Jeffery and Trudie recently reviewed an Angry Robots book Dead Harvest, an imprint of which is Strange Chemistry. Af...more Serendipity, what a strange thing.
Jeffery and Trudie recently reviewed an Angry Robots book Dead Harvest, an imprint of which is Strange Chemistry. After finishing reading their reviews, what should pop up in my inbox but an invite from Strange Chemistry to review an ARC of Emilie and the Hollow World, which I accepted.
If you are a fan of steam-punk, this is a good, fast, light read that takes no risks with the formula nor sets new standards in the genre. The story reminds me strongly of the more memorable moments of Jacques Tardi's The Adventures of Adele Blanc Sec and the cover is quite an enticing eyeful.
My issues centred around the technical - the text would have benefited from both in-line and structural editing - some of the minor plot points don't bear too much scrutiny, commas incorrectly placed, incorrect speech attribution, redundant sentences and doubling up of description - if something is round, a young adult reader doesn't need to be told twice to grasp the picture. Some author ethics filtered through Emilie which strained belief in her as a character and Emilie's dialogue veered at times between ridiculously juvenile and suspiciously adult, not to mention including colloquialisms or epithets which simply don't fit in a the mouth of a character set in a squarely Victorian steam-punk world. A little more attention to the mechanics of Victorian society would have helped with the world building.
Plus points that bear mention: gently sarcastic nods in the direction of sexism in the genre; a assured and unobtrusive handling of the magic (aether) without any long-winded explanations for why it worked; zero gratuitous violence, and for the most part, a crisp and clean prose style (which emphasised the sub-par editing, but as this is an ARC, I presuming these issues will be remedied before going to press) that rendered description of Emilie's Hollow World, as well as her home, readily imaginable.
I cannot think - I can only respond as the string of a violin quivers under the drawing of a bow. This is prose so voluptuo...more Ah! This writer is sublime.
I cannot think - I can only respond as the string of a violin quivers under the drawing of a bow. This is prose so voluptuous that no amount of imagery, sumptuous, voluminous, sensuous or rapturous can even begin to describe the delights of this book.
Literature only reaches the utmost limit of its seductiveness when it gives occasion for jealousy - not the petty feelings that constitute envy of one writer for another, but the searing, tumultuous emotion that demands withholding its beauty and wonder from the eyes of all other readers.
On this day one decade ago, my husband and I married in the Duesseldorf Standesamt. At that time, we were oblivious to that juncture in our future whi...more On this day one decade ago, my husband and I married in the Duesseldorf Standesamt. At that time, we were oblivious to that juncture in our future which would bring us to Egypt, where we resided in the Western Desert on the outskirts of Cairo for three years.
This book breathes sense of place in the same way as Durrell's The Alexandria Quartet evokes an Alexandria which no longer exists - the Cairo in Gazelle is a place of memories - both the author's and my own. I read Durrell's Quartet before I ever saw Alexandria, and was both saddened that I would never walk its streets as he had, and glad that I could lose myself in the landscape of his prose and discover the Alexandria he had known.
In the same way, Gazelle does not require you to have visited a Fayoum rose field or crossed the bridge at Zamalek or hailed a taxi on 26 July - Ducornet has that effortless, flowing, dreamy style which transports you into the time and place of her story and leaves you surrounded, drowning, in tastes and sights and sounds and above all, touch and smells.
It is not a novel about this:
Here's a vagina and here is a penis Open the doors and welcome to Venus
nor is it a novel that starts at A and ends at B with a "What if" as the galloping force whipping its characters along to a climactic denouement. This is a novel with a classical beginning, middle and end. It has action (of both the mind and body) and it has plot (like scent swirls from crushed petals) and it is about achingly bittersweet and gloriously doomed characters, their moods and thoughts and desires and desperations and disappointments and finally, transformation. It is a Chopin nocturne of complexity, rather than a plastic pop song of boringly repetitive refrain and rhythm. It is a five star restaurant indulgence (complete with aperitif, amuse bouche, sorbet, petit fours et digestif and accompanying string quartet), rather than a fast food takeaway. It is an immersion of your senses and it is not to be hurried, or abused by the lack of your own sensitivity to the purity of words painting images in brushstrokes at once subtle and stark, thick and thin, toned and blazing.
Goodreads, and GRers themselves, fundamentally inspire the reading of books and the writing of reviews and the interactions that occur as a result of...more Goodreads, and GRers themselves, fundamentally inspire the reading of books and the writing of reviews and the interactions that occur as a result of the collisions of both. The variations that inspiration engenders could probably be calculated using non-linear mathematics by the author of this speculative fiction piece given his prodigious applied and theoretical background in computing science, his achievements in chess, and his other publications.
This collection of reviews is, in part, the author's attempt to demonstrate concretely the reviewing styles available to the reader, should he or she choose to depart from the orthodoxy. While it is not a how-to Emannuel per se, it does contain explicit examples of the more popular adumbrations that abound. However, the author has failed to incorporate an increasingly popular trend emerging from various regions which employs the counterbalance of adopted melodies to emphasise, or even explicate, the value of the work being appraised. This should not detract either the casual observer or the interested scholar from approaching Pooh as a useful tool in self-expression; on the contrary, it can aid in both the germination and release of new ideas, methodologies for analysis, and general pontification on the meaning of life, the universe, and everything.
In summary:
THE EURHYTHMICS: Love is a Stranger*
Reviews like a stranger in the world of books To tempt you in and lead you far away Reviews like a stranger in the world of books To tempt you in and whirl you far away
And you read them, and you read them, and you read them here's a confession And you read them, and you read them, and you read them it's an obsession
Reviews are a danger of a viral kind To seduce your senses and manipulate your mind And books, books, books are a dangerous drug You have to imbibe them and you still can't to-be-read enough
They're savage and they're cruel and they shine like destruction They're an inferno and a deluge and they create their own religion They're noble and they're brutal, they distort and derange They drench you in thought and leave you in carnage.
And you read them, and you read them, and you read them it's an obsession
Reviews guilt edged, glamorous and sleek by design Reviewers fabulous by nature, riotous and wild They dazzle and they drain you and it's totally cruel They touch you and tease as you wander through the melee.
And you read them, and you read them, and you read them here's a confession And you read them, and you read them, and you read them it's an obsession.
I have quite some things to say and so little time in which to say these. And now we have the great year of Proust...it may be some time before these...more I have quite some things to say and so little time in which to say these. And now we have the great year of Proust...it may be some time before these things are said, time being what it is, holidays being what they are, and my thoughts being scattered as usual.
So perhaps it's best to attempt the following:
Comparisons with Austen are appropriate for the social commentary and the (at times gently and perhaps not so gently snide) remarks the narrator makes about the actions of the characters. But this is not Austenesque prose by any stretch of the imagination.
There is an internal consistency to this book that makes it appear the author spent most of the ten years it took her to write the book in plotting - in fact, that wasn't the case, so even more impressive.
Comparisons with Dickens are odd - perhaps my knowledge of Dickens is lacking but the only resemblance is in the sprawling nature Dickens employed and which has been executed to good effect in this book. With respect to the development of social disparity, Dickens was far more caustic.
Was it really nearly 900 pages long? My goodness, I hardly noticed at all.
Footnotes in a fiction book - well, really. How delightful. Brilliant asides which added depth and flavour without detracting or distracting from the story - it helped that I simply read the footnotes at the end of each chapter in the e-book version, of course. But still. To be savoured rather than spurned.
The arbitrariness of the magic - well, yes. That was rather the point. Magic doesn't solve problems, particularly when it's been out of action for such a long time and its two lead proponents are two sides of the same coin (not quite Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, but definitely ivory tower scholar and mad, experiential scientist) both blind to their lack of understanding of its capriciousness - not for nothing is one labelled Fearfulness and the other Arrogance.
The villain - well, there wasn't. Actually, there was not one single (male) character (with the possible exception of the Hero (view spoiler)[Stephen Black (hide spoiler)] and Dr Greysteel) who did not display villainous tendencies of one or other inclination. The ladies remained virtuous and pure to the last (which was perhaps the only fault I would have with this book, a kind of inverted sexism if you will) and were a driving force for the action of the book because of their value as objects (sadly - but then, this is an historically accurate portrayal, therefore it would not be appropriate to have our 21st Century sensibilities criticising Regency ignorance/value systems).
The setting - perfect. Just enough historical realism so that suspension of disbelief was never even an obvious factor in slipping into a world where odd occurrences had as much a surreal as a rational explanation.
Accuracy and research of both English folklore and Regency England - could not be faulted. Natty little snippets included Lord Byron being jinxed and a footnote as to his later death.
But the highest accolade I can pay this book - I was not aware I was reading it until I was (forcibly) interrupted and suddenly became aware of my own existence again. This book is that good.(less)
No. Those three stars are because this book has not read me. This book is utterly, if adroitly, contrived. It is belletristic masturbation of astoundi...moreNo. Those three stars are because this book has not read me. This book is utterly, if adroitly, contrived. It is belletristic masturbation of astounding proportions.
The three stars are an acknowledgement of Mr Mitchell's deliberately smug composition....see remainder of review at www.abookwithaview.com and the comments for a raise-the-eyebrows and dimple-the-cheeks discussion.(less)
I saw the movie on the plane (where else) and was frantic to surf the 'net to find out more about it when we landed. I wanted to understand more about...moreI saw the movie on the plane (where else) and was frantic to surf the 'net to find out more about it when we landed. I wanted to understand more about the book, its author, the concepts, and background. Big screen (well, in this case, the small screen on the back of a plane seat) is terrific but ephemeral, whereas with a book I have time for distractions, cogitation, re-reading (and checking things on the net!). You might argue that I can fiddle with 'Pause', 'Rewind', 'Forward' and (several iterations later) 'Play', but this tends to have the undesirable effect of tossing me out of my utterly physiological entrapment within the film. The beauty of a book is that it is really all in my head! And that's what I would like to discuss here.
Chris Nolan's treatment of the book was brilliant, precisely because of the medium; fast-paced, fore-shadowing, and with a judicious and welcome lack of gratuitous violence and special effects. But it doesn't do justice to the subject matter that Chris Priest wanted to, and effectively did, explore.
Priest's book is a marvel no less worthy precisely because it is a book! The book is written in three parts, each part representing one of the three elements of a magic act, and each part cleverly reflects the nature of the element it represents (bear that in mind when reading nay-sayers who think the opening setting is irrelevant). Nolan did condense parts of the book and the condensation works perfectly in a movie. Priest's original material is able to play with the nature of a magic act in a way Nolan could not, because of the shortening required for a screenplay.
Nolan made an emotional grab for the guts with the motivation he set up for the characters - and that is also a function of the medium. A film doesn't have the luxury of time that a book does. Priest's book, on the other hand, delves much more in the psychology of its protagonists without a quickly discernible (and emotionally acceptable) cause-and-effect providing the basis for the competition between the two magicians.
The book's haunting ending achieves a level of ambiguity the movie fails to translate (and Nolan is known for his lack of black-and-white, cut-and-dried endings). Images from the film still sit with me, but scenes from the book that I have imagined myself resonate far longer, and with far many more questions.
I think it is probably better at this point to recommend reading the book (keeping in mind that it is a book and the film is a successful adaptation) than saying anything else, because even if you have seen the movie, the book is sufficiently different that I would have to start on the path to spoilerdom. And this is a novel which deserves the innocence of an audience waiting in anticipation for the curtain to rise.(less)
*****Edit***** I'm even more of a slack skimmer than I thought. If I'd read more of the download, I'd never have added it at all :(. See the first two...more*****Edit***** I'm even more of a slack skimmer than I thought. If I'd read more of the download, I'd never have added it at all :(. See the first two thread comments (spoiler alert).
****Edit end****
This book sounded like a truly fascinating read. I downloaded the extract, read several pages, and thought, 'hmmmm - has piqued my interest. I like the sound of this'.
When I first heard of the book, I checked a few of the 4-5 star reviews, and most spoke well of it, particularly the ideas it contained. All well and good. Currently a friend is reading it and we agreed to pal-read (sorry Ala, I'm going to let the side down). So I checked over a few more friends' reviews, and marked it TR today.
Thank goodness. Ms Murphybylaw flagged the gruesome violence and ick factor. While I'm a great fan of the unusual, the play of ideas, history (fiction is my favourite, I'm pretty hopeless with the real thing - too many dates and places and people to remember) and sci-fi in general, blood and guts and violence leaves me gagging and ill (hey, I retired to bed with a migraine after the first chapter of The Hunger Games).
So, sadly, this book will not see the light of my eyes, and its wonderful sounding ideas will remain forever a locked secret. If you don't suffer the same sensibilities as I, please do read the first chapter and see what you think. It might just be your cup of herbal tea.(less)
History and I have a rather sporadic relationship. Ancient Greeks (mythology as well) for a semester in high school, some WWI/WWII in another high-sch...moreHistory and I have a rather sporadic relationship. Ancient Greeks (mythology as well) for a semester in high school, some WWI/WWII in another high-school semester, Australian colonial history as part of Social Science, and that's about it. I was deprived of the joys of a literary/history option at Uni, being intent on acquiring a piece of paper which would bequeath some form of 'employable' status, and Arts didn't (at the time) fall into that category, I'm sad to acknowledge.
So I tend to be a sucker for books which (pretend to - how can I judge?) have some historical basis and morph into fantasy (that way I don't feel guilty about not knowing the dates, names and famous places). In this case, not only has the author covered much of the Plantagenet history, but also contrived to introduce English/French animal mythology. Fundamentally the book is an historical fantasy romance and a coming-of-age, but with some intriguing elements that are a departure from the norm.
The book did drag in the middle (there's only so much history one can absorb, and I started to become a little bored with the Fox - more a reflection on me than the author), so I admit to having indulged in my usual practice of skimming chunks of text until my attenion was firmly re-hooked. It is a long read, but worthwhile for those of you who like decent prose, a heroine who develops, a look at history and European mythology, and reasonably well-structured plot/characters.
Aside: and it was another one that I picked up in an aeroport somewhere.(less)
Forget Dan Brown and others of the same ilk. This is the original rolled-neatly-into-one conspiracy theory to end all others. Eco is a Professor of Se...moreForget Dan Brown and others of the same ilk. This is the original rolled-neatly-into-one conspiracy theory to end all others. Eco is a Professor of Semiotics in Italy, and uses his vast understanding of symbolism to create a compelling read.(less)
Fairly meticulously researched. What is refreshing in this madness is that Tolan tells the story through the eyes of real people and lets the reader d...moreFairly meticulously researched. What is refreshing in this madness is that Tolan tells the story through the eyes of real people and lets the reader decide what to think - of course the subjectivity is present in Tolan's choice of which stories to tell, but he makes a very brave and thorough attempt to be as unbiased as possible.
Worth reading unless you cannot put aside your own prejudices about this topic.(less)
Sometimes a little slow going. But you just can't go past all those lovely plots. Such a pity technology these days renders most of Doyle's twists and...moreSometimes a little slow going. But you just can't go past all those lovely plots. Such a pity technology these days renders most of Doyle's twists and turns obsolete.(less)
This is not a book for Da Vinci fans. But if you like a more leisurely journey of discovery, with Italian art, history, and a good rendition of the tw...moreThis is not a book for Da Vinci fans. But if you like a more leisurely journey of discovery, with Italian art, history, and a good rendition of the twisted interplay between village and state politics, as the focus, as seen through the eyes of a reluctant heroine, you will find this book entertaining.(less)
This novel is one of those which could come carrying a warning label: "flammatory material", or a back cover blurb including: "no liability accepted f...moreThis novel is one of those which could come carrying a warning label: "flammatory material", or a back cover blurb including: "no liability accepted for wanton acts of a prurient nature."
Kushiel's Dart is fantasy without the Elves, Dwarves etc, a pseudo mediaeval and feudal Europe in which each character claims allegiance to one of the ruling gods. It also constitutes soft/hard-core pornography of various persuasions, and is laced with scenes of brutal savagery - the heroine is delightfully relieved of her skin by a tribe of hunters.
There's mystery and murder, minus the magic, politics between the monarchy and the ruling houses, espionage as well as traditional romance - even though the triangle angle has now been rendered old geometry, this book precedes the current fashion of threesomes and a heroine besieged with choice. In the case of Kushiel's Dart, at least the premise for such a construction is better founded than other works of fiction that don't require naming.
Is it tightly paced, action packed reading? I'm not sure, but I don't think so. I found it difficult to see the trees for the...ah...purple forest. I finished (by skimming chunks) of the book, and have no interest in the series. Running the gauntlet of human experiment has never really turned me on.(less)
Why was Ovid, the most popular writer of his era, banished to the remote town of Tomis in the Black Sea from the seat of the Empire's power, Rome, and...moreWhy was Ovid, the most popular writer of his era, banished to the remote town of Tomis in the Black Sea from the seat of the Empire's power, Rome, and the side of his patron, Augustus?
Why are merely two lines of Medea, widely touted as his most ardent and accomplished work, the only surviving remnant of this play?
Between the historical facts of Ovid’s life, his admission that a poem and a mistake were the pillars of his ruin, and these tantalising enigmas, Jane Alison has wrought a hauntingly romantic drama of psychological manipulation and sensual intrigue.
Holidaying in the Black Sea on the outskirts of the Roman Empire and avoiding the potential displeasure of Augustus, Ovid chances upon an almost unearthly woman who epitomises the fantastical elements of his about-to-be published Metamorphoses. A delectable, desirable, alluring combination of mystic and witch, Xenia seems myth translated into life. Ovid is enchanted, obsessed, almost as a virgin youth experiencing his first love, he is brimming with inspiration: Xenia will be the muse for his pièce de résistance. But this time, he renders his subject seductively dark and twisted.
When autumn arrives, Ovid tempts Xenia from her home on the coast of the Black Sea to Rome with the promise of immortality only an artist can bequeath. The ineluctable noose of ambition lures Ovid and he enters a Faustian contract, deceiving his muse and hurling them both towards a retribution he never imagined. As Ovid and Xenia become entangled in his art-inspiring-life conspiracy and the schemes of his patrons, so the reader is ensnared in this chilling yet enthralling re-telling of the events leading to Ovid’s banishment.
The Love Artist is an exotic, brilliant and utterly compelling meditation on love, genius, and the artist's (and his or her muse) unswerving quest for immortality. Ms Alison’s prose is as bewitching as Xenia is described, as sensual and steamy as Ovid’s The Art of Love, and as flawlessly complex and evocative of Ancient Rome as any cinematic poem scribed by the classical poets.
Ms Alison foreshadows the events that will eventually engulf Ovid by opening her story with the journey of his exile to Tomis, but the story proper commences in the light and heat and smells of summer and the joy of the first stirrings of unexpected, overwhelming, infatuation. As the seasons fade into winter, so the menace of Ovid's plotting and the machinations of shadowy puppeteers shroud the protagonists until each is propelled along a path that can only result in a terrifying, profoundly disturbing conclusion.
Readers of lusciously written character-driven prose, who enjoy fictional history of the ancient world, with breath-taking twists of plot and consequence, will not be disappointed with The Love-Artist.(less)
Lawrence Durrell is not an easy author to read. His prose is long, fabulous, filled with wandering soliloquies and journeys into the human heart, mind...moreLawrence Durrell is not an easy author to read. His prose is long, fabulous, filled with wandering soliloquies and journeys into the human heart, mind, spirit which at first can seem completely lacking in intention and purpose, and mere descriptive play and fascination with the written word.
He writes on a number of levels and performs immense spatial-temporal tricks with both setting and characters so that at times it is difficult to understand not just where one is located in one's reading of the novel (taken as a group of five) but if one actually exists within it. Durrell speaks to those who can hear, and you may find yourself wondering whether you are a character he has written into the prose, living as one of the protagonists on simply another plane of his imagination.
Being a serial book-adulterer I have fallen into and wandered out of love with an amoral number of books - but I remain forever in thrall to the Alexa...moreBeing a serial book-adulterer I have fallen into and wandered out of love with an amoral number of books - but I remain forever in thrall to the Alexandria Quartet.
Of course, I may change my mind in ten years. Let's just wait and see.(less)
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