Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
I read Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell (2009), so I was looking forward to a new novel from Clarke after all these years.
Piranesi is certainly a nicely rendered fantasy world, parallel to our own reality. The mysterious character known as Piranesi lives in a strange labyrinth, whose extent has not been determined. It is soon clear that this alternate reality induces amnesia and/or madness in anyone who stays too long. Piranesi himself has lived there many years, and seems to have forgotten who he was and how he got there.
But Piranesi has found a peace and happiness in what he calls ‘the House’. But we can see that there is a dark story here. There is deception that conceal danger and evil.
Who is Piranesi? How did he get there? Where is “there”, anyway? What is going on?
The story unravels the mysteries of his life in the House.
There is a lot of pretty imagery, and a certain amount of “English Magic” in this story. But it doesn’t have anywhere near the scope of here earlier novel. (Face it—few novels could possibly have as much scope as Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. : – ))
Personally, I found her explanation of the “magic” unsatisfyingly vague. Clarke hints at a detailed theory of the origin and nature of this alternative world, but never really tells me enough to understand it. Granted, long lectures on this stuff would not have benefited the flow of the story, so maybe it’s good that she left it out. But still, I’m left hanging, not really knowing what is going on here.
As far as I can see, even as he escapes the labyrinth and learns of his own past life, Piranesi really misses the peace and magical beauty he finds there. I think he may return to the labyrinth soon, and probably will take others with him. So, there may be more stories in the future.
- Susanna Clarke, Piranesi, New York, Boomsbury Publishing, 2020.
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