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Amazonas
"The river, the river. She thought it would never end..."
They were in search of the Slave Tree, and this had been a mistake. As the boat traveled up the river, deep into the heart of darkness, Henrietta watched Edwin closely. She watched him chew at his fingernails and spit into the river. She watched a vein in his temple that never stopped throbbing and the tic that made a muscle twitch beside his eye. She watched Edwin and the man named Crown whispering some secret, back and forth, as if Crown was hypnotizing Edwin.
The most frightening part of this insane journey was not the fear of losing her husband. She had passed beyond fearing that. But if she did lose Edwin, here, so far upstream from the last outpost of civilization, surrounded by the green-walled forest and the dark and tangled terrors it contained, what in the name of God would become of her? There were things moving about the jungle, and there was a madman waiting for them at the end of their journey... and then, most importantly, there was The Slave Tree, which held a secret so dark it could drive a person mad.
Amazonas is a piercing look into the true heart of darkness into which many men enter... and few ever return.
They were in search of the Slave Tree, and this had been a mistake. As the boat traveled up the river, deep into the heart of darkness, Henrietta watched Edwin closely. She watched him chew at his fingernails and spit into the river. She watched a vein in his temple that never stopped throbbing and the tic that made a muscle twitch beside his eye. She watched Edwin and the man named Crown whispering some secret, back and forth, as if Crown was hypnotizing Edwin.
The most frightening part of this insane journey was not the fear of losing her husband. She had passed beyond fearing that. But if she did lose Edwin, here, so far upstream from the last outpost of civilization, surrounded by the green-walled forest and the dark and tangled terrors it contained, what in the name of God would become of her? There were things moving about the jungle, and there was a madman waiting for them at the end of their journey... and then, most importantly, there was The Slave Tree, which held a secret so dark it could drive a person mad.
Amazonas is a piercing look into the true heart of darkness into which many men enter... and few ever return.
- GenresHorror
124 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2011
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22 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
October 20, 2020
This is going to be a tough book to review. You know how there are some books you finish, and you feel like you missed something? Well, this is the kind of book you finish, and you KNOW you missed something. I feel like everything I need to know about the story is there in the narrative, but I can't quite make sense of it. I'm not blaming the author here; this is just the kind of story that takes some time to simmer in your mind, and for you to see all the connections.
This is my first time reading Ryan, and I liked his style. Set in the early 1900s, Ryan writes in a plain, straightforward style that fits the time and the setting. The story is about three white people from the US traveling to Brazil to navigate the Amazon (with the help of the natives, of course) to find their fortune. Their fortune lies in something called "the slave tree", and therein lies the mystery and the horror of the story.
That's also the central theme of the story, though slavery of people isn't the only form of slavery examined here. There's the slavery of self, too, which is highlighted through the character of Henrietta, our point-of-view character for the story. The other named characters -- Edwin and Crown -- have their own forms of slavery, too, and Ryan doesn't shy away from detailing the odd relationship among these three characters.
I feel like Amazonas transcends being simply a horror story here, thanks to how well Ryan adopts the theme to his story. When I first finished it, I wasn't sure how I felt about it, but the more I've thought about it (and this is the kind of story that will linger), the more I think it's a brilliant little story. It's short enough to read in an afternoon, but it's packed with enough to keep you thinking about it for days after.
This is my first time reading Ryan, and I liked his style. Set in the early 1900s, Ryan writes in a plain, straightforward style that fits the time and the setting. The story is about three white people from the US traveling to Brazil to navigate the Amazon (with the help of the natives, of course) to find their fortune. Their fortune lies in something called "the slave tree", and therein lies the mystery and the horror of the story.
That's also the central theme of the story, though slavery of people isn't the only form of slavery examined here. There's the slavery of self, too, which is highlighted through the character of Henrietta, our point-of-view character for the story. The other named characters -- Edwin and Crown -- have their own forms of slavery, too, and Ryan doesn't shy away from detailing the odd relationship among these three characters.
I feel like Amazonas transcends being simply a horror story here, thanks to how well Ryan adopts the theme to his story. When I first finished it, I wasn't sure how I felt about it, but the more I've thought about it (and this is the kind of story that will linger), the more I think it's a brilliant little story. It's short enough to read in an afternoon, but it's packed with enough to keep you thinking about it for days after.
December 6, 2018
This is a short and strange little story. It is only 124 pages and so I was able to read it in an afternoon. It is about a married couple, Edwin and Henrietta who are traveling in South America when they encounter a man known only as Crown. Crown tells Edwin that there is a "slave tree" in the middle of the Amazon rainforest and Edwin sees it as a get rich quick scheme. And that is pretty much all I can say for the plot without spoiling it.
I feel like this book only rates three stars because there are so many unanswered questions, particularly with the ending. But there are plenty of questions throughout the plot as well. There is a reference to Edwin and Henrietta having sold all of their earthly possessions, but that is all there is to say of that and no clarification or why is provided. The ending of the tale was quite ambiguous and left this reader unsatisfied. There was some violence and bloodshed, no alcohol or substance abuse and no adult language. The story is unique but feels incomplete.
I feel like this book only rates three stars because there are so many unanswered questions, particularly with the ending. But there are plenty of questions throughout the plot as well. There is a reference to Edwin and Henrietta having sold all of their earthly possessions, but that is all there is to say of that and no clarification or why is provided. The ending of the tale was quite ambiguous and left this reader unsatisfied. There was some violence and bloodshed, no alcohol or substance abuse and no adult language. The story is unique but feels incomplete.
November 8, 2014
Quick dose of eco-horror which tries to be some sort of fable or metaphor, but fails. Plot focuses on a "slave tree".
May 31, 2017
Short. Fun. A bit creepy.
July 26, 2011
"Amazonas", by the late Alan Peter Ryan, reads like a fantastically lucid fever dream. A surreal journey, it works a hallucinatory magic by blurring the lines between reality and horror, taking the reader on a journey deep into the jungles of the Amazon, where the normal rules of civilization and humanity have no meaning. The horror here is all too real: the cruelty of slavery, the lust and hunger of ordinary men driven to fever pitches, the inability of feeble human good to do anything to stop it.
The story is simple: three whites and a group of natives are traveling down the river, deep into the jungle, searching for something called "The Slave Tree". What they find defines all logic and rationale, a figment of some dark fantasy, but dreams of financial success plumbing the slave market with an inexhaustible supply of slaves dies in the ravages of disease, lust for power and violence. There are no winners in this story, but that is faithful to the world and mood Ryan establishes early in the narrative: this is not world in which anyone can win, because there are no rules to play by.
Even if not an homage to Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, the comparison is inevitable, and not just because of the setting. Ryan invokes that same sense of "slipperiness" and madness without the density of Conrad's prose, and like in Darkness, the jungle is presented as an alien entity, uncaring of human aims or goals.
The Slave Tree itself remains largely unexplained, but this doesn't detract from the tale, simply adds to the story's thrust: most of the natural world is unexplained, much of it dark, and often, humanity just wants to exploit it for mercenary means.
The ending is fast and furious, but again: this feels loyal to the tone of the story, that violence is fast and brutal, and the natural world around it indifferent of the outcome.
The story is simple: three whites and a group of natives are traveling down the river, deep into the jungle, searching for something called "The Slave Tree". What they find defines all logic and rationale, a figment of some dark fantasy, but dreams of financial success plumbing the slave market with an inexhaustible supply of slaves dies in the ravages of disease, lust for power and violence. There are no winners in this story, but that is faithful to the world and mood Ryan establishes early in the narrative: this is not world in which anyone can win, because there are no rules to play by.
Even if not an homage to Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, the comparison is inevitable, and not just because of the setting. Ryan invokes that same sense of "slipperiness" and madness without the density of Conrad's prose, and like in Darkness, the jungle is presented as an alien entity, uncaring of human aims or goals.
The Slave Tree itself remains largely unexplained, but this doesn't detract from the tale, simply adds to the story's thrust: most of the natural world is unexplained, much of it dark, and often, humanity just wants to exploit it for mercenary means.
The ending is fast and furious, but again: this feels loyal to the tone of the story, that violence is fast and brutal, and the natural world around it indifferent of the outcome.
June 22, 2011
This is part of the Cemetery Dance Early Readers Club 3.0
I liked the setting of this piece, that being in the Amazon during 1906. Other than actually telling the reader, there is no real indication of time. Though the place was fairly obvious. A lot of this one takes place on the river, traveling to the Slave Tree. In this way, the reader is made to sense the arduous journey and the anticipation of getting there, far down the river and deep in the jungle.
The idea that people can be grown in pods, can even whither and die on the vine so to speak, is an interesting idea. But we never get to see how things work out for the poor pod people, because everyone dies and the forest creeps back—in an effort of reclamation. None of them make it back to civilization.
Edwin dies first from malaria, leaving Henrietta as the sole business partner of Crown. And they have a Mexican standoff. The story arc is simply getting to the tree, discovering how to help the pod people live, and that's it. Everyone dies. Vast swaths of potential story whither and die on the vine much like the pod people in the story. No one gets to see how the general public handle psuedo-people. Though they can bleed red blood, so I guess I could surmise how the story would go. Still, this one feels like the first quarter of some larger tale.
I really like what was included; the story, the style, and the setting. But I really just wanted more. It felt incomplete.
I liked the setting of this piece, that being in the Amazon during 1906. Other than actually telling the reader, there is no real indication of time. Though the place was fairly obvious. A lot of this one takes place on the river, traveling to the Slave Tree. In this way, the reader is made to sense the arduous journey and the anticipation of getting there, far down the river and deep in the jungle.
The idea that people can be grown in pods, can even whither and die on the vine so to speak, is an interesting idea. But we never get to see how things work out for the poor pod people, because everyone dies and the forest creeps back—in an effort of reclamation. None of them make it back to civilization.
Edwin dies first from malaria, leaving Henrietta as the sole business partner of Crown. And they have a Mexican standoff. The story arc is simply getting to the tree, discovering how to help the pod people live, and that's it. Everyone dies. Vast swaths of potential story whither and die on the vine much like the pod people in the story. No one gets to see how the general public handle psuedo-people. Though they can bleed red blood, so I guess I could surmise how the story would go. Still, this one feels like the first quarter of some larger tale.
I really like what was included; the story, the style, and the setting. But I really just wanted more. It felt incomplete.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 14, 2012
I sadly have to state that this was a story that I found to be pretty boring. It revolves around a couple that has grouped up with a man named Crown that has promised them riches if they help sell his slaves that are produced by an unusual tree found in the Amazon called the slave tree. This tree actually bears fully formed humans rather than fruit or nuts. The tale is the adventure up the river to the tree and what they find. I will admit that this was an original idea, but unfortunately it was just a little too odd, and it never worked. I'm glad I finished the book, but other than that, there was no pleasure in reading this boring tale that never really excited me in any way whatsoever.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 17, 2016
OK!!! I may be biased because I love stories that are centered in the jungle (Heart of Darkness, Congo, The Ruins, etc...) but I loved this short story. It moved well. Didn't overly describe to fill pages but still took me to my jungle in the beginning of the story. I think you might need to take in a little bit more than just the events. I think the ending centers around the darker corners of a man's heart (and I mean that literally since the key char is female). It's my first Ryan book and I look forward to reading more from him!
May 4, 2014
Read as a malarial dream that Ed would have had. The ending was extremely appropriate for a book of this type. I had wanted to be horrified but was instead disturbed.
May 16, 2015
Another good short, fast read. Very interesting twist.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews