You know, I also wasn't expecting the modern setting (nor all those F-bombs! They didn't really bother me, as you might be able to tell ocassionally from my journal entries ;) but they were sure unexpected!) I think that sordid mood creates a good contrast for Piranesi's gentleness and innocence, though. And the modern setting works really well, because it's modern, but at the same time, kind of detached from "reality". And it makes it very intriguing! For example, I kept thinking about the House, and where exactly it could be/what inspired it, because it was such an interesting piece of worldbuilding! (I hope that people make lots of fanart because the possibilities are very cool...) So yes, it was unexpected, but it shows that she can tackle different things, while still keeping her lovely, otherwordly style!
The queer coded villain was probably my least favourite part, because do we really needed another villain like that? (I guess I'm always going to be touchy about queer representation!) At least he was nuanced enough to be interesting as a villain, and being queer was not seen as a problem/evil thing... so, it could have been worse, I guess! And I also noticed the whole "outsider"/transgressive thing--she does seem to give this type of character important roles (connections to magic, etc) in her writing, and I agree in that it's interesting.
I also agree with you about all the similarities with JS&MN--it's funny because it seems such a different book at a first glance, but in the end, it's not *that* different! One of the several similar things I noticed was the "back to the earth" type of ending for one of the villains, like the Gentleman and Drawlight in JS&MN, which was intriguing, to say the least.
And I understand it feeling "kind of small", because anything after JS&MN was going to feel that way, I guess. I was trying to avoid getting my hopes up because of this, but actually my experience was the exact opposite of small. I'm still unravelling it all in my head, but I feel that a short book worked better for this universe, because it being "limited" leaves the reader in the dark, feeling like they've missed something, along with the characters. In that sense, it was certainly effective. As i was typing up some of my thoughts about it, I felt it was "exactly the right length"...and also, given all the layers of deception in the story, I feel that the simplicity was, well, deceptive, and went nicely with the liminal feel of the story. And all the loose ends added to the idea of things being hidden or left unsaid, of the impossibility of a complete understanding. It's a bit frustrating, I agree, but perhaps the right kind of "frustrating", that makes it be a very satisfying story, that might keep on expanding.
So I really don't feel this book is necessarily less good/ambitious than JS&MN (and I hope it won't suffer from the comparisons too much), just dealing with some similar themes in a different, "less-is-more" way? Just like JS&MN, it feels like a shadowy story, full of hints and possibilities and things hiding in between the lines, but in this shorter book, it's emphasised even more--I was happily surprised at how visual and thought-provoking it was, and it made me want to dig deeper for what is hiding there, and also all the references I missed on my first read! I'm not saying this doesn't happen with any longer books--JS&MN itself is the gift that keeps on giving, when it comes to finding new things on each re-read... but I am biased about shorter books (possibly because several of my favourites are on the short side) and many times I feel they are a lot more than what they seem at first, hehe! Bigger on the inside, so to speak! :D
Aaand this got super long, oops! By the way, I also don't know where the JS&MN fandom is, but from a very selfless point of view, if it's elsewhere, I hope you still keep posting your stuff here on DW--that historical RPF about John Uskglass sounds *very* intriguing and relevant to my interests!
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You know, I also wasn't expecting the modern setting (nor all those F-bombs! They didn't really bother me, as you might be able to tell ocassionally from my journal entries ;) but they were sure unexpected!) I think that sordid mood creates a good contrast for Piranesi's gentleness and innocence, though. And the modern setting works really well, because it's modern, but at the same time, kind of detached from "reality". And it makes it very intriguing! For example, I kept thinking about the House, and where exactly it could be/what inspired it, because it was such an interesting piece of worldbuilding! (I hope that people make lots of fanart because the possibilities are very cool...) So yes, it was unexpected, but it shows that she can tackle different things, while still keeping her lovely, otherwordly style!
The queer coded villain was probably my least favourite part, because do we really needed another villain like that? (I guess I'm always going to be touchy about queer representation!) At least he was nuanced enough to be interesting as a villain, and being queer was not seen as a problem/evil thing... so, it could have been worse, I guess! And I also noticed the whole "outsider"/transgressive thing--she does seem to give this type of character important roles (connections to magic, etc) in her writing, and I agree in that it's interesting.
I also agree with you about all the similarities with JS&MN--it's funny because it seems such a different book at a first glance, but in the end, it's not *that* different! One of the several similar things I noticed was the "back to the earth" type of ending for one of the villains, like the Gentleman and Drawlight in JS&MN, which was intriguing, to say the least.
And I understand it feeling "kind of small", because anything after JS&MN was going to feel that way, I guess. I was trying to avoid getting my hopes up because of this, but actually my experience was the exact opposite of small. I'm still unravelling it all in my head, but I feel that a short book worked better for this universe, because it being "limited" leaves the reader in the dark, feeling like they've missed something, along with the characters. In that sense, it was certainly effective. As i was typing up some of my thoughts about it, I felt it was "exactly the right length"...and also, given all the layers of deception in the story, I feel that the simplicity was, well, deceptive, and went nicely with the liminal feel of the story. And all the loose ends added to the idea of things being hidden or left unsaid, of the impossibility of a complete understanding. It's a bit frustrating, I agree, but perhaps the right kind of "frustrating", that makes it be a very satisfying story, that might keep on expanding.
So I really don't feel this book is necessarily less good/ambitious than JS&MN (and I hope it won't suffer from the comparisons too much), just dealing with some similar themes in a different, "less-is-more" way? Just like JS&MN, it feels like a shadowy story, full of hints and possibilities and things hiding in between the lines, but in this shorter book, it's emphasised even more--I was happily surprised at how visual and thought-provoking it was, and it made me want to dig deeper for what is hiding there, and also all the references I missed on my first read! I'm not saying this doesn't happen with any longer books--JS&MN itself is the gift that keeps on giving, when it comes to finding new things on each re-read... but I am biased about shorter books (possibly because several of my favourites are on the short side) and many times I feel they are a lot more than what they seem at first, hehe! Bigger on the inside, so to speak! :D
Aaand this got super long, oops! By the way, I also don't know where the JS&MN fandom is, but from a very selfless point of view, if it's elsewhere, I hope you still keep posting your stuff here on DW--that historical RPF about John Uskglass sounds *very* intriguing and relevant to my interests!