If Raymond Chandler and Philip K Dick wrote a book together it would be very similar to The City & the City (if you throw a little George Orwell into the mix). China Miéville calls his novels fantasy/weird fiction and this is no different, though I think I would consider it more Science Fiction. There is a complex plot full of twists and turns in an even more complex couple of cities. These cities are confusing and very hard to navigate, you feel like a complete alien in them and China doesn’t help you along with this part of the journey; in this aspect it can be a very hard book to read.

But stick to it! The City & The City has a lot to offer; a complex mystery in a homage to Chandler, a foreign country with strike rules (Orwell) and the science fiction style that leaves you pondering about life and our world (Philip K Dick). This book is brilliant and I would recommend it to anyone that is a fan of mysteries or fantasy or sci-fi. You won’t be disappointed; if you can make it past the first few chapters, which is the hardest part of the book to read.