Review Category: Books

In a desperate bid to win back his ex-girlfriend Star, Goth magician Satori attempts to summon a demon to aid him, but ends up unleashing Lilith the mother of demons upon the world. Lilith seduces Star and draws her into a journey of dark passion as Satori attempts to track them down and save his lost love.

Starblood’s cover proclaims “Contains nudity and scenes of a sexual and violent nature” in no uncertain terms. However, this doesn’t properly prepare you for the amount of sex and violence that occur at the same time. The story is driven by emotion at its most intense and unadulterated, unflinchingly laying bare the lust and cruelty of humanity’s basest instincts in all their primal hedonism.

The meat of the story is the relationship between Star and Lilith, as the young woman is pulled ever deeper into the world of obsession and death the demon queen drives her down. Lilith’s commanding confidence and unbridled sensuality is a manifestation of all the things Star wishes she could be, and in being with her new lover she is granted the freedom to be who she truly is.

There is a strongly feminist aesthetic that runs through the story, not just from the female characters having far more prominence than the men and remaining undefined by them, but also by incorporating the original interpretation of Lilith, not as the mother of demons but as the first wife of Adam, cast aside and banished from Eden for refusing to be subservient to him.

The frequent sex is erotic enough to feel the sensuality of the couplings, but avoids becoming so voyeuristically explicit as to descend to mere pornography. The stark greyscale shading of the artwork is perfect for capturing the sway of undulating bodies and dark blood flowing from self-inflicted cuts.

There is a constant issue in the speech balloons rarely lining up in such a way that makes it clear what order they’re supposed to be read in, requiring conversations to be read two or three times before they can be experienced properly. Additionally, the dialogue itself is somewhat bland and perfunctory, and when juxtaposed with the poetic narration of caption boxes it might have been better had the whole story been told that way, better conveying its hypnotic and dreamlike flow. 

Starblood is a dark tale in the truest sense of the word. Sex, death, guilt, love, betrayal, violence and redemption are all portrayed in equal measure, and it’s shown that the potential for them all exists in each of us creatures of inherent contradiction, despite how much we might try to suppress them.

STARBLOOD / AUTHOR: CARMILLA VOIEZ / ARTIST: ANNA PRASHKOVICH / PUBLISHER: SELF PUBLISHED / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

If you’re not familiar with the CW’s smash hit television show on which this tie-in is based, let’s recap. Oliver Queen is a billionaire playboy; spoiled, free from responsibility and at the time of his assumed demise cheating on his girlfriend with her own sister. Oliver ditches his summer college classes to board an uber-yacht chartered by his father and brings his lover Sara Lance along for the ride, only for the ship to be destroyed following a storm that kills Sara and leaves Ollie and his old man marooned in the Pacific. 

Before taking his own life, Ollie’s father confesses to being complicit in a series of criminal undertakings and hands him a dossier that lists the co-conspirators responsible for the corruption that has devastated their home city. Five years later, Oliver is rescued from his (not so) deserted island and returns home. On the surface he resumes his old reckless lifestyle, but at night he adopts a vigilante alter ego intent on bringing justice to those who have failed Starling City, known as ‘The Arrow’. 

Ollie’s dossier may have taken a backseat in the more recent seasons, but to begin with it served as the McGuffin for the entire show. Most episodes from the first season were built around the information contained in the dossier as The Arrow set about methodically confronting the villains detailed in its pages. The dossier has only grown as the series has evolved; adding new heroes and villains as documented by Oliver himself.

Nick Aires is no stranger to the Arrowverse, having previously helmed 2015’s ‘Arrow: Heroes and Villains’, as well as authoring the official companion to fellow CW series Supernatural. The book is divided into three sections: Investigations, Equipment and Allies. ‘Investigations’ is the heaviest; listing the intel Oliver has collated against plenty of familiar enemies including Malcolm Merlyn, former flame Helena Bertinelli and more obscure villains like the sinister Dollmaker. The pages themselves are presented in scrapbook format; newspaper cuttings, police reports and Oliver’s personal annotations added in post-it format make a nice touch. The ‘Equipment’ section will be fun for anyone who’s ever wanted to craft their own bow and arrow, and ‘Allies’ serves as a good introduction to who’s who for anyone new to the series. 

Oliver Queen’s Dossier is a fun accessory for die-hard fans of the series; lightweight enough to be enjoyed by younger Arrowheads, although older fans may prefer to wait for Season 5 to return in October to get their fix of one of DC’s most compelling and commercially successful heroes.

ARROW: OLIVER QUEEN’S DOSSIER / AUTHOR: NICK AIRES / PUBLISHER: TITAN BOOKS / RELEASE DATE: 14TH OCTOBER

Marc Turner has returned with the third book in his highly successful ‘Chronicles of the Exile’ series. The first two books in the Series, When the Heavens Fall and Dragon Hunters were both well received. These two books were able to offer original stories, with the first book in the series being a nostalgic tour into classic epic fantasy, whilst the second book followed a different more self-contained story. Now, with Red Tide, Marc Turner has created a book that slowly weaves together the events of the first two novels, whilst providing an exciting and fresh story.

The novel starts soon after the end of Dragon Hunters and follows several characters points of view. The series is now following ten separate point of view characters, which is creating a really intriguing story. All the characters feel fresh and new, and Turner manages to write all these characters in such a way that they all seem very individual and unique. A stand out favourite character is Amerel, who is a very unstable character to read about, but who is just a pleasure to read.

The aftermath of Dragon Day has left opportunities for several people in power. The new characters are introduced right at the beginning, and several twists and turns in the storyline lead us to Emperor Avallon Delamar and his schemes. The plot is very intricate and detailed, and any more detail will give away the plot of the first two novels. There are also many developments at the very start of the book, which truly makes the novel a difficult one to describe without spoilers.

Marc Turner has proven that he can create very different and engaging stories whilst blending them together. The novels and characters all have distinctive tones and scopes, which has created a fresh feel upon reading every novel. As the elements of each previous novel slowly come together throughout. Upon reading this new book, it truly feels like Marc Turner has been able to better handle plot development as this story becomes more fast paced.

Marc Turner has manged to draw many comparisons with other authors in the genre, including Joe Abercrombie and Steven Erikson, but this latest release sees the tipping point when Marc Turner has really created a story of his own. Red Tide marks the half way mark of the series, and with his fan base slowly building over every book release, it’s clear Marc Turner has become one of the most popular new epic fantasy authors, with Red Tide being a triumph in storytelling.

RED TIDE / AUTHOR: MARC TURNER / PUBLISHER: TITAN BOOKS / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

Okay, straight off we’re just going to come out and say it; you need this book on your shelf!

If you’re a fan of the film, you probably have an idea of what to expect from the book, but that doesn’t stop it from pulling out a few surprises inside, from a lovely foreword from Brad Bird, to early concept designs for the project from before Bird even joined the film (with some very different takes on the film and characters – many tied more closely to Ted Hughes’ original book).

Every page in the book features artwork that you could rip out, frame and put up on the wall (don’t do that obviously, you’ll spoil the book). There is a freshness to the books’ many varying styles of art, from stills from the film, to beautiful paintings, to child like drawings of the characters, that gives the book the feel of a wonderful journey from beginning to end.

There is so much to get out of the book without being overwhelmed with information.  Writer Ramin Zahed keeps the text short, informative and fun to read without competing with the images for your attention. The last chapter of the book is also dedicated to various people involved in the making of the film, as they share their memories of working on the production. It’s clear that Zahed and those who contributed to the book have a genuine love of the film and that makes for an infectious read. 

The book is a testament to the enduring appeal of a film that, although largely overlooked by audiences at the time, has generated a solid and growing fandom since its release in 1999 and it feels like the ultimate and definitive thank you to and for everyone who loves, has loved and will love The Iron Giant.

THE ART OF THE IRON GIANT / AUTHOR: RAMIN ZAHED / PUBLISHER: TITAN BOOKS / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW 

When his wife and unborn child died, Edward Schwinn’s life was destroyed. Now he’s a reclusive alcoholic, living in a caravan with only his dog Argus for company.

But everything changes when he discovers the accident on a lonely mountain road – a convoy, which appears to have been smashed by an unseen hand, with everybody dead, except a pregnant woman who is the doppelganger of his deceased wife. When Edward rescues the woman from the wreckage, and assists in a birth that involves the violent deaths of several more people, his whole life changes. The woman makes him a promise that, whatever happens, he will never abandon the child. Her name is Piper, and even though the mother dies before she can tell him anything more, Edward slowly begins to suspect the little girl possesses some terrifying supernatural powers. Maybe, even, the power to save or annihilate the human race.

Edward keeps his promise and raises Piper as his own but, as Piper grows older, he realises they are being hunted by sophisticated assassins, and that a ruthless alien menace is intent on destroying the child before she can understand and fulfil her destiny. With her sixteenth birthday rapidly approaching, the enemy forces growing stronger and more insidious, and with a sinister entity called Morrighan directing her every move, Piper knows that time is running out. But will she be a saviour or a sacrifice, and is she the ultimate good or the ultimate evil?

It’s hard to write a compelling synopsis of Stephen Lloyd Jones’ excellent new novel without giving some important plot points away, and this is a wonderful feat of imagination that you really have to approach spoiler-free. The Disciple is epic in every sense of the word, with a story that ducks and dives through apocalypse theory, Celtic gods, ancient alien contact and – very slyly – with diabolical possession, but always with a very human heart at its centre: the bond between Piper and her surrogate father is palpable, and beautifully raises the stakes when the novel reaches its ferocious and masterful climax. But what makes The Disciple especially impressive is the spell cast by Lloyd Jones’ writing. He uses words like a magician, conjuring visions inside the reader’s head, terrifying and tantalising us with potent images, ideas and characters that won’t easily be forgotten. The Disciple is very, very special indeed. Don’t miss it.

THE DISCIPLE / AUTHOR: STEPHEN LLOYD JONES / PUBLISHER: HEADLINE / RELEASE DATE: 6TH OCTOBER

Times change and so does the world of publishing. Haynes, for years best-known for publishing automobile manuals full of cutaway diagrams explaining in intricate detail exactly how motor cars go vroom vroom, are now branching out into a slightly geekier arena. This colourful soft-cover volume, originally published in 2012 and now reissued with new illustrations, belatedly celebrates the fiftieth anniversary of Gerry Anderson’s Thunderbirds by taking it all terribly seriously, presenting eye-bogglingly intricate details of International Rescue’s mechanical paraphernalia with supporting text chronicling the history of the organisation and its key personnel.

As a piece of imaginative research it’s hard to fault writer Sam Denham’s text, the first few pages of which paint the picture of the future-world of 2065 and all the technical marvels and socio-political machinations which enable the International Rescue organisation to come into being thanks to the genius (and incredibly deep pockets) of former astronaut and magnificently-successful businessman Jeff Tracy. Beautifully-presented colour photographs illustrate not only the Thunderbird craft and their ancillary rescue machines such as The Mole, the Monobrake and the Thunderizer, but also the famous Tracy brothers, International Rescue’s London Agent Lady Penelope and many of the improbable and impractical-looking machines whose catastrophic exploits would inevitably lead to Thunderbirds becoming, in a very real sense, go. For example, the Sidewinder (pages 144-5) is a lovely design but with its wonky gyroscopic metal legs it’s a wonder it ever made its way off the drawing board.

The bulk of the Manual is made up of mind-bending cutaway diagrams of the Thunderbirds themselves and all the other assorted vehicles which turned up in the TV show’s 21st century world – and impressive as they are as illustrations, it’s hard to imagine anyone sitting down and painstakingly poring over the diagrams and matching the annotated descriptions of exposed circuitry, sensors and thrusters with the cutaways themselves. Page after page rolls by in a dizzying rush of imaginary spaceships and vehicles with their innards exposed and explained as if they really existed in such extraordinary detail. The overriding effect is of a project which is incredibly-impressive and quite clearly the work of enormously-talented and dedicated people – and yet, a bit like a model of Buckingham Palace made out of ice cream, it seems a bit pointless. But perhaps we’re being a bit churlish; we love Thunderbirds here at STARBURST and it’s a mark of the show’s enduring popularity that over half-a–decade after it first aired, it’s still able to generate merchandise which is clearly an absolute labour or love for the people who’ve gone way beyond the extra mile to make it happen.

Ultimately the Agents’ Technical Manual is one you’re likely to pick up, flick through and gasp at before slipping it onto your bookshelf, although if you’re so inclined, have enough spare cash and come from the future, at least this book will tell you exactly what you need and how you go about building your own fleet of space-age faster-than-sound rescue vessels. Well, what are you waiting for? Get yer soldering iron out…

THUNDERBIRDS AGENTS’ TECHNICAL MANUAL – 50TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION / AUTHOR:  SAM DENHAM / ILLUSTRATOR: GRAHAM BLEATHMAN / PUBLISHER: HAYNES / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

Are you at a loss for what to do with your pet chupacabra, not sure how to cope with an errant Kraken or what to feed Nessie? Author of 1001 Ways to Humiliate Yourself and Others, Fiona Bowron claims to have all the answers you need in this, her latest book.

Cryptozoology, (the science of identifying and describing creatures from myth, folklore and legend) has always been a rich subject for both serious discussion and humorous expression; in her new book, Fiona Bowron has a crack at the later – playing for laughs and taking a whimsical approach to the cryptid natural world with varying degrees of success.

In putting together this book, Bowron has chosen her own categorization scheme based on her perception of how easy or difficult a particular cryptid might be to manage, their suitability to domestic life and, oddly, a category based on their investment value. The actual list of creatures is very impressive ranging from the well-known beasts like Yeti and mermaids through lesser known examples like Orang Pendek and Dobhar-chu right up to little known legends including the giant bat, Ahool and noisy sounding Ozark Howler. For all but the most obscure entries, Bowron gives advice on feeding, habitat and other nuggets of ‘useful’ information – where the information is based on actual documented research it is frequently funny and insightful but now and then the author tries to spin some spurious yarn of her own and, unfortunately, the joke wears thin.

The handy-sized hardback is illustrated in colour throughout by the art of Tom Jennings who has an impressive body of work including some lovely drawings in Jennifer Saunders’ autobiography, Bonkers; Jennings takes a stab at artistically interpreting some of the better-known monsters and cryptobeasts, it’s a shame that the pictures, like the gags, are a little bit flat.

So, in all, this book is a pleasant confection alongside the main course of more serious publications in this field and it’s possible the humorous veneer might last a little longer if you dip into it from time to time, as the author herself suggests, at your leisure.

HOW TO KEEP A WEREWOLF: AND OTHER EXOTIC PETS WHICH MAY OR MAY NOT A) EXIST OR B) EAT YOU / AUTHOR: FIONA BOWRON / PUBLISHER: PORTICO / RELEASE DATE: OCTOBER 13TH

 

Part
of Star Wars’ sense of wonder has
always been the minor details behind the galaxy. As often as the series is
described as a fantasy saga in space – requiring audiences to merely accept
certain fantastical ideas and supernatural powers – the technology and
complexity of the locations always hinted at something bigger just underneath
the surface.  Once again, it fell to DK
Publishing to help bring that world to life.

Star
Wars: Complete Locations is a compilation covering
the entire saga in a galaxy far, far away and fully exploring each major
location of the series. From the glistening spires of Coruscant to the inner
workings of a Star Destroyer, the book goes into great lengths to highlight the
fine details of each setting. While these intricate cut-always often slide
towards the technical side of things, what helps give them an edge is that
writers never truly forgot to occasionally delve more deeply into the locations
themselves. As such, scenes like the Mos Eisley Cantina concentrates less upon
how the droid detector works, and more upon who is taking a drink and shady
behind the scenes dealing. Ranging from humourous notes such as a night-shift
worker demanding more hours to interesting concepts such as how Yoda’s hovel
incorporated the remains of his escape pod; each and every page pushes to make
the world ever more detailed and life-like.

While many of the pages focus upon specific
buildings, others cover entire regions at a time. Whenever a major battle scene
comes into play, the creators obviously jumped at the chance to give greater
insight into how things played out. As such, the Battle of Geonosis and the
escape from Hoth provide a much wider scope and examination of events.

While many of these scenes are admittedly
re-prints of past works, they have been updated for better and worse. While we
now have more shouts to series such as the Clone
Wars cartoon, many ties to the Expanded Universe have been unceremoniously
ditched. However, what largely makes up for that is the pages focusing upon The Force Awakened, which are
beautifully illustrated, giving a greater sense of scale to the likes of
Jakku’s graveyard than anything the film permitted. While some might be irked
that it takes up only the last few pages, it’s refreshing to see that the new
release is not overriding the importance of the saga’s prior instalments.

This is an essential purchase for any Star Wars fan, especially those who
missed the DK Publishing books of the prequel era. Between stunning art,
excellent writing and an incredible attention to detail, you will find few
books better than this one exploring the Star
Wars setting.

STAR WARS: COMPLETE LOCATIONS / AUTHOR: KRISTIN
LUND, SIMON BEECROFT, KERRIE DOUGHERTY, JAMES LUCENO, JASON FRY / ARTIST: HANS
JESSEN, RICHARD CHASEMORE, KEMP REMILLARD / PUBLISHER: DK PUBLISHING / RELEASE
DATE: OCTOBER 3RD
 

When Abe and his longtime partner Joanna befriend the mysterious, hypnotically beautiful young woman they find waitressing at their local diner, they cannot be prepared for what happens next. No sooner has Lioness Lazos taken up residence in Abe’s garage than the Puget Sound island on which they live begins to enjoy some unseasonably glorious weather. And Lioness’s arrival doesn’t just affect the seasons – Abe, a resolutely private man who plays his harmonica just to annoy the neighbours, suddenly finds himself drawn into a Blues Band and enjoying a lease on life he never thought possible, whereas Joanna – who has always had a deep fear of the water – inexplicably discovers a passion for kayaking. And Joanna’s grown-up daughter Lily has also fallen under Lioness’s spell, harder and more dangerously than Abe or her mother. But when Lioness’s terrible secret is revealed, life will never be the same again, not for any of them.

Peter S. Beagle’s latest novel is a bewitching, impossible-to-categorise masterpiece. Is it a romance, a fairytale, or a fantasy that straddles reality and mythology, with (especially in the scenes involving Joanna and a strangely out-of-time old man called Mr. Mardikian) the slightest hint of wonderful supernatural romcoms like Bell Book, and Candle and I Married a Witch? Or is it suggesting that we are never too old to chase our dreams, even if our dreams come at a price, so maybe we should be careful what we wish for? It is probably all of these and more, and even if you find yourself half-guessing Lioness’s secret long before it is actually revealed, the climax will still take you by surprise and may even break your heart a little. With prose that is more akin to poetry, Beagle’s storytelling casts a spell as potent as Lioness’s magic – if magic is what it is – and his characters, especially Abe and Joanna, are exquisite creations. It’s so good to read a story wherein older people are allowed to be the ‘heroes’ of the adventure, and not relegated to the supporting cast. As a fantasy, this might not have enough darkness for many readers, but as a work of fantastical art, it is flawless.

SUMMERLONG / AUTHOR: PETER S. BEAGLE / PUBLISHER: TACHYON PUBLICATIONS / RELEASE DATE: SEPTEMBER 29TH