Review Category: Books

Supersymmetry is set 15 years after the events of Superposition. The previous book was a rather well paced science fiction crime thriller which used modern quantum theory as a gimmick to justify extra-dimensional monsters and rapidly changing characters. The sequel doesn’t quite match up.

Supersymmetry sees the two twins, Alex and Sandra, all grown up and getting on with their lives.  Sandra is (conveniently) a police officer and Alex is an (equally useful) physicist. Both discover quite early on that the nasty monster from the previous book has found a way back into the real world and is now causing havoc and horror. This is being blamed on terrorists, of course.

Meanwhile, brilliant-but-difficult genius Ryan Oronzi has somehow reproduced the Big Bang in his lab, creating his own pocket universe. In the world of Supersymmetry, this means he can manipulate the Higgs field in order to adjust our reality. Basically, he has magic super science powers and he’s using it to impress his peers. Unfortunately, it was these sort of shenanigans that caused all sorts of problems in the first novel, including unleashing horrible monsters on our reality.

In fact, a lot of the ideas from the last book are recycled here. Not only does someone get accused of murder (when it was, in fact, the monster’s fault), we also have a similar sort of story structure, with the perspective batting backwards and forwards throughout. This rather disrupts the pace and, once you realise that this is a remix of the first book, makes everything rather predictable.

This is firmly American-style science fiction which uses the trappings of physics to tell a rather unreal story. The characters are pretty wooden and it doesn’t help that two of the main protagonists are meant to be pretty much the same person. The result is that everyone feels the same; we’re told that Oronzi is difficult but it’s hard to buy into that at points.

As a fun thriller with some outlandish elements, Supersymmetry rather fun. As a sequel to the previous book, it’s somewhat disappointing. The clever, reality-twisting elements that made the first book seem so compelling are painfully predictable here. Still, it’s an entertaining romp.

SUPERSYMMETRY / AUTHOR: DAVID WALTON / PUBLISHER: PROMETHEUS BOOKS / RELEASE DATE: SEPTEMBER 1ST

 

As iconic for his colourful pop art prints as he was for his forward-thinking approach to art and the celebrity, Andy Warhol was never one to shy away from any medium when it came to his art, and the Polaroid was no exception, soon becoming an integral part of his art and the work process that went into creating those iconic screen-prints.

Andy Warhol Polaroids takes a look at Warhol’s unbridled love of the Polaroid. Never one to be seen without a camera, his beloved Polaroid camera soon became one of his tools of choice, whether it was snapshots documenting his art, photos of friends, or production shots used to create his latest screen-prints, documenting a slice of life in The Factory and beyond, and peeling back the layers of his work, giving you an in depth look at the process behind some of his most iconic works.

His cult approach to his work often saw him taking on the celebrity for some of his most famous works, from Marilyn Monroe to Debbie Harry and even Alfred Hitchcock just a mere selection of the celebrities, actors and performers whom he often rubbed shoulders with documented inside. From candid Polaroid shots of Arnold Schwarzenegger in his pre-Terminator bodybuilding heyday, to a young Sylvester Stallone and a snapshot of Lana Turner, even the glitterati of Hollywood wanted to be captured and documented in his works.

At a time when the Polaroid has become much more of a digital product compared to its classic instant film days, it’s a great snapshot of this iconic product, as well as an insightful look behind the scenes into Warhol’s work process. With many photos that you’ll instantly recognise from some of his most famous pieces of work, to others that you won’t have seen before, it’s a great collection of his Polaroid shots throughout his career, as well as a peek at a time long before the selfie became the norm, making for a great read for any Warhol fan.

ANDY WARHOL POLAROIDS 1958 -1987 / AUTHOR: RICHARD B. WOODWARD / EDITOR: REUEL GOLDEN / PUBLISHER: TASCHEN GMBH / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

 

Mick Oberon, a private detective who walks the mean streets of 1930s Chicago, isn’t your average investigator. For one thing, he carries a magic wand rather than a revolver, and the ears beneath his hat are more pointed than normal. Mick’s an Elf, a sidhe to be exact, and he’s crossed from a world of Celtic legends and lore to join ours. Unfortunately, he’s not the only one.

It’s a fascinating concept, and a solid foundation for yet another gripping story. Hallow Point is the second of Ari Marmell’s Mick Oberon books, following on from Hot Lead, Cold Iron, and anyone who hasn’t read the first should do so before starting Hallow Point; many of the characters from the previous book return, and many situations are mentioned. Once in, it’s a highly enjoyable ride; the writing takes its reader into the heart of every scene, meaning we care more about the fates of the characters rather than trying to second-guess the plot.

Oberon’s wisecracking narration is first class, bringing the character and the world to vivid life. By using “kinda” instead of “kind of”, he evokes the speech of the time, making it a read that has a definite voice. Marmell gets his readers right into the head of his protagonist, feeling his emotions as well as a genuine concern that he’s in serious danger, involved too deep in a situation he, at first, would rather ignore. The story flows at a cracking pace, with near-seamless exposition, characters exchanging rapid-fire dialogue and banter; Marmell writes great fight scenes, too, and his unique mix of mythology, magic and the Mob is always gripping. Where there’s potential to be gruesome, he never goes too far, letting the reader fill in the blanks, while still creating a suitable sense of unease.

There are a couple of moments where the slang feels somewhat forced, and the opening scene followed by the “this is how I got here” is starting to become a too-common trope of storytelling these days, but Hallow Point remains a great read, reinvigorating the tropes of two genres to enable them to rise above cliché status. With final revelations that imply a larger conspiracy, it seems Marmell has plenty more up his sleeve for his hero, and we can’t wait to see what’s in store for Mick Oberon in the future.

HALLOW POINT / AUTHOR: ARI MARMELL / PUBLISHER: TITAN BOOKS / RELEASE DATE: AUGUST 28TH

 

Everyone has heard of Robin Hood. Even if you have never read the story or watched one of the many films (and really…who hasn’t?), this most English of legends is ingrained into our cultural psyche. It is a surprise and a relief that the new book from co-authors Debbie Viguié and James R. Tuck manages to feel so original and engaging.

Mark of the Black Arrow (Robin Hood: Demon’s Bane #1), be it something of a mouthful, takes its inspiration from the heart of the legend, but combines it with a twist of black magic and more than a hint of the supernatural. As King Richard heads for The Crusades, leaving England in the hands of the malevolent Prince John, a darkness begins to spread across the land. Only the efforts of a few, including Maid Marion and Friar Tuck, can hope to keep it at bay… and, of course, with the help of a certain hooded hero.

There is scene-setting and pre-amble aplenty with Mark of the Black Arrow as it is some 250 pages or so into a 360-page book that talk amongst the “rebels” turns to the need for a saviour. Given the #1 in the title and the many threads to tie up come the finale, the author’s plans for a series are clear, but that said there is more than enough here to maintain the reader’s interest. Despite what feels a little like an elongated prologue at times, this is a book that will be enjoyable regardless of your level of prior knowledge.

If anything, the Robin Hood name itself may be the toughest sell. So regular are the outings of Sherwood’s most famous son that fatigue brought on by familiarity may prove a hindrance. That would be a shame as this bleak and bloody telling of the Robin Hood story makes engaging reading, and as origin stories go it’s a pretty good one.

ROBIN HOOD: DEMON BANE #1 – MARK OF THE BLACK ARROW / AUTHOR: DEBBIE VIGUIE, JAMES R. TUCK / PUBLISHER: TITAN BOOKS / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
 

Funny, whimsical and bizarre, You’re Never Weird on the Internet (Almost) is a memoir about the “Queen of Geeks” Felicia Day and her rags-to-riches rise to Internet fame, which successfully launched her career and made her one of the most popular, as well as most influential, creators in modern media culture. In this book, we are taken on a journey through Felicia’s strange, yet unique, life and world, including her isolated home-schooled childhood, her rise to stardom, creating universally lauded web-series The Guild and becoming one of the faces of Geek & Sundry, as well her brush-ins with fandom, depression and controversy.

Reading the book does feel like hanging out with Felicia Day, and throughout you get to know and understand what it is that drives Felicia, where she comes from, and what her ambitions in life are. As you read each line, you can definitely hear Felicia’s unique voice and quirky sense of humour through the words written on the page, whether it’s her criticising her own fashion sense, her World of Warcraft addiction or recalling her most weirdest fan requests.

Yet, at the same time, she doesn’t shy away from being blunt and truthful about being an actress and the Hollywood industry in general; she recalls about being chastised by her coach (who she describes as being “the embodiment of a human turd”) during acting classes, and how, in an attempt to finance The Guild, one digital executive wanted to take control of what is her brainchild away from her and being quite sexist about it.

Even though The Guild was her baby and had been universally received worldwide, Felicia doesn’t shy away from the cold hard facts about how tough making the series was and how it was depressing letting it go after so long. She’s open and honest about her struggles through anxiety and depression, which is something that many of us can suffer from yet feel stigmatized by it and therefore don’t share.

In many ways, this book is sort of a love story about discovering a community through gaming and the Internet while still remaining proud and confident in ones’ own loves and passions (and geeky nerdiness), despite the negativity encountered in one’s own mind and/or through trolls. At the beginning of her book, Day refers to herself as “that quirky chick in that one science-fiction show” or as “usually the lone female on lists of prominent nerds.” Yet, throughout her career she has proven to be much more than that.

Yes, she had prominent roles on cult fan-centric shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Supernatural and Eureka and she famously played Penny in Joss Whedon’s online musical phenomenon Dr. Horrible’s Sing-a-long Blog. But it was really the Internet where Day found her voice, and through The Guild and Geek & Sundry, she’s been expressing her creativity, as well her love for gaming, to everyone and has inspired a legion of fans. Like Joss Whedon, she cares passionately about her fanbase and is very much in touch with her fans and what they want of her.

As Whedon stated in his foreword for the book, Felicia is “more than a self-made woman” and reading this book is definitely like spending an afternoon with her and getting to know what goes on inside her strange and brilliant mind. In a way, the title perfectly sums up the moral to Felicia’s story and why it’s inspirational to everyone: It’s about embracing what makes you different and having the bravery and courage to share it with the world, and that’s why the digital misfit that is Felicia Day is a talent not to be reckoned with.

YOU’RE NEVER WEIRD ON THE INTERNET (ALMOST) / AUTHOR: FELICIA DAY / PUBLISHER: SPHERE / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
 
 

Originally published in 1980 as The Best of Walter M. Miller Jr., Dark Benediction is a collection of short stories from the author of the Hugo-winning classic A Canticle for Leibowitz. Unlike his contemporaries, Miller only had a handful of stories (many of which remain uncollected) and the one novel published in his lifetime. He did, however, script several episodes of Captain Video in 1953. It’s a testament to the writer that despite a meagre body of work he is still being published today.

During World War II Miller served as a tail gunner flying more than fifty missions over Italy. The bombing of the Benedictine Abbey at Monte Cassino proved to be such a traumatic experience for him that it influenced his writing, as did his conversion to Catholicism. Miller’s stories are tinged with spirituality and often feature characters looking for salvation or redemption. His characters are so well realised that within the opening paragraphs you care about their situations and plight. There’s a mundanity to their lives, a normality that is stifling and it doesn’t matter whether they are educated or not, rich or poor. There’s a yearning within them and sometimes they know what it is that they yearn for, but often not. Miller’s characters are never plot devices but real people that matter. They drive the plot and that is what makes Miller such an accomplished writer.

The Will is the most heart-breaking, bitter-sweet story amongst this collection. Kenny is a young boy who is diagnosed with an unspecified terminal disease, but whilst watching his favourite television show, Captain Chronos “Custodian of Time, Defender of the Temporal Passes, Champion of the Temporal Guard”, he devises a plot to save himself. It’s a simple enough idea and the ending isn’t hard to work out, but we defy any parent with young children not to be moved by this eloquent tale of hopelessness, regret and longing.

Another highlight of the collection is Anybody Else Like Me? Miller wracks up the tension at the turn of every page as the story’s protagonist, Lisa Waverly, inadvertently discovers she is a mutant with telepathic abilities. She’s “well-read, well-rounded, well-informed…. Then why this quiet misery?” Well that’s due to the isolation she feels, the sense that she is somehow disconnected from the rest of humanity. Even her husband and children can’t seem to fill the void that seems to be a part of her life. Then she encounters another whom shares her abilities and has sought her out with the intention of siring mutant offspring, whether she wants to be a willing participant or not.

There are plenty of stories set in the future too. The majority are post-apocalyptic and vividly describe a blasted wasteland, which had clearly been influenced from the bombing raids Miller witnessed first-hand, like the proto A Canticle for Leibowitz, Dumb Waiter. The others cast a very pessimistic view on the future of humankind such as I, Dreamer, a horrific yet touching story concerning cyborgs, and Conditionally Human where mentally enhanced dogs and chimps are used as surrogate children in a population controlled world. But happens when they are no longer wanted?

Perhaps the best of this delightfully dark bouquet is the title story itself, Dark Benediction. An alien parasite has infected a third of the human race and it is spread by simply touching another person. A strange fact about the contagion is that it doesn’t seem to be particularly harmful. The infection causes rather pleasant hallucinations and an uncontrollable desire for the infected to spread the contagion as they see it as gifting the uninfected. However, the uninfected live in a state of constant fear. How can the world function if people are too terrified to leave their homes in case they become infected from something as incongruous as a touch.

Naturally there are stronger stories than others in this collection, but even the not so strong are rich with ideas and inventiveness. There are no fillers here.

Miller struggled with depression and became a recluse from his family and friends before he eventually took his own life in 1996, shortly after his wife’s death. A literary star and troubled talent that shone so brightly before being extinguished too soon.

DARK BENEDICTION / AUTHOR: WALTER M. MILLER JR. / PUBLISHER: GOLLANCZ / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
 

The Temporal Logbook brings together a selection of stories from writers throughout Doctor Who’s fandom. We have a story for each of the ‘classic’ line-up of the Doctor’s incarnations (so those looking for a War Doctor story amidst this collection will be thoroughly disappointed). To begin with, A Modest Intervention by Michael Baxter sees the First Doctor taking a vested interest in scandal-hit Victorian society. Next, in J.E. Remy’s Breathe, the Second Doctor cannot even take time out to refuel the TARDIS at the Medusa Cascade when trouble emerges. And this patterns, we are given snapshots into the Doctor’s life throughout his incarnations including: The Telecamad, a not so straight forward trip to Ancient Greece for the Third Doctor, Impossible Things Before Breakfast sees the Fifth Doctor encounter a certain Lewis Carroll, meanwhile, Mud & Metal sees Christopher Eccleston’s Ninth Doctor encounter the Cybermen and rounding off at the end is Many A Weary Foot in which the current Twelfth Doctor reflects on his past adventures with a young girl lonely at Christmas.

This is a wonderful anthology of stories and cannot be praised highly enough. For such short stories (the average length being about 18 pages), their level of description provides vivid detail for the reader; the benefit these stories have is that the main characters are already established so the writers see that they can they can spend more time establishing a credible problem for the Doctor to solve. Meanwhile, with such a vast cross-media history to draw from, the stories give an opportunity to make reference to past (and future) adventures and to past incarnations (even in the wrong order in true timey-wimey style!).

The one minor nag that you could have about the collection (in a positive way) is that some of the stories are held back because of the general nature of the short story; in other words, some of these have the potential to become full stories.

To wrap things up, Temporal Logbook is a wonderful addition to the Doctor Who canon (the 50th anniversary having legitimised Doctor Who media between the show’s original ending and it’s revival); its vivid stories build on the show’s rich history and creates wonderful little episodes for the reader to enjoy and you can see the relationship between the stories as well; they are different adventures all belonging to the same man.

TYPE 40 TARDIS – THE TEMPORAL LOGBOOK / AUTHOR: VARIOUS / PUBLISHER: PENCIL TIP PUBLISHING / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
 

Regeneration is the third book of the ®evolution series by Stephanie Saulter. Upon starting the book, the reader finds that time has jumped forward eight years in the narrative, and Zavcka Klist is about to be released from prison for her crimes in the series previous book, Binary. Klist appears to have mellowed somewhat, but Aryel Morningstar, the discoverer of Klist’s shocking plan in Binary and cause for her to be imprisoned, knows this is not necessarily the case. Meanwhile, the development of the gillungs – genetically modified, water-breathing humans – new aquatic industry could revolutionise the energy industry, but is causing fear amongst their competitors, giving thought that the biohazard scare at the recent festival was no accident.

Introducing some new characters and bringing back some of the old, Saulter develops the futuristic narrative beyond imagination in Regeneration. The technology birthed throughout the series is fantastical without being unrealistic, which is a pitfall of many science-fiction novels. The society created around this also feels completely real. It highlights the difficulties that communities have been dealing with for decades; the integration of those of a different race, or those with a disability. The politics behind this are highly focused upon in Regeneration, where Gemsigns and Binary were more interested with social media and public perception. We see the recognisable Mikal Varsi, councillor, trying to do what is right for his gem constituents while also battling with the internal turmoil that he could just make their situation worse.

When reading Regeneration, it’s hard not to be in awe of the story, especially when considering it is the third book of the series. Saulter has managed to create three very different, but completely linked, narratives, all exploring something different enough to encapsulate the reader, but linked enough to leave you shocked at the revelations which have been hinted at in the previous books. Much like it’s predecessors, the novel gathers pace gradually before the highly satisfying blowout at the climax of the narrative, revealing the answers to the questions that have been amounting since chapter one, but replacing them with others leaving the reader wanting more. This makes the series feels completely planned, but at the same time completely offhand. Saulter’s writing has certainly become stronger with each novel; where Gemsigns at times is difficult to follow, Regeneration is much more succinct. Stephanie Saulter is fast becoming one of our favourite authors, and so we’re therefore both impatiently and excitedly waiting to see where the next instalment of the series will take it’s fascinating characters, and can only hope it will be published soon.

®EVOLUTION: REGENERATION / AUTHOR: STEPHANIE SAULTER / PUBLISHER: JO FLETCHER BOOKS / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

Set in 1st century AD Britain, Skin takes a takes a little while to get into while you familiarise yourself with the tribal way of life and their archaic speech patterns, but the book slowly sucks you in and before you know it you’ve been completely hooked.

It follows the life of Ailia, a teenage kitchen girl left abandoned as a baby and raised by the tribe’s cook, and how her life is affected by the belief of Skin. A spiritual birthing that ties the tribespeople to the land, Skin is passed on by a child’s mother in song and is a significant part of being perceived as a true person. Since Ailia is a foundling she has no Skin and as such is unable to hold any position of authority or be taught the skills required for her to advance to a more important role within the tribe. However, it’s precisely this status of social pariah that allows her to perceive the faults in the druidic philosophies and forge her own path without any weight of expectation or obligation upon her.

The female perspective from which the story is told allows the more spiritual aspects of Brythonic life to come to the fore, and in doing so thankfully avoids much of the tribal warriors’ macho dick measuring that permeates many historical fantasies. Instead, the focus is on the mystery of Ailia’s life and what the answers to questions both tacit and spoken mean for everyone involved, all the while the looming shadow of Rome and the expansionistic campaigns of Emperor Claudius threaten the tribe’s freedom and lives.

Some characters and events come straight out of history texts, but it’s not necessary to, say, recognise Taliesin as the name of a quasi-mythical Welsh bard to appreciate him as Ailia’s first love, or know that Cunobelinus was a real-life Celtic king whose death led to the period of instability that allowed for the Roman invasion. The seamless weaving of the historical with the fictional and the fantastical is what gives the story its magic, and the equal importance placed in all aspects of it mean that it feels just as natural for Ailia to giggle about boys with her friends as it does for her to hold the attention of earth goddesses.

The book itself feels like a written historical account of the physical and spiritual experiences that ultimately shape Ailia from girl to young woman as she fully realises the destiny that awaits her, implying a story that will be retold over generations and centuries, growing ever more fanciful with each iteration until she transcends into a figure of legend like Cadwaladr or King Arthur. At its core, Skin is a young girl’s coming of age story, but its resonant prose, distinct characters, thematic depth and emotional sensitivity all combine to form a tale as evocative as it is compelling.

SKIN / AUTHOR: ILKA TAMPKE / PUBLISHER: HODDER & STOUGHTON / RELEASE DATE: AUGUST 6TH

 

Famed for his chunky sci-fi novels, Peter F. Hamilton has dropped the middle initial to bring us The Queen of Dreams, the first volume of The Books of the Realms series. With a cover depicting a hooded, skeletal figure in wraparound shades and a squirrel armed with a sword, it’s not difficult to guess the type of story contained within, nor the age group that this book has been squarely aimed at.

While this is a book for children – its protagonists are two sisters not yet in their teens – it’s a story with an atmosphere and style that begs to be read aloud, ideally around a warm fire on a cold night. It has a certain charm to it that, once begun, makes it difficult to put down, even if you’re a quarter of a century older than the target demographic. Shared in this way, readers (and listeners) would be able to cheer the hero, hiss the villain and – crucially – finish each chapter with an insistent need to continue onto the next to find out what happens. The illustrations by Adam Stower go hand-in-hand with the text, complementing it much as Quentin Blake’s did with Roald Dahl; his use of shading captures the mood of the scene perfectly, while the facial expressions truly bring the characters to life.

Adult fans of fantasy will no doubt see where Hamilton’s influences lie; there are dark riders, talking animals, portals into other worlds where our child heroes must battle the Dark Lord to end a terrible winter. Yet, the truth about such tropes is that they’ve resonated through the years across all ages, and Hamilton puts his own modern twist on things to prevent any lapse into cliché – his elves are particularly amusing, for instance.

So, while there may not be anything groundbreaking here, the younger readers for which it’s intended will find The Queen of Dreams an exciting and intelligent tale, one with a moral message that is simple yet never overstated. The book’s wit and charm spans the generations, making this a story to be shared and enjoyed by all ages, leaving the reader eager for the next instalment.

THE QUEEN OF DREAMS / AUTHOR: PETER HAMILTON / PUBLISHER: DOUBLEDAY CHILDREN’S / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW