Popovich brings us to the alternate future that looks back to our past and is full of mystery at the same time. A trio pushed by circumstances decides to rent a place together and find themselves sucked into a vortex of the future.
*This is a spoiler review* I won't spoil the plot, but I will mention some contents about the book, some readers don't consider them spoilers, but I do.
Overall, I enjoy the book, the idea, the creativity, the potential thought-provoking world; there are parts that I stumbled with, overloaded or wanting more. I will review it in fragments to try to explain that.
The future world, The Arden is full of imagination and rich in descriptions; it gives us a refreshing look at the speculative future that ironically sets humans back in time. Buildings are in ruins, technologies are frowned upon, and we are 'back' to believing that elements and objects have spiritual essences.
The horror of the world is revealed along with the protagonist's journey, and the most interesting concept to me is the Lethe. It sounds so mythical at first, but as I read on, it makes sense of how it fits into this world and even the actual world.
I'm not a fan of magniloquence, and I wouldn't say that this book is a sure example of it, but it certainly gives me a lot of that vibe. However, in Arden, the style actually works quite well, it's descriptive, elaborate, fitting to the world that we are made to see, and it gives me my favorite term; I have to say I have chances to meet a lot of tangerine gargoyles in real life and will refuse to call them differently from now on.
The funny bits. I appreciate the funny bits that catch you off guard at the time you least expect them, and they can be easily missed but not by me, as I like that kind of subtle wittiness, they give me chuckles; the analogies, comments, descriptions, like those funny lines that are delivered in flat expression that actually add to the humor for those who get them.
I suppose this is the first book of a series planned, as there should be a lot more story to tell, it ends quite abruptly, and there are questions to answer.
The story flows at a good pace, although imo, some parts can be slowed down or picked up as I personally got quite clear indications about which part is less important because we change scenes quicker and which part I have to pay attention. It works somehow, but maybe I enjoy guessing or learning more, which enables me to make some additional connections that increase the appreciation of the world and the journey.
The part that could work better, there is a big chunk of exposition around the third quarter of the book, which I found somehow 'heavy'. It contains interesting backgrounds and information, but it is presented more as a coincidental overload of information that clogs the particular part of the book. Imo, it would work better to be woven throughout the story or revealed in other ways, perhaps as assumptions, theories by characters, descriptions, or mere passing by remarks that reward observant readers. The circumstances of these expositions also feel a bit detached, and the supporting characters involved are very obvious plot devices. I wouldn't mind knowing more about the 'current' world; there is an interesting gap to fill between the progression of the familiar world - the current world in the book to super-seed implementation, for example. Or perhaps, my imagination of Kaneda finding a lot of poor souls in Arden that would explain a detached sub-plot, maybe a confused shopkeeper riding a turquoise trojan horse. Maybe.
The characters. I grow to become fond of Saras, one of the most important characters, but I hardly get a chance to know him because in this book, he is not even the second-tier character. Unfortunately I didn't get attached to the main character; I enjoy the prologue but find myself trying to find the connection to the same character portrayed throughout the book, there are, but I expect more with more connections to the story. Having said that, I do like his struggles, masked vulnerability, fear of inadequacy. I find his fear of Lethe very realistic and relatable.
Rating: 4 Tangerine gargoyles out of 5 Ardens
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