Just trying to clear my Netgalley shelf of older content that I read but forgot to or didn't rate/review. Found this fell a bit flat for me, personally.

A brilliant piece of writing! Novels (or novellas as the case may be) with heavy world building also need character development and enough of a plot to propel readers forward, and Susanna Clarke not only blows all of those elements out of the water, she also provides fodder for readers to discuss. This is a book I can recommend to people who think they don't like sci-fi/fantasy. Brilliant!

I...don't get it. At all. Why is everyone raving about this?

I mean, did I hate this? Not really. Did I like it? Also not really. It was...fine, I guess? Something that may have worked better as a short story or a novella; as it was, it was full of completely pointless detail and description that just bogged it down. I kept reading to find out what was going on, but from the very first pages I was skimming through all the extraneous descriptions of the House, which in the end served absolutely no purpose. It's the Alice in Wonderland trope -- in other words, lots of pointless nonsense -- which I despise. Also, the random capitalization drove me batty.

I'm not sure what I'm meant to get from this, in the end, or what it's supposed to be. I've done some googling and read some interesting interpretations on Reddit, but ultimately this was just very bland and basic and I don't find any of the thematic points hinted at particularly innovative or even interesting. This was like a really badly written penny dreadful, one that tells what could be an exciting and sordid tale about cults and occultism from the most boring perspective possible.

Honestly, the fact that this has been nominated for a Hugo, Nebula, and the Women's Prize is utterly baffling to me. This was one of the most pointless and forgettable books I've ever read.

Not quite as compelling as Madeline Miller's "Circe", but "Piranesi" by Susanna Clarke is a book and a world of its own. I loved the labyrinth like world that Piranesi wakes up alone each day to discover new rooms and interesting finds. But Piranesi is not as alone as he sometimes thinks. There is the "Other", but he meets with them pretty regularly. Who is this other alive person that seems to come and go haunting the world's many hallways? The "Other" says they are a dangerous enemy...but something doesn't seem right about this assessment. Not everything is as it seems in this mystical world between myth and reality, but the exciting plot twists are make it worthwhile!

A much-anticipated title from one of my favorite authors. Clake's stories always feel simultaneously new and ancient, as if she's pulled unknown stories from the insides of stones. I constantly recommend her first novel to library patrons, but they are often intimidated by its length. This book is the perfect length for getting readers interested in her work.

I had a tough time with this book. It was a little bit of a struggle for me to get into. Clarke’s last book was fantastic so maybe me expectations were just too high. I will give it a reread another time. Will purchase the title.

Piranesi: what a wondrous, truly special novel. It had mystery, drama, astonishing world building, a truly creative premise, and one of the most appealing, honest, pure protagonists I've ever seen. What is it like inside your head, Susanna Clarke?

I was hesitant to start this book, I’ve hardly been able to read anything in the past year. I was also hesitant because I love Clarke’s first novel and I was apprehensive, lest this one not live up to expectations, I shouldn’t have been. The story is beautifully crafted and balances suspense and mystery extremely well, always propelling the reader forward rather than causing frustration.

A pleasure and a joy to read.

Thanks to NeyGalley for providing me with a digital copy.

I have been a fan of Susanna Clarke's ever since reading Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell several years back. The odd world building of her novel always stuck with me and I have often thought about scenes from that book. Her latest novel continues my affinity for the strange and wonderful worlds she builds through her writing. Piranesi takes place in a house with infinite halls peopled with statues of different sizes and occupied by one person who occasionally gets a visit from someone he calls " the Other". He spends his days fishing and exploring the endless hallways of this building while also journaling each day and recording what happens throughout his time. As the days go by the Other begins acting more and more suspicious which sets off a chain of events that lets the reader know that there is a lot more to this strange infinite house than meets the eye. With inventiveness, originality, and an unforgettable character, this novel is entertaining from start to finish. I recommend this to fans of Clarke, supernatural mystery fans, and fans of books that constantly keep you questioning your own perceptions of reality.

This is a fascinating albeit challenging book. I did struggle a bit with the fantasy aspects initially, which is outside my comfort zone. Extremely creative imagery with a never ending labyrinth of halls, vestibules, sculptures, water filled rooms he calls The House , of which the narrator takes careful inventory of the contents . He is isolated & aware of one other person known to him as the Other, who he meets periodically. So many questions need answers. Is he stranded? Is he one of the last men alive? How did he come to be in The House?

I read Piranesi a few months ago and I am still reeling from it — and excited to finally be able to talk to others about it. I read so much, and there are many books I’ve enjoyed, but I am rarely so amazed and excited by something truly impressive.

Told from the perspective of an unknown (until later) narrator, it opens with strange and unintelligible descriptions of archways, empty chambers, marble statues, and unending stairways — clearly a sensible map to the narrator. Even knowing (and trusting) the author, I admit I found these early pages difficult to follow. I finally gave up trying to draw a map in my own head and simply let the narrator lead me and I recommend every reader do the same.

Slowly, clues to the narrator’s labyrinthian world take form. Scraps of notes. Glimpses of dark figures. Visits from “The Other.” All the while, the narrator explores his endless home. He catches fish in nets from the ocean that fills the lower chambers everyday. He tries to trace the paths of the shadowy figure.

Please view the link for my full review.

This book will tug at your heart, open your mind and make you lust for worlds that don't exist. I had a wonderful time reading this and literally read the entire thing in one sitting.

This is a huge hit at my library already. I loved the intricate plot and unique characters, and I think this is my new favorite book by this author. Very highly recommend

Disorienting, brilliant and almost dizzying baroque in its intensity and detail. But Clarke manages to paint a world (and its poetic internal logic) with just a few succinct strokes and within the first few pages of this (relatively) economical length fantasy. The more than 15-year wait since her debut phenomenon Jonathan Strange did not disappoint! Delighted to include this novel in the Fall Fiction spotlight of Zoomer magazine’s September/October print issue, as well as on new digital Books hub Club Zed.
YEAR-END UPDATE: This amazing book made my Top Books of 2020 list, the annual post of my favourite reads. The full Instagram post with book covers gallery is at the link.

Dreamlike and unexpected. I wasn't really sure what I was going to get into in Clarke's newest. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell is one my favorite books of all time. Yet as ethereal and strange and Piranesi could be, it didn't disappoint. Clarke's writing is as sharp as ever, her world feels real, as if you could walk into the page and be there. The characters and plot are isolating yet this works in accidental harmony with what's happening in our world at present. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

This book was perfection! It was gorgeously written and so evocative. I felt like I was right next to Piranesi the whole time.

Highly entertaining. Takes ~60 pages to really pick up, but once it does you can't put it down. Highly suspenseful, gives you just enough answers to satisfy without spelling it out.

This was my first Susanna Clarke, having missed Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell., so I wasn't sure what to expect from a slim book published years after her debut. I found the first 50 pages or sort of difficult to get in to, not in terms of content, but I wasn't grabbed by the story and wasn't sure where the story was going, and not in a good way.

Once the plot really kicked in, I was hooked and happy to keep reading. The level of detail and character development felt appropriate to the length of the story, and the storytelling style where the audience is learning alongside the narrator/protagonist is always fun.

Recommended, though not outstanding or particularly groundbreaking. This would be great to settle into over an afternoon.

DNF

Maybe it was just me at the time that I tried to read it, as it's getting rave reviews. Just not for me. Found the typography and voice off-putting. Might try another time, but then looking at my TBR pile, maybe not.

Piranesi is a short mystery/fantasy that deserves a second reading in order to fully appreciate the layers Clarke has put into her world. At the center is a man who has investigated the tides and the birds and the rows of white statuary in many of the halls of a giant House, a labyrinthine world with evidence of a few previous inhabitants and one part-time visitor he calls the Other. When he starts to doubt his memories and consults his notebooks he keeps to record his life, cracks appear. Clarke is incredible at creating a strong sense of place, and at depicting a narrator who has forgotten the world of today and is jarred at rediscovering it. I think I would treasure this story more completely if I had not read two other recent fantasies of doors/worlds/labyrinths within the past 12 months, The Ten Thousand Doors of January and The Starless Sea. Piranesi might be the best of the subgenre, but it was hard to look with a fresh eye.