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Neverwhere

by Neil Gaiman

Other authors: See the other authors section.

Series: London Below (1)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingConversations / Mentions
24,810574133 (4.09)2 / 1176
Richard Mayhew's life is forever changed after he rescues a young girl named Door and finds himself living in a city of monsters, saints, murderers, and angels, and he must help Door on her mission to save this strange underworld kingdom from destruction.
  1. 233
    American Gods {original} by Neil Gaiman (WilliamPascoe)
    WilliamPascoe: Phenominally brilliant fantasy .
  2. 160
    Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman (elbakerone)
  3. 2410
    The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams (souloftherose)
    souloftherose: Although Neverwhere and The Hitchhiker's Guide (THHG) are different genres (the first is urban fantasy, the second comic science-fiction) I felt there was a lot of similarity between the characters of Richard Mayhew (in Neverwhere) and Arthur Dent (in THHG). Both are a kind of everyman with whom the reader can identify and both embody a certain 'Britishness'. And they're both stonkingly good books by British authors.… (more)
  4. 121
    Un Lun Dun by China Miéville (elbakerone, ahstrick)
  5. 121
    Kraken by China Miéville (fugitive)
    fugitive: Another urban fantasy vision of London.
  6. 100
    Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch (riverwillow)
    riverwillow: Both 'Neverwhere' and 'Rivers of London' (US title 'Midnight Riot') evoke a magical fairy tale London which sometimes feels more authentic then any real life guide to the city.
  7. 101
    The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman (riverwillow)
  8. 80
    Alice's Adventures in Wonderland / Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll (sturlington)
    sturlington: Neverwhere is a lot like a grown-up's Wonderland, and the two stories have a similar, surrealistic feel.
  9. 40
    Whispers Under Ground by Ben Aaronovitch (Jannes)
    Jannes: For all your "supernatural secrets in the London underground"-needs.
  10. 84
    Storm Front by Jim Butcher (Polenth)
  11. 40
    Gloriana by Michael Moorcock (ed.pendragon)
    ed.pendragon: Both fantasy titles explore the seedy underbelly of London, one in Tudor times, the other more recently in London Below.
  12. 51
    Something from the Nightside by Simon R. Green (Phantasma)
    Phantasma: The nightside novels are a little darker, but if you like the ideas presented in Neverwhere, you'll most likely enjoy the Nightside (actually, I prefer the Nightside and it's gritty dark humor).
  13. 30
    Metro 2033 by Dmitry Glukhovsky (Navarone)
  14. 30
    The Secret History of Moscow by Ekaterina Sedia (elbakerone, parasolofdoom)
  15. 20
    The Mysteries by Lisa Tuttle (ehines)
    ehines: Regular guy stumbles into the secret realm. In Neverwhere this secret realm is very much a London one; in the Mysteries it is decidedly an old Celtic one. Also Never where turns into a full-blown fantasy adventure, while the Mysteries stays mostly realistic.
  16. 31
    The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud (Steveh15)
  17. 20
    Gog by Andrew Sinclair (ed.pendragon)
    ed.pendragon: Fantasy mixing late 20th century London with fairytale, myth and menace.
  18. 31
    The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell (MsMaryAnn)
  19. 20
    The Water Room by Christopher Fowler (benfulton)
    benfulton: Explorations of the hidden parts of London.
  20. 42
    The Good Fairies of New York by Martin Millar (themephi)

(see all 45 recommendations)

Ghosts (21)
1990s (102)
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» See also 1176 mentions

English (553)  German (5)  Italian (2)  Finnish (2)  French (2)  Dutch (2)  Spanish (1)  Norwegian (1)  Catalan (1)  Swedish (1)  Portuguese (Brazil) (1)  Danish (1)  Portuguese (1)  All languages (573)
Showing 1-5 of 553 (next | show all)
Brilliant book. The only disappointing part is when you actually finish it and realize Gaiman's wonderful universe is coming to an end.

Ahwell. ( )
  jd7h | Feb 18, 2024 |
Extremely imaginative! I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It helped that I listened to the audiobook, which was narrated by Neil Gaiman. ( )
  jfranzone | Feb 14, 2024 |
This 1997 debut novel is an adaptation of a BBC miniseries by the same name devised by Neil Gaiman and Lenny Henry and first aired in 1996. The novel tells the story of a young Scottish businessman, Richard Mayhew, living in London. His fiancée, Jessica, seems content with him, her job, and her friends, although her parents do not care for Richard. Everything changes when an injured young woman, Door, just appears (seemingly coming out of a brick wall), and Richard tries to help her while Jessica is annoyed and leaves him to his task. His life goes sideways thereafter, illustrating the old saying, “no good deed goes unpunished”. He becomes invisible to most people. Neverwhere appears to be the underbelly of London; a series of underground railway stations occupied by a large group of strange people and creatures, e.g., an angel (Islington), a beast in a labyrinth. This sometimes depressing and sometimes funny book is part urban fantasy, part mythology, part horror, part drama, and a whole lot of whimsical delight. ( )
  bschweiger | Feb 4, 2024 |
Some may say that this is Neil Gaiman, best novel, but I think it’s something that transcends the typical arc of character development and story fulfilment. In that way, it’s somewhat absent in its conclusion, I thought the premise, the characters, and the general pacing was actually all very good, however, although these ideas started so well, they didn’t really seem to develop further than great ideas. I understand that Gaiman is planning on returning to the world of Neverwhere. I do wonder whether that will be a better read. As you can imagine the photos society Production is extremely good and lives up to their normal very high-quality. ( )
  aadyer | Jan 27, 2024 |
Well, very interesting, and occasionally funny. A book that hurtled me immediately into the world it created, and made me want to stay there. Some fantastic characterisation, and evocative locations. I wonder why I have never read it before? I will go straight to Neil Gaiman's book listing and see what the next one on my list to read will be. ( )
  Zehava42 | Jan 23, 2024 |
Showing 1-5 of 553 (next | show all)
Gaiman blends history and legend to fashion a traditional tale of good versus evil, replete with tarnished nobility, violence, wizardry, heroism, betrayal, monsters and even a fallen angel. The result is uneven. His conception of London Below is intriguing, but his characters are too obviously symbolic (Door, for example, possesses the ability to open anything). Also, the plot seems a patchwork quilt of stock fantasy images. Adapted from Gaiman's screenplay for a BBC series, this tale would work better with fewer words and more pictures.
added by Shortride | editPublishers Weekly (May 19, 1997)
 
The novel is consistently witty, suspenseful, and hair-raisingly imaginative in its contemporary transpositions of familiar folk and mythic materials (one can read Neverwhere as a postmodernist punk Faerie Queene). Readers who've enjoyed the fantasy work of Tim Powers and William Browning Spencer won't want to miss this one. And, yes, Virginia, there really are alligators in those sewers--and Gaiman makes you believe it.
added by Shortride | editKirkus Reviews
 
The millions who know The Sandman, the spectacularly successful graphic novel series Gaiman writes, will have a jump start over other fantasy fans at conjuring the ambience of his London Below, but by no means should those others fail to make the setting's acquaintance. It is an Oz overrun by maniacs and monsters, and it becomes a Shangri-La for Richard. Excellent escapist fare.
added by Shortride | editBooklist, Ray Olson
 

» Add other authors (15 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Gaiman, Neilprimary authorall editionsconfirmed
Althoff, Gerlindesecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Berggren, Hanssecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Braiter, PaulinaTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
D'Alessandro, JaimeAfterwordsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Fabry, GlennIllustratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Faerna, MónicaTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Gaiman, NeilNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Halperin, AmyCover designersecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Hohl, TinaTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Kivimäki, MikaTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Marcel, Patricksecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Mcginnis, RobertCover artistsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
McKean, DaveIllustratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Osyczka, DanEndpaper mapsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Pék, ZoltánTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Rijsewijk, Erica vansecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Villa, ElisaTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Vojtková, LadislavaTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
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Epigraph
I have never been to St. John's Wood. I dare not. I should be afraid of the innumerable night of fir trees, afraid to come upon a blood red cup and the beating of the wings of the Eagle.
– The Napoleon of Notting Hill, G. K. Chesterton
If ever though gavest hosen or shoon
Then every night and all
Sit thou down and put them on
And Christ receive thy soul

This aye night, this aye night
Every night and all
Fire and fleet and candlelight
And Christ receive thy soul

If ever thou gavest meat or drink
Then every night and all
The fire shall never make thee shrink
And Christ receive thy soul

– The Lyke Wake Dirge (traditional)
Dedication
For Lenny Henry, friend and colleague, who made it happen all the way; and Merrilee Heifetz, friend and agent, who makes everything good.
First words
The night before he went to London, Richard Mayhew was not enjoying himself.
She had been running for four days now, a harum-scarum tumbling flight through passages and tunnels.
Quotations
"It starts with doors."
"You've a good heart," she told him. "Sometimes that's enough to see you safe wherever you go." Then she shook her head. "But mostly, it's not."
There are four simple ways for the observant to tell Mr. Croup and Mr. Vandemar apart: first, Mr. Vandemar is two and a half heads taller than Mr. Croup; secnod, Mr. Croup has eyes of a faded china blue, while Mr. Vandemar's eyes are brown; third, while Mr. Vandemar fashioned the rings he wears on his right hand out of the skulls of four ravens, Mr. Croup has no obvious jewelry; fourth, Mr. Croup likes words, while Mr. Vandemar is always hungry. Also, they look nothing at all alike.
He continued, slowly, by a process of osmosis and white knowledge (which is like white noise, only more useful)...
It was a good place, and a fine city, but there is a price to be paid for all good places, and a price that all good places have to pay.
Last words
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
Disambiguation notice
This is main work for the book Neverwhere. It should not be combined with the TV series on which it is based.
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Richard Mayhew's life is forever changed after he rescues a young girl named Door and finds himself living in a city of monsters, saints, murderers, and angels, and he must help Door on her mission to save this strange underworld kingdom from destruction.

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Book description
Neverwhere is the story of Richard Mayhew and his adventures through London. At the start of the story, he is a young businessman, with a normal life. All this changes, however, when he stops to help a mysterious young girl who appears before him, bleeding and weakened, as he walks with his fiancée to dinner to meet her influential boss.
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