K J Bishop - The Etched City

Not bad, but not great, either. Aspires to be a dark fantasy somewhat in the mold of Miéville, and has its moments, but doesn't quite have the sense of pacing and scope which would have allowed it to work. In her city descriptions, Bishop's obviously going for a sort of 'teeming metropolis' vibe, but it doesn't come through properly, and neither the city nor its characters really come to life (even the central protagonists, Raule and Gwynn, didn't strike me as being especially clearly drawn - moral ambiguity is all very well, and in fact is something that Bishop does well, but lack of vividness of characterisation is something else altogether). Also, the way in which the philosophical ruminations are handled is rather tedious - it isn't so much their content as the way in which they are expressed, in long monologues on the parts of the characters (occasional stiltedness of dialogue and descriptive writing also dog The Etched City). So, a litany of criticisms - but all of that said, I'd probably be willing to give Bishop another go if she puts more books out in the future, because there are hints of something pretty good in here.