Title: Neverwhere
Author: Neil
Gaiman
Publisher: HarperCollins
Publication Date: March
17, 2009
Genres: Fantasy,
Sci-fi, Adventure
Reviewed by: Ellen
Fritz
Ellen’s rating: 5/5
SUMMARY
Under the streets of London there's a place
most people could never even dream of. A city of monsters and saints, murderers
and angels, knights in armour and pale girls in black velvet. This is the city
of the people who have fallen between the cracks.
Richard Mayhew, a young businessman, is going to find out more than enough about this other London. A single act of kindness catapults him out of his workday existence and into a world that is at once eerily familiar and utterly bizarre. And a strange destiny awaits him down here, beneath his native city: Neverwhere.
Richard Mayhew, a young businessman, is going to find out more than enough about this other London. A single act of kindness catapults him out of his workday existence and into a world that is at once eerily familiar and utterly bizarre. And a strange destiny awaits him down here, beneath his native city: Neverwhere.
REVIEW
Neverwhere is a tale of fantasy
unlike anything I've ever read. The innocent rescue of an injured woman lands
Richard Mayhew in a world of tunnels, sewers and train stations that do not
necessarily exist. Apart from the ratspeakers who serve the rats and a rather
dodgy angel, he meets the black friars of Blackfriars Station, the earl of
Earls Court and has to cross the real Knightsbridge where the knight or night
might snatch those who cross.
The above mentioned places and people are just a taste
of what you will encounter in this highly imaginative story. Neil Gaiman
created an utterly unique world set in the numerous underground spaces below
London. He liberally uses myth, legend, history and a refreshing touch of
reality to enhance his fantasy environment.
Richard Mayhew is a realistic, slightly flawed
character. Scatter-brained and a bit of a coward, he is the kind of character
that infuriates you while crawling into your heart. Door, the other main
character, isn't very clear cut as she is too busy achieving her goal and
running from her pursuers to display much personality.
The two really bad guys, Croup and Vandemar, are two
of the best villains I have encountered in a long time. Between their bloodlust
and penchant for inflicting torture, and the relentlessness with which they pursue
a victim, they are truly the stuff of nightmares.
Not only is this book a tale of adventure and darker
fantasy, it also contains a liberal amount of incredibly witty humor. To
balance out the adventure and humor, there are a few deeply poignant scenes
that will surely touch your heart.
For a read that will excite, stimulate, and horrify
you while making you smile and even laugh out loud, I highly recommend Neverwhere as an absolute must-read.
PURCHASE LINKS
ABOUT the AUTHOR
Neil Gaiman has written highly
acclaimed books for both children and adults. He has won many major awards,
including the Hugo and the Nebula, and his novel The Graveyard Book is the only work to ever win both the Newbery
(US) and Carnegie (UK) Medals. His books for readers of all ages include the
bestselling Coraline, also an Academy
Award-nominated film; Odd and the Frost
Giants; and The Wolfs in the Walls.
Originally from England, Gaiman now lives in the United States.
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