Reviews

City of Stairs by Robert Jackson Bennett

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tsprengel's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

radiance_01's review against another edition

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5.0

A story of conquerors and conquered, of Divinities against technology, and the danger of burying the past in an effort to forget history.

City of Stairs is an enthralling read that begins with a simple murder thriller and quickly snowballs into something much more dramatic, based in a city mired in miracles and secrets. Characters are fallible but adored, even the minor ones with little pagetime, and ones sympathies are conflicted and confused throughout.

trmitchell4's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.75

timinbc's review against another edition

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5.0

This is great stuff. A spy-political-whodunit set in a fantasy world, with three great lead characters.
A writing style that I liked even if others didn't. A good plot that hangs together neatly. A fourth lead character who's an annoying wuss, but conflicted in a way that's important.

A city that rivals New Crobuzon or Max Gladstone's Craft Series cities for weirdness.

Shara, who's a good strong female lead, and Mulaghesh is, well, she's Rosa from Brooklyn Nine Nine.

Then there's Sigrud. Bennett has clearly read about Pratchett's Sgt. Detritus, and Leiber's Fafhrd, and Goldman's Fezzik, and Goscinny's Obélix, and Conan, and so many others. Sigrud belongs up there with the best of the big guys. "Sigrud, here's a problem, what will you do?" "I will get in there somehow, use my skills and experience as long as I can, and then I will bash them." "But that's the same answer you always give!" "Yup. Seems to work."

Best part? I already have the second book.

tregina's review against another edition

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4.0

So good. So, so very good. I love that I don't know what to classify the book as because it rides the borders of so many genres, fundamentally a secondary world fantasy but with approaching-modern technology, and a complex political history and structure that resonates with our own yet is far from a direct analogue of history as we know it.

I'm still not sure whether I want to rate this one four or five stars. It's not perfect—some of the characterisation was on the thin side and it was slow to grab me in the beginning—but when it was on it was on and I have a feeling that it's going to join the ranks of my beloved rereads.