Review: Wonderful, fascinating, complex
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 10 5, 2013
I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.This is a wonderful, fascinating, complex book.For me, one of the best things about it is the way it confounds our notions of ourselves. Much of the time we assume that technology and magic are polar opposites in our minds--but if that were true, a world in which they coexist and intermingle so freely--as in Hour of the Wolf--could not possibly be made so compelling to us.This is not a book for those who need a single main character with whom to bond so they can follow them around as the plot reveals itself. This book unfolds rather like a kaleidoscope, shifting from location to location, and character to character. The places, primarily the urban places, are the stars here, and they are described wonderfully and in detail, with deft prose that seems at once utterly forthright, but then turns delightfully wry. Given this, the book will be a pleasure for armchair tourists who want to explore realms to which they have no other access, and in the company of a well-informed, but sardonic guide.The prose deserves to have been translated flawlessly. It has been translated more than competently, but not yet flawlessly, a fact that I am guessing will be lost on all but the most rigorous readers.