It's a really strong followup that's hard to talk about without spoiling much from the first book. But I devoured this in 4 days. I picked up the audiobook to reread the first one, so here I also decided to go and listen to the audiobook. The narrator, Robin Miles, is fabulous. She does a lot of accents for each of the individual characters, which really helps embody the novel. There are immigrant characters as well as native New Yorker accents, so it brings the characters to even more life. Plus the audiobook has some production added with sound effects from time to time, in particular when the Eldrich horror starts to spawn. This series is actually the 2nd and 3rd audiobook I've listened to by Robin Miles, the first being Caste, which I also very much enjoyed on audio. I will have to see what other books she's narrated-- she works so well for my attention span!
What I really didn't talk about in the first book review was that the characterization really does stand out in this series. Each borough is embodied by very different avatars. Each is written with a distinctive style, personality, and manner of speaking. They truly feel like very real but different people, and the fact that they all have to work together to save the city feels like such an accomplishment. It's not happy-go-fun times; it's a struggle.
The world building definitely expands the weirdness of the evilness of the first book. I think it leans a bit towards Stranger Things or maybe some less straightforward Doctor Who episodes. I loved it but it is certainly a little difficult to describe.
I learned that this was originally planned to be a trilogy, and I certainly could read many more books in this world. Between the writing, the characters, and the weirdness, it could probably go in any direction and I would still love it. But it's certainly a great, short two book series on its own. If you read the acknowledgements, you'll learn why the series was reduced to two books, which ends up being a little sad. I'm grateful we got two books, and I'll definitely look forward to future N. K. Jemisin works. Also, other than The Fifth Season, I haven't read any of her back list. Will I finally go back and read those? They've all been on my to-be-read forever...
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Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on November 13, 2022
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Top reviews from other countries
Angelfire
Wonderful finale to The City We Became!
Reviewed in Canada on February 5, 2023
Jost Simon
Wieder ein ungewöhnliches Buch !
Reviewed in Germany on October 16, 2023Ventas Servitas
Trite, rushed, poorly plotted politics...
Reviewed in France on April 20, 2023Amazon Customer
Satisfying conclusion
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 25, 2022