the Library Bar...Club...Establishment...Saloon...

[antryg]

It's pretty bad when the longest running (and best) thread in the forum gets pushed to page 2.

[Mouse]

We're back [img]smile.gif[/img]

And now a quick zip through some of my latest reads

The Praxis by Walter John Williams

Anyone who has come into contact with the “Lensman” series of classic space opera will feel at home with this one. Apparently it’s the first in a series which follows the fate of humanity after the fall of a galactic empire when various races struggle to assert their place after the departure of their omnipotent masters.

For a clichéd scenario, this works well and because it tends to focus more on the characters than the hard SF elements, I think it succeeds in keeping the reader involved in the plot. All in all, I would recommend this as an undemanding read and if I come across any more in the series, I would give them my attention.

Bitten by Kelley Armstrong

Lovely concept. The only female werewolf in the world and how she fits into a post-modern situation. Unfortunately, this comes across as a sort of sub-Harold Robbins type romp complete with lavishly descriptive sex scenes. There is a good book struggling to get out from all the crap, but unfortunately, it’s not worth the effort of trying to find it in this case. Maybe her next effort will be better and I hope it is. The concept is fine, it’s just the execution that’s lacking.

Something More by Paul Cornell

This guy’s bio majors on the fact that he has written tie-ins for the cult T.V. series “Dr. Who”. And good luck to him I say. As long as he sticks to what he knows I wish him well. Unfortunately, this novel does nothing to showcase his talents as a writer. It has several big ideas and clever concepts, but it’s all a muddle and lacks coherence. There are some nice flashes of invention here, but you have to wade through a lot of dross to get to them.


The Greatest Show Off Earth by Robert Rankin

Oooooh – early Sproutlore!!! That will not mean a lot to those unfamiliar with Robert Rankin’s output, but who cares. This author is a curious beast, sort of a P.G.Wodehouse on acid with a wicked satirical bent. He won’t be to everyone’s taste and many of his references are U.K. based, but I like what he does and his unerring grasp of the absurd appeals to me.

Deathstalker Prelude by Simon R Green

I would imagine that anyone who reads this author will either love him or hate him. I love him and will seriously consider shelling out my own hard earned cash to buy the rest of this series. I am familiar with the “Hawk and Fisher” series and I think this shows similar promise. If it’s inventive and sometimes surreal imagery you’re after, give Simon R Green a try.

The Meq by Steve Cash

Not content with being in the band “The Ozark Mountain Daredevils” this guy also feels the need to write a novel [img]graemlins/wow.gif[/img] . And it’s not a bad one at that. I’m sure many years ago I read a short SF story about a girl who never aged past the age of twelve and lived her life going from family to family. This takes that basic concept and weaves a whole mythos around it based on the conceit that there is a small secretive incredibly long-lived offshoot of humanity who live unnoticed amongst us.

For a first novel, this is a well crafted and absorbing tale, similar in pace and tone to Philip Pullman’s writing. Recommended.

[ 04-13-2003, 05:43 AM: Message edited by: Mouse ]

[Tancred]

It's been a while. Here's a review...

Night Watch by Terry Pratchett

I must admit yo cooling towards Prachtett recently. A few of his more recent books seemed to lack punch, in some more serious cases even substance. Night Watch I like.

It's a Watch novel. But it's a Watch novel shorn of the familiar cast of characters who've sprung up in the Watch; and, thus, it's interesting. It stars the man who really has had too much character development, Sam Vimes, in the lead, but bcause Night Watch is a time travel novel we get to see not himk, but literally himself through his own eyes... not to mention a few other familiar faces. If you ever wondered how a few certain people ever came to be who they are now, the answer's in Night Watch. Any fan of the Watch novels will love Night Watch just for that.

There's a story, close and tense, and a villain to loathe. Although Carcer the murderer doesn't quite score as high on the psychopath scales as Teatime or Vorbis, Carcer's a kind of anti-Vimes; determined, vicious but clever with it, hard as nails. Pretty much all the Discworld novels I enjoyed had decent villains in them, and this one's no exception.

Night Watch is cleverly written and, I think, superbly paced. In all honesty, I feel this is the best-written Discworld novel for ages.

Tancred

[Mouse]

Deathstalker by Simon R Green

Quickly does a double take. Didn’t I just do a brief Deathstalker review? Well, yes I did, but that was Deathstalker Prelude which, in reality, is a collection of three novellas which introduce certain elements of the Deathstalker universe. This book is the first of the “real” Deathstalker series.

I must confess at this point that I have a weakness for Simon R Green’s writing. It’s hard to put my finger on it, but for me, his style just seems to hit the spot. I would categorise it as almost Chandleresque, blending as it does, a certain hard-boiled characterisation with an unerring sense of the grotesque. His invention of such diverse characters as the Stevie Blues, the Grendel, the Hadenmen ,The Iron Bitch and the AIs of Shub are a tribute to his fertile imagination, and the way he manages to weave them together into a coherent whole is a joy.

It’s my intention to read all the books in order. ( unless you count Deathstalker Legacy which I've already read )

[ 05-02-2003, 05:37 PM: Message edited by: Mouse ]

[Mouse]

The Scar by China Mieville

I make no secret of my utter and complete admiration for the author’s previous work – “Perdido Street Station” and consider it possibly the best book I have read in the last couple of years. So as you can imagine, I am somewhat biased in his favour and was looking forward to “The Scar” with more than usual anticipation. However, after 795 pages, my main feeling was of complete disappointment.

First a brief précis. The story revolves around the adventures of a minor character from the previous novel who flees the city of New Crobuzon and gets captured and confined on a huge floating amalgam of ships called the Armada. There is a mysterious quest that she is pressganged into participating in and….errr…that’s about it. So why did I fail to warm to this book?

Firstly, the central character, Bellis Coldwine is hard to engage with. I have read books where the main character is amoral, fatally flawed, downright evil or mad. These can all be overlooked as long as they are interesting. Bellis Coldwine is a shallow self-obsessed neurotic idiot who could not have been less engaging if she just sat in a corner and sobbed her way through the whole novel. Some of the supporting (but important) characters are interesting enough, for example, Uther Doul, possessor of the Probability Sword, Tanner Sack, the remade man and the wampir Brucolac, but they are often set aside for another bout of Bellis’s navel gazing.

Then there is the pacing of the novel. To me it’s a bit like I’ve heard World War One described – long periods of tedium punctuated by short bursts of action. I suspect that somewhere in the 795 pages there is a much pacier 300 page book that’s been submerged in excess verbiage.

Finally, I don’t like the clumsy artifice of using the scar as a central theme to tie disparate threads of the narrative together. Bellis and Tanner get scarred by their experiences. A giant sea creature is caught and suffers terrible scars. Two more of the central characters called “The Lovers” scar each other in a perversion of genuine love. Even the goal of the epic quest is called “The Scar”. Everyone carries mental or physical scars. So clever, and just so contrived.

This could be the result of an author who has read his own publicity and thinks he can do no wrong. I hope he gets hold of a decent editor, reins in his excesses and produces something approaching the genius of “Perdido Street Station” next time.

The Nameless Day by Sara Douglass

This is the first book by Sara Douglass I have ever read, but from reading the jacket quotes and having seen some reviews of her work, I have formed an impression that she is generally regarded as being a few notches above run of the mill pulp fantasy.

So it proves. This is the first of a trilogy set in an alternative history. This is a well worn fantasy/science fiction sub-genre and this novel fits into the Mary Gentle “Ash” range of the spectrum rather than say Harry Turtledove. By that I mean, historical events are skewed just slightly rather than radically altered. In this case, medieval Europe is menaced by real and tangible demonic forces as well as the usual wars, famine and the like. Into this setting comes Thomas Neville, a thoroughly nasty (but interesting ) religious bigot and zealot. This first book in a trilogy suffers a bit as do most such first books with a little too much scene setting and character introduction, but there is more than enough meat on the bones of this first course to make me eager to taste the rest of the meal.

[Grojlach]

Anthony Burgess - Earthly Powers

Finally finished Burgess's Earthly Powers today... By all accounts an impressive novel, written from an "autobiographical" perspective (the main character is the 81-year-old Kenneth M. Toomey, a famous novellist), describing the events in the life of a gay writer. The novel spans many decades of the 20th century, all with their own particular characteristics, attitudes and "pop culture" - making this novel not only of an epical quality, but also a very educating and enriching experience; placing certain music, literature, movies and celebrities in their proper context, giving an interesting contemplation on the aftermath of the First World War, of the roaring twenties and the depression following it, of extensive travelling to faraway colonies, of how pre-war Nazi-Germany was generally regarded in the years prior to the Second World War, of the further development of the black people's Awareness, of the problems concerning religious sects in the sixties - albeit all with a dose of fiction, the general atmosphere is convincingly described.
And, of course, the religious struggle of the main character concerning his sexual disposition, and the dealings with the ambitious and progressive Roman-Catholic clergyman Carlo Campanati, the main character's brother-in-law.
Rich in description and detail, a large number of references to almost forgotten used-to-be pop cultures or historical events (for instance, I saw a documentary on Charlie Chaplin's The Great Dictator only a week ago or so, and was surprised to recognize a very short reference to his visit to Berlin in Earthly Powers; something which I couldn't have placed in its proper context or fully understood if I hadn't seen that particular documentary - giving it an extra dimension and perhaps a good book to re-read in a few decades from now, with possibly more experience and background knowledge [img]smile.gif[/img] ), and a nasty surprise at the end of the novel: Earthly Powers may take some time to read or get into (while I was a bit reluctant to read more than a chapter at a time between page 100 and 200, and even shelved the novel for a few months, I actually constantly kept on reading during the last 350 pages of it), but it's definitely worth the time and trouble. And a recommendation, naturally. [img]graemlins/thumbsup.gif[/img]

[Timber Loftis]

Any News on GRR MArtin's Fest for Crows????