My goodness, this is a lot. Literally and figuratively. As evidenced by the fact that it took me four months to finish. The fact that this is a first novel is astounding, really. It's part source-cited fake historical text, part magical fantasy history and I couldn't recommend it more emphatically.

It was recommended to me by someone after we spoke about how much I loved Piranesi, and it's pretty much the opposite of it in many ways.

In Piranesi, Susanna Clarke conjures a vivid and detailed other-world with almost nothing. It's remarkable and I would recommend you read it today. In Strange & Norrell, she crafts an immensely detailed parallel universe history of 19th century England, as if magic were real.

I could talk and talk and talk about this book but I won't. Just read Piranesi, and if you like it read Strange & Norrell because it's unbelievable.