THE CITY & THE CITY

After reading Kraken, I wasn't sure I would read another China Mieville novel, but I'm glad I read this weird fiction detective/murder mystery. It's not that Mieville isn't a brilliant writer, but his use of neologisms and his articulation of the English language is sometimes overwhelming. This novel was much tamer in the lexical ambiguity category than usual, but he still has his exemplar prints all over the text. If you don't understand what I'm writing, then you haven't read a Mieville fantasy novel.

The narrator and hero of this novel is Tyador Borlu, an inspector in the Extreme Crime Squad of the city of Beszel. This city's borders are crosshatched with a twin city named Ul Qoma. These cities are rivals, and the populations are taught to "unsee" each other, even if they are inches apart. Each city has different architecture, vehicles, garb and gait. The only way to travel to the other city is with special papers through Copula Hall, the only building in both cities. Any violation of the rules will bring the Breach upon you, which means you will not be seen again. The Breach is invoked by a 42 person board from both cities called the Oversight Committee that ensures the strict rules are obeyed. The Breach is an alien group living unseen between the borders of the cities with unbridled policing powers. What a setting for a murder.
 

A foreign student, Mahalia Geary, is found murdered in Beszel. Inspector Borlu finds out that she was working on a archaeology dig in Ul Qoma. Is this murder a breach? This sets off a chain of events, including the investigation of Orciny, a legendary invisible third city. Borlu teams with detective Qussim Dhatt (there are no easy names in this book) of Ul Qoma to try to solve this mystery. They are thwarted by unificationists from both cities, an arcane Doctor Bowden, and the prohibitive rules of "unseeing" people and events in the crosshatched areas.

The strange thing about this novel is that Mieville spends very little time on character development, but the reader still maintains empathy for the characters. Instead he spends a lot of time explaining the Breach and the rules of "unseeing" seemingly on every page. Another writer faux pas is that he does't let you know how the Breach came into existence or why they were called upon by the cities in the first place. Weird fiction/ fantasy is a unusual genre, and China Mieville is its master writer. I enjoyed this novel and highly recommend it.
 

RATING: 4 out of 5 stars
 

Comment: China Mieville's latest novel Embassytown is a stretch from his usual weird fiction, since it follows a slightly different path. It involves alien contact and war unlike his usual fantasy themes. Mieville considers himself a complete geek, who admires writers Neal Stephenson and Susanna Clarke.