by Jane | Apr 3, 2018 | Write Here Write Now
Anne Rice’s Servant of the Bones is the tale of Azriel, a young man who is turned into a spirit during the Jewish exile in Babylon. Azriel’s spirit is attached to his gilded bones and can be called up by whoever owns then and says the right words. But Azriel is not easily controlled. Called up in the late 20th century, he becomes involved with a cult leader and his family; however, this spirit has his own ideas of right and wrong and follows his heart.
In the vein of Interview with the Vampire, Azriel tells his story to a neutral party, a professor alone in a cabin in the woods. The early pages read somewhat like a late 19th/early 20th century tale and grabbed me from the start. After a short introduction by the narrator, Azriel appears at the cabin door, helps the professor through an illness, and proceeds to tell his story, starting with his days in Babylon.
This was a very enjoyable tale, in which the reader feels for Azriel. Though it becomes evident early on that he is a killer, he has an overwhelming moral sense which leads us to root for him all the way.
Read Servant of the Bones and take a trip through history to an incredible conclusion.
by Jane | Mar 10, 2018 | Write Here Write Now
Dark is a Netflix TV series produced in Germany. From the very beginning, there is crisis. In the first episode, there is a suicide and a missing child. Shortly thereafter, another child goes missing. A dead boy show up who is not either of those two. The community is frightened. Police officer Ulrich, who is very involved in the search, lost his brother thirty-three years earlier. Is there a connection? If you’re a fan of Supernatural, you might guess it’s some sort of monster who surfaces every thirty-three years. The real answer is even more disturbing. Two strange men and a cave system with a secret round out the mystery.
This series is very intriguing and engaging. There are a lot of characters, with a lot of intricate relationships, which makes the show more interesting, but it’s difficult to keep them all straight. This difficulty increases when some of the action moves to the past and you meet them again as younger versions of themselves. Still, there are clues given, and it adds to the fun to learn what past issues have led to the problems of the current day.
I enjoyed this show very much. After only ten episodes, I am ready for ten more. I hope everyone will give Dark a chance.
by Jane | Jan 6, 2018 | Write Here Write Now
Netherspace by Andrew Lane and Nigel Foster is good science fiction. It reminds me of the classic sci fi books I read as a child, sci fi from the 50’s and 60’s, from which I gained a love of the genre. Lane and Foster introduce us to a world where first contact has been made with several alien species, but strangely, there is no real communication. The aliens just come to trade, pointing to what they want and leaving an item of technology, including technology to travel between the stars. But the items they trade for is a total mystery — it could be a broken bicycle wheel or a human being.
In Netherspace, we become acquainted with Kara, an ex-army sniper, and Marc, an artist who has traded with aliens in the past. These two are recruited to travel to an alien planet to resolve a hostage situation. They’re given all the information they need through a machine which puts the information into their heads, but what they don’t expect in treachery on board the ship.
I loved this book! No only does it remind me of sci fi of old, it brings its own take on what first contact could really be like. The technology is wonderful, the characters are well-developed both individually and in their relationships with each other. The aliens are also quite fun. And in classic sci fi tradition, there is a big reveal at the end that is well worth the wait. Pick up Netherspace. You’ll thank me.
by Jane | Nov 27, 2017 | Write Here Write Now
The Bedlam Stacks by Natasha Pulley is an interesting little book taking place in Peru in the mid-19th century. It focuses on Englishman Merrick Tremayne, an employee of the India Company, who is sent on an expedition with his colleague Clem Markham. They are set to gather cutting from chichona trees, which produce malaria-curing quinine. This is a dangerous expedition because the Peruvians have declared a monopoly on these trees and will kill anyone who tries to take them out.
So far, this description reads more like an historical novel than fantasy, but there are elements of native beliefs and superstitions that enter into the story. Even before leaving England, Merrick encounters these elements through some specimens his grandfather had brought home years earlier, the most unlikely of them a statue which seems to move. When Merrick reaches his destination in Peru, he sees more of these statues and comes to understand that these are considered sacred, both by the villagers and Raphael, the village priest and Merrick’s native guide.
Because the book starts out like the writing of a 19th century English adventurer, the reader may have trouble connecting to the fact that it is labeled as a fantasy. And truth be told, it doesn’t fit any definition of fantasy which I would normally read. However, there are engaging characters, a hint of mystery throughout, and a poignancy in the issues dealt with day to day by the Peruvians. These attributes make it well worth a read.
by Jane | Nov 10, 2017 | Write Here Write Now
A Gathering of Ravens by Scott Oden is the tale of Étain, a Saxon woman, and her encounters with Grimnir, a creature from Norse mythology. It is set in the 10th and 11th centuries, spanning locations from Denmark to England to Ireland. Early in the story, Étain is kidnapped by Grinmir to help him in his quest for revenge against another creature, known as Half-Dane.
I enjoyed the first half of the book, as Grinmir dragged Étain from Denmark through a spiritual gate into England. It was when the story shifted to Ireland that I lost interest. In what Oden calls “Book 3”, the reader is introduced to several more characters, all with hard-to-pronounce names, who are engaged in some sort of civil war for control of Ireland. The problem was that at this point I was just reading words, getting no enjoyment because I didn’t know who to root for. Should I be sympathetic for the man Grimnir wants dead or hope that he succeeds and kills him?
The only truly likeable character in this book is Étain, and after we catch up to her, she makes what I believe are questionable choices, taking her further and further away from her original goal of spreading Christianity to the Danes. And while characters’ goals can certainly change throughout the course of a book, I saw no rational reason for her to make the choices she did.
A Gathering of Ravens is well-written and the first half had me very engaged in the world of pre-Norman England. But because I was so disappointed in the second half, I cannot recommend this book.
