Railsea

You just know there are lots of reasons people might give a pass to China Miéville’s newest novel, Railsea. Some will see the YA or sci-fi/fantasy labels hanging on it and dismiss it out of hand. Others will hear it features a captain obsessed with hunting a giant white moldywarpe that cost her an arm and think “I hate parody/allusion” or “I really hated Moby Dick” or “Boy, I hate books with words like ‘moldywarpe” (or all three). Some will sigh mightily at the references to “symbol,” “philosophies,” environmental deprivation, and the woes of capitalism. Finally, some will note the direct address to the readers and discussion of the novel’s own narrative choices, and shrug “Metafiction. Meh.” To which I say they get what they deserve — missing out on a great wild and raucous romp of a novel filled to the brim with all the above plus trains, pirates, nomads, mole hunts, trips to the end of the known world, faithful and brave animal companions, loyal siblings, brilliant wordplay, literary allusions, ampersands, orphans, monsters, twists and turns aplenty, exploration and a plucky young boy who knows little save he has yet to discover his life’s task. Sucks for them, obviously… Read the rest.

The Warlock in Spite of Himself

… The Warlock in Spite of Himself, published in 1969, is a humorous science fantasy. I picked it up because I like science fantasy, I knew that Christopher Stasheff collaborated with L. Sprague de Camp and Fletcher Pratt whose humorous HAROLD SHEA stories I enjoyed, and, lastly, an audiobook version of The Warlock in Spite of Himself has just been released by Wild Voices. According to the publisher, The Warlock in Spite of Himself is “sword-and-sorcery with a witty, edgy, wry twist.” Though the story is fun and action-packed, I found that The Warlock in Spite of Himself, especially this audio version, didn’t live up to the publisher’s promise… Read the rest.

John: I am reading Pantheons by E.J Dabel, my first experience with a book wholly on an e-Reader. It’s not as bad as I feared, but I still think I like a regular book better!

Kat: Another week gone by already?? I read two novellas by Robert Silverberg: The World Inside and Tower of Glass. I also read Christopher Stasheff’s The Warlock In Spite of Himself (do not buy this on audio!) and Terry Pratchett’s The Colo(u)r of Magic, the first of his DISCWORLD books. All of this was on audio. Then I sort of finished Ann and Jeff VanderMeer’s anthology The Weird: A Compendium of Strange and Dark Stories. I reviewed that last week. I’m busy with classes again — our summer term started — so not much time to sit down and read.

Marion: I’m reading Rebecca Skloot’s medical nonfiction best seller The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. It’s pretty fascinating! I also just started Bring Up the Bodies, by Hilary Mantel, the sequel to Wolf Hall. I’m not convinced that her concept of Thomas Cromwell is historically supported, but it’s convincingly done. She makes Henry VIII’s personal enforcer complicated and even appealing.

Terry: This week I finished up Seanan McGuire‘s Discount Armageddon, now her second urban fantasy series. I also started reading Blackout by her alter ego, Mira Grant, and it’s every bit as good as the first two in the NEWSFLESH trilogy. I also read Issue 3 of Shadows & Tall Trees, a magazine of “gentle horror” previously unknown to me, but a pleasant new discovery. Finally, I’m also reading A Book of Horrors, edited by Stephen Jones, which contains a fair amount of fiction nominated for the Shirley Jackson Awards. It’s been a good week..

Tim: This week I’ve been staying with some relatives and visiting took precedence over sticking my nose in a book, but I did manage to get a bit of reading done. I’ve gone through the entirety of Kevin Hearne‘s IRON DRUID series now, having finished Tricked this past Tuesday, and I followed it up with John Steinbeck‘s The Red Pony. I enjoyed the latter quite a bit, but was a little dissatisfied with the former, which failed to interest me as much as its predecessors.

The Dragon’s Eye

… The Dragon’s Eye is clearly meant to appeal to youngsters who haven’t yet read HARRY POTTER, or maybe are too young for how dark HARRY POTTER can get, and that’s fine. However, it’s hard to admire a work that’s so derivative but lacks the qualities that make the imitated work so brilliant. I think that most discerning readers who love Rowling’s series will be disappointed in The Dragon’s Eye. And if it didn’t want to be compared to HARRY POTTER, it shouldn’t have copied it. I read the audio version which was produced by Simon & Schuster Audio and narrated by Simon Jones. Mr. Jones was a terrific reader. If you’re going to read The Dragon’s Eye, I recommend this version. Read the rest.

Scholar

… Scholar is a good book for a number of reasons. First off, it’s a Modesitt fantasy novel, so his well-honed world-building skills, his believable characters, and his established formula of the main character’s learning and growth are all enjoyable. Quaeryt is no great departure from Modesitt’s previous heroes. What is really remarkable about Scholar is the principal villain… Scholar is a solid addition to Modesitt’s work. It’s good, but not awesome. The political maneuvering and the supporting cast are some of Modesitt’s best yet. The most brilliant aspects will become apparent after you’ve finished, and you’ll probably find yourself looking back and thinking, “Wow, that was cool!” Read the rest.

SKULLKICKERS

Note: Vol 1. collects issues #1-5

No one knows the names of these two monster slayers for hire. One is a dwarf who wields two short battle-axes and the other a big bald brute that carries an almost unknown weapon: a pistol. For the right price, this pair will do any killings you require. They can out-fight, out-drink, and usually out-smart most anything — man, beast, or creature. They are the SKULLKICKERS. How can anyone not dig a title like that?

Sword & sorcery fans take heart. SKULLKICKERS, by Image Comics, follows the tradition of Robert E. Howard’s tales and Fritz Leiber’s Fafhrd & the Gray Mouser, although with a more ribald tone. These brash, hardened killers — referred to only as “Shorty” and “Baldy” — are in many ways the classic brains-n-brawn, straight man/funny man, action-adventure duo. However, in their case, it’s the big, muscle-bound guy who’s the serious strategist, while the crazy dwarf is the overaggressive braggart — of course it’s not really bragging because he backs up what he says — that is always ready to kick ass. The Skullkickers cleverly tackle every job with confidence and in their own unique style. However, not much can be said for their social skills, because they have none. There is no better way to put it: SKULLKICKERS is just ol’ fashioned fun.

Life for the SKULLKICKERS is a never-ending jump out of the frying pan and into the fire with the occasional break for drunken debauchery in their favorite saloon, The Gizzard. They take on any job, regardless of danger, with a confidence that the reader is never quite sure if it’s due to an abundance of skill or lack of knowledge. More often than not, they have a harder time collecting their pay than they do defeating the monsters.

Jim Zubkavich writes SKULLKICKERS with tongue-in-cheek humor that suits these comics perfectly. The strictly mercenary attitudes of “Shorty” and “Baldy” are balanced out with their ridiculous antics. ( I should also mention that the elves are freakin’ hilarious. )

Chris Stevens is a talented artist, but for some reason his style changed after the preview issue SKULLKICKERS #0. Between the coloring and the detailed drawing, #0 was more vivid. In the other issues, Stevens’ art has more of a cartoon-like look; this does go along with the stories, but my preference was for the original look.

SKULLKICKERS is an awesome take on the old school sword & sorcery tales. Since the 70’s, with the exception of Conan, there just hasn’t been much S&S in comics. It warms this fanboy’s heart to finally see it making a comeback with series like these.

The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov

While mid-20th century Russian propaganda wizards were twisting words to hide the truth, Mikhail Bulgakov wrote a response that proved fantasy could be used to reveal wisdom rather than confuse it.

An absolute feast of a book, The Master and Margarita serves up a delicious variety of characters and scenarios — naked witches, talking cats, and a devil’s ball — as a less-than-subtle riposte to communist cant. In the process, Bulgakov simultaneously subverts the doctrine of his day, declaring the universal power of the written word to have a staying power government ideology can never achieve.

Reading the incisive and often comedic manner in which Bulgakov eviscerates communist dogma, it’s a wonder fantasy is not used satirically more often. Suffice to say, The Master and Margarita is not meant to be read as a story in any linear sense. There is a plot, but symbolism and metaphor bear the lion’s share of the narrative, and as such it is difficult to sum up the story into a neat sentence or paragraph.

Painstakingly written to avoid censors, The Master and Margarita requires effort from the reader to place meaning and sort through the variety of representations as they relate to the work’s ultimate message. That Mikhail Bulgakov is likewise able to draw in threads of religion and history into an already powerful theme elevates his work to a height achieved by few novels ever written. If you thought you had read all of the best literature of the 20th century but not yet picked up The Master and Margarita, by all means do, if not for the re-read value alone.