Oh, Grimm's ship. I thought it was some monster down in the mist. I am very curious about the surface and why humans didn't settle there. And since these humans need a generation to create a hole in the spire stone, I'm wondering if humans built the spires at all. If they did, they had a lot better technology at one time.

I'm enjoying this book, but I'm having a lot of trouble seeing the world. I assumed the spires were natural features and wanted to know if the humans built into them or lived in natural caves in them. Then I read some stuff here and it seems the spires are man made. So why were they made? I decided that humans can't breathe in the mist so they live above it, but that hasn't been stated in the book. They do go down to the surface to get wood, and probably other things (water, I presume, or maybe that can be processed out of the mist?) Do they really ship goods between habbles only outside the spire? No internal stairs, lifts, or whatever?  It seems the habbles have fought in the past, but each one would be dependent on lower ones for anything coming up from below. If a lower one was hostile, it could stop the shipments.

Also, the word "Spirearch" sticks in my brain every time. Is it "Spire-reerch?" "Spire-re-arch?" The last 'r" really throws me off. I won't even ask about the word "habbles." Something to do with "habitats," I assume.