Reviews

Creeping Jenny by Jeff Noon

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pbobrit's review

5.0

I have really enjoyed the Nyquist series, but this is my favorite of the three so far. Set outside of the cities of the first two, in a bizarre English village has Nyquist searching for his father and uncovering a mystery in the process. On the way he encounters strange villagers, dark rituals and a multitude of saints. This book is strange (as you would expect, and hope for), a real page turner but also so much fun to revel in the detail. Part of me hopes Nyquist will return to this locale in future outings.

joosty's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

To explain anything about the Niquist books that isn't on the back of the cover but isn't a spoiler is very difficult. This is another surrealist mystery that our protagonist gets tangled up with. There's no explanation ever why these weird places (dayzone, storyville, and noe Hoxly-on-Hale) exist but this also isn't the point.

This story never explains why or how 360 saints can alter reality in a village on a daily basis, but it sure is an interesting backdrop for a murder mystery and a son's hopeless quest to reconnect with the father who abandoned him.

I found this mystery to be resolved in a slightly less satisfactory way then the Body Library, but that doesn't mean that it was less of a page turner.

I am beginning to wonder who these books appeal to. Obviously they appeal to me, but I am (happily) surprised to find out there's a steady audience for mystery/whodunnit novels in weird settings. I don't believe the weird settings let the books trascend their genre, but to me it does set them apart.

sleeping_hollowz's review

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dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.25

peachwhiskey's review

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dark mysterious medium-paced

3.5

srlemons42's review

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dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated

4.25

jubaju's review

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2.0

1.5 stars
The last book was good enough that I considered bumping the series up to 3 stars, but this one changed my mind. Nyquist is just too emotional for me. He's out and about trying to find information and immediately gets upset when strangers aren't forthcoming so he starts slamming his hands on tables and shouting at them. Definitely not the best way to get people to open up. He acts more like a toddler than an adult man and it gets old and boring after a while.

Other than that, the writing was alright but the plot rested too much on Nyquist's shoulders and I didn't care.