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I find myself without a lot to say that wouldn't give the story away. The story blends fantasy and gritty New York from 1899, with two supernatural creatures trying to survive in that setting after being displaced from where they belong.
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I added this to my to-read shelf after seeing it on the AV Club's Best of 2013 list. After reading it, my initial take is that I found it a bit underwhelming. Maybe I expected it to be more exciting? Faster paced? More charged with the clash of its disparate cultures? I'm honestly not sure. I can see why it made the best of the year list. It is beautifully written, and magical realism is a critical darling of speculative fiction.
The beginning was interesting -- the creation of the golem and her ...more
The beginning was interesting -- the creation of the golem and her ...more
This book is absolutely fantastic. While the major plot points are predictable, and the beginning is a bit slow. The writing is fantastic. These are some of the most interesting characters and places I have ever read about, purely because by the end, I felt as if I knew them.
I went on a long road trip and listened to this book as an audio book. It was almost perfect timing too. I only had 1 hr left on the audio when I got home. I enjoyed this audio book's narrator George Guidall. I love that he had an middle eastern accent which really brought the story alive to me. This book was really neat... including magic, romance, friendship, and much more. It takes a story that is meant to be magical... but also teaches us somethings. We learn about immigrants and what they e
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What a deep and original story. It's some historical fiction but with a slight tilt toward fantasy. It revolves around a couple of main characters who are not just immigrants, but the ultimate immigrants since they're not just new to the U.S. but new to existing in their current state. Read the jacket for the synopsis, or don't. I think this is one of those stories that if you can find it based only on good word of mouth and know very little about it, it enhances the experience.
The strength of t ...more
The strength of t ...more
More 4.5 than really 5 star but I really did enjoy the read, one of the best of the year.
It's a tale of a Golem and a Djinni in New York at the turn of the twentieth century. It's a romance, an exploration of what it means to be human and what it means to be different, interlaced with peril and complications. I liked the characters and watching their growth. This is an author I want to read more of.
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It's a tale of a Golem and a Djinni in New York at the turn of the twentieth century. It's a romance, an exploration of what it means to be human and what it means to be different, interlaced with peril and complications. I liked the characters and watching their growth. This is an author I want to read more of.
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An amazingly original fantasy novel set in 1900s New York. Breathtaking.
Oct 09, 2012
Jennifer
is currently reading it
Dec 03, 2013
Tommy
marked it as to-read
Dec 29, 2013
David
marked it as to-read
Feb 28, 2014
Caitlin
marked it as to-read
Apr 24, 2014
taeli
marked it as to-read
Mar 09, 2015
Jason
marked it as to-read
Aug 03, 2015
Emily
rated it
really liked it
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review of another edition
Shelves:
paranormal,
bookclub
Dec 27, 2015
Chris Stanford
marked it as to-read
Jan 22, 2016
Oblomov
marked it as to-read
