Friday, March 9, 2012
More Details about "Worldsoul" by Liz Williams and "Empty Space" by M. John Harrison (by Liviu Suciu)
The author of the wonderful sf novels with strong fantasy-nal elements, Bloodmind, Darkland, Winterstrike, Banner of Souls and of the UF series Inspector Chen returns this summer with Worldsoul, the start of a new series from Prime Books. While even on first rumors the book jumped on my list of highly awaited novels of 2012, the new details that surfaced recently and the book cover presented above, made it even more of a priority.
This is one of the "dark horse" novels of 2012 for me that could so blow me away to jump into my top five novel list, where epics and "weighty" novels of all kind usually tend to dwell, but mind blowing though shorter length sf tends also to appear.
"What if being a librarian was the most dangerous job in the world?
Worldsoul, a great city that forms a nexus point between Earth and the many dimensions known as the Liminality, is a place where old stories gather, where forgotten legends come to fade and die—or to flourish and rise again. Until recently, Worldsoul has been governed by the Skein, but they have gone missing and no one knows why. The city is also being attacked with lethal flower-bombs from unknown enemy. Mercy Fane and her fellow Librarians are doing their best to maintain the Library, but... things... keep breaking out of ancient texts and legends and escaping into the city. Mercy must pursue one such dangerous creature. She turns to Shadow, an alchemist, for aid, but Shadow—inadvertently possessed by an ifrit—has a perilous quest of her own to undertake"
A short comment from Liz Williams about the series can be found on her blog HERE:
"I have signed a 3 book deal with Prime Books. It's called Worldsoul and it's about a stolen library, an unstable monorail, several renegade sphinxes and much else besides. It's more fantasy than SF."
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After a change of title, the 3rd Kefauchi Tract novel by M. John Harrison after the still haunting "Light" and the somewhat less memorable, at least to date, "Nova Swing", will come out this summer as "Empty Space".
Time for a reread of Nova Swing and a browse through Light, but the blurb below is making this one a huge asap novel and an early candidate for top sff novel of the year, place that right now is held by In the Mouth of the Whale.
"EMPTY SPACE is a space adventure. We begin with the following dream: An alien research tool the size of a brown dwarf star hangs in the middle of nowhere, as a result of an attempt to place it equidistant from everything else in every possible universe. Somewhere in the fractal labyrinth beneath its surface, a woman lies on an allotropic carbon deck, a white paste of nanomachines oozing from the corner of her mouth. She is neither conscious nor unconscious, dead nor alive. There is something wrong with her cheekbones. At first you think she is changing from one thing into another -- perhaps it's a cat, perhaps it's something that only looks like one -- then you see that she is actually trying to be both things at once. She is waiting for you, she has been waiting for you for perhaps 10,000 years. She comes from the past, she comes from the future. She is about to speak-- EMPTY SPACE is a sequel to LIGHT and NOVA SWING, three strands presented in alternating chapters which will work their way separately back to this image of frozen transformation."
The author has a little more detail here:
"Pearlant was the working title. By the time I’d finished, I didn’t like it. No one else liked it either. I thought I’d call it Black Heart. Characters of mine have been drinking Black Heart Rum since “The Gift” in 1987, although they only got going in earnest in 2001. But Gollancz turned out to be publishing another novel called Black Heart in the same month. So I reverted to the working title for Light, which I always liked because space isn’t empty at all.
This is one of the "dark horse" novels of 2012 for me that could so blow me away to jump into my top five novel list, where epics and "weighty" novels of all kind usually tend to dwell, but mind blowing though shorter length sf tends also to appear.
"What if being a librarian was the most dangerous job in the world?
Worldsoul, a great city that forms a nexus point between Earth and the many dimensions known as the Liminality, is a place where old stories gather, where forgotten legends come to fade and die—or to flourish and rise again. Until recently, Worldsoul has been governed by the Skein, but they have gone missing and no one knows why. The city is also being attacked with lethal flower-bombs from unknown enemy. Mercy Fane and her fellow Librarians are doing their best to maintain the Library, but... things... keep breaking out of ancient texts and legends and escaping into the city. Mercy must pursue one such dangerous creature. She turns to Shadow, an alchemist, for aid, but Shadow—inadvertently possessed by an ifrit—has a perilous quest of her own to undertake"
A short comment from Liz Williams about the series can be found on her blog HERE:
"I have signed a 3 book deal with Prime Books. It's called Worldsoul and it's about a stolen library, an unstable monorail, several renegade sphinxes and much else besides. It's more fantasy than SF."
**************************************************************************
After a change of title, the 3rd Kefauchi Tract novel by M. John Harrison after the still haunting "Light" and the somewhat less memorable, at least to date, "Nova Swing", will come out this summer as "Empty Space".
Time for a reread of Nova Swing and a browse through Light, but the blurb below is making this one a huge asap novel and an early candidate for top sff novel of the year, place that right now is held by In the Mouth of the Whale.
"EMPTY SPACE is a space adventure. We begin with the following dream: An alien research tool the size of a brown dwarf star hangs in the middle of nowhere, as a result of an attempt to place it equidistant from everything else in every possible universe. Somewhere in the fractal labyrinth beneath its surface, a woman lies on an allotropic carbon deck, a white paste of nanomachines oozing from the corner of her mouth. She is neither conscious nor unconscious, dead nor alive. There is something wrong with her cheekbones. At first you think she is changing from one thing into another -- perhaps it's a cat, perhaps it's something that only looks like one -- then you see that she is actually trying to be both things at once. She is waiting for you, she has been waiting for you for perhaps 10,000 years. She comes from the past, she comes from the future. She is about to speak-- EMPTY SPACE is a sequel to LIGHT and NOVA SWING, three strands presented in alternating chapters which will work their way separately back to this image of frozen transformation."
The author has a little more detail here:
"Pearlant was the working title. By the time I’d finished, I didn’t like it. No one else liked it either. I thought I’d call it Black Heart. Characters of mine have been drinking Black Heart Rum since “The Gift” in 1987, although they only got going in earnest in 2001. But Gollancz turned out to be publishing another novel called Black Heart in the same month. So I reverted to the working title for Light, which I always liked because space isn’t empty at all.
Empty Space is the third & final book in the Light setting. It suggests that I always had a plan, albeit of the usual mad, half-hidden kind. If you didn’t like Light because of the sex, don’t get Empty Space. If you didn’t like Light because of a perceived “coldness” don’t get Empty Space. If you can’t navigate yourself morally, politically & emotionally without three sentences of direction for every sentence that furthers the action, don’t get Empty Space."
11:01 AM | 
Posted by
Liviu |
The Author at WikipediaOrder The Ruined City HERE
Read FBC Review of The Traitor's Daughter
"Paula Brandon’s epic and captivating trilogy continues as magic and mystery wreak havoc with the very fabric of existence.
Reality is wavering. Soon its delicate balance will shift and an ancient force will return to overwhelm the Veiled Isles. Now those with the arcane talent forge an uneasy alliance in hopes that their combined abilities are enough to avert an eerie catastrophe. Yet it may be too late. The otherworldly change has begun. The streets of the city are rife with chaos, plague, and revolt. And it is here that Jianna Belandor, once a pampered daughter of privilege, returns to face new challenges.
The dead walk the streets. The docile amphibian slaves of humanity have taken up arms. Jianna’s home lies in ruins. Her only happiness resides in her growing attraction to Falaste Rione, a brilliant nomadic physician whose compassion and courage have led him to take dangerous risks. Jianna, stronger and more powerful than she knows, has a role to play in the unfolding destiny of her world. But a wave of madness is sweeping across the land, and time is running out—even for magic. "
Reality is wavering. Soon its delicate balance will shift and an ancient force will return to overwhelm the Veiled Isles. Now those with the arcane talent forge an uneasy alliance in hopes that their combined abilities are enough to avert an eerie catastrophe. Yet it may be too late. The otherworldly change has begun. The streets of the city are rife with chaos, plague, and revolt. And it is here that Jianna Belandor, once a pampered daughter of privilege, returns to face new challenges.
The dead walk the streets. The docile amphibian slaves of humanity have taken up arms. Jianna’s home lies in ruins. Her only happiness resides in her growing attraction to Falaste Rione, a brilliant nomadic physician whose compassion and courage have led him to take dangerous risks. Jianna, stronger and more powerful than she knows, has a role to play in the unfolding destiny of her world. But a wave of madness is sweeping across the land, and time is running out—even for magic. "
OVERVIEW/ANALYSIS: "The Ruined City" is a direct sequel to "The Traitor's Daughter" and a typical middle series novel insofar things advance but nothing is really resolved. The book was still fun to read as style but the content was too standard this time so I found myself reading a few pages and then putting it down so I do not get too bored by what happens and then repeating this a few times, until I finished it maybe a month after I started it.
There are a few twists and the ending is quite interesting - it is similar to how the first novel ended so with a dramatic touch - but in typical middle book fashion, story-lines that split earlier and characters whose coming apart was a major part of the first volume, remain split this time and remain apart, but in a time sensitive switch of places which read just a little contrived.
I also found Aureste's change in focus and outlook somewhat unconvincing and all his storyline which is the big picture thread after all, seemed very "unreal" given the way the world building - occupation, constraints, even character relationships - has been presented earlier. In many ways he becomes a more interesting character true, but the whole change of focus in "let's forget everything and let's go save the world" - this without the occupiers otherwise portrayed as keeping a tight leash on the occupied seeming to notice or care - jarred to a large extent.
In contrast I found Jianna's storyline much more interesting and "natural" and her transformation from "smart but bookish, other worldly pampered girl" to a practical, let's do what is needed to survive and help my new found friends, continued apace, though like with the big picture issue nothing was really solved here.
The book and the series to date excels at portraying strong women who are determined to do what it takes to reach their goals, while Jianna is getting there and her character arc is quite fascinating and the reason I enjoyed the novel and I plan to read The Wanderers which presumably will end the trilogy, and this finale volume will decide how I will regard the series overall.
So to sum quickly, The Ruined City (recommended novel of 2012) focuses more on the big picture than I found desirable or interesting as the whole "ancient evil, world is in danger, let's go save it" seems to be so predictably done these days - and here it is no exception to a large extent - that it has become a reason to stop reading a book whose focus is there.
On the other hand the personal stories, especially Jianna's, are still fascinating and represent the strength of the author as she has shown us in her wonderful 1990 novels like Illusion. I really hope the last volume will be very strong there, though I fear to some extent that it will go the whole faux-drama of everything seeming lost until at the last minute the heroes save the world and everybody lives happily ever after while all the i's are dotted and the t's are crossed, which seems to be the way traditional fantasy series end these days. We'll see in July...
Read the first chapter HERE
Order the book HERE
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Benedict Jacka first thought of becoming a writer when at the age of eighteen he started writing a story in his school library. Since then he's graduated with a B.A. in philosophy from Cambridge, lived in China, and worked in various different occupations such as civil servant, bouncer and teacher before returning to London to study law. He’s also taken part in competitive ballroom dancing and martial arts. He currently lives in London.
OFFICIAL BLURB: Alex Verus is a diviner, able to see the future. This is impressive to most people but less so to other mages, who can do things like throw fire, disintegrate things, and fly. Right now Alex has a problem – a site’s been discovered containing an ancient and powerful relic, and lots of people are looking for a diviner to open it, including a trio of dark mages, a faction of the Council with an agenda of their own, and a shadowy figure out of Alex’s past, all of whom are looking to recruit, press-gang, or kill Alex, not necessarily in that order.
As if that’s not enough, Alex has to take care of his would-be apprentice, who has some connection to the relic which is making her a target as well . . . and who also just happens to carry a curse that’ll kill anyone who gets too close, assuming the mages hunting her don’t do it first. His allies are an air elemental with the memory of a goldfish and a creature living under Hampstead Heath that would make most people run screaming.
Sometimes seeing the future isn’t as fun as it sounds...
FORMAT/INFO: Fated is 295 pages long, divided over fifteen chapters. Narration is in the first-person solely via Alex Verus. Fated is the first book in the Alex Verus series.
February 28, 2012 marked the North American paperback and e-book publication of Fated via ACE books. The UK version was released in both paperback and e-book format on March 1, 2012 via Orbit.
ANALYSIS: Benedict Jacka’s debut has received quite some hype before its release and a blurb from Jim Butcher (coming from JB, this was something special as he currently blurbs biennially). All things considered this results in tremendous expectation to arise for a debut book. Anne Sowards also had mentioned Fated as one of the books to look out for in 2012 in her FBC interview. All things considered, I was very curious to see how the book would turn out to be.
Fated begins us with Alex Verus who is sitting in his magic charms shop called “Arcana Emporium” and divining the near future as that is his power. He receives a phone call from Luna who requests his help and after a quick divination, he decides to meet her. On his way however an old acquaintance comes to meet him to offer him a job of sorts wherein his divining powers are a requirement. The job offer pisses Alex off and he soon continues on his way to meet Luna. That’s when things start getting hairier as readers are given a clue about Luna’s unique problem and the thing she’s carrying. The actual plot begins and the readers are immersed into the world of Alex Verus wherein fate might not play that strong a role as it usually does.
The good part about this debut is that the story does its best to entrance the reader, beginning from its strong prose to the narrator’s distinct voice. The author unveils the story nicely and then doles out the world details very conveniently. The story is a straight forward one which though like most urban fantasies has a central mystery plot which slowly unfolds over the course of the book. The mystery aspect is a decent one and deals with a recovery of a certain object which requires the aid of divination magic. The overall prose is something which truly is the silver lining aspect of this story, here’s an example:
“In my little corner of the city, things aren’t so bad. So if there’s something you need help with, drop by the Arcana Emporium. Its easy enough to find of you try. You probably won’t take it seriously at first, but that’s okay. Seeing is believing, after all!”
The author very admirably showcases the world of the protagonist and his reticence to return to the world of magic of which he was a part of. The protagonist’s thoughts and views are nicely laid about for the reader to empathize with and with the first person narrative, the reader is thoroughly immersed in the character’s mind. The author in his lackadaisical way does conveys the protagonist’s weariness, the main character does have a sordid past which is only hinted at and has lead to certain situation in his present life. One of the many mysteries of this series is that the main character’s name is not his true one and that certainly adds an extra veneer of mystery to this tale. The action sequences are also decently paced through out the story and the climax of the story has quite a thriller feel to it and kudos to the author for delivering such a strong, action-packed finale.
Of the many things that were good about this book, there were a few which worked against it. On reading it, I'm a bit perplexed. On one hand this is a good debut with definite series potential however comparisons to Dresden files and expectations might sour the read for many a fan. I found quite a few similarities with the Dresden files namely:
(1) A solo protagonist who has a troubled and secretive past
(2) The presence of a magical organization from which the protagonist is estranged
(3) The protagonist’s dogged persistence which happens to save the day
(4) The protagonist’s magical ability which isn’t on par with the bad guy’s power but yet he never gives up
(5) The protagonist has his side character cast which goes on to help in many a way
These similarities while being common with many a book, are quite evident in this story, while in the Dresden files the humor quotient is significantly present. That is not the case with this book as the humor level is quite shallow. I felt that while I was reading a good story, it really didn’t do much to differentiate itself as a spectacular one. The story and settings are developed just to an appropriate level however it isn’t done to a level which will make it stand out. Thus overall the debut does a good job but it will have to do a lot more to separate itself from the UF gold standard series that is the Dresden Files. I'll definitely be picking up the next two books in the series Taken and Cursed to see where the author takes the story & protagonist.
CONCLUSION: Benedict Jacka’s debut is a good one and it remains to be seen how the series will progress. Most veteran urban fantasy readers will not find anything new over here and the author will have to do a lot more to differentiate himself and his work amidst the crowded sub-genre. Fated is a debut which will have its fans and detractors alike and now its up to the author to increase the former numbers by curbing the deficiencies in his debut.
Order The Thief HEREINTRODUCTION: The Thief by Fuminori Nakamura, translated by Satoko Izumo and Stephen Coates, is a modern crime/thriller novel with philosophical overtones which attracted my attention on two counts. It is written by a Japanese author (see HERE and HERE for two of my recent reviews of Japanese novels and of course 2011's top book of mine was 1Q84) and it is published by Soho Press which just put out the wonderful Andromeda Lax-Romano novel The Detour.
Even so, I hesitated before asking for a review copy as a crime novel is generally not much of interest to me (the genre is way too limited and I read tons in it years ago so essentially I consider it "done" for me unless a crime novel has another dimension like being very good sff or historical fiction first), but ultimately I saw some mentions/reviews that convinced me to give it a try and I am really happy I did so as The Thief delivered.
Note that the blurb below is not really accurate in some ways, though it indeed alludes to events in the novel.
"The Thief is a seasoned pickpocket. Anonymous in his tailored suit, he weaves in and out of Tokyo crowds, stealing wallets from strangers so smoothly sometimes he doesn’t even remember the snatch. Most people are just a blur to him, nameless faces from whom he chooses his victims. He has no family, no friends, no connections.... But he does have a past, which finally catches up with him when Ishikawa, his first partner, reappears in his life, and offers him a job he can’t refuse. It’s an easy job: tie up an old rich man, steal the contents of the safe. No one gets hurt. Only the day after the job does he learn that the old man was a prominent politician, and that he was brutally killed after the robbery. And now the Thief is caught in a tangle even he might not be able to escape."
OVERVIEW/ANALYSIS: When talking about The Thief there are three aspects I want to touch. The prose (and translation) which are just superb, the narrator's story, both present and flashback past, which is extremely compelling and the crime novel aspects which are both important - as in determining the trajectory of the book - and tangential - as in The Thief is not really about them - so the book is likely to appeal more to readers of literary fiction than to crime genre aficionados.
"When I was a kid, I often messed this up. In crowded shops, in other people’s houses, things I’d pick up furtively would slip from my fingers. Strangers’ possessions were like foreign objects that didn’t fit comfortably in my hands. They would tremble faintly, asserting their independence, and before I knew it they’d come alive and fall to the ground. The point of contact, which was intrinsically morally wrong, seemed to be rejecting me. And in the distance there was always the tower. Just a silhouette floating in the mist like some ancient daydream. But I don’t make mistakes like that these days. And naturally I don’t see the tower either."
The first paragraph of the novel shown above showcases the strengths of the novel as style and voice and it instantly hooked me on the book. While there is one short allusion to his "real" name, the narrator lives in a lonely world with few human contacts, though he weaves adroitly in and out Tokyo crowds and blends in milieus that are well off but also in those less so.
Trying to use his natural dexterity and make a living as a pickpocket targeting mostly "the rich" and "the unlikable" and "advance" the state of the art in stealing from others on the street, in stores or in the subway, our hero - who is well versed in the history of his "profession" - knows that being anonymous and having no ties is the ultimate key to surviving.
“There was also this eccentric who’d put a card with his own name on it in the wallet he’d lifted and then put it back. A famous American pickpocket called Dawson. And an amazing man, Angelillo, who’s estimated to have stolen a hundred thousand wallets..."
However he has still been strongly attracted by a few people, most notably the flamboyant thief/swindler Ishikawa, while the ghost of his former married girlfriend, the self-destructive Saeko, still haunts him, years after they parted. Combined with some powerful childhood's memories that still impinge on him today, the thief finds himself inexorably attracted to a somewhat pathetic mother and son couple who try - ineptly and sure to be caught without his intervention - to steal food from a supermarket and that may of course turn out to be his downfall by tying him to a place and people...
In structure, The Thief moves between the present that actually happens a good while after the events alluded in the blurb above, and the past, both personal as noted above and the hero's unwitting association to a sinister but powerful personage and the blurb robbery - this confused me a little and once I understood the chronology of the novel, I went back and reread the opening chapters which actually take on a little different complexion once you find out this or that later.
The Thief is a very fast moving novel and it actually accelerates the deeper you go into its page count, so at some point it becomes literally very hard to put down as you are so caught in the hero's story that you *must* find out what happens next. At least this happened to me and I had to finish the book despite being very late; in many ways this is the clearest proof of how well the novel works.
The downside to the above is that the story while hinting at deeper stuff - for example the tower in the paragraph quoted earlier - and having philosophical overtones on the nature of fate and free will, never really explores them much and of course the crime aspects are relatively thin. This last did not bother me in the least and actually I would even consider it a plus for the reasons noted in the introduction, but it is also worth noting so you know "what you get".
“The nobleman looked at the youth and thought that he would try to prescribe his entire future. The story of his life, his joys, his sorrows, even his death, he would decide it all. Like Abraham and Moses, who were always under God’s control."
With a superb and pitch-perfect ending, The Thief (highly recommended novel of 2012) has been an unexpected success for me and I intend to keep an eye for anything translated from the author's work as well as on the output of Soho Press.
This April, Ernst J. Dabel will release his new novel, Albino—a self-published YA ebook with distribution through Sea Lion Books. To help promote Albino, Ernst J. Dabel himself had a few things to say about his new book:
I was of course very curious, because at the time, my dream of becoming an author had not blossomed yet, but had only been a tiny seed. And I was very eager to write something that others had not delved into yet. Woodland creatures, he told us, living in the forests, not dressed up in human clothes and weapons as most of the cartoons portrayed, but dressed in grass, leaves, bark, flowers and other things from the wild. Their weapons would be made of wood, bone and other natural things but not metal.
Before I could open my mouth to respond to his comment however, he stopped me. Maybe he saw the look on my face. Woodland creatures! All the stories about them were for little kids, adults, if they were not parents, were not interested in reading such things. I was ready to move on to the next topic when he told me it had to be about woodland creatures that adults would not mind reading about. Then Les smiled. My brain processed his words and then the light bulb went on and I smiled back at him. He knew exactly what I was thinking, and he reminded me that I had always told him how J.R.R. Tolkien had written about elves, dwarves, and other fantasies, which in his time, were considered fit only for kids and not for respectable adults, and had written a story that both young and old alike has fallen in love with over the years. Now he told me, I might as well take woodland creatures, which in my time, is considered fit only for kids and not respectable adults, and write a story that young and old alike would fall in love with.
I didn’t need to hear any more. I was sold on the idea and so I locked myself in my room and wrote Albino in three weeks, pouring my soul into the work. When I finally finished and looked in the mirror, I was like Tom Hanks from Castaway with the wild hair and unkempt beard, lol (grins). It was the most grueling three weeks of my entire life.
I found an article as I was writing this blog post and I wanted to share it:
J.R.R. Tolkien, claimed in another lecture a couple of years later, entitled “On Fairy-Stories,” that “there is no true end to any fairy-tale” (Monsters 153). As if to prove his point, Tolkien took the Beowulf tale and reworked it: first as a children's story called The Hobbit, published in 1937, and then as “a children's book for adults” (Stirling 15), i.e. The Lord of the Rings, in 1954-5. The critics were confounded, especially since adults read the latter work; again and again, it seemed. What's more, in a major British poll conducted by the Waterstones book chain and Channel 4 television several years before the millennium ended, “adults” voted the trilogy the book of the century. To add insult to injury, the Folio Society1 decided they would check what readers of “serious” books thought, and yet again Tolkien came out on top… (If you’d like to read the entire article you can find it HERE.)
In the end, Albino does to woodland creatures what Lord of the Rings did for fantasy back in Tolkien’s time. In other words Albino takes woodland creatures into a story that even adults would care to read ;)"
Aided by an odd crow, he begins an adventure filled with action, danger, and ultimately a final confrontation against his worst nightmares.
The ancient and cruel rats called the Ma’aldee are on the move, while the Spiritual Guardians of the Land whisper in fear and dread of the coming of Emperor Loucura, Lord of the Ma'aldee.
Only Albino has the power to save the Land...
ABOUT E.J. DABEL:
Sunday, March 4, 2012
The Limits of Fantasy Inspired by History: "The Kings of Morning" by Paul Kearney (by Liviu Suciu)
After two wonderful reinterpretations of classical events - The Ten Thousand and Corvus - I was both having great expectations and great doubts about the logical conclusion of the series in "The Kings of Morning".
Expectations because I really like how Paul Kearney's writes and his Ten Thousand were the best in modern fiction (and I read a few other reinterpretations from Michael Curtis Ford and Valerio Manfredi), while Corvus managed to dispel my original doubts and create a Macht analog of Alexander and a unifying war that worked.
Doubts because as opposed to both Xenophon's campaign (The Ten Thousand) and Philip and Alexander Greek wars (Corvus), I read a ton about Alexander's Asian campaign and his successors wars for that matter, most notable recent such being God of War, the masterpiece of Christian Cameron, and the fantasy-nal reinterpretation of Alexander's aftermath by Jo Graham in Stealing Fire, part of her wonderful "Numinous World" series.
And the doubts proved founded since The Kings of Morning did not really work for me as it got too close to fraying my suspension of disbelief on two related counts. First the Alexander parallels are too pronounced here for the everybody lives happily ever after stuff and second The Kings of Morning gets very near war as escapism.
The author's skills can disguise a lot of the above, but ultimately this book lacked three dimensions and read too much as clear escapism Hollywood style; this may work in a pure fantasy setting, specially one that does not take itself too seriously, but here with the classical model, the book is found wanting and I could not help feeling that reading God of War and then reading The Kings of Morning is like reading a serious book for adults, followed by a simplified children's one on the same theme.
For good measure I reread Stealing Fire too just too see if/how a fantasy-nal novel can compare and I found it even better on second read with wonderful prose, three dimensional characters depth and subtlety, all which The Kings of Morning sadly lacked.
Overall, if you can take The Kings of Morning on its own, you may enjoy it more, but if the historical parallels dominate, the book is sadly lacking in comparison with what's out there.
Expectations because I really like how Paul Kearney's writes and his Ten Thousand were the best in modern fiction (and I read a few other reinterpretations from Michael Curtis Ford and Valerio Manfredi), while Corvus managed to dispel my original doubts and create a Macht analog of Alexander and a unifying war that worked.
Doubts because as opposed to both Xenophon's campaign (The Ten Thousand) and Philip and Alexander Greek wars (Corvus), I read a ton about Alexander's Asian campaign and his successors wars for that matter, most notable recent such being God of War, the masterpiece of Christian Cameron, and the fantasy-nal reinterpretation of Alexander's aftermath by Jo Graham in Stealing Fire, part of her wonderful "Numinous World" series.
And the doubts proved founded since The Kings of Morning did not really work for me as it got too close to fraying my suspension of disbelief on two related counts. First the Alexander parallels are too pronounced here for the everybody lives happily ever after stuff and second The Kings of Morning gets very near war as escapism.
The author's skills can disguise a lot of the above, but ultimately this book lacked three dimensions and read too much as clear escapism Hollywood style; this may work in a pure fantasy setting, specially one that does not take itself too seriously, but here with the classical model, the book is found wanting and I could not help feeling that reading God of War and then reading The Kings of Morning is like reading a serious book for adults, followed by a simplified children's one on the same theme.
For good measure I reread Stealing Fire too just too see if/how a fantasy-nal novel can compare and I found it even better on second read with wonderful prose, three dimensional characters depth and subtlety, all which The Kings of Morning sadly lacked.
Overall, if you can take The Kings of Morning on its own, you may enjoy it more, but if the historical parallels dominate, the book is sadly lacking in comparison with what's out there.
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Three Fall Titles of Huge Interest, I.M. Banks, J. C. Valtat and D. Weber (by Liviu Suciu)
Iain M. Banks returns to the Culture (or at least that's the internet talk as I have not seen a book synopsis so far) in The Hydrogen Sonata. There is also a rumor that it will be a "big" book, longer than any of the previous Culture novels and of course it shot up to my top of the expected list.
As Use of Weapons at #6 is top sff on my all time favorite list (both as a book and a proxy for the Culture series of course) and Surface Detail and Transition have been top sf (and sff for that matter) of their years for me, it's clear why The Hydrogen Sonata is such a huge awaited novel.
Mr. Banks will soon have a non-sff (non-M) novel out, Stonemouth, but I never found his non-M books (I read 4-5 easily) that much on my taste as they are "very British" and such are always hit-and-miss with me as I grew up on French culture, etc...
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In October, Jean Christophe Valtat will have a new novel out called Luminous Chaos. I loved Aurorarama and the title above suggests a book in the same vein, possibly a sequel or same universe novel, so I got very interested when I heard about it.
We'll see of course and I am even more curious how a second novel coming with very high expectations will read as sometimes novels coming out of nowhere so to speak may seem even more impressive due to that.
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While not unexpected as David Weber has so far kept the one Safehold novel per year schedule, I was still happy to learn that the 6th Safehold novel is on track for September/October and it has as (tentative) title, Midst Toil and Tribulation. You can find the links to all the series reviews in the review of How Firm a Foundation.
This last Safehold novel - #5 to date - has been the weakest imho as the author started repeating himself a little too much without bringing enough new stuff. In general, Mr. Weber tends to repeat and rework stuff from series to series and even book to book, so you can see a few scenes and subplots in various guises, but usually he adds that extra twist or that new angle of looking at - the assassination attempt in By Heresies Distressed which also appears in the upcoming War Maid's Choice in a new guise after appearing first in Heirs of Empire in a different context for example, or the main battle in A Rising Thunder are two recent such examples that come to mind but there are quite a few in his 50+ books work - that the scenes in cause read fresh and exciting.
In How Firm a Foundation though the freshness lacked a little and I hope that Midst Toil and Tribulation will reinvigorate the series with some of those twists the author is justly famed for. I read some speculations and some author comments about the general thrust of MTAT and they are of course not surprising considering how HFAF ended, but there is enough space to twist and turn...
As Use of Weapons at #6 is top sff on my all time favorite list (both as a book and a proxy for the Culture series of course) and Surface Detail and Transition have been top sf (and sff for that matter) of their years for me, it's clear why The Hydrogen Sonata is such a huge awaited novel.
Mr. Banks will soon have a non-sff (non-M) novel out, Stonemouth, but I never found his non-M books (I read 4-5 easily) that much on my taste as they are "very British" and such are always hit-and-miss with me as I grew up on French culture, etc...
***************************************************************
In October, Jean Christophe Valtat will have a new novel out called Luminous Chaos. I loved Aurorarama and the title above suggests a book in the same vein, possibly a sequel or same universe novel, so I got very interested when I heard about it.
We'll see of course and I am even more curious how a second novel coming with very high expectations will read as sometimes novels coming out of nowhere so to speak may seem even more impressive due to that.
***************************************************************
While not unexpected as David Weber has so far kept the one Safehold novel per year schedule, I was still happy to learn that the 6th Safehold novel is on track for September/October and it has as (tentative) title, Midst Toil and Tribulation. You can find the links to all the series reviews in the review of How Firm a Foundation.
This last Safehold novel - #5 to date - has been the weakest imho as the author started repeating himself a little too much without bringing enough new stuff. In general, Mr. Weber tends to repeat and rework stuff from series to series and even book to book, so you can see a few scenes and subplots in various guises, but usually he adds that extra twist or that new angle of looking at - the assassination attempt in By Heresies Distressed which also appears in the upcoming War Maid's Choice in a new guise after appearing first in Heirs of Empire in a different context for example, or the main battle in A Rising Thunder are two recent such examples that come to mind but there are quite a few in his 50+ books work - that the scenes in cause read fresh and exciting.
In How Firm a Foundation though the freshness lacked a little and I hope that Midst Toil and Tribulation will reinvigorate the series with some of those twists the author is justly famed for. I read some speculations and some author comments about the general thrust of MTAT and they are of course not surprising considering how HFAF ended, but there is enough space to twist and turn...
Read an excerpt HERE
Order the book HERE (US and UK)
Watch book trailer HERE
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Matthew Reilly was born and brought up in Sydney, Australia. He studied law at the University of New South Wales and wrote his first two books while being a student. He self published his first book which lead to his eventual publication by Pan Macmillan. He is a cricket aficionado as well as a movie memorabilia collector. One of his prize items is a DeLorean DMC-12 and other items from the Star Wars and Indian Jones franchises.
OFFICIAL BLURB: At an abandoned Soviet base in the Arctic, a battle to save all life on Earth is about to begin... It is a top-secret base known only as Dragon Island. A long-forgotten relic of the Cold War, it houses a weapon of terrible destructive force, a weapon that has just been re-activated...
When Dragon Island is seized by a brutal terrorist force calling itself the Army of Thieves, the fate of the world suddenly hangs in the balance. But there are no crack units close enough to get to Dragon island in time to stop them from setting off the weapon. Except, that is, for a small equipment-testing team up in the Arctic led by a Marine captain named Shane Schofield, call-sign SCARECROW.
It's not a strike team; just a handful of Marines and civilians. It's not equipped to attack a fortified island held by a small army. But it will go in anyway, because someone has to, THE ULTIMATE HERO IS BACK, FACING THE ULTIMATE ARMY OF VILLAINS!
FORMAT/INFO: Scarecrow Returns is 359 pages long, divided over seven section (Phases) and a prologue, each section is further divided into several small chapters for a rough final count of hundred-plus chapters. Narration is in the third-person via various characters such as Shane “Scarecrow” Schofield, Gunnery sergeant Gena “Mother” Newman, Dr. Vasily Ivanov, Jeff Hartigan, Veronique Champion, Hammerhead, Zack Weinberg, The Lord of Anarchy, David Fairfax, corporal Billy Thompson and a couple other characters. Scarecrow Returns is the fourth book in the Shane “Scarecrow” Schofield series.
January 3, 2012 marked the North American hardback and e-book publication of Scarecrow Returns via Simon and Schuster. The UK version was called Scarecrow and the Army of Thieves (See image below) and was published in both Hardcover and e-book format on February 2, 2012 via Orion
ANALYSIS: Matthew Reilly’s story to publication is one as wondrous as one of his books. Borrowing money from his parents to publish his debut book and then doing his own publicity and selling the book to local bookstores was quite a task. His book then caught the attention of a publishing persona and based on the potential seen in the book, lead to him being offered a two book contract. The first of those two books was Ice Station & since then Matthew Reilly has never looked back. I happened upon his books when I was starting out as a reader and was enamored by his adventure-laced, action-packed thrillers. However in the last few years, I was disheartened by his Jack West Junior thriller series and they remain the least liked among all his books with his fanbase. When he announced that his next book was going to be a return to his most beloved character, I was ecstatic and wanted to see whether he would be able to top the poignant finale of Scarecrow [3rd book].
I believe a bit of background is required before I begin the review, the first three Scarecrow books have taken place in such varied locations such as Antarctica, Utah desert and a pan-global race. The first book had Scarecrow saving his team, the second one his nation and third one the entire world. With such a progression and with certain events taking place in the third book, most fans felt that the series had come to its natural conclusion and it would require a herculean effort from the author to write a fourth book to continue the series. Often authors return to characters best left alone and the way this story starts, I got that feeling but before it could take root, Matthew spun his magic. Also on a side note this is book four and therefore not the ideal place to start reading the series as various ennui of the past books have been revealed.
The story begins with a series of reports detailing certain events that herald the ascent of the army of thieves. The scene quickly then shifts to a little known Arctic island called Dragon Island, wherein previous Russian cold war experiments have left a weapon of sorts which has been overtaken by the army and its deranged leader. Calling himself the Lord of Anarchy, their leader announces his intentions of rescaling the world’s current power scenario and activates the weapon which will detonate in a little over five hours. The team closest to dragon island is a civilian one lead by Shane Schofield who are testing some equipment. They are ordered to do whatever it takes to sabotage the detonation process. Thus begins the return of Scarecrow which will see him and his team fight foes on a magnitude beyond their imagination and stop a global genocide within five hours.
The book is a kind of fresh start for the main character and the author’s decision to have the action centered in another icy location (akin to the events of the first book) was a meaningful one. Also it was all the way to the other side of the pole and this time around, there are fewer recurring characters from the previous books. Matthew Reilly’s books are like popcorn blockbusters wherein there are a ton of action-packed sequences, cheesy one-liners, twisty plots and overall a fun feeling when you finish the book. Perhaps when it comes to these type of thrillers he has no equal. This book has his trademark signature sequences, wherein action and chaos unfolds over pages and the heroes manage to live by some insane idea which just has the right amount of luck and skill to make it work. The book’s plot doesn’t just have a single thread but consists of atleast three-four threads which continue to unfurl on their own and later on unite to form an exciting plot. For the returning reader there are various nods and connections to the previous books which continue to strengthen the cohesiveness of the overall series.
Previously on reading a couple of Matthew Reilly’s books, a reviewer had remarked that he doesn’t really give his characters any space to breathe or any time to grow as his books have frequent and gruesome character deaths. This characteristic is present this time around as well and what’s more there are quite a few deaths in this one. Perhaps the author has introduced a sense of seriousness with his choices in the third book and this time around also there are a few things by which the author reinforces his intentions. The biggest guessing game for the readers has been as to where and when Mother will bite the bullet and the author has certainly hinted at it in the past books and he continues that game over here as well but I’m not going to tell you what happens to her. Lastly this book is the most introspective of all the Scarecrow books for reasons which will be apparent to readers of the previous books and the author quite wonderfully plays on that thread showcasing a wounded & perhaps mentally unstable protagonist. This introspective element is also shined on a couple of other recurring characters however the main focus as always is Scarecrow.
With this book, the author showcases that his previous series was a not an indicator of him losing his touch, there’s plenty left in his imagination to wow his fans all over again. I must also point out a few things before I go on, these books have to be counted as pure entertainment, nothing more and nothing less! While Matthew’s writing talents have bought a smile to many a fan, his books have left plenty unsatisfied. Readers looking for a deep nuanced, character driven read will not find it here; these books are the equivalent of Michael Bay films if they had some semblance of a plot to go along with the action.
You can expect simple comedy and the thrills associated with cliffhanger chapter endings but as always at the back of your mind, you know that the hero somehow makes it. Predictability of the plot is not to be taken for granted but predictability of the protagonist’s survival is a given. Characterization is also somewhat shallow as most characters can be easily divided into the good & evil camps, though the author springs a few surprises from time to time. This book has one of the most endearing non-human characters a robot called Bertie & I’m hoping readers will get to see more of Bertie in the future as well. Lastly for first time readers this book might not be the best place to start as a lot of surprises of the past three books are revealed but this is required to explain many a scenario and character interactions in the book.
You can expect simple comedy and the thrills associated with cliffhanger chapter endings but as always at the back of your mind, you know that the hero somehow makes it. Predictability of the plot is not to be taken for granted but predictability of the protagonist’s survival is a given. Characterization is also somewhat shallow as most characters can be easily divided into the good & evil camps, though the author springs a few surprises from time to time. This book has one of the most endearing non-human characters a robot called Bertie & I’m hoping readers will get to see more of Bertie in the future as well. Lastly for first time readers this book might not be the best place to start as a lot of surprises of the past three books are revealed but this is required to explain many a scenario and character interactions in the book.
CONCLUSION: Matthew Reilly triumphantly returns to the type of stories which have earned him fans on a global level, combining trademark action sequences with stereotypical dialogue but with a greater emotional quotient, Scarecrow Returns manages to give the readers an excellent read. Fans of his earlier books can be assured that they will find what they have been missing for the past few years and this book heralds a new direction for our favorite marine. Give Scarecrow Returns a read and discover why Matthew Reilly is the unmatched master of the most imaginative action-thrillers ever written.
This month we are featuring 30 books. There are more than twice as many new sff and related releases this month in traditional publishing not to speak of the countless indies from Amazon and Smashwords but we are limiting ourselves to books that will be reviewed here or are similar with such. For the full schedule of March 2012 titles known to us, you can consult the Upcoming Releases page.
The release dates are US unless marked otherwise, though for books released in the UK and US in the same month but on different dates we use the earliest date without comment and they are first edition unless noted differently. The dates are on a best known basis so they are not guaranteed; same about the edition information. Since information sometimes is out of date even in the Amazon links we use for listings, books get delayed or sometimes even released earlier, we would truly appreciate if you would send us an email about any listing with incorrect information.
Sometimes a cover image is not available at the time of the post and also sometimes covers change unexpectedly so while we generally use the Amazon one when available and cross check with Google Images, the ultimate bookstore cover may be different.
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“Killing Ghost” by Christopher Ransom. Release Date: March 2012. Published by Cemetery Dance. (HF / US Debut).
“Killing Ghost” by Christopher Ransom. Release Date: March 2012. Published by Cemetery Dance. (HF / US Debut).
“Intrusion” by Ken MacLeod. Release Date: March 1, 2012. Published by Orbit UK. (SF).
“The Best SF & Fantasy of the Year: Vol. 6” edited by Jonathan Strahan. Release Date: March 6, 2012. Published by Night Shade Books.
“A Rising Thunder” by David Weber. Release Date: March 6, 2012. Published by Baen. (SF).
“Intruder” by C.J. Cherryh. Release Date: March 6, 2012. Published by DAW. (SF).
“Bridge of Dreams” by Anne Bishop. Release Date: March 6, 2012. Published by Roc. (FAN).
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“The Drowning Girl” by Caitlin R. Kiernan. Release Date: March 6, 2012. Published by Roc. (FAN).
“Jane Carver of Waar” by Nathan Long. Release Date: March 6, 2012. Published by Night Shade Books. (SF).
“The Pillars of Hercules” by David Constantine. Release Date: March 6, 2012. Published by Night Shade Books. (FAN).
“And Blue Skies From Pain” by Stina Leicht. Release Date: March 6, 2012. Published by Night Shade Books. (FAN).
“Point and Shoot” by Duane Swierczynski. Release Date: March 7, 2012. Published by Mulholland Books. (MISC).
“Arcadia” by Lauren Grof. Release Date: March 13, 2012. Published by Voice (MISC).
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“Chrysanthe” by Yves Meynard. Release Date: March 13, 2012. Published by Tor. (FAN).
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“Chrysanthe” by Yves Meynard. Release Date: March 13, 2012. Published by Tor. (FAN).
“Wide Open” by Deborah Coates. Release Date: March 13, 2012. Published by Tor. (FAN).
“The Games” by Ted Kosmatka. Release Date: March 13, 2012. Published by Del Rey. (SF).
“The Company of the Dead” by David Kowalski. Release Date: March 13, 2012. Published by Titan Books. (MISC).
“Hide Me Among The Graves” by Tim Powers. Release Date: March 13, 2012. Published by William Morrow. (MISC).
“The Vanishers” by Heidi Julavits. Release Date: March 13, 2012. Published by Doubleday. (MISC).
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“The Book of Lost Fragrances” by M.J. Rose. Release Date: March 13, 2012. Published by Atria. (MISC).
“Tyger, Tyger, Burning Bright” by Justine Saracen. Release Date: March 13, 2012. Published by Bold Strokes Books. (MISC).
“The Steel Seraglio” by Mike Carey, Linda Carey and Louise Carey. Release Date: March 13, 2012. Published by ChiZine Publications. (MISC).
“The Vanishers” by Heidi Julavits. Release Date: March 13, 2012. Published by Doubleday. (MISC).
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“The Book of Lost Fragrances” by M.J. Rose. Release Date: March 13, 2012. Published by Atria. (MISC).
“Tyger, Tyger, Burning Bright” by Justine Saracen. Release Date: March 13, 2012. Published by Bold Strokes Books. (MISC).
“The Steel Seraglio” by Mike Carey, Linda Carey and Louise Carey. Release Date: March 13, 2012. Published by ChiZine Publications. (MISC).
“Son in Sorrow” by Meilin Miranda. Release Date: March 20, 2012. Published by Sans Culotte Press. (FAN).
“The Thief” by Fuminori Nakamura. Release Date: March 20, 2012. Published by Soho Books. (MISC).“Edge of Dark Water” by Joe R. Lansdale. Release Date: March 25, 2012. Published by Mulholland Books. (MISC).
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“The Outcast Blade” by Jon Courtenay Grimwood. Release Date: March 26, 2012. Published by Orbit. (FAN).
“The Master of Heathcrest Hall” by Galen Beckett. Release Date: March 27, 2012. Published by Del Rey. (FAN).
“The Outcast Blade” by Jon Courtenay Grimwood. Release Date: March 26, 2012. Published by Orbit. (FAN).
“The Master of Heathcrest Hall” by Galen Beckett. Release Date: March 27, 2012. Published by Del Rey. (FAN).
“The Alchemist of Souls” by Anne Lyle. Release Date: March 27, 2012. Published by Angry Robot. (SF).
“Age of Aztec” by James Lovegrove. Release Date: March 27, 2012. Published by Solaris. (SF).
“A Game of Thrones: The Graphic Novel — Volume One” by Daniel Abraham, George R.R. Martin and Tommy Patterson. Release Date: March 27, 2012. Published by Bantam.
“Costume Not Included” by Matthew Hughes. Release Date: March 27, 2012. Published by Angry Robot. (UF).
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