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A review by stardustrain
King Rat by China Miéville
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.0
Mieville's debut novel that has hallmarks of his later style, but the pitfalls that mark it as early work make it subpar and lacking. The story is more than anything an unfaltering a love letter to London - specifically the grimy, grotty underbelly populated by lesser-loved urban fauna. Interesting premise, extremely promising ending, well-paced mystery with some Neverwhere-esque worldbuilding.
Unfortunately, though, the characters are bland and uninteresting and act more like set dressing on stage more interesting than they are. The book tries too hard to imitate the accents to make the dialogue actually compelling. It's most obvious pitfall, for me, was its blatant and egregious misogyny, where every female character's arc was transplanted from the 60's comic books. No agency, no relevance to the story beyond ties to the main character, no satisfying characterisation or arc. For a so-called radically leftist writer, Mieville's only radical element was how violently it hated every female character it introduced.
RIP E., Deborah and Natasha, you deserved a better book.
Unfortunately, though, the characters are bland and uninteresting and act more like set dressing on stage more interesting than they are. The book tries too hard to imitate the accents to make the dialogue actually compelling. It's most obvious pitfall, for me, was its blatant and egregious misogyny, where every female character's arc was transplanted from the 60's comic books. No agency, no relevance to the story beyond ties to the main character, no satisfying characterisation or arc. For a so-called radically leftist writer, Mieville's only radical element was how violently it hated every female character it introduced.
RIP E., Deborah and Natasha, you deserved a better book.