Books : Neverwhere
from: HarperAudio
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Binding: Audio CD
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.914
EAN: 9780061373879
Format: Audiobook, Unabridged
ISBN: 0061373877
Label: HarperAudio
Manufacturer: HarperAudio
Number Of Items: 10
Publication Date: November 01, 2007
Publisher: HarperAudio
Release Date: October 23, 2007
Sales Rank: 347179
Studio: HarperAudio
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Editorial Review:
Product Description:
Richard Mayhew is a young man with a good heart and an ordinary life, which is changed forever when he stops to help a girl he finds bleeding on a London sidewalk. His small act of kindness propels him into a world he never dreamed existed. There are people who fall through the cracks, and Richard has become one of them. And he must learn to survive in this city of shadows and darkness, monsters and saints, murderers and angels, if he is ever to return to the London that he knew.
"A fantastic story that is both the stuff of dreams and nightmares" (San Diego Union-Tribune), Neil Gaiman's first solo novel has become a touchstone of urban fantasy, and a perennial favorite of readers everywhere.
Amazon.com Review:
Neverwhere's protagonist, Richard Mayhew, learns the hard way that no good deed goes unpunished. He ceases to exist in the ordinary world of London Above, and joins a quest through the dark and dangerous London Below, a shadow city of lost and forgotten people, places, and times. His companions are Door, who is trying to find out who hired the assassins who murdered her family and why; the Marquis of Carabas, a trickster who trades services for very big favors; and Hunter, a mysterious lady who guards bodies and hunts only the biggest game. London Below is a wonderfully realized shadow world, and the story plunges through it like an express passing local stations, with plenty of action and a satisfying conclusion. The story is reminiscent of Douglas Adams's The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, but Neil Gaiman's humor is much darker and his images sometimes truly horrific. Puns and allusions to everything from Paradise Lost to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz abound, but you can enjoy the book without getting all of them. Gaiman is definitely not just for graphic-novel fans anymore. --Nona Vero
Average Rating: 
Rating:  -
This book didn't really grab me at first, but the more I read it, the more I became wrapped up in this unique, dark, imaginative world. Richard Mayhew was just a normal man leading a normal life until he stops to help a bleeding girl in the streets -- an act that truly lives up to "no good deed goes unpunished." Soon he discovers that his identity has been erased, left off no better than any meandering homeless person. His life turns even more chaotic when he embarks to London Below, a gritty and surreal reality existing beneath London, and helps Door, the girl he previously rescued, to discover who killed her family and why. The plot becomes more intricate and engrossing, filled with a cast of characters you never quite entirely know you can trust, and the villians are genuinely menacing. The twists were also ingenious and well-planted, making it even harder to not finish this book. While the ending was overall satisfying, there were still a couple of loose threads that make me hope that there will one day be a sequel, but it is not entirely necessary. If you love dark fantasy and are tired of reading about the usual concepts, then Neverwhere is a worthy read.
Rating:  -
This book starts out at a perfect pace, introducing the reader to the main character's ordinary life, and swiftly sweeps both the reader and this ordinary man into a dark reality from which there is no escape. By the end of the book, I had a real affection for the bewildered Richard, and for his friends in London below: the curiously powerful Door, the conniving marquis de Carabas, and even the single-minded bodyguard, Hunter. It's easy to become concerned in their fates, and they are all unique and likeable characters, each in their own ways.
This story is easy to relate to, as it follows a familiar plot: average person gets swept up in mysterious goings-on, meets allies, they have a quest to follow, with powerful enemies popping up now and then to interfere...or worse. This doesn't mean that the story is stale. Indeed, it constantly surprised me with its twists and turns, and its utter originality. But what makes the story familiar makes it comfortable; otherwise, the alien world in which Richard finds himself would be too cold and unknowable. Richard, being from London Above, gives the story its dose of reality, which of course makes the book all that more unnerving.
All fans of fantasy and modern thrillers will enjoy this book. This is the first book of Gaiman's that I've tried, and I'm looking forward to reading more!
Rating: -
Richard Mayhew is living the life. He is engaged to a beautiful, well-connected business woman, he has a good job with a future, and he has friends, but one good deed changes it all. In a night Richard has fallen through the cracks of the sane, real world he knows into the supernatural Underside of London where lost human beings rub shoulders with all manner of creatures and life is as dangerous as the darkest parts of human history. Presented with a quest that may help him get his life back Richard embarks on a journey of discovery that will change everything.
Neil Gaiman's first novel is a great trendsetter for those that follow. It mixes fantasy and reality to such an extent that even those who don't go in for fantasy can get caught up in them. The characters are fully realized people and the situations test and challenge. His prose is well done and the story is fast paced. You can see it on the screen of your mind like a film. The only drawback is that it is not original enough to merit five stars. There are some rated R elements (especially violence), but over all this does not distract from the story. Suffice it to say this is not for younger readers.
All in all a great way to spend a cold weekend.
Rating: -
I've only read a couple of Gaiman books before, so i can't say how well this stacks up to his corpus in general, but as a relative outsider I liked (though not loved) it.
The Pro's: It's fast-paced, and held my interest. The setting was intriguing, and I liked the characters -- especially the antagonists. It even made me chuckle in a few places, which helped lighten the otherwise dark mood that is the general tone of the book.
The Con's: The plot structure reminded me of an old computer game: each stage is essentially a quest to get to the next part, and this format came dangerously close to wearing out its welcome. Also, there are a **couple** of major plot-holes in the story, though I won't discuss them as they are spoilers. Admittedly, they didn't immediately jump out at me: I had to reflect upon the situation after-the-fact to realize "um, wait a second..." so I don't know how much of a speed-bump they will be to other readers. Even then, it could be a misunderstanding on my part: this novel seems to have an internally-consistent logic EXCEPT when the plot dictates otherwise and it's "convenient" for something to happen. I kind of have a low threshold for that sort of thing, but others probably will be more forgiving.
Overall, the book's positives outweigh the negatives, so I conditionally recommend it to people who like dark, off-beat quasi-fantasy fodder. If nothing else, it's a fast read and holds the reader's interest, so give it ... Read More
Rating: -
I love this book. I'm biased, because I love Gaiman, but it's my favorite of his by far (and I've read quite a few of his novels). I really don't envision Gaiman having any kind of philosophy or politics with what he writes, because it seems to me, he attempts to remove us to a world as far from the mundane as possible.
However, I think everyone knows what it feels like to rant and rave and tantrum, to scream as loud as their lungs allow, and to be heard for a second and then ignored, just like our protagonist. We're all slipping through the cracks...
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