I need a breath of fresh air. Any fans of the ‘New Weird’ writer China Miéville? I’m two-thirds through Perdido Street Station, wondering whether I want to continue. His imagination can’t be faulted, but a lot of it is revolting. One critic said it was the Wizard of Oz written by the Marquis de Sade. Perhaps they were thinking of the scenes where the main character has alien head sex with an insect, or the brothel of bioengineered monstrosities. At the moment, the characters are wandering round a sewer. And their ears have been cut off by a reality-weaving giant spider. Says it all, really.
Squick
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The Grandest Game in the World 
I’m a big Mieville fan and think you’ll like “Un Lun Dun” much better. It has the imagination of PDS without the ickiness. (I think it was marketed as a YA novel but I enjoyed it just fine as an adult)
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I read both Un Lun Dun and The City and the City a decade ago, and remember liking them. Un Lun Dun was a whimsical, inventive take on Neverwhere, from memory – rubbish bins, broken umbrellas, and unchosen ones. Whereas Perdido Street Station is definitely not for children!
How do Miéville’s other books compare?
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I liked PERDIDO STREET STATION and THE SCAR at the time, but I have quite a high tolerance for ickiness and squickiness. I do remember both books as being very very long. If you loved PERDIDO STREET STATION you’d probably like THE SCAR. If you didn’t love PERDIDO STREET STATION I’d give it a miss. PERDIDO STREET STATION is the better book of the two.
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