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)

Twisty action

I appreciated the referential aspects. Meiville nods to Lovecraft and other horror genre elements but still manages to weave an unexpected story of odd characters and plot twists. I enjoyed the pulpy feel to the action. It felt theatrical in the way it handled its London setting.

Amazing

This book quite literally changed the way I think about things. Incredibly engaging, well written, amazing narrator, who does many various voices very well. Very easy to tell who is speaking, with such distinctive voices.
Cannot recommend it enough!

Off the wall

I can see why Melville has a following, but it won't include me. I felt like I was in a asynchronous jazz concert, trying to detect a melody that kept evading me. none of it made much sense to me and the ending seemed to be far too convenient. I like "off-the-wall", but there was too many echoes for my taste.

My favorite book by my favorite author

The previous reviews seem to reveal a love-it-or-hate-it dichotomy. I believe that the reason for that is some people approach the book expecting yet another mundane supernatural story (read "Twilight" et al) while others are more open-minded. Let's just call a spade a spade and say that if you are looking for the average sexy-supernatural-with-requisite-action-scenes then you will not like this book.

To me, this book is nothing less than brilliant. On the surface is a wonderful fantasy story, with great characters, despite those who "didn't get it," but beneath that is a very entertaining play of ideas that juxtapose postmodernism, metanarrative, and logos versus mythos. Great literature is something that makes you think, not something that becomes the next "Vampire Diaries." That being said, this is not Umberto Eco; Mieville is an infinitely better story teller and has the rare ability to balance substance and suspense.

Loved this! Imaginative, sloppy fun.

Would you listen to Kraken again? Why?

Yes. It's a blast. I'm sure I missed a lot.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Kraken?

The opening chapter when we are introduced to China's vision of London was extraordinary.

What does John Lee bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

John Lee constantly reminded me of the British-ness of the story. He was excellent.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

There's a world out there you haven't yet seen.

pragmatically enthralling

An incredibly rich and layered sherlock style magicians tale of modern London with fun nuggets of pop culture thrown in for spice!

Kept me listening

If you could sum up Kraken in three words, what would they be?

Unique mystery thriller.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Kraken?

Goss and Subby, Subby and Goss. Two or maybe just one - it all depends on how you look at it - memorable character(s) in the book. The first time you meet them - it is memorable.

That Goss has a real flare about him.

Which scene was your favorite?

Battle with the sea. Mieville really makes you work to grasp the sea as a being.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

London Calling.

Any additional comments?

A good listen but I am easy to please.

Great Story, Great Narrator, Great Listen

Do yourself a favor and take a listen. It took me a minute to get my bearings with names and places, but everything came together nicely as the story went along.

good story slow to pull you in

Story was well crafted and eventually pulled me in but was slow to get rolling but worth hanging in for.

makes for an excellent book without context.

extremely creative fiction, telling you it's a fiction is almost more spoilers than you should let yourself have before jumping into this title.