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tacanderson's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Disclaimer: I'm an American who has worked in tech for decades and worked with a lot of Indians both in India as well as in America and England. I've spent several weeks in India, but my review is ignorant of the realities of India and is only presented as an outsiders view. Normally that's fine, books open up new worlds to us, that's the beauty of books. But this book obviously has a specific message for and about India and reading this book feels a little bit like you're eavesdropping on a long-standing family discussion.
That being said, I've long enjoyed Samit Basu's books and readily recommend him to people. The near-future sci-fi ideas in this book are some of the best I've read in a long time. The City Inside definitely shares some DNA with William Gibson's Pattern Recognition. India is the perfect setting for the new wave of cyberpunk. I've read quite a few books by local Indian authors and I always find new compelling ideas. India is this fascinating mix of post-colonial western with a core that is staunchly Indian. They proudly hold on their heritage and traditions but can't escape their 3,000 year old caste system. This book brings all of that to the forefront while highlighting the struggles in a future context.
That being said, I've long enjoyed Samit Basu's books and readily recommend him to people. The near-future sci-fi ideas in this book are some of the best I've read in a long time. The City Inside definitely shares some DNA with William Gibson's Pattern Recognition. India is the perfect setting for the new wave of cyberpunk. I've read quite a few books by local Indian authors and I always find new compelling ideas. India is this fascinating mix of post-colonial western with a core that is staunchly Indian. They proudly hold on their heritage and traditions but can't escape their 3,000 year old caste system. This book brings all of that to the forefront while highlighting the struggles in a future context.
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual harassment, Trafficking, and Sexual assault
smoakwithwifi's review
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I have very complicated thoughts about this book. On the one hand, there were some very interesting worldbuilding concepts and perspectives of a near-future India. On the other, characters were rather unlikeable and the author used a dialogue-heavy writing style tending toward stream of consciousness—building up a feeling almost of doomscrolling, which may have been intentional but set my teeth on edge nevertheless.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual harassment and Sexual assault
Moderate: Infidelity, Religious bigotry, Gun violence, Gaslighting, War, Classism, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Trafficking, Emotional abuse, and Drug use
Minor: Stalking, Death, Genocide, Islamophobia, Bullying, Hate crime, Police brutality, and Drug use
booksthatburn's review against another edition
The initial worldbuilding is immersive and dizzying, a firehose of terms as if to impress indelibly the near-future-ness of the setting. Unfortunately, it was too much for me to track, too quickly, and I stopped a couple of chapters in. If the goal was to communicate the stress the characters were under, it certainly did that, but not in a way I could keep up with.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism and Xenophobia
Minor: Confinement, Blood, Sexual harassment, Police brutality, Violence, Rape, and Death
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