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This is one of the novels off the Hugo Award shortlist this year.
There's a lot going on here - the story is twisty, with alternate realities, a non-linear plot, alchemy, and protagonists who don't know what they're doing. It takes a long time to get going, and a number of the villains are so evil that they're rather 1-dimensional. Some of this is that fairy-tale narrative style that McGuire is so fond of (and has you yelling at the characters at times!). I'm not quite sure it works if you see what I mean - Tim Powers does urban fantasy better, and Use of Weapons has a better non-linear structure.
All of which said, if you have the patience to let it get going, Middlegame does draw you in - both because you want to see how it ends and because you do care about the protagonists. And it does have some delightful turns of phrase. And for all the non-linear plot could feel like cheating, it does hang together, and I felt the author is being fair with the reader.
There's a lot going on here - the story is twisty, with alternate realities, a non-linear plot, alchemy, and protagonists who don't know what they're doing. It takes a long time to get going, and a number of the villains are so evil that they're rather 1-dimensional. Some of this is that fairy-tale narrative style that McGuire is so fond of (and has you yelling at the characters at times!). I'm not quite sure it works if you see what I mean - Tim Powers does urban fantasy better, and Use of Weapons has a better non-linear structure.
All of which said, if you have the patience to let it get going, Middlegame does draw you in - both because you want to see how it ends and because you do care about the protagonists. And it does have some delightful turns of phrase. And for all the non-linear plot could feel like cheating, it does hang together, and I felt the author is being fair with the reader.
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