Reviews

The City & The City by China Miéville

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mgnbnm's review against another edition

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challenging mysterious medium-paced

3.0

It takes a while to understand the world-building, but one I did, it was a good, politically-charged murder mystery.

empoi's review against another edition

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4.5

A crime novel with a interesting SF plot. Two cities become intertwined, one ontop of the other in different spacial planes. The author navigates expertly the reality of having to "un-see" the other city as you walk down a street that is two streets at once.

A plot the quickly could have been very confusing was narrated in a way that felt natural. Progressively reminding us less and less of the most basic natural laws that govern this world as we get used to them. We are a frog in a boiling pot no longer noticing the sharp divide between their reality and ours while that same shard divide plays an integral part of the story plot.

cassiope_fastigiata's review against another edition

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3.0

The murder mystery part of this didn't stick with me at all, but the geographic premise did, and I'm glad I read it. Thanks Jenny for the recommendation and for taking me out of my usual box.

capnmorgan's review against another edition

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I really wanted to like this, but it just didn't hold my attention.

cellardoor10's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense 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

3.0

Well, I found a Mieville book I don't hate! In the grand tradition of Asimov's robot books, a murder detective story reveals a world.

Importantly, while drugs are definitely here in the gritty urban setting, they're not a central focus, unlike the other two books where drugs or drug-like effects were central, which I rarely enjoy. Ending lost me a little bit - not a huge fan of the audiobook reader/their accent. But overall really interesting concepts.

theogray's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot

4.5

Everyone and their aunt mention China Mieville when I mention the third chapter of my dissertation, and unfortunately they were all absolutely correct. This might be the perfect urban borders book…
Overwrought at times, but still brilliant, if only for its literalization of what we already know from urban studies - we only live in a sliver of the city