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roadtripreader 's review for:
Senlin Ascends
by Josiah Bancroft
challenging
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
There are some books that are just not made for the big screen - elements won't translate on celluloid and cinematography can do little to change that. This is not that book. This one has the makings of a SF/Steampunk visual feast of vibrant colors and people and a glorious assault on the senses. This would be the quintessential Steampunk Odyssey and I'd probably be first in line to get my ticket. Hey, Dennis Villanueva if you're looking for your next big visual after Dune, come hang out in the folds of this series.
"The Earth doesn't shake the tower, the tower shakes the earth."
- Everyman's Guide to the Tower of Babel, IV. XII
Thomas Senlin never stood a chance. Poor Bugger.
Senlin is a man blindsided by cold hard reality. Lulled into a sense of security and social standing in his sleep portside town of Isguah, the number one tourist destination in this universe was supposed to be as easy as his life had been thus far. A headmaster of great standing becomes a man lost and in denial within a day of wandering near the Tower...not even in it. He is an innocent, naïve and foolish lost soul in the Tower of Babel - the perfect prey to be swallowed whole. And yet, there is something about him that gives the reader hope despite his outright denial of the barbarity and injustices of the Tower. Senlin is a thinker, an analytical one at that. Even without realizing it at first - he asks, why? He is not yet on the verge of the answer, nor is he anywhere near the beginning of his true ascent which I can only guess takes place in further books. But we bare witness to a man's realization of his place in the world and how vast and dark and debauched his "northern light" in the Tower of Babel.
Josiah Bancroft has this ability to hoodwink the reader into a false sense of calm, control, security and hope after plunging the main character into some precarious situations. So lulled into falsehood that you begin to pity Senlin's naivety as he believes:
1. The Tower is good - it can be barbaric
2. The Baths are the ultimate in civility, decorum, respect and hospitability.
3. Marya is okay. She will find me (Senlin) or she will wait.
4. Everything will be alright.
Bancroft you sly devil. A great introduction to an ingenious premise well executed and full of nail-biting sequences that have you almost ready to shut the book in hopes of saving Senlin.
"The Earth doesn't shake the tower, the tower shakes the earth."
- Everyman's Guide to the Tower of Babel, IV. XII
Thomas Senlin never stood a chance. Poor Bugger.
Senlin is a man blindsided by cold hard reality. Lulled into a sense of security and social standing in his sleep portside town of Isguah, the number one tourist destination in this universe was supposed to be as easy as his life had been thus far. A headmaster of great standing becomes a man lost and in denial within a day of wandering near the Tower...not even in it. He is an innocent, naïve and foolish lost soul in the Tower of Babel - the perfect prey to be swallowed whole. And yet, there is something about him that gives the reader hope despite his outright denial of the barbarity and injustices of the Tower. Senlin is a thinker, an analytical one at that. Even without realizing it at first - he asks, why? He is not yet on the verge of the answer, nor is he anywhere near the beginning of his true ascent which I can only guess takes place in further books. But we bare witness to a man's realization of his place in the world and how vast and dark and debauched his "northern light" in the Tower of Babel.
Josiah Bancroft has this ability to hoodwink the reader into a false sense of calm, control, security and hope after plunging the main character into some precarious situations. So lulled into falsehood that you begin to pity Senlin's naivety as he believes:
1. The Tower is good - it can be barbaric
2. The Baths are the ultimate in civility, decorum, respect and hospitability.
3. Marya is okay. She will find me (Senlin) or she will wait.
4. Everything will be alright.
Bancroft you sly devil. A great introduction to an ingenious premise well executed and full of nail-biting sequences that have you almost ready to shut the book in hopes of saving Senlin.