jayshay's review against another edition
4.0
I picked this up remembering that Cheryl Morgan had recommended it some time back and wasn't disappointed. Going solely from reading this book I can see that China Meiville didn't just arise from nowhere, because this book reminded me a lot of some of the better aspects of Meiville's earlier novels (the only ones I've read so far). There is a lot of sex power - magic - goddess talk in the book, but it isn't as airy fairy 90s grrl power blather as that might sounds to the more cynical of you (or of me).
I really enjoyed how I came to love, and well love, the trans character Zambia Crevecoeur. At first the descriptions of the character were on the side of horrifying, but this has to do with the inner state of the character at that point in the novel. Constantine was amazing at taking me into a character who was falling in love with hir. (Yes the novel uses hir and SHe, and while I have ZERO knowledge of the use, context or history of those pronouns, they seemed to work quite elegantly and naturally in the context of this novel.)
It does get quite - let's say - metaphorical towards the end, but I liked that and felt that the novel earned it. There are some novels that get all wild and abstract towards the end and it seems like the novelist is simply waving their hands in the air chanting - "you know! you know!", but you don't know. This novel feels like it achieves it climax in a way that brings the reader along. Will be reading more of Constantine.
I really enjoyed how I came to love, and well love, the trans character Zambia Crevecoeur. At first the descriptions of the character were on the side of horrifying, but this has to do with the inner state of the character at that point in the novel. Constantine was amazing at taking me into a character who was falling in love with hir. (Yes the novel uses hir and SHe, and while I have ZERO knowledge of the use, context or history of those pronouns, they seemed to work quite elegantly and naturally in the context of this novel.)
It does get quite - let's say - metaphorical towards the end, but I liked that and felt that the novel earned it. There are some novels that get all wild and abstract towards the end and it seems like the novelist is simply waving their hands in the air chanting - "you know! you know!", but you don't know. This novel feels like it achieves it climax in a way that brings the reader along. Will be reading more of Constantine.
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