Unwrapped Sky

Caeli-Amur #1

by Rjurik Davidson

Caeli-Amur: an ancient city perched on white cliffs overlooking the sea; a city ruled by three Houses, fighting internecine wars; a city which harbours ancient technology and hidden mysteries. But things are changing in Caeli-Amur. Ancient minotaurs arrive for the traditional Festival of the Sun. The slightly built New-Men bring their technology from their homeland. Wastelanders stream into the city hideously changed by the chemical streams to the north. Strikes break out in the factory district.

In a hideout beneath the city, a small group of seditionists debate ways to overthrow the Houses. How can they rouse the citizens of the city? Should they begin a campaign of terror? Is there a way to uncover the thaumaturgical knowledge that the Houses guard so jealously? As the Houses scramble to maintain their rule, it becomes clear that things will change forever in Caeli-Amur.

Genres: Fantasy, Steampunk, Fiction, Science Fiction, Mythology, Science Fiction Fantasy, High Fantasy

430 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2014

Reviews

[Mark Lawrence]

So, this book has quite a low average rating on Goodreads (3.25) and I can understand why to a degree.

It's not written like most fantasy books and many fantasy readers may find it moves them out of their comfort zone. It's more intellectual than most books with a minotaur on the cover. For some reason the style puts me in mind of classic 20th century Russian literature. You want a clear and advancing plot with definite goals? You're not getting it. You want likeable characters? Nope, not really. You want compelling characters? ... again ... not really, not in the 'bursting with personality/attitude' way.

On the other hand, 17 of my Goodreads friends (people who like my work) have given it a very high average of 4.35.

Let me back pedal quickly to the cover. I have the UK edition with a gorgeous cover of a sky, a small boat on the sea beneath, and a city beneath the waves. The US cover with a woman and a minotaur promises a more traditional fantasy ... and lies ... though there are women and minotaurs in the tale.

The setting is, a lower tech (though not low tech) society, among the ruins of a distant higher tech society. The conflict is a social one, seditionists trying to stir up and aim the downtrodden people against the elite.

The book might well be called part of the new-weird. I've only read 100 pages of Meiville but they share a 'feel' in as much as we have weird creatures, tentacles, things growing off people, mutations ... I'm no expert but I'm going to stamp NEW WEIRD on the book. So there.

The main concern of the book (it seems to me) are its themes. The characters exercise the themes of exploiting others and being exploited, the desire to do good, the inevitable compromises that tarnish ideals, the failure of philosophy when faced with raw humanity and messy human problems.

This doesn't mean that the characters stride back and forth on the stage declaiming long ideological tracts ... but there is that vibe to it. We have philosopher-assassins who are eager to expound on their particular schools of thought as they end you.

The characters not infrequently indulge in dialogue that might come from the aforementioned Russian novel or a play by Chekhov - short profound declarations sealing off topics or relationships.

But perhaps I'm over-playing the differences. It certainly is a fantasy novel and the characters do have their wants and goals. Spells are cast, monsters encountered, fights take place.

The book is clearly part of a series - the end sees a lot of new plot-lines open though some issues are definitely laid to rest.

I'm having difficultly pinning down what I thought of the book. It's certainly an interesting read with lots of good writing and lots of fascinating ideas. It is perhaps a little 'dry' (despite all the water and slimy things), lacking the emotional heart that I often enjoy in a book. I wasn't cheering for a victory or 'oh no-ing' for a hero for whom things were going wrong. But I was intellectually engaged and it made a pleasant change from my recent reads.

Branch out, why don't you, and give it a try?


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[Nathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

One could be forgiven completely for not knowing what to expect from Unwrapped Sky )going in. The cover suggests that Minotaur are present, which is true but gives no clues as to the greater substance. The back cover hints at dissent within a city, perhaps violence in said city’s future. But what this book is really about is power, pure and simple. Who has it, who wants it, and what people are willing to do with it when they control it.

Things are changing in Caeli-Amur. The three major houses still show full control on the surface, but their ways are breaking down the common man beyond typical labor problems. New technological marvels can be made, but the magics required to completely them warp those who wield them. Hoarding the secrets of thaumaturgy for their own uses the houses pass along only enough help their goals, withholding the protections the workers using them daily. Strikes are common occurrence, and put down with deadly force. Within this a resistance grows, holed in the relative safety of the underground, willing to stand up to the houses and start a better future. But even the idealist must contend with a power struggle to bring forth their vision.

A dark tale with a new weird vibe, for the first time I actually understand the Mieville comparisons that are inevitably thrown out for any new book that plays games with reality. Not just with its weirdness, of which there is plenty. Mutants coming in from a wasteland, creatures from the other side, minotaurs and sirens. But this is a political tale through and through. Almost every aspect of this book is rooted in the cause of the proletariat class of Caeli-Amur. And it doesn’t hurt that Davidson seems to have Mieville’s talent for turning a phrase. Though more accessible than, say, early Bas Lag books, Davidson’s way with language rises above the average fantasy tale.

While some dark tales are easily summed up with the flippant ‘everyone is an asshole,’ in Unwrapped Sky this isn’t the case. Indeed, each and every major character genuinely seems to and to improve things for all. They all have a heart. But to the last it will always require just one more step up the power chain to make it happen. Within the houses there is the power struggle one would expect from those exploiting the workers. Boris rose from the exploited to work with the houses and wants to make things better for his former colleagues. It genuinely pains him to watch a strike shut down with extreme prejudice. If only the seditionists would calm down and let him work from within.

Kata is the closest thing to a protagonist we see, and she is the least idealistic to start the book. In fact her early chapters make it very hard to root for her later. Yet by the end I wanted so much for her, and was pained when she disappointed me with actions less true. She works with, and works to betray, the dreamer Max, he with grand visions based on philosophies and ideas of unification.

Woven into it all is the life of the city itself. Caeli-Amur itself should be considered a character, and what a character it is! A deep history, multi layered society, still suffering from the abandonment of the gods and the loss of rights of common men. Philosophy is more than a study in this land; for many it is a way of life, for others a path of violence. A corrupted vision of the underground that can’t be explained, the invasion of new-man technology, and there is a threat from the outside only slightly less dangerous than the threat from within. A promise to those who fall in love with mythical cities; Caeli-Amur will join your list of the best.

I have few reservations about this book. At times Max’s story seemed to be watching from the outside toward the end. A pivotal character throughout, he gives the illusion of importance in the second half without actually affecting anything. Though rape is often an act of power vs lust, and this is a tale of power and man’s struggle with it, I do feel the need to put a rape warning out there. I wouldn’t recommend this book so wholeheartedly if it was handled with anything other than realism and respect, but it is hard to read.

As a debut there are few I have read that are better. Political tales seem to be in right now in fantasy. This one joins The Goblin Emperor as books I read within a month that features politics more than action. And if this niche of the genre continues to put out such high quality outings, I say bring on more of it. Let’s have political tales released every month.

5 Stars

[Daniel Polansky]

A nemesis is someone whose funeral you would attend in a black suit with red hands, mourning quietly and without histrionics, tossing your handful of dirt upon the coffin, offering honest condolences to the bereaved. In that spirit, and with his blessing, I will hereby offer an honest review of Rjurik Davidson's Unwrapped Sky (my second, in fact, though the first was tendered without having actually read the book.) Doing so goes against my own instincts and the code of our shared guild, one of the tenants of which is, to my mind at least, that a non-professional review ought to be entirely and unequivocally positive. In an age where novels are rated along side coffee machines the slightest expression of dislike echoes loud as a thunderclap, and it is a cruel bastard indeed who would do anything to lessen the likelihood of a sale.

I suppose I am that cruel bastard.

To mention all of the ways in which Davidson eschews standard fantasy tropes is to damn the novel with faint praise; at the same time, they deserve a brief mention, if only because it is sadly still so rare. Here you will find no golden children, no forgotten sons of gods, no magic swords, no Tolkien-inspired races, and no satanic analogues. The themes being handled are of weight and import, are more than the standard sad masculine power fantasies which tend to define most of the other books being shelved in next to his, 'what if I could shoot fire out of my hands!?! Everyone would have to listen to me then!'

Knowing Rjurik, I expected all of this going in, and so accord him no particular points for not putting out drivel. Where I do credit the man, where the book does deserve praise, is first and foremost in its lively and original world building. Davidson has a fertile if rococo imagination, and innumerable small bits of Caeli-Amur proved memorable to me – the watery wonderland in which an aristocrat takes his siren ingenue, the endless shifting castle of the House of Technic. The minotaurs were were cool. The magic system is likewise deftly sketched, believable without being intrusively elaborate, and from one specialist to another, I tip my hat. Within the framework of a relatively traditional narrative, Davidson likewise manages to juke left a couple of times when I figured he was moving right. The secret plan of the demonic overlords (I'm not going to look up the real names of these, he is my enemy after all) was weird and cool and different, and so was the resolution of the Boris storyline.

Davidson is, of course, an unreconstructed Marxist (isn't that adorable! It's like someone wearing a cowboy outfit, I want to take a selfie to chronicle the anachronism) and there are points in the novel which will seem, shall we say, over-familiar to anyone with a passing knowledge of the Russian revolution. But Davidson's politics, though informing his world, do not become didactic or deform the story. His revolutionaries are flawed, imperfect figures – they would not make it past the scrutiny of the Politburo without serious revision.

Enough with the kindnesses, lets make with the knives. When I told Rjurik I was reading his book he suggested I read his second. This is a common reaction among clever people to their first book (Get me drunk some time and ask me to name all the things wrong with A Straight Razor Cure, I could write a book of all but equal length). I felt at times that he relied too much on inner monologues to express the point of view of his characters, rather than revealing it in some subtler fashion. His scenes of physical violence did not thrill me, though it must be said that scenes of physical violence very rarely do.

On balance, the pros far outweighed the cons, from my POV at least, though it's only fair to point out that I am more or less the exact target audience for this, as someone who has read Victor Serge and also knows the feel of a D20. Rjurik and I hold quite similar slates of obsession –can a person truly be called free, given the historic circumstances which limit our choices? What is personal morality in a world going rapidly off a cliff? Are human relationships defined exclusively by power?

It's worth your time to ask these questions in the company of Maxamillian, Kata et al. I guess what I'm saying is this – if you were to read one pasty, bald-faced Marxist, you would be better off picking this up than say, Perdido Street Station.

Your move, Rjurik.

[Althea Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's always an unexpected pleasure to discover a new author this good.

Davidson starts this tale with a shocking scene, and keeps the energy going all the way through to the end. As I said in my review of the author's short story, 'Nighttime in Caeli-Amur,' Davidson excels at creating characters who roundly deserve to be condemned for their actions - but still capture the reader's empathy, if not sympathy.

Their home, Caeli-Amur, feels like a real place. It's vivid, teeming with dreams, ambition, love and tragedy - and the bitter, grotesque things that all of those can twist lives into.

This is a story of a city on the brink...of a fall, or of revolution. Corrupt officials war with seditionist saboteurs. Here we meet Kata, former street orphan, trained philosopher-assassin (ninja) - a woman who's learned to always have an eye for the main chance. But will her self-interest be her downfall? We also have Maximilian, an idealist and revolutionary whose dreams of studying the dangerous arts of thaumaturgy may not be compatible with the violent revolution some of his compatriots aim for. Then there's Boris, former tramworker, on his way up the bureaucratic ladder to success... but will he be willing to trample over the bodies of his old friends on his way up?

And more... much, much more. This is a complex work exploring multiple layers of power and motivations. I'd say: China Mieville meets Tanith Lee - injected with a full syringe of originality. Recommended for fans of steampunk who are tired of the cliches. Davidson's an author I'll be following from here on out.

Advance review copy provided by NetGalley. Thanks to Netgalley and Tor Books. As always, my opinion is my own.

[Aoife · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unwrapped Sky follows three different characters all living in a city called Caeli-Amur. Kata is a Philosopher-Assasin and in debt to one of the Houses that makes up the 'governing body' of the corrupt city. Boris Autec is a sub-officiate for one of the houses, raised up from a simple tramsman, and while trying to do the right thing may do an awful lot of bad things. Finally, Maxamillian is part of a rebel group attempting to initiate a revolution among the people against the houses. This story also included magic called thaumaturgy that warps users physically and mentally after years of use and a sister city beneath the sea with a giant library full of secret knowledge.

Overall I really enjoyed this though it took me a while to get into the swing of it. I really enjoyed all the characters particular stories, especially Kata who I think had one of the more interesting arcs. She starts off as a cold assassin but we quickly see she's someone much more than that - a person with deep feelings and someone trapped in their own position with no way out. Her journey to Max and how she ends up really becoming a seditionist was interesting to see and she really evolved as a character and came into her own as part of the group.

Boris Autec was also great just because of his warped way of doing things. He was so interesting to follow because it was clear he wanted to do things to help the poorer people in he city, and the people he grew up with, but in a way that wouldn't mean they were all slaughtered by the Furies. In doing so, Boris ultimately sacrificed everything he was and became more and more ruthless and evil while at the same time still holding this ideal of helping everyone eventually in his own mind.

I though Max's journey would be on of my favourite but ultimately he became the most boring character with little to no character development. He quickly became too involved with the journey to the library and seemed content to let everything else he worked for in the group fall to the plans of Ejan. What happens to Max near the end will definitely be interesting to follow in the next book but I think I would have liked him to eventually meet Kata again and see what happens between them.

The descriptions and world-building of Caeli-Amur was pretty good and I felt like I really got a good idea of how the city worked, how it was governed and which house controlled different sections. The history of the Aya and the gods and their links with the city and then the Elo-Talern and their control over the city as well were interesting, plus who exactly they were, to read about. I am looking forward to reading the next one.

[Carly · Rating 4 out of 5]

**NOTE: All quotations are taken from an uncorrected digital galley and are therefore provisional. Quotes will be corrected when the book is released.**

Long ago, so the legends say, a war between the gods ripped the world asunder, poisoning the lands of the northern wastes, sending the ancient city of Caeli-Enas into the depths of the seas, twisting the art of thaumaturgy so that it warps the body and mind of its practitioners, fracturing the veil between this world and the horrors that wait on the Other Side. The gods turned their faces away from their people, leaving the world broken, burned, and corrupted. The once-great city of Caeli-Amur survived, but only barely. Since the war of the gods, the city has been controlled by the Houses, and the Houses themselves ruled by the mysterious Elo-Talern, the disturbing beings that exist between the world and the Other Side. Inside the crumbling city of Caeli-Amur, unrest is growing. Even inside the Houses, the Elo-Talern have stirred from their apathy and new talents are emerging within the leadership. Workers in the mills and plants are mutilated and murdered by the dangerous thaumaturgic powers that the industry employs. Small bands of seditionists distribute pamphlets and posters and plot revolution in the dark.

Something has to give.

Unwrapped Sky plummets the reader into an utterly alien, infinitely complex world, a gritty, often grotesque world filled with breathtaking imagination and incredibly broken, problematic characters. The story is told from the perspectives of three characters: Kata, a philosopher-assassin who starts out with the task of murdering two of the sacred minotaurs and all too quickly finds herself entangled in the city politics; Boris Autec, a self-deluded ex-tramworker who has risen through the House ranks by betraying all those around him; and Maximillian, a seditionist whose vision of change is polluted by his own ambitions. While the characters' lives intersect, each explores a different facet of the city and a different set of misdeeds. The world and plot are best classified as "grimdark", with a full quota of graphic violence, murder, abuse, torture, and rape. While several members of the cast are irredeemably, horrifically evil, no character is without a taint or blemish.

Personally, I found Boris to be the most disturbing of the three, to the point that I found it extremely unpleasant to have to view the world through his thoughts. When we are introduced to him, he exhibits a disturbing lack of self-knowledge and insight, viewing himself as a "sensitive soul" and considering every failure to be everyone else's fault. As one character says to him:

"Boris, you have talent, you have...the necessary mercilessness for greater things."
"I'm not merciless," he said. "I'm not cruel."
"Oh, but you are, Boris. You are." [...]
"I only do what is necessary."

Max's perspective supplies the most direct viewpoint onto one of the main themes of the book: the inherent contradictions of revolution. I found the seditionists both troubling and fascinating. When the story opens, the seditionists are using conspiracy and violence to drive the people towards revolution:

"[The citizens] are too complacent and only act when they are personally under threat. We must be the catalyst for their actions. We must force events, provoke confrontations, so that the citizens take sides."

This aspect of the story reminded me strongly of Les Miserables. Despite their lofty goals, the seditionists--just like the Houses they despise--treat the citizenry like cattle, like a force to be prodded and mobilized and trained and abused. The seditionists claim that the ends justify the means:

"We cannot be representations of the new world. We are only here to usher it in."

Max himself has something of Enjolras in him; while he does desire change, he also has a sneaking desire to be in control, to gain fame and power, to "take a special place in seditionism." At first, he believes that greater control over thaumaturgy will give the seditionists the edge they so desperately need, but, as one character tells him, his quest for knowledge is, at its core, utterly selfish.

Like the revolutionaries of Les Miserables, the seditionists initially appear to have no real vision of the future; they will destroy stability and replace it with a power vacuum. They justify their actions with the claim that

"The death of innocents: that was the cost of politics."

But who decided that the purchase was worthwhile? Why does this tiny group get to make a choice that forces the whole city to pay?

Of the three, I liked Kata best, for she is the least self-deluded and hypocritical of the three. Kata sees herself as immoral and desperate; while she still does truly terrible things, at least she doesn't convince herself that her actions are anything other than self-preservation.

My favourite aspect of the book was the worldbuilding. The sheer breadth of imagination is staggering; the world is inhabited by minotaurs and sirens, by the fishlike Xsanthians, the peculiar Anlusian New-Men, and the skeletal and partially disembodied Elo-Talern. Within the city, the philosopher-assassins muse about the world and kill people on the side, while desperate factory workers risk invasion from the Other Side each time they invoke the thaumaturgical components. Life in Caeli-Amur may be brutal, but it remains one of the more habitable places in this harsh world. Mutant refugees flee the corrupted northern wastelands, the abandoned city of Caeli-Enas gleams from the depths of the oceans, and across the savage landscape lies Valentis, trapped in the iron grip of twelve pitiless sorcerers. Even the basic philosophies felt strange; the characters see their souls, their humanity, as a product of their memories, so losing memory becomes a kind of death.

At the same time, the sheer breadth of the worldbuilding meant that details were necessarily a little scant. I would have liked to understand what made the three fields of thaumaturgy incompatible; in our world, any layman can explain in a sentence why relativity and quantum are contradictory, but all we are ever told about the fields is that they require incompatible worldviews and that crossing the streams is dangerous. I was also fascinated by the New-Men; I would love to know where they came from, what their goals are, and how these "new" people were created in the first place.

Unwrapped Sky struggles to reveal what differentiates animals from men and men from gods; what principles must be kept and what must be discarded for expediency. Overall, while the characters were more flawed and story was grimmer and more grotesque than I would usually prefer, the book was so incredibly imaginative, the worldbuilding so infinitely complex, that I was captivated.
Will I keep an eye open for the sequel?
Definitely.

~~I received this ebook through NetGalley from the publisher, Tor, in exchange for my honest review.~~

Excerpted from my booklikes review.

[Rjurik Davidson]

This review is mainly to point people towards some online pieces relating to Unwrapped Sky that people might find interesting.

First, if you want to read an excerpt:

http://www.tor.com/stories/2014/03/un...

Then the non-fiction, most importantly, finding Unwrapped Sky:

http://torbooks.co.uk/2014/04/24/find...

A co-interview with Ben Peek:

http://fantasy-faction.com/2014/rjuri...

Other interviews:

http://www.adventuresinscifipublishin...

http://thebookplank.blogspot.nl/2014/...

http://qwillery.blogspot.fi/2014/04/i...

http://www.nathanburrage.com/news/an-...

http://blog.boomerangbooks.com.au/pla...

Blog posts:

Creating wonderful worlds:

http://qwillery.blogspot.fi/2014/05/g...

Magic and Technology:

http://www.notyetread.com/2014/05/rju...

Fantasy and Violence (and Game of Thrones)

http://torbooks.co.uk/2014/06/10/game...

[Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unwrapped Sky tells the tale of the city of Caeli-Amur and it inhabitants. The Houses who rule Caeli-Amur have guarded their power jealously. But in the bowels of the city a group of seditionists are plotting to take control and overthrow the Houses. As events unfold and spiral out of control, and violence and terror erupt, only one thing is for certain... the city of Caeli-Amur will change forever.

Review -

Where do I begin... perhaps with an opening statement?

I LOVE this book!

Seriously... it was that good. Any review will not even come close to expressing just how much I enjoyed reading Unwrapped Sky, but I suppose I will give it a shot anyway!

Unwrapped Sky is an original, riveting, and mind bending read. Wielding beautiful and poetic prose, Davidson weaves an epic tale of power, class and revolution that crosses over genres ranging from fantasy through to steampunk and new weird. I loved so many things about this book. Davidson's use of language had me savouring each and every page, and I adored how his wordplay filled me (a English and History teacher) with warmth and fuzziness as I worked through the story.


The city of Caeli-Amur and the world building in Unwrapped Sky are incredibly well done and detailed. I fell in love with Caeli-Amur early on, and as I read I could easily visualise myself strolling down its streets taking in the sights, smells, and sounds. Davidson's characters are fascinating and diverse, and his use of points of view drive the story brilliantly. The reader views the revolution from all sides and from all levels of society, and his characters are as 'grey' as possible. This made them incredibly interesting and accessible to me, and I really enjoyed how there was no one true protagonist or antagonist. Did I mention the Minotaur's? No? Well there are Mintotaur's as well... FREAKIN MINOTAUR'S! This was a entirely new level of awesome for me... and I found Davidson's use of different races wonderful and gripping. The magical system in Unwrapped Sky also blew my mind! As a magic system nerd (Sanderson is my Lord!) I supped happily and heartily on Davidson's thaumaturgy, with its system of mathematics and ideograms (the harvest of Minotaur body parts for magical works was both gory and strangely satisfying). The story in Unwrapped Sky also moves along at a nice pace. It does become slow in some parts, but I found that I didn't mind those sections as they were still beautiful to read and integral to the overall story. The action was well written and gripping, taking me on an emotional roller coaster ride of laughs, cheers, and tears.

Arguably, however, the best part of Unwrapped Sky is is breadth and scale. Davidson has taken on everything in this book. Caeli-Amur is firmly sat in a wider history that stretches (yet remains relevant to current events in the book) far into the past. Add to that everything ranging from philosophical discourse and revolutionary and class theory through to freedom and love and machinery and myths, and you barely scratch the surface of what Unwrapped Sky has to offer. And it works! It works bloody well!

Unwrapped Sky has raced up to the top echelon of my favourite books of all time... it has satisfied me on so many levels that even now I find myself going back to certain scenes and chapters just to reread them and enjoy. I suspect it will also become one of the books I read once every year just so I can relive its beautiful and fascinating story.

A truly magnificent story, and from a fellow Australian too (bonus points solely for that). I cannot wait for the next instalment!

5 out of 5 stars!

smashdragons.blogspot.com.au

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a harsh rater and this is a 3.5 but I rounded it up to 4 because it deserves more than the average rating here. I've seen many comparisons to Mielville and I can understand that, this a solidly built up fantastical world that is beautiful but also very grimy. And while many don't love China's lush and love of language and words, I do. I dreamed China's Bas-Long, and it was fully alive in my imagination as I read. With Unwrapped Sky, there were only a few of these internal images and they were fleeting. I still sometimes think I see another city interwoven with My City.

Ok onto this book. There are great ideas and philosophical questions here that made me think. I liked that. The drawback is that the characters serve these ideas and the plot, not quite to the point of declaiming but close. This is one reason I almost stopped midway, (I had so many books come at once from the library, the stress!), I just wasn't completely invested and that's what makes the high ratings.

But I'm very glad I stuck to the end, the last half was exciting plot wise and various things about the world were partially revealed. The characters aren't fully realized but they are very much human, not black and white but all shades. I also shifted gears, and recognized that this was an intellectually exciting book.

So there you have it in a nutshell and I think that's the disparity in ratings. People looking for standard fantasy fare will feel a bit removed, but for intellectual stimulation this is a very good read. And you know sometimes I want to just escape myself, which is how I initially approached this. Glad I was in the mood to shift gears.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unwrapped Sky is one of those books that just worked for me on almost every level. Some readers might shy away from it, as this book does have quite a lot of layers and things to unpeel as you go, but for the most part, speculative fiction fans should add this to their to-be-read pile. Unwrapped Sky is stunningly written, and the world is so lush, vibrant and full of nuances and detail that it absolutely enchanted me. The characters are easy to like, and their stories are interesting. And minotaurs. SERIOUSLY. MINOTAURS. Unwrapped Sky is a nice mixture of myth, lore, and something completely new and different and absolutely worth your time.

This book is a journey, and that’s the kind of book I like the most. It’s one of those novels that I had to savor and read slowly, and I just know I will catch something different every time I read it. What a gift.

Read my full review here:

http://www.bookwormblues.net/2014/04/...

[Phil · Rating 5 out of 5]

Writing 5/5
Imagination 5/5
Plot 5/5
Setting 5/5
Characters 5/5

My Overall Enjoyment 5/5

This is an ARC from Netgalley. This book comes out April 15.

Stunningly beautiful and original, a mix of steampunk and ancient mythology with a blend of action and suspense, this is a readers book. The descriptions of the city Caeli-Amur and its technology were astounding; it was so easy to imagine the trains, steamers, machines, moving about this world. The opening scene at the Festival of the Bull, which introduces the Minotaurs and the main character Kata, a philosopher-assassin (a concept I love), is one of the best I have read, so good I had to stop reading it several times to absorb and savor it.

A few other things I loved; the cover was the first thing that lead me to this book as it's gorgeous; the story-line of the goddess Aya, although not big, it was mysterious and added another layer of depth and wonder; the magic system, known as thaumaturgy, was so fun to learn about and fit in perfectly with this world; the character Max's quest to find the Great Library in the Sunken City, Caeli-Enas was my favorite story-line; all the references to books that make the world so real and the lore so deep; the philosophical discussions Kata has with the Minotaur; and lastly, the astounding writing, among the best I have read, Rjurik Davidson gives a masterclass in prose writing with this book. Not since I read Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence have I been this enthralled and enamored with a writers style.

Highest possible recommendation for all fantasy readers. If you love to read refreshing and unique fantasy this is a must read. If you enjoy fantasy filled with mythology and lore this is an excellent book. If you love books with great magic systems, this has one. If you love steampunk elements, this book is full of them. If you love books about books, this has that. If you love quests for knowledge, this has one. If you love beautiful wring, it doesn't get any better. If you love political intrigue, this is full. There is nothing about this book I didn't love. Nothing. I can't wait to buy a hard copy for my library.

[Ash · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good friend recommended Rjurik Davidson's Unwrapped Sky to me. When I asked him what it was about, he told me he couldn't and just instead summarized what he read. After having finished it, I can see what he meant. I am still racking my mind on how I could summarize Unwrapped Sky and go into my review. Here's the old college try!

Caeli-Amur is a city that is ruled by three Houses: Technis, Arbor, and Marin. These Houses have secrets about how to better wield and recover from the effects of Thaumaturgy which has incredible effects. Certain citizens known as seditionists believed the Houses are an antiquated method of ruling and want to overthrow the entire system.

The major players in this narrative is Boris, a former tramworker turned House officiate, who dreams of changing the system not realizing the system might be changing him. Kata, a philosopher-assassin who might not be entirely the free agent she thought she was and Maximillian, a man whose quest for the unified theory of Thaumaturgy might lead him to lose himself.

Davidson, in my opinion, did a very fine job with his mythology and expansive world-building. That's what he did; he built an entire world. Sometimes, as I was reading, it felt like a living, breathing entity. I loved how technology and alchemy worked believably in tandem. There was such a great usage of binary code, physics, chemistry, and religion that I had to stop myself from going all "fangirl."

However, within this great world Davidson created, there is a great character study developing. Though I really enjoyed Kata and related to her plight, my heart went out to Boris. He was pulled in 2 equally compelling directions and ended up lost in the grey. His story was heartbreaking.

I am assuming this will be part of a trilogy. That's what all the cool kids are doing these days. I can't wait to read the next one. Perhaps more minotaurs?

Apparently, Unwrapped Sky falls into the genre of New Weird. I knew when I was reading it, it was unlike anything I read before. I googled the term and that definition confused me so if anyone out there can clear it up for me. I would greatly appreciate it.

[Bojana · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book started off very strong, and then it just went down hill up to the very end.
The overall premise and the world are quite interesting, and I think that that is what drew me into the book, but it somehow failed to deliver on its promise of awesomeness. The writing was lyrical, but at the same time very dry, and the lengthily descriptions started to really bug me after a while.
The character building was practically non existent, no one had a distinct voice, and I can't honestly remember encountering a more bland set of characters, ever.
The whole book is a pale shadow of what it could be, having been re-written from scratch. I think this is what bothers me most, I can see the potential in it, but at the same time I had to press myself to finish it. I think I even invented a new method of skim-reading.
2 stars, only for its 'potential'.
Wouldn't recommend it.

[Jasper · Rating 4 out of 5]

originally posted at: http://thebookplank.blogspot.com/2014...

Another author that is taking a step to the stage this year with a cracking debut is Rjurik Davidson and his Unwrapped Sky. Rjurik Davidson was the winner of the Ditmar Award as Best New Talent and has also won the Aurealis Award for his short fiction. He works as an columnist and film and literary critic. I learned late last year about Unwrapped Sky and it made it directly onto my to read list. I had read several genre bending and breaking books last year and the mentioning of minotaurs and a technology created a weird but interesting promise to the story. And of course lets not forget thaumaturgy! In Unwrapped Sky, Rjurik Davidson creates a vivid, vibrant world that is constantly in motion. Blending technology with mythology to create the perfect setting. At times the scenes are painted with colorful strokes, but in a split second Rjurik Davidson doesn't hesitate to throw them to the darker side. Perfect and unpredictable. Definitely not to be missed.

The first thing that really gripped me in Unwrapped Sky was the world itself. The book opens with a scene featuring the mythical minotaurs, they sort of go on pilgrimage to the Festival of the Sun. My hopes were directly raised as I was completely immersed into the world that Rujurik Davidson was set out to create. He does a tremendous job on the worldbuilding part of the book that I haven't seen many debuting authors do in this way. This really is a combination of both writing style and the idea's behind the books. The writing style is just excellent, Rjurik Davidson has a way with words and uses them to create the perfect setting for his story. It's on many parts nicely detailed but not in a way that it starts to overtake the story and feels like an information dump. The setting that he managed to create really spoke to my imagnation and more than a few times I found myself daydreaming away in this immensely rich world, thinking about the different places and inhabitant that you read about in Unwrapped Sky. The other part of the combination, the idea's behind the book feel unique and fresh and I have only encountered them two times earlier. In both Perdido Street Station and The Scar by China Mieville, though Unwrapped Sky was for me less towards the dark and gritty side. Unwrapped Sky has a interesting world to say the least. It has on one side a heavy influence of an ancient technology going towards a steampunkish side and on the other some epic fantasy influences such as many different beings like the minotaurs, Elo-Tarn and Xsanthians. Added to this is the influence of thaumaturgy that only the Houses control, Rjurik Davidson creates a dangerous and interesting magic system with this thaumaturgy, that it will keep you wanting read more about it. This worldbuilding is on par with some of the great names in the science fiction fantasy field and was utterly impressed. The world of Unwrapped Sky is a perfect balance delicate beauty and dark and haunting. It grows on you and stays there lingering in the back of your mind!

The story of Unwrapped Sky starts with one of the point-of-view that you follow throughout the book. Kata an philosopher-assassin has been tasked by House Technis with eliminating two of the minotaurs, from which they will be able use different parts in their thaumaturgical experiments. After having eliminated the said minotaurs, though with much hesitation, Kata starts to question herself whether she is on the right track with her actions. While still pondering this she is sent by House Technis to infiltrate the seditionist camp. Soon after the introduction of Kata the other two main perspectives are shown. One of them is Maxmilan, a seditionist, that plans to overthrow the rule of the Houses over Caeli-Amur. Maxmilan plans to overthrow the houses to give Caeli-Amur back to the people, let them make their own decisions. In trying to achieve this Maxmilan and his sedisionists go far, terrorist attacks and the like included. He plans to get to his goal in two ways, the first is to rouse a rebellion amongt the people of Caeli-Amur and the second is to learn more about the power of thaumaturgy itself, which now is only in control of the Houses. There is a wealth of knowledge hidden in the Library of the sunken city of Caeli-Enas. The other is Boris Autec, an ex-tramworker for House Technis who has been steadily proving himself climbing up the ranks of the house, eventually becoming the Director of House Technis. Now that Boris is becoming the big man or rather part of the voice behind House Technis he need to quell the starting rebellion against the Houses. But even with the hard hitting thaumaturgical power this sounds much easier than it is... Boris is in for a challenge.

The great thing about how Rjurik Davidson has set up his story was that each of these three different perspectives start off as individual tracks but soon the start to collide. For example Kata infiltrates the seditionist camp led by Max and she is swayed but believes that are being preached about in the camp. There are many parts where the stories of the individual characters come together creating and even better sense for both the story and the whole dynamic of the world.


The characters that you follow like Kata, Max and Boris are very well developed from the start you see that they all have problems that they are coping with. None of them are really happy about their current situation but don't really know how to make this better. Kata is a very strong female lead, but doesn't know what to do, what is good and what is bad, this duality is shown perfectly in her character, in the beginning she is doing things because she must, but as the story starts to progress she starts to learn that making your own decisions and pursuing what you want is more important. Max is an idealist, he wants to make this world a better place no matter the cost. The best thing in his character for me was that, on one part he asks a lot of his followers but he also tasks himself to the maximum to drive this revolution, he passion for revolution comes to a nice show in the end, especially some revelation that were shown in the Library of Caeli-Enas gave a broadening of the storyline. Boris is a dark and negative character. He view of the current world has been shaped by the hardships that he has had to endure in his past. Loosing his wife and his current addiction to the hot wine. His character is quite troublesome and reading about him casts a definite dark sense over the story of Unwrapped Sky, Boris is one who will go over corpses to get what he wants...


Unwrapped Sky is a terrific debut, this is just the story that will make Rjurik Davidson breakthrough in the genre fiction world. The story is fresh, orignal and exciting. Rjurik Davidson shows an interesting world build from mythical ideas and ancient technology that amplify eachother to create a world in which you will dream away in. It's vibrant and dynamic and the characters that you get to meet a long the way keep the storyline just a exciting to read about. There is no strong devision between the good and the evil with the seditionist and the Houses but they all fight their own believe and existence. The characters are by far the typical flawless ones, they each have their own demons they have to fight and make them that more relatable. The world is brimming with very cool and well thought through ideas. Rjurik Davidson cleverly builds up his world, there is a lot of time invested in showing several mechanisms but he doesn't let this overtake the general flow of the story. Where some authors find it hard to strike a balance, Rjurik Davidson does it perfectly. Make sure you read this book! It's terrific.

[Caleb Hill · Rating 4 out of 5]

“One doesn’t attract support before fighting, one fights to attract support. It’s a way of showing that things cannot continue as usual, of showing that resistance is possible.”

The newest addition to the Science-Fantasy subgenre, Weird, is Rjurik Davidson. His novel, Unwrapped Sky, is one of those rare stories that manages to blur the lines between technology and magic, characterization and plot, and what is truly black or white. There’s beautiful imagination tucked in every page, and soon world-building becomes his greatest asset. And his double-edged sword.

Caeli-Amur is in turmoil. There is a revolution brewing for the hearts and minds of the common folk. At the forefront of this battle is Maximillian. However, his violent tactics conflict with the tramworker, Boris Autec. He wishes to seek reform through a rise in power. Thus, the man employs a philosopher-assassin, Kata, to spy on the seditionists and one day take them down.

Of course, none of this goes according to plan, especially when love and aliens get in the way.

So one would expect a dark and twisting tale in the dank streets of the city, cutthroats wrestling for power while flipping to grand escapades of heroic plebian fights. But this is a political novel where power by a word or wave of the finger is what is treasured. Philosophers debate in the street over what is needed to fix the city, but the real solution is a man to act on it.

The three Houses appear to hold control, but that’s far from the case. They crush strikes with otherworldly beings, thaumaturgical magic from another plane of existence. This can incite the populace to fight back at times while others are met as crushing blows to the opposition.

“They lead the citizens astray with wild notions, manipulate the impressionable, use legitimate grievances for their own malign ends.”

But what I love the most in this gritty city is that no person is black or white. People do bad things for the right reasons. Maximillian gets stuck in his head and fights the world for unification and peace, but does just as many wrong actions as the Houses. We are shown the corruption of most revolutions. We see that powder kegs are not lit by ideas.

Kata, the disillusioned spy working for House Technis, kills for a pay, but it’s often times against her will. Still, who’s to say this is right? She has a choice, doesn’t she?

And Boris, probably the deepest and most repulsive character of the three POVs learns the hard way that the road to Hell is paved with good intentions.

It is a brilliant cast set on the backdrop of a brilliant city; a multi-layered place that breathes just like its citizens. There is a depth to its history that amazes me.

“’We all stand on our past, Boris. Without our past, who are we?’”

From the very first page, Davidson paints a vivid picture of a land occupied by Minotaurs, men made of machines, and fish slaves. Verbosity is truly his greatest gift. It helps create a wondrous and immersive world. I’m finding that often times authors that have established themselves in the New Weird niche focus predominately on the little things.

I have no problem with exploring an underwater cavern for the entirety of one chapter, so long as the descriptions are able to keep me afloat. But at times, Davidson’s ability to play with ideas messes with the pacing.

That’s the reason it took me a while to finish this debut. Toward the end, however, plot takes precedence and reigns the sluggish pacing along. Until then, though, we’re faced with moving pieces around for the coming revolution.

Which brings me to the resolution.

It was a nice ending, full of an almost empty win and foreboding wait for what’s to come. But while change is on the horizon, I think Davidson could’ve cut the last act out entirely, save maybe the one POV switch to Armand.

In the end, if you like your Science-Fantasy blended together with the strangest of things and topped off with a healthy dose of gray, sharp politics, then I can’t recommend this book enough. It can be a grind to get through the middle, but it more than makes up for that as you near the finish line.

Like the sea of potential in the finale, I can’t wait to see what Davidson does next.

“Sometimes small evils needed to be performed for a greater good.”

*I was given this ARC for my honest review.*

[Anna Spark · Rating 5 out of 5]

In places, this book is sublime.

First the negatives: I found the weird fiction elements slightly overdone, giving rise to the sensation Davidson had rather thrown the kitchen sink at the novel intellectually. There seemed to be a lot of tropes in there, fighting for space, when maybe fewer explored in greater detail would have been more persuasive as a weird but convincing cityscape. But then, I read and write an awful lot of weird cityscapes.... I also felt the prose slightly forced in places, creating a sense that Davidson was striving for 'literary quality'.

A bit irritating, in other words.

BUT: as I said, in places, this book is sublime. Astonishing. Amazing. Beautiful. Terrifying.

The passages describing the Elo-Talern, in particular, left me breathless and sick with writerly envy. Fundamentally representatives of the classic 'alien beings/gods/magicians' all-powerful 'others' trope, the Elo-Talern become something else, something far stranger and more haunting. They are an embodiment of the abject, impossible to understand, horrifying, pitiable, at the same time a vision of human materiality and decay and a profound glimpse of the numinous, the sublime. Possibly worthy of Kristieva, certainly far more unsettling and convincing than pretty much anything since Vandeermeer or M. John Harrison. Davidson has been compared to China Mieville, but I found Unwrapped Sky far more complex, subtle and plausible, certainly with regard to the way in which the shared themes of abjectification and bodily abstraction are described and used.

Like Mieville, too, Davidson's politics are overt, prescient, urgent, necessary. Unwrapped Sky is openly, unapologetically and classically Marxist, aware of that, cynical in its awareness. As I said, urgent and necessary. I felt at times that the plot was slightly driven by the political agenda, but that's highly preferable to the 'apolitical', supposedly post-ideological victory of the right in mass culture.

The characters are interestingly drawn, plausible, none an obvious hero (perhaps none even particularly 'likeable' in that depressingly reductionist sense) but all understandable, realistic, human. The city of Caeli-Amur is well realised, perhaps slightly derivative in the way all weird cities ultimately end up being but convincingly alive. Convincing, too, as a place to live.

In the context of the sad/sick puppies debates, I can only say: Nominate this book for a Hugo now!

[Katie Burton · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've read some of Davidson's short stories and quite enjoyed them. I think he's an intelligent writer with a social conscience and I was looking forward to Unwrapped Sky when I heard it was coming out. Added to that is there seems to some amazing talent coming out of the antipodes, with Mark T. Barnes and Rjurik Davidson at the forefront of what may be a reverse literary colonisation of the rest of the fantasy world. :) If these two are any indication, Australia is the place to watch for emerging talent in the genre, where their debuts on the world stage have been intelligent, challenging, and innovative reads.

But I'm here to talk about Mr. Davidson. I wanted to enjoy Unwrapped Sky far more than I did. I'm not sure whether I stumbled on my own expectations, or whether I'd been so impressed with other debuts that I just expected more from this. Unwrapped Sky is in no way a bad book. I liked it. I just didn't *love* it.

Davidson writes from the heart as well as the head, his social, historical, and political conscience apparent in his world, story, and characters. Though I loved the minotaurs and the New Weird feel, this is an intellectual work that sometimes becomes ponderous, even laborious, in the reading. There were times when I wanted to abandon the story, but was then hooked by something enough to keep me going. But it was a flat sine wave rather than one with marked peaks and troughs. I didn't engage with the characters in any meaningful way, their struggles feeling too remote as if I was watching them, rather than living them with the characters.

In all an okay book, but a good debut. I'll certainly read more of Davidson's work as I think he, like his Australian counterpart, will get better with each new work.(

[Jon Chaisson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lord knows I wanted to finish this book. I got about halfway and didn't finish, as I just couldn't find a reason to do so.

I felt it was trying too hard to be high literature while still being genre. The prose is wonderful, but EXTREMELY verbose. I found myself skipping pages of text because it took that long for the character to enter a palace, or walk down the street, or do any other mundane thing. That was my big issue--the action was short and crisp (when there was action), but the inbetween was much too long and tiresome. [Not that the author is in dire need of an editor; just that this kind of prose isn't something that always works for me.]

I also felt it was trying too hard to be too many things--part fantasy, part post-apocalyptic tale, part political intrigue, part morality tale, part anarchist screed, and so on. It's hard to juggle many different themes in a novel, and I'm afraid Davidson didn't quite nail it here.

[Seregil of Rhiminee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Originally published at Risingshadow.

Unwrapped Sky is Rjurik Davidson's debut novel. It's an impressive, satisfyingly complex and beautifully written new weirdish fantasy novel that invites comparison with China Miéville's Bas-Lag novels and Anthony Huso's new weird duology (The Last Page and Black Bottle).

Unwrapped Sky is a stunningly original, ambitious and unique combination of fantasy, dark fantasy and steampunk elements. This debut novel casts a long shadow and many new fantasy novels fall under its shadow, because only a few of them are equal to it in style and quality. In this novel, the author pushes the limits of imagination to all the right directions and never loses sight of what's important and fluently drives the story towards a satisfying conclusion.

In my honest opinion Unwrapped Sky is a feast of imagination. It's an unputdownable fantasy novel that has a fascinatingly dark and beautifully grotesque storyline that's full of beauty, terror and weirdness. I think it's good to mention that everybody who has read the author's short story collection, The Library of Forgotten Books, will notice that Unwrapped Sky is tied to the Caeli-Amur stories found in it. It's a continuation of "The Passing of the Minotaurs", which tells about the philosopher-assassin Kata.

This novel intoduces readers to a fantasy world filled with ancient wonders and modern horrors. The following things are just a few examples of what readers can find in this novel: Minotaurs, a cruel political system, a city submerged beneath the sea, philosopher-assassins, dangerous magic (thaumaturgy), captured Sirens that are forced to perform at the opera, strikes that are ended with thaumaturgists who control the Furies from the Other Side, tramworker gladiators, bizarre creatures under the mountains, ancient machines, transformations, hideways, political intrigue, betrayal, love and obsession.

The amount of different elements found inside the covers of this novel is simply amazing, but all the elements are connected to each other and create a coherent and powerful vision of a magical world where light and beauty are heavily balanced by darkness and terror. This novel is one of the few fantasy novels in which disturbing happenings and wondrous happenings support each other and awake the reader's interest in them.

Unwrapped Sky is a beautifully told story about a revolution and change that is coming slowly - but inevitably - to an ancient city called Caeli-Amur. Rjurik Davidson has created a uniquely original vision of a society on the verge of total collapse. The collapse of the society is seen through the varying perspectives of three different characters (Kata, Boris and Maximilian).

The coming revolution is slightly reminiscent of the French Revolution, because the workers are oppressed by the wealthy Houses. The author paints a vivid image of the workers' situation and offers glimpses into the lives of people who have no power against the ruling Houses, but who dream of peace and equality. He writes fluently about the seditionists and how they try to change things for the better, but are aware that change isn't easy and may even cost their lives.

Rjurik Davidson writes beautifully about the ancient Caeli-Amur. Caeli-Amur is a city in which many wonders and horrors exist side by side, and where powerful people oppress those who have no power. A powerful cataclysm changed Caeli-Amur and destroyed the ancients. After the cataclysm many things have been different, because the ground shifted and ancient wonders were buried beneath the surface.

Three Houses - House Arbor, House Marin and House Technis - hold power in Caeli-Amur. These three Houses rule people and evoke fear with their thaumaturgists. The workers aren't happy with the Houses, because they want improvements and more safety to their working conditions. Because the workers have to use the dangerous thaumaturgical magic in their work, they risk their lives and sanity on daily basis. Thaumaturgy affects their bodies and minds in a horrifying way (workers can see dark visions etc). Although the workers want changes and don't want to risk their lives anymore, the Houses aren't willing to do anything to improve the workers' conditions, because they're satisfied by maintaining the status quo.

The three Houses - House Arbor, House Marin and House Technis - are controlled by the creepy Elo-Talern that stay hidden and are rarely seen by the citizens. The Elo-Talern watch the city and people fear them because of their magical powers. The Elo-Talern seem to have lost interest in the Houses and their actions, but recently they've been more active and have once again shown interest in the Houses.

The characterization is excellent in this novel. The richly drawn and three-dimensional characters have their own traits, feelings, needs and ambitions that define them. The three protagonists are called Kata, Boris and Maximilian. The author writes about the happening from their perspectives and shows what each of them thinks about what's going on and how they feel about what will happen when the revolution is carried out by the seditionists.

Maximilian is an enthusiastic liberator, Boris is a power-hungry officiate filled with contradiction and Kata is caught in the middle: Maximilian wants to unlock the secrets of the Great Library of Caeli Enas; Boris is an ambitious bureaucrat whose rise to power has been harmful to his private life; and Kata has to balance between what's right and what's wrong.

What makes each of these protagonists interesting is that they're all flawed. The author makes his readers understand his protagonists and their actions, because they've experienced many things that have shaped them and their way of looking at life. Because a revolution is coming, the protagonists come into conflict and their fates are decided by their actions. I'm not going to reveal what happens to them, but I can mention that not all of them will survive.

Here's more information about the protagonists:

Kata: Kata is a former street orphan and has been trained as a philosopher-assassin. She learned from her dying mother to do whatever she must to survive. Kata has fits and needs medicine for her disease. She works for House Technis. She's in debt and needs to kill two minotaurs to get rid of her debts. When she becomes involved with the seditionists her life begins to change.

Boris: Boris is a bureaucrat. He's a subofficiate and a former tramworker. His daughter, Saidra, dances and sings at the opera. Boris works for House Technis and begins to get more power. Boris is asked to improve the conditions for tramworkers, but he isn't exactly willing to put his the needs of the others ahead of his own needs. One of the mysterious Elo-Talern, Elo-Drusa, is interested in him. Boris is fascinated and obsessed by Paxaea, the Siren, that has been captured and forced to perform at the opera. He does horrible things.

Maximilian: Maximilian is an idealistic revolutionary who has his own visions of revolution. He's a seditionist who dreams of studying the dangerous arts of thaumaturgy and changing things. He wants to create an army of liberation-thaumaturgists to set things right and end the oppression. Because almost all knowledge of thaumaturgy is hidden away in the House libraries and much of the knowledge lies under the ocean in Caeli-Enas and its Great Library, Maximilian dreams of reaching the Library and learning its secrets.

Character interaction is realistic and works well in this novel. Rjurik Davidson writes fluently about the relationship between Boris and Paxaea (and also about the relationship between Boris and his daughter, Saidra). Because Boris is obsessed with Paxaea, his obsession clouds his thinking and makes him act in a rash way and Paxaea is the victim of his behaviour (Paxaea is passive, but Boris is active and enthusiastic in a disturbing way). The author also writes well about what happens between Kata and Maximilian, because they're both different kind of persons who react differently to emotions. Both of them have kept their feelings hidden and have concentrated on other things.

The magic system (thaumaturgy) used in this novel is truly a fascinating magic system (it plays an important role in the story). Thaumaturgists touch the Other Side and are aware that contact with it is extremely dangerous. Technology also plays an important role in the story, because the citizens of Caeli-Amur use techonology and ancient machines can be found under the city. Reading about the ancient machines was intriguing for me.

Rjurik Davidson writes believably and realistically about what happens among the seditionists and inside the House Technis. The philosophical discussions about the society and the Houses are interesting and reveal what kind of thoughts people have about the society, its structure and the current state of things. The author writes perfectly about the state of the society and the plight of the oppressed workers.

The prose is excellent and nuanced. I've liked the author's prose ever since I read The Library of Forgotten Books, which contained four Caeli-Amur stories, but I have to mention that I like his prose even more now, because his writing style has developed over the years and now he writes in a more fluent and confident way than before. The author's lush descriptions of the characters and the city (and its different areas) are vivid and breath-takingly beautiful.

I've always enjoyed reading fantasy novels that offer food for thoughts, so I enjoyed reading Unwrapped Sky. This novel makes readers think why the characters do what they do and why they act the way they act. It raises such questions as "Why is the revolution necessary?", "Who benefits from the revolution?", "How will things change when the revolution ends?", "How will the revolution affect the seditionists and the Houses?" and "What will happen to the protagonists?".

I know that there are readers out there who aren't familiar with new weirdish fantasy or tend to avoid it. I'm also aware that there may be readers out there who aren't willing to read complex and imaginative stories that have plenty of depth in them, because they want almost instant action and battles from their novels. I sincerely hope that both readerships would forget their prejudices and read this novel, because it's a quality novel.

In my opinion Unwrapped Sky should be read by all who enjoy reading good and imaginative fantasy, because it's something different and offers intelligent entertainment for speculative fiction readers. There are too many mediocre fantasy novels out there on the market that tend to recycle the same plots over and over again, so original and thought-provoking novels like Unwrapped Sky are much needed novels, because they remind us of the fact that fantasy novels can offer deep and intelligent entertainment for speculative fiction readers.

I loved Rjurik Davidson's sense of style and use of imagination in this novel. He combines mythology, politics and fantasy in such a brilliant and evocative way that it's difficult not to be impressed by his use of different elements. It was easy for me to see that the author had used plenty of time to create the world and loved what he had created. He takes his time to build the characters and the world, and avoids easy decisions. He trusts that his readers are capable of analyzing things and have an ability to absorb information that is revealed to them as the story progresses.

I have to mention that I especially enjoyed reading about the Elo-Talern, because the author wrote fascinatingly about them. They could've easily come from the dark imagination of H. P. Lovecraft or Clark Ashton Smith. They were fascinating beings who had decaying features and awakened fear in people.

I also have to mention that Caeli-Amur's sister city, Caeli-Enas, is one of the most fascinating places described in this novel. Caeli-Enas is deep beneath the ocean and its Great Library can't be reached by anybody, but it can be seen through the crystal water on clear and calm nights. Sea serpents wander through its streets.

Unwrapped Sky can be read as a standalone novel, because the author wraps things up nicely at the end, but leaves plenty of room for the sequel. I look forward to reading the sequel, The Stars Askew, which will be published next year, because I want to find out what happens next.

I highly recommend this novel to readers who want quality from their fantasy novels, because it's an excellent and absorbing novel. I especially recommend it to readers who have read China Miéville, Felix Gilman, Mark Charan Newton and Anthony Huso. I think that it will also be of interest to readers who have read Martha Wells' Ile-Rien novels, because there's something in its fantasy world that's slightly reminiscent of the world described in the Ile-Rien novels. It's possible that readers of Gene Wolfe will also find this novel interesting, because there are a few elements that will appeal to readers who enjoy reading his novels and stories.

Unwrapped Sky is one of those fantasy novels that remind us why reading fantasy can be rewarding and why we should read it. It's a fantastical and atmospheric voyage through new weirdish landscapes and exotic locales. The story is full of mythology, politicial intrigue, magic, steampunk, ancient secrets and richly drawn characters.

There's so much that I could write about this novel, but I think it's time for me wrap things up and write the final paragraph of this review.

Unwrapped Sky is without a doubt the best debut fantasy novel of the year, because it surpasses many other novels in terms of depth, complexity, storytelling and originality. To be honest, Unwrapped Sky is one of the best and most original fantasy novels I've read to date. It's an impressive achievement, because it's a refreshingly different kind of a fantasy novel. Its wonderfully new weirdish atmosphere will leave readers holding their breath and wanting more. With this novel Rjurik Davidson proves that he is the new master of new weirdish fantasy that sparkles with creativity and originality.

Very highly recommended!

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. In no way was I compensated for my review.

Unwrapped Sky by Rjurik Davidson is my first read in the New Weird genre, and I don’t think it will be my last. New Weird is a literary genre that started in the 1990’s. If you’re like me and had no idea what that means, here’s a definition of New Weird by two of its writers Jeff and Ann VanderMeer, that appears in their work The New Weird:

"A type of urban, secondary-world fiction that subverts the romanticized ideas about place found in traditional fantasy, largely by choosing realistic, complex real-world models as the jumping off point for creation of settings that may combine elements of both science fiction and fantasy."

Doesn’t that sound interesting? Good, let’s move on to the book itself. Unwrapped Sky tells the story of three people living in Caeli-Amur, a city that harkens to ancient Greece or Rome, but with some advancements like trains and trams thrown in for good measure. It feels a bit Steampunk-esque, although most of the construction of these advancements is done through thaumaturgy, which if left unchecked and done improperly can cause serious harm to the individual who wields it. It is in this state that workers begin to seek freedom from the three Houses that run the city and their lives, and tensions are high as the balance of power begins to shift.

Our three main characters are individuals as detailed as the world Davidson has created. Kata is a philosopher assassin from House Technis who only seeks peace. She’s been indebted to the House for some time, and is tasked with one last mission to kill two Minotaurs in order to get her freedom in the form of a country villa outside the city. Boris is a subofficiate from House Technis whose desires are sometimes hard to figure out. He is a widower whose grown child doesn’t care for him, and as such is painted pretty sympathetically in the beginning. But as his journey goes on, it becomes difficult to care about what happens to him, as he is a sniveling mess of a man, switching sides between the House and the people at the drop of a hat. Maximilian is a seditionist and a student of thaumaturgy who seeks knowledge as he sees it as a means to help free the people from the Houses. Living with a group of seditionists, Maximilian wants to take action while the rest are more cautious.

Of the three, Kata was my favorite character, although the only person I really didn’t like was Boris. Told in an alternating third-person-limited point-of-view, the story opens with Kata and her quest to kill two Minotaurs. Right away with her, we get the sense of what she says she wants (peace) and what she really yearns for (connection). Kata is a strong, believable character, and I enjoyed her story.

There are so many aspects of this book that I marveled over, but to share them would be selfish. I don’t want to spoil any part of the plot, which is politically and philosophically heavy. If you enjoy either of those facets in your books, I highly recommend checking this one out. The three stories weave together well, and eventually the main characters are all on the same track, though sometimes different sides. I admit that I read through Boris’ chapters a bit more carelessly, sometimes skimming to get to the meat of it since I did not care reading his sections (hence the reason for a four rating).

There is one area that I want to dive a little deeper into to give you a picture of what you will encounter here. Thaumaturgy is practiced magic that needs to be done in the exact way in order to achieve the desired effect without harm to the caster. In Caeli-Amur, the Houses have workers use thaumaturgy without teaching them the proper, safe way to do it. This leads to a lot of sickness and deaths (which prompts the uprising), as this magic is no joke. I highlighted the following while I was reading, because it was a wickedly grotesque explanation of the effects:

“He pulled open his shirt to reveal a strange pattern on his skin. Boris looked closer and grimaced. Scales were growing on Mathias’s skin, and at points dotted around his chest little lumps, like eyes, seemed to be emerging. ‘I have used too much uncontrolled thaumaturgy. Now another universe enters me and I am being remade.’”

This little quote just illustrates how crazy this world is that Davidson built, and how the magic system is thought out (no Harry Potter magic here). The writing is also tight and the dialogue sharp. This combined with the grotesque and imaginative world led me to really enjoy Unwrapped Sky. It is the first book in a series, and while it could wrap up pretty well as a standalone, there’s definitely more to go on.

This review also appears on my blog Lovely Literature.

[Ethelinda Webb · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book. It was one of my “picked it up randomly whilst browsing at the library” books, and the blurb made it sound interesting. The world that the author creates is very interesting, with a society that has spent centuries recovering from an ancient cataclysm currently on the cusp of a technological revolution.

So, I wanted to like this book…but I really didn’t. I made myself finish it because I’m usually too stubborn not to finish books even when I’m not enjoying them, but I did have to push myself through much of the second half. The writing itself was perfectly good, but I could not bring myself to care about any of the main characters at all. They are neither likable nor admirable. I don’t need a character to be both admirable and likable in order to care about them and find them sympathetic, but I do generally need them to be at least one of those things. Since the characters of Unwrapped Sky didn’t fall into either of those categories, I found myself not caring about what happened to them, and having little sympathy for either their choices or their bad circumstances.

Much of this stems from the fact that the philosophical basis for the events of the story was clearly Marxism, a philosophy with which I (to put it mildly) strongly disagree. (As an aside, I have no idea if the author himself actually agrees with Marxism, or if he just found it an interesting basis from which to write this particular story.) The society of Caeli-Amur is divided into various classes: the heavily bureaucratic ruling Houses, the workers, the slaves, the students, etc. The struggles of these classes form the main conflict of the story.

The working classes, working in terrible conditions under the auspices of the Houses, are beginning to strike and agitate for reform and improvements. The Houses, looking down on those of the other classes as not worth any time or effort, are most concerned with things continuing to function “as normal.” Driving much of this conflict is the fact that the recently-developed technologies are partially built/fueled by magical processes which slowly cause very Lovecraftian physical and mental distortions in those who use them, especially when certain magical safety procedures are not followed. The workers, reasonably requesting to be taught those safety procedures, are rebuffed by the Houses, which don’t have any care for the fates of individual workers. Elsewhere in the city, a hidden group of revolutionaries/seditionists plot to initiate change towards a system where everyone will be equal and have an equal say in how society functions. They stand very much apart from the people they claim to champion, and have their own internal philosophical disagreements, but tend towards an “end justifies the means” mentality which becomes more violent and ruthless as the story goes on.

It was, I think, relevant to my dislike of the story that philosophy was mentioned frequently and explicitly throughout the book, but most frequently in the context of those who stand apart from “everyday” life in some way. There is a group of “philosopher-assassins,” who apparently sit around debating different philosophies of life (several of which are also clearly drawn from real-world analogs) in cafes when they aren’t out on assignments killing people. The seditionists, hidden away in their caves, debate different permutations of Hegelian/Marxist-flavored philosophy as they move towards violent revolution against the Houses as the answer to society’s ills. I have no memory of philosophy being shown as a something that provides a guide for regular people, living their everyday lives – which is what I believe philosophy is and should be.

The book is the first of a series, so several major plot-threads are left unresolved at the end. Personally, I don’t know if I will want to read more, and I cannot (from a personal perspective) recommend the book. It was well-written, and the world is definitely an interesting one, which is the only thing that might pull me back to read the sequel. When main characters that I cannot bring myself to care about spend the whole story in varying degrees of unhappiness and dissatisfaction with their lives, with no particular end in sight, I have little inducement to read further. Other people might feel less strongly about the philosophical issues and character likability than I do, so for some people it might be worth checking out.

[Diayll · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally Reviewed At: Mother/Gamer/Writer
Rating: 4 out of 5 Controllers
Review Source: NetGalley
Reviewer: Me


Unwrapped Sky is an ambitions fantasy novel with a breathtakingly vast world tangled in a web of deceit, betrayal, and revolution. Set in a unique semi-steampunk fantasy universe, the ancient city of Caeli-Amur is under attack by the threats of war and change. Ruled by three separate Houses, the citizens who battle harsh working conditions, life on the streets, technology gone awry and residual effects of thaumaturgy, are finding ways to deal with everyday life and better themselves. For readers, in the span of minutes the world of Caeli-Amur opens into a strange and twisted realm assembled by rights and wrongs, political intrigue and dangerously high stakes for all those involved.


The story is told from three perspectives. First is Kata, a philosopher-assassin (cool right?!) tasked with killing two minotaurs to repay her debts. As a child who grew up on the streets, Kata’s main concern is self-preservation, despite the blasphemy she will commit by killing such sacred creatures. Second, Boris, subofficiate of House Technis who’s addicted to hot-wine and has an estranged relationship with his daughter. Boris continues to struggle with the death of his wife and keeping the peace between factory workers and the evil misshapen beings in charge. Third is Maximilian, a seditionist who is very interested in thaumaturgy and seeks to use it for the uprising. Each character despite their faults and hasty decisions that sometimes turn out to be severe mistakes with dire consequences, were a pleasure to read and sometimes even great to loathe.


From the beginning of the story I felt myself most drawn to Kata’s story and least in love with Boris. I enjoyed watching Kata make mistakes, fall flat on her face, and rise from the ashes to do what was necessary to ensure her survival. Majority of the time she knows what she does it wrong, that she’s often harsh and unfeeling, but at the same time she’s also aware this is the world she lives in and if she wasn’t those things she’d be on the streets or worse, dead. She’s a strong individual and it’s her sheer will to live that keeps her safe. Boris on the other hand is on the opposite end of this spectrum. Through he strongly believes that he is looking out for other people and keeping the peace between workers and those in charge, he has a habit of betraying people and not rising to action when the time calls for it – and in the process creates mayhem for those in his immediate circle.


For a fantasy world of this magnitude one can almost expect there to be a downside. My only complaints with this novel are the long bits of exposition in some places and the lack of a glossary of terms. Unwrapped Sky is an amazing story, compassionate, and written with heart. However, I found myself suffering from bouts of confusion at times when people would refer to certain terms or places. There was always something new to discover (such as Xsanthians, Anlusian New-Men, and disembodied Elo-Talern) and I wish I had something to refer back to for reference. Because of this, my reading pace slowed in some spots but it wasn’t enough to deter my excitement or keep me from wanting to learn what happened next. In terms of the uprising against the houses, where a particular group of people come from, their races, and the principles of thaumaturgy (which to me appeared to be a mix of magic and alchemy), I believed some parts could have used more explanation. But in the same notion, I got the gist of everything without it (I think).


Overall, the world-building spun by Davidson in Unwrapped Sky is outstanding. The characters are deeply flawed almost to the point of no return and the politics are enough to keep you guessing who will survive in such an ugly and death filled world. While parts of the story seemed slow, the majority will keep you on the edge of your seat with eager fascination. And don’t forget, this book has minotaurs…it doesn’t get much better than that. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in an engrossing fantasy that will whisk you off to faraway places.

[Andreea Pausan · Rating 4 out of 5]

In a world where Houses rule, each dedicated to a specific field, individuals are forced to either belong or die. The punishment is death. However, traces of the gods and their mysterious machines lie everywhere. There is unrest and a young thaumaturge braves the deep sea to arrive at the hidden city and unlock the power of the ancients. The main characters are loners, each battling internal demons, each doing their best to survive in an unforgiving world.

[Ali · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was difficult to decide between four and five stars for this one (half stars, please Goodreads!). I went with five stars because at the end of the year, I use my five star ratings to look back on the wonderful reading experiences, the ones that engage brain and heart and change you a little - and there's no question Unwrapped Sky is on that list.

This book is crazy ambitious for a first novel. It's to our benefit Davidson is good enough to pull it off.

The book is worth reading for the imaginative world-building alone: taken just as a description of a 'verse, the world of Caeli-Amur is intriguing and fascinating, and feels as complex and layered and holistic as a living society. But Davidson achieves far more with this - as Caeli Amur's society - living in the ruins of a magnificent and terrible past - becomes a looking-glass view of our own mythology and history, technology and magic, inviting mediation on how we classify one from the other. In Caeli-Amur's heady collision of minotaurs and machines, aristocracy and factories, is some of the sense of all of history happening, a theme which is reinforced as the book moves along and the protagonists underestimate history to their detriment. Maybe.

The book is, of course, 'political' - Caeli-Amur is not a uniform society, and class tensions and structures exist within it. As history collides with itself, these structures are fraying and changing, and it is this dynamic which drives the plotline. There's no crude analogy here, or simple goodies vs baddies, but a mostly successful attempt to look at the dynamics of power and struggle in a realistic social structure.

The cleverness of the book doesn't dominate however The character's dilemmas push the narrative forward, and they shine enough to make the sense of "what will happen next for ..." propel you through the book. These people are real, and complex. They have contradictions and Davidson succeeds in letting you see the world through their eyes, effectively making the conflict more gripping.

I will admit to some disappointment - I am become a cranky old woman - that the personal journey for the female focus character ends up so dependent on her feelings for the men in her life. It feels to be a very male view of women, exacerbated perhaps by the other major female character's social role so tied to her sexuality and role as a love object.

The prose is flowing and sparkly when it needs to be, rarely distracting and occasionally delightful.

It's not perfectly written - you can see the scaffolding of the structure often enough for it to be distracting (even without my frustrations above, this would have held it back from 'best thing EVER' rating), but given the crazy mad ambition of scope, it seems like a minor complaint.
I can't wait to read more.

[Isa · Rating 3 out of 5]

ARC provided by Tor Books through Netgalley

Caeli-Amur, an ancient city, a relic of a golden age long since past where pieces of broken technology are trinkets that adorn cramped houses.

It's a place where minotaurs exist alongside philosopher-assassins, a place abandoned by the gods and left broken. Its sister city, Caeli-Enas sunk deep within the ocean and can be seen glimmering beneath the waves, its streets of white marble inhabited by monstrous serpents. A place ruled by three Houses and kept in order by the Elo-Talern, thin and spindly creatures of bone and death.
In a socio-political climate reminiscent of the Spring of Nations, these autocratic Houses attempt to subdue the discontent workers fuelled by the seditionists.

The story is told through three points of view:

• Kata, a philosopher-assassin who grew up in the streets after her mother's death. She was hired to kill two minotaurs and then to spy on the seditionists.

• Boris Autec, a former tram worker, now a subofficiate of House Technis. He is addicted to Anlusian hotwine, which he uses to quell his grief for his lost wife.

• Maximilian, a seditionist who wants to use thaumaturgy to gain power for the movement.

I must admit, though it started off wonderfully packed with action, I lost interest fairly early on in the book (about 14% in), but kept reading since I could find nothing actually bad in the book. The story just couldn't keep me interested, though it had all the elements to do so: an assassin, mythological creatures, a steampunk/epic fantasy setting built on the ruins of a golden age long past, revolution in the air.

At times I really felt like this book needed a glossary, the worldbuilding is absolutely superb, but everything else seems somewhat vague. I needed more time invested in the characters' and their relationships so I could connect with them, flawed though they may be.

I appreciate that, this being a trilogy, most of this will be addressed in the following books - but without striking that balance between worldbuilding/characters/plot I was left with little desire to learn what will happen in the next books.

This is my personal opinion - you need only read the other reviews to see that what didn't work for me was just what worked for other readers. So, please, do give this book a chance - there is much in it to like, and what I personally disliked, other readers may not.

[Jacqie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This is a difficult book to get a feel for. It's set in a sort of classic Greek/Roman type of city, but there are also trams, vacuum based document carriers, and other technological advances. New Weird probably describes it best.

Probably the best part of the book is the city, Caeli-Amur. Davidson invests the city with a life and character all its own. It's got grimy slums where street kids will try to sell you hallucinogenic fudge, a beautiful artists' plaza which overlooks the blazingly lit ocean, pleasure gardens which give the illusion of being under the sea, and factories where dangerous magics are used in order to manufacture technology. I loved reading about the city and would actually like a map so I have a better idea about locations within it.

This is a story about revolution. Workers are forced to use magics which slowly alter them and eventually kill them without proper protection. There are three great houses, Technis, Marin, and Arbor, which have a tight grip on the poverty-stricken population. The atmosphere is tense and things are about to come to a head.

We have 3 POV characters. Kata is a philosopher-assassin (cool concept) who has been hired by Technis to spy on the revolutionaries. Boris is her employer, a director of Technis house who is becoming more embroiled in the schemes of the inhuman creatures who provide power to the houses. Maximilian is a revolutionary and a magician. He wants a better life for the inhabitants of Caeli-Amur, but he also wants more magical knowledge and is somewhat naive to the grim realities of politics.

Magic in this world is an amorphous, frightening thing which isn't fully understood. It's a bit lovecraftian in it's access to a different dimension containing both power and monsters. Maximilian longs for a sort of unified theory of magic, which may allow casters to work without the hideous side effects that are now the consequence of magic.

This is a great world. There are minotaurs, sirens, tritons, and furies from classic myth, but these creatures are all a bit different than you'd expect. I loved the juxtaposition of the ancient culture with a steampunky tech feel.

The character writing is a little choppy, which is why I haven't given the book 5 stars. Boris and Maximilian felt just a bit shallow as characters, and dialogue wasn't always smooth. However, I'm eager to read more by this author.

[S.B. Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s hard to categorise Davidson’s Unwrapped Sky in more than a general sense (as Fantasy) and this is a good thing.

It’s vivid and evocative descriptions belie the origins of a world that began in the realm of short stories (several of Davidson’s earlier published short works are set in this world) where your words must do much heavier lifting. Consequently Unwrapped Sky feels very richly realised to me, dirty, gritty, tangible. In places this might slow the ride a little but when Davidson is directing our attention at something, the direction is not wasted.

The tale follows the fortunes of three principal characters: Kata, a philosopher assassin and agent of House Technis who is increasingly at odds with her employer’s world view; Maximillian, a self taught thaumaturge and seditionist who dreams of confronting the Houses with their own magics; and Boris, a former tram worker who begins a quick(and perhaps unmerited) rise to power in House Technis.

If I must be forced to categorise it, Unwrapped Sky contains elements of Greek myth, industrial fantasy, post apocalypse and subtle weird horror. It is also very definitely a novel that shows power and the powerful to be corrupt and corrupting. The storyline features workers uniting against ancient houses after their calls for better working conditions are ignored, fallen godlike beings and the Elo-Talern - decrepit and decaying powers behind the throne.

Comparison’s have been made to China Miéville and I can see that on account of the weird horror elements and the sympathy Davidson generates for the working classes. It’s by no means message fiction, more a refreshing change of perspective from conservative fantasy that sees us sympathising with characters that seek to return the world to the “natural order of things” whether that be a quaint shire or the return to a benevolent monarchy under a protagonist who is the rightful heir.

This progressive take on the fantasy tale and its unnerving horror elements are the two standouts that I take away from Unwrapped Sky. The flickering horse skull vision of the Elo-Talern, Alien monstrosities that appear odd and whole one moment then decayed and skeletal the next, is an enduring image.

If you are after fantasy that does something different with all of those aforementioned categories, I recommend Unwrapped Sky. Its perspective also sets some unique possibilities to diverge from the standard fantasy trilogy plotline.

This book was provided by the publisher.

[Linguana]

Here's another review book I couldn't finish. It suffered from many of the same symptoms as "The Waking Engine" by David Eddison did, but Rjurik Davidson did give his characters a bit more room to come to life.
While Eddison simply seemed to have added characters in order to show off his fancy world building, Davidson shifts perspective to keep things moving. However, every single chapter starts with a few pages of boring exposition, there is little dialogue and not nearly enough world building set up in order to understand the events that are happening. If I hadn't read the blurb, I would have been rather lost.

But - and this is a big But - this book isn't without merit. I believe that many people will like it a lot more than I did. The style didn't appeal to me and after about a third, I gave up. After all, forcing myself to read 10 pages at a time and then putting the book down annoyed isn't my idea of fun. But if you enjoy the writing and don't mind the exposition, there could be something there for you.

With three protagonists - vastly different in social status and personality - there is a good chance readers will fall in love with at least one of them and follow their story longer than I did. Kata, a former street urchin now employed by House Technis, has to kill two minotaurs in order to pay off her dept. Maximilian is a rebel, collecting people for his cause to overthrow the political status quo. And Boris is trying to better the working conditions for railroad workers.

There are hints of magic and tons of politics - but I didn't get deep enough into them to be hooked. While I believe this book may just kick off eventually, I lack the stamina to push through more than a third of a book to finally get to the parts that are good. I would definitely recommend to read an excerpt and see if it's for you. And if it is, be nice and let me know if I missed something brilliant.

[Miamay · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a suprisingly delightful read. I did not have high expectations for this book and i am glad i was wrong about this preemptive assumption. The books prose and writing differs from traditional fantasy, however, not in a negative sense. It was a smooth reading experience with a mix-mash of genres (greek mythology, steampunk, fantasy, low sci-fi) that blended seamlessly and created a refreshing fantasy world.

[Grack21 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book of 2014 so far this year. And it's been a pretty damn good year.
If there is justice in the world, this will sell millions of copies and win every award.