from there, between different minds which can only know each other through external contact).
The plot was the weakest element of the whole package. It followed a fairly linear path, and ended quite abruptly, and ambiguously. Ambiguous endings can be amazing, but in this instance it felt more as though the book had said all it wanted to say before it had resolved the plot, and so wrapped it all up and ended then and there.
I tried not to compare the book to XX, because that didn't seem like a fair approach. However, I couldn't help it in the end. XX did everything this book did, but better - it had a stronger plot, more engrossing characters, and the graphical elements seemed to be more entwined with the story and events and none of that interfered with it's ability to pose questions about the real world. If I hadn't known their publication order, I would have assumed XX was the second book, with The Black Locomotive as the prototype/proof of concept, and XX as the polished, practiced follow-up. I think XX spoiled me a bit, because I'm fairly sure I would have appreciated the use of graphics in this more if I hadn't seen it done so well in XX.
This was still a good read though!
vermilious's review
adventurous
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
bluechew's review
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
adam_penny's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
anna_reads24's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Honestly, I couldn’t not give this book five starts.
At first, i was worried. This was my first read of the year, and you always want to start strong, don’t you?
Page two, and all I’m seeing it lots of technical words I can’t quite click with.
But i persevere. The blurb is awesome, and I’m a huge fan of graphic books.
And…it was COMPLETELY WORTH IT!!
All of a sudden I’m drawn into theses fascinating disussions about architecture, and what it means. Taking a trip in Rutherford’s mind as he analyses what a building represents, how graffiti can be symbolic of a person fighting against the monolithic structures designed to conform was nothing short of joyous. And social media, as a 3rd dimension, breaking away the subtle rules of society - this is where you eat, this is where you meet people - was inspired.
And then it got better.
Suddenly there’s drama, there’s metallic creativity, and there’s a club that comes together to help others help London just because of the belonging this simple common interest binds them together by. On a personal note, it was also pretty cool to get some of the older references to shows like The Prisoner.
This was so much more that just a bit of sci-fi. I went into The Black Locomotive hoping for something that blends images and graphics with storyline just as wells as The Illumine Files did, and I got my perfect down-to-earth-locomotive-artistic-engineering fantasy.
Incredible, on every level.
At first, i was worried. This was my first read of the year, and you always want to start strong, don’t you?
Page two, and all I’m seeing it lots of technical words I can’t quite click with.
But i persevere. The blurb is awesome, and I’m a huge fan of graphic books.
And…it was COMPLETELY WORTH IT!!
All of a sudden I’m drawn into theses fascinating disussions about architecture, and what it means. Taking a trip in Rutherford’s mind as he analyses what a building represents, how graffiti can be symbolic of a person fighting against the monolithic structures designed to conform was nothing short of joyous. And social media, as a 3rd dimension, breaking away the subtle rules of society - this is where you eat, this is where you meet people - was inspired.
And then it got better.
Suddenly there’s drama, there’s metallic creativity, and there’s a club that comes together to help others help London just because of the belonging this simple common interest binds them together by. On a personal note, it was also pretty cool to get some of the older references to shows like The Prisoner.
This was so much more that just a bit of sci-fi. I went into The Black Locomotive hoping for something that blends images and graphics with storyline just as wells as The Illumine Files did, and I got my perfect down-to-earth-locomotive-artistic-engineering fantasy.
Incredible, on every level.
myweereads's review
4.0
“We designed them - but did our environment also design us?”
Once again Rian Hughes brings us a novel which is not quite like something I have read before.
The Black Locomotive is set in a world underneath the London that is well known to us. Through the vision of architecture, design, ad technology this story merges the past and present in a unique story that begins with the discovery of a strange anomaly. It is found underneath a secret Crossrail extension being built underneath Buckingham Palace. The more its investigate the more it becomes clear that before London came to be there was something else here and what does this mean for our future?
Right there I was intrigued as to how this story was going to unfold. There are distinctive characters who we are introduced to that play vital roles in answering these questions and some unexpected mysteries are solved along the way.
What makes this book stand out is the design work. Instantly its beautiful to look at from its all black aesthetic and intricately detailed graphics amongst the pages. Whats more is that the author chose to assign specific fonts to each character making it easier to tell who was who which can sometimes become confusing if the novel has many characters. Not just that we are given another QR code which links to a specific song which is important to a particular aspect of the story.
All in all I enjoyed this novel a lot. It is a feast for fans of Sci-Fi, trains and design. Much like the authors previous novel XX, A Novel Graphic, The Black Locomotive is unique in design with its story and appearance.
Once again Rian Hughes brings us a novel which is not quite like something I have read before.
The Black Locomotive is set in a world underneath the London that is well known to us. Through the vision of architecture, design, ad technology this story merges the past and present in a unique story that begins with the discovery of a strange anomaly. It is found underneath a secret Crossrail extension being built underneath Buckingham Palace. The more its investigate the more it becomes clear that before London came to be there was something else here and what does this mean for our future?
Right there I was intrigued as to how this story was going to unfold. There are distinctive characters who we are introduced to that play vital roles in answering these questions and some unexpected mysteries are solved along the way.
What makes this book stand out is the design work. Instantly its beautiful to look at from its all black aesthetic and intricately detailed graphics amongst the pages. Whats more is that the author chose to assign specific fonts to each character making it easier to tell who was who which can sometimes become confusing if the novel has many characters. Not just that we are given another QR code which links to a specific song which is important to a particular aspect of the story.
All in all I enjoyed this novel a lot. It is a feast for fans of Sci-Fi, trains and design. Much like the authors previous novel XX, A Novel Graphic, The Black Locomotive is unique in design with its story and appearance.
hawthorns's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5