Cultists. Gods. A giant squid. London. War. The end of the world. These are the things that make up China Mieville’s most recent work, Kraken.
It all starts when the giant squid at the Museum of Natural History in London disappears without a trace in the middle of the day. The tank he had been kept in intact, no indication as to how or why. The museum curator, Billy, who had preserved the squid, finds him gone and is thrown into an alternate London of cult gods, magic, and war.
There’s the Tattoo, who is forever confined to Paul’s back as a moving, speaking tattoo. There’s Goss and Subby who are the most dangerous assassins that appear periodically throughout London’s history–their names fearfully whispered in the dark alleys. There’s Collingswood and Baron, two cops dedicated to the cultist dealings in London. There’s Fitch and Saira, two Londonmancers who are connected to the city by their magic. There’s Dane, an exiled warrior for the Church of the Kraken who becomes Billy’s unlikely partner. There’s Wati, the leader of a union made up of magical familiars. There’s Grisamentum, enigmatic and dangerous. There’s Simon, a dedicated Trekie who has killed himself multiple times through his knack, and is now haunted by ex-hims. There’s Marge who’s just looking for her lover. And, of course, there’s the Kraken, the God who is stolen.
Billy is thrown into this world in London full of strange characters who possess a unique knack–abilities that use magic to perform special acts. No one knows why, but everyone can feel the world spinning out of control. The End is coming, and it’s up to Billy, Dane, Wati, and the others who understand what’s coming to stop it. But as the story unfolds, and the day gets closer, truths are uncovered that overlap, shift, and change like the tide. Until the last moment, no one is sure what’s going to bring about the fire that devours existence and memory.
Once again, China Mieville proves his inventiveness in creating worlds entirely unlike anything seen before. The characters in Kraken are quirky, funny, and real, despite their strange abilities. It has the elements of all great Mieville works–the city as a character, magic that is steeped in unorthodox ideas, the darkness of an urban landscape, and an ingenious plot that builds a world from the ground up, always surprising with each new turn of the page.
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That’s just how I am. It’s like everything I love about the book I pour into its physical presence, and I’m afraid if I leave it, it will disappear. Obviously, this attachment doesn’t always happen, but it’s one of the things I love about reading and books in general.
