The Somnambulist

by Jonathan Barnes

[empressbrooke]

When I read the "If you liked these , you will love The Somnambulist" list that Borders put together, I decided that Jonathan Barnes' debut would have to land on my "favorites" list. It was compared to The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Neverwhere, Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, and The Prestige, some of my most favorite things ever. It was probably a mistake going into it with such high expectations, because although it was an excellent book, I felt disappointed after I turned the last page.

This Victorian-era book is about a stage magician who also solves crimes for the police. He is a sort of Sherlock Holmes type, using his powers of ratiocination to untangle the threads that the police stumble over. The title refers to his assistant (both on stage and in his crime solving), a giant who doesn't speak. They start off investigating the deaths of two men, and uncover an entire plot against the city of London. It's slightly satirical of other books in the genre, in a very subtle way. And it's bizarre. It just gets weirder and weirder and it ends on an ambiguous note that left me wondering if I was satisfied or not. It was certainly an awesomely fun ride, but was it a great book? I can't decide.

Its ambiguity was a plus for it, in some ways. Barnes did a very good job of not spelling everything out, and instead left some things to the imagination. The main character had some tragic incident in the last case he took on, and although it's referred to many times, it's never explained what happened. He never explains where the Somnambulist came from (he just showed up at the main character's door one night), or why he doesn't speak. There's a shadowy government group involved that never gets a full explanation. It lends an extra air of mystery to the already-mysterious plot.

One thing I didn't understand was the title - both the reason for naming the character and for naming the book after him. There's only one throw-away line that mentions that he sleepwalks, and his sleepwalking never plays any part in the plot. It's a cool name, sure, but it doesn't serve any purpose.

I'd probably feel better about it if I hadn't expected it to be my newest favorite book. I certainly recommend it to people looking for something fun to read.