4 ms·
I thought Jonathan Strange was ... OK, and Piranesi was maybe a bit better, or at least cuter, and mostly redeemed because it was short and didn't try to turn i
by efsavage 5y ago
I thought Jonathan Strange was ... OK, and Piranesi was maybe a bit better, or at least cuter, and mostly redeemed because it was short and didn't try to turn itself into an epic. I've found both books to be finely crafted, but unable to really deliver, like a dessert that looks amazing but just tastes like cake.
- jfengel 5y agoStrange is definitely a case where the journey is more important than the destination. The pace is languid to the point of lethargic, and then rushes through an ending that's almost literally a flurry of flapping birds. I really like your analogy. I wouldn't have put it that way, but it beautifully evokes what the novel felt like to you. It's a helpful case where I can say, "Ya know, if it's not grabbing you 20 pages in, maybe don't bother." (I resent all those times people tell me, "Oh, you just have to slog through the first novel/first season and then it gets good.)