What do You think about The Scar (2004)?
It's hard to avoid politics, and in particular, Mièville's politics when it comes to Bas-lag. In Mièville's Marxist oriented doctoral thesis, Between Equal Rights: A Marxist Theory of International Law, he argues that international law is fundamentally constituted by the violence of imperialism, which by implication, is driven to a large extent by capitalism. It's not too hard to work out that New Crobuzon is the theoretical capitalist "bad guy" of Bas-lag with its secret police and under-handed politics, its economic avarice and totalitarian leanings. And yet, its antagonist in the plot of the novel, The Scar's floating city community of ships-made-into-a city, Armada, are thieving, murderous pirates who forcefully take their future citizens by violence, and brainwash them into submission, or else simply kill them. They're not good guys either by any measure in my book. The reason why Armada is supposedly a 'good' community, is because they set erstwhile prisoners 'free' (not really free if they're not allowed to leave, are they?) to become good non-law-abiding pirates who kill and pillage. So once again, Mièville presents us with a complex, politically grey, ambiguous scenario.I agree that totalitarianism (as represented by New Crobuzon) is undesirable, but I'm not so sure that imperialism always is 100% bad (The Chinese and Roman empires brought a lot of benefits to its citizens, for instance - most of the time, that is, when the rulers weren't going crazy), and I'm known to be pretty much anti-anarchist, depending on what your definitions are. (In other words, I believe in having at least some universally agreed-upon laws being in place which human societies need to follow and orient themselves by; and it is important that whatever the law is, that it not be enforced on an arbitrary basis. ) The Scar forces one to ponder on these aspects when you get acquainted with how Armada is run, and I reckon this is a good thing.In any case, I don't see New Crobuzon as being any the more imperialist or less violent than Armada is--in fact the latter seems more so to me. At least the citizens of New Crobuzon are free to leave the place if they don't want to live there anymore... I think my dislike for these aspects of Armada, is part of the reason (there are others such as a feeling of sloppiness in the plotting and general writing) that puts The Scar lower down on my scale of favorite Mièville novels. Perhaps a certain coarseness in how the uncouth aspects of the world was presented, also played a role.Granted, Bellis Coldwine, the main character, seems to agree with my feelings regarding Armada; so perhaps I should actually be giving Mièville extra points for embracing ambiguity and avoiding a black-and-white scenario. After all, life is as he describes it - he makes no attempt to present any whitewashed utopias, as far as I can see.One thing that Mièville and I probably can agree on, is that when naked greed gets to run its course unchecked, social injustices mount up. ...and this is so whether there is a communist or a capitalist regime at the helm.PLOTBack to The Scar, I really enjoyed all the surprises and twisting towards the end, and that the actual 'solution' was a lot more political and pragmatic than one tended to believe earlier on in the novel. The twists and surprises alone pushed me to give the book an additional star. WORLD-BUILDINGI think that Mièville again tried to pack in too many weird creatures and small disconnected bits of world exposition, much as he did with Perdido Street Station, but it does make for a richer world than, for instance his much more tightly controlled The City & The City, which is a quite good novel by detective genre standards. He did lose marks for the mosquito women's unnecessary bits of anatomy, which made even less sense than the cactus women's. Maybe breasts are Mièville's way to distinguish between the sexes; and yet, he seems remarkably non-sexist when it comes to most of his female characters, including Bellis Coldwine, the main character in The Scar.Oh! There's so much going on in this novel, that I almost forgot about how Mieville plays around with quantum physics and metaphysics with his "possibility leaks". I really enjoyed that aspect.CHARACTER BUILDINGI liked it. I thought Tanner and Bellis and Shekel and Johannes and Silas and Uther and The Lovers and Brucolac were all believably portrayed, and in spite of Bellis being portrayed as an emotionally "cold" person, one gets to see enough of why she is like this, and enough to gain empathy with her need to protect herself by endeavoring to remain as detached as possible.BOTTOM LINEIn spite of the fact that the novel lags and wanders about rather aimlessly in places around the middle, as with the first book in the series, Perdido Street Station, it is worth hanging on for the roller-coaster ride towards the end, so I added a star here and subtracted a star there, and came up with three and a half stars for The Scar, a novel with distinct strengths and weaknesses.----For an extra bit of spice which might be appreciated by those who have read quite a bit of Mièville, read on. If you don't have a sense of humor, don't read on. Ladies and gentlemen, there is a first time for everything, they say, even for writing erotica into a review. Especially if it is sado-masochistic erotica. Well, see, China Mièville put me up to it while I was reading his novel The Scar.I was reading this passage in The Scar, you see, of sado-masochistic passion between two lovers, (part of the exploration on the theme of scarring, btw) and slowly an image began to form in my mind, of me somehow managing to find myself in a room, with a naked China Mièville, who was clad only in a slave-collar, the chain of which I was holding. I had a whip in my other hand. There was a pole in the middle of the room, and I bade China to face this pole, his back to me. “Look at the pole, China!” I said as I raised my whip. “I want you to understand something, China!” I snapped curtly, tickling his flank with the end of the whip. "And that is how I feel about the word ‘puissant’”. I flicked my whip with puissance, and then brought it home puissantly.*WHACK!* “OW!” China jumped a little. “Good! I see the message is getting through to you. That one was for all the puissants. And this one...” *WHACK!* is for all the puissance. " China did not cry out this time, though he did flinch. Two pink marks striped his muscled glutes."You also deserve a smack for all the sloppiness, and for the flopping about between tenses. I mean, really, where were you when the grammar class did tenses? ..but as usual, you're doing your own thing again, making up the rules as you go along...Since it should be your editor getting the whack for a lot of this, I'll just give you a little smack, with much less puissance than previously. " *Smack*“...I’m not done yet, China, I happen to have read quite a few of your creations. Remember ‘palimpsest?’(Though admittedly your love for the word is less obvious, though obvious enough, than for 'puissance'). Well, I’m going to make a little pink palimpsest here on your beautiful behind." I could see China’s body tighten and I imagined him inwardly steeling himself. Petty cruelty got the better of me and I smirked. “Do I sense a certain recognition, Dr Mièville?*WHACK!* “ For PALLIIIMMMMPPPSSSESSST!” I yodelled. “ ...and just to make the palimpsest complete, here is one for all the drooling in The Scar specifically. ( *whackety*) Now, have I left anything out?” I tapped my high-heeled leather boot impatiently, masking my pleasure at finally getting my revenge in regard to the niggles and especially the puissance, wondering inadvertently if I myself was not perhaps drooling by this point.China turned to face me, a ghost of a smile on his sexy lips, a twinkle in his eye. “ Wipe that smile off your gibbet!” I roared, whacking him one on the arm for good measure. "And, by the way, that last whack was because the mosquito women have breasts. Mosquitoes lay eggs--what the Jabber would mosquitoes need breasts for?" At that, he grabbed hold of the whip and twisted it easily out of my hand. “You know what you need?” he asked, grinning openly. “A good lesson in creative writing.”Of course, the rest of the fantasy is censored for the benefit of the large warrior woman, so we'll talk a bit more about The Scar after the cold shower break.*Takes a cold shower***Disclaimer: The S&M "erotic" scene in this review bears no implication whatsoever as to the orientations or inclinations of either the author of this review or of the author of the novel under review; it is meant to be humorous, and has no bearing on reality whatsoever.
—Traveller
The Scar is Mieville's second book set in his Bas-Lag universe. It's a completely different story to, and as standalone as, the first book, Perdido Street Station. This book the setting moves from the dank and dirty industrial city state of New Crobuzon featured in the first book, to Armada - a floating pirate city, full of...pirates. A city comprised of a conglomerate of derelict ships chained and roped together and re-purposed into a city both like and unlike any other.We see some of the same races we were introduced to in PSS, like the Cactacae, and the Khepri, and of course we have the Remade. We are also introduced to new races and creatures as Mieville's wonderful imagination continues to offer up delights of the weird and bizarre - like the Cray, half human half lobster who live in underwater cities. They like to employ hunting squid much like hunting falcons. And the Scabmettlers - fighters whose blood congeals instantly on contact with air to form a grissly type of armour. And my personal favourite, the Anophelli - mosquito people where the male population are vegetarian and the female population are insane with blood lust and will suck dry anything with blood in it that has the misfortune to cross their path. Gazing hungrily, the mosquito-woman stretches her mouth open, spewing slaver, lips peeled back from toothless gums. She retches, and with a shocking motion a jag snaps from her mouth. A spit-wet proboscis, jutting a foot from her lips.And there are a lot more monstrosities and curios in the offering.GrindylowThe story follow Bellis Coldwine, escaping New Crobuzon in the aftermath of the events in Perdido Street Station. The militia have been hunting down anyone with any association to Isaac Dan der Grimnebulin and Bellis having some obscure connection to him decides it's time to run and embarks on a journey that sees her arrive at Armada - a city engaged in a secret project attempting to harness transdimensional forces that are probably best left alone. Bellis soon finds herself embroiled in intrigue and conspiracy.Arguably, the most interesting character for me would be Uther Doul, the mercenary enforcer of Armada with his puissant "Possible Sword." "If the clockwork is running, my arm and the sword mine possibilities. For every factual attack there are a thousand possibilities, nigh-sword ghosts, and all of them strike down together."I would probably have enjoyed this book more if I had read it before Perdido Street Station (which remains my Mieville favourite so far). Most of the cool concepts of Bas-Lag were introduced and explored in that first book and reading this book I felt like the novelty had worn off. Mieville's writes slowly and ponderously, which worked last book as we are immersed in the steampunk world of New Crobuzon before the story evolves into a horror story where the suspense slowly builds. This book, the writing style doesn't change, but as cool as Armada is, I felt it was a let down from New Crobuzon and the story had nowhere near the same sense of peril and suspense - though it does have its moments. It just lacked the same punch, as if Mieville put all his weight into the first swing which took me off guard and then follows through this book with the backswing where the element of surprise is well and truly over. It meant that Mieville's writing felt tedious at times, relying more on a plot which I felt moved along too slowly to be enjoyable on its own.Still, many reviewers think this is better than the first book so I guess it's a matter of taste. Both books add real character to the cities they portray, fleshing out in detail the various suburbs with their individual personalities. But for me, just like Bellis Coldwine, I wanted to go back to the dirty streets New Crobuzon - Armada just couldn't compete.I'm giving this....3.5 StarsPS: I couldn't resist using "puissant" in my review seeing that it appears to be Mieville's favourite word this book. I had to use the kindle dictionary every time it popped up.PSS: For those too lazy to look up puissant - it's French for "piss ant."My review of Perdido Street Station
—David Sven
Brilliant Sequel to "Perdido Street Station". Mieville at His BestThis is a brilliant and amazing novel, one of the best I've read in 2015. If you like China Miéville (and admittedly, he's not to everyone's taste) and you enjoyed Perdido Street Station and like New Weird science fiction/fantasy, you will love this book.China Mieville clearly borrows from the long and honorable tradition of British and American novels and plays about strange sea voyages (Robinson Crusoe, Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, The Tempest etc.) There's also, of course, the ultimate sea story, Homer's Odyssey. One can even see the influence of Jules Verne (Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea). But, through some miraculous alchemy, Mieville makes "The Scar" entirely his own. It's rich and strange.One need not read the preceding novel, Perdido Street Station first, as "The Scar" is only loosely related to "Perdido Street". But I would suggest reading the books in order. Perdido Street Station is a fine work in its own right, and it provides useful background information about the world in which "The Scar" is set, Bas-Lag. Nevertheless, "The Scar" stands on its own. The novel takes place in the eighteenth century in Bas-Lag, an alternate world of Mieville's creation. The technology is appropriately strange and Victorian/Steam Punkish. There are dirigibles, coal powered steam ships, moveable oil rigs, possiblity machines, etc.Our main character is the appropriately named Bellis Coldwine. Bellis is a linguist. She's published several scholarly works on various languages of Bas-Lag. She comes across to others as snooty and cold, but she really is neither. Underneath her haughty exterior, she is reserved, introspective, and very lonely. She also harbors wellsprings of emotion that are not accessible or apparent to others. She notes down her observations on her journey in a long letter that she never has a chance to post. Bellis is a New Crobuzoner. (New Crobuzon is the metropolis that was the site of "Perdido Street Station). She loves New Crobuzon. Nevertheless, she is forced to flee from it. The oppressive authorities in New Crobuzon are blaming Isaac Dan der Grimnebulin, a scientific genius who was one of the main characters in "Perdido Street Station" and the inventor of the Crisis Engine, for the recent problems in the city (depicted in "Perdido Street Station"). They are rounding up for questioning anyone who knew Isaac. Since Bellis was one of Isaac's former lovers, she doesn't feel safe in New Crobuzon. She decides to "disappear" for a few years".Bellis's plan is to take a sea voyage to Nova Esperium, a Crobuzoner colony. She books passage on the Terpsichoria, a ship bound for Nova Esperium.However, things do not go as planned. For various reasons, Bellis ends up, against her will, in the floating city of Armada. Armada is a city made up of ships. All kinds of adventures (and misadventures) happen on Armada.A number of Bellis's shipmates from the Terpsichoria end up in Armada along with her. These include Johannes Tearfly, a biologist who studies undersea animals, particularly very large ones; Tanner Sac, an engineer with a remade body (he has tentacles---various types of "remaking" are a common punishment for criminals in New Crobuzon); and Shekel, a young cabin boy who befriends Tanner.In Armada, Bellis is miserable. Her plan had been to return to New Crobuzon after a few years away, and she feels she can never go back.In Armada, Bellis meets various others. These include Silas Fennec (a.k.a. Simon Fench), a mysterious New Crobuzon native who comes and goes; Uther Doul, a warrior/philospher who is an apparently undefeatable fighter; "The Lovers", an unnamed pair with identically scarred faces who are leaders of Armada; and Carrie Ann, a librarian.Bellis is a bit naive. Part of this is because she is lonely and feels out of place in Armada. She really doesn't know who to trust. Of course, on Armada, it is difficult to know who to trust. No one is who they seem to be. The eponymous "Scar" refers to a place. But the scar motif is woven throughout the novel. Almost every character ends up with physical and/or emotional scars of one kind or another. I will say no more to avoid spoilers. But this is quite an amazing read.It was long, but it did not feel like it was too long.Actor Gildart Jackson does a brilliant job reading the audio. Highly recommended.
—Mona Temchin
