5 really big stars...

First, this book would not nearly be as good to a reader if you have not first read the previous two stand alone Ambergis novels. It is quite a literary achievement that one writer, Vandermeer could sculpt three totally uniquely stylized stories(actually many more than that as City od Saints and Madmen is a collection of many stories.) and put them together in a way that works. The payout of these style changes is immense and totally satisfying. It is quite amazing how different these three books are written.

Second, this is a character novel. Chalked full of a fabulous supporting cast that give life and dimension to this detective noir narrative. Finch is a good protagonist whom I identified with, and empathized with. We get enough of his backstory to allow us to want him to be the one that pulls all the plot threads together. Of course the most important character in this novel is the city of Ambergis itself. Fungus laden streets, spores a popping in the air, mold crawling and covering just about everything, and top it all off with fruiting body fun. A truly amazing fictional city that gives life to Vandermeers creations.

Thirdly, Vandermeer is a master at descriptive weird and it makes you want to read more. One of my favorite passages: "Remembering Duncan's words " They found me and infiltrated me-I could feel their tendrils, their fleshy-dry-cold-warm pseudopods and cilia and strands slowly sliding up my skin, like a hundred any hands. They tried to make me in their image.""

Finally, Jeff Vandermeer used three very unique styles of writing to compose a 1700 page story that is about the incredible city of Ambergis. This is the "New Weird" told by a master of the genre. The countless plots are deftly brought together in this final chapter of this story arc. The difficulty of making sense of the first two novels is paid off in this marvelous masterpiece. If you are a fan of the new weird genre or like fantasy that is demanding on the reader, than be sure to not miss out on Jeff Vandermeer.