THE KEEP (Egan, 2006)

Can't decide if it was a smart – or fair – move to read another book set primarily around a labyrinthine castle so soon after TITUS GROAN but that Egan managed to pull me in – first because I couldn't figure out what she was doing (I never read jacket blurbs or synopses) and then because it moved me, wholly – in spite of the similar environment is, I suppose, a testament to how good THE KEEP is. Reminds me far more of MANHATTAN BEACH than GOON SQUAD or THE CANDY HOUSE (though it does feature some of that techno-recalcitrance and device addiction – in a decidely mid-naughties fashion – of the latter): not at all a bad thing. My complete reading list, from 2013 to the present, lives here.

THE CANDY HOUSE (Egan, 2022)

(read: 20220803->09): a brief recording of initial thoughts / combining of shards upon finishing Egan's latest this morning (and the first attempt at an honest effort of keeping a record of my readings here beyond the list: huge fan of Egan's work, but CANDY HOUSE left me - on first impression, and even though I adore (and always will) her voice and rhythm and her characters/story populace - a little cold: I can't silence the overarching sensation of having missed something; what that something is I haven't a clue – but it's definitely something. Will update this as/if I think about it more. Adding GOON SQUAD to the re-read pile. (FTW, her recent conversation with Jaron Lanier on CITY ARTS LECTURES is definitely worth a listen.)