An odd assortment of characters from various time periods
find themselves trapped in a vast, bizarre labyrinth resembling the interior of a
Victorian mansion gone mad in this novel by Guy Adams. At times, the size of the cast
seems excessive, though there is a reason for it. And the main characters aren't the only
ones to have been trapped; the house feels positively crowded, which is somewhat
unexpected for the genre, and interactions with the other inhabitants take up as much
space as more supernatural menaces. The perilous journeys through the house and the
gradual revelation of its purpose makes for a fun if not especially remarkable read. The
big problem with the book is that it's incomplete. There's no indication on the cover that
it's anything other than a standalone novel, but it ends on a cliffhanger with no
resolution whatsoever. The World House and its forthcoming sequel
(apparently the conclusion, though I had to dig a bit to discover that) belong in a single
volume, or at the very least as clearly labelled Parts One and Two. Not an impressive move
from the Angry Robot crew.
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