Review Category: Books

Review: Amelia’s Song – A Virulent Fable / Author: Kneel Downe / Publisher: Lulu.com / Release Date: Out Now

Following his debut last year, Virulent Blurb: Fractures, Downe once again expands his Twitter-based prose, this time laying down the story of a unique little girl who is a big presence in this alternate world.

Amelia’s story crosses genders, timelines and species. Weaving in and out of previously established narratives, but staying very much on track within its own tale, it is sci-fi poetry as much as it is a story. It’s very easy to get drawn, like Amelia herself, into Downe’s futuristic world. While it isn’t necessary to have read the earlier book, or even be familiar with the Blurb Universe, it does help. Amelia’s heroic quest across strange lands inhabited by numerous strange creatures is an entertaining one, and this time Downe has enlisted the talents of Susan Omand to provide some choice illustrations to his twisted prose. These very effective, grey-scale drawings complement the words perfectly; adding to the images conjured in the imagination from the text. 

It’s easy to get engrossed in the world he has created, and understandable why Jeff (Vurt) Noon rates him highly. References to everything from Alice in Wonderland to David Bowie are not uncommon, but these nods aside, there is little derivative in the way he tells his tales.

The book, like its predecessor, is a result of his story-based Twitter feed, and as such it flows like a ticker-tape machine instead of a regularly formatted novel, making it surprisingly easy to ingest. Without convoluted descriptive passages, one’s imagination gets to work with the nudge of a few carefully chosen words. And had it not been for the occasional bit of swearing, this could easily suit all ages.

Don’t be put off by the self-published format; this is no vanity project. With another book due in November, and media companies looking into the Blurb-verse, it’s the perfect time to jump into this world. To find out more about the Blurb-verse, head over to the official website, and order the book online here.

 

Review: Dwarves War Fighting Manual / Author: Den Patrick / Publisher: Gollancz / Release Date: Out Now

One of a trio of books interconnected within the same universe, the Dwarves War Fighting Manual describes the habits and mentality of the stunties of author Den Patrick’s unnamed fantasy world. With no specific plot as sort, it serves as an in-universe record by a scribe, which covers their origins, fortresses, armies and one of their conflicts. Consisting of transcribed thoughts of dwarves, the book is punctuated by the personal thoughts of the human, Sebastian Venghaus, in an Amberly Vail-esque mixture of information, opinion and snark. 

The War Fighting Manuals’ main strength is the level of detail and thought that goes into fleshing out each race. This ranges from the opening idea that dragons were responsible for the creation of dwarves and providing them with gold for their hoards, hence their own obsessions with mining, to the very formation of their army. The latter point takes clear inspirations from the formation of the Roman legions with dwarf warriors, with personal services and roles beyond the military. 

The level of thought and detail, which has been put into how the society works, is easily its greatest strength. As well as going through each weapon individually and giving concise reasons for the dwarves’ favouring of hammers and distaste for magic, it goes into extensive detail about citadels. The overall defenses, which systems are in place to help deter attackers and even the basic differences in bridge constructions, are all present.

Delving into these ideas helps sell the idea that this race could exist, but it unfortunately relies a bit too heavily upon certain aspects over others. Sketches within the book often cover comparatively simple things while leaving others to the imagination. There is no general layout of any citadel present and the descriptions of its long halls and winding corridors don’t do the idea justice. Furthermore many weapons help to show the aesthetics of the race, but are all seemingly common items lacking artistic inscriptions or obvious differences with variants available to their lords. Furthermore, the one battle actually described is largely won in spite of the dwarves rather than because of their prowess or skill. It’s an elf that strikes the final blow and other creatures that seem to kill the majority of the enemy rather than the dwarves themselves. 

The book does many things right and has a lot of intelligence behind it, yet often it just doesn’t go far enough at points. For its page-length and price it’s well worth your time and money, especially if you enjoyed the likes of The Jedi Path, yet you’ve probably read better elsewhere.

Review: Necropolis / Author: Basil Copper / Publisher: Valancourt Press / Release Date: Out Now

Valancourt Press is a small publisher in the US that is doing a sterling job of bringing back into print neglected works in a number of niche genres, particularly the macabre and the occult. This gaslight detective novel by the prolific but unjustly neglected Basil Copper (1924-2013) is a recent beneficiary of their efforts, receiving its first paperback publication in more than 30 years.

Necropolis is essentially a straight Conan Doyle pastiche, but a very good one. Its resourceful hero is a private detective named Clyde Beatty, the sort of man who would make a very good second choice if you couldn’t get the great Sherlock Holmes to take your case. Together with his pugilist-turned-tech-guy assistant, Dotterel, he looks into the suspicious death of a City banker, which eventually opens up into a wider case of… but that would be telling.

Copper pens a sturdily entertaining tale, galvanized with regular gunplay and fisticuffs, and built around a series of atmospheric and crisply described set-pieces – an exhumation, the exploration of a tunnel where corpses spring out at you, various elaborate night-sorties and stakeouts. The expected Holmesian tropes are there – pea-soupers, stiff-upper-lipped dialogue (“The old firm stands together. But I must say we have not seen a tighter spot than tonight”), a villain with one leg shorter than the other, a supporting role for Inspector Lestrade. What gives this novel a little something extra, though, is the depth of Copper’s historical research and his sharp eye for the telling period detail. In particular, he makes great play with the real-life Brookwood Cemetery in Woking, a sprawling, 450-acre site which was served by a daily train from Waterloo (known as the Ghost Train) bringing coffins and mourners from London. One of the chief pleasures of Necropolis is the way in which Copper works this actual social phenomenon of the time so adroitly into the centre of the mystery.

Beatty himself never quite grabs the attention in the way that he should (he’s overshadowed by Dotterel, a much more intriguing and handy character), but this hardly matters in a novel that’s all about blood and thunder and old-fashioned storytelling. It’s quite amazing to think that a book that is so accessible and fun has been out of print for so long. Certainly anyone who relishes the steampunk novels of James Blaycock or any of the Holmes homages currently on the market should find it just the ticket for whiling away a foggy Autumn evening.

Review: Elves War Fighting Manual / Author: Den Patrick / Publisher: Gollancz / Release Date: Out Now

Source books for their own sake aren’t very common. Typically a book filled with details, illustrations and world-building material is based on some sort of popular franchise, and is either a summary of the information from whatever the source material is, or simply makes up a load of details that may then go on to be contradicted by other works.

The Elves War Fighting Manual however, is not based on any ready-made fantasy world; rather it establishes its own setting from the start and runs with it. The fighting elves detailed in this book are of the sort familiar to fans of Dungeons and Dragons, Warhammer and Norse myth. The author has taken the guise of the scholar Sebastian Venghaus, the fictional character who has translated all of this critical military information from the Elvish, and adds helpful comments along the way.

The book is played with an almost straight face; there’s a touch of dry wit here and there, but this is an in-world training manual for the military, and it’s clear that our scholar has a lot of respect for his elvish friends, and this helps the reader really get under the skin of this haughty race. The direction it takes is not without its flaws; for a species as different from humans as elves are meant to be, there’s an awful lot of things that will be familiar to any student of real world military history. This is perhaps unavoidable, but a little jarring at times.

The manual format allows the reader to delve into a fictional world in a way that is not possible with a conventional novel; because the entire work is exposition, the text invigorates the reader, and is clearly designed to inspire multiple flights of fancy. The book also has hints of dire threats and horrors to the world of the elves, and it would be nice to see these explored further at some point. There are some lovely ideas in this book, and it would be a shame if they weren’t given more exposure at some point.

This is a handy stocking-filler for those who like their fictional worlds filled with detailed diagrams, or those who are simply nostalgic for books like Volo’s Guide to the Forgotten Realms and the like.

Review: Star Trek Federation – The First 150 Years / Author: David A. Goodman / Publisher: Titan Books / Release Date: Out Now

Star Trek is the sort of franchise that seems to welcome immersion; blueprints and manuals for The Federation are readily available for fans to dive into, and Star Trek Federation: The First 150 Years is another in the long list of books that also double as in-world props for the sort of fan who really wants to live in the future. Specifically, this book reads and feels like the sort of textbook one would have to study if you joined Starfleet Academy, and the sort of thing you’d expect to see on the bookshelf of any self-respecting Federation admiral.

The book begins with the Zefram Cochrane’s galaxy-altering first flight and goes right on up to the death of James T. Kirk. It’s written as if The Federation had hired a historian to create an official account. That also means that anything that has happened in the TV show that the Federation didn’t know about is only mentioned in passing. For example, the Xindi (from the series Enterprise) are dealt with quite lightly here, despite being a major part of that show. This not only makes sense, it adds weight and credibility to the text. It is littered with artefacts from the world of Star Trek, which appear as full-colour plates, usually as a way of bookending subjects and chapters. Everything from personal letters, to translated intercepts from Klingons, to Presidential speeches have been lovingly mocked up and turned into art. The illustrations are similarly good, and the entire work is beautifully presented.

Those not used to reading history books may find this a little dry, but if you’re a big fan of Trek and looking for a new angle on a subject you know well, then you’ll get a real kick out of comparing the ‘official’ history to stuff that you know from the show. There’s plenty in here for the casual fan as well, and it makes a great text to dive in and out of casually when you’re in the mood for a bit of Star Trek fun. This is an invaluable text for the die-hard fan, and a great bit of fun for everyone else.

The book is available in two formats; one comes with extra letters, maps and a weird electronic pedestal thingy that lights up and speaks. The other version is just the book on its own. To be honest, the book is good enough on its own without the gimmicks. A must-have for any fan of the show.

Review: Space Monsters Magazine #2 / Author: Richard Gladman / Publisher: Self-published / Release Date: Out Now

Richard Gladman’s Space Monsters #2 is now available to pre-order, and this issue is a doozy. The theme is Space Vampires, and Richard’s regular team of writers are joined by the adorable Emily Booth (who contributes a touching appreciation of It – The Terror From Beyond Space in homage to her father who loved the movie, and passed that love on to Emily) and Billy Chainsaw (who contributes a characteristically pithy appraisal of Al Adamson’s cheese-fest Horror of the Blood Monsters).

Elsewhere there’s a retrospective of Tobe Hooper’s much-maligned but ripe-for-reappraisal Lifeforce by the ever-dependable Chris O’Loughlin; Ernie Magnotta casts an affectionate look at Buck Rogers in the 25th Century and Ted V. Mikels’s The Astro-Zombies; Anthony Gates gives his view on Ultraman and contributes retro-reviews of Not of this Earth and Queen of Blood; Eric (We Belong Dead) McNaughton remembers the Howard Hawks/Christian Nyby classic The Thing From Another World; Ash Loydon gives the lowdown on Vampirella in comics and attempted screen adaptations; Jonathan Dabell casts his eye on Mario Bava’s Planet of the Vampires and The First Man Into Space; and editor Gladman interviews ‘50’s sci-fi spoofer Christopher R. Mihm.

The whole thing is illustrated with reams of rare movie stills, posters and lobby cards courtesy of Steve Kirkham and Hemlock Books; with artwork by Loydon, Chainsaw and Woody Welch (who contributes the terrific cover featuring the aforementioned Ms Booth). A delight; great fun and the perfect Halloween treat for sci-fi/horror nostalgists everywhere.

Review: Trollslayer / Author: William King / Publisher: Black Library / Release Date: October 24th

One of three titles Black Library is re-releasing under its new Classics range, William King’s Trollslayer recounts the efforts of disgraced slayer Gotrek Gurnisson to find an honourable death. Thanks to a drunken oath, poet Felix Jaeger is forced to follow and record his fate as they combat orcs, trolls and the cultists of the dark gods. Unfortunately for both of them, Gotrek is extremely hard to kill.

King went on to write another six books, but this first instalment remains one of the strongest in the series. Along with striking a good balance between the darkness of the setting and high adventure, it’s one of the few which feels as if the duo are constantly on the move. Whereas other books are centred on single cities or enemies, Trollslayer is a constantly changing anthology of short tales as they move through the Empire. While the tales are smaller scale, they offer much more variety of foes. As such the book never feels as if it’s dragging and is more appropriate for the initial premise of a questing warrior.

The two are depicted fighting their way through many environments and settings, each requiring different strategies – a siege war, an effort to protect a cursed noble family, a raid upon a fallen city, an assault upon a cult. The pacing of each of these is well handled, and while King doesn’t offer the most descriptive of writing, his prose nonetheless never fails to be exciting. A major edge this book has over later tales is that the heroes are far from immortal, to the point where Gotrek gains his iconic eye patch during a vicious battle.

The humour the series is known for is well established here. As with the dark elements, it’s perfectly balanced with the combat and provides plenty of moments of levity. The trade-off is a lack of serious drama, but it’s hard to imagine anyone turning to Trollslayer for deep insights into its characters.

Trollslayer is far from a substantial book, but it proves to be great fun. Better yet, it has aged very well despite being written fifteen years ago. As an introduction to the Old World and a fun adventure story, Trollslayer is well worth your time, but there are more serious and substantial tales out there.

Review: Star Wars Art – Concept / Author: Lucasfilm / Publisher: Abrams / Release Date: Out Now.

Strange as it may seem, 36 years on, the Lucasfilm archives still manage to find new material about the Star Wars universe to release.

Star Wars Art: Concept is exactly what the title suggests, and this is its value to Star Wars fans. Keeping text to an absolute minimum apart from forewords and introductions by Joe Johnson and Doug Chiang and a short interview by J. W. Rinzler, it lets the artwork do the talking. It’s an intriguing and alluring look at what might have been had earlier drafts of the scripts come to life on the screen. Kicking off with the iconic but familiar Ralph McQuarrie artwork, we see old favourites like the stand-off in the Mos Isley Cantina and a streamlined Darth Vader fighting Deak Starkiller. Intriguingly, we even see Alderaan not as the ill-fated, peace-loving planet atomised in A New Hope, but as a sterile-looking prison planet.

Much as we all owe a huge debt to the late Mr McQuarrie, the book’s real reward is the amount of space given to the works of the other concept artists including Industrial Light & Magic personnel who have contributed to the legacy in its various incarnations and expanded universe but whose work has been largely unseen until now.

Joe Johnston worked at ILM long before he became a director. He was a prolific artist, contributing among several others, early sketches of Yoda (but thankfully they never used the outrageous feet Johnston conceived for him,) and a more high-rise Jabba’s Palace. In a piece for Return of the Jedi, we see there were at one stage giant flying birds ridden by the rebels. How cool would THAT have looked on screen?

Leaving the original trilogy, we have draft sketches for the Droids and Ewoks cartoon series leading to, among others too numerous to mention, contemporary visionaries Ryan Church and Doug Chiang’s beautifully rendered and dynamic artwork for the prequel trilogy. It’s incredible to see the first design of General Grievous as a floating armoured entity in dark grey on the one hand, and how little the Battle of Geonosis changed from concept to realisation on the other.

Moving away from the films, the book then shifts its focus to pre-production artwork from the Clone Wars series and a proposed comedy show called Star Wars: Detours which sadly was never realised, and completes its journey from 1975 to the present by including of course the the video games.

Concept is in short an epic visual tour encompassing the entire Star Wars universe, giving a previously largely unseen glimpse of the soaring imagination of those responsible for bringing to life a stunning vision. It is a beautifully presented book worthy of shelf space in any Star Wars fan’s collection, if only to stare at the unused ideas and sigh wistfully at the roads not taken.

Review: Conquest / Author: John Connolly, Jennifer Ridyard / Publisher: Headline / Release Date: Out Now

The creation of authors John Connolly and Jennifer Ridyard, Conquest serves as a more hard-hitting take on humans vs aliens than is customarily given in books targeted at younger audiences. Turning humanity’s own technology against them, an alien force known as the Illyri has complete dominion over Earth. With a generation having passed since their arrival, Paul Kerr and Syl Hellais have grown up witnessing the conflict from opposite sides – both aware of the horrors of occupation, but not the true nightmare which will soon befall them…

As the first in a series, Conquest gets many elements right but makes many basic mistakes. Writing for young adults, the authors made the point of not talking down to their audience or portraying a black-and-white battle. While Earth has been taken over and skirmishes continue, the aliens do not pull an Independence Day and are even commented upon to have improved elements of life on Earth. Some Illyri are portrayed in a somewhat sympathetic light despite their loyalties, and similarly the human resistance is far from squeaky clean with extremely hostile members among their number. This is made especially clear very early on through the characters of Andrus and Knutter who contrast with the more hostile and heroic members of their factions. The book also does not avoid the subject of death, freely showing it despite the fascinatingly peaceful conquest by the Illyri in the book’s opening stages.

The chief problem is with the over-abundance of exposition. Many elements feel as if they’re being told to the reader, rather than explained through characters or environments. This is especially so in early pages outlining Earth’s fall which, while effective, could have been made vastly more immersive if they were framed as government documents or reports.

Early chapters feel as if they’re trying to get the set-up out of the way in as few pages as possible, and it does come across as rushed. More time should have been spent setting up the idea of the change in power and its long-term affects, and the aliens themselves. In a classic error, the Illyri are far too human in terms of both culture and physiology. While the latter is a point commented upon, very few cultural aspects are brought up to make them feel anything like a force from another world.

Conquest is definitely flawed, yet it retains enough positive elements to hold your interest until the final page. As a YA novel involving science fiction resistance fighters it’s no Animorphs, but with likeable characters, grey morality and a good mystery it’s a series with promise to it.

Review: Plastic Jesus / Author: Wayne Simmons / Publisher: Salt Publishing / Release Date: November 15th

Up until now, Belfast-born Wayne Simmons has been diligently working his way up the ladder, steadily building his reputation as an established blogger, columnist and horror author with novels like Flu, Fever, Drop Dead Gorgeous and Doll Parts to his name. Now, he steps out of his blood-splattered comfort zone and makes an indelible mark on the sci-fi genre with his first foray into the world of cyberpunk.

Due in stores in November, Plastic Jesus is an unrelenting look at the near future. Simmons skilfully comments on the current state of society and without stretching credibility, manages to give us a peek at where we may be headed. Believe us, the view isn’t a particularly inviting one but what it does is provide a stunningly realistic and relatable backdrop for a story that’s as gritty and violent as it is intriguing.

In the aftermath of a Holy War, the face of the Earth has changed. Continents have realigned. Maalside, which was once part of the US, is now in the middle of the Pacific far, far away from the mother country. It’s capital is Lark City and to quote from another sci-fi icon: “You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.”

Drugs, prostitution, murder and protection are all part of the daily routine in this underbelly of civilisation. The inhabitants escape the daily drudge and seediness by using VR – an addictive set-up where your brain is directly plugged into an invasive virtual reality program – and watching TV shows which seem vaguely familiar but taken to an extreme.

However, the company running the VR setup intends to rebrand religion to cater for the disillusioned masses and approach Johnny Lyon to create and write a virtual Jesus. At its launch, VR Jesus is an overwhelming success, and offers comfort where comfort is needed. The trouble is, the program begins to evolve beyond the boundaries of its concept and soon becomes impossible to shut down. Just as man has created his own heaven, hell is sure to follow as the corrupt program causes chaos and a complete breakdown of the social order out on the streets.

Simmons is a gifted writer who not only spins a tightly plotted yarn that the reader finds hard to put down, but he also crafts realistic characters with flaws we can identify with, sucking the reader even deeper into the twisted pseudo-reality created in the recesses of Simmons’ imagination. Given the depth of the story here and the dexterity that Simmons displays in wrapping a gripping yarn around an audacious concept, it’s stunning that this is his first cyberpunk novel. We can only hope that it won’t be his last. Wayne Simmons is a true British talent we can be proud of.