Imajica

By: Clive Barker

Narrated by: Simon Vance

Imajica is an epic beyond compare: vast in conception, obsessively detailed in execution, and apocalyptic in its resolution. At its heart lies the sensualist and master art forger Gentle, whose life unravels when he encounters Judith Odell, whose power to influence the destinies of men is vaster than she knows, and Pie "oh" pah, an alien assassin who comes from a hidden dimension.

That dimension is one of five in the great system called Imajica. They are worlds that are utterly unlike our own but are ruled, peopled, and haunted by species whose lives are intricately connected with ours. As Gentle, Judith, and Pie "oh" pah travel the Imajica, they uncover a trail of crimes and intimate betrayals, leading them to a revelation so startling that it changes reality forever.

©1991, 2009 Clive Barker Ink (P)2015 David N. Wilson

Damn Strange

"Damn strange" is how one of the characters responds when he hears a tale recounted to him and it is certainly applicable to Imajica itself. This story is ambitious, complex, and bizarre on many levels. Our world is known as the fifth dominion and it is the one that remains unreconciled. The Tabula Rasa has existed for centuries keeping the powers of the other four dominions at bay but the time for another possible reconciliation approaches. They will prevent it at all costs as the other dominions are full of strange and powerful creatures.

Imajica covers the long series of events that lead up to this possible reconciliation attempt. It is a story that slowly, and I do mean slowly, peels back the onion to uncover one secret after another. Almost every character is more than they first seem and each step of the way there is guaranteed to be a sexual encounter of some kind between some or all of them. Sexuality is core to this story and it is ever present throughout and sometimes it gets as bizarre as everything else.

For me this story definitely outstayed its welcome I was ready for it to be over long before it was. The characters never grabbed me nor did I care if they succeeded in their endeavors. In fact the listener does not really know which outcome is better for the dominions until the very end. Simon Vance did his usual excellent job on the narration but he wasn't enough to carry the day. You can see from the other reviewers that my opinion is in the minority here but Imajica just didn't do it for me. If you want a long, strange, bizarre adventure and you don't mind a lot of sexual encounters then go ahead and pick this up but I can think of many other audiobooks I would rather spend 37 hours with before this one.

Worth it.

This book isn't one in which the plot line goes directly from start to finish without a fair bit of meandering and amazing storytelling. You may go into it with the expectation that you are about to read a fantasy, or horror, or love story, but it isn't any of those. And it's all of them. The book is by turn beautiful, fun, enlightening, gross, sexy, and intriguing. I would definitely recommend it for lovers of the ebb and flow of a story. Included within (without spoilers): transexual beings, Demi-gods, sex, religious wars, gender identity, weird creatures, amazing characters, several switching points of view, and enough valleys and peaks to make it feel like several novels in one. RIYL your genres blurry and your language exquisite. This is a book you won't soon forget.

a Map, a Tutor, a Sacred Text

to lovers of horror and poetry this text is fresh air. imajica is full of deep truths and will bring you to parts of your soul you didn't know existed or else had been long forgotten. you will feel deeply, you will discover what it is to be human, you will be inspired to dig beyond that hallowed title to the deeper truth of your self beyond flesh, beyond even thought which is a product of the flesh. this is more than a book more than a story; it's a map to the unseen reality of the waking world.

A lost, meandering story saved by good narrator

This is the third book I’ve got from Clive Barker, and I think it’s the last one. It’s clear that he knows how to put a sentence together VERY well, but his stories tend to be sooo... vague, almost how he doesn’t have a plot line, and almost anything can happen and it’s like, what’s even going on? Is there a point to all this? So this is 37 hours or whatever and I feel like it could have been condensed into MAYBE 15, possibly 12 or so, especially considering the weak ending.

Simon Vance is great, but he can’t save this book. Very unsatisfying.

Yes!

Phenomenal. A dark, fulfilling journey.

Narration was excellent, even better was the beautiful dark fantasy that never stopped seeming to come undone.

One of my favorite stories of all time

Amazing epic tale! And Mr. Vance is one of my most favorite narrators. Masterful performance! This experience was tremendous pleasure!

A wonderful tale beautifully told.

If you lack imagination or have puritanical leanings, give this a listen anyway.
It could remake your world.
I love this book, and the extremely evocative narration of Simon Vance brought more nuance and illumination than I thought possible having read it several times over the decades. My first experience of Mr. Vance’s narrative capabilities leaves me wanting to experience much more of his masterful talent.

An exquisite journey

Well-written and masterfully performed, this is an epic fantasy take of journeys and magic. Though, as other reviews have stated, quite excessively horny.

An amazing journey!

The story is a journey that rivals The Lord of the Rings, but much, much stranger. My only complaint is the narrator is SLOW. I had to speed it up to 1.3 to get the narration at a normal pace.

good read

this book has a lot going on that all comes together. Clive Barker is an amazing writer with such an imagination. the narrator was perfect for this book.