Shadow & Claw: The First Half of 'The Book of the New Sun' (New Sun)

Reviews (See all 171) Write a reviewfor this

It's a hit!

Wow. What can I say? For me, reading this book has been a labor of love. I finished the book in about 3 weeks; This was the probably the 10th time ... (show more)

Wow. What can I say? For me, reading this book has been a labor of love. I finished the book in about 3 weeks; This was the probably the 10th time I picked up the book and tried to read it. (Obviously the 10th time was a charm.) Admittedly there is a high bar of entry for this book. GW's writing is dense and he uses many words I have never heard before. Whenever I look them up, they are actually in the dictionary! I will admit I am very tired after reading this book however the story has me hooked. While I read books 3 and 4 of The Book of the New Sun I will have a dictionary present at all times. GW definitely makes you work for it... I won't give any spoilers to those who haven't read the book yet but GW himself says that he would understand if you chose not to read any further.

The world that GW has created is totally unique. A mix of ancient and present day fixtures exist together in the same space. Events are magic to some and knowledge to others. Since GW tells you Severian's station in the beginning of the book and that he has chosen to only account for certain events that lead him to his station you know every excerpt from his life is somehow important. It definitely keeps you wondering how all the events recounted could lead him to the throne.

I was transported another world, The story is complex, I care for the characters and my vocabulary is increasing. Overall an excellent read. (show less)

 

 

by Klenton Willis

No, it's a flop!

That this book is considered among the best works of sci-fi is an indictment of the genre, more than it is genuine praise for this florid, ponderou... (show more)

That this book is considered among the best works of sci-fi is an indictment of the genre, more than it is genuine praise for this florid, ponderous work. Wolfe was a mechanical engineer and brother, he writes like one. The detached, passionless narration made it very hard to care one way or the other what was happening, and the dull recitations of needless detail were brutal (there have to be at least 20 references to "oiling and sheathing" a blade, which sadly is not a metaphor). The main character/narrator is a torturer (interesting premise), and at one point, he stops the story to say that, during the timeline of the story, he performed a number of tortures, but he decided not to include descriptions of them ... yes, because that would be entirely too engaging. It's more fun to read endlessly about his blithe devotion to a character who dies in the first 50 pages.

Other than the pointless asides from the narrator, the books is simply a dull chronicle from start to end. While I'm faintly interested in how the final two books unfold, I couldn't possibly subject myself to another 400 somnorific pages.

Wolfe doesn't weave a story, he vomits out a chronicle. (show less)

 

 

by Facebook User

More Reviews

• 
  

  Destroys any and all notions what epic Science Fantasy can do as literature. Awesome! Will likely disappoint, confuse, anger readers expecting something like Terry Brooks or Piers Anthony or (insert name of some other derivative, cliche ridden SF/fantasy writer here), but for the truly adventurous reader, the rewards are limitless. And it demands of its readers to do the one thing consumers of the genre likely never do with a science fiction novel: you must read it over and over again. Extrem... (show more)

  Destroys any and all notions what epic Science Fantasy can do as literature. Awesome! Will likely disappoint, confuse, anger readers expecting something like Terry Brooks or Piers Anthony or (insert name of some other derivative, cliche ridden SF/fantasy writer here), but for the truly adventurous reader, the rewards are limitless. And it demands of its readers to do the one thing consumers of the genre likely never do with a science fiction novel: you must read it over and over again. Extremely complex without being complicated. Strange and beautiful. Baffling and mysterious. You just can't get it all in with one read. Great literature of the highest order. And it's surprisingly sexy and action packed for such an unusually high brow work. Highly recommended!

  "Shadow and Claw", being the account of the exiled torturer Severian's remarkable journey, is the first half of "The New Sun Tetralogy", containing the novels "Shadow of the Torturer" and "Claw of the Conciliator". Strange adventures, hallucinating events, epic battles, and encounters with truly bizarre creatures and personages abound. The most brilliantly imaged and confounding picaresque (of sorts) since Don Quixote. (show less)

   

   

  by Lawrence Phillip Pearce on Jun 22, 2009 at 08:32AM

  Already read

  Is this review helpful? yes no
   
• 
  

  I really don't know how I really feel about this book. It is certainly one of the more unusual books I have read in some time. It is set in Earth's far future, and follows the adventures of a young torturer named Severian. Through his narration, we learn that there is interplanetary travel, but Urth is immersed in a dark, sort of medieval setting with a blend of future devises. Mystery in the nature of science is a major theme. Like Tolkien and unlike Tolkien, Wolfe creates a mythology which ... (show more)

  I really don't know how I really feel about this book. It is certainly one of the more unusual books I have read in some time. It is set in Earth's far future, and follows the adventures of a young torturer named Severian. Through his narration, we learn that there is interplanetary travel, but Urth is immersed in a dark, sort of medieval setting with a blend of future devises. Mystery in the nature of science is a major theme. Like Tolkien and unlike Tolkien, Wolfe creates a mythology which is both familiar and distant, and relayed through dream, writings, narration, an plays(!). The narration of Severians's is elusive at times, purposefully so, as to contribute to the complexity of Severian, as well as remind the reader that the setting is not our own, but an alternate, distant future, and a dark one to boot. Some aspects of this world are recognizable, but only vaguely, which adds to the overall strange feel of this book. I liked it well enough to pick up the second half of this work. The last time I felt unsettled in this way was when I read Lem's "His Master's Voice." As with books of this sort, I would find it difficult to recommend because of its challenging nature, but they who attempt and finish this will be rewarded with a sense of bewilderment --- which is sometimes a good thing! In sum, I understand why this is considered a masterwork of the science fiction genre, but it is not a book for everyone. There is very little that is simple in this particular book. (show less)

   

   

  by Patrick Winslow Hammond on Oct 07, 2009 at 02:00AM

  Already read

  Is this review helpful? yes no
   
• See all reviews
  Write a review