LesOpinion: I really wanted to like this debut novel. It's literate, amusing in its cleverness and detail, and ambitious in its scope. But it's also all over the place, lacks character development, and can't decide what it wants to be when it grows up. The post-Victorian London created by Jonathan Barnes is a dark, foggy, ugly place filled with miscreants, murderers, and drug addicts. There are bearded ladies, albinos, and giants. Also, utopians, a human fly, and S.T. Coleridge as a dripping zombie. If you enjoy genres that include fantasy, steampunk, or Victorian mystery, this might be for you. If not, give it a pass.
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