Babylon Terminal

by Greg F. Gifune

In a nightmare world of darkness and violence lies a city that is home to those who inhabit the dreams of the living, those who sleep in daylight and struggle to survive the night.

But there are some who break the rules, who believe there may be something better out there beyond their city of dreams, those who run in search of a promised land of sunshine and peace.

Enter the Dreamcatchers, an elite law enforcement unit assigned to hunt down runners and bring them back, dead or alive. Monk is one of the best, a dark and brooding, by-the-book Dreamcatcher with a reputation for extreme violence. But when his enigmatic wife Julia runs, Monk must break the rules himself, and find her before fate or his fellow Dreamcatchers do.

In a hallucinatory quest for redemption, Monk chases the woman he loves across a city of nightmares and into the wastelands, where unimaginable horrors and wonders await them both, and soon learns there are realities far deadlier than their prison of darkness, his love for Julia or a life together in the light.

This is the world of darkness, of endless night and doomed dreams. This is the beginning and the end.

This is Babylon Terminal.

Genres: Horror, Crime, Science Fiction

198 pages, Paperback

Published March 1, 2016

About the author

Called "One of the best writers of his generation" by both the Roswell Literary Review and author Brian Keene, Greg F. Gifune is the author of numerous short stories, several novels and two short story collections. His work has been published in a wide range of magazines and anthologies all over the world, and has recently garnered interest from Hollywood. His novels include The Bleeding Season, Deep Night, Saying Uncle, A View From The Lake, Night Work, Drago Descending, Blood In Electric Blue and Dominion.

Along with his short story collections, Down To Sleep and Heretics, his work has been nominated for numerous awards and is consistently praised by readers and critics alike across the globe. For seven years he was Editor-in-Chief of Thievin' Kitty Publications, publishers of the acclaimed fiction magazines The Edge: Tales of Suspense (1998-2004) and Burning Sky: Adventures in Science Fiction Terror (1998-2003), and currently serves as Associate Editor at Delirium Books. 

The son of teachers, Greg F. Gifune was educated in Boston and has lived in various places, including New York City and Peru. A trained actor and broadcaster, he has appeared in various stage productions and has worked in radio and television as both an on-air talent and a producer.  Earlier in life he held a wide range of jobs, encompassing everything from journalism to promotions.

The author of numerous novels, screenplays and two short story collections, his work has been consistently praised by critics and readers alike, and has been translated into several languages and published all over the world. Greg and his wife Carol live in Massachusetts with a bevy of cats. 

Discover more about his writing at GregFGifune.com and UninvitedBooks.com.

Reviews

[Char · Rating 4 out of 5]

Babylon Terminal is like an acid trip with Blade Runner running in the background. Even though there's no direct science fiction in this book, it felt like a sci-fi read and because there are "runners" my mind automatically goes to Blade Runner, but there is no real similarity between the two.

Monk is a Dreamcatcher-those whose job it is to track down runners. Runners from what and to what- that's where all the questions begin, and that IS a beginning. Are runners those who are bold enough to dream? Or are runners only those bold enough to chase those dreams? Monk is a resident of a dark city. Is there any sunlight? Why or why not? Does the dreamscape Monk travels through in pursuit of Julia, (a runner AND his wife), really exist? And the people and things he meets there, are they real? You'll have to read this and find out, (interpret?), for yourself.

I won't lie and say that I have a complete and total understanding of this story. I will say that I enjoyed the hell out of it and that's because Greg Gifune is a master of language and imagery. There are scenes in this book that I think may be with me for a long time because they were so vividly depicted. The children. The ice palace. The man in the chair. The ocean.

This book is not going to work for everyone. It requires an imagination, an open mind and the ability and willingness of the reader to give up the reins and be lead. If this sounds intriguing to you, drop those reins and let Mr. Gifune lead you to Babylon Terminal. It's the end of the road. Or is it?

Recommended to fans of Greg Gifune and to fans of ambiguous fiction.

*Thank you to Net Galley and Darkfuse for the opportunity to honestly review this e-ARC.*

[Jon Recluse · Rating 4 out of 5]

Greg Gifune takes his signature psychological horror into a place where dark urban fantasy meets science fiction in his latest book.....where a man whose job it is to track and terminate runners who dare to follow a dream that speaks of a Promised Land far from the City....a man who now must track down his wife before another bountyhunter reaches her first, across a landscape that is at turns hallucinatory and nightmarish, a no man's land of no-when and never-where....
This one reminded me of BLADE RUNNER, but if you cornered me, I couldn't tell you why beyond it does.

Highly recommended for Gifune fans looking for something completely different.

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

BABYLON TERMINAL by Greg F. Gifune centers around one main character, Monk, and his desire to find his fleeing wife, Julia. In this dreamisque, fantasy world, Monk is a Dreamcatcher--a type of law enforcement officer that tracks down to capture or kill anyone attempting to run away from their dark, twisted universe.

First of all, I will say that the writing is very good, with an almost poetic ring to some of the sections--of course, I would expect nothing less from this author. Unfortunately, that was about the only solid positive I felt towards this story. While I figured out (at least in my mind) what was really happening as I neared the end, that fact did nothing to make me "like" it anymore. I won't go further into the plot so as not to spoil it for other readers.

The book had more of that "dream within a dream" feel to it, which I've never been particularly fond of. While there were elements of fantasy and maybe even science fiction present, there was very little in the way of characterization. The only one we "know" is unreliable, at best, and the other figures felt like mere "glimpses" as opposed to actual, fleshed out people or ideas.

This story reminded me a bit too much of another I read last year, and that one felt just as flat to me for the same reasons. Without the characterization and "some" semblance of rationale, it was difficult for me to like or emphasize with Monk at all. By the time I figured it out, I no longer cared either way.

While far from my favorite by Gifune, he has written many other stories that I have loved. Unless the feeling of "what's happening here" throughout the entire novel appeals to you, I would recommend checking out some of his other titles.

*I received an advance e-copy of this novel from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Babylon Terminal is the fourteenth book by Greg I have read. This one is a little hard for me to review. The story centers around Monk a law officer known as a Dreamcatcher. His job is to catch these people that take off known as Runners. In this case the runner is his wife Julia. He is trying to get to her before another dreamcatcher does. Will stop here don't want to give too much away. A few times in the story I would get lost, then thought I caught up yet to get lost again. But over all by the time you finished it was a enjoyable read. A little different then your typical Gifune story. I gave Babylon Terminal 4 stars.


I received an e-arc of this book from DarkFuse/NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Andi Rawson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Greg F. Gifune is an amazing writer. His prose is beyond what I could ever hope to accomplish in my own writing. I absolutely loved the last two books that I read by him, which were Devil's Breath and Oasis of the Damned. That said, Babylon Terminal is not my favorite book. The hardest part about reviewing for me is a story line that I don't care for by an author that I love.

This one worked for some people. I agree with most that the story was hard to follow at times. Monk is the only real character that we get a grasp on and even that is slippery at best. In a dreamlike state, people float in and out of his reality and I would be remiss to say that I didn't feel cheated by their lack of substance. The story within a story that made me love Oasis of the Damned didn't quite do it for me this time.

Greg F. Gifune's worst book is still better than a lot of people's best. I will await his next release just as I did this one.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley/DarkFuse in exchange for an honest review.

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is no way I could review this one better than Michael Hicks, because he fuckin’ nailed it. Well done, sir!

What I could figure out from this one, I really enjoyed. It was a little sci-fi-ish for me. It lost me on more than one occasion and I still couldn’t stop reading it. Crazy. I don’t know many authors that could have pulled this one off without creating a total trainwreck and I still am not sure wtf happened here. It doesn’t even matter because this was still a very good one from one of the best in the biz. 4 Crazy Don't Make Sense But Deserve It Anyway Stars!

*As a member of the DarkFuse NetGalley Readers Group, I received an advanced copy of this e-book in exchange for an honest review.

[Michael Hicks · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm finding myself to be a bit at odds on how to go about reviewing this title. BABYLON TERMINAL is a dense narrative, one that's difficult to discuss in depth without approaching not only massive spoiler territory but also huge speculations about what exactly the hell is going on here. So, consider yourself warned.

Here's the most basic gist I can come up with for this book: Monk is an enigmatic officer of a certain branch of law enforcement known as a Dreamcatcher. His job is to capture or kill 'runners,' and when his wife, Julia, disappears he finds himself chasing after her, hoping to find her before his fellow Dreamcatcher's can get a hold of her.

This cursory overview, though, really doesn't get into much of the meat of the book. BABYLON TERMINAL is a freaking hallucinatory read and I spent a good part of it wondering what the hell was going on here. Greg F. Gifune's latest feels like a literary mash-up of a David Lynch flick by way of the sci-fi love-child between VANILLA SKY and DARK CITY with some MAD MAX levels of mayhem, wrapped up a pitch-black urban fantasy. I consider these things to be highly complimentary, by the way, but I struggled a bit and ultimately felt lost. I liked what I read. I'm just not sure exactly what it was that I read.

I don't think I've felt so out of sorts by a book since Jon Bassoff's FACTORY TOWN, which this feels like a spiritual successor to. Like Bassoff's work, there's a tricky balancing act at work here between the conscious and the subconscious. Was this all a dream? A death-bed hallucination? Are Monk and his world even real, or dreams in and of themselves? There's some INCEPTION like layering going on here, and it gives the narrative a damn twisty vibe but one that, for me, was lacking in clarity.

It's a fun read, and it's highly probable that I'm just not smart enough to distill all that's going on in its pages. Gifune, though, is a damn good writer and this one had me hooked all the way through, even as it raises many a question that its author refuses to easily answer. Take of this what you will.

[I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley for review.]

[Frank Errington · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review copy

I can't say I always connect with a Greg F. Gifune story, but I always try to read his works. He challenges me as a reader and Babylon Terminal did just that. This is not a casual read, it's not light material. I feel I had to work for every bit of enjoyment I got out of this book, but it was worth it.

There is some stunning wordcraft going on in this story. At times Gifune's prose is close to breathtaking. There is powerful, rich dialogue, as well.

The author paints a bleak new world which, at times, reminded me of Blade Runner or The Fifth Element, even a touch of Mad Max. It all feels a bit surreal.

Monk is a Dreamcatcher; when someone runs from their life it's his job to catch them and bring them back or even terminate them. When the love of his life becomes a runner, Monk goes after her in an attempt to save her and maybe save himself in the process.

Babylon Terminal is dark fiction at its finest, at times ultra violent, at times soft and tender. It's a work which will likely stay with the reader long after they are done reading.

Babylon Terminal will be published this June, by Darkfuse, in e-book, paperback, and as a limited edition signed hardcover.

If you're looking for a read to become immersed in, this is the book.

Greg F. Gifune has been called "One of the best writers of his generation" by both the Roswell Literary Review and author Brian Keene, He is the author of numerous short stories, several novels and two short story collections. Greg was educated in Boston and has lived in various places, including New York City and Peru. A trained actor and broadcaster, he has appeared in various stage productions and has worked in radio and television as both an on-air talent and a producer. He lives in massachusettes with his wife, carol, a bevy of cats and two dogs, Dozer and Bella, who can often be seen lounging on his Facebook page.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an ARC of this novel from the publisher, Darkfuse, through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I am a big fan of Greg Gifune’s work---personal favorites are Saying Uncle, The View from the Lake, Judas Goat, and The Rain Dancers—most if not all of which I read through Darkfuse. In short he is one of the best horror writers working today and if you enjoy horror and haven’t read him you are definitely missing out.

Gifune takes a stab at dystopian future with this one. Two parts Blade Runner and mix in of a bit of Mad Max and you get the idea. While it kept me reading and interested to the end, it wasn’t my favorite of his works. The best of his novels make you squirm. Literally. They make me that uncomfortable. Not through gore or violence—but more through the uncomfortable feeling of a situation that is disturbing at a deep level. His stories make me uncomfortable in many different ways at once and the beauty of his prose just somehow makes it even worse.

This one, while enjoyable, just didn’t bother me on a deep level like his best books have done. So, 4 stars. I would still report that this novel is very good, but to a person coming to Gifune for the first time I might recommend one of the others listed above (probably The Rain Dancers) first.

Once again, if you really love dystopian stories, you may disagree.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*
*Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*

Monk is a dreamcatcher, a law enforcer who is sent to catch those that run and return them to the city. When he finds out his wife is now a runner, he takes it upon himself to catch her before another enforcer is given the job and terminates her.

Monk goes further out to the wastelands of society and comes across those he thought were only myths. He begins to question his society, his dreams, is anything real or is it all a dream? He thinks Julia is running towards the fabled promised land but has no idea what he will find there, a safe haven or a new hell.

This was a trippy and confusing read and I was enjoying it up til the last 3/4 chapters and then, for me, it started to unravel just a bit. I have no idea if Monk encountered anything real or if it was just all a dream, was he real or was he someone else just dreaming about another life as his own comes to an end.

Like a cross between Mad Max and Bladerunner, its dark and violent and I would have given this a higher rating if not for the weaker ending.

[Mommacat · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of those books by Greg Gifune that makes you go 'huh?' while you're reading it, but if you stick it out til the end you'll find that once again he's messing with your mind - something he does very well! Gifune is always looking at the human condition; at how lemming like most people are.

What we have here in BABYLON TERMINAL is another example of that. BT is about a bounty hunter of sorts. And while this didn't rank up with my favorite Greg titles (he's one of my must read authors) it's still very good, and will give you something to talk about over drinks with friends.

I'll call this a recommended read from DarkFuse who gave me this book in exchange for a review.

[Robert Mingee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, so that was weird. As many of the other reviews have stated, I spent much of this title wondering exactly what was going on, and more specifically wondering what was really happening, and what was a "dream". The story is about Monk, a Dreamcatcher, who is charged with bringing back "runners" - people who flee the (fairly awful) city they live in seeking "the promised land". He's quick to point out that a Dreamcatcher is what he DOES, not what he IS, and that he's "just doing his job". But all his life, at least what he remembers, he's been taught not to question, simpy to accept things the way they are.

When his wife "runs", he takes off after her, despite not being assigned her case. What follows is a weird, surreal journey that causes Monk to start to question many things, including his past. Can't say too much from here without spoiling it, but suffice it to say I really did enjoy this part of the book.

The ending honestly raised a lot more questions than it answered for me, and while that doesn't usually bother me, I think this one was a little beyond my "WTF" comfort zone - I wouldn't have minded at least a little resolution. But Greg's writing is amazing (as always), and it was a very fun ride, even if I have absolutely no idea where I ended up when all was said and done. Sometimes, it really is just about the journey for me, and I don't regret taking this one.

[Icy-Cobwebs-Crossing-SpaceTime · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review of BABYLON TERMINAL by Greg F. Gifune

Once again, author Greg F. Gifune explores unexplored territories in this story of a couple locked in an unnamed city where dreams are life and existence might as well be death. The ocean is considered a fantasy. Even though individuals are not physically confined, no one is allowed to leave, and Dreamcatchers make sure they can't. One such Dreamcatcher, a very violent man, is Monk. When his Julia disappears, he searches high and low, literally, despite the fact that his is an unsanctioned hunt, not one to which he is assigned.

BABYLON TERMINAL is a very surrealist, existential work, akin to living inside a Dali painting. The only two books I can remember reading that affected me with this existential angst and characters' despair are Robert Jackson Bennett's THE COMPANY MAN and Jon Bassoff's FACTORY TOWN. All 3 stories make me want to take a hot toxic shower, and turn to something graphically violent so I can shrug off the mood the book wraps me in.

[Troy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Elements of Dark City, Mad Max, Planet of the Apes, Logan's Run and Conan in a wonderful mashup.
Hallucinogenic, violent, touching and always satisfying.

[Karl]

This hardcover copy is number 28 of 52 copies signed and numbered by Greg F. Gifune the book is #3 in Darkfuse's Signature Series.

[Wayne McCoy · Rating 3 out of 5]

In 'Babylon Terminal' by Greg F. Gifune, we enter a strange world where it is always dark. It feels like some familiar ideas from Science Fiction movies like Dark City or Logan's Run or Blade Runner, but I don't think that's such a bad thing.

Monk is a Dreamcatcher in the city. His job is to stop people who leave the city. The main reason they leave is to find the ocean, but as far as Monk is concerned, there is no ocean. He also doesn't seem to have any memories. To make things worse, his wife has now become a runner on her way to the non-existent ocean. Monk decides to go after her to stop her and hopefully save her life from his zealous co-workers. The zealous co-workers want to stop her as well as Monk. Monk also finds himself in a strange world outside the city where the people he runs across are not too happy to have him around either.

It's set in a dark, weird future, much like the movies I mentioned above, and the plot and circumstances feel that way too, but it's an original enough story. I felt that the ending left me a bit confused and it seemed to end a bit abruptly. It's a short novel, and I felt like I kind of got dumped off at the end, but I liked the character and the weird places he found himself.

I received a review copy of this ebook from Dark Fuse and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.

[Don · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this novel. I've read it through three times and each time there is a nuance I missed. This isn't your average novel to breeze through and expect to understand in a linear read. It is thought provoking in it's plotting and the characters are not only imaginative, but richly memorial.

BABYLON TERMINAL contains remarkably beautiful prose. Prose like "A starless black sky made promises it could never keep." Creepy lines like "It lingers at the edge of my peripheral vision, and for some reason, I cannot turn my head to get a better look. Perhaps I don't want to, because whatever it is, it's looking right at me, and I wish it would stop." Existential prose like "This mother of all things, so close I can smell it...but still beyond my reach, my touch...it makes me want to weep, because I know now that there is a God, and I am in its presence. I have been all along. And I am no longer afraid. I am ashamed."

The novel is dark, the city has the feel of BLADERUNNER, and it is simply a nightmarishingly, fascinating read

[Bob · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent novel of a city whose nocturnal populace are forced to remain within by armed enforcers. These Dreamcatchers hunt down the escapees who dream of a better life and search beyond the city.
One such Dreamcatcher is caught in a dilemma when his wife becomes one of the hunted runners. I highly recommend this book!

[A Reader's Heaven · Rating 3 out of 5]

(I received a free copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.)

In a nightmare world of darkness and violence lies a city that is home to those who inhabit the dreams of the living, those who sleep in daylight and struggle to survive the night.
But there are some who break the rules, who believe there may be something better out there beyond their city of dreams, those who run in search of a promised land of sunshine and peace.
Enter the Dreamcatchers, an elite law enforcement unit assigned to hunt down runners and bring them back, dead or alive. Monk is one of the best, a dark and brooding, by-the-book Dreamcatcher with a reputation for extreme violence. But when his enigmatic wife Julia runs, Monk must break the rules himself, and find her before fate or his fellow Dreamcatchers do.
In a hallucinatory quest for redemption, Monk chases the woman he loves across a city of nightmares and into the wastelands, where unimaginable horrors and wonders await them both, and soon learns there are realities far deadlier than their prison of darkness, his love for Julia or a life together in the light.
This is the world of darkness, of endless night and doomed dreams. This is the beginning and the end.
This is Babylon Terminal.

I have read a number of Greg Gifune's novels over the last few years and was keen on seeing what this work was like...

...and, you know what, I am still trying to work it out. There were times in this story, especially the first 1/3 of the book, that I was right there, right into the story. Then, as the ending approached, I felt like I had been left behind in a trail of weird smoke, not knowing where anything was or where the plot was going. It all went kinda pear-shaped for me and really lessened the effect the story was aiming for.

Maybe with a bit more reflection, this will turn out to be a very cool book - but for now I am still feeling a little confused by the ending and the whole "story-inside-a-story" aspect.


Paul
ARH

[Amit · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don't know actually what should I think or make out of it. This is one of those from Greg F. Gifune that will left you behind and wondering in your brain; what on earth is going on here. Yeah that's exactly how I feeling after completing the read of it...

To make details into short narration Monk is a dreamcatcher and he kill anyone who tried to escape or disobey the law enforcement. But he got a problem of his personal life when his wife Julia was missing and he has to track down her path before any dreamcatcher caught her and do something bad to her. But why Julia ran from his life? The fact that Monk loved his wife dearly and couldn't think anything but her. That the story is all about to reading. I must say there's some moments that I really messed up with my mind and couldn't think better as whatever written down in the book. But nonetheless I liked it enough to let it entertain me...

Though the ending will definitely make you like dumbfounded. I mean there's no ending actually and I hope you will know by the time you finish reading it that I really wanting to tell...

Peace to all...

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Riding A Dream

This was a good read. A journey through a dying landscape of dark thoughts, trapped in cities of sin which we have created while searching for a sliver of love buried deep in our hearts, all the while slipping away in a dreamcape of dying embers.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Relax, we in-a-gadda-da-vida, baby. While they sleep, we live. While they live, we sleep."

There were many times I almost closed this book out of frustration. It was probably in only the last quarter of the book that I had any clue as to where it was leading me or what the frigging story was about. I felt like I was back in the 1970s having a nasty drug dream.

And the thing is - I am quite sure that is what the author was trying for.

Did I enjoy this dark, noirish tale of dreams, dark, violence and light? No. Will I remember it for a long time to come? Undoubtedly!

I received this book from Dark Fuse through Net Galley in exchange for my unbiased review.

[Majanka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book Review originally published here: http://www.iheartreading.net/uncatego...

Another dark, thrilling horror novel by Greg F. Gifune. The writing is stellar, and the characters are so realistic they might as well crawl out from the pages. The only downside was that the plot was hard to follow at times, with the “dream within a dream” quality of the plot, and it was hard to know what was real and what wasn’t. I would’ve liked to know a bit more about what was truly going on, though.

[Josef Hernandez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another Gifune masterpiece

For a full review, please go to http://www.examiner.com/review/babylo... or http://areviewerdarkly.blogspot.com or http://www.areviewerdarkly.com and follow me on Twitter @josenher

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review to follow. This book rocked!