The Luminaries

It was with anticipation that I sat down to read Eleanor Catton's The Luminaries. I did so not long after it was announced that the young author had won the Man Booker Prize in 2013. I was excited to be reading a novel so acclaimed, yet written by a young woman, of similar age and similar antipodean extraction to myself. As an astrology enthusiast, I was also curious to see how Catton had executed a plot structured according to astrological sensibilities.

Although the book is dense - definitely a ‘doorstopper' in the traditional sense- I found the narrative engrossing and compelling. In brief, The Luminaries is a murder-mystery set in nineteenth century New Zealand. For the most part, events take place in a weatherbeaten and isolated town built upon the gold rush and its surrounding coastal region. Everyone is looking to make something of the boom, though all in their own ways.

Catton's cast of characters are positioned to represent both the planets and the twelve zodiac signs, and their personalities designed to manifest their respective astrological traits. Not only the characters in Catton's novel, but all the story's events are written to correspond to the stars' position in the heavens. In this way, one chapter may manifest the square of Uranus in Capricorn and Venus in Pisces, for example. And there is another layer, that is evident to the reader as they progress, which is that the length of the chapters themselves are measured to correspond to the waxing and waning of the lunar cycle.

There is no denying the structural genius and penetrative research that Catton demonstrates in this work. Though with all the focus on timing and astrology, I felt that perhaps an element of the human was lost in the emphasis on the engines of fate, so to speak. At times I felt it difficult to connect to characters, not least because Catton's chosen style, though executed with great grace, necessitated shifting the narrative from one character's experience to another's. In terms of astrology too, the characters were restricted to wholly manifesting almost one sign or planet exclusively, rather than a more realist portrayal of nuanced influences that modern astrology generally takes. There was a dryness to the story, I felt, and a magic left out of it, for all the calculation. I was never transported, or truly moved. This is not to say I don't admire Catton's breaking of new ground. Reading it was quite a rigorous exercise - in all senses, but one which I nevertheless was happy to partake in, though it fell short of my high expectations.

I love the mystery and the style of this but i really lost track of what was going on by the end

Good story but given setting and size of book missed deeper digging into imperialism & ecological change

Very well written, with and intricate storyline adeptly handled - would recommend!

   Since really getting back into reading a few years ago my general reading style has stayed the same.  I can read pretty fast and I actively enjoy the process of doing so.  That's not to say that I skim, but I'm not the type of person to linger over a page or a sentence that really strikes me.  I just take a note of it and move on.  The Luminaries is the first book that I've read not only this year but this decade that has made me change that.  I read this book a lot slower than I normally do because each page and sentence is worth savoring.  For a book that's over 800 pages, that is a serious feat.    I'm not quite sure how to describe The Luminaries so this paragraph may be a bit unstructured.  It definitely has mysteries but it can't really be classified as a mystery novel.  It takes place in the past but it's not really historical fiction.  It has thrilling sections but I can't in good conscious call it a thriller.  It's just... a damn good novel.  The basic gist of it is that 12 people convene in a smoking room in a hotel during the New Zealand gold rush due to a few odd events that have happened over the past few weeks.  Over the course of the novel we learn a lot about each of these 12 as well as many others in this small mining town.  Catton explores her characters in such lush detail that I feel like I know all of them personally at this point.  As we learn more about the characters we also learn just what happened in order to set off the events of the novel.  It feels like Catton is really challenging her readers with the way she writes at points.  While many of the loose threads are explicitly tied up at various points throughout the novel, many others are finished in a more subtle way, rewarding those attentive enough to notice the tiniest of details in her writing.  One of my favorite things about reading is the feeling you get when you realize someone is truly amazing at the act of writing, and I felt that many times while reading The Luminaries.  She really makes writing seem like a beautiful art form with the way she crafts this book and the sentences within it.  I can't help but... be in awe of her talent.  If there is one criticism I have it's that I feel like the book starts out stronger than it finishes, but that is the tiniest of nits that I am picking.  I think the first 500 or so pages are a 10 out of 10 and the remaining 300 are a 9 out of 10.  Well done Eleanor Catton, your book is super fucking good.  

most of the astrological stuff went right over my head but it's a bloody good story

“The clock had struck that late hour of twilight when all colours seem suddenly to lose their richness, and it was raining hard; though the cockled glass, the yard was bleached and fading. Inside, the spirit lamps had not yet succeeded the sea-coloured light of the dying day, and seemed by virtue of their paleness to accent the general cheerlessness of the room's decor.''

The 14th of January 1866 was a rather inauspicious day. A young woman is found unconscious, a heavy sum has been sewn in her dresses. An elusive man has died and a mysterious young man has disappeared. A mysterious widow and her companion seem to move the strings, and unrest has awoken within the Chinese community. This is the situation in the rugged town of Hokitika in New Zealand when Walter Moody arrives, enticed by the thriving goldfields. The tales that starts to unfold in a smoky room in Crown Hotel is as dark, mystical and intricate as the nightly sky and the constellations that rule our fate...

The Luminaries is one of those gloriously complex and deliciously confusing books that are impossible to review without a) sounding utterly incomprehensible, and b) revealing crucial parts of the plot. Or plots, to be more precise. Twelve men who represent the zodiac circle and characters who stand as representatives of the planets. Among them, two of the most enigmatic and fascinating female characters in recent Literature, Lydia Wells and Anna Wetherell who are the heart of this epic noel. Epic not in scope or in characters since both are limited, but in terms of the questions it poses regarding human nature, something I always look for in the novels I choose to read.

‘'Never underestimate how extraordinarily difficult it is to understand a situation from another person's point of view.''

Greed, love, fraud, tireless hunting for fortune, endless schemes and intrigues. The interaction of different cultures, the position of women and men in a newly-built society, the fight for survival in a land as beautiful and mystical as it is rugged and demanding, spirituality, mystery and justice. Everything is called into question, everything is fluid. Each plotline, each event is presented through the multiple views of our characters and the richness of the novel lies in the exploration of the diverse opinions and attitudes towards their fellow human beings. One's wish is another's curse and life unfolds in mysterious ways.

Before I conclude my poor attempt of a review, I'd like to refer to Lydia and Anne, the reasons that made me fall deeply in love with Eleanor Catton's masterpiece. Two women, polar opposites one could say, but with many similarities. Both determined to stand for themselves and survive in a world of men, both willing to overstep the boundaries between determination and ruthlessness, both at the side of the men they have chosen to trust. However, one stands for wisdom, cunningness and seduction, the other for mercy and understanding. But is it all a facade? Which one is on the side of the angels? That is for each one of us readers to decide.

One of those novels that you know they will soon enter the pantheon of classic Literature, monumental moment, a book that takes you on a stormy journey on the Earth and the stars.

‘'You shared your language. You shared the stories of your people. It is a fine friendship that is built from that kind of stone.''

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com/

I read this because it beat A Tale for the Time Being for the Man Booker in 2013 and so I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. This is a long (800+) but relatively quick-moving read about a gold-mining community in New Zealand in the 1800s. Like a mystery, characters are slowly introduced and exposed, and a blurry image of what's going on clarifies throughout. Overall, I liked this but would have shelved it early on if it wasn't a book club assignment. I felt there are better things to read and the opportunity cost of reading something so long wasn't worth it for me.

I had to wait about 12 hours before writing this review. It's the kind of book that calls for contemplation and reflection once completed. The premise is so intriguing: A hermit is dead; a whore is found drugged and wandering the streets, and the town's richest man has disappeared. Twelve relative strangers from different cultures and walks of life meet in secret to discuss the events surrounding the mystery. And Walter Moody stumbles in on it ...

Catton delivers a masterfully written frontier mystery as intricate and magical as the stars governing the characters' lives. I can't pretend to understand the connection to the charts and stellar bodies she includes, but it was a lot of fun just going with it anyway.

This is an incredibly dense and complex novel, with a vast and rich cast of characters. It will not be for everyone, and it is not an easy read. It is however, a literary feat and completely deserving of the Man Booker prize.

I did not like this book, though it had potential, and it's sad.

For me this didn't live up to my expectations. I guess I should stop being allured by Man-Booker prize winners, they run so hot and cold. I can't fault the appeal of this book - a Kiwi author, set in a fascinating time period - the 1860s gold rush of the Otago goldfields (in the south of New Zealand), and on the West Coast of the South Island. It is a spectacular setting.

It is hard to put together a critique of this book without touching on some events and characters in this book, so to be fair to those who intend to read it, I have slapped most of this review into a spoiler. It is too hard to tiptoe around the story...

There are a number of things that annoyed me with this book, and surprisingly, the 830 page length is not one of them. I have no issue with a long book, if the story is worth the pages. However in a book this long, in a setting this good, I have an expectation of some excellent descriptive writing. I want atmosphere, I want to understand the setting from the writing (and not just from prior knowledge), I want the writing to evoke the setting. Unfortunately, this book offered practically nothing on this front. It was so tied up in the people, their interactions and their relationships, that the description was minimal, and focused mostly on the people, at the expense of the setting and the scenery, which in my view was a shame. There is so much to offer here - Hokitika as a gold mining town, the savage and spectacular Hokitika Harbour, the Maori land (of the time), the harsh climate, the hard work of a gold claim. So much opportunity gone begging.

The second problem I have is with the astrological gimmickry - and in my view it is gimmickry. The sections of the book follow a structure such that each chapter is approximately half the number of pages as the subsequent (first 360 pages, second 160- pages etc), assumed to be mimicking the phases of the moon, or a method to indicate a speeding up of the story/events. Each chapter title is also astrological in nature - examples: Sun in Capricorn; Moon in Taurus, Waxing; Saturn in Libra... etc At the front of the book the principle characters are attributed astrological signs, and other characters are attributed planetary influences. This ties through the whole story, but, it takes a significant amount of referring back to the list, and even so seems to contribute little extra to the narrative? I found the whole thing felt unnecessary.My second to last item on my complaint list - are the chapter headlines. For the first few chapters (say 600 pages) this isn't such a bit deal - one short sentence hinting at the contents. This is common enough is older books - it sort of annoys me in them too... However, once we get into the last few hundred pages, as the chapters become shorter and shorter the chapter headlines conversely become longer and longer. It reaches the peak-ridiculousness when the chapter title is longer than the chapter. Worse though, is the fact that the chapter titles begin adding information not found in the narrative - eg the chapter title reads "In which..." and outlines a sequence of events which are not covered by the chapter. To me this was just illustrating that the book couldn't conform to its own structure.Last complaint on the list gets a spoiler within the spoiler - even if you think you might read this book, just skip this one... I was annoyed by the magical realism. It wasn't advertised, and while I have read a few novels which are based on magical realism, I don't like to be surprised with it. OK call it Astral Twinning if you will, but for me I consider it a cheat after setting up the complex web of characters.
Ok, there were some positives, as I probably would have ditched it half way through if it were 2 stars - there are just too many other books I would read.

The complex web of characters are excellent, and would have taken a lot of planning, as it all seems to tie together pretty faultlessly. As a mystery, it was well crafted and complex, although the non-linear structure to release the information was annoying, the initial chapter where the majority of the characters are in a room together sharing their knowledge is an interesting and successful way of dumping the layer of initial information.

For me, it was a 3 star read.

I feel slightly churlish giving such an incredibly intricate and well written book so few stars, but unfortunately, I just didn't enjoy it all that much. There were too many characters introduced so slowly and in such detail I had forgotten who many of them were by the time they reappeared, and I spent a lot of time hoping for some kind of recap so I could once again get back on track with what was going on.

Having started this while in New Zealand, it was fun trying to imagine the modern town of Hokitika reduced to such squalor and frenetic activity, like the antipodean version of the wild west. Catton certainly has a brilliant command of psychology and behaviour, imbuing all of her characters with unique and complex motivations. But the only one I really cared about was Staines, and the love story with him and Anna is certainly the highlight of the book.

There are many good reviews elsewhere on Goodreads which elaborate on all the clever structural and astrological tricks that are employed throughout the novel, but most of them went over my head. It's not a great mystery, it's certainly not a page turner, and it's at least 300 pages too long. But I was still mightily impressed by it, while remaining mostly bored.

Quite a thick book, full of marvellously crafted characters bound together by a compelling mystery storyline. I wonder though, if it would have been a bit of a drag to keep track of all the plot if I wouldn't have had the luxury and time to devour it all in 4 days on the beach.

Definitely left me aching for a Deadwood rewatch.

I didn't love this novel. I liked it well enough and can see why it got the attention of the Man Booker committee: it's ambitious, it's novel, it is put together in a very conscious, artistic way. But the stellar architecture struck me as unnecessary. I am not sure the constraints dictated by Catton's chosen structure enhanced the book, either in purely artistic terms or in terms of my reading pleasure. And the speed of the ending, the way the chapters veritably run up into one another, after such a very very slow opening to the novel, leaves the reader feeling. . . . a bit adrift.
As far as a sense for the NZ goldrush, though, and the era and place–that was truly remarkable.

I loved this book. A gold-rush-era New Zealand epic, but with a voice that reminded me of George Eliot.

I really couldn't get into this book. It was beautifully written, but could still not hold my attention.

Really glad I opted for the audiobook version as well! The narrator does an excellent job with all the characters!

I listened and read this book together, and the narrator, Mark Meadows, was fantastic. As for the writing, the Victorian style is intricate and immersive in a world I certainly knew nothing about, but the story was overly complicated and its mystery, once solved, not vert satisfying for 834 pages.

Really wonderful. A journey from complete mystification to gradual enlightenment. A community on the edge of civilization. A touch of the supernatural. A love story and a story of people remaking themselves. I did not want to put this book down.

This bloated, plodding, overstuffed-yet-thinly characterized Dickensian wannabe lacking any venture or stakes or archetypal theme mounted on a clever yet conclusively gimmicky astrological/lunar cycle structure actually won the Booker Prize in 2013.

Good lord.

No wonder she won the Booker. How did she organise such complexity so well?

The Luminaries is a many-faceted and, in ways, complex book, but that doesn't mean the story is not enjoyable. For those willing to make the effort, it can be a wonderful read. Yes, it's saturated with cross-references to astrological charts, experimentation of form, and word play, all with the stylization of Victorian literature, but I wouldn't say the story is in any way bogged down by these elements. If anything, I'd say these elements are what lift this novel above other such tomes of historical mysteries.

If I had only one word to describe Eleanor Catton's second novel, it would be ‘impressive'. Sure it's enjoyable and captivating, but what stands out most is the author's ability to shape such a novel. Using astrological charts from the period the novel is set in, Catton creates twelve characters representing the sectors of the zodiac, and another eight to represent the known bodies of the solar system at the time. The characters interactions are based on the movements of these bodies throughout the year. At the beginning of each section of the novel, a astrological chart has been placed, a device which will either delight or infuriate the reader. On top of the astrological positionings, the novel begins at its middle and concludes at its middle, a device which mirrors the meaning of the name of the town central to the story's plot: Hokitika. Each part of the novel is half of its predecessor (I've heard that the word count for each part is exactly half of its predecessor, but I have not confirmed this), leading to a first chapter that is 360 pages (aha!), and a final chapter that is merely 95 words. You see? Quite intricate. And I'm probably missing so much.

Despite these clever inclusions, the story is captivating. Now, I'll admit the beginning is a little dodgy as much Victorian literature is—there's just too much to set up to do it briefly. And the end falls apart both in implementation of the aforementioned concepts and in storytelling—it was a lot to carry. But neither of these factors detract from the joy the middle bulk of the book left me feeling. And those willing to do the work, to flip back to the charts and see how everything is fitting together, to study the basics of astrology and see what deeper meanings may be at play, those are the readers that will most likely be rewarded with The Luminaries. A Booker-worthy novel indeed.