Book clubs in West Midlands

A mind-bending narrative thats stuck with me ever since I read it.

I like how it’s deep and emotional and detailed

The story is complex and beautiful with gothic story elements. it is a slow burn and all the characters are very loveable

Latest one I've read in the Kim Stone series and the reintroduction of Dr Thorne makes it all the more better, definitely one to check out (start from the beginning of the series though)

Gripping and confusing at the same time will leave u questioning the entire book

This is probably the best pure science fiction book I have read. Each pov is of a scope that is hard to get right and each for different reasons and yet Adrian has nailed it.

I have only just finished this book so my opinion may yet change, but right now it feels like a wholly unique story. The subject matter itself, I've never seen so directly tackled in a "fantasy" like this, while the worldbuilding must've been hell to write. As a monolingual the use and manipulation of language in the book I was captivated by and really sets it apart from pretty much every other "magic" system I've ever seen before.

An obvious literary masterpiece of a series, but what struck me finally reading the series was that despite TLOTR's reputation for its 1000s of years of history and detailed legendarium and all, the trilogy itself is a pretty well-flowing, not overly self-obsessed story. While a lot of modern fantasy has become obsessed with its own world, in these books the world is there to explore, but it's not getting in the way of the story itself. It makes it a much better read and makes it so much easier to appreciate the story and characters.

The "Narnia but bad" story is so common in fantasy but this is so great in a completely different way to the TV show.

A very lonely and intimate book. It is incredibly physical, with characters possessing odd bodies that look, move and act in dysfunctional ways. It is a different way of approaching the grotesque as since everything from the setting, main and side characters, is 'freakish,' the 'freakish' becomes the norm; if you aren't a 'freak,' you aren't 'normal.' Nothing much happens in terms of plot, but what one's gender, race, sexuality and disability mean to the self and its relevance to society is questioned as these characters attempt to express themselves and to become comfortable with their identities.

literary crime with compelling characters

literary crime with compelling characters

The literature

It’s made up but also has so much history in it. It was fascinating. I loved the acknowledgement of the secret languages of women and lower classes that would otherwise had been forgotten