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24th out of 31 books
—
31 voters
Bold as Love (Bold As Love #1)
Three extraordinary people in some most extraordinary times: It's Dissolution Summer and as the United Kingdom prepares to break up into separate nations, the Counterculturals have gathered for a festival where everything's allowed. Among them is a talented little brat called Fiorinda, rock and roll princess by birth, searching for her father, the legendary Rufus O'Niall....more
Paperback, 406 pages
Published
2002
by Gollancz
(first published August 16th 2001)
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Feb 06, 2011
Catherine Mustread
marked it as to-read-after
From Christmas Critics.:
If submerging yourself in a fully furnished fictional world that goes on and on is more to your taste, you can do no better than to seek out the hard-to-find Bold as Love series by Gwyneth Jones. Think of it as a quest. For a free taste, check out the series Web site, a multimedia work of art in its own right, at www.boldaslove.co.uk. The five novels take their titles from Jimi Hendrix's song list, and they tell the story of a near-future "Dissolution" of England, in whic...more
If submerging yourself in a fully furnished fictional world that goes on and on is more to your taste, you can do no better than to seek out the hard-to-find Bold as Love series by Gwyneth Jones. Think of it as a quest. For a free taste, check out the series Web site, a multimedia work of art in its own right, at www.boldaslove.co.uk. The five novels take their titles from Jimi Hendrix's song list, and they tell the story of a near-future "Dissolution" of England, in whic...more
Generally I am only adding books as I read them, but I thought I would throw this in there, because it is unlikely that anyone will find it without being told to go look for it...
OK, so in the mid eighties when I discovered Gene Wolfe (the shadow of the torturer series, etc.) I was totally blown away, but it was literally another 10 years before I came across another person who liked him... Then all the sudden he is well known and respected.
I feel the same way now about Gwyneth Jones as I did Wo...more
OK, so in the mid eighties when I discovered Gene Wolfe (the shadow of the torturer series, etc.) I was totally blown away, but it was literally another 10 years before I came across another person who liked him... Then all the sudden he is well known and respected.
I feel the same way now about Gwyneth Jones as I did Wo...more
(7/10) This book was published in 2001, but it seems like a relic of the 60s and 70s, taking seriously the idea that rock and roll can change the world. That's not a bad thing, just kind of odd. Bold as Love rests on the improbable idea of a bunch of counterculture rockers taking over the government of England and trying to steer it through crisis after crisis.
The larger point is that this is a kind of mock epic, in which the Arthurian saga is retold through the lens of rock and rebellion, and i...more
The larger point is that this is a kind of mock epic, in which the Arthurian saga is retold through the lens of rock and rebellion, and i...more
Gwyneth Jones tells a story of three rock frontpersons, a fairy-like and magnetic young woman, strong leadsinger/guitarist politico and dangerously hypnotic soundscpae wizard, who are swept away into nation wide intrigue. Jones can be seen to explore the myth of rock/pop as a revolutionary force that can be used to change the society around it, a bit like not-so-sunny version of the hippie generation dream in a largely modern world filled with bits of magic.
The book explores the semi-realistic r...more
The book explores the semi-realistic r...more
This book knocked my socks off. It's not what I expected. Looking at the back of the book, I figured "Rock Stars take over England, it'll be a romp." No. This is an often brutal and savage book, with many scenes of tenderness as well. This is a strong, character driven novel with plenty of plot twists and political turmoil.
There are three protagonists , although Fioridna gets the most Point of View time, especially at the start. She is a singer at war with the founder of her own band, but that'...more
There are three protagonists , although Fioridna gets the most Point of View time, especially at the start. She is a singer at war with the founder of her own band, but that'...more
The characters and setting seemed way too contrived and stuck in some MTV wonderland. Maybe it's a Londontown thing. I found my mind wandering way too much while reading it, and had to reread passages to get back into the flow of the characters oh so hip and oh so transgressive misadventures. But it seemed to me like an amphetamine rush, and I never really liked speed anyways...
I am using a lot of slang here in the same way that I found Jones to.
I found the text overwrought, overwritten, and too...more
I am using a lot of slang here in the same way that I found Jones to.
I found the text overwrought, overwritten, and too...more
Re-read this because of the global economic meltdown and thoughts of what sort of thing that meltdown could potentially precipitate. No, I don't seriously predict a techno-pagan post-Dissolution England run by a very fucked triumvirate of rockstars, but it reads well.
I like this and it's weird, and has echoes of what extreme changes we could potentially come to face. In that way it's a bit like Octavia Butler's Earthseed books; less unremittingly grim but just as much about carving a new world o...more
I like this and it's weird, and has echoes of what extreme changes we could potentially come to face. In that way it's a bit like Octavia Butler's Earthseed books; less unremittingly grim but just as much about carving a new world o...more
I had high hopes for this, despite the appauling blurb on the back making it sound like a teenage romance novel, but I'm afraid to say that it disappointed me big time.
This is essentially an extrapolation of near future of Britain in which the United Kingdom breaks up into seperate states and an ever more popular and dominant Counter Cultural Movement (CCM) causes the monachy to fold and get replaced by the "leaders" of the CCM who become the head of state (but with real power): Rock stars! The...more
This is essentially an extrapolation of near future of Britain in which the United Kingdom breaks up into seperate states and an ever more popular and dominant Counter Cultural Movement (CCM) causes the monachy to fold and get replaced by the "leaders" of the CCM who become the head of state (but with real power): Rock stars! The...more
This was very odd. A futuristic dystopian fantasy with rock stars, it was too strange for me to really enjoy it, unfortunately.
As the political structures of England fall apart, violent coups occur and alternative regimes rise up, with our Arthurian-inspired trio, Fiorinda, Ax and Sage rising to lead the people. And give concerts and inspire the people along the way.
It's not dreadful, certainly, and I quite like Jones' writing style and her quirky characters - but this plot was too vast and wei...more
As the political structures of England fall apart, violent coups occur and alternative regimes rise up, with our Arthurian-inspired trio, Fiorinda, Ax and Sage rising to lead the people. And give concerts and inspire the people along the way.
It's not dreadful, certainly, and I quite like Jones' writing style and her quirky characters - but this plot was too vast and wei...more
Deeply weird, beautifully written near-future dystopia that also pays abstract homage to Arthurian legends. Music and art, technology, religion and environmental collapse are the hinge points with civilization in flux. Also very, very British, in the best way.
Hard to find in the U.S., but the first four books are free PDF at boldaslove.co.uk.
Warning: explicit and sometimes disturbing content.
(review is for entire 5-book series)
Hard to find in the U.S., but the first four books are free PDF at boldaslove.co.uk.
Warning: explicit and sometimes disturbing content.
(review is for entire 5-book series)
Wow - the first book in a long time I've read and had to immediately get hold of the next title - the cliffhanger had something to do with it, but it's a pretty astounding near-future post economic collapse fantasy. I got it for the Arthurian tropes but was blown away by the whole package.
May 27, 2008
Katie M.
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
fantasy lovers, environmentalists, anglophiles, rock stars, everyone
This book is extraordinary. It's premise is original: in a near-future England the summer the UK breaks up voluntarily, a bunch of rock stars end up trying to hold the country together after a coup topples the power structure. Sounds a bit ridiculous, but Jones draws you in with inventive yet believable worldbuilding and vivid characterizations. This novel is the unlikely but enthralling lovechild of dystopian sci-fi, Arthurian legend, an environmentalist protest rally, and a rock festival. It's...more
I have just closed this book and I genuinely don't know if I liked it or not. I enjoyed the characters and I actually grew to like the dystopian near-future setting, but it was just so... rambling and plotless. A bunch of incidents occur (that are quickly dealt with) and the narrative shuffles on but nothing really happens in 250+ pages.
For an in depth discussion of Bold As Love, please listen to my podcast, The Writer and the Critic, episode 5.
I couldn't finish this book. While I normally enjoy a vision of a dystopian future, I couldn't get into this one. I didn't care about the characters, the context didn't interest me, and the writing failed to keep my attention. I even begrudge the $.50 it will cost me for turning it in late at the library.
rockstar genre fiction, though what genre is hard to pin down. speculative fiction, is broad enough i suppose.
Apparently this isn't actually available in the US, so it might well sit on this to-read shelf for a while...
Nov 20, 2012
Robert
added it
I think I'm in love with Gwennyth Jones, but I know I'm in love with Fiorinda. The guitar slinging redhead has a new fan. Jimi Hendrix would be proud of his influence, and I know I'm hooked.
2.5 stars. A very original novel and unlike anything else I have read to date. The world created by Jones of a future Britian falling into anarchy is intriguing. That said, the prose and the characters were a little hard to get into and the plot was a little too "all over the place" for me to rate it higher.
Winner: Arthur C. Clarke Award (2002)
Nominee: Bristish SF Assn Award (2002)
Nominee: Locus Award Best Fantasy Novel (2002)
Winner: Arthur C. Clarke Award (2002)
Nominee: Bristish SF Assn Award (2002)
Nominee: Locus Award Best Fantasy Novel (2002)
The copy says most of it: "Three extraordinary people in some most extraordinary times." I just remember getting depressed while reading it.
May 19, 2013
Craig Pay
marked it as to-read
May 12, 2013
Niall519
is currently reading it
May 08, 2013
Mark
marked it as to-read
May 08, 2013
Click Clack Gorilla
marked it as to-read
May 03, 2013
Andrew
is currently reading it
Apr 24, 2013
Louise
marked it as to-read
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Gwyneth Ann Jones, born in Manchester, 14th February 1952, writer. She's the author of more than twenty novels for teenagers, mostly using the name Ann Halam, and several highly regarded sf novels for adults. She's won two World Fantasy awards, the Arthur C. Clarke award, the British Science Fiction Association short story award, the Dracula Society's Children of the Night award, the P.K.Dick awar...more
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Nov 27, 2008 04:02am