Read Along of Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman: Part 2

You can see Carl’s Part 2 post, and the links to the other blogs taking part, here.


This week we have read up to the end of Chapter 12.

1.  Chapter 6 begins with Richard chanting the mantra, "I want to go home".  How do you feel about Richard and his reactions at this point to the unexpected adventure he finds himself on?

It reminded me a little of Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz: “There’s no place like home!”

Richard seems to have got past the initial blast of confusion and is now starting to wonder if this will be his life from now on. I can understand why he is very scared and getting increasingly angry about the change in his circumstances. He feels like a very real person to me, and his reactions are perfectly understandable, so I sympathize with him a lot.

2.  The Marquis de Carabas was even more mysterious and cagey during the first part of this week's reading.  What were your reactions to him/thoughts about him as you followed his activities?

At first I thought he had betrayed Door and was actually the person employing Messers Croup and Vandemar, so I was relieved when that was not the case. I am very impressed by how much he knows about the world and so he knows exactly how to bribe everyone he encounters. For example, how does he just happen to have a whistle to play the most attractive tune in the world, and its antidote? It seems like his coat is like a Bag of Holding in the D&D universe, with unlimited storage space. Also, I really want to know what was in the box that he gave Old Bailey for safekeeping.

3.  How did you feel about the Ordeal of the Key?

Well, it did not make a great deal of sense to me. I assume that the challenge was to not commit suicide, but it was very confusing and disorientating. I am surprised that Richard came out of it without massive paranoia. I would also like to know how the friars knew that he had been in there long enough. I am not sure that Door or Hunter would have done any better than Richard, so perhaps he was destined to fulfill this role in their Quest. I was nicely surprised that Anesthesia’s bead did have some significance.

4.  This section of the book is filled with moments.  Small, sometimes quite significant, moments that pass within a few pages but stick with you.  What are one or two of these that you haven't discussed yet that stood out to you, or that you particularly enjoyed.

The Messers having been around for the Sack of Troy did jump out at me a little. So they are seriously old, as that is more than three thousand years ago, and they can move by teleporting from place to place. That suggests that they are possibly demons or even characters somewhat similar to the Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Lovely!

Mr Croup eats fine china and has an almost orgasmic reaction to the process. Well, that’s not strange at all, is it? In fact, it makes Mr Vandemar look a little boring when he bites the heads off small mammals.

Serpentine was almost a throw away character, but seemed to be someone very dangerous. She knows more about Hunter: perhaps she was the person who created the curse to keep Hunter below ground.

Door had a throw away line that suddenly made me realize something very important that I had missed earlier. Who hid her father’s recording sphere? We clearly see his death on it, so he could not have hidden it himself.

5.  Any other things/ideas that you want to talk about from this section of the book?

I like how the worlds of Londons Above and Below keep colliding. The bizarre Earl’s Court explains blacked out carriages that Richard has often seen on the Underground, although I do wonder if the missing items from the vending machines are ever noticed. I liked the scene with Jessica and the reception in the Museum, where Richard tells her who he is very bluntly. That was a nice touch, as was the inability for anyone to stay focused on Door and Richard for more than a few minutes.

I am intrigued by the idea that all big cities have a Below under them. I want to know how Hunter has managed to travel between the cities: did she move above ground or below?