Piranesi
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- Create Date：2021-08-13 09:16:09
- Update Date：2025-09-24
- Status：finish
- Author：Susanna Clarke
- ISBN：1526622432
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
Piranesi lives in the House。 Perhaps he always has。
In his notebooks， day after day， he makes a clear and careful record of its wonders: the labyrinth of halls， the thousands upon thousands of statues， the tides that thunder up staircases， the clouds that move in slow procession through the upper halls。 On Tuesdays and Fridays Piranesi sees his friend， the Other。 At other times he brings tributes of food to the Dead。 But mostly， he is alone。
Messages begin to appear， scratched out in chalk on the pavements。 There is someone new in the House。 But who are they and what do they want？ Are they a friend or do they bring destruction and madness as the Other claims？
Lost texts must be found; secrets must be uncovered。 The world that Piranesi thought he knew is becoming strange and dangerous。
The Beauty of the House is immeasurable; its Kindness infinite。
In his notebooks， day after day， he makes a clear and careful record of its wonders: the labyrinth of halls， the thousands upon thousands of statues， the tides that thunder up staircases， the clouds that move in slow procession through the upper halls。 On Tuesdays and Fridays Piranesi sees his friend， the Other。 At other times he brings tributes of food to the Dead。 But mostly， he is alone。
Messages begin to appear， scratched out in chalk on the pavements。 There is someone new in the House。 But who are they and what do they want？ Are they a friend or do they bring destruction and madness as the Other claims？
Lost texts must be found; secrets must be uncovered。 The world that Piranesi thought he knew is becoming strange and dangerous。
The Beauty of the House is immeasurable; its Kindness infinite。
Reviews
Arliss
，
I gulped “Piranesi” down in one day。 It is so unusual I could not resist the next page and the next and the next。 It is a book that gave me so much to think about and I absolutely must read it again soon。 I am convinced I will enjoy it even more on the second pass。
Shelly Bedoe
，
So strange and beautiful For the first 25 pages I had no idea what I was reading， for the next hundred I was enormously entertained but very confused， and for the entire rest of the book I was enchanted and could think of nothing else。 A beautiful strange sad perfect book。
Sylvie
，
It wasn't a page turner but I it had such an intriguing mysterious quality that I often thought about when I wasn't reading it。 In some ways it was very much a book you read for university English。 It wasn't a page turner but I it had such an intriguing mysterious quality that I often thought about when I wasn't reading it。 In some ways it was very much a book you read for university English。 。。。more
Natalie
，
the main character is so innocent and good that i wish I could enter the labyrinth myself
Caryn Sig
，
I sat to do "start" this book before bed and ended up staying up until 2am to finish it because I just NEEDED。 TO。 KNOW。 Although the read itself was short， the book is much like Piranesi's House itself: expansive。 I feel that you could spend ages going through each page as if were one of the halls of House and notice something new every time。 I can't wait to revisit it。 I sat to do "start" this book before bed and ended up staying up until 2am to finish it because I just NEEDED。 TO。 KNOW。 Although the read itself was short， the book is much like Piranesi's House itself: expansive。 I feel that you could spend ages going through each page as if were one of the halls of House and notice something new every time。 I can't wait to revisit it。 。。。more
Natalie
，
I just finished the whole thing in a sitting。 It’s the best thing I’ve read in years and I know it will stay with me for a long time。 Susanna has a way of making magic more reasonable than reality。 Really wonderful
EllaV
，
Uno dei libri più belli che io abbia letto in questo 2021， e anche in generale。
Andrea Weil
，
Eigentlich vier bis fünf Sterne， aber ja， es ist ein slow burn， man muss dafür in der Stimmung sein und den Clou habe ich etwa nach einem knappen Drittel vorhergesehen。 Aber das ist ein Buch wo der Weg das Ziel ist。 Es ist so komplett anders als Clarkes berühmter Erstling， was ich sehr geschickt finde， um Vergleiche unmöglich zu machen。 Mehr Stimmung als Action， mehr Philosophie als Spannung， eine sehr eigene Erzählerstimme， ein letztlich doch überraschend herzerwärmende Ende。。。 Ich werde es nic Eigentlich vier bis fünf Sterne， aber ja， es ist ein slow burn， man muss dafür in der Stimmung sein und den Clou habe ich etwa nach einem knappen Drittel vorhergesehen。 Aber das ist ein Buch wo der Weg das Ziel ist。 Es ist so komplett anders als Clarkes berühmter Erstling， was ich sehr geschickt finde， um Vergleiche unmöglich zu machen。 Mehr Stimmung als Action， mehr Philosophie als Spannung， eine sehr eigene Erzählerstimme， ein letztlich doch überraschend herzerwärmende Ende。。。 Ich werde es nicht so oft lesen wie Jonathan Strange， aber ich bin froh， dass ich es habe。 。。。more
Vojtech Sroub
，
The story of Piranesi is not something unpredictable or new， but the prose and sheer imagination， the scenes that are showing in front of you。。。。thats something special that makes Piranesi really great experience more then just literary piece of art。The genre reminds me mostly of fantastic realism， the thing that I like， but its definitely not for everybody4 stars is for shortness， if the first half of the book would last at least 3/4 times longer， it would be definitely 5。。。。but all great in sm The story of Piranesi is not something unpredictable or new， but the prose and sheer imagination， the scenes that are showing in front of you。。。。thats something special that makes Piranesi really great experience more then just literary piece of art。The genre reminds me mostly of fantastic realism， the thing that I like， but its definitely not for everybody4 stars is for shortness， if the first half of the book would last at least 3/4 times longer， it would be definitely 5。。。。but all great in small doses right 。。。more
biblio_mom （Aiza）
，
How should I convince anyone to read this book when all it did to me is leaving me speechless？ This books is only 245 pages， and it only made sense literally around the last 50 pages。 I’ve seen quite a number of people dnfing it， and I beg those who are reading my review to PLEASE PUSH IT THROUGH because it’s worth it and its MIND BLOWINGLY GENIUS！ Upon finishing this， I wasn’t thinking about the story， characters or plots， but I was wondering， what was going on in the author’s head when she wro How should I convince anyone to read this book when all it did to me is leaving me speechless？ This books is only 245 pages， and it only made sense literally around the last 50 pages。 I’ve seen quite a number of people dnfing it， and I beg those who are reading my review to PLEASE PUSH IT THROUGH because it’s worth it and its MIND BLOWINGLY GENIUS！ Upon finishing this， I wasn’t thinking about the story， characters or plots， but I was wondering， what was going on in the author’s head when she wrote this？ How did she pulled something like this through？Whoever wrote the synopsis and blurbs， you guys are genius too。 I think， the sole reason anyone bought this is because 1。 The cover are stunning！ （mine is a hardcover， its double the stunnings 🤣）。 2。 It came with a matching totebag （while stock last）。 3。 The gripping alluring clickbait of a synopsis （if you’ve read this， you’ll probably know what I’m saying）。What was it about？ idk how to write better synopsis， but here’s a try…。。 （to be continued） 。。。more
Holly Gruszecki
，
Woah， I love this book。 A grown up Narnia （specifically the Magicians Nephew） that prompts us to consider the question: How do we reconcile the worlds we know with the ones we perceive？。 “The beauty of the House is immeasurable; it’s Kindness infinite”
Naomi
，
Dreamy amnesiac descriptions of an otherworldly landscape （labyrinth， tides， statues） with a slowly untwisting mystery。 Strange， lyrical， magical， suspenseful。
Gabriela Munhoz
，
4。75 ⭐
Martha Muckleroy
，
For my friends…Read this one at the recommendation of my daughter in law-a very well read librarian。 Three stars has nothing to do with the story or the writing， just not what I like to read。 A little too “deep” for me！
Jocelyn
，
Just brilliant。 This is one you should go into without reading any reviews or summaries beforehand – the unfolding and discovery is half the pleasure。
Wulf Krueger
，
Reading “Piranesi”， I mostly felt unbelievably bored: Piranesi lives in a house with infinite halls; some of them submerged， in some there is an ocean and all feature statues depicting people of all kinds。 Piranesi has developed a kind of faith based upon the house and how he feels it cares for him; even going as far as considering himself the child of the house。We witness Piranesi as he wanders the halls of the house; fishing， talking to birds， the statues and the skeletons of the other thirtee Reading “Piranesi”， I mostly felt unbelievably bored: Piranesi lives in a house with infinite halls; some of them submerged， in some there is an ocean and all feature statues depicting people of all kinds。 Piranesi has developed a kind of faith based upon the house and how he feels it cares for him; even going as far as considering himself the child of the house。We witness Piranesi as he wanders the halls of the house; fishing， talking to birds， the statues and the skeletons of the other thirteen people Piranesi believes to have lived in the house and， consequently， in the entire world because to Piranesi the house is the world。There is one other living person in Piranesi’s little house - the Other！ The Other is - like Piranesi - some kind of （pseudo-）scientist who devises occult rituals to find “Great and Secret Knowledge” and for years， Piranesi has almost religiously and unquestioningly followed the Other’s instructions， believed what the Other believes and catered to the Other’s whims。This is where my issues with the book start: Piranesi is extremely naive and only very late in the “story” starts questioning what he’s being told。 He thinks of himself as a scientist but instead of actually applying scientific methods， Piranesi shys away from looking too closely at the facts as he comes across them。Piranesi is the archetypical “noble savage”; a wild human， uncorrupted by modern civilization， innocent and， thus， prone to deception。 His house which he reveres as a deity - “The Beauty of the House is immeasurable; its Kindness infinite。” - “gives him life” and Piranesi believes himself to be in actual communication with the house itself。This kind of glorification of one lifestyle which is perceived by a modern author as pure and unadulterated is something I absolutely abhor。 Combined with the pseudo-religious elements and the absence of an actual story （I refuse to accept the poor excuse of “transgressive thinking” as one） this makes for the second-worst reading experience for me in 2021。One out of five stars。Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram 。。。more
Claudia
，
Storia originale e imprevedibile， mi ha colto di sorpresa in positivo。 All'inizio ho faticato a calarmi nelle atmosfere della Casa， soprattutto perché i romanzi molto descrittivi non sono esattamente "my cup of tea"， ma da pagina 100 il ritmo si è fatto più incalzante e le scoperte di Piranesi sullo strano labirinto di stanze in cui si trova hanno iniziato ad acquisire un senso。L'autrice ha reso molto bene il senso di maestosità e il realismo magico del luogo， e anche l'inquietudine che nasce in Storia originale e imprevedibile， mi ha colto di sorpresa in positivo。 All'inizio ho faticato a calarmi nelle atmosfere della Casa， soprattutto perché i romanzi molto descrittivi non sono esattamente "my cup of tea"， ma da pagina 100 il ritmo si è fatto più incalzante e le scoperte di Piranesi sullo strano labirinto di stanze in cui si trova hanno iniziato ad acquisire un senso。L'autrice ha reso molto bene il senso di maestosità e il realismo magico del luogo， e anche l'inquietudine che nasce in Piranesi man mano che il mistero viene svelato。 In alcuni passaggi， ho avvertito io stessa un po' di ritrosia nel proseguire， quasi temendo di soffocare sotto il peso della verità e dell'orrore。Un romanzo senza dubbio ben orchestrato， con un finale giusto， anche se forse un po' troppo sfumato per i miei gusti。 Gli do la sufficienza perché non è esattamente il tipo di storia che vorrei rileggere， ma riconosco che sia un romanzo valido e diverso dal solito。 。。。more
Taylor Beesler
，
First half sets up for an amazing second half。 I’m beyond fond of Piranesi。 Loved it。
James
，
“The Beauty of the House is immeasurable; its Kindness infinite。”ENTRY FOR THE FOURTH DAY OF THE EIGHTH MONTH IN THE YEAR PIRANESI CAME INTO MY LIFECaptivating， in all senses of the word best discovered on your own for maximum effect。 Yet consequently， reviewing a book like Piranesi then becomes a precarious balancing act where， rather than giving the usual book-wide overview of its 245 pages that would undermine it， i。e。， said effect， the first 79 pages would have to suffice。 Plenty of praisewo “The Beauty of the House is immeasurable; its Kindness infinite。”ENTRY FOR THE FOURTH DAY OF THE EIGHTH MONTH IN THE YEAR PIRANESI CAME INTO MY LIFECaptivating， in all senses of the word best discovered on your own for maximum effect。 Yet consequently， reviewing a book like Piranesi then becomes a precarious balancing act where， rather than giving the usual book-wide overview of its 245 pages that would undermine it， i。e。， said effect， the first 79 pages would have to suffice。 Plenty of praiseworthiness here， though， as Susanna Clarke’s achievement of stunning imagination makes these early foundational pages less an act of incredible worldbuilding than one of loving encouragement for our exploration of a world already built。 From the first counted hall to the 7，678th， her House now rumbles in its play with Bachelardian space， now roars in its demonstration of the Burkian sublime， by turns striking fear with its treacherous waters， and provoking awe with the innumerable birds and majestic statues （each of them in their individual splendor of existence pregnant with meaning） that populate its halls。 And the House moves us to boundless wonder as well with the unknowability of these infinite halls， as opulent as they are mysterious。 Piranesi’s scientific zest prompted even me， as if some late-blooming student of Darwin， to start doodling in the margins amateur sketches of albatrosses， cumulus clouds， and assorted depictions of the statues from honeycombs to royal crowns。 In lazy cartography， I even tried keeping track of those many halls， listing down the 88th Western Hall as the domain of angry gulls， the 57th as that of “golden Light，” “the 192th as that of “Absolute Darkness。” Presented with Piranesi’s character， from his irresistible curiosity to indefatigable love for the House’s paradoxical natural wonders， and being only the purest character I’ve had the unrepayable gratitude to meet in the same vein of Klara of Kazuo Ishiguro’s likewise generous imagining， there’s little else to do but follow in his example— short of expressing my thoughts in Piranesi’s style of idiosyncratic capitalisation that lends the whole prose a bas-relief charm。In one formal master stroke， Clarke frames “Piranesi” the novel entirely as a series of journal entries。 Piranesi the character thus comes very much alive， very much sympathetic with his every act of unhesitating empathy， whether towards the birds， the bones of his Dead （whom he talks to so “they know they are not alone”）， or the Other， the only other living human inhabitant of the House， whose general indifference doesn’t stop Piranesi from bidding him hearty farewell。 “‘Goodbye！’ I called to his retreating back。 ‘Goodbye！’” So endearing， hence my raised hackles in what I’m sure is a healthy reaction when others dare bash the novel， being such an inextricable part of Piranesi’s character。 It feels personal。 The journal format of Clarke’s novel gives it a certain malleability， too， letting him record his observations about the House， trace his own thoughts as they gamely adapt to thickening plot， and reflect on the practice of journaling as an act of self-empowerment， plus even stylistic liberation allowing for other such forms as lists， notes， textual analyses。“The Beauty of the House is immeasurable; its Kindness infinite。” Although these entries do start off trying to prove the truth of this statement， its more precise variation would ultimately credit such qualities to Piranesi himself， tirelessly sustained throughout this lean novel bursting at the seams with originality and ambition that set the mind to boggling， the more so in the context of Clarke’s chronic fatigue syndrome as she examines the workings of memory and madness， loneliness and selfhood。 Evoking both Lewises with her Carollian flexibility of language and especially C。S。 Lewis’ penchant for fantasy， even quoting from the latter’s Magician’s Nephew as her first epigraph， Clarke manages to construct a work of true escapism all her own， though not into her House with its neverending halls， vestibules， and plinths。 Instead， she stages our disappearing act through total immersion into Piranesi’s character with his uncynical outlook and powerful inner strength， feeling altogether rarefied as her expression of the ideal better than even the statues。 Piranesi: how sweet， how lovely， how Good。 。。。more
Y
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 3。5/5 starsLook at me go pulling a near all-nighter to finish this book。 I'll start with the fact that I definitely need to exercise my imagination more or something because I was lost reading this book majority of the time。 Lots of sentences and words that just got glossed over because I didn't want to read them or I didn't understand what I was even supposed to imagine。 While the overall plot is interesting， none of it really hit it for me。 I liked that I couldn't really predict anything until 3。5/5 starsLook at me go pulling a near all-nighter to finish this book。 I'll start with the fact that I definitely need to exercise my imagination more or something because I was lost reading this book majority of the time。 Lots of sentences and words that just got glossed over because I didn't want to read them or I didn't understand what I was even supposed to imagine。 While the overall plot is interesting， none of it really hit it for me。 I liked that I couldn't really predict anything until it was all laid out， but the reveal is underwhelming。 Not because of what it was but because of the execution。 It just kiiind of gets me but then it falls flat。 I'm a bit disappointed that everyone said that this was depressing， and I'm not that depressed over this。 I could've been， but I'm not。The only thing that saves this book for me is Piranesi himself。 He's just so pure and wholesome - literally my favorite part in the book is where he's trying to write a message to "his enemy" but he can't figure out how to end the message。 How to end your message to someone that threatens your life， now that's the real question around here。 I just love him; I care for him a lot。 His sensitivity to his world and to those around him is so admirable。 I nearly wished I was more like him。 I laughed a couple of times just from reading his thought process。 * SpoilerI wanted to refrain from mentioning this because I'm honestly not going to say much about it， but the fact that Piranesi / Matthew exist as one person wasn't something I expected。 Not even really a thought came to mind， so as Piranesi talks to the police officer about being and not being Matthew， I just felt sad for him。 How do you go about living knowing you were someone else？ And he's just so kind-hearted that he simply takes care of this other side of him as well as forgive Valentine Ketterly。 *Anyways， it's exactly 4AM now。 I didn't have much thoughts in general， because once again， I was lost most of the time。 But I'm glad I read this。 Reading part 1-3 is a bit slow， but it gets better after that。 Many kisses to Piranesi。 oxox 。。。more
Lenna
，
While the prose was beautiful and Susanna created an interesting world， there was not enough story content for a whole book。 I found I had to force myself to read all the way to the end and had none of the feelings of awe and inspiration that I had with her first book Jonathon Strange and Mr。 Norrell。 Leave Piranesi on the shelf and read about Jonathon Strange for a really good Susanna Clarke experience！
Chaitra
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I'd just read Hope Jahren's The Story of More right before coming into this book， and for a few pages I legitimately thought this was a post climate apocalypse book。 That would have been interesting too， I have no doubt Clarke would have written great cli-fi。 But I loved what it turned out to be。 It's hard to say this about a book that victimizes and isolates its main character and then has his only confidante also be his betrayer， but Piranesi made me happy。 The main character， the not Piranesi I'd just read Hope Jahren's The Story of More right before coming into this book， and for a few pages I legitimately thought this was a post climate apocalypse book。 That would have been interesting too， I have no doubt Clarke would have written great cli-fi。 But I loved what it turned out to be。 It's hard to say this about a book that victimizes and isolates its main character and then has his only confidante also be his betrayer， but Piranesi made me happy。 The main character， the not Piranesi， not Sorensen， the unnamed me， he made me happy。 。。。more
Rina
，
3。5/5
Nicole
，
I love it when Fantasy is so well crafted that it feels entirely possible。 Piranesi was beautifully constructed， mysterious and immediately immersive。 A book like this doesn’t come along every day。
Lesley Levine
，
Compelling and interesting。 I have a hard time with fantasy novels， but this one was very readable。
Joy
，
Beautiful。 Dreamlike。 Contemplative。 Lyrical。 Musical。 Transportative。
Aimee
，
Interesting。。。glad I read it， but this was a tricky one to get through。 In some ways， I was reminded of Plato's "Cave"。。。 Interesting。。。glad I read it， but this was a tricky one to get through。 In some ways， I was reminded of Plato's "Cave"。。。 。。。more
Ross Groom
，
Broke through the first 20% for big rewards
Lily Brinn
，
Very different from anything I’ve read recently。 Gripping。
willa
，
i loved this everyone go read it now
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Piranesi
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Piranesi&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Piranesi&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0