false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172928328m/230855.jpg 230855 6 An epic yet personal look at several decades of life, love, and death in the imaginary city of Ambergrispreviously chronicled in Jeff VanderMeers acclaimed City of Saints MadmenShriek: An Afterword relates the scandalous, heartbreaking, and horrifying secret history of two squabbling siblings and their confidantes, protectors, and enemies. Narrated with flamboyant intensity and under increasingly urgent conditions by ex-society figure Janice Shriek, this afterword presents a vivid gallery of characters and events, emphasizing the adventures of Janices brother Duncan, a historian obsessed with a doomed love affair and a secret that may kill or transform him; a war between rival publishing houses that will change Ambergris forever; and the gray caps, a marginalized people armed with advanced fungal technologies who have been waiting underground for their chance to mold the future of the city. Part academic treatise, part tell-all biography, after this introduction to the Family Shriek, youll never look at history in quite the same way again. 929525 2006 Shriek: An Afterword total:164|5:66|4:57|3:27|2:10|1:4| 164 663 290 25 5 2 false false Tue May 19 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu May 07 07:48:16 -0700 2009 Wed May 20 06:38:15 -0700 2009
Thoughts from the halfway mark: The first half of the book is Janice Shriek telling the story of her brother Duncan's multiple successes and disgraces, from being a successful historia...more...]]> 5 1 false false Thu Feb 28 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Fri Feb 15 21:41:39 -0800 2008 Sun Mar 22 19:30:16 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 1 false false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Mon Apr 02 17:16:00 -0700 2007 Mon Apr 02 17:57:14 -0700 2007 fin de siecle gaudiness and moldering crepe, Jeff VanDerMeer's latest tale of the decadent and unusual goings-on in the fantastical city of Ambergris promises raised eyebrows and wry humour. A few chapters into the book, it seemed as though the affair might collapse in upon itself due...more...]]> 2 1 false false Thu Aug 16 10:48:05 -0700 2007 Tue Mar 04 13:22:48 -0800 2008 more...]]> 3 3 false false Tue Sep 08 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon May 04 21:35:19 -0700 2009 Tue Sep 08 17:07:24 -0700 2009 Shriek in the same way I thought about its predecessor, City of Saints and Madmen. In other words, I'm not sure quite what to think about it. It has all the things that made City good: lots of atmosphere, a city so well constructed and populated that it feels like I was ...more...]]> 2 0 false false Thu Oct 22 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Feb 21 16:53:17 -0800 2009 Thu Oct 22 02:52:20 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Jun 05 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sat May 24 20:46:59 -0700 2008 Sun Jun 15 13:13:47 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 1 false false Mon May 01 00:00:00 -0700 2006 Wed Oct 03 12:26:32 -0700 2007 Wed Oct 03 12:28:56 -0700 2007 more...]]> 3 2 false false Mon Aug 13 16:44:12 -0700 2007 Mon Aug 27 14:21:46 -0700 2007 less like Douglas Adams than this book.

If I had to write a review of this book based primarily on name-checks, my list would includ...more...]]> 2 0 false false Thu Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sat Jul 28 18:28:49 -0700 2007 Sun Nov 11 19:19:35 -0800 2007
I think there's probably a story in here somewhere. Things happen that would sound really exciting if I told you about them. But this is on...more...]]> 1 0 false false Tue Dec 02 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Wed Dec 03 03:26:33 -0800 2008 Wed Dec 03 03:39:46 -0800 2008 more...]]> 0 0 false false Wed Nov 11 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 11 13:59:17 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 11 14:02:01 -0800 2009 more...]]> 0 0 false false Wed Oct 14 05:35:20 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 14 05:37:50 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Mon Mar 02 21:44:15 -0800 2009 Mon Mar 02 21:45:33 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Thu Sep 10 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Sep 10 20:43:28 -0700 2009 Thu Sep 10 20:56:39 -0700 2009 1 0 false false Wed Dec 17 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sat Nov 08 13:29:16 -0800 2008 Wed Dec 17 19:23:43 -0800 2008 City of Saints and Madmen, but I've been trying to read Shriek for weeks now and I just can't get into it. I'm giving up about 100 pages into it. It's just not very engaging. Not enough happens, and the writing isn't good enough to make you forgive the fact that...more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Jun 10 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Thu Apr 17 04:43:04 -0700 2008 Tue Jun 10 19:30:34 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Thu Aug 23 11:17:12 -0700 2007 Thu Oct 04 08:37:44 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Fri Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Thu Jul 05 07:11:25 -0700 2007 Thu Jul 05 07:16:38 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Mar 25 20:05:31 -0700 2007 Sun Mar 25 20:20:03 -0700 2007 City of Saints and Madmen. I'm not too far into it, but I'm especially liking the narrator's character- Duncan himself can be a little archetypal at times (not that I mind terribly) but his si...more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=230855