[Review]Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

So, generally when you pick up a book the size of this one that sells itself as fantasy, you kind of expect another "gee I wish I was Tolkien" tome full of lengthy descriptions of this one leaf on this one tree. Which isn't to say that I totally hate that kind of thing, but it does seem to be what you always get.

This is entirely different. It's unique and it's above all very British in the most positive ways. It's more witty than it is funny. It's more strange than it is fantastical in the traditional sense. It was, without a doubt, one of the more amazing books I've read in a very long time and I very much recommend it.

It requires a bit of an attention span and an intelligence level above Dragon Lance books, but that's a selling point for me. Maybe it's not for everybody.

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