# Iron Council by China Mieville



## Werthead (Feb 22, 2012)

*Iron Council by China Mieville*



> New Crobuzon is in the grip of economic disaster. A ruinous naval war against the city of Tesh is being prosecuted over thousands of miles, draining the city's coffers. People are laid off only to be rehired on a fraction of their original income to make weapons for the war effort. The seeds of revolution are being sown within the city. Outside, a band of revolutionaries are on another type of quest, to head into the badlands at the centre of the Rohagi continent in search of the perpetual train, the Iron Council. The Council defected from New Crobuzon's control twenty years ago and is now a symbol and a myth to the people, a sign of freedom and hope. But the rulers of New Crobuzon never forgets any slight against it, no matter how small, and have their own plans to take vengeance against the Council...
> 
> Iron Council, published in 2004, is China Mieville's fourth novel and the third set in his signature fantasy world of Bas-Lag, though it has little to do with the two previous novels (the solid Perdido Street Station and the excellent The Scar) and can be enjoyed by itself. It's a somewhat complex novel, following three distinct story strands. In the first, a band of revolutionaries from New Crobuzon set out in search of Judah Law, a man who knows the location of the Iron Council. Once reunited with him, they search together for the Council and how to best guide it home. In the second strand, Law flashes back twenty years to the events leading to the Council's defection from New Crobuzon's control. In the third, the story follows a revolutionary named Ori as dissent and anger on New Crobuzon's streets reaches fevre pitch and threatens civil war.
> 
> ...


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## Ursa major (Feb 22, 2012)

As it happens, I think _Iron Council_ suffers, a bit, from the main failing of _Kraken_, which is the use of magic in some of the scenes. Towards the end, I got the impression that Miéville's imagination became more important than the story, with a series of difficulties faced by the Iron Council being met with ever-more imaginative golems**. At this point, the book seemed to become just a stage for Miéville to show off how clever he is (which is very clever). To be fair, this is very far from being a major part of the book, and Law's solution to the issues surrounding the train's journey is, un my humble opinion, spectacular.

I liked Miéville's return to describing events in New Crobuzon and the time-jumping between sections was fine, in my opinion. (But then being someone who prefers _Perdido Street Station_ over _The Scar_, I would, wouldn't I?)

_Iron Council_ is well worth reading.





** - In _Kraken_, this problem - the concept of the book as a stage on which Miéville's imagination can run riot - is not confined to a short section of that book, but permeates a great deal of it.


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## biodroid (Feb 23, 2012)

Is China's books supposed to be read in order.


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## J-WO (Feb 23, 2012)

biodroid said:


> Is China's books supposed to be read in order.



It's not vital, but it does add to the experience. Much like Iain M. Banks' Culture Books.


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## gully_foyle (Feb 23, 2012)

That's not to say there isn't an order in which to read them. Start with Perdido Street Station, followmup with The Scar, then The City and then City, then the rest. Enjoy.


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## Werthead (Feb 26, 2012)

There's also a short story set in New Crobuzon in _Looking for Jake_ that's worth a read. It takes place between _The Scar_ and _Iron Council_, and is useful (but not essential) for setting up a story point in _Iron Council_.


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## Ursa major (Feb 26, 2012)

Thanks for that information, Werthead.


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## Stephen Palmer (Feb 27, 2012)

_Iron Counciol_ is definitely the weakest of the three. I think he was running out of imaginative steam at that point.


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