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ayane13's review against another edition
Too slow and meandering. There wasn't a plot and the character that was focused on the most became dull to follow.
vh2929's review against another edition
3.0
Not bad. I enjoyed what plot there was, but it kind of meandered into a philosophical discussion halfway through and never really picked up steam again.
dantastic's review against another edition
4.0
Etched City is the story of gunslinger Gwynn and doctor Raule. Together, they flee the wasteland of the Copper Country and make their way to the city of Ashamoil. Raule starts treating the poor of Ashamoil, occasionally delivering crocodilian babies, while Gwynn gets a job as a guard for a slave trader and has a heated affair with an artist.
The Etched City is definitely atmosphere over action but when the action comes, it's hard and fast. Bishop knows how to build tension as well as create a realized fantasy city. While Ashamoil isn't as detailed as New Crobuzon or Ambergris, it's still great. The style is a mannerly kind of new weird.
Amazon recommended this one, based on my ratings for The Dark Tower series and Perdido Street Station. It did not disappoint. My only complaint was that it could have been much longer.
Observations from the July 2012 re-read:
1. Bishop makes the desert of the Copper Country interesting, giving it aspects of Australian and Middle Eastern desert culture while still making it feel like a Western.
2. Gwynn has a lot more dimension than I remember. He's a deadly mercenary of dubious morality but also kind of a dandy. I'd forgotten he played the piano.
3. Raule is tough!
4. BIshop's writing has a kind of poetry to it in places. Her use of similes and metaphors was something I'd totally forgotten about since my initial read.
5. Yeah, Beth's a little batshit
6. Deformed reptilian babies are creepy
7. Gwynn doing some huffing and then riding around looking for Beth while having a conversation with his horse reminds me of the shroom scene from Young Guns.
8. The gunfight on Memorial Bridge between the Society of the Horn Fan and the tax collectors is right up there with the OK Corral scene in Tombstone.
9. Gwynn having to kill Marriot was a powerful scene.
10. The man with a lotus flower growing out of his navel
11. Hart and his magical axe are pretty impressive.
12. While it looks simply like an odd fantasy story, it's really a story of love and obsession.
13. The twists at the end were well done and not expected.
In conclusion, this book is just as good the second time. I'm ready for K.J. Bishop to write another novel.
The Etched City is definitely atmosphere over action but when the action comes, it's hard and fast. Bishop knows how to build tension as well as create a realized fantasy city. While Ashamoil isn't as detailed as New Crobuzon or Ambergris, it's still great. The style is a mannerly kind of new weird.
Amazon recommended this one, based on my ratings for The Dark Tower series and Perdido Street Station. It did not disappoint. My only complaint was that it could have been much longer.
Observations from the July 2012 re-read:
1. Bishop makes the desert of the Copper Country interesting, giving it aspects of Australian and Middle Eastern desert culture while still making it feel like a Western.
2. Gwynn has a lot more dimension than I remember. He's a deadly mercenary of dubious morality but also kind of a dandy. I'd forgotten he played the piano.
3. Raule is tough!
4. BIshop's writing has a kind of poetry to it in places. Her use of similes and metaphors was something I'd totally forgotten about since my initial read.
5. Yeah, Beth's a little batshit
6. Deformed reptilian babies are creepy
7. Gwynn doing some huffing and then riding around looking for Beth while having a conversation with his horse reminds me of the shroom scene from Young Guns.
8. The gunfight on Memorial Bridge between the Society of the Horn Fan and the tax collectors is right up there with the OK Corral scene in Tombstone.
9. Gwynn having to kill Marriot was a powerful scene.
10. The man with a lotus flower growing out of his navel
11. Hart and his magical axe are pretty impressive.
12. While it looks simply like an odd fantasy story, it's really a story of love and obsession.
13. The twists at the end were well done and not expected.
In conclusion, this book is just as good the second time. I'm ready for K.J. Bishop to write another novel.
nutter's review against another edition
1.0
This was a slog.
I understand that this was probably a great book for other people, but this was probably my least favourite book of the year. I picked it up in a book club. Thought "hey, I'll try something new!" I was sorely disappointed.
The characters weren't written well, the plot was almost nonexistent, and the worldbuilding was boring. I get that the point of this book/genre isn't to be like traditional fantasy and that it doesn't have to make sense, but it definitely wasn't for me. The writing was also very stilting, especially considering word choice. The chapter breaks also seemed odd, as if they should have been broken down further. I'm surprised by the number of positive reviews for this, but maybe this "new weird" community is more niche than I initially thought. Overall, disjointed and not an interesting read.
Would not recommend unless you know you like this type of fantasy.
I understand that this was probably a great book for other people, but this was probably my least favourite book of the year. I picked it up in a book club. Thought "hey, I'll try something new!" I was sorely disappointed.
The characters weren't written well, the plot was almost nonexistent, and the worldbuilding was boring. I get that the point of this book/genre isn't to be like traditional fantasy and that it doesn't have to make sense, but it definitely wasn't for me. The writing was also very stilting, especially considering word choice. The chapter breaks also seemed odd, as if they should have been broken down further. I'm surprised by the number of positive reviews for this, but maybe this "new weird" community is more niche than I initially thought. Overall, disjointed and not an interesting read.
Would not recommend unless you know you like this type of fantasy.
friendyfyre's review against another edition
2.0
I think Etched city is one of those books for people looking for experimental forms of story telling. After giving it a bit of thought as to why i could not finish this and why this book wasnt for me. I came to the conclusion that, it just didnt fit the format of story telling that i know and love. I enjoy a little bit of subversion from the standard ‘hero’s journey’ and this just didnt really fit the conventions or story beats that most traditional books have.Its kind of jarring to read and the more i pushed on, the less sense it made to me but i think thats kind of the point of this book.
Not all stories have to make sense or have clean cut scenario’s that play out into endings. Its more about the journey and not about the destination. If anything, it didnt offer much answers to my questions but made me ask questions about what i was reading and what meaning i want to take away from the chapters.
Books like these do have a strong following and if anything its what makes books like House of Leaves and Infinite jest so controversially popular. These types of books are both polarizing and popular. You either hardcore love em or you hate it.
I think this pick taught me a pretty valuable lesson about they type of reader i am and what i like about reading.
Not all stories have to make sense or have clean cut scenario’s that play out into endings. Its more about the journey and not about the destination. If anything, it didnt offer much answers to my questions but made me ask questions about what i was reading and what meaning i want to take away from the chapters.
Books like these do have a strong following and if anything its what makes books like House of Leaves and Infinite jest so controversially popular. These types of books are both polarizing and popular. You either hardcore love em or you hate it.
I think this pick taught me a pretty valuable lesson about they type of reader i am and what i like about reading.
dfmjr's review against another edition
DNF. World is wonderful. Something is not clicking with me
shane_tiernan's review against another edition
3.0
I have to say I'm disappointed in this. Many people said it reminded them of [book:Perdido Street Station], and I can see some of that and some of [book:City of Saints and Madmen], but overall those promises fail to deliver. I like the world Mrs. Bishop creates but the plot was lacking. The first 100 pages is all out action ala wild west style then the entire tone changes to a more laid back, atmospheric, surreal mystery.
Unfortunately the story didn't really seem to go anywhere from there and the two main characters had little interaction. The epilogue is a little wishy-washy with its "this could have been what happened but no one's really sure" dialog. I'd probably read another novel from Bishop if it wasn't too long because I think there's a lot of potential here.
Unfortunately the story didn't really seem to go anywhere from there and the two main characters had little interaction. The epilogue is a little wishy-washy with its "this could have been what happened but no one's really sure" dialog. I'd probably read another novel from Bishop if it wasn't too long because I think there's a lot of potential here.