City of Thieves
Aug. 29th, 2019 08:04 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
alobearThe last of the Novel Predictions books I needed to read in order to catch up to the present day (I've already read the most recent two reviewed) was City of Thieves by David Benioff (of Games of Thrones showrunner fame). It tells the story of two young men arrested in Leningrad during World War Two and sent on a ridiculous mission to find eggs for the colonel's daughter's wedding cake, in exchange for their lives.
It's well written and life in the city is very well evoked in often quite gruesome detail. And the premise is appealing, though the contrast between the stupidity of their task and the consequences they face for failure is pretty bleak.
The book treads a strange line, swinging back and forth between grimness and levity, and the protagonists' attitude towards women is very off-putting. I got nearly halfway and just decided I wasn't enjoying it enough to carry on. Then, I have to admit I looked up the plot online and was very glad I hadn't persevered.
So, my first DNF of the books I've been prompted to read by Novel Predictions.
I'm just listening to the first episode in relation to this book and it seems like Alyson had a very similar reaction to me. In general, I've enjoyed the books Alyson has picked more than those picked by Kales (though Sense and Sensibility is a firm favourite of mine and I'm not a massive fan of His Dark Materials).
I'm quite sad I'm catching up to the present day of the podcast, because I'll have to start waiting two weeks for new episodes soon. But I've still got two and a half books to go before that happens, and the next episode is out in less than a week...
It's well written and life in the city is very well evoked in often quite gruesome detail. And the premise is appealing, though the contrast between the stupidity of their task and the consequences they face for failure is pretty bleak.
The book treads a strange line, swinging back and forth between grimness and levity, and the protagonists' attitude towards women is very off-putting. I got nearly halfway and just decided I wasn't enjoying it enough to carry on. Then, I have to admit I looked up the plot online and was very glad I hadn't persevered.
So, my first DNF of the books I've been prompted to read by Novel Predictions.
I'm just listening to the first episode in relation to this book and it seems like Alyson had a very similar reaction to me. In general, I've enjoyed the books Alyson has picked more than those picked by Kales (though Sense and Sensibility is a firm favourite of mine and I'm not a massive fan of His Dark Materials).
I'm quite sad I'm catching up to the present day of the podcast, because I'll have to start waiting two weeks for new episodes soon. But I've still got two and a half books to go before that happens, and the next episode is out in less than a week...
