Althea M. (althea) reviewed on 8/27/2010 + 774 more book reviews

My pick for "best book I've read this year."

The City & the City got nominations for both the World Fantasy Award and the Hugo Award; it won both the Arthur C. Clarke Award and the British Science Fiction Award for 2009. Regardless of this, I will still argue that this is neither a fantasy or a science fiction novel. Rather, it's a noir mystery and a story of political metaphor, taking place in a fictional city.

Although the setting (Besźel and Ul Qoma) is a believable if bizarre additon to the world we know, and is not as vividly alien and grotesque as that of Mieville's New Crobuzon, it is equally original and imaginative. Structurally, I believe that this book is Mieville's best work yet. Content-wise, it is sucessful both on the level of a murder mystery, and as a pointed criticism of artificial political distinctions and the ridiculous lengths that people will go to in order to maintain their 'differences.' Overall, an excellent book.

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