I read the first couple of chapters of several of the Hugo nominee novels, in something of a hurry; Wind-Up Girl was one that interested me without really grabbing me as hard as the Miéville or Valente or even the Cheri Priest did. I think it's something to do with language: Bacigalupi writes well and vividly, but both Miéville and Valente actually seduce me. I can see, though, that I wouldn't have done justice to the world-building in a couple of chapters; I do plan to go back and read the whole thing sometime. When I'm not involved with werewolves and corsets...