“The da-da-de-da-da Code“

by Robert Rankin

Format: Paperback, 346 pages,

Publisher: Gollancz, 2007

Quite how I have managed to miss out on reading Robert Rankin, particularly given how prolific he is, will remain a mystery. Suffice to say that the Da-da-de-da-da code was my first Rankin novel (actually that’s a lie, I have read most of Ian’s books but you get the point!). For those with a similar RR shaped hole in their reading lists, Robert Rankin writes humorous novels usually with an element or two from the horror/scifi/fantasy genre. Think Douglas Adams meets Terry Pratchett on a dark night. The dadadedada code is an obvious parody of the Davinci code but here the code in question is actually a long lost Robert Johnson track. Apparently, the legendary Delta blues singer (who allegedly went down to the crossroads and sold his soul to the devil) actually recorded one final track “Apocalypse Blues” in a pub in London.

Helped along by his imaginary friend Mr Giggles, Jonny Hooker has the task of solving the dadadedada code before the world is destroyed. Of course, he receives help along the way from Elvis (with Barry the time sprout) and the Queen.

I have to say I found this book quite hard going, although funny in parts, it’s similar to later Pratchett novels in that it loses the belly laughs at the expense of a fairly contrived plot. The humour is also less gentle than that of either Adams or Pratchett, some people may enjoy that, I didn’t particularly.

It would be unfair of me to judge Rankin too harshly on the basis of this book, he has a loyal and active fanbase (which you can find here) so clearly, whatever I think, his books are popular. Possibly he is just one of those authors you either get or don’t get, unfortunately on the basis of this novel, I fall into the later category but I would be quite happy if somebody could point me in the direction of an alternative which might convert me.

Rating 2 out of 5

“The Company“

by K J Parker

Format: Paperback, 436 pages.

Published by Orbit, 2008.

What a strange and pleasant surprise the Company was! I was expecting the usual generic fantasy novel, a bit of heroic fighting, no doubt a quest for a magical ring/amulet/book. Perhaps culminating in a huge battle in the hell pits of doom at the edge of the mirky forest. No doubt copious orc slaughtering would be included, maybe a dragon or two would appear but then a magical wizard would come to our heroes aid and… Well you get the drift.

Instead what I got was a book where practically nothing happens, where it may be a fantasy land but it feels a hell of a lot like earth, there’s no magic, no quests, what was surprising, however,  was how much I enjoyed it. It’s not often these days that you come upon something genuinely unique, something where an author has taken a gamble, ignored the expected and embraced the unexpected, but this is one example. It might not be perfect but it’s pretty damn good.

We meet the main characters going about their daily mundane business in the town of Faralia. They are, of course, all members of the company, a legendary group of soldiers who fought in the wars, gaining heroic reputations. The Company were line-breakers a seemingly suicidal role that involved breaking through a defensive line of pikemen to allow the main bulk of the army to pass. The story begins with the return to the village of their old leader General Kunessin who has a strange proposal. He wants the company to buy and live on their own island, partly to live out the retirement dream, partly to escape from normal society. So he gets the old gang together for one last adventure.

This is the crux of the book, it is a novel concerned with the human condition, trust, companionship and dreams of a better future. Of course these dreams encounter numerous problems, not least of which are the individual members of the company. A friendship seemingly created through the horrors of war, but just how deep is the friendship. At the end of the day does self preservation win out over some Utopian dream.

So the bulk of the story may seem mundane and unadventurous but it is spiced up by both snapshots of the past (the previous battles and lives of the company), the politics of the present and the dreams of the future. Well written and well paced, The Company deserves praise for challenging the generic fantasy novel but of course this will also bring it’s own criticism (where are the orcs!). Personally, I wouldn’t even describe it as fantasy, I would just describe it as an excellent book.

For those looking for something beyond the boundaries and norms of the fantasy genre, K J Parker has created his or her (the authors identity is a mystery) very own sub-genre (psychological fantasy?) and it’s one that I look forward to seeing more of. What starts as an almost comedic road adventure progresses to a Lord of the Flies conclusion but there are no happy endings here, no rescue boat on the horizon. We end with more questions than answers many of them relevant to our own standards of morality and that of our society, this book makes you think and for a fantasy novel that’s a mighty achievement. It doesn’t get bogged down in any kind of moral maze though, instead it just says here are the character flaws we all have, this is the end result. Makes you wonder about some of your other fictional heroes, that Gandalf wouldn’t trust him as far as I could throw him!

Rating 4 out of 5

“Fragile Things“

by Neil Gaiman

Format: Paperback, 440 pages

Published by Headline Review, 2006.

Neil Gaiman need no introduction from me, rapidly becoming a bit of a national institution (probably the only form of institution you would want to become) thanks to the success of Hollywood movies like Stardust, Beowulf, Mirrormask and the  forthcoming Coraline. Of course this follows on from his conquering of the comic world with the Stardust sequence and…oh yeah he has written a couple of books as well!

Perhaps Gaiman’s most remarkable feature is his incredible talent for mimicry, the Mike Yarwood of authors (one for the teenagers there) he can seemingly write convincingly in any style and genre he chooses. This leads to a remarkably diverse collection of short stories and I can almost guarantee there will be something here for everyone.

“Fragile Things” contains 28 pieces of writing ranging from poetry to novella, there is even a short story crammed into the excellent introduction. Stylistically they range from MR James ghost stories , Conan Doyle meets Lovecraft (A Study In Emerald), surrealist tales (October in the Chair, Sunbird) to the dark/urban fantasy that Gaiman is perhaps best known for (The Monarch Of The Glen).

The remarkable thing about Gaiman is that no matter how much he bases his style on someone else’s he still manages to retain a completely unique take on the genre he is writing in and so keeps his stories fresh and unique. Of course with such a rich and diverse selection of styles there are always going to be some that resonate more fully than others. For me the outstanding star of the show is the American Gods novella “Monarch Of The Glen”, a story which captures the otherworldly properties of the peoples and places in the far north-west of Scotland, drawing from various myths and cultures all in a concise, entertaining tale. There are plenty of other highlights but it would be pointless of me to list them all, for one thing your list would almost certainly be different, that’s the joy of a Gaiman short story collection, you get quality and quantity.

For more info on Neil’s most recent work his website is excellent, detailed and entertaining in it’s own right (you can find it here). For a teenage perspective on Coraline check out Dragonfly’s site here.

Rating 4 out of 5

“The Gypsy Morph”
By Terry Brooks
Format: Hardback,  pages
Publisher: Orbit, 2008

The Gypsy Morph is the final book in “The Genesis Of Shannara trilogy” but I suspect it might not be the last we hear of Shannara!

To briefly summarise the previous two books (reviews here and here) we find ourselves in the midst of a dystopian earth, where political turmoil, war and global climate change have created an essentially lawless land. Groups of humans have formed communities in enclosed defensible strongholds such as old sports centres but many others are left to wander outside these compounds and are at the mercy of various mutant creatures and the demons which now roam the land.

The first two books introduced the quest to locate the Gypsy Morph a magical creature who appears to be the key to the survival of humanity and the world. Two Knights of The Word, Logan Tom and Angel Perez have been sent visions asking them to locate and protect the gypsy morph. They are joined on their quest by a disparate group of children who have formed a gang outwith the protected communities. We also meet the elves of the Cintra (the forests of Oregon) who are attempting to locate the Loden stone which is crucial in preventing demons spreading through the earth.

Now I mentioned in the review for book two that I felt the pace of the series had slowed and unfortunately book three picks up where book two left off. The first hundred or so pages are largely based around
characters reflecting on their parts of the quest, self doubt abounds at the expense of action, the second half of the book does pick up the pace somewhat as the final denouement is reached. Unfortunately the climax is a bit of a let down, its all over very quickly and is all rather obvious and straightforward. We are also left with several strands of story which will clearly be picked up in future works but which leave this reader slightly disappointed.

So the Gypsy Morph suffers as indeed the whole trilogy has suffered by being overlong, I think if this had been compressed into two shorter books or even one very long book we would have been given a much more compelling, action driven narrative which could have avoided the protracted exposition and character introspection this trilogy suffers from. Indeed the structure of the book is very similar to Stephen Kings “The Stand” which managed to follow a very similar plot to conclusion in one single (if very long) volume. Maybe this is a case where fantasy is its own worst enemy, hey its fantasy it needs to be a trilogy. That’s not to say that this is a bad book or indeed the trilogy as a whole is poor just that it could have been so much better. The ideas and characters deserved a richer deeper plot, no doubt we will them again in future sequels. So overall a disappointing conclusion to a series which promised so much.

Rating 3 out of 5

“The Elves Of Cintra”

by Terry Brooks

Format : Paperback, 374 pages.

Publisher: Orbit, 2007

The second book in the Genesis Of Shannara Trilogy, this book follows immediately from the (almost literal) cliffhanger we were left with at the end of Armageddon’s Children (my review can be found here or just below if you prefer).

This time around we top and tail the novel with the ongoing story of the disparate groups searching for the Gypsy Morph but here more of the focus is firmly placed on the Elves. Now first of all don’t be too scared off by the Elvish connotations, these are no namby pamby, faerie creatures, rather they are remnants of the race who initally drove out the demons before human domination of the land. Driven further from human habitation and having lost much of their magic the elves lead hidden lives amongst the great forests of the Cintra, in what humans know as Oregon. This story revolves around another quest, this time to reclaim the magical Loden elfstone, needed to protect the Ellcrys tree and avoid the demon hordes being released from the “forbidding”. Of course the few demons already about are also trying to find the Lodenstone.

Having introduced most of the characters in book one and clearly leaving the conclusive action for book three, this books has an element of second book syndrome. I certainly thought the books was less enthralling than Armageddons Children and the quest for the Loden felt somewhat drawn out but that’s not to say that the book didn’t have it’s moments of excitement and action sequences.

Clearly it is difficult to review the second book in any trilogy without using spoilers which I try never to do,  so with though for those who have yet to start the first book this will, by necessity, be a short review.

The Genesis Of Shannara series is shaping up nicely, although not having the initial bite of Armageddon’s Children the Elves Of Cintra did introduce some interesting new twists into the overall story arc and sets the stage very nicely indeed for the final book to really wrap things up in an interesting and exciting way.

Rating 3 out of 5

“Armageddons Children“

by Terry Brooks

Format : Paperback, 441 pages.

Publisher: Orbit, 2007

Does Terry Brooks need any introduction? surely one of the best known writers of fantasy fiction and certainly one of the best selling. From his earliest writings and the publication of “The Sword Of Shannara” in 1977, Brooks has revisited and revised his Shannara epic fantasy world. Readers of these early novels will know that even at that early stage the history of Shannara was being explored. It was always made clear that unlike many other fantasy novels, Shannara was actually set on earth, an earth forever changed by chemical and nuclear holocausts, now with the Genesis Of Shannara trilogy (30 years later but 2000 shannara years earlier!) we are finally shown just how the fantasy world of Shannara evolved from its horrific beginnings.

The criticism’s of Brook’s earlier novels were that they were derivative, indeed many critics felt that the original Shannara novels were a direct rip-off of “The Lord Of The Rings”, of course, none of this prevented them becoming huge bestsellers. My main problem with Brook’s earlier works were that they were clearly aimed at a young adult market, and as such the characters were fairly one-dimensional, plot was linear and the books just lacked a certain edge. Thankfully as Mr Brooks has matured his writing style has advanced and his “Word and the Void” series (which chronologically predates this story) began to show a bit more bite and depth.

So now we have a new series “The Genesis Of Shannara” an attempt to link the urban fantasy story arc of “Word and Void” set in modern day America to the epic fantasy world of Shannara. “Armageddons Children” is the first book in a trilogy (Terry Brooks is very keen on trilogies but he also created a tetralogy in “The Heritage Of Shannara”).

Armageddon’s Children is set in a post-apocalyptic world, ravaged by plague, pollution and other horrors. Throughout the land mutants created as a result of the various horrors roam and amongst these are demons, creatures of the Void. It’s against these horrors that The Knights of the Word are sworn to fight, wielding magical staffs, they are effectively wizards, but often suffer the same human frailties as their companions.

Somewhere in this ravaged land resides the “Gypsy Morph” a truly magical creature who has the power to save the world, it is up to the knights to find the gypsy morph before the demons can. So, at it’s heart, the book is a basic quest story but the introduction of many additional characters and side quests mixes things up enough to create sustained interest. Indeed some of the most interesting characters and descriptive pieces are the ordinary humans who are just trying to survive.

In many ways the book reminds me of Stephen Kings “Dark Tower” series. Both have characters who often don’t know their importance wandering a ravaged land on a quest that has no real direction. At no point however does Brooks achieve King’s level of surrealism and horror, this is a simpler book, in many ways easier to read, more accessible but less “important”.

So don’t come to this book expecting the basic epic fantasy of Shannara, also don’t come expecting the more mundane reality of “Word and Void” instead enjoy a rich and entertaining novel which successfully links both genres in a much more rounded and well….grown up way.

Rating 4 out of 5

My review of the forthcoming special edition of F&SF was overwhelmingly positive (you can read it here). Well just when you thought it couldn’t get any better I have been informed of a special offer open only to bloggers (and blog readers, so that’s all of you!).

You can get full details from here so now you can enjoy this excellent publication at even better prices.

“Path Of Revenge“

by Russell Kirkpatrick

Format: Paperback, 654 pages.

Publisher: Orbit, 2008.

Book 1 of the broken man trilogy arrived on my doorstep with a satisfying thump, clearly this was going to require a fair old investment of time, at 654 pages any book needs to be good to hold a readers attention and to repay the readers investment (both in time and money). The fact that I am now writing the review shows that it worked but the journey was not always a smooth one.

Russell Kirkpatrick is a geographer who makes maps for a living, real maps for real people. Luckily he has also turned his Slartibartfast talents to fantasy and has created maps of such detail and quality that I almost logged onto google earth to try to find these places. Now I know there are debates raging in the fantasy world about the need for maps (one example here) and there appear to be those who either love or hate them. I love maps, as objects in their own right but frankly I don’t really have a preference in fantasy novels. In “The Blade Itself” Joe Abercrombie used no maps but his world was still a strong vibrant place but I have found myself referring to maps time and again as I have been reading George R R Martins’ tomes. What is clear here is that the maps are only the tip of an iceberg in the world creation process used by Russell Kirkpatrick.

The book takes place in the same world of “Faltha” as Kirkpatrick’s recent “Fire Of Heaven” trilogy, a series which I have not read. It even has some of the same characters and the story is a continuation of the previous arc. Now I am sure if you had read these previous novels then you will be in a better position to judge this book in a deeper and more meaningful way than I am but this seemed to work fine as a standalone novel albeit with references to previous events which seemed slighty obtuse.

The book charts the progress of three interrelated quests, that of “Neotos” the fisherman, “Lenares” the cosmographer and “Stella” the Queen. Whilst all have different reasons for their journeys they are all being drawn towards the lands of the undying man by “Husk” a once-powerful magician, defeated by the undying man and now seeking revenge. So far, so fantasy, solid characters, some magic, bit of a quest and some nice maps, what it really needs now is lots of action to sustain the reader through the 650 pages…ahh, now we might have a bit of a problem there.

First of all, let me say, that I found the world within this novel immensely satisfying. Elevated beyond mere fantasy stereotypical landscapes into a living breathing world, the small details contributing to large scale panoramic vistas of fascinating places. The characters too were interesting and clearly many have back-stories which will be developed and revealed as the series moves on. Hell, even the plot, despite being basic fantasy meat and two veg is nicely introduced and I think will open up nicely. No, there is only one thing wrong with this book, it’s far, far too long. I think this book at 400 pages or so it would have romped along, retaining all the good points and losing the bad. Interestingly Russell Kirkpatrick almost identifies the problem in his own interview included in the extra material (thanks Orbit, I love these bits) at the back of the book when he says :-

” I’m never impressed by fantasy where the characters buzz around with no regard for the crushing distances and obstacles thrown up by the world”.

He may well have a point but when the reader has to experience these crushing distances through a monotonous travelogue then I think the writer has failed to achieve a balance and I’m afraid this is the case in this book, the action takes place, we experience a long journey and another bit of action takes place.

Having said all that, the book recovered enough to draw me back in just when I though about giving up. the glimpses of “Husk”, the tales of the Undying Man, the evil recruiters and the world politics were all enough to keep me going. I think this series has potential to improve, I just hope Mr Kirkpatrick can be persuaded to liven up the journey next time round, a bit of buzzing (now and then) may make it a bit more exciting for all concerned.

Rating 3 out of 5

“A Song Of Stone“

by Iain Banks

Format: Paperback, pages 280

Publisher; Abacus 1997

Its amazing what you can pick up at your local Tesco’s these days, there I was loading copious quantities of life’s necessities into the trolley (along with some proper food) when I noticed the racks of Iain Banks books with the none too subtle price stickers (£5) emblazoned on the front. No Iain M titles unfortunately but most of the non-M titles (and a few choice cuts by a Mr S. King, 2 for £3, reviews to follow).

Having read about half his non-m titles I couldn’t resist picking up a couple of bargains (The Bridge was the other purchase) and I’m glad I did. This is a book I have often thought of buying but the reviews I have read have been mixed to scathing (9 out of 34 one star reviews on Amazon) so it was with some trepidation that I started to read.

I also hadn’t expected to be reviewing this book here, whilst I have never made any firm rules, this site does try to focus on genre fiction of the fantasy, horror, SF variety, it was with some surpise that I realised this book probably fits as well into any of those categories as most of the others I have reviewed and better than some.

The setting is an unknown/unnamed war between unknown/unnamed armies, a war of untold horrors in a dystopian world of ugliness and corruption. Our narrator, Abel, is an anachronism, a lover of culture a remnant of the ruling class and the owner of a castle, forced to flee into the surrounding horrors until captured and returned to the castle, the decay and abuse of society is reflected in his captors treatment of the castle.

The interaction between the main characters of Abel, his lover Morgan and captor, the Lieutenant (Loot) are fascinating and complex. At times we feel empathy for Abel at others the lieutenant and at others nobody. The sheer horrors committed and the betrayals enacted force us to time and again question the characters mindset. The fact that our main narrator is such a complex and at times unlikeable character makes the book uncomfortable to read and this coupled with the lack of backstory or rationale for the atrocities being committed leaves the reader constantly swaying in their interaction with the characters. This complexity increases as the book moves to its dark and horrific climax.

The writing is some of Banks’ best, dark and complex, layered and structured and yet easily readable and at times a bit of a page turner. In style and tone this seemed to me quite similar to “Inversions” (the follow up Iain M Banks title) and the surreal fantasy of that world is prefaced here, albeit in even darker hues. It may be too extreme to see the book as some sort of religious parable but a horrific crucifixion is included and there are other biblical references which imply that Bank’s was possibly focusing on religious as well as class issues, the chaos they have caused in our own society is multiplied and caricatured here, but never overtly.

So if you like a bit of pessimistic, dystopian, dark fantasy, something along the lines of the recent film adaptation of “Children Of Men” then I think you will like this book. It has none of the lighter moments of the culture books and is not a “nice” book  (hence the one star reviews probably) but it stands out as an example of Banks’ ability to cross and mix genres and come up with something compelling, memorable and original and lets face it who wouldn’t prefer that to merely nice. In short if you like Ian M Banks (expecially Inversions) I think you will like this book, dont be scared off by negative reviews, you heard it here first (albeit 10 years later) this is an excellent Banks novel, feel free to take a pen and add the M to the cover page yourself if it makes you feel better, just make sure you give this a go.

Rating 4 out of 5

“The Right Hand Of Doom & Other Tales Of Solomon Kane“

By R. Howard

Format: Paperback, 208 pages.

Publisher : Wordsworth Editions, 2007

Solomon Kane is one of the least known and strangest of Robert E Howard’s characters and that makes him to my mind one of the most fascinating. This collection of 10 short stories and 3 poems will shed some light on Solomon Kane but as outlined by M.J.Elliot in the excellent introduction, Kane will always remain an enigma. He is shortly, however, going to become a much better known enigma as a trilogy of movies are currently in production. You can get a good introduction to the character (and the movies) from the director Michael Basset here. You can also see a short film made of one of the poems in this collection “The Return Of Sir Richard Grenville” here.

Essentially Kane is a puritan who roams the land in the 17th century, actively seeking out adventures and generally taking on all comers. He dishes out vengeance with sword, rapier and pistol and no sinner is safe from his wrath. Describing himself as a “fulfiller of Judgement” or a “vessel for gods wrath” it is clear that religion has a major part to play in his life but at one stage he is even said to have pagan tendencies and certainly seems to have little of the compassion or mercy associated with his religion.

This intense hatred for all things dark and occult leads Kane to many confrontations and whilst his motivation is never explained, his fundamentalism is clearly a major factor. It will be interesting to see how the films create a new backstory to explain Kane’s zealous attitude.

These tales however were less concerned with character motivation than creating good adventure stories. Many appeared in the Weird Tales issues in the late twenties and early thirties and have all the pulp requirements of foreign adventure, nasty bad guys and a bit of bodice ripping (although Kane clearly doesn’t indulge in any of that nonsense!).

The tales range from pure ghost stories in “Skulls In The Stars” and “Rattle Of Bones” to Indiana Jones style adventure in “The Moon Of Skulls”. A few are quite bizarre such as ” Wings in the Night” and there is a marvellous voodoo versus vampire tale in “The Hills Of the Dead”.

If they have a flaw, and a few do, it’s in the style of the writing and particularly the dialogue. Howard attempts to recreate the 17th century dialogue of a Devonian Puritan which comes across as a biblical pirate! Howard may well have achieved accuracy (it was a bit before my time) but the stilted dialogue does not help the flow of the stories. The tenth story is only a fragment “Deaths Black Riders” of what sounds like a fascinating idea.

I don’t believe this collection has the depth or overall quality of the other Howard collection “The Haunter Of The Ring” which I reviewed here but Solomon Kane is such an interesting character it is definitely worth a read and as always with Wordsworth Editions the price is hardly likely to put you off. So impress your friends before the film comes out and explore the mysterious life of Solomon Kane for yourself.

Rating 3 out of 5