Review: what an achievement! I was in awe of this novel and Catton's skill. Despite it being over 800 pages, I absolutely tore through this novel. The pacing was excellent, cleverly amped up using the length of chapters, switching points of view and back & forth in the timelines. The multiple mysteries at the beginning bring tension and unease, whilst Catton sneakily drops in reveals so that you can start to build together the true events along with Moody. 

The plot is clever and at a level of complexity I've not read except with Mantel and Dickens. It is so ambitious and Catton 100% pulls it off. It is relentless, cruel, tragic and unique. This is aided by the brutal setting of the New Zealand gold rush - which holds no mercies. I loved the detail that added a richness to the setting, I learned so much about the gold rush and the dark dealings that accompanied it. There was an excellent commentary on colonialism through the indentured workers and the lense of translation. 

"The words of one tongue never found their exact equivalent in the other...however close the flavour, there was always something approximated, something imagined or something lost."

The characters are incredibly complex and morally ambiguous characters. They’re written with a lot of insight and have their own flaws and quirks, which make them unique and unforgettable.
There are 12 characters represented by a zodiac sign and 5 by planets. I think my favourites were Lydia, Crosbie and Anna. 

Honestly this was an incredible read and I had a great time reading it. It made me gasp at the reveals and smile in admiration at the sheer craft of Catton's writing.