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The World House #1
The World House
THERE IS A BOX. INSIDE THAT BOX IS A DOOR. AND BEYOND THAT DOOR IS A WHOLE WORLD.
In some rooms, forests grow. In others, animals and objects come to life. Elsewhere, secrets and treasures wait for the brave and foolhardy.
And at the very top of the house, a prisoner sits behind a locked door waiting for a key to turn. The day that happens, the world will end...
In some rooms, forests grow. In others, animals and objects come to life. Elsewhere, secrets and treasures wait for the brave and foolhardy.
And at the very top of the house, a prisoner sits behind a locked door waiting for a key to turn. The day that happens, the world will end...
413 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 16, 2010
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May 5, 2021
i am perfectly comfortable being the only one who liked this book in the online book club full of haters, and i declare it to be better than any other book we have read since i have been a member of the group. suck on that, iron duke!!
but i think i was predisposed to liking this based on a lifetime of choices.
quick - some personal backstory.
the first movie i ever saw in a theater was flash gordon. i used to go to the rocky horror picture show weekly when i was in high school, and was briefly in the live cast in front of the screen. (magenta, obviously) i love queen. and unicorns.
let's just say i am a fan of camp and call it a day.
but most importantly, most importantly of all - i love clue. and clue is camp. and i'm not just talking about colleen camp:
but big deal, right? who doesn't like clue? it is pretty much a cult classic, there are midnight screenings of it and it has a great cast and it is a guilty-pleasure romp for many people. yeah, but "you people", can you quote the whole thing?? can you watch it four or five times in a row and keep laughing?? do you own the novelization of the film?? or let's try an easier one to thin the herd - do you own the soundtrack?? i do. i own the recent-issue limited edition soundtrack, of which only 3000 copies were made available to order on the internet.and it ain't no fan-job - there is a pullout booklet with interviews and stills from the movie, and includes music that never even made it into the film! and connor gave it to me. and it is awesome. and i had it on in the background while i read this book.
[image error]
jealous??
probably not, but it was fantastic.
it is one of the best and most appropriate scores to any movie ever, and i have no idea why it was never made available before this. and of course, i was occasionally quoting along with the movie, as i read - filling in the dialogue in between the flourishes of horns and harpsichord. and it was the perfect background music to this fast-paced, manic book, but honestly, i also just wanted a chance to brag about how i have this and you don't and connor is the greatest for surprising me with it.
but so the book. aw, joel is a big ole meanie. and greg is a sad and disappointed reader.
too many characters?? i love too many characters.
and joel needs to go back and count his autistic-capitals before he starts hucking stones around - there are eleven in her first appearance. i agree that it is more pronounced in her later chapters, but they are there. in her second sentence, even. go see! she was actually my favorite character, and i continue to insist that mark haddon = bad, francis x stork = good.
but i don't want to defend this book too much - this is a book that occasionally oversteps itself, but it is like an adorable beagle puppy with those full-grown beagle feet that trips over everything in its enthusiasm, but you know it loves you and wants you to have fun.
that beagle is sad because it knows greg and joel did not have fun.
this book has the scope and number of characters of infinite jest compressed into a much smaller frame with some jonathan carroll-y concepts and it is just the first part of something!! who knows when or where it will end?
but at the end of the day, it is, like clue a book about a bunch of strangers trapped in a house, trying to solve a mystery.
elise is the miss scarlet - a tough stripper trying to make ends meet,carruthers is the col. mustard - the bluff culturally sexist man who knows his way around a gun, penelope is the mrs white - the manipulator of men, who gets plenty of shitty dialogue in the film, but the delivery of madeline kahn will rescue shitty dialogue:
-how many husbands have you had, mrs white?
-mine or other women's?
-yours.
-five.
-five?
-yes, just the five. men should be like kleenex, soft strong and disposable.
i mean - that is terrible dialogue, and some of the writing in this book reads like that, but if you are clue in spirit and heart, this will delight you rather than annoying you.i found it playful, tongue-in-cheek. it is supposed to be pulp, after all - this was never intended to oust tolkien from his throne of "king of fantasy."
yes, there are a lot of characters, yes some of them have rather affected and inconsistent ways of talking. but i am also the only person in america who watched the full run of the miniseries persons unknown on nbc. this show was truly terrible, but i like alan ruck, so i had to watch it. and it had - believe me when i tell you - the worrrrst dialogue ever, and it was just a terrible terrible show about a group of people flung into a town from which they could not escape - sort of like the prisoner, but with many prisoners and i watched the whole season and it was just dreadful but i needed to know how it would all end but then in the last episode even though they never intended it to be more than a one season show, they introduced this whole new element which was the starting point for what could have been a kick-ass premise for a second season and they just... ended.
so my point is i have patience and a high threshold for something if i wanna see how it ends. and i totally enjoyed this, and am interested in the sequel, even though if it ended here, i would be perfectly content. lack of resolution does not faze me, i like david lynch and infinite jest after all.
but if you want to talk about how to get thirteen people in a box, i know someone...
this is my first angry robot book, even though i have bought several, and encouraged their sales to friends and strangers. despite any literary-merit arguments from the naysayers, you gotta admit they make a good-looking book, and almost every one of their books sounds like it would be fun to read: zombie private eyes, knife-fighting game shows, an urban king arthur - these people know how to catch my eye. and i love their cross-promotion. on the back of this one, it says "if you like this try: daniel r. galouye - simulacron-3, tad williams, otherland, clive barker - weaveworld,which is totally generous to promote books from other publishers, but it also recommends sixty one nails and bookman from their own house. i think this is charming. i like this tactic. the readers' adviser in me also likes the other little inset box that gives a sense of what themes the book contains."worlds within worlds, a sinister prisoner,dimensional mayhem, break out!"
nice.
there was this record label out of england in the early nineties called sarah. and they were just an indie jangle pop label and many of their bands sounded similar and sounded like they should all be on the same label: heavenly and the field mice and blueboy and the sea urchins and they were great - you could make a mix of their bands and ensure that the tone would not be jarring from song to song. and this is how i feel angry robot operates - they just publish stuff that they want to read - stuff that is pulpy and fun and a little silly that has no pretentions to high-lit, but is just fun and giggly to read.
and i had fun.
but i think i was predisposed to liking this based on a lifetime of choices.
quick - some personal backstory.
the first movie i ever saw in a theater was flash gordon. i used to go to the rocky horror picture show weekly when i was in high school, and was briefly in the live cast in front of the screen. (magenta, obviously) i love queen. and unicorns.
let's just say i am a fan of camp and call it a day.
but most importantly, most importantly of all - i love clue. and clue is camp. and i'm not just talking about colleen camp:
but big deal, right? who doesn't like clue? it is pretty much a cult classic, there are midnight screenings of it and it has a great cast and it is a guilty-pleasure romp for many people. yeah, but "you people", can you quote the whole thing?? can you watch it four or five times in a row and keep laughing?? do you own the novelization of the film?? or let's try an easier one to thin the herd - do you own the soundtrack?? i do. i own the recent-issue limited edition soundtrack, of which only 3000 copies were made available to order on the internet.and it ain't no fan-job - there is a pullout booklet with interviews and stills from the movie, and includes music that never even made it into the film! and connor gave it to me. and it is awesome. and i had it on in the background while i read this book.
[image error]
jealous??
probably not, but it was fantastic.
it is one of the best and most appropriate scores to any movie ever, and i have no idea why it was never made available before this. and of course, i was occasionally quoting along with the movie, as i read - filling in the dialogue in between the flourishes of horns and harpsichord. and it was the perfect background music to this fast-paced, manic book, but honestly, i also just wanted a chance to brag about how i have this and you don't and connor is the greatest for surprising me with it.
but so the book. aw, joel is a big ole meanie. and greg is a sad and disappointed reader.
too many characters?? i love too many characters.
and joel needs to go back and count his autistic-capitals before he starts hucking stones around - there are eleven in her first appearance. i agree that it is more pronounced in her later chapters, but they are there. in her second sentence, even. go see! she was actually my favorite character, and i continue to insist that mark haddon = bad, francis x stork = good.
but i don't want to defend this book too much - this is a book that occasionally oversteps itself, but it is like an adorable beagle puppy with those full-grown beagle feet that trips over everything in its enthusiasm, but you know it loves you and wants you to have fun.
that beagle is sad because it knows greg and joel did not have fun.
this book has the scope and number of characters of infinite jest compressed into a much smaller frame with some jonathan carroll-y concepts and it is just the first part of something!! who knows when or where it will end?
but at the end of the day, it is, like clue a book about a bunch of strangers trapped in a house, trying to solve a mystery.
elise is the miss scarlet - a tough stripper trying to make ends meet,carruthers is the col. mustard - the bluff culturally sexist man who knows his way around a gun, penelope is the mrs white - the manipulator of men, who gets plenty of shitty dialogue in the film, but the delivery of madeline kahn will rescue shitty dialogue:
-how many husbands have you had, mrs white?
-mine or other women's?
-yours.
-five.
-five?
-yes, just the five. men should be like kleenex, soft strong and disposable.
i mean - that is terrible dialogue, and some of the writing in this book reads like that, but if you are clue in spirit and heart, this will delight you rather than annoying you.i found it playful, tongue-in-cheek. it is supposed to be pulp, after all - this was never intended to oust tolkien from his throne of "king of fantasy."
yes, there are a lot of characters, yes some of them have rather affected and inconsistent ways of talking. but i am also the only person in america who watched the full run of the miniseries persons unknown on nbc. this show was truly terrible, but i like alan ruck, so i had to watch it. and it had - believe me when i tell you - the worrrrst dialogue ever, and it was just a terrible terrible show about a group of people flung into a town from which they could not escape - sort of like the prisoner, but with many prisoners and i watched the whole season and it was just dreadful but i needed to know how it would all end but then in the last episode even though they never intended it to be more than a one season show, they introduced this whole new element which was the starting point for what could have been a kick-ass premise for a second season and they just... ended.
so my point is i have patience and a high threshold for something if i wanna see how it ends. and i totally enjoyed this, and am interested in the sequel, even though if it ended here, i would be perfectly content. lack of resolution does not faze me, i like david lynch and infinite jest after all.
but if you want to talk about how to get thirteen people in a box, i know someone...
this is my first angry robot book, even though i have bought several, and encouraged their sales to friends and strangers. despite any literary-merit arguments from the naysayers, you gotta admit they make a good-looking book, and almost every one of their books sounds like it would be fun to read: zombie private eyes, knife-fighting game shows, an urban king arthur - these people know how to catch my eye. and i love their cross-promotion. on the back of this one, it says "if you like this try: daniel r. galouye - simulacron-3, tad williams, otherland, clive barker - weaveworld,which is totally generous to promote books from other publishers, but it also recommends sixty one nails and bookman from their own house. i think this is charming. i like this tactic. the readers' adviser in me also likes the other little inset box that gives a sense of what themes the book contains."worlds within worlds, a sinister prisoner,dimensional mayhem, break out!"
nice.
there was this record label out of england in the early nineties called sarah. and they were just an indie jangle pop label and many of their bands sounded similar and sounded like they should all be on the same label: heavenly and the field mice and blueboy and the sea urchins and they were great - you could make a mix of their bands and ensure that the tone would not be jarring from song to song. and this is how i feel angry robot operates - they just publish stuff that they want to read - stuff that is pulpy and fun and a little silly that has no pretentions to high-lit, but is just fun and giggly to read.
and i had fun.
September 10, 2016
it's HIGH CONCEPT time!
high con·cept
noun
(especially in a movie or television plot) emphasis on a striking and easily communicable idea.
how about a wise cracking monkey that drives a flying truck while solving mysteries!?!
a romantic comedy featuring one very mixed-up person as the sole cast member!
black people wearing white face!
God is a car and He gives the protagonist odd driving tasks like driving to pick up the kids or groceries; the Devil is a gas station attendant!
a boat that sails upside down!
it's the zombie apocalypse except these zombies are actually werewolves!
in an alternate dimension where incest is the norm, two next-door-neighbors share a forbidden love!
what if that high school bully and his mean girl girlfriend at that exclusive private high school are actually FBI profilers working on catching serial killers before they become serial killers!?!
a house where every room is a bizarre, deadly trap and people gathered there from all across time are like wtf!
okay, so you have your high concept. it's a great concept! and it's a great way to sell a book idea, right? right! now just fill that book with uninteresting, two-dimensional characters who are from different time periods and so they are all given at least one catch phrase that they have to repeat over and over again so that the reader knows who they are. throw in an excruciatingly one-note villain. throw in random cruel meaningless twists of fate that kill off various characters in random, cruel, meaningless ways but who cares because they were two-dimensional cut-outs anyway. now put in a bunch of insipid dialogue that would make any reasonable person cringe. okay, you've got a novel! it has a really fun and interesting concept at its core - so fun and interesting that it is a 2 star not a 1 star book - and the rest may be shite but who cares? it's HIGH CONCEPT!
high con·cept
noun
(especially in a movie or television plot) emphasis on a striking and easily communicable idea.
a house where every room is a bizarre, deadly trap and people gathered there from all across time are like wtf!
okay, so you have your high concept. it's a great concept! and it's a great way to sell a book idea, right? right! now just fill that book with uninteresting, two-dimensional characters who are from different time periods and so they are all given at least one catch phrase that they have to repeat over and over again so that the reader knows who they are. throw in an excruciatingly one-note villain. throw in random cruel meaningless twists of fate that kill off various characters in random, cruel, meaningless ways but who cares because they were two-dimensional cut-outs anyway. now put in a bunch of insipid dialogue that would make any reasonable person cringe. okay, you've got a novel! it has a really fun and interesting concept at its core - so fun and interesting that it is a 2 star not a 1 star book - and the rest may be shite but who cares? it's HIGH CONCEPT!
April 8, 2011
There's something sinister about a structure that's bigger on the inside than it has any right to be, whether it's House of Leaves or the TARDIS or Snoopy's dog house (if he can fit a grand piano in there, who knows what other secrets are buried within?). The World House, which, let's get it out of the way right now, is profoundly disappointing, does it one better by sticking the impossible house inside of a creepy box, which is, I guess, doubly creepy.
And for a while, it is. Chapter by chapter, we slowly meet our cast, as characters from across time -- Miles, a down-on-his-luck antiques dealer with a gambling problem living in 2010; Penelope, a flapper hanging out in sleazy clubs in the '20s; Tom, a booze hound in a dive bar watching news reports of Elvis' death -- encounter a strange old man with a mysterious box: small, unassuming, covered in Chinese characters. The box opens, and suddenly they are transported into the House, where time doesn't exist, nor do the laws of physics, cause and effect, or good character development.
All of the characters are transported into different sections of the house, where they slowly begin to meet up through alternating chapters as they try to survive an environment where anything is possible: a kitchen with an unending supply of food staffed by a cannibal midget chef, a jungle encased in glass, a bathroom with a tub as big as an ocean and filled with evil water ghosts. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I am making this sound interesting.
On the surface, this really should be a good book. Instead, it's an episode of The Twilight Zone. Now, don't get me wrong, I love The Twilight Zone, but there are certain things I will accept from a 25-minute TV show that don't really work in a 400-page novel, among them characters that are defined by exactly one trait (I am a stuffy explorer from the Victorian era, so I am rugged yet dignified and shocked at vulgar language; I am a heroine in a screwball comedy and therefore I make wisecracks about my wardrobe instead of collapsing into a nervous breakdown after I am almost eaten by mutant worms and reanimated wolves).
The plot is a mess. Though weird things keep happening as the characters travel through the house, none of them are that interesting (oh, the friendly band of humans is made up of cannibals, didn't see that coming), and are inconsequential regardless since there never seems to be much danger, at least until it's dramatic (it's the Roger Rabbit rule of storytelling, which I have invoked before).
Here is an easy way to think of it:
+ 
I'd add in a little Dark City and maybe some Monster House, but I don't want to resize any more pictures.
There are far too many dumb characters and not enough good stuff happens to them to justify how irritating they are. Various men and women meet up amidst the insanity of the House but quickly find time to start flirting and trading dull romantic banter. There's the street rat kid from Spain; let's call him, oh, Pablo. He can speak English perfectly, except he leaves out all the articles, conjugates verbs incorrectly and takes all idioms literally, to "humorous" effect; this makes him a unique character. For easy reference, you can think of him as Short Round.
The worst parts, hands down, are the sections from the point-of-view of Sophie, an autistic girl; everything is told to us in short, choppy sentences and Random Words are capitalized to show us The Way She Thinks. "The people here are Wrong. They wear Wrong clothes. They eat Wrong food. Some of the people here look at her in a way she does not like... She thinks this is because people think she is Wrong, and like her, they do not like Wrong Things." I think this book is Wrong to include such an Annoying Character.
And speaking of Wrong, there are a bunch of weird elements that bugged me, like, for example, Sophie only starts Randomly Capitalizing things in her second or third scene, like Guy Adams didn't get the idea until later on but didn't bother to read the earlier chapters again (can't blame him, honestly). Then there is the American character (we know he's American because Pablo makes a joke: "I thought all American wear cowboy hats, is very disappointing. I am surrounded by America and still no cowboy hat!") who talks about finding a torch that was out of batteries. Dear Guy: in America, a torch does not need batteries.
The end picks up a bit, only to close on a huge cliffhanger, which is doubly irritating because I am not going to read the sequel.
And for a while, it is. Chapter by chapter, we slowly meet our cast, as characters from across time -- Miles, a down-on-his-luck antiques dealer with a gambling problem living in 2010; Penelope, a flapper hanging out in sleazy clubs in the '20s; Tom, a booze hound in a dive bar watching news reports of Elvis' death -- encounter a strange old man with a mysterious box: small, unassuming, covered in Chinese characters. The box opens, and suddenly they are transported into the House, where time doesn't exist, nor do the laws of physics, cause and effect, or good character development.
All of the characters are transported into different sections of the house, where they slowly begin to meet up through alternating chapters as they try to survive an environment where anything is possible: a kitchen with an unending supply of food staffed by a cannibal midget chef, a jungle encased in glass, a bathroom with a tub as big as an ocean and filled with evil water ghosts. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I am making this sound interesting.
On the surface, this really should be a good book. Instead, it's an episode of The Twilight Zone. Now, don't get me wrong, I love The Twilight Zone, but there are certain things I will accept from a 25-minute TV show that don't really work in a 400-page novel, among them characters that are defined by exactly one trait (I am a stuffy explorer from the Victorian era, so I am rugged yet dignified and shocked at vulgar language; I am a heroine in a screwball comedy and therefore I make wisecracks about my wardrobe instead of collapsing into a nervous breakdown after I am almost eaten by mutant worms and reanimated wolves).
The plot is a mess. Though weird things keep happening as the characters travel through the house, none of them are that interesting (oh, the friendly band of humans is made up of cannibals, didn't see that coming), and are inconsequential regardless since there never seems to be much danger, at least until it's dramatic (it's the Roger Rabbit rule of storytelling, which I have invoked before).
Here is an easy way to think of it:
+ I'd add in a little Dark City and maybe some Monster House, but I don't want to resize any more pictures.
There are far too many dumb characters and not enough good stuff happens to them to justify how irritating they are. Various men and women meet up amidst the insanity of the House but quickly find time to start flirting and trading dull romantic banter. There's the street rat kid from Spain; let's call him, oh, Pablo. He can speak English perfectly, except he leaves out all the articles, conjugates verbs incorrectly and takes all idioms literally, to "humorous" effect; this makes him a unique character. For easy reference, you can think of him as Short Round.
The worst parts, hands down, are the sections from the point-of-view of Sophie, an autistic girl; everything is told to us in short, choppy sentences and Random Words are capitalized to show us The Way She Thinks. "The people here are Wrong. They wear Wrong clothes. They eat Wrong food. Some of the people here look at her in a way she does not like... She thinks this is because people think she is Wrong, and like her, they do not like Wrong Things." I think this book is Wrong to include such an Annoying Character.
And speaking of Wrong, there are a bunch of weird elements that bugged me, like, for example, Sophie only starts Randomly Capitalizing things in her second or third scene, like Guy Adams didn't get the idea until later on but didn't bother to read the earlier chapters again (can't blame him, honestly). Then there is the American character (we know he's American because Pablo makes a joke: "I thought all American wear cowboy hats, is very disappointing. I am surrounded by America and still no cowboy hat!") who talks about finding a torch that was out of batteries. Dear Guy: in America, a torch does not need batteries.
The end picks up a bit, only to close on a huge cliffhanger, which is doubly irritating because I am not going to read the sequel.
January 23, 2012
You know, I had a hard time getting into this one. Well, maybe that's not exactly it. I got into it really easily, but then 80 or so pages in, it was hard to keep going.
There was a great mystery going on with this box and this weird house...and then there's character after character introduced and slowly I wasn't quite as interested. The mystery didn't matter quite as much with my growing frustration at the lack of plot movement. Kinda like my relationship with the show Lost. I had to take a break around the middle of season two.
But then, and just like Lost, I got back into it and it was kinda good.
You see, there's this mysterious house that people keep showing up at and the only way they end up there is when they have contact with this box, except that they have to be in a life or death situation and suddenly they're transported to a house...that's trying to kill them at every turn.
There's more underlying mystery, but I don't want to spoil too much now do I?
So, we meet character after character, but once the house starts trying to kill them in unique and interesting ways, it was pretty fun.
For instance, there are stuffed animals (both toy and taxidermy) that come alive at "night", worms with jagged teeth, wraiths, oh my!
One of the coolest [possible spoiler, but only because this occurs later in the book] was an entire ocean in the bathroom and the accompanying way it tries to kill you.
The main problems I had were with some of the characters and dialogue. I'll tackle dialogue first. The dialogue killed a lot of the tension in many of the scenes. They would joke, and usually I'm fine with joking and breaking some tension (Jim Butcher does it fine), but this joking was just a bit too much in terms of quantity.
Now the characters. Without spoiling too much, obviously this book is hard to talk about without spoilers, the characters were often just caricatures of their time period. Tom, from the '20s, drove me nuts cat. Yes, he said "cat" every other word.
This is not to mention a couple more who just made no sense, like Pablo, who seemed to be there for comic effect even though he really wasn't funny. I like what Joel did with that one.
I actually enjoyed the character of Sophie, who's a mentally challenged young girl who thinks in the oddest way comparing everything to what she sees as "Right" and "Wrong" and sometimes what's "Just Have To Do," which she doesn't really understand (I might have the quote wrong since I don't have the book right here with me).
And yet despite these problems I had, I'm really looking forward to the next book. That could be because of the largish cliffhanger ending, but I also really started to like it by then too.
Adams' imagination is vast and demented and I love it. His characters need some work, but they'll work for now if only to see what other craziness exists in this world.
3.5 out of 5 Stars (Liked it quite a bit)
There was a great mystery going on with this box and this weird house...and then there's character after character introduced and slowly I wasn't quite as interested. The mystery didn't matter quite as much with my growing frustration at the lack of plot movement. Kinda like my relationship with the show Lost. I had to take a break around the middle of season two.
But then, and just like Lost, I got back into it and it was kinda good.
You see, there's this mysterious house that people keep showing up at and the only way they end up there is when they have contact with this box, except that they have to be in a life or death situation and suddenly they're transported to a house...that's trying to kill them at every turn.
There's more underlying mystery, but I don't want to spoil too much now do I?
So, we meet character after character, but once the house starts trying to kill them in unique and interesting ways, it was pretty fun.
For instance, there are stuffed animals (both toy and taxidermy) that come alive at "night", worms with jagged teeth, wraiths, oh my!
One of the coolest [possible spoiler, but only because this occurs later in the book] was an entire ocean in the bathroom and the accompanying way it tries to kill you.
The main problems I had were with some of the characters and dialogue. I'll tackle dialogue first. The dialogue killed a lot of the tension in many of the scenes. They would joke, and usually I'm fine with joking and breaking some tension (Jim Butcher does it fine), but this joking was just a bit too much in terms of quantity.
Now the characters. Without spoiling too much, obviously this book is hard to talk about without spoilers, the characters were often just caricatures of their time period. Tom, from the '20s, drove me nuts cat. Yes, he said "cat" every other word.
This is not to mention a couple more who just made no sense, like Pablo, who seemed to be there for comic effect even though he really wasn't funny. I like what Joel did with that one.
I actually enjoyed the character of Sophie, who's a mentally challenged young girl who thinks in the oddest way comparing everything to what she sees as "Right" and "Wrong" and sometimes what's "Just Have To Do," which she doesn't really understand (I might have the quote wrong since I don't have the book right here with me).
And yet despite these problems I had, I'm really looking forward to the next book. That could be because of the largish cliffhanger ending, but I also really started to like it by then too.
Adams' imagination is vast and demented and I love it. His characters need some work, but they'll work for now if only to see what other craziness exists in this world.
3.5 out of 5 Stars (Liked it quite a bit)
March 8, 2011
I should be working on writing a review for another website where one would start off a review by saying, "I should be working on writing a review for another website where one would start off a review by saying, "'I should be...'", but instead I've put that review on the back burner and I'm going to knock off a quick review for this Angry Robot release, World House (I just thought while typing that last sentence, why is the robot angry? Is it because of the lack-luster quality of the books it puts out all sheathed in a nice fancy packaging? Would that make a robot angry?)
I didn't dislike this book, rather I was disappointed in it. When I read the little description on the back of the book I imagined a sinister version of Trip to the Stars. I didn't get my hopes up that this book would equal the greatness of the Nicholas Christopher book, because it's the kind of book that just happens to connect in the right way and works perfectly, but I expected it to be in the same league. Instead it was like watching Mirko Cro Cop fight just about anyone in the past few years, on paper it looks like it could stand up but in the end Cro Cop is just laying on the ground, beaten and there really wasn't even much of a show (this is my second Mirko Cro Cop reference I've dropped into a review in the past couple of weeks, I can assure you there will be a third one coming up soon (and I also realized that the first reference was also in an Angry Robot book review)).
But to get back to the book, it's not as bad or as washed up as Cro Cop is in his twilight years of fighting. Parts of the book I found to be a lot of fun, but unfortunately usually the parts I found to be a lot of fun usually ended too quickly, part of this was due to the over abundance of characters and plot lines going on in the book. Any of the plot lines could have been really good but instead they all kind pretty much glossed over while the book tried to keep track of all the characters. I think there were way too many characters, too much (or too little if the book had been longer, which maybe it should have been) backstory setting up too many of the characters and a little bit too much of an epic-scope for the 400 pages of the novel. Even with the cliff-hanger ending (which I had no problem with, but I knew there was a sequel, and I prefer a sequel that continues on with a story to a series of episodic novels, not that I'm sure yet if I will read the sequel though) I doubt that there will be the development in parts of the book that I would have enjoyed. On this topic, the most irritating part of the book for me .
My other big problem I had with the book was that it needed some rules. I'm not talking about some kind of formalist restrain a la Perec or one of his buddies, but just some ground rules for what can happen in the house and what can't. It felt like there was too much that was allowed to happen and it started to feel like listening to a ten year old boy just making shit up and embellishing wherever he wanted to make things impossibly constructed. The things in the house were too powerful, too deadly, too in your face there most of the time that I had a hard time believing that any of the characters could have survived more than ten minutes in the house.
Besides my complaints I enjoyed reading this, and found it to be a good concept that just didn't come together in a way that I would have wanted it to. But that sounds whiny and I hate when people dislike books just because it wasn't the book that they wanted the book to be. I don't really mean that, I just wanted the book to be more fleshed out, more of a world all it's own.
I didn't dislike this book, rather I was disappointed in it. When I read the little description on the back of the book I imagined a sinister version of Trip to the Stars. I didn't get my hopes up that this book would equal the greatness of the Nicholas Christopher book, because it's the kind of book that just happens to connect in the right way and works perfectly, but I expected it to be in the same league. Instead it was like watching Mirko Cro Cop fight just about anyone in the past few years, on paper it looks like it could stand up but in the end Cro Cop is just laying on the ground, beaten and there really wasn't even much of a show (this is my second Mirko Cro Cop reference I've dropped into a review in the past couple of weeks, I can assure you there will be a third one coming up soon (and I also realized that the first reference was also in an Angry Robot book review)).
But to get back to the book, it's not as bad or as washed up as Cro Cop is in his twilight years of fighting. Parts of the book I found to be a lot of fun, but unfortunately usually the parts I found to be a lot of fun usually ended too quickly, part of this was due to the over abundance of characters and plot lines going on in the book. Any of the plot lines could have been really good but instead they all kind pretty much glossed over while the book tried to keep track of all the characters. I think there were way too many characters, too much (or too little if the book had been longer, which maybe it should have been) backstory setting up too many of the characters and a little bit too much of an epic-scope for the 400 pages of the novel. Even with the cliff-hanger ending (which I had no problem with, but I knew there was a sequel, and I prefer a sequel that continues on with a story to a series of episodic novels, not that I'm sure yet if I will read the sequel though) I doubt that there will be the development in parts of the book that I would have enjoyed. On this topic, the most irritating part of the book for me .
My other big problem I had with the book was that it needed some rules. I'm not talking about some kind of formalist restrain a la Perec or one of his buddies, but just some ground rules for what can happen in the house and what can't. It felt like there was too much that was allowed to happen and it started to feel like listening to a ten year old boy just making shit up and embellishing wherever he wanted to make things impossibly constructed. The things in the house were too powerful, too deadly, too in your face there most of the time that I had a hard time believing that any of the characters could have survived more than ten minutes in the house.
Besides my complaints I enjoyed reading this, and found it to be a good concept that just didn't come together in a way that I would have wanted it to. But that sounds whiny and I hate when people dislike books just because it wasn't the book that they wanted the book to be. I don't really mean that, I just wanted the book to be more fleshed out, more of a world all it's own.
September 21, 2011
Imagine if Dr. Seuss got drunk off his ass one afternoon, did a few lines of coke, and decided to write a little somethin’ somethin’ for the grown-ups. Welcome to World House.
How do you refrain from recommending that everyone read a book, when in your heart of hearts you know that not everyone is going to love it? In fact, there will be those who will hate it … or worse … be left bored by it. It takes a stronger person than me. I can’t stop myself recommending The World House as loud and as sincerely as I can … because those who will like it are going to like it a lot.
Here’s what I know for sure: Guy Adams is a writer of awesome audacity and imagination, who has retained his sense of childlike wonder. He infuses this story with all the charm and spectacle found in the best fairy tales, writing the utterly impossible with such conviction it reads as entirely plausible. Not as someone’s dream or a far-off fantasy landscape on some distant moon … but as something in our midst, impacting our world, happening to someone that could be us.
There were moments I was reminded of being inside the The Dark Tower itself, or the Agincourt Hotel from The Talisman. Having made the comparison, The World House is not that serious or frightening; in fact, if you come to this novel expecting terror and dread then you really will be disappointed. While the premise has all the potential to go dark side, it remains throughout a swashbuckling tale of whimsy, delight, and outright foolishness – more Indiana Jones than Hellraiser -- or Cube -- definitely more Clue (see karen’s review here) than House of Leaves. The premise is addictive, and even though the horror fan in me can't help but be disappointed I didn’t get the wits scared out of me, I surely did appreciate the originality, the silliness and the nonstop action. For me it became an intoxicating winsome brew.
As karen points out, like Clue, The World House is “a book about a bunch of strangers trapped in a house, trying to solve a mystery”. Adams has assembled quite the diverse, ensemble cast. As with Clue, or the more dramatic Gosford Park, to really enjoy this book the large cast has to please you, rather than become an annoying obstacle (and a fast way to eject you out of the story).
You won't find three-dimensional dramatic characters with in-depth histories and story arcs. It is true they are more caricature than character, but it works here in this context. Adams expertly juggles all his characters like a bunch of colorful scarves; each is unique enough to follow with ease. I love the voices he uses, and the frequent changes of perspective jumping from cliffhanger to cliffhanger is invigorating. It adds an element of suspense and tension that kept the pages turning almost faster than I could read them.
While Adams’ story may fall on the too fluffy side to be taken too seriously, within its pages he introduces a gargantuan idea and I really can’t wait to see where he takes it in Book 2 – Restoration. This is the second novel I’ve read coming out of the weird but ultra cool publishing house Angry Robot (the first was Slights). I usually don’t take notice of the publisher but these guys have got something exciting going on. I for one will definitely be keeping my eye out for more of their books. As for The World House, read it!!!!
How do you refrain from recommending that everyone read a book, when in your heart of hearts you know that not everyone is going to love it? In fact, there will be those who will hate it … or worse … be left bored by it. It takes a stronger person than me. I can’t stop myself recommending The World House as loud and as sincerely as I can … because those who will like it are going to like it a lot.
Here’s what I know for sure: Guy Adams is a writer of awesome audacity and imagination, who has retained his sense of childlike wonder. He infuses this story with all the charm and spectacle found in the best fairy tales, writing the utterly impossible with such conviction it reads as entirely plausible. Not as someone’s dream or a far-off fantasy landscape on some distant moon … but as something in our midst, impacting our world, happening to someone that could be us.
There were moments I was reminded of being inside the The Dark Tower itself, or the Agincourt Hotel from The Talisman. Having made the comparison, The World House is not that serious or frightening; in fact, if you come to this novel expecting terror and dread then you really will be disappointed. While the premise has all the potential to go dark side, it remains throughout a swashbuckling tale of whimsy, delight, and outright foolishness – more Indiana Jones than Hellraiser -- or Cube -- definitely more Clue (see karen’s review here) than House of Leaves. The premise is addictive, and even though the horror fan in me can't help but be disappointed I didn’t get the wits scared out of me, I surely did appreciate the originality, the silliness and the nonstop action. For me it became an intoxicating winsome brew.
As karen points out, like Clue, The World House is “a book about a bunch of strangers trapped in a house, trying to solve a mystery”. Adams has assembled quite the diverse, ensemble cast. As with Clue, or the more dramatic Gosford Park, to really enjoy this book the large cast has to please you, rather than become an annoying obstacle (and a fast way to eject you out of the story).
You won't find three-dimensional dramatic characters with in-depth histories and story arcs. It is true they are more caricature than character, but it works here in this context. Adams expertly juggles all his characters like a bunch of colorful scarves; each is unique enough to follow with ease. I love the voices he uses, and the frequent changes of perspective jumping from cliffhanger to cliffhanger is invigorating. It adds an element of suspense and tension that kept the pages turning almost faster than I could read them.
While Adams’ story may fall on the too fluffy side to be taken too seriously, within its pages he introduces a gargantuan idea and I really can’t wait to see where he takes it in Book 2 – Restoration. This is the second novel I’ve read coming out of the weird but ultra cool publishing house Angry Robot (the first was Slights). I usually don’t take notice of the publisher but these guys have got something exciting going on. I for one will definitely be keeping my eye out for more of their books. As for The World House, read it!!!!
March 12, 2011
If only The World House had been an episode from The Original Series of Star Trek. I'd have liked it much, much better, although I did like it enough (surprise, surprise) that I intend to read the sequel. I know ,,, I'm a sucker.
STAR TREK NEXT VOYAGE
KIRK: Captain's Log Stardate 3634.8. After finishing our eventful shore leave on Argelius II, we received orders from Starfleet to return immediately to the Terran System. Months long subspace negotiations between the the Daimoni and the Federation have been interrupted by the sudden onset of an inexplicable cosmic disturbance. Before the Daimoni will return to discussions to officially join the United Federation of Planets, we must discover the source of this strange occurrence and set things right. Mr. Spock, Dr. McCoy, Lt. Pearce -- our old Earth historian and weapons expert -- and I will beam down to heart of the disturbance and do our best to put things right.
INT. ENTERPRISE BRIDGE. WORKING HOURS
SPOCK looks over his shoulder from the direction of his science station.
SPOCK: The temporal disturbance is increasing, Captain. I recommend that immediate action be taken.
KIRK punches his console, and speaks:
KIRK: Dr. McCoy, Lt. Pearce, meet us in the transporter room.
KIRK rises and heads to the lift.
KIRK (CONT'D): Mr. Scott. You have the bridge.
SCOTT (crossing to the Captain's seat): Aye, sir.
Pausing before the lift, KIRK waves SPOCK through the doors.
KIRK: After you, Mr. Spock.
EXT. OLD EARTH. ALLEYWAY. DAY
BONES crouches over the body of LT. PEARCE, checking her vitals with his medical scanner. He looks up.
BONES: She's dead Jim.
KIRK stares spitefully at ASHE, a gun wielding, elderly man in a fedora and raincoat, whose gun is trained on the Captain.
ASHE: I'm afraid you're next, Captain.
SPOCK: The box you hold, Captain, is the heart of the temporal displacement.
KIRK (holding up a non-descript wooden box with Chinese characters): This box?
ASHE: That box, Captain.
ASHE pulls the trigger and the gun barrel flashes.
MONTAGE
CAPTAIN KIRK drops from a ladder to avoid a giant, vicious snakes, then shoulder rolls to avoid its strike. He fights a creepy chef in a gleaming kitchen, delivering a double axe handle to the base of the CHEF's neck. He trudges through the snow only to kill a deadly polar bear with his phaser.
END MONTAGE
INT. WORLD HOUSE. CORRIDOR. LATE DAY*
CAPTAIN KIRK and ASHE are engaged in a heated discussion with CARRUTHERS, a world famous explorer, and PENELOPE, a beautiful woman from the twenties.
KIRK: "Ashe has witnessed these events from a dual perspective: he was there as a younger man and ... as an old man. ... So it all comes down to whether his foreknowledge will be enough for him to change how things occur this time."
ASHE: "And, therefore, how they will have occurred."
KIRK: "It's a paradox."
PENELOPE: "As always, darling, you make sense only to yourself.
PENELOPE stands on her tiptoes, and KIRK embraces her in a lingering, closed mouth smooch.
EXT. ENTERPRISE IN ORBIT
ENTERPRISE orbits earth to the sound of Alexander Courage's theme.
FADE OUT
*all quoted dialogue is Guy Adams; the rest is mine.
STAR TREK NEXT VOYAGE
KIRK: Captain's Log Stardate 3634.8. After finishing our eventful shore leave on Argelius II, we received orders from Starfleet to return immediately to the Terran System. Months long subspace negotiations between the the Daimoni and the Federation have been interrupted by the sudden onset of an inexplicable cosmic disturbance. Before the Daimoni will return to discussions to officially join the United Federation of Planets, we must discover the source of this strange occurrence and set things right. Mr. Spock, Dr. McCoy, Lt. Pearce -- our old Earth historian and weapons expert -- and I will beam down to heart of the disturbance and do our best to put things right.
INT. ENTERPRISE BRIDGE. WORKING HOURS
SPOCK looks over his shoulder from the direction of his science station.
SPOCK: The temporal disturbance is increasing, Captain. I recommend that immediate action be taken.
KIRK punches his console, and speaks:
KIRK: Dr. McCoy, Lt. Pearce, meet us in the transporter room.
KIRK rises and heads to the lift.
KIRK (CONT'D): Mr. Scott. You have the bridge.
SCOTT (crossing to the Captain's seat): Aye, sir.
Pausing before the lift, KIRK waves SPOCK through the doors.
KIRK: After you, Mr. Spock.
EXT. OLD EARTH. ALLEYWAY. DAY
BONES crouches over the body of LT. PEARCE, checking her vitals with his medical scanner. He looks up.
BONES: She's dead Jim.
KIRK stares spitefully at ASHE, a gun wielding, elderly man in a fedora and raincoat, whose gun is trained on the Captain.
ASHE: I'm afraid you're next, Captain.
SPOCK: The box you hold, Captain, is the heart of the temporal displacement.
KIRK (holding up a non-descript wooden box with Chinese characters): This box?
ASHE: That box, Captain.
ASHE pulls the trigger and the gun barrel flashes.
MONTAGE
CAPTAIN KIRK drops from a ladder to avoid a giant, vicious snakes, then shoulder rolls to avoid its strike. He fights a creepy chef in a gleaming kitchen, delivering a double axe handle to the base of the CHEF's neck. He trudges through the snow only to kill a deadly polar bear with his phaser.
END MONTAGE
INT. WORLD HOUSE. CORRIDOR. LATE DAY*
CAPTAIN KIRK and ASHE are engaged in a heated discussion with CARRUTHERS, a world famous explorer, and PENELOPE, a beautiful woman from the twenties.
KIRK: "Ashe has witnessed these events from a dual perspective: he was there as a younger man and ... as an old man. ... So it all comes down to whether his foreknowledge will be enough for him to change how things occur this time."
ASHE: "And, therefore, how they will have occurred."
KIRK: "It's a paradox."
PENELOPE: "As always, darling, you make sense only to yourself.
PENELOPE stands on her tiptoes, and KIRK embraces her in a lingering, closed mouth smooch.
EXT. ENTERPRISE IN ORBIT
ENTERPRISE orbits earth to the sound of Alexander Courage's theme.
FADE OUT
*all quoted dialogue is Guy Adams; the rest is mine.
February 18, 2014
Word Problem: If Alice has hijacked Miss Frizzle’s magic school bus and is going 60 clicks per decasecond when she runs through the phantom tollbooth, where will she end up?
Although none of the aforementioned characters (or any reference thereto) show up in this raucous ride with Guy Adams, the answer is probably the World House* where (to borrow Adams’ words) “logic is not always on the setlist” and there is “a never-ending supply of neuroses and nightmares.”
The recruits are as diverse and unrelated as can be, pretty much only bonded by the unlucky circumstances that resulted in their arrival and their desire to survive the mayhem. It seems cheap of me to just evoke a hodgepodge of epic journey ‘lore to describe this book, but it really is part Wonderland, the Odyssey, your worst nightmare and a dash of Jumanji. It’s a recipe for disaster and features the type of nonsense most-often tolerated by children and, thus, found in their tales (but with the rape and all, it might be best to steer away young readers).
This tale is certainly unexpected and most definitely fun. It’s fast reading and (given the lack of logic) not terribly cerebral (although I definitely had to pause a time or two to make sure I knew which characters were which...it’s quite the sizable ensemble). Onward!
* Oh, did I forget to mention that there’s a little ticking wooden box with Chinese symbols on it in the glove? Yeah, that’s kind of important.
Although none of the aforementioned characters (or any reference thereto) show up in this raucous ride with Guy Adams, the answer is probably the World House* where (to borrow Adams’ words) “logic is not always on the setlist” and there is “a never-ending supply of neuroses and nightmares.”
The recruits are as diverse and unrelated as can be, pretty much only bonded by the unlucky circumstances that resulted in their arrival and their desire to survive the mayhem. It seems cheap of me to just evoke a hodgepodge of epic journey ‘lore to describe this book, but it really is part Wonderland, the Odyssey, your worst nightmare and a dash of Jumanji. It’s a recipe for disaster and features the type of nonsense most-often tolerated by children and, thus, found in their tales (but with the rape and all, it might be best to steer away young readers).
This tale is certainly unexpected and most definitely fun. It’s fast reading and (given the lack of logic) not terribly cerebral (although I definitely had to pause a time or two to make sure I knew which characters were which...it’s quite the sizable ensemble). Onward!
* Oh, did I forget to mention that there’s a little ticking wooden box with Chinese symbols on it in the glove? Yeah, that’s kind of important.
February 25, 2011
Okay, I have to say - BAD ENDING! WTF! NOT FAIR!
Still, I can't decided if it should be 3 or 2 stars.
The idea behind the novel is interesting. It's been seen in work like City of Golden Shadow or The Prisoner. Of course, because the idea is interesting, it can quickly wear on the reader.
There are several narrative threads, and when Adams decides to start bringing them together, he almost does so too quickly. In others, the ending feels as if it (a) were too long in coming and (b) too rushed. An oxymoron that must be hard to pull off, but Adams does. While a sequel is promised, it feels as this book was in some ways no more than a set up for that. I resent feeling this way. If the first book is simply no more than a prologue for the second it should be (a) short and (b) part of the second book itself.
What I did enjoy about the book was the world that was created. It is The Prisoner meets Pandora's box. At times the writing is quite wonderful and inventive. And I actually enjoyed the book up to the epilogue when I realized how he was going to end it.
There was a false note, however. Honestly, when two Americans are looking at rocking horses, they wouldn't think of the rocking horses as being lined up for the Grand National (steeplechase in England); they would think Kentucky Derby. For some reason, I found this to be a very jarring false note.
Still, I can't decided if it should be 3 or 2 stars.
The idea behind the novel is interesting. It's been seen in work like City of Golden Shadow or The Prisoner. Of course, because the idea is interesting, it can quickly wear on the reader.
There are several narrative threads, and when Adams decides to start bringing them together, he almost does so too quickly. In others, the ending feels as if it (a) were too long in coming and (b) too rushed. An oxymoron that must be hard to pull off, but Adams does. While a sequel is promised, it feels as this book was in some ways no more than a set up for that. I resent feeling this way. If the first book is simply no more than a prologue for the second it should be (a) short and (b) part of the second book itself.
What I did enjoy about the book was the world that was created. It is The Prisoner meets Pandora's box. At times the writing is quite wonderful and inventive. And I actually enjoyed the book up to the epilogue when I realized how he was going to end it.
There was a false note, however. Honestly, when two Americans are looking at rocking horses, they wouldn't think of the rocking horses as being lined up for the Grand National (steeplechase in England); they would think Kentucky Derby. For some reason, I found this to be a very jarring false note.
December 7, 2014
4 Stars
World House is a pleasantly cool read. This horror adventure is fast paced, well written, and an easy page Turner. It is filled with colorful characters, a cool environment, and plenty of monsters and baddies.
World House is a combination of the movie Cabin in the Woods crossed with the novel House of Leaves in a setting similar to the Phantom Zone. Really great stuff.
I enjoyed this read a lot. It plays out much more like an adventure story than anything else. It could have benefited from a deeper back story. The characters are all good if not forgettable.
I will definitely pick up book two.
World House is a pleasantly cool read. This horror adventure is fast paced, well written, and an easy page Turner. It is filled with colorful characters, a cool environment, and plenty of monsters and baddies.
World House is a combination of the movie Cabin in the Woods crossed with the novel House of Leaves in a setting similar to the Phantom Zone. Really great stuff.
I enjoyed this read a lot. It plays out much more like an adventure story than anything else. It could have benefited from a deeper back story. The characters are all good if not forgettable.
I will definitely pick up book two.
February 27, 2011
A struggling British antiquarian with gambling debts... an American socialite during the Prohibition... a young boy from Spain during Franco’s reign... a barfly and a stripper in the late seventies... an autistic teenager... In different places and during different eras, seemingly unconnected strangers all come into contact with a mysterious box, and all of them at some point suddenly find themselves transported to a different place: a huge house that seems to have endless corridors and stairs, not to mention a room filled with a huge jungle, one that contains an ocean, and so on...
The World House by Guy Adams starts off well, describing the unsuccessful antiquarian Miles as he hopelessly tries to get an extension on his gambling debts. When the perspective switches to a different time and era with the Prohibition-era debutante Penelope, I was still with the author. I even stayed interested when the story switched yet again to Kesara, a Spanish girl trying to stay alive on the streets, but it’s at this point that the frequent perspective shifts and seemingly unconnected narratives began to grate a bit. Fortunately, around that time, there’s a mysterious and fascinating interlude that doesn’t seem to have much to do with the rest of the story (yet), and then Guy Adams introduces Tom, a bar singer who looks to have been modelled on Tom Waits (notice the bar is situated on “Ninth and Hennepin”...), which was enough to keep me reading a while longer again. However, after this, two more seemingly unrelated characters enter the novel: an autistic girl, and a professor who is obsessed with finding a certain mysterious box...
Once every character has finally been introduced to the story, The World House continues as a series of mostly unconnected narratives, with everyone trying to survive the surreal environment of the house. These adventures are entertaining enough to read, but unfortunately The World House takes too long to get to the point and bring everything together. There are some clues and links here and there, and a few characters meet up, but mostly you still appear to be reading a series of seemingly unconnected stories about people who are all trying to survive separate parts of the same bizarre environment.
If you’ve read the OTHERLAND novels by Tad Williams, you may remember the big chunk of River of Blue Fire where it seemed like a new, weird virtual reality was introduced every other chapter. These were all well-described, original, trippy and fun to read, but they didn’t advance the overall plot much, making that book the weakest installment of the series. Most of The World House by Guy Adams has that same feeling: while it’s surreal and action-packed, it feels like there’s just no point to much of it.
When everything finally starts to come together towards the end of the novel, The World House suddenly gets quite interesting. The final revelation of what’s really going on is actually nothing short of great. Unfortunately, before you get to that point, Guy Adams spends about a quarter of The World House setting up the various characters, and most of the rest of the book putting them through their paces in the house, leaving too little time to wrap things up. Even though the separate story-lines are well-written and never boring, and it eventually turns out that, yes, everything did have a point and a connection, what comes before that point may be so frustrating for some readers that they don’t even make it to the eventual pay-off.
Still, if the plot summary of this novel strikes your interest and you don’t mind taking not one but several long and winding roads to reach a satisfying conclusion, you may want to check out The World House.
(This review was also published at www.fantasyliterature.com on 2/18/2011.)
The World House by Guy Adams starts off well, describing the unsuccessful antiquarian Miles as he hopelessly tries to get an extension on his gambling debts. When the perspective switches to a different time and era with the Prohibition-era debutante Penelope, I was still with the author. I even stayed interested when the story switched yet again to Kesara, a Spanish girl trying to stay alive on the streets, but it’s at this point that the frequent perspective shifts and seemingly unconnected narratives began to grate a bit. Fortunately, around that time, there’s a mysterious and fascinating interlude that doesn’t seem to have much to do with the rest of the story (yet), and then Guy Adams introduces Tom, a bar singer who looks to have been modelled on Tom Waits (notice the bar is situated on “Ninth and Hennepin”...), which was enough to keep me reading a while longer again. However, after this, two more seemingly unrelated characters enter the novel: an autistic girl, and a professor who is obsessed with finding a certain mysterious box...
Once every character has finally been introduced to the story, The World House continues as a series of mostly unconnected narratives, with everyone trying to survive the surreal environment of the house. These adventures are entertaining enough to read, but unfortunately The World House takes too long to get to the point and bring everything together. There are some clues and links here and there, and a few characters meet up, but mostly you still appear to be reading a series of seemingly unconnected stories about people who are all trying to survive separate parts of the same bizarre environment.
If you’ve read the OTHERLAND novels by Tad Williams, you may remember the big chunk of River of Blue Fire where it seemed like a new, weird virtual reality was introduced every other chapter. These were all well-described, original, trippy and fun to read, but they didn’t advance the overall plot much, making that book the weakest installment of the series. Most of The World House by Guy Adams has that same feeling: while it’s surreal and action-packed, it feels like there’s just no point to much of it.
When everything finally starts to come together towards the end of the novel, The World House suddenly gets quite interesting. The final revelation of what’s really going on is actually nothing short of great. Unfortunately, before you get to that point, Guy Adams spends about a quarter of The World House setting up the various characters, and most of the rest of the book putting them through their paces in the house, leaving too little time to wrap things up. Even though the separate story-lines are well-written and never boring, and it eventually turns out that, yes, everything did have a point and a connection, what comes before that point may be so frustrating for some readers that they don’t even make it to the eventual pay-off.
Still, if the plot summary of this novel strikes your interest and you don’t mind taking not one but several long and winding roads to reach a satisfying conclusion, you may want to check out The World House.
(This review was also published at www.fantasyliterature.com on 2/18/2011.)
February 27, 2011
I loved this book! Mr. Adams set up the mood very well from the beginning. You start reading it knowing that people are getting sucked into a kind of pocket universe that is a sprawling house inside a box where the rules of physics are more like guidelines. You know that strangers are getting sucked in and can't get out. But, oh!, how the sense of malevolence builds as you work your way further and further into the book. You start to see connections that are anything but spelled out by the author, and you actually have moments where you question yourself and whether you're just making crazy connections. I found the mixture of answered and unanswered questions to be just about perfect.
I love stories set in houses that connect to much bigger worlds (like James Stoddard's _The High House_), and I was really REALLY hoping that this one would deliver something a bit more sinister, a story that would continue to occupy my mind long after I put the book down. This book totally delivered!
The only negative thing is that I now have to wait for the sequel!
I love stories set in houses that connect to much bigger worlds (like James Stoddard's _The High House_), and I was really REALLY hoping that this one would deliver something a bit more sinister, a story that would continue to occupy my mind long after I put the book down. This book totally delivered!
The only negative thing is that I now have to wait for the sequel!
September 23, 2012
Meh. The idea is interesting, but the panoply of characters I couldn't care less about and the rocky quality of the writing just couldn't keep me interested. I wasn't impressed with the way he chose to characterise Pablo and Sophie, either -- we can tell he's foreign because he can't talk, we can tell she's autistic because she keeps in mind the Right and Wrong things to do and Randomly Capitalises Apparently Important-To-Her Concepts.
Also, it doesn't help that when I bought this I was, for some reason, under the impression it was relatively complete in itself, and nope. Cliffhanger ending.
I can see it appealing to people who loved books like House of Leaves, and it can be clever and amazingly imaginative, but crankypants Nikki just couldn't get on with it. (And I don't know what your opinion on it is, but mine is that a good book should make me forget I'm in a bad mood.)
Also, it doesn't help that when I bought this I was, for some reason, under the impression it was relatively complete in itself, and nope. Cliffhanger ending.
I can see it appealing to people who loved books like House of Leaves, and it can be clever and amazingly imaginative, but crankypants Nikki just couldn't get on with it. (And I don't know what your opinion on it is, but mine is that a good book should make me forget I'm in a bad mood.)
May 13, 2010
This is a teriffic book. Original and very clever.
A small wooden box crosses the path of a large number of characters, some are transported to a place that exists outside of time and space. The World House defies reality, the bathroom contains a sea, the playroom hosts a real game of snakes and ladders. The House has many ways to kill you and if you make it through to the room at the top and open that door...the real world is destroyed.
With great characters, constant surprises and great humour, the author has taken a wonderful idea and delivered a powerful read. I loved this book.
A small wooden box crosses the path of a large number of characters, some are transported to a place that exists outside of time and space. The World House defies reality, the bathroom contains a sea, the playroom hosts a real game of snakes and ladders. The House has many ways to kill you and if you make it through to the room at the top and open that door...the real world is destroyed.
With great characters, constant surprises and great humour, the author has taken a wonderful idea and delivered a powerful read. I loved this book.
November 12, 2014
Time travel always leaves me confused. I don't think I can wrap my head around different versions of the same person showing up in the same place. I did enjoy this book and be warned it pretty much ends in the middle of the story. I will read the next one to find out what happens.
April 20, 2012
An unusual story that reminded me, ever so slightly of Jumanji. Though nowhere near as tame, The World House follows a wide cast of characters who have been sucked into the house by opening what one might consider a distorted version of Pandora's Box. It all seems to be happening for a reason, but throughout the story, it is difficult to divine just what that reason might be... and then when all the threads come together at the end, well... this book is a horror/thriller for a reason.
Plenty of gore and sudden death, especially near the end, which is to be expected of the genre. Slightly less expected is the wide variety of 'monsters' from brooms in the broom cupboard to sharp toothed cherubs and cannibalistic natives.
My favourite character by far was the autistic girl, Sophie. Her perspective was wonderfully distorted and yet seemed to make more sense than anything else. The main character, Alan's desperate attempts to protect her innocence were, for me, what drove this story.
Only one real downside was that I noticed in several places that the book had not been properly edited and it made the flow a bit jarring. Especially when whole letters were missing and you got "I is" as opposed to "It is". Something the publishers should definitely be looking out for.
All in all though, a great book for those of you out there who like horrors with a decent plot and a decent sized twist at the end!
Plenty of gore and sudden death, especially near the end, which is to be expected of the genre. Slightly less expected is the wide variety of 'monsters' from brooms in the broom cupboard to sharp toothed cherubs and cannibalistic natives.
My favourite character by far was the autistic girl, Sophie. Her perspective was wonderfully distorted and yet seemed to make more sense than anything else. The main character, Alan's desperate attempts to protect her innocence were, for me, what drove this story.
Only one real downside was that I noticed in several places that the book had not been properly edited and it made the flow a bit jarring. Especially when whole letters were missing and you got "I is" as opposed to "It is". Something the publishers should definitely be looking out for.
All in all though, a great book for those of you out there who like horrors with a decent plot and a decent sized twist at the end!
March 12, 2012
I really enjoyed this book, but readers need to keep in mind that it is just part 1 of 2. Go into it knowing that you will need to read Restoration.
Having said that, my biggest problem with this was the characterization. I really did start to love some of the characters. The banter between Carruthers and Miles is fantastic; the sections narrated by Sophie reminded me a bit of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, which is no bad thing. The problem is there are a whole heap of characters who are poorly-written or just unnecessary.
Otherwise, I really enjoyed this and would recommend it.
Having said that, my biggest problem with this was the characterization. I really did start to love some of the characters. The banter between Carruthers and Miles is fantastic; the sections narrated by Sophie reminded me a bit of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, which is no bad thing. The problem is there are a whole heap of characters who are poorly-written or just unnecessary.
Otherwise, I really enjoyed this and would recommend it.
January 21, 2012
Firs, off, this isn't a novel, any more than The Fellowship of the Ring is. Without any acknowledgement of the fact on the cover of my paperback copy, this is the 400-odd page Beginning of an Open-Ended Series. As such, it resolves a bunch of questions (spoiler alert: mostly the answer is either "Magic!" or "Time travel!") but leaves most plot threads dangling for the next book.
Structurally, the book is mostly a set of dungeon crawls. The parties of viewpoint characters run from one monster battle to another, learning or gaining very little along the way, until they happen to converge on the final Boss Battle.
Along the way, they are menaced by giant snakes, vicious teddy bears, giant bookworms, wolves, a cannibal, some more cannibals, water ghosts, gummy frogmen, wraiths, killer moths, a polar bear, an ostrich, a wild boar, a tiger-skin rug, bloodthirsty cherubs, and miscellaneous sewer bugs. Interspersed with these scenes of peril are long sections in which the exhausted, terrified, homesick, wounded characters engage each other in flirtatious banter and witty put-downs.
It's all inventive and entertaining enough, but the arbitrariness of the perils thrown at the characters, and the constant bouncing between drawing-room wit and gruesome gore has become rather exhausting by the end.
Structurally, the book is mostly a set of dungeon crawls. The parties of viewpoint characters run from one monster battle to another, learning or gaining very little along the way, until they happen to converge on the final Boss Battle.
Along the way, they are menaced by giant snakes, vicious teddy bears, giant bookworms, wolves, a cannibal, some more cannibals, water ghosts, gummy frogmen, wraiths, killer moths, a polar bear, an ostrich, a wild boar, a tiger-skin rug, bloodthirsty cherubs, and miscellaneous sewer bugs. Interspersed with these scenes of peril are long sections in which the exhausted, terrified, homesick, wounded characters engage each other in flirtatious banter and witty put-downs.
It's all inventive and entertaining enough, but the arbitrariness of the perils thrown at the characters, and the constant bouncing between drawing-room wit and gruesome gore has become rather exhausting by the end.
April 6, 2011
Wow, what words can I possibly write about a book that said plenty already? So much happened in that book and yet, really so very very little took place! The first couple of pages fell out unreliably slow and 120 pages in, Adams was not only still introducing characters, but he was also still setting up the story! The absolute vastness of his creation is overwhelming to consider, and for that alone I must pay homage to a brilliantly colloquialized method of storytelling. Creatures, characters, atmospheres, themes and plot lines shifted just as quickly as I could turn the page and even above that, no two were alike! For a writer to compile so many main characters so well established with such depth and purpose, it is truly astounding to me.
This book combines mystery, thrill, fantasy, drama, humor, horror and history all into one story, that's apparently only the beginning of a grander tale. I look forward to more from Adams, and I'm glad to say I've had the experience of reading his work once.
It truly was a pleasure full of twists and turns and secrets popping up everywhere!
This book combines mystery, thrill, fantasy, drama, humor, horror and history all into one story, that's apparently only the beginning of a grander tale. I look forward to more from Adams, and I'm glad to say I've had the experience of reading his work once.
It truly was a pleasure full of twists and turns and secrets popping up everywhere!
March 22, 2011
Across the world, from different periods in time, characters encounter a strange magical box and through a series of thrilling events find themselves drawn to the World House. The House exists outside Time. Corridors seem endless. There is an ocean in the bathroom. A killer chef in the kitchen. Lethal moths. Sinister ghosts. Even an ostrich and more besides. The various characters journey through the house looking for a way out. But is someone else - someone alien and terrifying - looking for a way in?
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It's gorgeously quirky and not quite like any other book I've read. There are shades of Clive Barker, a dash of Lovecraft, but it stands apart as its own work and keeps you guessing from start to finish. Consistently well-written and engaging, 'The World House' is modern Fantasy at its best. A mesmerising, surreal adventure.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It's gorgeously quirky and not quite like any other book I've read. There are shades of Clive Barker, a dash of Lovecraft, but it stands apart as its own work and keeps you guessing from start to finish. Consistently well-written and engaging, 'The World House' is modern Fantasy at its best. A mesmerising, surreal adventure.
April 15, 2011
This book made me feel like I've read too much weird fiction. This was supposed to be! wildly! original, and I just kept seeing what, to me, have become old tropes.
House of Leaves plus Jumanji.
Time travel means being your own worst enemy - literally.
Loki screws things up again.
Look! The magical autistic savant!
Ah, the writing went well enough and kept me turning pages until the end, but I won't be chasing down the sequel. The thought just makes me feel tired. I think what lost it for me is that the author didn't seem to add anything I hadn't seen before, and didn't see things differently enough for me to enjoy the uniqueness of his vision. It was too movie-ish, too slick, too polished for that.
House of Leaves plus Jumanji.
Time travel means being your own worst enemy - literally.
Loki screws things up again.
Look! The magical autistic savant!
Ah, the writing went well enough and kept me turning pages until the end, but I won't be chasing down the sequel. The thought just makes me feel tired. I think what lost it for me is that the author didn't seem to add anything I hadn't seen before, and didn't see things differently enough for me to enjoy the uniqueness of his vision. It was too movie-ish, too slick, too polished for that.
March 15, 2011
This book is pretty cool and twisted. A selection of characters (taken from various points in time as well) come across an odd little box. Once they start fiddling with the box, they find themselves suddenly transported to a room in a very odd house. The house defies logic, has endless corridors, and contains all manner of deadly things within. The story follows these small groups of house travelers as they A) try to stay alive, and B) try to get back home. The journey is a bit of a page-turning romp but the ending leaves some unanswered questions and loose strings. No matter. The sequel, Restoration, comes out in July and I'll be snapping it up at the first opportunity.
July 27, 2011
I wanted to like this based on the i09 recommendation. But it just fell flat for me about halfway in as soon as one of the major plot points became apparent. Also considering that it's not particularly long I see no reason why some attempt could not have been made to tie up the story in one volume. But writer's have to eat I suppose, not sure I'll be there for the next one truth be told.
April 19, 2011
This reminded me of Jumanji for adults. I liked it even though it didn't go into much detail about all the different worlds within the World House.
And WTF with that ending! Way to force someone to read book 2.
And WTF with that ending! Way to force someone to read book 2.
September 13, 2011
Off the wall and not really for me.
January 19, 2025
I am not too sure what to make of the World House. There were parts I really enjoyed and other aspects I disliked. Since I am polarised on whether I liked it or not, I think it reasonable to give it a solid 3 stars.
The reason I was originally drawn to the World House is because I love stories that feature liminal spaces. It is why I read Piranesi and The House of Leaves (yet to finish).
"There is a box and inside that box is a door, beyond that door..."
What I enjoyed about this book was just the whimsical absurdity of it. See mark monday, who describes it as high concept, and I have to agree. Guy Adams was very imaginative in his storytelling and worldbuilding. I particularly liked the ocean/bathtub idea. I also adored the character Sophie as well, and her perspective was unique to see in a fantasy book and, if not well written, at the very least thought through.
Despite all this, as mentioned, the higher the concept, the higher the pedestal to fall from. I have a whole host of mini irks with the narration. I really disliked how one of the characters can be summed up as making one-liners at every opportunity. There was nothing much to him. It was entertaining the first few times, but it quickly became bothersome. I also SPOILER did not feel emotionally invested when characters died. I was not convinced by many of the relationships, so it had less of an emotional impact. I am aware this is completely subjective, so take it with a pinch of salt.
There were a few typos, but they were few and far between and did not affect my overall enjoyment of the story. It's good if you want an easy, fun fantasy to read. But if you are a stickler for good narration and believable characters, this might not be for you.
TRIGGER WARNINGS: implied SA, r*pe (word used), guns, death, mild violence and gore, curse words, drug abuse (mentioned)
The reason I was originally drawn to the World House is because I love stories that feature liminal spaces. It is why I read Piranesi and The House of Leaves (yet to finish).
"There is a box and inside that box is a door, beyond that door..."
What I enjoyed about this book was just the whimsical absurdity of it. See mark monday, who describes it as high concept, and I have to agree. Guy Adams was very imaginative in his storytelling and worldbuilding. I particularly liked the ocean/bathtub idea. I also adored the character Sophie as well, and her perspective was unique to see in a fantasy book and, if not well written, at the very least thought through.
Despite all this, as mentioned, the higher the concept, the higher the pedestal to fall from. I have a whole host of mini irks with the narration. I really disliked how one of the characters can be summed up as making one-liners at every opportunity. There was nothing much to him. It was entertaining the first few times, but it quickly became bothersome. I also SPOILER did not feel emotionally invested when characters died. I was not convinced by many of the relationships, so it had less of an emotional impact. I am aware this is completely subjective, so take it with a pinch of salt.
There were a few typos, but they were few and far between and did not affect my overall enjoyment of the story. It's good if you want an easy, fun fantasy to read. But if you are a stickler for good narration and believable characters, this might not be for you.
TRIGGER WARNINGS: implied SA, r*pe (word used), guns, death, mild violence and gore, curse words, drug abuse (mentioned)
January 26, 2021
This book… certainly had an opening.
One thing I really liked with our original scene was how it played with its words, going back and forth between events by tying the scenes together until it was almost hard to tell when it transferred over. For example, at one point the main character sits down to gamble, where one would generally expect to be given a hand in whatever card game they were playing, only for the next sentence to talk about his hand being numb as he tries to get off of the floor. I thought it was an amazing play on words, and the amount of pages the book did this for was an accomplishment.
However, there was a lot going on in the first 100 pages of this book. While the play on words scenes were a little difficult to keep up with, I could still grasp what was happening. Eventually, we leave that main character to talk about the experiences of an insane number of other main characters. I’m honestly not even sure of the number, only that every time I thought we’d finally get on to the main story, I’d be introduced to the background of yet another character.
This went on, as I said, for 100 pages. One hundred pages of infodumping and being introduced to character after character. It was hard to keep track of, and when I got to that 100 page mark, where I generally allow myself my only out if I don’t enjoy the book so far, I asked myself if I could continue on with a story where the first 100 pages left me so extremely overwhelmed.
And that answer was no.
One thing I really liked with our original scene was how it played with its words, going back and forth between events by tying the scenes together until it was almost hard to tell when it transferred over. For example, at one point the main character sits down to gamble, where one would generally expect to be given a hand in whatever card game they were playing, only for the next sentence to talk about his hand being numb as he tries to get off of the floor. I thought it was an amazing play on words, and the amount of pages the book did this for was an accomplishment.
However, there was a lot going on in the first 100 pages of this book. While the play on words scenes were a little difficult to keep up with, I could still grasp what was happening. Eventually, we leave that main character to talk about the experiences of an insane number of other main characters. I’m honestly not even sure of the number, only that every time I thought we’d finally get on to the main story, I’d be introduced to the background of yet another character.
This went on, as I said, for 100 pages. One hundred pages of infodumping and being introduced to character after character. It was hard to keep track of, and when I got to that 100 page mark, where I generally allow myself my only out if I don’t enjoy the book so far, I asked myself if I could continue on with a story where the first 100 pages left me so extremely overwhelmed.
And that answer was no.
June 12, 2019
This isn't a bad story, just could be better written. In fact I really enjoyed this story but at times I had to go back over what was written so I could make more sense of it and sometimes I still didn't feel sure so just carried on. The first 2 or 3 chapters are all over the place with various characters but the story starts making more sense about chapter 6 when characters are better known and their stories start linking with other characters. By chapter 10 I was hooked on the story and it was unpredictable and a fun adventure for all the character plots. The world had me imagining all these places the characters where going through too it was fun. Although I did notice there were hardly any descriptions of the characters appearance, but that doesn't personally bother me. This book a great ending with a twist and some urgency but it was a little confusing at times as it seemed rushed and I had to reread these parts but with both the positive and negative this book holds, I will definitely be downloading the next book to find out what happens!
January 15, 2025
Combining the puzzle box of Hellraiser with the explorartion of Tad Williams' Otherland series, this is the perfect blend of fantasy and adventure, an exceptional modern fantasy debut.
THERE IS A BOX. INSIDE THAT BOX IS A DOOR. AND BEYOND THAT DOOR IS A WHOLE WORLD.
In some rooms, forests grow. In others, animals and objects come to life. Elsewhere, secrets and treasures wait for the brave and foolhardy.
And at the very top of the house, a prisoner sits behind a locked door waiting for a key to turn. The day that happens, the world will end...
File under: Modern Fantasy [Worlds within Worlds | Prison Break | Exploring the Unknown | Dark Powers]
November 28, 2016
Oh yes! You are straight in there with this book. No idea what is going on but there is enough happening to ensure you do not care. Weird and wonderful personified. It is good not knowing hat is around the next corner just like those in the house trying to make their way from the kitchen to the living room. If you like the surreal that eventually offers a suggestion at how to make a sense of it tuck in - it's delicious!
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