Reviews

The Investigation by Stanisław Lem

tomususan's review against another edition

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2.0

Very confusing book. Sometimes mixing genres can be an intersting thing, this one was a flop. Interesting and engaging at the beginning but lost pace throughout.

frahorus's review against another edition

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2.0

Un inquietante fenomeno avviene nei cimiteri: la sparizione di cadaveri e il loro strano spostamento. Sembra che dietro ci sia un evento soprannaturale e ad indagare al caso viene assegnato il tenente londinese Gregory.

Un Lem che non ti aspetti, visto che di lui ho divorato e apprezzato i suoi celebri romanzi di fantascienza come Solaris e Il Pianeta del Silenzio, stavolta il Nostro si cimenta nel genere giallo alla Maigret, dove si indaga su uno strano caso dalle origini non umane, addirittura si parla di risurrezioni misteriose ma il detective è abbastanza scettico e seguirà una pista più scientifica e umana.

Sinceramente non mi ha colpito, anzi, spesso mi ha annoiato. La spiegazione finale fa davvero star male (nel senso che ti aspetti una soluzione più complicata). Peccato.

wegmarken2006's review against another edition

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mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No

3.25

ceridwenanne's review against another edition

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challenging dark funny mysterious slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

I got all excited when I read a description of Stanislaw Lem's The Investigation, and it implied there were undead zombie-type resurrected corpses. Which is kinda true? But then the novel ended up being this completely wild deconstruction of the police procedural mixed with Gormenghast-ish Gothic weirdness. 

I had a lot of difficulty with how dated the novel was. Sometimes I would only understand the subtext of a converstion much later, and took an embarrassingly long time to figure out the main character, the ambitious detective put on a case he cannot possibly solve, was a satirical creature and an object of ridicule. Once I kenned to it, Lem's criticism of institutional policing is pretty thorough, but then livened up with his sly, dry humor. 

There' s also not an insignificant amount of the grotesque, especially in the lieutenant's living situation, enough that I wondered if Lem wasn't taking a shot at the English gothic tradition. (The novel is set in and around London, and I don't know how much time Lem actually spent in Brittain.) 

Not quite what I was expecting, but then I also should have expected Lem to pull something that bizarre and thinky.

stitch_reads's review against another edition

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dark funny 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? Yes

4.0

mariawie's review against another edition

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4.0

Jedna z ostatnich książek Lema, za które się zabrałam. I polecam zostawiać ją sobie na koniec poznawania tego autora.
Lem stworzył kryminał niekonwencjonalny - zresztą trudno powiedzieć, czy jest to rzeczywiście kryminał. Możemy to równe dobrze uznać za dzieło filozoficzne. Zresztą tak już z Lemem bywa, że raczej nie klasyfikuje się w jednym gatunku.
"Śledztwo" nie powinno być zatem czytane stricte jako kryminał - jeśli tak to potraktujemy, czeka nas zawód.
Zarówno "Śledztwo", jak i późniejszy "Katar" przedstawiają rozwiązania intrygi za pomocą statystyki i prawdopodobieństwa. W "Śledztwie" jednak nie poznajemy odpowiedzi, co właściwie jest winne poruszaniu zwłok, czy rzeczywiście jest winny i jak to zrobił. To może irytować, przecież nie po to czyta się 200 stron książki, żeby nie poznać zakończenia. Nie chcemy tylko towarzyszyć sfrustrowanemu detektywowi. Ale może właśnie o to chodzi? Przecież tak już bywa w życiu - nie zawsze uzyskujemy odpowiedź. I myślę, że taka odpowiedź w śledztwie jest dużo bardziej prawdziwa niż jakieś wydumane, wyrzeźbione rozwiązanie. I tylko niewielu pisarzy mogłoby sobie na to pozwolić.

adrianhon's review against another edition

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4.0

Far from an easy or fun read, but classic Lem in its questioning of the very foundations of the detective genre. What if what we think of as causation is actually an illusion?

grevs's review against another edition

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3.0

???

co_niedzwiedz's review against another edition

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challenging mysterious

3.5

Fajna zagadka, chyba że wolisz zagadkę z rozwiązaniem, to wtedy nie polecam. Ciekawe dyskusje filozoficzne.

sochalka's review against another edition

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challenging reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Zaskakująca historia rozpoczynająca się jako powieść detektywistyczna, dość szybko przechodząca do filozoficznych rozważań dotyczących potrzeby odnalezienia schematów i prawidłowości w chaosie, jednoznacznych odpowiedzi na niejednoznaczne problemy. Pozostawia po sobie niepokój.