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Judith P. (Ithaca, NY)
Intense and enthralling
Metropolis is an outstanding book. Writer B. A. Shapiro weaves an intensely immersive tale.
Five disparate people live or work in Metropolis, a huge, castle-like storage warehouse in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Rose, the office manager, allows people to live there and pay her under the table. Lawyer Jason has his office there. Marta is avoiding ICE and writing her dissertation; Liddy is avoiding her wealthy and abusive husband; Serge is avoiding people while creating brilliant photographs. Then there's Zach, who purchased Metropolis to launder drug money.
Legal problems and love bring these people together, their
…more difficulties escalating until it seems they have no way out. Discovering how, or if, these characters solve their problems kept me reading. But this is not one of those annoying "fast-paced, action-packed" books. The writing is filled with intriguing details about the people and the place.
Ultimately, Metropolis shows how hard it is for most people to survive and make a living when faced with poverty, abuse, mental illness, or the forces of giant corporations and bureaucracies. The story, however, is more enthralling than any of these concerns. (less)This book is both a whodunit and also a what-exactly-happened-anyway? There is a central location - an abandoned storage facility with six or seven units of particular interest to us - and also six or seven characters who we assume connect in some way to the storage facility and probably to each other. By the middle of the book the connections and the facts are mostly clear (we think) and by the end of the book it all connects together in a very satisfying way and everything is clear. This is a very gratifying mystery with great characters, and also a healthy dose of social commentary. Highly recommended!
Chris D.
Unusual setting
This was a first for me! I am quite sure that I have never yet read a book that was set in a series of storage units. Metropolis is a very creative and unusual book and I enjoyed reading it. The characters were varied and interesting, and they may have led very separate lives, but in a time of need they came together to help each other in the way that they could.
Carolyn S. (Kennesaw, GA)
Metropolis
This book is the story of very different individuals who for one reason or another live and work in an old warehouse and is filled with suspense from being to end. The plot is very original and nuanced and a delight to read.
Pamela C. (Boxborough, MA)
Unique and compelling suspense novel
This is such a wonderful book! I loved how the author introduced us to the six characters who lived or worked at the Metropolis Storage Warehouse. Each of them have a unique connection to Metropolis, some of them are actually living in their storage units and we learn their reasons for doing so. When an elevator accident happens there, it is a mystery as to who is responsible . It was a very original and creative story and had me really transfixed right up until the end. Great characters and suspense!
Carol Ellis
Deftly written
I began reading this book and could not stop and that, for me, is high praise. B. Shapiro has written an intriguing, engaging, and clever novel. The setting is Boston; each chapter is brief and told from the point of view of a different character. You are immediately drawn to the good guys, and fear for their well-being. One of the main characters is writing a doctoral thesis trying to prove that the conditions you happen to be born into very much determine how your life will turn out. The book illustrates this concept and does it well. Shapiro is a really good writer - over and over again she succeeds at
…more creating a scene you can picture; she is stronger at this than with descriptions of interior states.
Metropolis is much much better than most of the "best seller" fiction out there; I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a really good reading moment. (less)What a clever concept carried out by a cast of characters, from varied walks of life, with one thing in common…life has gotten a bit too difficult for each of them in different ways. Yet this storage facility has given them each a chance to escape, figure things out, and change their lives as their stories become intertwined.
Metropolis pulled me in & held my interest until the last part of the book when she managed to tie the ends up too neatly for my taste. Otherwise, I’d say this is another good read from a great author. I recommend you pick this one up!
Moshamveer singh
Book - metropolis
This book is amazing, I read its worth all the money to a buyer.
I think writer should add some texture in this book to look good at the time of reading.
Thank you.
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