David Mitchell seems to be moving back to the mosaic narrative of his earliest book after a more straight forward historical novel (including referencDavid Mitchell seems to be moving back to the mosaic narrative of his earliest book after a more straight forward historical novel (including references that make it seem like all his books are part of the same reality), or maybe he is trying to write his version of the TV show Lost (everything connected, battling immortals, all the characters making cameos in the narrative of others), or maybe writing a literary fantasy in the vein of Tim Powers and Neil Gaiman (before he was kidnapped by the internet). Or to quote the man himself (via an author character describing his book), “…think Solaris meets Noam Chomsky via the Girl with a Dragon Tattoo. Add a dash of Twin Peaks.� There are bits of all of this going on here, and he mostly pulls it off. His prose has been overly fussy and distracting and turned me off on occasion, but here it is very clear headed and readable. The book suffers somewhat when the messiness of the characters� lives interact with the supernatural subplot, I sometimes found myself impatient to return to the more realistic parts. The least essential part is the long part most focused on this psychic war subplot. The best parts are the extended riff on Martin Amis in the author character’s narrative and the apocalyptic ending filled with sadness but also lingering bits of hope and humanity. All the more disturbing for being so believable....more
Jay Kristoff had a charming debut with Stormdancer, but one I had some reservations with both morally (falling on some outdated fantasy tropes) and wiJay Kristoff had a charming debut with Stormdancer, but one I had some reservations with both morally (falling on some outdated fantasy tropes) and with its actual execution. The world he created resembled Hunger Games, The Last Unicorn, Miyazaki, and Kurosawa, but the novel had some logic and pacing issues that kept me from fully loving it, but was intrigued and entertained enough to continue. In a trilogy the second volume really only needs to be a decent bridging volume to succeed, but there is another way to tackle one. Kristoff thankfully went the latter route. This book betters the previous volume in every measure, creating a book more complex, gripping, brutal, tense, violent, realistic the handling of its themes, and morally probing. The action scenes are terrifically paced, the atmosphere is grim but captivating, and the new characters and plots lines all succeed. This book is so brutal in fact any lingering suspicions that this is a YA series disappear. But, the grim is undercut by strong characters and the thoughtfulness and maturity of the author’s performance, no grittiness for grittiness sake. The amount Kristoff learned between these two volumes is pretty impressive. The only problem (besides the demon subplot which still feels tacked on and unnecessary), is how he is going to better this for the finale. It is going to be tough but I will be there to see him try. ...more
Matt Ruff is responsible for a series of topsy- turvy entertainments that have earned comparisons to Pynchon, Terry Gilliam, Stephenson, and Philip K Matt Ruff is responsible for a series of topsy- turvy entertainments that have earned comparisons to Pynchon, Terry Gilliam, Stephenson, and Philip K Dick. This book of course resembles A Man in a High Castle for the war on terror, but also Borges, the TV shows Fringe and Lost, and Bruce Sterling’s many variations on Islamic themed alternative history. Ruff creates a world that is warped mirror on our own, showing what it contains and what made it. This makes it maddingly sad and funny at once. Alternative history is of course a tool to consider real history and the present, and Ruff does this, but he has other tricks up his sleeve. A fantastic twist on the reality of his world soon appears and I won’t give it away. My patience was strained by the end when the fantastic and thriller elements came to a head and Ruff had to provide an exciting conclusion and pull in all the various threads. This happens a lot when I find the plot mechanics dulling my reader buzz. But while I will forget most of the ending action the fizz of ideas, the satire, the funhouse mirror on history won’t fade and neither will the characters both real and imagined perfect in their places in this mirage. Should definitely be a TV show....more
John Sayles the renowned filmmaker known for films of novelistic complexity (Lone Star, Men with Guns, Matewan, and City of Hope just to name my favorJohn Sayles the renowned filmmaker known for films of novelistic complexity (Lone Star, Men with Guns, Matewan, and City of Hope just to name my favorites) is not surprisingly a novelist, and a good one. Like some of his films he takes a politically sensitive area or situation and dramatizes it with an ensemble cast and a variety of view points. Here it is the Cuban refugee community in Southern Florida. His excellent ability with characters, dialogue, and a terrific cast of characters keeps this from being a dry history or a political message. The Bay of Pigs invasion haunts this book and is seen from multiple angles, at one point being portrayed in all its chaos and brutality but usually it just lurks as a shadow on every character as this book sweeps up history from Cocaine Cowboy /race riot era Miami to the whole of 20th century Cuba with a cast of gunrunners, gangsters, secret police, assassins, C.I.A. spooks, nurses, rebels, political prisoners, defrocked priests, and misfit teenagers. Whether the main story of a Cuban woman trying to plan a revenge for the failed invasion is worthwhile or just a vehicle to present the interwoven stories is answered by the tragic and haunting finale and its providing of final twist of cruel irony, but the stories carry the book and the plot heavy moments are portrayed with merciful economy. ...more
Echoes of Doblin and Hammett resonate in this opening trilogy in Kerr’s ongoing Bernie Gunther series. The cartoony image of a wise cracking shamus inEchoes of Doblin and Hammett resonate in this opening trilogy in Kerr’s ongoing Bernie Gunther series. The cartoony image of a wise cracking shamus in Nazi Germany soon fades from your mind as Gunther’s journeys into pre and post war Germany becomes a chamber of horrors. The jaundiced world view and the cynical humor make it palatable while the seriousness of what is at stake is retained. Before the war the Nazis and after the war the United States and the Soviet Union act as deux ex machina in these stories in a satisfying ways, showing the ubiquity of their control of their societies, government as a criminal conspiracy. Most historical mysteries are obnoxiously cute with crime solving Nuns and other such nonsense, but these are novels that use hard boiled tropes but work as well or better as historical novels (a genre that can be over researched and stiff), but act as crime fiction does to examine contemporary society and exhume the underground corridors of power, examine a culture from the high to the low, and generally dig into the grimy cracks of world and bring it to life. Good historical novels aren’t a wax museum on parade but show us an alien world or a foreign country that we recognize in our own time and our society in, and in this these books succeed. Kerr also avoids relying on cheap shtick that curses many neo-noirs, the cheap glamour and romance used to portray this era, and the moral simplification that boils the Nazi era down black and white hats, villain and hero. This is what makes this a fresh take on an over examined era. They are also a lot of fun with plenty of wisecracks and knowing cultural references(Third Man and Casablanca among the allusions), but for those in love with neat, puzzle like mysteries and happy endings need to travel elsewhere as these are grim. ...more
Valtat’s Aurorarama is a sui generic creation filled with bizarre and loopy humor, dreamlike images, and a playful skewering of literature and historyValtat’s Aurorarama is a sui generic creation filled with bizarre and loopy humor, dreamlike images, and a playful skewering of literature and history. A combination of its dreamy style, Valtat’s use of English (he is French writing in English for the first time), complex plot and a large cast renders much of this hard to follow and to be honest a little incomprehensible, but push through and it will be mostly worth it. Lots of stuff gets pulled together here, Pynchon( Against the Day seems a spiritual reference and there is an underground mail service in the style of Crying of Lot 49), steampunk, late 19th and early 20th century pulp(especially dealing with anarchists), the tales of Wells and Verne, and tales of polar explorers, is pulled together into a nutty whole....more
David Peace makes a powerful, angry, ominous, and forbidding monument of a novel of the �84 UK Miner’s strike (which was an equivalent labor defeat toDavid Peace makes a powerful, angry, ominous, and forbidding monument of a novel of the �84 UK Miner’s strike (which was an equivalent labor defeat to the �85 Pan Am strike, but more violent and filled with drama.). If you aren’t in the right frame of mind, this frantic and wonderful read might seem like apocalyptic mumblings from a scary bum or a newscast from hell rather than a proper novel. Peace takes from John Dos Passo, Iain Sinclair, and James Ellroy and intertwines multiples narratives and characters, real and imagined events (the Brighton bombing and tensions with Libya), surveillance reports, and the execrable pop music of the era( from the apocalyptic �99 Red Balloons� to this wonderful excerpt from the banal all-star Africa tribute “Do they know its Christmas�, “There is world outside your window, and it’s a world of dread and fear.� A great phrase for all of Peace’s work). Here is a novel with influences ranging from Frankie goes to Hollywood to Zola albeit fairly relentless and grim one mired in corruption and violence, but it is worthwhile one, and one about an important event that has shaped our world. ...more
I was about to dismiss Cherie Priest and her Clockwork Century series as over hyped, finding them pleasant enough while being slightly confused by entI was about to dismiss Cherie Priest and her Clockwork Century series as over hyped, finding them pleasant enough while being slightly confused by enthusiastic praise being heaped on them. But, this final scheduled volume (hopefully there will be more) changes most of my concerns. This is a great adventure with lots action and terrific pacing. There are too many characters with too little differentiating a lot of them and the ending is a bit of a fizzle. The extended Civil War has always been in the background in the first two books and here we finally get to see some of it. So this is an adventure with war, steam punk gadgets(never overbearing), zombies, intrigue, bandits, and some terrific set pieces. I could definitely read more of these....more
Sleepless is a mix of zombie movie,a future is now(actually an alternate present), a hard boiled thriller, and strangely a meditation on a family. ThiSleepless is a mix of zombie movie,a future is now(actually an alternate present), a hard boiled thriller, and strangely a meditation on a family. This is written in a more convoluted style than Mr. Huston usually stripped down style for a couple reasons I suspect, mainly his use of invented author as the teller of this story and I suspect a mild overload on research. He is using punctuation marks on his dialogue so any of those lunatics who find this stylistic trait so annoying as to write off author’s entire oeuvres can rest assured that their delicate sensibilities will be left unruffled. There is some intriguing stuff in this book and it will be seen whether this will be the first step in an evolution of an author or a one off, but if it is the former it needs some tweaking as this was an interesting but a little cold as a book. Some of the fight scenes made think I was trapped in the video games that everyone in the book are playing. The central disease is beautiful and terrifying and the world is an unsettling portrait of our own, a brilliant slice of the future is now in the style of Gibson, Brunner, and Warren Ellis. ...more
Despite some mind bending moments Lehane's least readable and important book, except for possibly Sacred which I never finished.Despite some mind bending moments Lehane's least readable and important book, except for possibly Sacred which I never finished....more
A fun adventure in Priest’s Clockwork Century a steam punk alternative history of the American Civil War (an underused idea since a war fought with gaA fun adventure in Priest’s Clockwork Century a steam punk alternative history of the American Civil War (an underused idea since a war fought with gatling guns, ironclads, primitive submarines, and balloons should fire more steam punk imaginations).Pirates, Pinkertons, A woman confederate spy, escaped slaves, airship battles, and a doomsday weapon and the barest sketching of the historical background are along for entertaining a pulpy ride. I feel like I’m just getting tastes of this series so hurry with more Ms. Priest! For fans of Howard Waldrop, Mike Mignola, and Joe Lansdale’s weird west....more
Mcdonald’s second Lassiter second despite its clunky title is a smoother read than the first. The ambition is way up as this is more of a sweeping hisMcdonald’s second Lassiter second despite its clunky title is a smoother read than the first. The ambition is way up as this is more of a sweeping historical epic rather than a fast paced blast of a pulp adventure. This book can be annoying, thrilling, funny and exhausting. It combines historical epic, pulp, fan fiction, Zelig or Flashman styled picaresque, cultural and literal criticism, and mystery. It pulls Spanish Civil War, The Red Scare, Black Dahlia, Cuba during the revolution, surrealism, and Hollywood Babylon into its plot without being overstuffed which is quite a feat. Hemingway is all over this thing but whether you think he is a genius or a macho buffoon with too many guns and a liver under siege (or a little of both) you will enjoy his presentation here. There is a repetitive phrase in this book though that isn’t as funny or meaningful as it should be and starts to grate about the tenth time it’s used. But Mc Donald is growing as an author each time. ...more
Cartoonish, antic take on James Crumley/James Carlos Blake A mix of historical figures and fictional like Waldrop, Kim Newman, and Ellroy. Perverse waCartoonish, antic take on James Crumley/James Carlos Blake A mix of historical figures and fictional like Waldrop, Kim Newman, and Ellroy. Perverse way to start a series. The ending pays off....more
Duane Swierczynski in The Blonde comes up with mean slice of revved-up modern Hitchcock thriller. An innocent man gets pulled into situations way beyoDuane Swierczynski in The Blonde comes up with mean slice of revved-up modern Hitchcock thriller. An innocent man gets pulled into situations way beyond his understanding and mayhem and pitch black comedy ensues (with a blonde along for the ride of course). Amoral characters and run amuck nanotechnology keep the action lean and breathless. Pop references like to Jean Patrick Manchette and D.O.A.(the original not the remake) add to the fun . Manchette is a good reference point as he wrote similar lean, relentless thrillers with hip references, peppered with graphic violence, about “normal� men plunged into a world of violence....more
Crumley takes his two favorite detective creations on a gonzo adventure, roadtrip, and revenge quest. Milo and Sughrue in car filled with cocaine and Crumley takes his two favorite detective creations on a gonzo adventure, roadtrip, and revenge quest. Milo and Sughrue in car filled with cocaine and firearms travel the American West with the spirits of Chandler, Peckinpah, Hunter S Thompson, and Warren Zevon as guides and a soundtrack by Ely, Cowboy Junkies, Waits, Zevon, and Patsy Cline. Ridiculous, comic and brutally violent this is the book he probably meant to write with Mexican Tree Duck....more
I had written Bruce Sterling off as a relic of the cyberpunk era, big mistake. The wow factor is pretty big on this. Mind mutating, WTF, idea per sentI had written Bruce Sterling off as a relic of the cyberpunk era, big mistake. The wow factor is pretty big on this. Mind mutating, WTF, idea per sentence science fiction with shades at time of Bester, Triptree jr. Delaney, Barrington J. Bailey(who blurbs it) William S. Burroughs, and Ballard. Dense, filled with absurd humor and grotesque surreal visions, as human future and form breaks and cascades into increasing odd shapes. I feel a little buzzed after finishing this. This and a couple of short stories have put Sterling on my favorites list. This book also had a profound influence on the books of Charles Stross and Alastair Reynolds, the former taking the zany idea flinging and economic speculation and the latter the grim, fractured weirdness....more
Corbett provides us with an entertainment in Do They Know I’m Running, if you can call something so mired in grim zeitgeist politics entertaining. ComCorbett provides us with an entertainment in Do They Know I’m Running, if you can call something so mired in grim zeitgeist politics entertaining. Combining the social novel, political thriller, docufiction (its fiction from the authors mind, but in many ways it is as “true� as any documentary), the betrayals of noir, and a road novel from hell. This novel dramatizes the nest of scorpions (literally at one point) that human trafficking in Central America has become after the drug gangs gained control of it, and drawing in the plight of Iraq war veterans (on both sides and soldiers and contractors), the absurdity of the ‘war on terror�, corruption on the border, private security firms, arms dealers, and other victims and wolves of unfettered capitalism. This sounds top heavy but Corbett stick you with a group of characters that you can see the impact of this moral abyss as you see them move toward some Peckinpahesque violent redemption, freedom, or some small gesture to arrest the plummet of our collective soul. He is being compared to Green and Stone and while he doesn’t have their prose mastery, his combining of classic tragedy with a before the headlines story is reminiscent of those masters. ...more
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