Something Different

Wanting a break from my usual listening fare, I decided to give City of Stairs a listen. The book is described as a fantasy, but it is definitely not your typical story of Kings and Knights set in a world of Elves and Ogres. City of Stairs is set in a world with magic and wonders, but also some modern conveniences.

This book would seem to have all you need for a fantastic journey, starting with a very good performance by Alma Cuervo as the narrator, who's voice seemed perfect for the main character Sharra. The premise of the story is good as well. In a city built by gods, Sharra is a secret agent who has come to investigate the murder of a top government employee by the long suppressed people of the city. The gods have been killed by a long since dead relative of Sharra herself, and their country has been occupied ever since.

I liked the premise of this story right from the beginning, however quickly found out that there are some issues with this book as well. To start, the first half of the book starts to bog down as there is nothing really happening other than long sequences of info dumps. Characters seem to sit around and tell the story of how the city came into being rather than the story naturally laying out what had happened as the story progresses. In one example, Sharra is confronted by a city leader over her questioning of a citizen of the city. She reluctantly lets the citizen leave, and then is so angry that she invites everyone around her to the kitchen where she cooks a meal for them and proceeds to tell the entire history of every god, including what their beliefs are, their relationship with the other gods, and how they died. All interesting stuff, but the scenario made no sense, and the telling drug out miserably.

Other issues were the setting itself. I was intrigued by the setting initially as fantasy type books usually don't include such things as cars, trains, and guns. The odd thing though is that even though Sharra arrives and departs on a train, then rides in a car to the embassy, and speaks about the use of guns hundreds of years before, none of these things are featured much in the story. Cars are available, but everyone walks everywhere. Guns are available, yet everyone uses swords, knives, and cross bolts. Trains and cars have been invented, but modern conveniences like lights, plumbing, or phones have not. It's a little confusing.

Overall, despite the slow start, once the story gets going and the action picks up, I did find myself enjoying this book. The characters were mostly likable, and that carries a story with some holes in it.

39 people found this helpful

Fantasy spy thriller, some world-building issues

Lately, there's been a movement in fantasy away from the late medieval Western European milieu that predominates in the genre towards other kinds of settings. Why not a steampunk universe? Why not a Bronze Age universe, or a Russian-inspired one? Why not a universe where people travel in space and have "modern" sensibilities, as well as magic abilities? (See the popular "Saga" graphic novel series)

Robert Jackson Bennett is a young author who hops on that train in City of Stairs, and I took a chance on the book after it got a lot of praise online (I consider a plethora of gushy fans a cautionary sign). The novel reminds me a bit of China Mieville's The City & The City, in that the plot begins with a murder mystery and takes place in a city where there are two cultures with competing narratives, and a troubled, unspoken history behind everything.

But, where Mieville's novel was more metaphysical, this one leans more in the fantasy direction. As we learn, Shara, a foreign service agent from a country called Saypur, which has a roughly late-1800s level of technology, is one of the few people who knows much about the past history of Bulikov and the surrounding continent. This region used to be dominated by magic and a pantheon of gods, but Saypur invaded the Continent about seventy years prior, killed the gods and most of their creatures, locked up the magical artifacts, and suppressed all study of the divine. Except, of course, that being done by one prominent Saypuri scholar, whose murder begins the book. With the help of her secretary, Sigrud, a barbarian giant of few words, Shara begins a search for the culprit. And there are plenty to suspect of complicity, from an ultra-conservative Bulikov nationalist group, to an ex-boyfriend of Shara's, to her own government, to one of the gods (are they really all dead?). What was the murdered man looking for within a secret vault? And what of the legendary Saypuri leader who used a secret weapon of his own devising to slay the gods?

This was one of those novels that got off to a slow start, but gradually picked up steam towards the middle. I liked the characters, the smart but flawed Shara, the hard-headed female colonel, and the mysterious Sigrud, with his dark past. There are some great scenes involving battles with monsters, and some interesting ideas about the nature of the gods and their relationship to humanity.

The world-building, though, is a little muddled. Saypur feels like a vaguely Indian culture, but has some clearly modern and "western" attitudes. The Continent seems vaguely Russian, but is similar to "barbarian" societies we've seen in countless other fantasy and sci-fi novels. The technology and social attitudes are somewhat inconsistent -- on one hand, Saypur has cars and an advanced state of women's lib, but gunpowder and photography are relatively new inventions. And some of the magic gets a little silly, such as the final battle with the divinities. As a result, I had a hard time getting too engaged in the politics of the story -- the world never felt totally convincing.

Yet, in terms of plot, this is a pretty competent fantasy world spy/mystery thriller, and I think a lot of readers will enjoy it. The audiobook narration is good, and fits Shara well, but isn't spectacular. I had trouble distinguishing minor characters in places.

31 people found this helpful

Everything You Didn't Know You Wanted in Fantasy

I don't know why it took me so long to listen to Robert Jackson Bennett's City of Stairs -- I've loved everything I've read or listened to by him -- particularly the Troupe and American Elsewhere. Whatever the case, I'm glad I got around to it at last. City of Stairs is everything I didn't realize I wanted from fantasy fiction -- espionage, magic, murder, dead gods (and maybe not-so-dead gods), sheer WTF-ery, and even a criticism of cultural appropriation (without losing sight of telling a rollicking a story).

The story unfolds when a diplomat is found murdered in his office in the occupied colonial city of Bullikov. A spy, an aging military general, and a bodyguard come together to investigate not only a murder, but a conspiracy that leads back to the city's brutal origins, when gods once ruled and enslaved humanity. Now, Bullikov is occupied by the forces that killed the gods, and has done their best to confiscate and destroy as much of the city's religious artifacts, books, and arts as they can. As you can imagine, not everyone's happy about the way things are going, and the author does an excellent job of weaving uneasiness and tension into every character's perspective.

One of the things I've always appreciated about Robert Jackson Bennett's books is that they stand alone -- and up until now, he hasn't dabbled in series and trilogies which have come to dominate fantasy and science fiction. This book marks the first in the Divine Cities Trilogy, and maybe that's part of what put me off some. I'm happy to report that while it's the first in a trilogy (or series), and I can imagine some places it might go -- it's a complete story on its own, and doesn't feel like a set-up for whatever is coming next. If this was the end of the story, I would be completely satisfied. As it is, I'm very curious to see where RJB goes next with City of Blades.

Alma Alexander's narration isn't too flashy, but it is perfection. She captures the different characters perfectly. Shara, the protagonist, is a very complex character and Alexander nails her hard edges as well as her vulnerability and since of longing. SIgurd, her bodyguard, is something of a monster, and it's a delight to see him unleashed. But my favorite character was the jaded, sarcastic military general Mulaghesh -- mainly because her dry tone reminds me of my podcasting friend M.K. Hobson.

If agents Mulder and Scully had become spies and were sent to different countries to investigate the deaths and possible resurrection of god, with Hellboy as their assistant and accidentally stumbled over warehouse containing the ark of the covenant -- well, we'd be lucky if it was as good as this book is. City of Stairs is one of the best fantasy books I've listened to in recent memory. Just writing this review makes me want to return to the mysterious streets and alleys of Bullikov on the next train ride.

12 people found this helpful

Wow! The Whole Package

This book is incredible. I thought it would be interesting and thought provoking and it was, but sometimes that means boring and it wasn't that. There are great characters, a unique world and a murder to be solved that keeps your attention while the world building unfolds.

I've never read another Robert Bennett book but this one is definitely in the fantasy genre. Lots of Gods and monsters and miracles. It's kind of hard to describe without experiencing it and I definitely recommend that.

The narrator fits the story very well, she differentiates between the characters very well and definitely does not distract you from the story.

It seems to be a stand alone novel but I definitely would not mind hearing another story take place in this world or with these characters.

11 people found this helpful

Sloppy ending

The story moved rather well until the end. The idea is imaginative and writing style is fluid.

The performance was excellent.

My only disappointment was in the ending. But that is true in lots of books which should be multiple volumes but are crammed into single book.

9 people found this helpful

Engaging Fantasy

A wonderful fantasy novel. Typically fantasy requires a huge investment and the willingness to forgo instant engagement to allow the author the create a new world for you, but Bennett manages to both create a wonderful world while instantly engaging the reader. The narration was for the most part solid but there were noticeable breakdowns in rhythm and breathing issues, with a few moments where it felt like she was stumbling over complicated phrasing. Otherwise, she did an excellent job creating the atmosphere Bennett was trying to achieve.

7 people found this helpful

Complicated and mesmerizing

This book turned me into a Robert Jackson Bennett fan. It's a great story, well translated into an audiobook - Alma Cuervo's voice captures the Shara Thivani so perfectly. I won't try to explain the plot; suffice to say that City of Stairs is a complicated story of politics, inequality, subjugation, religion, gods and goddesses, love and death and sex; with beautifully rendered, unpredictable characters. I might listen to it again if only to fall in love with Shara Thivani all over again. Can't wait for the next installment!

5 people found this helpful

A Truly Unique Book

Before reading this novel I had never read one of Bennett's books. I found it a delightfully new experience. The closest author I have read to Bennet is Guy Gavriel Kay. The reason why I say this is because both of them have a way with prose. However, I cannot say their prose styles are similar. Bennet's prose is beautiful, but also blunt and less descriptive than Kay's.

The plot was also unique and provided something fresh and interesting to contemplate. It was not impressively complex, but the twists are there and a few of them were quite shocking.

The other element that made this book special was the world. It was well defined and exquisite, without the author drowning the reader in descriptions like in a Tolkien novel. Along with the setting were the characters which seemed to fit the slightly dark, grim, but somehow striking world perfectly. Every person was well done, with a full believable personality. There was even a good deal of character evolution as the story went on. Finally, I liked the narration but it wasn't spectacular. It didn't hinder my interest in the book, but it also didn't jump out at me either. I definitely feel this book is worth reading and I intend to buy the next novel when it comes out soon.

4 people found this helpful

Epic Fantasy with very colorful characters

This is epic Fantasy with tons of extremely colorful characters. It does start out slow, but once it accelerates it never slows down.

4 people found this helpful

Good story, wrong narrator.

Any additional comments?

OK, so here's the deal. I rarely feel the need to write any reviews for audiobooks, but I must warn you that the narrator's performance is just... not good. There are many awkward pauses and pacing issues with her speech. On top of that, her vocal characterizations just felt wrong, including Shara's. (There are many reviews that disagree, which is why I must dissent.)

The book is good. That, at least, got through. However, I barely finished it. I couldn't help but feel that I wasn't experiencing it as I should while listening. One day I'll have to break down and just buy the physical novel.

4 people found this helpful