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Neverwhere (London Below, #1)

Neil Gaiman

Why we're reading this: #48 on NPR's Top 100 SF/F novels of all time (2011 poll) http://www.npr.org/2011/08/11/1390858...
#17 on L…more
[close] #48 on NPR's Top 100 SF/F novels of all time (2011 poll) http://www.npr.org/2011/08/11/1390858...
#17 on Locus Magazines Best Fantasy novels of the 20th century http://www.locusmag.com/2012/AllCentu...

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Dec 23, 2010 Kevin Xu rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: re-read

The only book that I know was based on a mini series because he wrote the miniseries.

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Feb 23, 2013 Andrew rated it liked it

Shelves: sci-fi-and-fantasy, horror

***1/2 stars of random

Neverwhere stars an improbable attorney, Richard Mayhew, who lives as a caricature. He is the foppish, placid, ordinary Brit who is bored by his mundane life and is lucky to have his superficial and exuberant girlfriend, Jessica. He gets telephoned at work, and Jessica wants to make sure he has made reservation for their important dinner with her boss that evening (at a restaurant at which you must obtain reservations years in advance. You know the one – found in sit-com ep ***1/2 stars of random

Neverwhere stars an improbable attorney, Richard Mayhew, who lives as a caricature. He is the foppish, placid, ordinary Brit who is bored by his mundane life and is lucky to have his superficial and exuberant girlfriend, Jessica. He gets telephoned at work, and Jessica wants to make sure he has made reservation for their important dinner with her boss that evening (at a restaurant at which you must obtain reservations years in advance. You know the one – found in sit-com episodes everywhere). Fortunately for Richard, he and Jessica stumble on a wounded young woman on their way to dinner. . .

Beneath London there exists a world of make-believe. Magic creatures, talking rodents, ancient traditions, and ethereal marketplaces that change location each evening. You might be swallowed by the mist or have your life sapped by a sexy vampire-like vixen. There are wizened old men who know the routes you must take on your adventure, or the next person you should meet. Legendary warriors will likely cross your path. Your party will include a hodge-podge of human and other-worldly denizens. A physically incongruous and malevolent pair of loquacious killers are in hot pursuit. Their employer is utterly mysterious, but one thing is certain: nothing is as it seems. Will this have the potential to be engaging and fresh fantasy? Is it?

Overall, everything in Neverhwere was well-paced. It has the feel of a young-adult novel until you run into the bloodletting, f-bombs, and insinuation of rape (granted, rare occurrences). For an adult novel, it is rather schizophrenic, with aspirations for an engaging world of self-contained mythology, yet has really only 8 main characters and moves with breakneck speed. The major plot events transpire rather…randomly. Your protagonists are meandering from train station to market to house to bridge and are met with increasingly odd challenges. The lore of the world feels off-the-cuff and certainly without foreshadowing, yet the characters take it deadly seriously. One aspect particularly ruinous for me: the modern-day pop culture reference. Kate Moss? Humming “I’m a Believer”? This surgically extracted any sense of timelessness.

This was perfectly enjoyable fare, and didn’t have an overly saccharine conclusion. While the writing was generally tight and the story never lagged, I felt a disconnect between the novel’s aspirations and its execution that made the journey of Richard Mayhew in London Below a full step short of greatness.
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Jan 06, 2016 John rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I really wish 4 1/2 stars was an option, 5 star books being the perfect reading experience...
But then I think, why not? I cannot think of a reason this shouldn't warrant 5 stars.

How to describe this book without giving away too much? Basically what Gaiman has done is literalize Underground stop names. I'm sure if "Black Friars" being called out daily as you roll along you would have to wonder how they got those names. This is Gaiman's fantastical explanation to some of those.

Gaiman does what ...more

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