The average user rating for this Book is 8.6 out of 10 (based on 33 Votes).
Carreen W gave it a9: A lovely book, I highly recomend it.
Roger K gave it a5: An interesting concept that disappoints the reader with lengthy, extraneous footnotes and incidents that only mildly entertain. At over 800 pages, it's way too long for the mediocre ending. Still, Clarke's craftsmanship may make it worthwhile for those who appreciate a higher standard of prose than usually seen today.
Mark E gave it a6: What seems like an interesting idea for me fades badly in the middle section before reviving at the end.
Terry C gave it a1: This book was one of those long drawn out, "Maybe it will get good in the next chapter" books, which sadly never gets lives up to this expectation.
Aldrin C. gave it a10: A prime example of literary magic.
John W gave it a10: Thoroughly enjoyed.
Marja K gave it a2: Book is so boring that you can't never imagine.
PeaceLove gave it a10: Fabulous! A class act all the way, funny and occasionally quite creepy. Highly recommended!
ashley pbc gave it a10: inexplicably engrossing despite its intimating size. i couldn't put it down. i was expecting to yawn through some parts of it, but to my surprise it didn't feel like i had to struggle through it. i was literally living through its pages -- s. clarke has an effortless way of making remarkable things 'logically real". i'm impatiently waiting for her next work
Donna H gave it a10: Starts slowly, but think of that as the initial, uphill pull on a rollercoaster -- after that, the thrill kicks in. Call it quirky, call it charming, call it Harry Potter for grownups . . . but you still won't quite have captured the way it sucks you in and makes you live in its world. It has all the power of primitive mythology -- well, in a word, of magic.
Pete J gave it a10: The sort of intoxicating, whistful and excruciatingly compelling book that sends the reader reeling immersed and spellbound into its myriad depths. Sublime for its attention to detail and its remarkably imaginitive invention. The reader should not be daunted by the 800 pages or the quirkyily jolting storytelling, once this masterpiece has you captivated it is difficult to allow it to leave your memory.
Vince D gave it a10: After all is said and done, this is a beautiful and sublime love story.
Danny J gave it a10: The quickest 780 pages I've ever read.
Mark P gave it a9: A fantastic novel that carefully weaves a tapestry of history, fantasy, and the human condition. Each thread is distinct, yet when Clarke intertwines them all, the result is a cohesive work that achieves the unlikely ability to be both solid in its construction and liquid in its narrative. Highly recommended.
Nat B gave it a10: A rare book, in that one wants to read it in a single sitting, but at 800 or so pages, it's simply impossible to do so. It reads like a Jane Austen novel, and it's a logical next-step to draw a 'connexion' between Austen and the Potter books. However, I had the pleasure of attending a reading with author Clarke and Neal Stephenson (The Baroque Trology), a clever connexion in retrospect, considering the historical detail, footnoting etc. Clarke's book is the best fantasy work I've read in years, and I would recommend it for sci-fi traditionalists, historical fictionalists (like Stephenson) and others looking for a mature and gentle introduction to magic/fantasy.
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