Review – The Manual of Detection by Jedediah Berry (3/5 stars)

Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Science Fiction/Mystery
Length: 296 pages
Publisher:‎ Penguin Books
Release Date: January 25, 2009
ASIN: B001QNVPUE
Stand Alone or Series: Stand Alone
Source: Borrowed ebook from Library
Rating: 3/5 stars

“Charles Unwin toils as a clerk at a huge, imperious detective agency located in an unnamed city always slick with rain. When Travis Sivart, the agency’s most illustrious detective, is murdered, Unwin is suddenly promoted and must embark on an utterly bizarre quest for the missing investigator that leads him into the darkest corners of his soaking, somnolent city.

What ensues is a noir fantasy of exquisite craftsmanship, as taut as it is mind-blowing, that draws readers into a dream world that will change what they think about how they think.”

Series Info/Source: This is a stand alone book. I borrowed this on ebook from my library.

Thoughts: Previous to this I started to read Berry’s “The Naming Song” which I got about 33% in to before stopping. I thought The Manual of Detection sounded more like my thing, however I just barely got through this book as well. This book starts out really intriguing; I love the descriptions and the prose. This starts with an excellent mysterious dark noir feel to it, it kind of reminded me of the movie Dark City. However, as you continue, it gets very hard to follow and the main character remains very bland. I really struggled through the second half of the book.

Charles Unwin is clerk at a huge detective agency in a city of perpetual rain. He is unexpectedly promoted and ends up drawn into a deep mystery involving another missing detective and sleepwalkers.

Initially, there was a lot I liked about this book. A city of perpetual rain and mystery with a strange past of a dark carnival stealing days of the week. It is atmospheric, mysterious, and compelling. Unfortunately, that didn’t last.

As you get further into the story, things get harder and harder to follow and more and more ambiguous. As Unwin tries to track down sleepwalkers and dazed citizens, it begins to become difficult to tell if he is asleep or awake during his adventures. It also becomes tough to tell if those around him are asleep or awake…responsible for their own actions or some else’s puppet.

I also had some issues with Unwin as a character. He just doesn’t really do anything. He bumbles around and is pulled from event to event without ever changing or growing. Maybe that is the point, but it felt dissatisfying.

In the end, although I enjoyed the descriptions here and the unique setting, I found the story wandering and hard to follow in the second half and just couldn’t stay engaged in it. I kept falling asleep while reading it and really struggled to push through to the end.

My Summary (3/5): Overall this is a neat concept and is initially well executed however the story devolves into something hard to follow and the characters and their surroundings weren’t enough to keep me engaged. If you enjoy the vibes to this story I would recommend watching the movie “Dark City’ which has a lot of similar themes but is a lot more gripping and intense. This is my second experience with struggling to finish a book by Berry. I don’t plan on reading any other novels by him in the future.