Fantasy

In the Watchful City

In the Watchful City

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  • Create Date：2021-07-25 09:15:57
  • Update Date：2025-09-24
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  • Author：S. Qiouyi Lu
  • ISBN：B08JKD67VJ
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Summary

In the Watchful City explores borders， power， diaspora， and transformation in an Asian-inspired mosaic novella that melds the futurism of Lavie Tidhar’s Central Station with the magical wonder of Catherynne M。 Valente’s Palimpsest。

The city of Ora uses a complex living network called the Gleaming to surveil its inhabitants and maintain harmony。 Anima is one of the cloistered extrasensory humans tasked with watching over Ora's citizens。 Although ær world is restricted to what æ can see and experience through the Gleaming， Anima takes pride and comfort in keeping Ora safe from all harm。

All that changes when a mysterious visitor enters the city carrying a cabinet of curiosities from around the world， with a story attached to each item。 As Anima’s world expands beyond the borders of Ora to places—and possibilities—æ never before imagined to exist， æ finds ærself asking a question that throws into doubt ær entire purpose: What good is a city if it can’t protect its people？

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Reviews

Kel ，

[ Overall Thoughts ]In The Watchful City is a lushly written collection of short stories of different formats within a framing narrative。 The framing narrative takes place in a biocyberpunk setting， following Anima who is one of eight 'nodes' tethered directly into the Gleaming and tasked with maintaining the city and its citizens' lives。 This requires Anima to transport ær consciousness through the Gleaming into various animals nearby any incident that requires ær attention。 The setting of the [ Overall Thoughts ]In The Watchful City is a lushly written collection of short stories of different formats within a framing narrative。 The framing narrative takes place in a biocyberpunk setting， following Anima who is one of eight 'nodes' tethered directly into the Gleaming and tasked with maintaining the city and its citizens' lives。 This requires Anima to transport ær consciousness through the Gleaming into various animals nearby any incident that requires ær attention。 The setting of the framing narrative gave me Matrix vibes， but make it nature。 The imagery is vibrant and detailed and was almost too much for me to wrap my head around， which fostered a fantastical， far-future feel。When a traveler appears at Anima's door with a strange case full of a variety of objects， æ is able to explore the lives of the previous owners of the objects。 These stories provide glimpses of lives， sometimes in a moment of joy or triumph， sometimes in a moment of tragedy。 "We still cannot enter someone's soul to navigate the interior sea of the mind。 But we can take a moment， a story， that illuminates their spirit， if only one facet。 Yet that is what makes life the brilliant gem that it is: the collection of all those facets into a prism。 A lens。" In The Watchful City proved to be imaginative and addictive; I found myself putting the book aside simply because I didn't want to finish it and have it be over。 I do wish we'd had more time in the framing narrative to see more of the city and Anima's role there to better understand æ and ær motivations。 Overall I really enjoyed the characters， world， and writing style， and the framing narrative worked so well to tell many different stories in several formats。[ Suggested Audience ]Readers who like a good framing narrative and descriptive， vibrant prose。Readers looking for futuristic sci-fi and are intrigued by the label biocyberpunk。Readers who enjoy short stories and varied formats。[ TL;DR ]In The Watchful City was an imagination-grabbing trek into a futuristic world of connection and separation， interspersed with glimpses into other lives in the form of short stories。Content Warning for （view spoiler）[discussion and depiction of suicide （hide spoiler）] 。。。more

❀●○●○Ashley○●○●❀ ，

Thank you NetGalley and Tor for providing me with a copy for review。 Full review to come closer to the release date。

Melina ，

Thank you to NetGalley， S。 Qiouyi Lu and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for the advanced reader copy。Story within a story is my absolute favourite trope in literature so I'm sad to say In the Watchful City left me wanting more， and not in a good way。Anima is a node in the city of Ora， and nodes are extrasensory beings tasked with protecting the city。 One day， æ is visited by Vessel， a psychopomp carrying a cabinet of stories。 Vessel offers Anima stories from the cabinet in exchange of something of ærs。Neit Thank you to NetGalley， S。 Qiouyi Lu and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for the advanced reader copy。Story within a story is my absolute favourite trope in literature so I'm sad to say In the Watchful City left me wanting more， and not in a good way。Anima is a node in the city of Ora， and nodes are extrasensory beings tasked with protecting the city。 One day， æ is visited by Vessel， a psychopomp carrying a cabinet of stories。 Vessel offers Anima stories from the cabinet in exchange of something of ærs。Neither the main story nor the vignettes really went anywhere。 There was a man trying to bring his brother back to life， a young person deciding she wants to live as a girl and subsequently participating in a fictional sport match that took up way too many pages， a collection of letters and court paperwork regarding a traitorous duarch， and some mermaids。 It sounds interesting on paper but whatever each of these stories was supposed to be or was meant to represent was extremely basic and unfinished once stripped of all the beautiful language and metaphors。 Most of it sounded like the opening chapter of its own book。Anima's main story was lacking because we're told æ spent more of ær life as a node than as whoever æ was before， but the novella starts in medias res and the two short snippets from ær node-life are supposed to make us believe æ is suddenly having doubts about the whole system。 The premise itself is good but I would love to find out more about Anima and Vessel and the duarchy and how everything works in this world so I hope S。 decides to expand on their idea some day。The one thing I was most impressed with wasn't even in the novella。 It was in the Acknowledgments:[。。。] decolonial stories are possible。 You told me to write my weird， and that freed me from trying to tailor my stories for anyone but myself。 My stories are so much stronger now。 No matter what people remember us for， we will always have this。If that is the purpose of S。 Qiouyi Lu's writing， then I'm glad they're achieving it。 。。。more

Sahitya ，

CW: suicide， mention of a suicide attempt， body mutilation， foot bindingI’ve only read one short story by the author before but I was so profoundly moved by it， that I had to add this novella to my tbr as soon as I got to know about it。 And was doubly excited when I got the arc。 I will be honest and say it took me a few pages to get into this story and it was pretty slow going until then。 Biocyberpunk is not a genre I would willingly pick up if not for being excited about the author’s work， and CW: suicide， mention of a suicide attempt， body mutilation， foot bindingI’ve only read one short story by the author before but I was so profoundly moved by it， that I had to add this novella to my tbr as soon as I got to know about it。 And was doubly excited when I got the arc。 I will be honest and say it took me a few pages to get into this story and it was pretty slow going until then。 Biocyberpunk is not a genre I would willingly pick up if not for being excited about the author’s work， and it’s also my shortcoming for not being aware enough about neopronouns that extensive usage of them in this story hindered my reading a bit at the beginning。 But the author employs a story with the story kind of narrative device in this book， and by the time I was done with the first narrated “story”， I was totally hooked。 Rooted in Asian history and culture， the author deeply explores themes of grief and oppression and trauma， and how they affect us， sometimes even without us knowing that we are experiencing the effects。 Another thing that really connected to me was the subtle discussion about borders and immigration， and how this has a disparate impact on one’s core identity as well as relationship with family。 Amina is a fascinating character。 Æ became an extrasensory human to watch over the city of Ora because ær circumstances didn’t leave Amina many choices。 But new traumatic experiences has ær questioning if æ are truly protecting the citizens and if ær choices are correct。 Meeting the enigmatic Vessel and ser cabinet of curiosities also opens up a whole new world of stories and possibilities to Amina， finally letting ær feel comfortable enough to make life altering decisions for ærself。 We also meet many amazing characters within the narrated stories， who give us glimpses into understanding what having agency and being able to make choices means， and questioning us if we have the strength to face the consequences。 Overall， this was a very unique， one of a kind book which even if confusing at times， is something to be experienced。 This queernormative Asian inspired futuristic world and it’s deeply moving characters have left an impression on me and I would definitely want everyone to dive into it as well。 Just remember that this novella is more on the profound and thought provoking side， and not a fast paced sci-fi adventure。 。。。more

Nicole ，

I dnf-ed。 But made it over half way through。 I've no idea what to make of it tbh。。。 I WISH I loved it。 I dnf-ed。 But made it over half way through。 I've no idea what to make of it tbh。。。 I WISH I loved it。 。。。more

Siavahda ，

HIGHLIGHTS~cabinet of curiosities = treasure-trove of delights~is anyone straight and cis？？？ no~magic + scifi = perfect~would you rather possess a gecko or a crow？？？~if you chose one item to represent your life， what would it be？I do not know nearly enough about Asian cultures to be able to tell you which parts of this novella （names， countries， cultures） draw from which real-life people and place – it’s clear this book draws inspiration from various parts of Asia， but I couldn’t guess at specif HIGHLIGHTS~cabinet of curiosities = treasure-trove of delights~is anyone straight and cis？？？ no~magic + scifi = perfect~would you rather possess a gecko or a crow？？？~if you chose one item to represent your life， what would it be？I do not know nearly enough about Asian cultures to be able to tell you which parts of this novella （names， countries， cultures） draw from which real-life people and place – it’s clear this book draws inspiration from various parts of Asia， but I couldn’t guess at specifics until I looked through reviews written by more knowledgeable readers。 （The one over here is a great example。）All I can tell you is that In The Watchful City is absolutely beautiful。The book description uses the term ‘mosaic novella’， which I think is perfect: as a mosaic is made up of multiple coloured tiles or stones to make a whole， In The Watchful City is made up of several short stories， contained and given context by an overarching tale。 The stories-within-a-story framework is one of my very favourite tropes， and I loved the twist on it here， with each story literally being contained as a memento within a qíjìtáng， the ‘cabinet of curiosities’ mentioned in the book description。 The description of the qíjìtáng and its contents is absolutely enchanting; I was overwhelmed with the wanting to hear the story of each and every object。The sheer number of colors and textures and materials is a feast of sensory data that makes Anima’s head tingle。 Warped glass bottles， curiously shaped stones， bundles of documents， glittering trinkets and ornaments， dried flowers still scented with fragile fragrances， textiles woven from unfamiliar threads， taxidermied animals æ’s never seen in the city… Anima is an augmented human， one of several who oversees the city of Ora。 That makes ær sound like a government figure， and æ isn’t; æ functions a lot like a protective AI （which is actually what I thought æ was at first）， keeping Ora’s citizens safe and quickly finding criminals through ær awareness of the metaphysical Gleaming and ær ability to possess any of Ora’s wildlife。 Ora itself is beautiful， and the blending of technology with the magical Gleaming makes In The Watchful City a rare Science Fantasy novel – which makes perfect sense， because once you start reading， it becomes readily apparent that Lu is not interested in following normal rules or keeping their stories neatly boxed in a single genre category。 Science Fantasy is the place where Sci Fi and Fantasy meet to create coruscatingly original stories that neither could contain alone， and you can feel that joyful casting-off of genre expectations in every word of this book。Read the rest at Every Book a Doorway！ 。。。more

Christine Sandquist ，

Messy， evocative， and prosaic in the best ways。 Lu's imagery will be sticking in my brain for quite some time。 I will need to reread this before I can write a proper full review。 Messy， evocative， and prosaic in the best ways。 Lu's imagery will be sticking in my brain for quite some time。 I will need to reread this before I can write a proper full review。 。。。more

Katy ，

This novella is so original and I loved the story-within-story structure。 I just wish it had been longer to make more of an impact。

Amanda ，

I thoroughly enjoyed this book， but it’s a hard one to describe。 The short version: this feels like This is How You Lose the Time War x Arabian Nights。 This story is set in the city of Ora where we follow Anima， who can connect to the Gleaming and watch over all of the city and its citizens （so maybe add a dash of the movie Minority Report to my earlier description）。 When a visitor arrives with a cabinet full of objects and stories from outside the city， a whole new world is opened up to both An I thoroughly enjoyed this book， but it’s a hard one to describe。 The short version: this feels like This is How You Lose the Time War x Arabian Nights。 This story is set in the city of Ora where we follow Anima， who can connect to the Gleaming and watch over all of the city and its citizens （so maybe add a dash of the movie Minority Report to my earlier description）。 When a visitor arrives with a cabinet full of objects and stories from outside the city， a whole new world is opened up to both Anima and the reader。 The writing was vivid and beautiful， and I was completely entranced by Anima’s story and the short stories of the cabinet’s objects。“The Gleaming is a sea in the mind; the Gleaming is a collective dream; the Gleaming is the space within， bigger than aer body could ever contain。”This book is abstract at times， as when Anima enters the Gleaming æ almost reaches a state of omnipresence， but it feels grounded by the very human stories interspersed throughout。 I love reading stories within a story， and I would have read individual novellas based on each story， but I really loved how they gave the reader a greater sense of the world of this book。 It’s a world that blends futuristic sci-fi elements with mythology and fantasy， and the possibilities feel almost endless but it’s no utopia - there is pain and turmoil in this world - and altogether it drives home that feeling of how immense and complex life can be。Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with this free eARC in exchange for an honest review！ 。。。more

Kimberly ，

This was a wonderful novella。 I loved the different themes and mythologies this explored。 I wish that there had been a little more background to the world itself。 I was a little confused a few different parts， it just felt like the world that Anima was in could have been better fleshed out。 I love the inclusion of queer stories told through sci-fi and fantasy。 I could have done with probably a thousand more stories tied to the items in the box， I loved that storytelling device。 I'm excited to se This was a wonderful novella。 I loved the different themes and mythologies this explored。 I wish that there had been a little more background to the world itself。 I was a little confused a few different parts， it just felt like the world that Anima was in could have been better fleshed out。 I love the inclusion of queer stories told through sci-fi and fantasy。 I could have done with probably a thousand more stories tied to the items in the box， I loved that storytelling device。 I'm excited to see what else this author has to offer in the future。 。。。more

Hsinju ，

In the Watchful City is an Asian-centric adult queer fantasy novella about living （and death） with a heart-racing ending。The main character Anima （æ/ær/ær） is part of the city’s surveillance system the Gleaming （think The Matrix）， one of the eight nodes in the inner sanctum。 When æ meets Vessel （se/ser/ser）， who carries a qíjìtáng full of knickknacks and memories from different people， ær curiosity brings ær to realize that there is more to life than guarding the city of Ora。I don’t think I comp In the Watchful City is an Asian-centric adult queer fantasy novella about living （and death） with a heart-racing ending。The main character Anima （æ/ær/ær） is part of the city’s surveillance system the Gleaming （think The Matrix）， one of the eight nodes in the inner sanctum。 When æ meets Vessel （se/ser/ser）， who carries a qíjìtáng full of knickknacks and memories from different people， ær curiosity brings ær to realize that there is more to life than guarding the city of Ora。I don’t think I completely understood everything that had happened。 And yet， I enjoyed the storytelling so much！ Lu’s overall concept and execution of bringing mostly Asian history and culture into the story are so satisfying。 There were maybe five non-English sentences， including Mandarin and Manchu （both languages were renamed in the story）， and some of the terms are real things like Bǐyìniǎo （比翼鳥: birds that fly in twos; the word is used to describe soul mates）。 Also， I love the political animosity between countries and that a lot of the side characters’ names were of different romanizations and languages （Spanish， Mandarin Pinyin with tones， Mandarin Wade–Giles with tones， Cantonese， Hokkien， Japanese， Thai， etc。）。 Another thing I was happy to see was that for Mandarin names， family names come before given names！In the Watchful City consists of fragmented stories。 Ocean Vuong once said that “[。。。] cohesion was not part of my generation’s imagination， nor our language， or our self identity。 And I felt that if I were to write my version of an American novel， it would have to look more like fragmentation。” （video here） Through Anima’s story， ær interactions with Enigma （e/em/eir） and Vessel， all the stories in the qíjìtáng， we get the themes of mental health and grief， assimilation， growth and living。 Lu mentioned in ær acknowledgments that the narrative is focused on agency and it is also a decolonial story。One last thing I’d like to mention is that the relation between Ora and Skyland sounds like that between Taiwan and China。 Given that the history in our world was interwoven with the fantasy world in In the Watchful City， to me， this part feels especially close and real。 “Why prevent Orans from seeing Skylanders？ History？ Are politics worth separating families and lovers for？”content warnings: on-page suicide （drowning）， on-page assisted suicide， loss of sibling， on-page foot binding， mention of hanging， consensual body mutilation， physical abuse of sentient beings， blood， assimilationI received a digital review copy from Tordotcom via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 Quotation may change upon publication。 。。。more

Brigid ，

Check out this review and more at The Alliterates。In the Watchful City takes us on a trip， pushing the walls of science fiction and storytelling， that place between linear stories and surreal imaginations。 S。 Qiouyi Lu’s writing is boundary-shattering， completely sparkling with new experiences。 An experience like no other。A story that weaves in and out of the story， and its ability to bend and stretch our minds， we get to see the significance of memory through objects and its connections to peop Check out this review and more at The Alliterates。In the Watchful City takes us on a trip， pushing the walls of science fiction and storytelling， that place between linear stories and surreal imaginations。 S。 Qiouyi Lu’s writing is boundary-shattering， completely sparkling with new experiences。 An experience like no other。A story that weaves in and out of the story， and its ability to bend and stretch our minds， we get to see the significance of memory through objects and its connections to people。 It’s bits and pieces of stories within a much larger story。 It’s like shattered stories， and we watch them being glued together to make itself known and understood in the grander scheme of things。 Anima is a non-binary human with non-human abilities who watches over Ora’s citizens。 But when a visitor comes， ær brought into a world of storytelling， all traumas and hopes。 With each object， there is an entire story and person behind it。 From scales， we see a story of mermaids and survival hood。 We see stories of trans people hoping for a better life。 A deck of tarot cards unfolds a story with such interesting and fascinating characters。Everything feels like a blend of technology and folktales， bringing the myth into the rawness of real-life—anything from trans identities， generational trauma， corruption of power， environmentalism， and family。 S。 Qiouyi Lu has a gift for transforming the expected and surprising the reader into an unexpected tale。I loved this beautifully weird story。 I highly recommend reading this and many other TorDotCom novellas when you need something to get you out of a slump。 。。。more

Sharon ，

Anima is a part of a security system that protects the city of Ora。 They have no physical form and through the Gleaming can connect and control any animal form within the city as required for surveillance。 The story starts off really confusing as it dies the really explain the reference of ae and aer until 30% into the book after the first story。 And even then I’m still only guessing。 Seems that Anima is ae’s name and aer generally refers to the body ae inhabits at the time。。。 maybe？The story it Anima is a part of a security system that protects the city of Ora。 They have no physical form and through the Gleaming can connect and control any animal form within the city as required for surveillance。 The story starts off really confusing as it dies the really explain the reference of ae and aer until 30% into the book after the first story。 And even then I’m still only guessing。 Seems that Anima is ae’s name and aer generally refers to the body ae inhabits at the time。。。 maybe？The story itself is futuristic sci-fi fantasy revolving around Anima and their interaction with a new visitor to the city Vessel。 Vessel share stories about different objects they carry around with them。 I am super confused by the Anima’s story and the ending。 All the stories are all really sad！！ Whilst I was intrigued about what was going on I was very puzzled throughout。 It’s definitely an complex read for a more contemplative reader。 I read a Netgalley advanced e-arc of this book and all opinions in this review are my own。 。。。more

Chuck ，

Read the sample; it showed promise but like Central Station and A Memory Called Empire looked to require a careful and close reading。

Drew ，

A fascinating， complex mosaic novel that brings to mind THE INVISIBLE MAN but queered and stranger and far more full of complicated emotion。 This book delighted and surprised， and I would've loved it even more if it was twice as long -- there was so much *there* there。 A fascinating， complex mosaic novel that brings to mind THE INVISIBLE MAN but queered and stranger and far more full of complicated emotion。 This book delighted and surprised， and I would've loved it even more if it was twice as long -- there was so much *there* there。 。。。more

Kelley ，

I mean WOW。 This book was such a unique and powerful experience， particularly because of the rich world-building， but also because of so much more than that！ The main storyline was engrossing， the main character Anima providing a unique perspective on aer distinct place in aer society。 I really enjoyed the way this narrative took me through the lives and experiences of so many different people throughout this world。 I'm a sucker for those little mini-stories within a larger narrative that give y I mean WOW。 This book was such a unique and powerful experience， particularly because of the rich world-building， but also because of so much more than that！ The main storyline was engrossing， the main character Anima providing a unique perspective on aer distinct place in aer society。 I really enjoyed the way this narrative took me through the lives and experiences of so many different people throughout this world。 I'm a sucker for those little mini-stories within a larger narrative that give you a glimpse into another piece of the world （think of those interludes in Brandon Sanderson's Stormlight Archive series， or an episode in a TV show that gives the main cast a little time off-screen）。 Lu was able to provide such visceral empathic experiences throughout this book， and it is exactly what I love most about reading！ I'm probably not doing a great job of describing this， but it's because the whole experience was so magical and unique and it TOUCHED me！ In the Watchful City definitely goes onto my list of favorite books ever， and has now put S。 Qiouyi Lu on my list of authors whose work I want to devour！ 。。。more

Tai ，

I like the idea of this novella better than the actual product。 The writing was beautiful but incredibly disorienting。 We're thrown into this world with little to no context and all you hear is someone "borrowing" the body of a random animal。 I wish there had been an inclusion in the author's note that there would be non-conventional pronouns （he/she/them）。 Going in not knowing that I though the main character （Anima） and the pronouns Ær were two different characters。 That criticism is probably I like the idea of this novella better than the actual product。 The writing was beautiful but incredibly disorienting。 We're thrown into this world with little to no context and all you hear is someone "borrowing" the body of a random animal。 I wish there had been an inclusion in the author's note that there would be non-conventional pronouns （he/she/them）。 Going in not knowing that I though the main character （Anima） and the pronouns Ær were two different characters。 That criticism is probably just my own brain going full stupid， but I'd just appreciate a warning。 I found the short stories within the novella way more interesting than the main story。 I would love a full story of the mermaid one。 My main issue is the no context。 If I didn't know better I'd assume this was a novella between two books in a series。 If you're into whimsical writing in a fascinating scifi world， I would say try this out。I received this book for free in exchange for a review。 。。。more

Megan Leigh ，

I could not get into this one。 It is recommended for fans of Lavie Tidhar's award-winning Central Station， which I also didn't gel with， but whose other work I have loved。These kinds of novels， with lots of small vignettes， are tricky to get right。 I think they work best when the framing narrative is strong enough to keep things grounded and moving forward。 Unfortunately， I didn't find that framing narratively gripping and the purpose of the cabinet of curiosities seemed little more than a set-u I could not get into this one。 It is recommended for fans of Lavie Tidhar's award-winning Central Station， which I also didn't gel with， but whose other work I have loved。These kinds of novels， with lots of small vignettes， are tricky to get right。 I think they work best when the framing narrative is strong enough to keep things grounded and moving forward。 Unfortunately， I didn't find that framing narratively gripping and the purpose of the cabinet of curiosities seemed little more than a set-up for the kind of structure the author wanted。 Having said that， people do love Central Station so I can see that many will love this。 It just wasn't for me。 。。。more

CW （The Quiet Pond） ✨ ，

In the Watchful City challenges and pushes the boundaries of science-fiction fantasy and I absolutely loved it。 Reading this was a transcendent experience; thoroughly unique， intriguing， and subverts so many ideas of gender， culture， and belonging。- Follows Anima， a extrasensory non-binary human tasked with watching over the city of Ora's citizens。 When a mysterious visitor enters the city and invites aer to listen to the stories behind the mysterious objects in the visitor's possession， aer wor In the Watchful City challenges and pushes the boundaries of science-fiction fantasy and I absolutely loved it。 Reading this was a transcendent experience; thoroughly unique， intriguing， and subverts so many ideas of gender， culture， and belonging。- Follows Anima， a extrasensory non-binary human tasked with watching over the city of Ora's citizens。 When a mysterious visitor enters the city and invites aer to listen to the stories behind the mysterious objects in the visitor's possession， aer world is challenged and thrown into question。- I loved that this novella had stories within stories; stories that melded biocyberpunk futurism with folklore and mythology， and explored the beauty， the pain， the struggle， and the complexity of life and living。 - This novella delves deeply into the intersections of gender， heritage， and power; it's also delightfully queer and explores grief， power， oppression， and abuse。- The stories are thoroughly Asian-inspired and Asian-influenced， and I enjoyed how Lu subverts cultural and historical norms and imbues them with new meaning and perspective。- This was truly unlike anything I've ever read， but it was phenomenal。 I cannot wait to see waht else Lu writes in the future。Trigger/content warning: on-page suicide， mention of a suicide attempt， self-harm， body mutilations 。。。more

Alexandra ，

I received this as a review copy from NetGalley。 This。。。 is a really hard book to write a review on。 I could just say it's amazing， but that doesn't give you much sense of， well， anything。 I could just say it's a book you have to experience to appreciate but。。。 that's so deeply a cop-out I can't even。 So。 Let's try this。 Characters？ Varied and intriguing and even though you're with most of them for such a short period of time， I felt emotionally connected to pretty much all of them。 I'm pretty s I received this as a review copy from NetGalley。 This。。。 is a really hard book to write a review on。 I could just say it's amazing， but that doesn't give you much sense of， well， anything。 I could just say it's a book you have to experience to appreciate but。。。 that's so deeply a cop-out I can't even。 So。 Let's try this。 Characters？ Varied and intriguing and even though you're with most of them for such a short period of time， I felt emotionally connected to pretty much all of them。 I'm pretty stony-hearted so that's saying a lot。 Gender diverse （two， I think， non-standard pronouns）， very little physical description so imagine what you like of skin colour etc （aspects of Chinese-based world-building like references to foot binding had some impact on my imagination）。 World-building？ One of those instances where there are so many little moments where something is mentioned and I'm like "wait WAIT what？ You need to explain that more！" and the author just ignores me （unsurprisingly） and although I don't fully understand some idea （which might be my lack of cultural context or it might be deliberate）， it turns out actually I don't need those details to fully experience the world and the story。 Having said that， by the end of the story I had a lot of tantalising detail that gave me a very full sense of the world - far more full than might be expected from a fairly short story， and especially one that's not entirely linear。 Plot？ There's one main one - Anima lives in Ora， and works basically as part of a surveillance system， designed to keep citizens safe。 Anima meets someone very unexpected， as well as experiencing tragedy。 But along with that， there are additional stories， told to Anima via representative objects。。。 and I loved Anima but maybe I loved the stories more？ Some involve great loss and some involve victory and they all help to develop a sense of the world in which all of this is taking place。 It's SF and it's fantasy。 The writing is gorgeous。 It's utterly absorbing。 It's going on my list of things to nominate for awards next year。 。。。more

Katie ，

4/5 - I honestly don't know how to rate this。 I。。。enjoyed it？ I guess？ I'm also extremely confused with what I just read but it was good？ I think？ Essentially， we follow Anima， who lives as a semi-omipotent Node of the city-state of Ora。 Æ are greeted one day with a traveler who slowly tells ær stories from a case se travel with， Arabian Nights style。 The book is almost like a short story anthology in some ways， with Anima interacting with the city of Ora and reacting to each tale in between tel 4/5 - I honestly don't know how to rate this。 I。。。enjoyed it？ I guess？ I'm also extremely confused with what I just read but it was good？ I think？ Essentially， we follow Anima， who lives as a semi-omipotent Node of the city-state of Ora。 Æ are greeted one day with a traveler who slowly tells ær stories from a case se travel with， Arabian Nights style。 The book is almost like a short story anthology in some ways， with Anima interacting with the city of Ora and reacting to each tale in between telling。 It's a very。。。experimental structure， with everything from a standard short story to verse to a collection of legal documents。 I suppose i enjoyed it， but deeper literary exploration is really not my forte so I can only provide a surface reaction。 。。。more

Margaret ，

This is such an interesting and lovely literary SFF novella。 It's a layered narrative， with stories within stories。 Also uses multiple queer pronouns， ae， se， e。 I'm quite interested in what this author will write next。 Content warning for on-page suicide， mention of a suicide attempt， self-harm， body mutilations。 This is such an interesting and lovely literary SFF novella。 It's a layered narrative， with stories within stories。 Also uses multiple queer pronouns， ae， se， e。 I'm quite interested in what this author will write next。 Content warning for on-page suicide， mention of a suicide attempt， self-harm， body mutilations。 。。。more

McKenzie ，

Tor。com has been killing it with their novellas recently and this one is no different。 S。 Qioyui Lu gives us a biocyberpunk dreamscape setting with unique characters and stories that are tinged with just the right amount of darkness。 And while I found this to take a little time to get into， （I need more practice with neopronouns） once I really got into it I couldn't stop thinking about this novella。 The stories that take place in this supposed utopia center around family， identity， choice， love， Tor。com has been killing it with their novellas recently and this one is no different。 S。 Qioyui Lu gives us a biocyberpunk dreamscape setting with unique characters and stories that are tinged with just the right amount of darkness。 And while I found this to take a little time to get into， （I need more practice with neopronouns） once I really got into it I couldn't stop thinking about this novella。 The stories that take place in this supposed utopia center around family， identity， choice， love， life， and trauma， but are written in a way that makes them feel like a dream even when unveiling various horrors of human nature。This story is rich and complex。 It's not going to be for everyone not only because of the various content warnings （please see them listed below） that need to go along with it， but also because it's not a straightforward story。 Because Anima's story is woven in with the stories from the cabinet， the characters alternate regularly。 So， if you aren't a fan of multiple POVs or stories within stories， this may not be for you。 However， I enjoyed how these stories wove together to address the different themes that the author wanted to include。Overall， I would recommend it for readers looking for an Asian biocyberpunk setting， with LGBTQ+ representation and themes that transcend time and space。 CWs: On page suicide， Drowning， Mentioned attempted suicide， Violence， Body Mutilation， Blood， Family Abandonment， Foot Binding， Riot， Off page Execution， and I'm sure that I missed something。Thank you to Tor。com and Netgalley for providing me with an e-ARC of this novella， however， all thoughts and opinions are my own。 。。。more

Sophie - biblisophagist ，

"There is something that remains you no matter where you are， when you are， what you are。 So， I'll ask you one question: Who are you？"This "biocyberpunk" （as described by the author） novella contains much more in 208 pages than I was expecting。 We follow Anima， a node within The Gleaming who helps to keep the peace of aer world by having access to watch all the inhabitants and intervene to keep the harmony of this post-traumatic community when necessary。 When a mysterious visitor， Vessel， appear "There is something that remains you no matter where you are， when you are， what you are。 So， I'll ask you one question: Who are you？"This "biocyberpunk" （as described by the author） novella contains much more in 208 pages than I was expecting。 We follow Anima， a node within The Gleaming who helps to keep the peace of aer world by having access to watch all the inhabitants and intervene to keep the harmony of this post-traumatic community when necessary。 When a mysterious visitor， Vessel， appears， Anima is suddenly shown a world without borders and life full of possibilities even with its pain。 This novella is many stories within stories。 This along with it's repetition （a visitor showing up multiple times to tell a story） gives it the feel of a fairytale or some kind of folklore which always draws me in。 As each story within the story unfolds， we are given a clearer picture of this world that Anima inhabits， supposedly a utopia in ways， and the lives of those throughout it as well as aer。 The stories consider life， trauma， choice， identity， love， family， and heritage in ways that feel completely new and as familiar as any myth that's been told over and over again。 The mix of futuristic and archaic imagery felt fresh and engaging rather than confusing。 I loved the use of neopronouns （ae， se， e） throughout the story and the mix of how the story was told with different narration as well as how words were laid out on the page。 CONTENT WARNINGS: completed suicide fully on page， attempted suicide mentioned， body mutilation， family abandonment。 Take caution and care when reading if this kind of content will harm you。 Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan - Tor/Forge for my ARC in exchange for an honest review！ 。。。more

Kristel （hungryandhappy） ，

*Netgalley review*Such a deep and raw sci-fi full of feelings and introspection。 For a novella this book didn't lack information and details both of the characters and the stories told by the character called the Vessel。I loved the narration and the use of neopronouns。 After a couple minutes to get your brain sync with names and everything， the story proceeded way darker than I thought when I started it。The stories narrated by Vessel were gradually harder and the life Anima faced in the Hub and *Netgalley review*Such a deep and raw sci-fi full of feelings and introspection。 For a novella this book didn't lack information and details both of the characters and the stories told by the character called the Vessel。I loved the narration and the use of neopronouns。 After a couple minutes to get your brain sync with names and everything， the story proceeded way darker than I thought when I started it。The stories narrated by Vessel were gradually harder and the life Anima faced in the Hub and while humping inside animals wasn't an easy one and it broke my heart。The story was complex and may not be for everyone， but it's definitely a novella I won't be forgetting anytime soon。 。。。more

Marcella ，

"Pick an item， and I will tell you its story。" In A Watchful City follows Anima in ær job to watch the people of Ora。 She later meet a mysterious newcomer Vessel with a box full of items， stories， and magic。 This book is a novella， so its shorter than usual novels， but packed so much feelings and stories。 One of my fav part is "A Death Made Manifold" as it was both magical and chilling， but the other stories is just as good。Anima is a unique lead and ær story is amazing。 I also love Vessel and "Pick an item， and I will tell you its story。" In A Watchful City follows Anima in ær job to watch the people of Ora。 She later meet a mysterious newcomer Vessel with a box full of items， stories， and magic。 This book is a novella， so its shorter than usual novels， but packed so much feelings and stories。 One of my fav part is "A Death Made Manifold" as it was both magical and chilling， but the other stories is just as good。Anima is a unique lead and ær story is amazing。 I also love Vessel and her magical box！ Overall， a very amazing read。 It has a lot of potential for future stories :）>> Thank you Tordotcom Publishing for e-ARC！ The review is 100% honest。 << 。。。more

Isabel ，

Tor acquires the BEST novellas， I am beyond excited about this！

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=In the Watchful City

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=In the Watchful City&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,In the Watchful City&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0