It's been a while since I finished this, but I moved to a new appartment! Today is the first day where I feel like I have some room to breathe again. So, here is my review for Piranesi by Susanna Clarke. Oh and btw, do not read this review if you want to read the book. It contains spoilers and that will completely ruin the story..

Quickly rose to be one of my favourite books. I love piranesi, not just the book but the person as well. At first The House is dazzling and not always in a good way. Is it outside? inside? There's the sea everywhere, but also lot's of stairs, but also windows and courtyards (?). So it reads like a Greek inspired fantasy labyrinth. The person living there, Piranesi, he loves it. He adores The House, actually reveres it. But not in an annoying way, you almost grow to love The House as much as he does because he does it in such an honest, innocent and meaningful way. The feeling that there is more to it than Piranesi knows creeps up pretty fast and it hooked me all the way until the end.

In many ways this book actually reminded me of I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman (IWHNKM), but Piranesi gave me everything that I wanted from IWHNKM. It's about a man (Piranesi) who lives in a sort of labyrinth, which is basically just water, stairs, columns and statues. These stretch for kilometers as far as he knows. As far as we know, The Other (only other person he's ever seen) and Piranesi are the only ones there. His life is simple, it consists of sleeping, eating, exploring and journalling. In that way I thought it was very similar to IWHNKM which is also about someone 'trapped' in a non-earth world that is very repetitive and simple, without a clue as to where they are or why they are there, and simply trying to survive. Except wat Piranesi had that IWHNKM didn't is that the protagonist is full of wonder at his seemingly confusing, challenging and repetitive world. We follow his journals just as we did in IWHNKM, but they're actually interesting to read. Piranesi has an inner world that he shares with us and it is written so realistically and relatable, through this sharing you really grow to love him and root for him. Unlike IWHNKM, the mystery unfolds itself and you actually find out what is going on, who Piranesi is and where he is and why, and it still gives me chills. The slow trickle of the mystery unfolding is done masterfully and makes this book unforgettable to me. The last sentence made me tear up. Oh and finding out Piranesi was an actual person who was known for his artwork of labyrinths of Roman architecture made the whole thing even more magical, it shows a real dedication of the author, everything ties together. It's a must read!