This book, as expected, took a while. But 2 hours on a train and a 10 hour flight meant that I could read the second half - 300 pages - more or less in one sitting. However, a well structured and thought out large book is rewarding to read and this one made the grade.
The story is very complex, with lots of characters and events, multiple viewpoints and numerous interconnections that are quite a stretch to keep tabs on. Unusually, the story is essentially a single timeline, which helps. The initial part of the story is historic, then contemporary and is mostly "normal" with only small fantasy components. As it moves into the future, the fantastical parts are more dominant and fully explained. The last part of the book, in the more distant future, describes a somewhat distopian, but, to me, sadly realistic world.
Overall I enjoyed the book because the characters were well drawn and the story made sense, having a beginning, a middle and an end. I am not really certain that all the fantasy stuff needed to be explained thoroughly. In a way, the war between the Horologists and the Anchorites was rather "Doctor Who". I also never quite saw where The Script fitted in.
A small concern is about the author's integrity. I expect a lot from writers and expect them to have done their homework, finding silly errors annoying. For example, there is a reference to CD-R and CD-RW in the early 2020s; this terminology is rather anachronistic even now in 2014. Elsewhere there is a note about a barn owl hooting. It is tawny owls that hoot; barn owls screech. But I'm being picky ...
No comments:
Post a Comment