First Impressions - Neverwhere

Good evening everyone! I wanted to take this opportunity to try out a new post idea I had: First Impressions. I thought I would take my current read, and after reading about 20% of the book, post about my feelings on it so far. I figured it would give the curious reader some quick information about the story, and what to expect. But don't worry, my full review will always be posted when I am done with the book! Also, please note that I reserve the right to discuss some minor plot points. I don't necessarily consider these spoilers because they come so early in the book, but if you'd rather not know anything at all, avert your eyes! Also, feel free to leave comments telling me if you did/did not like this post idea!

Here are my first impressions of Neverwhere, written by Neil Gaiman.

At first, I wasn't sure about this book. The first few pages read like a generic drama, and although I could sense Gaiman's hand in the works, it felt too dissimilar from his other stories. However, as the pages started turning, I quickly began to realize that there is much more going on in Neverwhere than originally meets the eye.

A girl gets attacked by two devious men, Mr. Croup and Mr. Vandemar, and narrowly escapes to be rescued by the protagonist Richard Mayhew. This sets a chain of events in motion that sees Richard falling through the proverbial rabbit hole and literally scaling buildings above the streets of London. At the end of my First Impressions read, Richard has gone back to the life he knew only to realize that no one notices him anymore - and those that do, do not recognize who he is.

Neverwhere is quickly grabbing my attention, and I find that I can not put it down (although I should, as I have a full time job and school on my plate!). Something tells me the rest of the story will fly by as I continue to follow Richard deep into the shadowed regions of London's underground.