I was hater at first (partly the tediously descriptive world building & initially senseless nature of the plot) but it won me over.

Heavy on the Plato’s allegory of the cave and the nods to other philosophers/philosophical questions; the whole thing felt like an early Christopher Nolan film (I.e. memento or the prestige).

I liked that it touches on the pursuit of knowledge — Is it worth it? Can it be done without exploitation? 

It also felt like I was reading someone realized they are in a cult and trying to navigate leaving  & what reality looks like after. In Piranesi’s case, the “house”.