Kraken

By: China Mieville

Narrated by: John Lee

Length: 16 hrs and 10 mins

Publisher's summary

With this outrageous new novel, China Miéville has written one of the strangest, funniest, and flat-out scariest books you will read this—or any other—year. The London that comes to life in Kraken is a weird metropolis awash in secret currents of myth and magic, where criminals, police, cultists, and wizards are locked in a war to bring about—or prevent—the End of All Things.

In the Darwin Centre at London’s Natural History Museum, Billy Harrow, a cephalopod specialist, is conducting a tour whose climax is meant to be the Centre’s prize specimen of a rare Architeuthis dux—better known as the Giant Squid. But Billy’s tour takes an unexpected turn when the squid suddenly and impossibly vanishes into thin air.

As Billy soon discovers, this is the precipitating act in a struggle to the death between mysterious but powerful forces in a London whose existence he has been blissfully ignorant of until now, a city whose denizens—human and otherwise—are adept in magic and murder.

All of them—and others—are in pursuit of Billy, who inadvertently holds the key to the missing squid, an embryonic god whose powers, properly harnessed, can destroy all that is, was, and ever shall be.

©2010 China Mieville (P)2010 Random House

Critic reviews

"Mr. Miéville's novels - seven so far - have been showered with prizes; three have won the Arthur C. Clarke award, given annually to the best science fiction novel published in Britain…. [H]e stands out from the crowd for the quality, mischievousness and erudition of his writing…. Among the many topics that bubble beneath the wild imagination at play are millennial anxiety, religious cults, the relationship between the citizen and the state and the role of fate and free will." ( The New York Times)

Funny Horror

Back in 2012 my favorite movie was "The Cabin in the Woods." A lot of my friends didn't liked it, but I thought that it was funny and horrifying at the same time. If you liked that movie, you will enjoy reading "Kraken" because it's well written from the comical aspect from the horror genre. Trying to catch the giant squid, talking tattoos and the sci-fi setting, is just funny.

Most people likes slasher movies with blood, but I find them boring. I enjoy China Mieville's writing because he is very clever with his words. Instead of being chase by a killer, you are on a deep path of funny horror. It's very clever. I really enjoy this author because once you understand his style of writing, you can only assume that Mieville got sent to the principal's office many times.

Dynamite narration improves an exceptional text

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Absolutely. As a book, I think this is the best modern fantasy I've read and John Lee's narration adds tremendously to the text. Usually I would recommend a book as densely written as this (neologisms, parentheticals, interrupted dialog, etc.) be read, but Lee's narration adds great depth. He does a great job communicating the confusion of the protagonist and the menace of the antagonists.

What did you like best about this story?

Modern fantasy always has a problem that there are a bunch of machina out of which the author can pull a deus. Miéville does an exceptional job establishing the power relationships between a pantheon of gods (many of which seem mutually exclusive) and various magical cabals. The pace at which confusion gives way to a sketched outline of the rules of the game and then ultimately to the series of internally-logical events of the climax is exceptional.

Have you listened to any of John Lee’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I've not, but I will absolutely seek him out in other audiobooks after this.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No, I can't say that it was. It's too dense a meal for that. But I very much enjoyed how I did listen to it, which was in 1-2 hour blocks.

Krakalackin'

Great story, but the narrator's various accents tended to blend, making distinguishing the characters difficult at times. Fantastically creepy Mieville, as always!

unusual, but awesome. def recommend

its unusual, but an awesome book with a very unique mythos it draws from. highly recommend if you are into supernatural-esque mysteries that involve the end of times.

Glorious Insanity

I was skeptical but this was a great listen. John Lee's narration fit almost perfectly for each character and the pacing was spot on.

Kraken is a hilarious, but still interesting story with a few turns that may surprise you.

A bit too long, but weird and entertaining

I first bought this book because it was referenced by Jacob Geller in his video essay "Fear of Big Things Underwater." I have a fascination with sea monsters and the kraken in particular, so I gave it a listen. And while there are parts where the particulars of London become tedious rather than peculiar, I kept going. And it was worth it, because this book is weird in absolutely the right way, and even manages to have heartfelt character moments amid the Lovecraftian horrors and supernatural gangsters.

The narration is also brilliant and gives all the characters a unique voice and tone that adds to the whole work.

Heartily recommend.

A New Favorite Author

If you like Neil Gaiman, you may like Mieville. I would not describe this story so much as horror (some of Gaiman's stories are more so), but a philosophical fantasy. Kraken has less steam-punk and science fiction than some of Mieville's other stories, although it has plenty of the fantastic. It is a riot. In this story, it is centered very much in the alternate reality of the City of London, which is a major character in Kraken. If you are an architect or interested in cities, you may love it for this reason alone, but if you are interested in more intellectual sci-fi-fantasy with other influences of science and religion, you may also like it. The characters, moreover, are also more developed, or memorable, than some of his other stories. Lastly, the narration, by John Lee, is of course superb. I listened to it twice.

Arcane Horror A-Go-Go!

Another classic Mieville immersion into the unconscious of London herself - but this time through the ink of a magical giant squid. And not just any giant squid mind you, but god-spawn... Join Billy the museum curator, and preserver of said deus enfant, on his horryifying and often hilarious journey through the seedy underbelly of London's secret religions. Dark magic and evil, dripping beasties spawn from every crevice as Billy tries to preserve his sanity and his life. Fans of Mieville's Perdido Street Station will feel right at home in this occult city on the brink of apocalypse(s?!). Narration of Mieville's rollicking and eerie prose performed splendidly by John Lee.

great book highly recommend to anyone

loved every second of this book. I've recommended to many people already. great modern fantasy world full of magic

Disjointed Fun

Lots of fun. I didn't think the story hung together well, but I didn't think it really needed to, to enjoy the ride.