Cheap King Rat (Book) (China Mieville) Price

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Customer Reviews of King Rat

Fine Literary Debut By Britain's Best New Fantasist
China Mieville made a more stunningly original debut in fantasy than J. K. Rowling did in her "Harry Potter" series in his harsh, often bitter, urban fantasy "King Rat". It is a mesmerizing, occasionally elegant, mix of the "King Rat" and "Pied Piper of Hamlin" fairy tales melded with the underground grunge musical world of late 1990's London. Mieville demonstrates much of his literary command of English prose which would serve him so well in his impressive steampunk novels "Perdido Street Station" and "The Scar". Fans of Neil Gaiman's work will undoubtedly enjoy "King Rat" for its dark atmosphere and crisp prose.

Saul Garamond unexpectedly finds his estranged father dead when he returns to their London flat. Soon he is met by a mysterious stranger, King Rat, who tells Garamond of his royal heritage. Stalking Saul is an equally mysterious flautist, who seems interested primarily in causing much mayhem and death. Mieville sends Garamond off on a wild, thrilling odyssey through the sewers and tunnels of London.

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Modest Compared To "Perdido Street Station"
After reading Mieville's phenomenal "Perdido Street Station" I rushed right out to buy his first novel, "King Rat." I could have delayed my haste. While also stylish and distinctively written, this dark, urban fantasy, compared to his second work, is a rough cut, much more loosely written and barely approaching the wonders or skill of writing present in the following novel. While I may be grudging of comment by comparison, "Perdido Street Station" is a masterpiece of speculative fiction, whereas "King Rat" reads as a someways good but fledgling effort. In many respects there is little to distinguish it from early Charles De Lint, though Mieville comes across here as more hip and involved with the music he provides as an underlying theme.

While certainly a departure from the ordinary fantasy, written with a degree of verve and suspense, drawing, as another reviewer has stated, upon the folklore of the Piper of Hamelin and tales of the rat king, placed within the context of modern day London and its vibrant, in part underground music scene, this tale lacks both the riveting use of language and the vivid world creation found in the author's second novel. Unlike "Perdido Street Station," as others have additionally noted, here the characters remain relatively flat, perhaps in part intentionally reflecting the cartoon characters referenced in the novel. As earlier stated, more loosely written and evolved, the cord of metaphor underlying the basic storyline never seems as fully integrated or realized as in Mieville's second novel, unable to entirely lift the tale above the surface of its active, running narrative, or significantly set it apart from other and equally skilled writers of urban fantasy.

Though I suspect fans of urban fantasy may find my observations too harsh, or critical by comparison, it is doubtful had I even not read "Perdido Street Station" that I would have been enamoured with this novel. Good but far from great, this is a very respectable first effort that should be applauded for what it attempts, even if not entirely successful. One catches glimpses of the brilliance later displayed and captured fully in "Perdido Street Station," as well as the author's desire to push speculative fiction beyond its normal boundaries. Nonetheless, I can only give this effort at best three and a half stars.

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Rats Rule!
This is a very good and engaging reinscription of the Pied Piper children's story. Here the rats, more or less, are the heroes and the Piper is a beautiful but psychopathic musician. It is also a text where Mieville attempts to blend, more or less successfully, Industrial Fiction with an Adult Fairy Story. So it isn't particularly innovative (that's been going on for decades - transforming fairy stories into adult fiction and sometimes serious literature [Angela Carter's work for example]) but it is an interesting read: good writing, characters, incident, crisis, plotting, etc.

I do not give it 5 stars because there is nothing truly unique and inspiring about the read. You want to take a walk off the map? Read Carlton Mellick III's Electric Jesus Corpse.