Review Category: Books

Isn’t it always the way? Some weeks ago, I was feverishly researching the early Hammer Frankenstein films for my Some Assembly Required feature, now along comes a tantalisingly titled book called The Curse of Frankenstein in the Devil’s Advocates series that could’ve helped me out.

Or could it?

As I eagerly read the book, looking for any minutae of trivia or factoid that I might have missed elsewhere, it dawned upon me that this was not that type of book.

Author Marcus K. Harmes is a lecturer at the University of Southern Queensland, Australia – and what he has written here is an academic series of essays that ponder the origins of Hammer’s first colour film, its motivations, and its influence on British Gothic Cinema, previously the non-horror domain of J. Arthur Rank’s Gainsborough studios.

You’ll find no quotable soundbites from any of the actors or technicians involved with the production, no fresh insights regarding Phil Leaky’s messy make-up. What you WILL find are quotations from some of the offended Fleet Street critics of the day, whose delicate sensibilities had been, well, hammered, I guess by the vile, despicable, amoral, corrupting, fetid eighty minutes they had endured in the name of journalism.

From there, Harmes examines the origins of the film expounding in detail on the paradigm of transgressive adaptation. Simply put, that the original novel by Mary Shelley, because of its length and its sweeping location changes, not only hasn’t been adapted accurately to date, but it would be impossible to do so. Furthermore, in adapting a book that is as long as Mrs Shelley’s opus, the fact of editing scenes out and melding characters, eliminating some, giving one’s traits to another and so on, means that your transgression from the original source material has resulted in creating something completely different from those same elements. It’s an interesting and somewhat mind expanding paradigm, and does give the reader food for thought.

Overall, it’s a slim volume, running to 100 pages, but a little goes a long way as it’s written in an aloof academic style reminiscent of a thesis, which eventually becomes tedious.

THE DEVIL’S ADVOCATES: THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN / AUTHOR: MARCUS K. HARMES / PUBLISHER: AUTEUR PUBLISHING / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

 

Erimem needs a bit of introduction. She once travelled with the Fifth Doctor on audio before getting married to the King of Peladon, and is also a real Pharaoh from history. If that weren’t complex enough, this new series from Thebes Publishing needs to get Erimem on stage without touching any complicating licensing issues. Cue the inevitable amnesia. Amnesia is not enough on its own; there is also a lot of setup around who is Erimem for new readers, why is she important, and just how does she end up in 21st century London.

The writers do all that pretty well and settle us down into a story where a mysterious young woman appears from nowhere, makes new friends, then all get relocated to history and the Roman/Egyptian wars. The readers know a gang of cultists is following Erimem, but all she and her new friends know is ancient history is violent and smells. A lot.

The story is very much (at this point) a traditional time travel tale you might have read in the 1970s; only Erimem and one of the party (a historian) can make themselves understood, the other characters have to do the best they can and avoid being killed by either locals, Romans or cultists.

The story works well as it puts Erimem into contact with Cleopatra and allows the character of Erimem to be well-explored and have some anguish – her friends tell her Egypt is no longer a super-power and she wants to change history. This thread isn’t pursued very far and the story then balances some history with a gripping adventure story that ends well for Erimem and most of her new friends. They even grab themselves time travel technology and plenty of loose ends to set up a new series of books.

As someone who was familiar with Erimem from audio, this particular writer did struggle at times to reconcile that character with the warrior woman presented on the pages of this book. I also wonder if the audience for the character is large enough to make it a viable series. If you take away the vague Doctor Who connection (as they had to) does this interest fans enough? Time will tell, and we wish it well.

Despite a somewhat circuitous setup, this is a well written story and bodes well for the rest of the series.

ERIMEM: THE LAST PHARAOH / AUTHOR: IAN MCLAUGHLIN, CLAIRE BARTLETT / PUBLISHER: THEBES PUBLISHING / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

 

In a clash-strewn galaxy far, far away, yeoman Jedi Anakin Skywalker is torn between duty to the Jedi, his love Padme, and concern for his beloved mother. It’s a story that brings together both the quill of Shakespeare and the galaxy of George Lucas, with a parody novel that will certainly surprise you.

With a cast of characters that we’re all too familiar with, The Clone Army Attacketh is the latest instalment in author Ian Doescher’s take on the Star Wars universe, bringing a refreshingly different direction, as we follow Anakin on his fateful path and that of the entire Republic.

A tale of noble ladies in danger, and great battles between knights and squires that could have easily been penned by Shakespeare himself, that is if he were more inclined towards galactic battles, but the style that we’re familiar with from Shakespeare’s work, of insightful soliloquies and tales of wit, are interwoven perfectly with the familiar storylines from Episode II: Attack of the Clones.

With great twists and turns throughout, letting us see some of our favourite (and not so well-loved) characters play out a different story amongst the familiar storylines, from a witty R2-D2, to a far more enjoyable Jar Jar Binks, as each character tells their story amongst the battles.

The story is brought together perfectly with some period illustrations throughout, making for a novel that could have been plucked out of the Bard’s best.

The Clone Army Attacketh certainly goes where other parody novels have often failed to tread, you won’t find a silly spin-off here, but a surprisingly well thought out read that brings together the best of Shakespeare with Attack of the Clones for a Star Wars parody that’s simply an entertaining read. Whether you’re familiar with Shakespeare’s works or not, you’ll find it a joy to read, with plenty of surprises along the way.

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE’S THE CLONE ARMY ATTACKETH / AUTHOR: IAN DOESCHER / PUBLISHER: QUIRK BOOKS / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

Abaddon’s Weird Space series started out really well with the Devil’s Nebula; it established a broad sci-fi setting filled with uneasy alliances, wild frontiers and deadly pan-dimensional marauders. The series faltered slightly with the bland follow-up, Satan’s Reach, so the third book, The Baba Yaga, has a lot to prove.

Luckily, it’s a return to form. The Baba Yaga establishes itself very quickly; the humans-only civilisation known as The Expansion is terribly concerned about the threat of the alien threat known as The Weird, so much so that it’s settled its differences with the alien Vetch, a competing species who have their own empire. The story focuses on Delia Walker, a senior officer in The Expansion’s intelligence agency, who is advocating a more measured and tactical approach to deal with the threat of The Weird. The attack on a world very close to The Expansion’s capital throws caution out of the window, and humanity sets a course for its own destruction by going into a full-on war setting. Walker, who has her own motivations for keeping the government from becoming too extreme, goes rogue in order to gather more information on the enemy, information that could well change the nature of the war.

McCormack and Brown keep a steady pace throughout this book, adding more to the Weird Space world as we go. The publisher, Abaddon Books, tends to create worlds for multiple authors to contribute to, yet up until now we’ve only seen books from Eric Brown. McCormack’s voice is refreshing and welcome. This book has more humanity and characterisation than previous books in the series, and the result is a much more engaging work in which we actually like the cast of characters, despite their best efforts to be unpleasant.

The Baba Yaga is a classic sci-fi romp, filled with old school action and clever commentary on our own world. It also works entirely well as a standalone novel, meaning knowing the events of the previous Weird Space books is nice but not required. Overall, this is a lot of fun and well worth a look.

WEIRD SPACE: THE BABA YAGA / AUTHOR: ERIC BROWN, UNA MCCORMACK / PUBLISHER: ABADDON BOOKS / RELEASE DATE: JULY 16TH
 

The book details the story of Yulla, a young lady born during an equinox. The people of Yulla’s village have a very specific tradition; every fifteen years, when the equinox comes, they hide in specially prepared caves and basements. This is because the goddess Mother Sun unleashes her Fire Children upon the world. These are avatars of the flame, literally burning beings that set fire to anything they touch. The village leaves out offerings, hides most of the flammable goods and waits until the scary burning people have gone.

Of course, Yulla, being a curious sort of girl, goes and takes a look for herself. In the process, she makes a discovery that could well change not only the world, but the heavens themselves. The Fire Children is a very strong tale aimed at the younger reader. It contains a little romance, a small amount of action and plenty of mystery. Lauren Roy creates a very detailed world in a very simple way, filling the story with magic and gods without drawing much attention. Magic seems a part of the world and though it is powerful and mysterious, isn’t immediately painted as something to be feared. Given that all the action takes place in one village, the tale should feel parochial and small. However, with very little set-up, she creates an epic and engaging world.

The writing style is very gentle and the action begins very slowly. This is important because the author takes the time to build up the characters. We genuinely care about Yulla and the friends that she makes on this adventure. The slow pace also masks the fact that the story is quite thin; one major thing happens in the book and there’s little in the way of subplots. 

The Fire Children is a good piece of fantasy fiction aimed at younger persons. Adults will blast through it easily, but it’s sure to spark the imaginations of more youthful readers.

THE FIRE CHILDREN / AUTHOR: LAUREN ROY / PUBLISHER: RAVENSTONE PRESS / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

 

The Hunt, from renowned horror writer Tim Lebbon, is a blistering thriller that starts with a brick wedged on the accelerator and bodies stuffed in the boot. While a genre departure this new novel is still packed with terror and monstrous people Lebbon writes so well.

The story centres on Chris, a successful architect who hit a midlife crisis when his mid-body got fat. He tackled his issues head on by becoming an avid runner. Now he has it all; a great job, a house in the country, a loving wife and two beautiful daughters. His world is balanced until he comes home from his morning run to discover a covert organisation called Trail have kidnapped his family. The underground outfit supplies human quarry for a sport reserved for the wealthiest in society.

Chris discovers the ransom to be paid is his participation in a hunt through the Welsh mountains. He finds himself frightened and alone until he meets a stranger called Rose. She has a motive of her own; to avenge the murder of her family and take out the main Trail coordinator named Grin. Rose is the sole survivor of the Trail. It’s through her that Chris discovers his family are safe as long as he survives and keeps running. The subplot of the aptly named Rose and her ascent from a slow suicide through drinking to a skilled hunter is a great break up diversion interspersed through the dynamic chapters. This subplot is a clever device allowing us to see the impact the Trail leaves on people’s lives. While Rose is being trained in southern Italy by a mysterious assassin named Holt, we discover the horrors that await Chris and his family. These languid recollections read like a summer evening on the precipice of a lighting storm.

The fast pace of the novel is also alleviated by shifting focus to the kidnapped family and their plight. These parts introduce us to the strong teenager daughter Gemma, who is a revelation, and the brutality of Grin. The Hunt shares DNA with Ernest R. Dickerson’s 1994 film, Surviving the Game, and even Richard Connell’s 1924 novel, The Most Dangerous Game, but Lebbon infuses his own originality.

The characters are strong, the locations rich with the right balance of intimate details, and the focus on the damage Trail has upon people is haunting. The Hunt is packed with so much action, twists and breath-holding moments we’re sure it’ll become a favourite for many thriller readers.

The Hunt is an Ironman novel; it swims along with pace, takes you on a thrilling ride and has the legs to run into a series.

THE HUNT / AUTHOR: T.J. LEBBON / PUBLISHER: AVON / RELEASE DATE: JULY 16TH

 

First published in 1971, and now the latest in Gollancz’s revamped Fantasy Masterworks series, John Gardner’s Grendel is a fascinating beast. It’s a book that, on first impression, aims to retell the classic Beowulf story from the monster’s point of view, but as events progress, it becomes apparent that it is so much more.

Two introductions pave the way for Gardner’s actual text, which weighs in at a slender 120 pages. Yet Grendel is a book that epitomises quality over quantity, a text that has been praised for its philosophical leanings as well as the storytelling abilities of its author. Rightly so; Gardner’s skills as a writer give him the confidence to experiment with both form and structure, giving his readers both prose and poetry, sometimes even a combination of the two. He’s able to say in a few words what other authors would take a page to do, delivering his prose in short, sharp bursts that still bring to life the thoughts of the narrator.

There are moments, however, where the more philosophic discourse pushes the story to one side. It can often sound incongruous, too; Viking warriors and dragons speaking modern phrases can jolt the reader out of the world that Gardner has done so well to establish. They may also dissuade readers from continuing, thinking it is too much of an academic book for their liking. Indeed, both introductions sing the praises of such things and could be seen as off-putting, but there’s so much heart and soul in the writing that it seems a shame to dismiss it as such. Yes, Grendel is deep and meaningful, with layers upon layers and striking symbolism, but it’s only as dense as the reader wants it to be, a demonstration of its writer’s profound intellect, but also his ability to entertain.

Above all, Grendel is a short yet powerful story, crafted in punchy writing that will keep its reader wanting to know more until the final page has been turned. At the same price as the larger volumes in the series, it may seem expensive, but this is a book that warrants a multitude of readings. It’s also warm and deeply moving, extremely atmospheric and with possibly the best description of a dragon ever committed to the printed page.

INFO: GRENDEL / AUTHOR: JOHN GARDNER / PUBLISHER: GOLLANCZ / RELEASE DATE: JULY 9TH

 

By the time this book displayed the twentieth example of a musical score (a 1-up sound effect), we realised we’d bitten off more than we could chew. Never has our favourite GIF, the one which shows Homer Simpson’s brain leaving his head, been so useful in expressing our feelings.

Such was our first exposure to Bloomsbury Academic’s 33 ⅓ range, a series of short books devoted to the study of significant albums or, in this case, soundtracks.

While we weren’t expecting a book in this highly academic series to be like Music for Dummies, sometimes it feels like Schartmann has forgotten that a lot of his readers don’t hold two music degrees. As this 106th volume of the series is their first gaming title, we feel there should have been quite a bit of dumbing down as Super Mario Bros. is an extremely popular subject that’s likely to bring in a lot of new readers. Not to mention the fact that we’re quite thick.

The bits we understood, however, were generally informative and entertaining. The first half of the book was dedicated to the historical context of the gaming industry in general and Koji Kondo specifically, as well as dealing with the technical limitations he had to work with when creating his seminal soundtrack. This was easily the most fascinating part and we would’ve been happy if the book was written entirely in that style.

But it is what it is. We look forward to reading more gaming titles (certainly there are thousands of words to be written about soundtracks like Donkey Kong Country or some of the Grand Theft Auto games), but if they’re as impenetrable to the casual reader as this one then you can count us out. If you are a music enthusiast or can tell a treble clef from a high C (are they even different things? We don’t know), you’ll probably enjoy this book. Anyone else is advised to just read the first half.

INFO: 33 ⅓ : KOJI KONDO’S SUPER MARIO BROS. SOUNDTRACK / AUTHOR: ANDREW SCHARTMANN / PUBLISHER: BLOOMSBURY ACADEMIC / RELEASE DATE: JULY 16TH

 

Joe Abercrombie’s Shattered Sea series comes to its terribly interesting conclusion with the third and final book, Half a War. The book follows the formula of the previous two, following the life and motivations of a previously unseen younger character. At the same time, it expands on the consequences of the actions of previous main characters.

The world of the Shattered Sea is at war. The High King has had enough of the Viking-like Gettlanders and their barbarian allies, and thanks to the manipulations of the vengeance-driven Father Yarvi, peace is not an option. Alas, the High King has more resources and the Gettlanders are on the back foot. Worse still, the Princess Skara has lost her kingdom, which is a pity as her homeland also happened to be the most tactically valuable piece of land in the war.

The two new heroes are the Princess Skara and her reluctant bodyguard, Raith. In a theme common to the series, both have their own coming of age stories with plenty of angst. We don’t get quite as much time with these characters as they deserve; there’s also a war story to tell and the characters from the previous books still have their own tales to tell.

Elements of Half a War feel rushed; though key events (such as a journey to the Elf Ruins) have long been foreshadowed, because there is little build up in this book it feels as if the story is incomplete.  More so than the others, Half a War is very much part of a series; it won’t make sense as a standalone, and the (extremely) satisfying conclusions to multiple story arcs need the novel-length run-ups they’ve had to work.

For a war story, there is less grime and horror here; Joe Abercrombie does not quite live up to his title as Lord GrimDark. War becomes abstract at points, and though the author touches on the reasons why violence should never be taken lightly (or made easy), this doesn’t carry the weight it needs to in order to replace the gore and despair of the previous books. Half a War is a strong conclusion to an outstanding series. We look forward to seeing what Abercrombie does next.

INFO: HALF A WAR / AUTHOR: JOE ABERCROMBIE / PUBLISHER: HARPERVOYAGER / RELEASE DATE: JULY 16TH

 

Given that Back To The Future has been so widely covered by journalists in the 30 years since its release, perhaps it’s not surprising that hardly any ‘making of’ books have popped up over the years. But after reading We Don’t Need Roads our main question is, why didn’t this book come out sooner? 

It’s very well written with a pace that zooms right along like some sort of vehicle, possibly one connected to the franchise that goes at 80-odd miles per hour. True, it reads like an extended feature article but this is no bad thing. Before you know it, you’re 200 pages in and engrossed in one of the Crispin Glover horror stories.
Part of this clearly comes from a place of love; the introduction states that Gaines saw it in his formative years and it had a huge impact on him. As such, we expected a fawning and shallow approach. But on the contrary, this doesn’t protect the films from criticism as one of the key strengths of this book is acknowledging the things that went wrong during the production of the trilogy. More importantly, he puts effort into understanding why these decisions or events came to pass in the way that they did. For example, there is a lengthy description of the trouble endured by one of the stuntwomen on the set of BTTF II when a stunt goes wrong. He examines what everyone involved was thinking and how the incident could have been averted. The way he tells the story is intelligent and makes for a thrilling narrative.
We’ll put our cards on the table now, this is the Back to the Future book we’ve always wanted to read (other than George Gipe’s famously batshit insane novelisation of the first film). It is very well researched and filled with tons of new stories about the trilogy. It is that rarest of things, an in-depth book that feels like a light read. We only wish it could have gone on for longer.

WE DON’T NEED ROADS: THE MAKING OF THE BACK TO THE FUTURE TRILOGY / AUTHOR: CASEEN GAINES / PUBLISHER: PLUME / RELEASE DATE: JULY 9TH