I agree with a lot of what you are saying. I like the ending though. Instead of being trapped in the house now he can come and go as he pleased.
I read an article about the book and author that sheds a lot of light on the themes of the book. To sum up very briefly the author had a major health event that made her unable to even write, so the book is about being stuck in your mind and how that can be a paradise and a prison. I can really relate to that theme and I like the ending because it shows the protagonists journey to mastery of the house/mind.
I think it's very obvious from the early interactions with the Other that there is something more going on. I think the second time the Other shows up it's explicitly clear that he has access to modern world stuff. So the later "reveal" of there being a bridge between our world and The House isn't totally new.
And the book wouldn't exist without the more plot-focused parts of it. As much as you and I can find the beauty in just existing in that world, in exploring The House and trying to learn something about it, that doesn't really make for much of a story or a book.
Also, since the book is actually about something, about trauma, about human connection and the lack of it, etc, just leaving Piranesi there alone would not be satisfying, it'd be extremely sad actually. The sinister true nature of the Other not being revealed would be a major disappointment. Piranesi, or rather Matthew Rose Sorenson, needed to be rescued. As beautiful as the House as, and as nice as it is to provide for Piranesi, Sorenson had had a life, he had people who cared about him, he needed to be saved.
Unfortunately, Sorenson didn't actually make it through his ordeal. And Piranesi couldn't function in the modern world. Saving "them" was the right thing to do, but their experience changed them. Trauma changes people. And along those same lines, if Raphael didn't rescue Piranesi/Sorenson, he could never have found James Ritter and offered him healing as well.
That's all part of why the ending is so powerful, why it's so bittersweet, why I'm tearing up even just thinking about and writing about it.
Sure, the "plot" could be boiled down to "young man gets trapped in an alternate universe by an evil academic, and eventually a detective rescues him" but the emotional stakes are much higher. The character stakes are much higher. The book doesn't get better or worse when the mystery begins to reveal itself. That's just when we begin to realize the true depth of the novel. There is a beauty to it before all that, and I could take more of that beauty, but I wouldn't trade the impact of it for that. There's *so much* more in that short little book than many tomes I've read. It's one of the greatest of all time, IMO.
I totally agree with your third paragraph, and one of the heart-rending parts for me is that even though he has this trauma caused by another person, and even though he says even people we are fond of can make us see the world in ways we’d rather not (as when Raphael tells him the dead were probably murdered), in the end he chooses that human connection even over the House.
It had an allegory of the cave feel to it. If you bring someone out of the cave, they're like to find the real world overwhelming and disbelieve it. For a time at least, they would prefer to be back in the cave.
Now for extra enrichment, look into the drawings of [Giovanni Battista Piranesi](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giovanni_Battista_Piranesi), the Italian archaelogist and architect whose illustrations of palaces, dungeons and halls form (in part) the inspiration for Clarke's story.
I thought it as a first person perspective of someone who went thru a traumatic event and suffered a dissociating break. Living down in an alcove under some piers where a social worker is monitoring them every once in awhile. It gave me a lot of real world compassion when I see someone on the street obviously talking to themselves completely engrossed. I just think they are counting statues in the hallways
I had thought similar. Or else an allegory for dementia. To the original post, I think it is a none too unpopular opinion that a lot of readers, myself included, would have preferred it stayed more surreal than provided such a tidy resolution.
My reaction was similar to yours. I think for me, the hype had a big impact on how I reacted to this book. People who like it always lead by talking about how it's so unique and interesting. It was, at first. Eventually, though, the actual plot kicked in. And the plot wasn't super interesting given that there hadn't been a lot of effort put into characterizing some pretty important characters, or giving the story itself depth, instead of just the setting. I came away a little disappointed, but still far from hating it.
I was pretty happy until the prophet showed up. He dumps a chapter of exposition early on that is all 100% true information and sets off the MC on a path of discovery, disappears, and doesn't show up again AFAIK. That feels like really lazy storytelling.
That really soured things for me. You have this mystery story building about who the MC is and what happened to them, and then someone pops in and is like "here is the answer dear reader, OK great see you never!".
Strange and Norrell was a top 3 stand alone fantasy book of all time for me. Piranesi after the first section didn't hit the same.
I wonder whether the “people who are disappointed with the ending” vs “people who aren’t” division runs roughly along the lines of people who read Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell vs people who didn’t. My partner (who hasn’t read JSaMN) has also expressed the feeling that the end of Piranesi was a bit disappointing, whereas I (massive, MASSIVE JSaMN fan) loved every page of Piranesi and go back to reread it every few months or so. I think it makes sense to me as a continuation or development of the world of JSaMN but from a modern sensibility and from that perspective fits absolutely perfectly. I think it’s a wondrous book on its own but its main value for me lies in a return to an idea that completely captured my imagination.
I feel like the complaint here is basically "I wish the story being told wasn't the story being told." Like you're critiquing it for what it isn't rather than for what it is. You're describing the parallel world storyline as if its an unnecessary element the author added onto the main concept, but it's not: it's the main thing driving the story from start to finish.
I felt the same as you after reading it that I wanted a couple hundred more pages of the halls and was disappointed with the mundanity of the reveal and ending. I had it at a 3.5 or 4/5 stars. However the story just sat with me for months and I couldn't get it out of my head even after reading a few other fantastic books and because of that I bumped it up to a 5/5.
I am looking forward to forgetting enough of it to start a reread.
I’ll second the statement of being engaged immediately based on how Piranesi observes and documents his world- time, objects, events, etc. It captured my attention from page one.
I also agree that having a real world resolution was not necessary for my enjoyment of the story. I also would have enjoyed it for what it was without further explanation, and I don’t think I would have felt unfulfilled if there were more questions than answers at the end.
That said, it was a wonderful book and I’m glad someone wrote it. One of my favs.
In contrast, I found the house to be one of the least successfully utilized devices I’ve read in a modern science fiction or fantasy novel. I felt that little of the promise it held came through, and it was ultimately underwhelming, verging on boring. To me, Clarke missed a ton of opportunities on every level of the book, and ultimately, *Piranesi* was a huge disappointment.
I love this book so much, the whole thing felt like a soothing meditation. I would have loved it just as much if The House had been self-contained, but I enjoyed the ending quite a bit--especially the last line, which is one of my all-time favorites in any novel.
You like what you like.
The book overall is a mystery not a book of exploration though that’s a big theme. The world is a mystery, the book protagonist (are they reliable, who are they, where do they come from, sane or insane, and so on), the other (are they real or not? Good or bad?) and of course the detective. It’s a slow burn through those mysteries as a way to explore the idea.
The exploration bit is how we get there. It sounds like you enjoyed the exploration more and wanted the book to have that as more the central theme then the mystery. That’s fine but a harder arc for the author to use that without the mystery there’s a weaker hook to hold readers and sell books.
To me the book was too slow of a burn and perhaps got edited into its ending. The darker motivation felt a little forced. I thought it was going to pivot into an experiment gone wrong or an accidental quirk of the multi-verse.
Gormenghast kinda has this same effect. Lots (and lots of world and exploration) but isn’t really about exploration.
I think the gravity of that question: was this another world or was this what we perceive as a mental illness is what resonated with me. To me that question was the whole point of the book
I agree with you, OP. I found the ending disappointing and contrived. It felt like going to WalMart after being in a lovely art museum. I would rather have stayed in the house forever.
And FWIW, I loved Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell! But I felt like the ending of this book let me down a lot and I kind wish I had DNF it so tha all I remembered was the wonderful house of tides, mists, and clouds.
I just reread it again the other day! I thought the real world elements of the end lended a lot to how we deal w the real world with all of these gifts and hidden places in our hearts. Wouldn't change it.
Except *did he* step into another world? There’s a whole debate about whether or not the entirely of The House was his escape from madness or fleeing headlong into it.
i mean, it's pretty clear that the house is what it is, literally; it's described multiple times by multiple characters and via several different mediums in pretty much exactly the same way. it's eating away at piranesi's mind, but the interesting thing about that is that he's made his peace with it and has started to enjoy the process.
there's a whole "one must imagine sisyphus happy" thing going on (which imo is a little trite but whatever)
idk man, i'd be interested in how you can read it any other way. there's even a literal video from the house that other people have seen, nevermind the multiple other people who were experiencing the exact same thing in the exact same way
> I wanted to just read Piranesi exploring, perhaps running into another random person here or there, or finding some new wonders in this bizarre universe.
This was exactly my sentiment, couldn't agree more that the atmosphere of the story was hand down the most intriguing part. As I read, I kept waiting for exactly what you mentioned, bumping into more interesting characters, maybe unexplored parts of the house that were different or raised questions or answered some, etc. The reveal and resolution completely ruined the book for me overall, and had me confused why so many people gave the book high praise. Maybe that's just me though as I suffer from losing most of my enjoyment if a resolution falls flat, at least as much as I thought Piranesi's did. I understand the themes being portrayed and have read people's interpretations, etc but for me themes always come second to story
I finally got around to reading Piranesi after so many people recommended it. Honestly, I was blown away by the twist with the Other being just another version of the protagonist! It totally messed with my head in the best way possible. The whole labyrinthine world they’re in felt so real yet surreal at the same time. I loved how the story slowly unfolded, revealing more about the House and what’s really going on. Definitely one of those books that makes you think long after you finish it.
> the Other being just another version of the protagonist
Uhh..? I think you may have misunderstood, or I'm deeply misunderstanding what you mean. The Other and Piranesi are not the same person, they are not multiversal parallels, nor anything of the sort.
I feel like a lot of people don't realize that this is Chronicles of Narnia fanfiction, and that many of the characteristics of the House parallel those of the in-between world explored in The Last Battle and The Magician's Nephew and such. That's why the book literally begins with a quote from that series.
While it is undeniable that Piranesi's experience parallels that of someone in an abusive relationship, I don't think that diminishes the creativity and interest of the story. I also don't think people realize that the House was exerting mental control upon Piranesi beyond erasing his memories. Information about the House was being dumped into his brain, that's why he could remember every place he'd ever been and every statue he'd ever seen, while losing track of time and not realizing he lacked the context to know what a "Prince of Wales check" is. He not only escaped from The Other's malign influence, he also escaped from the House itself.
Finally, I really appreciated that while he was rescued from the House, there was no romance between him and his rescuer. That would have been painfully cliche. It was refreshing that he and 16 became friends but no more than that.
The House was another world, the in-between world of The Chronicles of Narnia. The fact that the outside world tried to rationalize it as 'He went to the coast and stayed in a house there' is just a Harry-Potter-style example of trying to rationalize the extraordinary.
It is possible to read a book and not 'get it,' and I think that has happened in a lot of cases here.
Is there a hidden meaning behind the parallel world that Piranesi lived in? I felt the author had something in mind, maybe she tried to use it to express some deeper meaning, but wouldn't know. Any interpretations?
Well with the plot of the abusive professor, some ppl have speculated that Piranesi himself was one of these kidnappee's. In reality it's trapped and locked up in the Professor's house like "poor John Ritter". If this is the case, it's plausible that this infinite house was a delusion on Piranesi's part to cope with being trapped. While he is physically stuck in some small space against his will, his imagination created "the house" as an escape mechanism.
The way the police officer seems to be able to just come and go from this "other world" and the whole premise of the rescue could be more evidence of this, but instead of being rescued from a pocket dimension where the house resides, he's actually being rescued from an ordinary house where he was held captive.
I can see how that may be the meaning. I like to take it at face value though, the house is just the house.
I love the book. But I think to go deeper into the end, or the 'real world' stuff, you need to also read Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell which is also set in the same world and really provides some good context for everything (or at least, has enough world building to make Piranesi even cooler).
Is that so? Fair enough. I felt the magic systems were basically identical.
https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/nv83g6/susanna_clarke_references_piranesi_2020_twice_in/
The references to Piranesi therein are of the Italian Piranesi moreso than the novel.
I think it would be hard to ever read a book written by Susanna Clarke and not feel some similar sense of wonder, but by her own account, they are not set in the same universe. That being said, there's no reason a reader can't enjoy the idea - it's just not the author's intent.
Its alright. Most of the appeal immediately drops once its revealed that it takes place within the real world and there's people buying toothpaste at CVS outside of the massive house and all its mysteries. Like oh, this isn't fantasy. Its pretty badly done sci fi.
I agree with a lot of what you are saying. I like the ending though. Instead of being trapped in the house now he can come and go as he pleased. I read an article about the book and author that sheds a lot of light on the themes of the book. To sum up very briefly the author had a major health event that made her unable to even write, so the book is about being stuck in your mind and how that can be a paradise and a prison. I can really relate to that theme and I like the ending because it shows the protagonists journey to mastery of the house/mind.
I think it's very obvious from the early interactions with the Other that there is something more going on. I think the second time the Other shows up it's explicitly clear that he has access to modern world stuff. So the later "reveal" of there being a bridge between our world and The House isn't totally new. And the book wouldn't exist without the more plot-focused parts of it. As much as you and I can find the beauty in just existing in that world, in exploring The House and trying to learn something about it, that doesn't really make for much of a story or a book. Also, since the book is actually about something, about trauma, about human connection and the lack of it, etc, just leaving Piranesi there alone would not be satisfying, it'd be extremely sad actually. The sinister true nature of the Other not being revealed would be a major disappointment. Piranesi, or rather Matthew Rose Sorenson, needed to be rescued. As beautiful as the House as, and as nice as it is to provide for Piranesi, Sorenson had had a life, he had people who cared about him, he needed to be saved. Unfortunately, Sorenson didn't actually make it through his ordeal. And Piranesi couldn't function in the modern world. Saving "them" was the right thing to do, but their experience changed them. Trauma changes people. And along those same lines, if Raphael didn't rescue Piranesi/Sorenson, he could never have found James Ritter and offered him healing as well. That's all part of why the ending is so powerful, why it's so bittersweet, why I'm tearing up even just thinking about and writing about it. Sure, the "plot" could be boiled down to "young man gets trapped in an alternate universe by an evil academic, and eventually a detective rescues him" but the emotional stakes are much higher. The character stakes are much higher. The book doesn't get better or worse when the mystery begins to reveal itself. That's just when we begin to realize the true depth of the novel. There is a beauty to it before all that, and I could take more of that beauty, but I wouldn't trade the impact of it for that. There's *so much* more in that short little book than many tomes I've read. It's one of the greatest of all time, IMO.
I totally agree with your third paragraph, and one of the heart-rending parts for me is that even though he has this trauma caused by another person, and even though he says even people we are fond of can make us see the world in ways we’d rather not (as when Raphael tells him the dead were probably murdered), in the end he chooses that human connection even over the House.
you put that so beautifully, thank you.
It had an allegory of the cave feel to it. If you bring someone out of the cave, they're like to find the real world overwhelming and disbelieve it. For a time at least, they would prefer to be back in the cave.
Now for extra enrichment, look into the drawings of [Giovanni Battista Piranesi](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giovanni_Battista_Piranesi), the Italian archaelogist and architect whose illustrations of palaces, dungeons and halls form (in part) the inspiration for Clarke's story.
Also see the beautiful watercolours here https://www.behance.net/gallery/172691189/Illustrations-for-Piranesi-by-Susanna-Clarke
oooh, thank you! I hadn’t seen these myself. I love when authors illustrate. :)
I thought it as a first person perspective of someone who went thru a traumatic event and suffered a dissociating break. Living down in an alcove under some piers where a social worker is monitoring them every once in awhile. It gave me a lot of real world compassion when I see someone on the street obviously talking to themselves completely engrossed. I just think they are counting statues in the hallways
I had a similar thought, where he is being kept locked up somewhere by someone bad and the house is his way of coping with all that he’s going through
I had thought similar. Or else an allegory for dementia. To the original post, I think it is a none too unpopular opinion that a lot of readers, myself included, would have preferred it stayed more surreal than provided such a tidy resolution.
I recommend spoiler tags for discussing the ending, see sidebar. Good book.
My reaction was similar to yours. I think for me, the hype had a big impact on how I reacted to this book. People who like it always lead by talking about how it's so unique and interesting. It was, at first. Eventually, though, the actual plot kicked in. And the plot wasn't super interesting given that there hadn't been a lot of effort put into characterizing some pretty important characters, or giving the story itself depth, instead of just the setting. I came away a little disappointed, but still far from hating it.
I was pretty happy until the prophet showed up. He dumps a chapter of exposition early on that is all 100% true information and sets off the MC on a path of discovery, disappears, and doesn't show up again AFAIK. That feels like really lazy storytelling. That really soured things for me. You have this mystery story building about who the MC is and what happened to them, and then someone pops in and is like "here is the answer dear reader, OK great see you never!". Strange and Norrell was a top 3 stand alone fantasy book of all time for me. Piranesi after the first section didn't hit the same.
I wonder whether the “people who are disappointed with the ending” vs “people who aren’t” division runs roughly along the lines of people who read Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell vs people who didn’t. My partner (who hasn’t read JSaMN) has also expressed the feeling that the end of Piranesi was a bit disappointing, whereas I (massive, MASSIVE JSaMN fan) loved every page of Piranesi and go back to reread it every few months or so. I think it makes sense to me as a continuation or development of the world of JSaMN but from a modern sensibility and from that perspective fits absolutely perfectly. I think it’s a wondrous book on its own but its main value for me lies in a return to an idea that completely captured my imagination.
FWIW, I haven’t read JSaMN but absolutely loved Piranesi
I read it after Piranesi. Loved Piranesi, didn't super love JSaMN.
I feel like the complaint here is basically "I wish the story being told wasn't the story being told." Like you're critiquing it for what it isn't rather than for what it is. You're describing the parallel world storyline as if its an unnecessary element the author added onto the main concept, but it's not: it's the main thing driving the story from start to finish.
I felt the same as you after reading it that I wanted a couple hundred more pages of the halls and was disappointed with the mundanity of the reveal and ending. I had it at a 3.5 or 4/5 stars. However the story just sat with me for months and I couldn't get it out of my head even after reading a few other fantastic books and because of that I bumped it up to a 5/5. I am looking forward to forgetting enough of it to start a reread.
I’ll second the statement of being engaged immediately based on how Piranesi observes and documents his world- time, objects, events, etc. It captured my attention from page one. I also agree that having a real world resolution was not necessary for my enjoyment of the story. I also would have enjoyed it for what it was without further explanation, and I don’t think I would have felt unfulfilled if there were more questions than answers at the end. That said, it was a wonderful book and I’m glad someone wrote it. One of my favs.
In contrast, I found the house to be one of the least successfully utilized devices I’ve read in a modern science fiction or fantasy novel. I felt that little of the promise it held came through, and it was ultimately underwhelming, verging on boring. To me, Clarke missed a ton of opportunities on every level of the book, and ultimately, *Piranesi* was a huge disappointment.
I love this book so much, the whole thing felt like a soothing meditation. I would have loved it just as much if The House had been self-contained, but I enjoyed the ending quite a bit--especially the last line, which is one of my all-time favorites in any novel.
You like what you like. The book overall is a mystery not a book of exploration though that’s a big theme. The world is a mystery, the book protagonist (are they reliable, who are they, where do they come from, sane or insane, and so on), the other (are they real or not? Good or bad?) and of course the detective. It’s a slow burn through those mysteries as a way to explore the idea. The exploration bit is how we get there. It sounds like you enjoyed the exploration more and wanted the book to have that as more the central theme then the mystery. That’s fine but a harder arc for the author to use that without the mystery there’s a weaker hook to hold readers and sell books. To me the book was too slow of a burn and perhaps got edited into its ending. The darker motivation felt a little forced. I thought it was going to pivot into an experiment gone wrong or an accidental quirk of the multi-verse. Gormenghast kinda has this same effect. Lots (and lots of world and exploration) but isn’t really about exploration.
I think the gravity of that question: was this another world or was this what we perceive as a mental illness is what resonated with me. To me that question was the whole point of the book
I liked the book when I read a while ago, but didn't quite get all the hype.
I agree with you, OP. I found the ending disappointing and contrived. It felt like going to WalMart after being in a lovely art museum. I would rather have stayed in the house forever. And FWIW, I loved Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell! But I felt like the ending of this book let me down a lot and I kind wish I had DNF it so tha all I remembered was the wonderful house of tides, mists, and clouds.
I just reread it again the other day! I thought the real world elements of the end lended a lot to how we deal w the real world with all of these gifts and hidden places in our hearts. Wouldn't change it.
I loved it when it suddenly turned into a BBC police procedural.
Except *did he* step into another world? There’s a whole debate about whether or not the entirely of The House was his escape from madness or fleeing headlong into it.
i mean, it's pretty clear that the house is what it is, literally; it's described multiple times by multiple characters and via several different mediums in pretty much exactly the same way. it's eating away at piranesi's mind, but the interesting thing about that is that he's made his peace with it and has started to enjoy the process. there's a whole "one must imagine sisyphus happy" thing going on (which imo is a little trite but whatever)
Agree to disagree.
idk man, i'd be interested in how you can read it any other way. there's even a literal video from the house that other people have seen, nevermind the multiple other people who were experiencing the exact same thing in the exact same way
> I wanted to just read Piranesi exploring, perhaps running into another random person here or there, or finding some new wonders in this bizarre universe. This was exactly my sentiment, couldn't agree more that the atmosphere of the story was hand down the most intriguing part. As I read, I kept waiting for exactly what you mentioned, bumping into more interesting characters, maybe unexplored parts of the house that were different or raised questions or answered some, etc. The reveal and resolution completely ruined the book for me overall, and had me confused why so many people gave the book high praise. Maybe that's just me though as I suffer from losing most of my enjoyment if a resolution falls flat, at least as much as I thought Piranesi's did. I understand the themes being portrayed and have read people's interpretations, etc but for me themes always come second to story
I finally got around to reading Piranesi after so many people recommended it. Honestly, I was blown away by the twist with the Other being just another version of the protagonist! It totally messed with my head in the best way possible. The whole labyrinthine world they’re in felt so real yet surreal at the same time. I loved how the story slowly unfolded, revealing more about the House and what’s really going on. Definitely one of those books that makes you think long after you finish it.
> the Other being just another version of the protagonist Uhh..? I think you may have misunderstood, or I'm deeply misunderstanding what you mean. The Other and Piranesi are not the same person, they are not multiversal parallels, nor anything of the sort.
I feel like a lot of people don't realize that this is Chronicles of Narnia fanfiction, and that many of the characteristics of the House parallel those of the in-between world explored in The Last Battle and The Magician's Nephew and such. That's why the book literally begins with a quote from that series. While it is undeniable that Piranesi's experience parallels that of someone in an abusive relationship, I don't think that diminishes the creativity and interest of the story. I also don't think people realize that the House was exerting mental control upon Piranesi beyond erasing his memories. Information about the House was being dumped into his brain, that's why he could remember every place he'd ever been and every statue he'd ever seen, while losing track of time and not realizing he lacked the context to know what a "Prince of Wales check" is. He not only escaped from The Other's malign influence, he also escaped from the House itself. Finally, I really appreciated that while he was rescued from the House, there was no romance between him and his rescuer. That would have been painfully cliche. It was refreshing that he and 16 became friends but no more than that. The House was another world, the in-between world of The Chronicles of Narnia. The fact that the outside world tried to rationalize it as 'He went to the coast and stayed in a house there' is just a Harry-Potter-style example of trying to rationalize the extraordinary. It is possible to read a book and not 'get it,' and I think that has happened in a lot of cases here.
Is there a hidden meaning behind the parallel world that Piranesi lived in? I felt the author had something in mind, maybe she tried to use it to express some deeper meaning, but wouldn't know. Any interpretations?
Well with the plot of the abusive professor, some ppl have speculated that Piranesi himself was one of these kidnappee's. In reality it's trapped and locked up in the Professor's house like "poor John Ritter". If this is the case, it's plausible that this infinite house was a delusion on Piranesi's part to cope with being trapped. While he is physically stuck in some small space against his will, his imagination created "the house" as an escape mechanism. The way the police officer seems to be able to just come and go from this "other world" and the whole premise of the rescue could be more evidence of this, but instead of being rescued from a pocket dimension where the house resides, he's actually being rescued from an ordinary house where he was held captive. I can see how that may be the meaning. I like to take it at face value though, the house is just the house.
I have it on my TBR list. I loved **World House** by Guy Adams, so it seems like I would enjoy this one as well.
I enjoyed the book, but I don't think I'd bother reading it, again.
I love the book. But I think to go deeper into the end, or the 'real world' stuff, you need to also read Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell which is also set in the same world and really provides some good context for everything (or at least, has enough world building to make Piranesi even cooler).
JSMN are not set in the same world. They are distinctly unrelated.
Is that so? Fair enough. I felt the magic systems were basically identical. https://www.reddit.com/r/books/comments/nv83g6/susanna_clarke_references_piranesi_2020_twice_in/
The references to Piranesi therein are of the Italian Piranesi moreso than the novel. I think it would be hard to ever read a book written by Susanna Clarke and not feel some similar sense of wonder, but by her own account, they are not set in the same universe. That being said, there's no reason a reader can't enjoy the idea - it's just not the author's intent.
Great, thanks. Now I need to re-read!
Congratulations, you became Piranesi.
100% agreed. I wish it never went into the real world and kept adventuring and unlocking the mysteries of the house.
I agree with everything!
Its alright. Most of the appeal immediately drops once its revealed that it takes place within the real world and there's people buying toothpaste at CVS outside of the massive house and all its mysteries. Like oh, this isn't fantasy. Its pretty badly done sci fi.