Reviews with content warning for Abandonment - Piranesi

3.5
This book was very mystical and mysterious and made me feel a lil bit dumb a lot bit, but it was a very quick and fun read once I got into it.
Without saying too much, it follows a young man called Piranesi living in a sort of Greek labyrinth full of statues. I can't really describe the plot without spoiling the entire book, so I recommend just going in blind.
I thought the story was very good and well thought out once it got going, the conclusion was satisfying and the characters were fun to follow. I do think it was a bit slow but it's slowness was not necessarily a bad thing, just a bit hard to get into.
I did also really like the mystery, I wasn't really expecting it so it was a fun surprise. The writing was also beautifully done, and made me very excited to read Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norell. Unfortunately I can't really give it more than a 3.5 as it didn't really hit me as hard as I wanted it to.

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dosxhime's review against another edition

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mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.5

I will destroy anyone that hurts Piransei.

That is all.

This read was pretty quick since there were so many mysteries to unravel and Clarke delievered on them perfectly. The twist on what the House is was so original and unique and if I was a thinker, I would ponder more on the themes and ideas that the novel presented. I have to say that the romanticization of the past as well as it mystical properties were well presented in the House and it gives off a haunting lonely atmosphere that kept me hooked on the book.

4.5 / 5 A

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maryjohnstone's review against another edition

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adventurous 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

I immensely enjoyed this book but I can’t quite determine exactly why I adore it so much. The beautiful prose of the house is vivid and poetic. The story was full of twists and turns which were even more prominent through the endearing and fascinating narrative of the main character. Definitely a book to reread!

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average's review

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dark mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

Poor Piranesi 💔

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alexxm13's review against another edition

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dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad 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? Yes

5.0

Spoiler

First of all the parallels between this and “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley is beyond my brain power to wrap around, I will be spending hours on reflecting and contrasting how this masterpiece is so similar to one of my fav classics. Looking for dark academia vibes but its not “the secret history” with overachieving students but also similar to “Frankenstein”’s writing style of scientific characters and agony? Yea this book is for u . Ok before I dive deep into why this book is so good, I will be honest that the first 100ish pages I wanted to dnf it umm not that it was bad it was just at a pace where nothing much was happening and it read like a journal of someone’s that I couldn’t care less about and also I just was not in the mood to read this sort of fiction BUT for the past 2 days I sat down and forced myself continue this and thank fuck I did. I sat outside with the sunset going down in the back with my oversized hoody and after 3 hours I started to rlly enjoy it, things were happening and that moment of “wow this is so powerful” yeah that happened like 10 times while reading it. The last half of this was incredible and made me want to consume it all in one sitting . Okay putting my eng lit brain on and comparing the parallels between the characters; the other (victor Frankenstein) and Piranesi (monster) is just uncanny. u have a mad scientist who just wants to know beyond this one world and what else exists after death and creation of a world and life who legit kidnaps his “friend” as he manipulates him so he can get recognition and feed into his hubris, hamartia if u will (look at me go Shakespeare class) and due to this overly ambitious goals this in end destroys him. Anyways paralleling to victor who is also this drop out student but still wants to continue with his wild research about creation he creates a “monster” due to his ambition to prove his worth. And then the victims; Piranesi who is this clueless man and has been driven to madness for however many years trapped in “the house” who was manipulated by his friend who brought him to this world, just like the monster who is also quite clueless but “misery made me a fiend” and at the end these victims destroy who betrayed them :) . Anyways back to the book, my analysis can pause for now its 11pm and I should just chill my brain but anyways there are so many quotes and themes I adore in this, eg; “the one who will never submit to being driven mad by you” CAN U HEAR ME SCREAM? This is a literal lovers to enemies line and im on the floor because of that because the connection these two characters have is like a stab in the heart and I know when I read “vicious” by ve schwab it will do the same for me ugh . Also I love the mc like he’s so lovely and selfless and the last few chapters made me rlly sad that he can’t remember his family after son long being trapped and he didn’t initially want to go home as he thought this new world is his home, but he was just lied to for years and found these skeletons and looks after them as he is that lonely but im so happy that he was able to find a genuine friend; Raphael who wants what is best for him and not for the sake of fame or money or the greater knowledge which is a key theme I want to expand on more tbh .Was this book initially a 5 star? Absolutely not, before the past 2 days of reading the 2nd half this was going to be a 2 but the angst, the meanings, the quotes, so many things made it a 5 and I 100% recommend for anyone to read this esp for people who want dark academia style books that are not hyped because this deserves love!

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