Review:: The Scar, by China Miéville

Title: The Scar

Author: China Miéville

Series: New Crobuzon, #2

Format: Mass Market Paperback

Rating: ★★☆☆☆

Previously:

Perdido Street Station

Apparently I read The Scar, but never wrote a review. Probably because I was so underwhelmed. I absolutely loved Perdido Street Station and I love Miéville, so I was expecting a treat. Instead, I was kind of bored, actually. Maybe it's because there's so little to do with New Crobuzon or maybe it was because I didn't care about the characters. Regardless, it was a solid two stars.

I don't know why I wasn't able to get into the characters. Most people I know were absolutely entranced by them. And the setting sure isn't New Crobuzon, but it is a floating city, which you'd think would be interesting enough.

Now, of course, the writing is fucking gorgeous, or this wouldn't even have been two stars. Sometimes I complain about losing track of what's going on because Miéville's prose is so gorgeous, but in this case, it was actually kind of nice.

There were a few characters that grabbed my attention, but they were mostly side characters and weren't handled in ways that entirely pleased me. The Lovers, for example, are a character trope I greatly enjoy, but I felt like more could have been done with them.

And while it is rich and complex, the plot itself just felt... trite and frustrating. I don't know. This wasn't my favorite book in the series, by far.