Book Review: The Purple Cloud / Author: M P Shiel / Publisher: Penguin Classics / Release Date: July 26th

First published in 1901, The Purple Cloud has a claim to fame as an early example of “last man” apocalyptic fiction, so its reissue by Penguin, complete with an excellent introduction and notes by John Sutherland, is very welcome for that reason. Adam Jeffson is part of an expedition to the North Pole, but when he returns, the triumphant lone survivor, it is to find that a super-volcano has erupted in his absence and released a vast cloud of poisonous cyanide gas. The gas kills almost instantly, then leaves its victims mummified, so that the whole world is transformed into a gruesome waxwork museum…

The early pages, detailing the attempt on the Pole, are electric as relationships between the explorers deteriorate into murderous antipathy. But once everyone except Adam is dead, there’s an inevitable slackening of tension. Our last man has no one to bicker with, and no obvious sources of jeopardy (most of the animal kingdom has been wiped out as well, so don’t expect any packs of hungry wolves or anything like that).

The later sections make for a punishing read, due to Shiel’s overly-ornamented prose, and his decision to have an increasingly crazed and ranting Adam as a narrator, where a tone of cool, neutral reportage might have been more effective. The book’s themes might seem prescient, but the treatment relegates it to the status of bizarre Victoriana.

Review: Lord of Slaughter / Author: M. D. Lachlan / Publisher: Gollancz / Release Date: Out Now

Some stories are worth telling again and again and the cycle of Odin is one of the oldest tales in Western culture. Lord of Slaughter is yet another retelling of the tragic tale of the god of battle, victory and death, and also happens to be a gripping page turner.

The tale takes us to Constantinople in the time of the Roman Empire. A dread curse looms over the great city, and an army of Viking warriors, formally employed by the Emperor, lays in wait outside expecting entry. The story focuses on multiple characters and their actions, each protagonist slowly finding their fate bound to the others; we have a scholar who has fled his homeland with his beautiful and heavily pregnant wife, an assassin who is seeking out the scholar (for the scholar’s wife is also a noble lady who should not be with the scholar), a barbarian who thinks he is a tool of the norse gods, and a young boy with madness and murder in his heart who looks to find his courage and become a man.

Lachlan weaves the stories of each of these characters into a heavily mythic narrative. Essentially, Lord of Slaughter is a thriller where the intrigue is focused upon the dark dealings of mad gods and the political shenanigans one would find in the court of a Roman Emperor. For those who like their novels with a touch of history and a smattering of occult mystery and plenty of blood soaked intrigue, this is well worth your time. It’s also the last (and actually the best) book in Lachlan’s Claw series, and though it works well on its own,  those interested may want to start at the beginning with Wolfsangel.

Review: Horus Heresy – Fear to Tread / Author: James Swallow / Publisher: The Black Library / Release Date: August 30th

Fear to Tread is the latest in the long-running Horus Heresy series and the first book to focus on the activities of those perennial favourites, the Blood Angels. For those of you who don’t know the series (where have you been?), the Blood Angels are a legion of blood-drinking space templars who police the galaxy on the behalf of humanity, founded by the angelic looking Sanguinius, a scientifically created demi-god with white wings and a beautiful face. This sort of thing is pretty standard for a Horus Heresy novel; it’s a world filled with giant sized cyclopean sorcerers and space elves, after all.

The Heresy series is very much focused on the secret origins of the Warhammer 40,000 setting, and James Swallow, having written rather splendid books about the Blood Angels in the past, was the perfect person to write Fear to Tread. Swallow finds the fine balance between melodrama and action here; on the one hand, if you’re telling a tale of blood drinking super-humans, then you have to explore the consequences of that, but if you take that too far you end up making the whole thing yet another vampire story. Swallow dodges this obvious trap by focusing on other conflicts; duty versus loyalty, courage versus wisdom and paranoia versus caution.

The plot is one of betrayal and triumph; the Blood Angels are sent on a mission to finish off a foe they thought long vanquished. On the way, they discover a conspiracy of evil and a world possessed by demonic forces. This much, by the way, is obvious from the cover; Neil Roberts has yet again outdone himself, and you come into Fear to Tread with no illusions that this will be a lengthy discussion on the nature of humanity, as the cover features a demon fighting an angel on a hell torn plane. It’s beautifully rendered and also tells the reader to expect excitement. Fear to Tread is an action packed, bloody romp filled with tooth and nail combat and in your face action. That said, it isn’t a good starting point for those who don’t know the setting; those who are into Warhammer, the Horus Heresy or the Blood Angels will eat this up, whereas tourists will find themselves confused (and are better off reading Swallows’ previous book in the series; Nemesis).

Review: Fain The Sorcerer / Author: Steve Aylett / Publisher: Scan Garden Press / Release Date: Out Now

By the time I’d finished Fain the Sorcerer I was rather annoyed with myself. The fact that Steve Aylett’s work has been out there for something like 18 years and this is the first of his books I’ve ever read makes me an idiot. Nonetheless, I implore you to heed this idiot’s words.

A funny, poetic, finely crafted read that is both affecting and tremendous fun, Fain is the tale of a Sorcerer who impulsively strangles a Jester in the King’s Court and immediately goes on the run, whereupon he stumbles across an old fool in a cave who grants him three wishes. One of those wishes invokes the ability to journey into the past and when Fain travels back in time to be granted yet more wishes, we are propelled breathlessly though an adventure in which Fain’s good intentions, proliferating powers, and constant tinkering with the same, conspire to produce more time paradoxes than you can shake a TARDIS at.

However, in case you were thinking that this all sounds a bit Terry Pratchett let me disabuse you of that notion. Aylett’s book is a fantasy (of sorts) but actually has more in common with the post-modernist nightmare of Hell and self-delusion that is Flann O’Brien’s The Third Policeman, only with that novel’s dizzying intensity leavened by some wonderful laugh out loud humour. (It also includes some entertainingly gloopy scenes of horror and damnation, and the scene where errant sorcerers are imprisoned inside a sphere, doomed to stand in a soup that conceals the pale, rotting flesh that abounds beneath its surface, may put you off chicken broth for life).

At its best though, Fain is littered with some delightfully poignant observations on human nature, such as the scene where the Sorcerer Drake shows Fain a globe of another world, one where “gutless wonders” move upon its surface and dissipate at his touch. “These are vagues” he explains, “thoughts to do large things but without real intent. Something more than daydreams but far less than acted plans. Look how beautiful these kinds of cities are. A shame.”

On the negative side? It’s much too short.

Ultimately, although Aylett’s humour may evoke echoes of Monty Python, Spike Milligan, and Nacho Vigalondo’s movie Time Crimes, his is fundamentally one of the most unique and original voices I’ve read in SF/ Fantasy fiction in a long time. That I’ve only recently come to this realisation is, as Alan Moore says in his foreword, my loss. So I’m taking this as my opportunity to make amends. I’d urge anyone who is guilty of a similar oversight to do the same.

Book Review: RuneScape – Legacy of Blood / Author: T. S. Church / Publisher: Titan Books / Release Date: Out Now

Tenebra, a vampire and leader of the undead, is attempting to put his son, Gar’rth, on the throne of Misthalin. The only problem is that Gar’rth has yet to embrace his destiny and is torn between his friendship with Kara Meir, Theodore and Castimir, all of whom would be subject to a painful death should Gar’rth help Tenebra. Add to this the fact that Vanescula, the vampire daughter of Lord Draken, has other plans for Gar’rth and you have the makings of a deep and engrossing fantasy novel with some political intrigue.

The problem with Legacy of Blood is that it doesn’t live up to the hype. Sure, there are some interesting characters, none more so than Vanescula (her frequent manipulations do much to throw a spanner in the works), yet the vast majority are so obviously vehicles to advance the plot that it’s often difficult to care what happens to them. This same paper thin approach to character development is evident across the narrative. The plot is so rushed that any revelations and surprises (yes there are some along the way) are limited to a page before moving on to the next event. It all helps create a palpable sense of a writer at work and takes you right out of the story, reminding you that you are in fact reading a book.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention some of the highlights of Legacy of Blood. The chapters with Gar’rth, Tenebra and Vanescula really stand out as Gar’rth tries to resist being a pawn in Tenebra and Vanescula’s attempts to take over Misthalin. The final confrontation at the end between Tenebra and King Roald was exactly what the book should have been throughout, an epic, in-your-face struggle between Mankind and the forces of the undead. All in all you can’t help but feel that Legacy of Bloody is a missed opportunity, Church barely scrapes the surface of the RuneScape universe and the rich variety of locations and characters at his disposal.

Book Review: Panic Button / Author: Frazer Lee / Publisher: CreateSpace / Release Date: Out Now

The spirit of the lost art of the movie novelisation tie-in lives on in this snappy, rattling adaptation by Frazer Lee (The Lamplighters) of his co-written screenplay for the superior straight-to-DVD British thriller Panic Button which was released last November. Four gullible, greedy strangers are brought together by the social networking site All2Gether when they win a luxury no-expense-spared flight to New York; there’s a struggling single mum, a free-thinking hippy chick, a misogynistic Jack-the-Lad and a more down-to-Earth Ordinary Joe. But as the aircraft sets off the mysterious ‘Alligator’, a crude computer-screen animation, light-heartedly coaxes them into taking part in on-board personality competitions with the promise of yet more fabulous riches – and before long the game’s turned sour, hidden secrets are revealed and a once-in-a-lifetime Transatlantic freebie becomes once-in-a-lifetime in more ways than one. Soon the quartet are fighting not only for their own lives but also those of their loved ones…

Borne out of a distrust of the phenomenon of social networking – intrinsically anti-social as complete strangers who never meet become ‘friends’ with the capacity to reinvent themselves or just take an airbrush to the darker corners of their lives – Panic Button is quite the cautionary tale as well as an edgy, well-wrought thriller. Each of the four ‘winners’ has something to hide, something their on-line persona allows them to sweep under the carpet so they can present a cheerful, well-balanced, positive-thinking individual to the wider world of absolute strangers. But the reality of social networking can have a disastrously dehumanising effect and it can open up a world of horrors to its users which they sometimes can’t help but be blasé and dismissive of, hiding behind their on-line anonymity; how many of us have looked at some blog entry or video clip and then wondered if we weren’t perhaps intruding on someone else’s private misery?

Panic Button is a taut, disturbing little movie and Frazer Lee’s novelisation ratchets up the tension as his prose enables him to get deeper inside the minds of his characters, revealing little tidbits and secrets the script just didn’t have room for and reinstating one or two sequences excised from the screen version due to time and budgetary constraints. There remain a couple of problems with the story – the ‘mystery’ over the real identity of ‘Max’ never really amounts to much and we remain in the dark as to why the mysterious ‘Alligator’ singles out these four luckless individuals for punishment, what turned them from internet obsessives into a madman’s victims? Because the truth is, whatever you think of social network sites, ‘Alligator’ is an absolute madman, wreaking revenge for a personal tragedy shared with the world on a few rather stupid individuals who just happened to stumble upon it online.

Despite a few minor story niggles this is an intelligent and propulsive book, pressing all the right buttons – panic or otherwise – as a standalone piece of fiction even if you’ve not seen the movie version.

Book Review: The Mythological Dimensions of Neil Gaiman / Author: Anthony S. Burdge, Jessica Burke, Kristine Larsen / Publisher: Kitsune Books / Release Date: Out Now

Over the last twenty years, Neil Gaiman has created a prolific and diverse oeuvre that encompasses graphic novels, prose fiction, children’s books, film and TV – and for some of us, he’s a fashion icon too. This volume of essays by academics and erudite fans embraces the whole spectrum of his work, exploring the distinctive universe that lies beneath the diversity.

As the title implies, the emphasis is on Gaiman the mythmaker, the creator of an eclectic pantheon. A recurring theme is his particular gift for revivifying ancient deities and figures from folklore, whether in the Sandman books or, most explicitly, in American Gods. In a similar way, his writing elaborates upon, or replies to, fictions of previous eras. An essay on Beowulf shows how he thrives on the ambiguities of the old Norse saga, while another considers the relationship between The Graveyard Book and the Narnia stories. We also see Gaiman as a “producer-fan,” bringing his own insights to long-standing franchises such as Babylon 5, Batman and Doctor Who.

The manner of these pieces is bracingly intelligent and, given their academic bias, thankfully light on jargon. For some, perhaps most, fantasy writers such a level of scrutiny might seem like overkill. But not for Gaiman. You come away from these essays with a new respect for the breadth of Gaiman’s scholarship, and an appreciation for the range of esoteric allusions woven into his darkly glittering fables.

Review: Tangle of Need / Author: Graham Joyce / Publisher: Gollancz / Release Date: Out Now

Tangle of Need is the latest in Nalini Singh’s Psy-Changeling series, a long running sequence of novels set in the far future where mankind is split into three distinct sub-species; regular humans, people with psychic powers (mostly telepathy) and psy-changelings – shape shifters. The people who can turn into animals are the primary focus here, and not only can they turn into predatory mammals, they also behave like romanticised versions of such beasts. The wolf-people make growling sounds and the cat-people purr. Both types are very physically fit and emotionally intense, because that’s the sort of book this is.

Though nominally science fiction, the set-up is so strongly focused on the characters (rather than the world) that this could have easily been a fantasy novel; there is little actual depth here, but it is a very broad setting, filled with people rather than things and ideas. In addition, Tangle of Need is very firmly part of a long running series, and new readers may find themselves a little lost. Both of these are minor niggles. You don’t pick up a novel like this for an examination into the technological consequences of super powers in society. You pick up a novel like this when you want a spot of naughty, sexy fun.

The character interaction sizzles. The large cast of characters are well detailed, and interesting in a soap opera sort of way.Tangle of Need is, at its core, a romance novel aimed directly at the gooey soft centre of a certain type of geek. The plot, such as it is, has enough intrigue and excitement to carry us to the next piece of character based drama and intimacy, and there is enough adventure here to keep the hotter scenes fresh.

Those who love the idea of people with ‘inner beasts’ and like their fiction filled with sex and supernatural powers will find Tangle of Need an interesting diversion, though if you’re new to Singh’s work then you should perhaps start with the first of the series, Slave to Sensation.

Review: Some Kind of Fairy Tale / Author: Graham Joyce / Publisher: Gollancz / Release Date: Out Now

When stories featuring fairies work, it’s often because the fairies themselves are not cute, winged cartoon characters but strange, unknowable beings. Tales of people being whisked away by the fairies are a deep part of our folklore, and Graham Joyce’s latest work Some Kind of Fairy Tale taps into the deep vein of mythic storytelling to deliver a tale set firmly in the real world.

The plot revolves around Tara Martin, a girl who vanished 20 years ago. Her disappearance tore apart her family and destroyed close friendships  as the unresolved trauma of a missing loved one left those who knew her lost and afraid. But on Christmas Day, Tara comes back, looking as young as the day she vanished. Each person affected, from her brother, her parents and the man she left behind, have their own stories to tell, and the way this fantasy drama plays out is superbly managed. We get a powerful feel for each of the characters, and Tara’s tale (and where she’s really been) is told in an effortlessly believable way.

The author lines up his folklore references one-by-one and takes great pleasure in knocking them to the floor only to pick them up again, dust them off and give them a whirl. Expect ominous sounding pubs, blacksmiths, dancing to excess, bluebells and lonely musicians with a tale to tell. A casual fan of old fashioned stories will find a lot to smile about, especially as there are plenty of original twists added into the mix.

Joyce has created a truly modern fairy tale, and it will appeal to the fantasy and non-fantasy fan alike. However, those looking for supernatural grossness along the lines of the TV series Grimm or wacky fairy antics common amongst stories inspired by Brian Froud should look elsewhere; this is a clever (and rather dark) take on where the tales of fairies abducting the innocent come from, and though there are plenty of lovely ideas for fans of mystery and the supernatural to enjoy, it is subtle and dream-like, rather than slime-covered and obviously alien.

Review: I, Crimsonstreak / Author: Matt Adams / Publisher: Candlemark & Gleam / Release Date: Out Now

Crimsonstreak was born into a superhero family so crime fighting is in his genes. With two super parents in Miss Lightspeed and Colonel Chaos, Chris Fairborne (or Crimsonstreak) gained the ability of super speed as a child. One of the superhero clan hasn’t always been on the right side of the law though, Crimsonstreak’s father only became good after meeting his mother and realising the error of his ways. Together they saved the world numerous times but just as Crimsonstreak is becoming a superhero in his own right, his mother is killed in a duel with the super villain Zeus Caesar.

His father never recovered from losing his wife, he withdrew from the world and even his own son. He went so far as to date another superhero, whose power was shape-shifting and therefore could visually imitate his wife’s appearance perfectly. But every attempt to diminish his feeling of loss ends in tears… or sometimes worse.

When Crimsonstreak hears of huge explosion in his hometown, he races to the scene but before he can try and help, he is arrested and wrongly accused of causing the devastation. Even his father turns against him and Crimsonstreak is admitted to an asylum for the criminally insane. Locked up with super villains he has personally caught, life is especially hard for him on the inside. But soon he notices more and more superheroes being locked up, not just super villains. It seems anyone with a ‘power’ is being imprisoned, whether good bad. Crimsonstreak realises he must break free and get some answers, why did his father lock him up and why are heroes being imprisoned? When he does manage to escape, his home is a very different place and the world is suffering from a brand new threat.

Although I have found this novel classified as an adult book, it feels like it is very much aimed at teenagers and a young adult audience. The main characters are younger and the language and references used throughout would also point to this.

The book is strangely slow during the first half. Although there are action scenes and what was meant to be a twist (that was hinted at earlier therefore ruining the surprise), it failed to really create any sort of tension. Without this, it just fails to grab the reader into wanting to read more. The new regime ruling the country is continually referred to as evil but for most of the book, they do nothing truly evil at all. They are locking up superheroes but it wasn’t even really conveyed that the general public was unhappy with the new situation until well into the latter part of the book.

There are many superhero books out at the moment due their continually growing popularity and I am sorry to say this one just wasn’t for me. Continual ‘smart aleck’ conversation also leaves the characters without much depth and this may appeal to some teenagers that don’t read much but for anyone else, I am afraid this will leave them a bit disappointed.