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Neverwhere (London Below, #1)

Neil Gaiman

Why we're reading this: #48 on NPR's Top 100 SF/F novels of all time (2011 poll) http://www.npr.org/2011/08/11/1390858...
#17 on L…more
[close] #48 on NPR's Top 100 SF/F novels of all time (2011 poll) http://www.npr.org/2011/08/11/1390858...
#17 on Locus Magazines Best Fantasy novels of the 20th century http://www.locusmag.com/2012/AllCentu...

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What Members Thought

Jul 20, 2013 Jim rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 1audio, fantasy, 2fiction

The story was unique, ingenious, & interesting. The magic is capricious, the characters memorable, & the plot had me biting my nails as it twisted about. The overall theme of the invisible people was haunting. There was a lot of understated British humor and it was very well read by its author.

I wanted to kick the main character pretty much all the way through the book, although the rest of the characters were great. I especially liked the pair of assassins. They were so perfectly evil yet had a The story was unique, ingenious, & interesting. The magic is capricious, the characters memorable, & the plot had me biting my nails as it twisted about. The overall theme of the invisible people was haunting. There was a lot of understated British humor and it was very well read by its author.

I wanted to kick the main character pretty much all the way through the book, although the rest of the characters were great. I especially liked the pair of assassins. They were so perfectly evil yet had a wonderfully comic facade.

I didn't give this 5 stars for a couple of reasons. I'm not much of a fan of British humor, so while it was amusing once, I'll never want to read this again. There were a few logical issues in the story, too. (view spoiler) None were huge, but they seemed to pile up at the end.

The last chapter was redundant. (view spoiler)

I was very pleased by Gaiman's reading. The British pronounce some things rather oddly (I'm an American. The way I pronounce words is correct. I don't care if they do lay first claim to the language. ;-) ), but that added to the feel of the story. He certainly put a lot of emotion into it & that did cause some problems trying to listen while using machinery. His voice would soften too much with some characters in some situations while others were very loud.

Overall, I'd give this a 3.5. I won't rush right out to find another novel by him, though. I've read one as a graphic novel & it was pretty good. This as an audio was far better. ...more

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Apr 19, 2013 Louise rated it liked it

I think I hoped too much for this book. It's not that I didn't enjoy it - I really did - but it's supposed to be "Neil Gaiman's best novel" and I don't quite agree. I love the world he creates below London, but I guess it feels more like a first novel in a series where everything is explained than the whole story. I did like the characters though. ...more

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Mar 01, 2010 Brian rated it really liked it

If you combined The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Alice in Wonderland, and Grimm's Fairytales, you'd come close to Gaiman's take on the alternate universe known as London Below. Dark and humorous at times, a nice detour if you enjoy the fantasy genre. ...more

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Sep 08, 2009 Derek rated it liked it

Shelves: horror

Great writing! I especially liked the dialog between Mr Croup and Mr. Vandermar. The story was good, but not one of the author's best. I liked "Coraline" and "American Gods" a little better. ...more

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