Summer of Gaiman: I've read Neverwhere, Good Omens, Sandman, and American gods this summer. It's not a complete list of Gaiman's works, but it gives me enough to reflect on.
Cid referred to his works as Alice in Wonderland repackaged. That is certainly true in Neverwhere and American gods, while Good Omens and Sandman are more of a supernatural bent for most of the characters. Gaiman does some things very well. Every single one of his works is just entertaining to read- Gaiman creates vivid settings and uses them to full effect. Neverwhere conjures up images of sewers and the underground, Sandman of Dream's realm, etc. He also does a good job avoiding loose end. Bit characters appear again and have larger roles, and generally everything has some purpose if it's mentioned. His bit characters in general are well crafted and are memorable. Gaiman definitely recycles material. You can see ideas he touched on in sandman used in later novels. The love goddess working as a stripper/whore stuck out like a sore thumb, and there were others. He also does not give a good mental picture of his characters. Shadow in particular stands out for that, though it may be intentional there.
Neverwhere-
The good: The villians. The main villians of the book are a couple of demonic enforcers who constantly harass the party, and come off as *extremely* threatening the entire time. They are a constant pain in the ass, and never lose that threat value. The main baddie is also a lot of fun- the book throws a couple of good plot twists at you as well. [text=1pt]Islington being the main villian not only was a good plot twist, it makes perfect sense. He needed Richard to get that key for him from the monks, and has his hired flunkies harassing you while Hunter makes sure Richard/Door don't get killed in the mean time.[/text] The scenery was extremely vivid in this book and really helps sell you on the Underworld in which Richard and Door wander through. Door's power is not only interesting, it is used in a fairly logical way. Supporting characters in general were good.
The bad: Richard has zero personality. He's boring and doesn't really have chemistry with anyone. He gets a little better at the end, but for the vast majority of the book he is a passive viewpoint into the world. I didn't much care for the very, very end of the book at first, though my opinion has improved there. Door herself doesn't develop too terribly much. The book is more about showing off the world, and trades character work for those two for more in depth exploration of the world.
I really liked this book in spite of the problems with the viewpoint character.
Good Omens-
The good: The angel/devil combo and some of the footnotes. The two have great chemistry and some of the best humor is related to them. Adam has a couple of shining moments, and the ending is enjoyable enough.
The bad: The book is always enjoyable to read, sure. It isn't always funny. Some of the substories really aren't that interesting.
The book overall is fun and deserves it's hype, but Prachett is very hit or miss with me if this book is any indication. It is also very readable and doesn't drag, though the main plot itself is a bit of a mess.
Sandman-
The good: Can I put everything? The visuals themselves are striking. The characters are very good, from Dream on down to bit characters like Barbie. The side stories by and large are great, as is everything. The story starts with a band, with Dream recovering his powers. The run could have easily ended at that point, but it then branches out into characters like Rose, who branches out into Barbie, etc. Characters interact and meet and have their own arcs. The comic is definitely aimed at adults in terms of content and material, but it never revels in violence or sex. It's 77 comics long and generally avoids being boring, which speaks as to the effort at Gaiman put into it.
The bad: Not enough Death. The inn at the end of all worlds lagged a bit as well.
American Gods:
The good: Chemistry. The book is defined by relationships. Shadow and Laura, Shadow and Wednesday, Shadow and Mulligan, etc. Shadow and his relationships drive this book. The concept itself of the book is fun. A bunch of run down Gods from the old world are trying to survive in a place that is hostile to gods. The writing is as crisp as always.
The bad: THE ENDING. Oh god, what a Sanderson avalanche. The payoff's good, but everything just slams down at you with way too little time to sort through it. The twists themselves were clever, though the final one is extremely easy to figure out.
Sandman is Gaiman's best work to me, hands down. The books/comics were more than worth the effort to read and are something everyone should take a look at.
