Speculative fiction

Jan 7 2012

The Singer by Calvin Miller

 

For most who live,
hell is never knowing
who they are.
The Singer knew and
knowing was his torment.

Recalling the popularity of  The Singer: A Classic Retelling of Cosmic Conflict by Calvin Miller when I was younger, and having a vaguely positive recollection of reading and enjoying it as a teenager, when I saw it for a dollar at a library sale I snatched it up.  Seeing it as a quick and potentially inspirational read, I read it read it that same week

It is a rather unique book (the first of a trilogy), a sort of poetic narrative – some poetry, prose – that re-imagines the Gospel in the form of a classical myth or fairy tale of a troubadour compelled to sing the song that points man back to their creator.  His opponent is the World Hater who seeks to keep mankind enslaved and unaware of the song.

And even after all these years, it stands up very well. A little forced in places and certainly “artsy” in a sense but with beautiful and evocative language that re-imagines this timeless story in a way that knocks the dust off and allows us to see it fresh.

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By Kevin Holtsberry • Reviews • 0 • Tags: , , , , , ,

Nov 14 2011

The Tale of the Unknown Island by Jose Saramago

After reading the New York Times review of Cain, and a blogger review of Death Without Interruptions, by Jose Saramago I figured it was time I read some of his work.  Facing the reality of budget constraint, I headed to the library.  Being a fan of short and interesting fairy/folk tale type stories, I picked up The Tale of the Unknown Island while I was there.

Here is the publisher’s blurb:

A man went to knock at the king’s door and said to him, Give me a boat. The king’s house had many other doors, but this was the door for petitions. Since the king spent all his time sitting by the door for favors (favors being done to the king, you understand), whenever he heard someone knocking on the door for petitions, he would pretend not to hear . . .” Why the petitioner required a boat, where he was bound for, and who volunteered to crew for him the reader will discover as this short narrative unfolds. And at the end it will be clear that if we thought we were reading a children’s fable we were wrong-we have been reading a love story and a philosophical tale worthy of Voltaire or Swift.

It was an interesting and rather poignant story.  Not having read any Saramago before, I was not used to the style and structure of the writing: sort of stream of consciousness run on sentences.  It takes a while to get used to this; finding your rhythm and not being distracted by the unique style.

Once you get past that, however, there is an elegance to the simplicity of the story and the determination of the characters to go beyond the small world of their mundane existence; to seek uncharted waters and unknown islands despite everyone’s insistence that they do not exist.

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By Kevin Holtsberry • Reviews • 0 • Tags: , , ,

Mar 28 2011

Sapphique by Catherine Fisher

Sapphique is the sequel to the bestselling Incarceron and in many ways I found it a better read. A quicker pace and more action meant the story dragged less and I cared about the ending more.  The action sequences and suspense of inside the prison elevated this book above the first one in my mind. A creative and well done conclusion to the series.

Take it away publishers synopsis:

The only one who escaped . . . And the one who could destroy them all.

Incarceron, the living prison, has lost one of its inmates to the outside world: Finn’s escaped, only to find that Outside is not at all what he expected. Used to the technologically advanced, if violently harsh, conditions of the prison, Finn is now forced to obey the rules of Protocol, which require all people to live without technology. To Finn, Outside is just a prison of another kind, especially when Claudia, the daughter of the prison’s warden, declares Finn the lost heir to the throne. When another claimant emerges, both Finn’s and Claudia’s very lives hang on Finn convincing the Court of something that even he doesn’t fully believe.

Meanwhile, Finn’s oathbrother Keiro and his friend Attia are still trapped inside Incarceron. They are searching for a magical glove, which legend says Sapphique used to escape. To find it, they must battle the prison itself, because Incarceron wants the glove too.

Just like in the first book, there are two stories that ultimately connect: Finn and Claudia are trying to prove Finn is the Prince while still trying to find a way to reconnect with the prison to find the Warden and Keiro; Keiro and Attia are trying to survive, escape to reunite with Finn, and keep the prison from escaping itself.

Personally, I found the whole tension with Finn a bit much. But to be fair, the transition from prison to court would be a great shock psychologically and leaving your closest friend behind would make it doubly difficult. The angst and anger, however, just wore thin for me.

I much preferred the action inside the prison. The darker or more ambiguous characters were just better to my mind: the warden, the prison itself, Keiro, and Rix. The prison’s search for escape combined with the plotting or the warden, the naked desire of Keiro and the madness of Rix added up to a nice level of action and suspense.  And the setting of the Incarceron was just unique enough to make it that much better.

The outside action was bumped up a notch as well. The more detailed involvement of Claudia’s sapient tutor Jared was better than just the Finn-Claudia relationship. And the ultimate undoing of the false luxury of the realm was a nice touch.  The conclusion brought all this action and tension together, with a plot twist, in a satisfying and entertaining way.

All in all, I am glad I read this series.  While Steampunk is not really my thing, these two books are worth reading for the creativity and imagination they contain.

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Jan 30 2011

The Last Witch of Manhattan by Richard Lewis

I am a big fan of Richard Lewis. This has an interesting story behind it. As long time readers of this site might recall, I first heard of Richard Lewis when he emailed me about his upcoming book The Flame Tree way back in 2004. He politely asked if I might take a look and I agreed to do so.

I loved that book and have been reading him ever since. I have done interviews  and podcasts with him and try to keep in touch with him via email (he lives on the other side of the world).

I bring all this up to let you know I am not exactly unbiased when it comes to his writing.  But the good news is the risk reward on this particular deal leans heavily toward the reader (or should I say e-reader).

Lewis has a new book available via Amazon Digital Services called The Last Witch of Manhattan. And for a mere $2.99 it is a steal. That’s right, it is self-published. But please don’t let that dissuade you from reading this one.

Here is the blurb from Lewis:

Eldie’s mother, the last of the Balinese witches, has been abducted out of her Manhattan townhouse. Eldie’s explorer father has vanished while searching for his wife. Now somebody wants to kidnap Eldie’s invisible friend, Sam. With Sam’s help, Eldie must develop her powers in order to rescue her parents and prevent a cosmic rift. But as she discovers, her powers are dark and troubled.

Allow me to steal from a review on Amazon to sum it up:

Part supernatural, part sci-fi, part thriller, it is a complex, and might I add fresh, blend of science, Balinese and Judeo-Christian mythology centered around the proverbial clash between good and evil.

More on my take below. Keep Reading

By Kevin Holtsberry • Reviews • 0 • Tags: , , , ,

Jun 22 2010

The Necromancer by Michael Scott

Not sure why, but a bunch of authors I enjoy had book come out at the end of  May and, particularly given my constrained reading and reviewing time these days, this meant a  stacked up TBR pile. Choices, choices, isn’t that what is all about most days?

I had The Necromancer (The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel), however, shipped to my Kindle as soon as it was released and read it shortly thereafter. This was exactly the type of reading I could enjoy as a reward for long hours worked.

I enjoyed the previous books in the series – my wife and I raced through them and were anxiously awaiting this latest volume in a planed six book series.  For those of you not in the loop – for shame! – here is the Amzon review:

The Necromancer, book four in Michael Scott’s “Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel” series, brings the immortal Flamel (The Alchemyst) and teenaged twins, Sophie and Josh, back home to San Francisco, where they meet up with the sorceress Perenelle, Flamel’s wife, who spent the last book escaping from Alcatraz. Time is running out for the Flamels; it’s now been six days since their foe Dr. John Dee (another immortal) ran off with the Codex, the book of Abraham the Mage that keeps them young, and they are aging fast. The twins, who have been learning the Elemental Magics over the course of the first three books, are worried about getting into trouble for basically disappearing for days, so they check in with their guardian, Aunt Agnes. But Scott doesn’t let them settle in for long. True to the break-neck pace of this series, they are quickly pulled back into the action when Sophie is kidnapped by a redheaded vampire who bears an eerie resemblance to one of their recent allies, Scathach, who disappeared with Joan of Arc in the last book. The Necromancer introduces readers to even more infamous immortals, while keeping up with favorites from past books–Machiavelli, Shakespeare, Billy the Kid. As the characters accumulate, so do the opportunities for hair-raising conflicts and insane reveals. Scott manages their multiple story lines with a sequence of cliffhangers that keep it a really fun read even as he is piling on the history and mythology, taking readers further into the secrets that will bring the whole story together. As the characters hurtle toward a conflict that could bring about the end of the world, we can’t wait to see where they’ll go, what they’ll learn, and who they’ll meet next.

This, at least to me, is not a stand alone book by any stretch of the imagination.  Instead it is a volume that begins to unwind and explain a complicated plot as the series comes to a close. As time seems to be running short on the Flamels the pace seemed to slow down and the mythological background comes more into focus. There is a major plot twist/revelation that I assume holds a clue to the ultimate resolution. Hard to believe there are two more books before the end.

The tension between Josh and the Flamels – and his sister – is ratcheted up and the good guys and bad guys – if you can figure out which is which – are converging and building to a climax (again, if you call it that with two books left).

This is an enjoyable fantasy thriller series but one of those where you race to read the book only to be forced to wait for the next release to dive back in again. But it is well worth the wait.

By Kevin Holtsberry • Reviews • 0 • Tags: , , , , ,

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