Reviews: Some books I've read recently
2005-Aug-24, Wednesday 21:45![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
matgbWell, it's about time I got around to writing up the books I've read recently. Well, the good ones, anyway. The avarage are for fans, the poor, well, less said about them the better, really.
Steph Swainston: the YEAR OF OUR WAR & no PRESENT LIKE TIME
I'd of course read reviews of these, and seen the first on the shelves, nearly buying it a few times. Then someone really recommended I pick them up. So, I bought the first one and added it to the pile. I eventually got around to starting it, and, well, didn't really stop reading it all weekend. I'm prone to enjoy books, and picking up sequels/other books by authors I like is usual. It's unusual, however, to finish one book and take time from work, on a busy day, to specifically go to the book shop to buy the sequel. It is that good.
Premise: fantasy world, continent referred to as The Fourlands, ruled by secular, mortal monarchs but advised and protected in times of war by an immortal Emperor and his cadre of chosen immortals, who are given their status on merit, and may lose their immortality if a better mortal than they in their chosen field comes along. There's a war on; the Insects are invading in greater numbers, and the insecure Messenger is a little exhausted. Given that many of his friends are dying, his wife is having an affair and he's the only man alive that can fly, he turns to drugs. Very New Weird.
Mat's verdict: Buy these books. Now.
China Miéville: King Rat
I was first persuaded to buy one of China's books (his second novel, Perdido St Station) by Vince in the book shop int he departures lounge at Manchester before my first trip across the pond. Best book I read during the whole holiday (and I read a lot). Miéville in some ways has a Gaimanesque style, but his later works are set in the fantasy world of Bas Lag. This is very much set in his London. It's his first novel, and I approached it with trepidation; his next 3 are amongst my favourites and two won deserved Arthur C Clarke awards, but first books can be, for a more recent convert, disappointing. Fortunately, my fear was misplaced. He's definately improved as a writer, but from a pretty good start. OF course, reading his Wiki entry shows me why; I knew he's a little to the left of me (making me actually look a little reactionary), but didn't know he's got a PhD in economics, nor that he's a contributor to one of my more favoured recently discovered blogs, Lenin's Tomb. I digress, to the book.
Imagine you've been out of London for a few days, and return to the flat you share with you father late and exhausted. You wake the next morning to find yourself under arrest; your father's body was found under the window, how could you have missed it? Then, to make matters worse, you're sprung from jail by a man claiming he's your uncle with supernatural powers. A man who claims to be King of the Rats, the only survivor of Hamelin. On the run, attempting to prove your innocence, you hide in the sewers with him and watch your life get turned upside down. A fusion of the drum and bass / jungle culture of the time with aspects reminiscent of Neverwhere, King Rat is an interesting, and at times challenging read. The detective fiction bits don't work as well, but, well, I didn't buy it because it's a cop novel.
Mat's verdict: For the fans, but if you like Gaiman or his later work...
Jasper Fforde: the Thursday Next books
I picked up the 4th book, Something Rotten, again, in an airport book shop. But had planned to already buy some Fforde on the recommendations of the friend who subsequently recommended Swainston. It was great, and I ended up lending it to another friend (a Tom Holt/ Piers Anthony fan as well as recent Pratchett convert), who tells me he's enjoying it (some people, I'm now finding out, don't read at least 2 books a week. I'm sure I'll get used to this idea). Putting it in an obvious way; I read the 4th book first in May, and have now read the first 3 as well. Each is good, and of particular interest to fans of literature in general; references from all over the place, from Shakespeare (the award for most pathetic Shakespeare lead goes to...) and Will Speak machines on street corners, through Wuthering Heights all the way to pulp cowboy novels and trashy sci-fi.
Thursday is a Literary Detective who investigates crimes against fiction, book smuggling and fake originals She gets swept up in a very surreal story, and by the start of book 4 she's living inside a novel as head of Jurisfiction, one of the few Outworld (ie real) people that can live in the word of fictional characters. HEr daughter's babysitter is a talking gorilla, and her pet Dodo is laying eggs. The dodo, of course, is real, she cloned it as a kid with her brother, who died during the Crimean War, which has now been going on for more than 100 years. It's funny, very clever, full of in jokes and, well, surreal. I'm even considering going to the first FfordeCon if tickets are still available. I don't do fan conventions, do I?
Mat's verdict: If you like your humour clever, and love reading, you'll love it. If you can't tell your Heathcliff from your Marlowe, you may want to give it a miss.
Books to avoid: Dracula Cha Cha Cha by Kim Newman; bought it on remainder as I liked his pulp Warhammer tie ins written as Jack Yeovil. I can see why it's on remainder. Anything by Laurell K Hamilton. She has her fans, but, well, she can't write sex scenes for toffee, and as that's the only reason she seems to be writing now, you might as well buy some decent porn.
Steph Swainston: the YEAR OF OUR WAR & no PRESENT LIKE TIME
I'd of course read reviews of these, and seen the first on the shelves, nearly buying it a few times. Then someone really recommended I pick them up. So, I bought the first one and added it to the pile. I eventually got around to starting it, and, well, didn't really stop reading it all weekend. I'm prone to enjoy books, and picking up sequels/other books by authors I like is usual. It's unusual, however, to finish one book and take time from work, on a busy day, to specifically go to the book shop to buy the sequel. It is that good.
Premise: fantasy world, continent referred to as The Fourlands, ruled by secular, mortal monarchs but advised and protected in times of war by an immortal Emperor and his cadre of chosen immortals, who are given their status on merit, and may lose their immortality if a better mortal than they in their chosen field comes along. There's a war on; the Insects are invading in greater numbers, and the insecure Messenger is a little exhausted. Given that many of his friends are dying, his wife is having an affair and he's the only man alive that can fly, he turns to drugs. Very New Weird.
Mat's verdict: Buy these books. Now.
China Miéville: King Rat
I was first persuaded to buy one of China's books (his second novel, Perdido St Station) by Vince in the book shop int he departures lounge at Manchester before my first trip across the pond. Best book I read during the whole holiday (and I read a lot). Miéville in some ways has a Gaimanesque style, but his later works are set in the fantasy world of Bas Lag. This is very much set in his London. It's his first novel, and I approached it with trepidation; his next 3 are amongst my favourites and two won deserved Arthur C Clarke awards, but first books can be, for a more recent convert, disappointing. Fortunately, my fear was misplaced. He's definately improved as a writer, but from a pretty good start. OF course, reading his Wiki entry shows me why; I knew he's a little to the left of me (making me actually look a little reactionary), but didn't know he's got a PhD in economics, nor that he's a contributor to one of my more favoured recently discovered blogs, Lenin's Tomb. I digress, to the book.
Imagine you've been out of London for a few days, and return to the flat you share with you father late and exhausted. You wake the next morning to find yourself under arrest; your father's body was found under the window, how could you have missed it? Then, to make matters worse, you're sprung from jail by a man claiming he's your uncle with supernatural powers. A man who claims to be King of the Rats, the only survivor of Hamelin. On the run, attempting to prove your innocence, you hide in the sewers with him and watch your life get turned upside down. A fusion of the drum and bass / jungle culture of the time with aspects reminiscent of Neverwhere, King Rat is an interesting, and at times challenging read. The detective fiction bits don't work as well, but, well, I didn't buy it because it's a cop novel.
Mat's verdict: For the fans, but if you like Gaiman or his later work...
Jasper Fforde: the Thursday Next books
I picked up the 4th book, Something Rotten, again, in an airport book shop. But had planned to already buy some Fforde on the recommendations of the friend who subsequently recommended Swainston. It was great, and I ended up lending it to another friend (a Tom Holt/ Piers Anthony fan as well as recent Pratchett convert), who tells me he's enjoying it (some people, I'm now finding out, don't read at least 2 books a week. I'm sure I'll get used to this idea). Putting it in an obvious way; I read the 4th book first in May, and have now read the first 3 as well. Each is good, and of particular interest to fans of literature in general; references from all over the place, from Shakespeare (the award for most pathetic Shakespeare lead goes to...) and Will Speak machines on street corners, through Wuthering Heights all the way to pulp cowboy novels and trashy sci-fi.
Thursday is a Literary Detective who investigates crimes against fiction, book smuggling and fake originals She gets swept up in a very surreal story, and by the start of book 4 she's living inside a novel as head of Jurisfiction, one of the few Outworld (ie real) people that can live in the word of fictional characters. HEr daughter's babysitter is a talking gorilla, and her pet Dodo is laying eggs. The dodo, of course, is real, she cloned it as a kid with her brother, who died during the Crimean War, which has now been going on for more than 100 years. It's funny, very clever, full of in jokes and, well, surreal. I'm even considering going to the first FfordeCon if tickets are still available. I don't do fan conventions, do I?
Mat's verdict: If you like your humour clever, and love reading, you'll love it. If you can't tell your Heathcliff from your Marlowe, you may want to give it a miss.
Books to avoid: Dracula Cha Cha Cha by Kim Newman; bought it on remainder as I liked his pulp Warhammer tie ins written as Jack Yeovil. I can see why it's on remainder. Anything by Laurell K Hamilton. She has her fans, but, well, she can't write sex scenes for toffee, and as that's the only reason she seems to be writing now, you might as well buy some decent porn.
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Date: 2005-Aug-26, Friday 01:57 (UTC)