The Return of Tarzan / Edgar Rice Burroughs

The Return of Tarzan

category: action, author:

Edgar Rice Burroughs

book 2 of Tarzan
published by Penguin Group, original copyright 1913, read in May 2010

Agamedes' opinion: 8 out of 10

Agamedes' opinion is an 8?! Okay... I admit that this is not great literature. It's totally unbelievable, both characters and plot. It's either sadly dated... or a great window on its time. But for my own opinion -- it's great!

Read this book for a bit of heroic fantasy, for escapism, for fun. It provides all of those. Plus a plot so unbelievable that it could go straight to a Hollywood movie... Oh, wait... it already has :-) The women are beautiful, the good men are handsome. The evil men are dark and swarthy, with a tendency to lurk. Rescue is always, just in the nick of time.

What category should this book be under?

I could say, "classic" but I have no category for classic. It's not really "fantasy", just an exaggerated view of the world of the author's time. Or maybe it is fantasy? There is a note with this edition, that "Readers may note some discrepancies in the text regarding [the shape and geography of Africa]." But who checks the atlas when writing a novel?! The library has identified it as "action", so I shall stay with that.

I have also placed Tarzan in the "space opera" category.

Burroughs first books were (I believe) in the John Carter of Mars series. Tarzan is, really, John Carter of Earth. Both Carter and Tarzan fight the good fight, defeat evil villains and rescue fair damsels. Enormously strong, but willing and able to use weapons. Exploring new areas and discovering new, usually degenerate, civilisations.

Okay, Tarzan is not in space. But his stories fit well, in my definition of "space opera".

Back with the book, there is an old-fashioned innocence, mixed with plenty of implied sex. Tarzan, for example, is an absolute gentleman, where women are concerned... a gentleman who strolls naked through the jungle. Other characters lose their clothes though they then fashion garments from animal skins. Jane, "of course", was not expected to forage through the thorny jungle. "Her apparel was, nevertheless, in a sad state of disrepair."

Then there's the Ouled-Nail...

Tarzan is helped by a girl -- an "Ouled-Nail" -- who works in an Arab cafe. (One look at Tarzan and this girl was willing to risk her life to save him.) The girl has been a captive, a slave, forced to work for two years in this sleazy cafe. She and the other girls have individual rooms out back... with a single candle for each girl, "the better to display her charms to those who might happen to traverse the dark inclosure." Hmmm... waitresses, perhaps?

Which chapter did lead me to an internet search for "Ouled-Nail". Turns out that they are a tribe from Algeria. Who have their own style of Ouled-Nail belly dance. Which led me to YouTube. Which was, really, quite an eye-opener! I now have a better appreciation of the seductive power of "belly dance" and the more overt styles of its modern derivatives.

Read Tarzan for the action and adventure and just a lot of good fun. Follow the less common references to learn more about the world.

And if you find that there really is a Rue Maule in Paris -- please let me know!
Buy the book from Amazon and earn me a commission... Or, search the web for one of the free copies of the text.

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These reviews are provided by Agamedes Consulting. For an independent and thoughtful review of your processes, problems or documents, email nickleth at gmail dot com.

Hung Out / Margaret Weis & Don Perrin

Hung Out

category: science fiction, author:

Margaret Weis & Don Perrin

book 3 of Mag Force 7
published by Victor Gollancz, original copyright 1998, read in May 2010

Agamedes' opinion: 8 out of 10

This is a bang-gotcha bunch of overdrawn stereotypes fighting evil and defending the weak, though they will also defend nice people who can pay well. That is, mercenaries with heart.

That all seems fairly ordinary. Trite, even. There are two aspects of Hung Out which take it from "readable" to "really quite good": likable characters, and good plot.

The members of Mag Force 7, the mercenaries, like each other. They are all loyal, tough, honest... with each other.

The hero is, of course, a troubled soul. In particular, he is a cyborg -- half machine -- and this has caused him to separate from his much-loved wife. Having taken three books to wipe out the last of the baddies, the final chapter of this book is where the couple reconcile. Wife admits that hero's best friend in the mercenary gang had contacted wife, to ask her to get back together with hero. Then it turns out... that every single member of the gang -- plus the mother of one of them -- had asked the wife to forgive and forget. Ah shucks! how sweet :-)

But that's just the last chapter.

The book has two main plot lines running through it. By the end, we have discovered that the two lines are closely connected. Better yet -- there are clues throughout the book. Not red herrings, just clues. The good guys are mislead, though they suspect that there is something odd going on... and the reader is given enough hints to connect the dots.

No false trails, no deus ex machina, no sudden revelations... We are following the good guys' logic but are given enough hints to work out what is happening. Well done, the authors!

Aside: I really dislike traditional whodunits. As far as I can tell, there are enough clues to convict any one of the characters. The whodunit author simply picks one and claims, that is the murderer... and very seldom provides evidence to clear the others.

Hung Out has likable characters. It has a solid and effective plot. Plus lots of action, some positive messages about love, hate, revenge and freedom. Plenty of humour, usually based on the eccentricities of the mercenaries.

Over the top. Unbelievable. Great fun.

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These reviews are provided by Agamedes Consulting. For an independent and thoughtful review of your processes, problems or documents, email nickleth at gmail dot com.

The Gypsy Morph / Terry Brooks

The Gypsy Morph

category: fantasy, author:

Terry Brooks

book 3 of Genesis of Shannara
published by Del Rey, original copyright 2008, read in May 2010

Agamedes' opinion: 6 out of 10

This is the final novel of the link from The Word and the Void into the various Shannara series. I admire the way that Brooks has linked the books but that does not make this book any better than, readable.

The Word and the Void is generally depressing. No matter that each book ends with some sort of resolution -- bad guys stalled, good guys escaped -- the underlying theme is, that the world is moving inexorably to a miserable end. By linking to Shannara, Brooks is able to tell us that, eventually, the world will regenerate. So that's good.

Then there's this book, the final of the near-future novels. Finally, all the (chief) bad guys are exterminated. Most of the good guys are safe, for the foreseeable future. What else? Nothing much...

Everyone is following Hawk, the Gypsy Morph. His role is to lead them to a safe place. Where is it? When will we get there? He doesn't know... he just goes in the direction which feels right. Then there's Simralin, the elf. She is not able to use elven magic -- until her boyfriend is in mortal danger. How did she know what to do? She just... did.

The whole book is like that: people doing something but not knowing why. People able to save themselves with magic, magic which they just "knew" how to use, at the crucial instant. No-one actually plans to do something, no-one knows what they should do -- until they desperately need to do it. Brooks uses the ignorance of his protagonists as a substitute for suspense.

Yes, the previous book The Elves of Cintra was exactly the same. Morph is just a little weaker, in that the plot is really the last few chapters of a larger novel: wrapping up the loose ends.

Still, it's nice to see the loose ends wrapped up. Now I'll read The Sword of Shannara, just to see if this 2008 prequel does really run smoothly into Brooks' first novel, written back in 1977.

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These reviews are provided by Agamedes Consulting. For an independent and thoughtful review of your processes, problems or documents, email nickleth at gmail dot com.

The Sleeper Awakes / HG Wells

The Sleeper Awakes

category: science fiction, author:

HG Wells

(introduction by Patrick Parrinder, notes by Andy Sawyer)
published by Penguin, original copyright 1899, read in May 2010

Agamedes' opinion: 8 out of 10

I can't help but compare Wells' The Sleeper Awakes with Heinlein's For Us, the Living. Wells takes a "modern" (1899) man, gets him to the future, throws him into excitement, wonder, action, discovery, conflict, etc, etc -- and allows us to discover Wells' view of where the world could be going. Heinlein takes a "modern" (1939) man, gets him to the future -- then bores us to tears as characters spend many pages stating Heinlein's views of where the world should be going.

Every science fiction aficionado knows that Heinlein was a key influence in science fiction writing. Every person who can read knows that Wells was a great science fiction author. Compare Sleeper to For Us and it's obvious why Wells is more widely known and admired.

So, the book:

Perhaps the majority of Wells' predictions are wrong. Rewrite the book to take advantage of today's science and engineering and many of the predictions stand up quite well. We may not have giant lakes of "Eadhamite" for road-building but we do have giant tanks of equally poisonous materials, stored, distributed and in daily use. We do have rich people using products and services with no regard for the effort and possible danger faced by the people who provide the products and services. Just watch the tv show Dirty Jobs to see what I mean.

One very accurate prediction was, that workers would be de-skilled: "some dexterous machine" would be used to replace the skill and muscle of production workers. If computers had existed in 1899, Wells could also have predicted the replacement of workers' minds.

Then there's the advertising of Wells' future age -- it's everywhere! Early in The Sleeper's sleep, perhaps by 1910, there are giant advertising posters covering the famous white cliffs of Dover. When he awakes, 200 years later, every available surface is used for ads. Picture the nurseries: mechanical wet nurses, just torso, breasts and arms. Plus a flat disc for a face, with the disc covered in advertisements which may appeal to the parents...

The social separation of workers from the idle rich, however, appears to be a poorer prediction. Wells himself, in a preface to a 1921 edition, sees the error of his earlier thoughts... with some interesting comments:

"I was young in those days [1899], I was thirty-two". Young?! By 32, a man of this century should have forged a career, become CEO of a major company, perhaps been bankrupt -- or be considered to be a failing and worthless cog in the machine of success.

Wells then goes on to say, that the total oppression of Workers by Capitalists was not, after all, a realistic threat. In 1899 he thought of "big businessmen" as being "wicked, able men." By 1921 he had met more businessmen and come to realise that they were, "for the most part, rather foolish plungers, fortunate and energetic rather than capable, vulgar rather than wicked, and quite incapable of worldwide constructive plans or generous combined action."

That was observation. Observation which is as true in 2010 as it was then, in 1921. So we are, as Wells realised, safe from the worst oppression that he foresaw while writing The Sleeper Awakes.

The Penguin Edition

The Sleeper Awakes is, I admit, a little hard to read. Its style, and assumptions, are dated. Nevertheless, it is an excellent book. Read it as an okay book for now and as an excellent book for its time. Read it for its insight into the interests and concerns of its famous author.

Do not read this 2005 edition for its chapter by chapter "Notes"!

Penguin have provided biography, introduction, various other items of interest. Okay, not that much interest: I simply skimmed a page here and there. There are also numbers in the main text which point to Notes at the end of the book. For example:

Monkshood and delphiniums are noted... they are flowers. Any dictionary or google could tell you that. Between the two, a character "struck a match in the virile way..." What? The virile way ... of striking a match!? I wonder what that means... The note writer may also have wondered, he gave no explanation.

The Notes are like that: the obvious is explained, the confusing is ignored. Some Notes are, I admit, interesting. Many are simply dictionary definitions. A few are explanations which become clear as you read further in the novel.

The actual book is excellent. The various extra sections are interesting. The Notes really, really need to be rewritten -- to help the modern reader with words and terms which may no longer be current. But please, don't tell me where Boulogne is. And don't distract me with the colour of delphiniums and monkshood.

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These reviews are provided by Agamedes Consulting. For an independent and thoughtful review of your processes, problems or documents, email nickleth at gmail dot com.

Warlord: The Forge / SM Stirling & David Drake

Warlord: The Forge

category: military science fiction, authors:

SM Stirling & David Drake

book 1 of The General
published by Baen, original copyright 1991, read in May 2010

Agamedes' opinion: 7 out of 10

A note on that book name: In 1991, Stirling & Drake had The Forge published. In 2003, it was published again, along with The Hammer, in one book called Warlord. (Conqueror contains the other three of The General series of novels.) I have Warlord and have read -- and am now reviewing -- the original first novel. Later, I will read the second.

A note about the authors: In my effort to find the original date of publication of The Forge, I searched the web. In Wikipedia I found that Drake wrote a 10 to 15 thousand word outline, then Stirling did the rest. Interesting!

This book is a lot of fun. Not funny -- though there is humour -- but fun: non-stop action, tough guy heroes, support from a prescient computer. Or, rather, a super-computer which uses extrapolation and statistics to "predict" the future result of current options. The hero is tough but fair. Of course all the soldiers would -- and often do -- willingly follow him into deadly danger.

Yet there are some interesting tweaks to the standard plot...

Right from the start, the hero is married. His wife follows him to the war zone and, once or twice, into battle. Her main role, however, is politics -- using her feminine wiles to tempt and trick opponents. Is she -- as most people believe -- actually sleeping with other men? Her husband (the hero) certainly does not enjoy her dalliances... but they still love each other and only each other.

The state religion is clever: One planet, long cut off from the galactic empire, lost to all "modern" technology, with the ancient and long gone computers as gods. Priests are called "sysups" (not quite sysops), prayers end with "endfile" rather than "amen". Mind you, the enemy armies all wear loose robes and turbans and shout to allah as they charge into battle...

Occasionally, of course, the hero has to resort to violence to get support from the corrupt bureaucracy. As usual in these tough-guy stories, threats and actual violence quickly get the necessary cooperation. A more stubborn bureaucrat is thrown out the window...

... Okay, I thought, bring in the next; he'll look out the window and be more cooperative. But no! another tweak to the cliche: the window and shutters are still closed! The bureaucrat bounces back -- somewhat bruised and battered -- and is now willing to help. Nice one :-)

I did find that some of the action, especially in the first half, was hard to follow.

You know how it is, the author knows what he is writing about but fails to explain. I'm no military expert, I was occasionally lost in the heat of battle... Still, no worries, you could usually tell who had won or lost. Near the start I was forced to google bucellarii. Near the end, I googled fougasse -- though it was, in fact, well described in the book.

Learn something every day! Though I'm not sure when I'll be able to slip those words into a casual conversation...

The violence is graphic but not gratuitous: it's war, not torture. You can skim over the dead bodies and dismembered body parts. This is solid "good versus evil", with acceptance that compromise may be necessary now, to prevent suffering later. A realistic message set in a fairly brutal -- but overall honorable -- world.

Well worth reading.

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These reviews are provided by Agamedes Consulting. For an independent and thoughtful review of your processes, problems or documents, email nickleth at gmail dot com.

The Elves of Cintra / Terry Brooks

The Elves of Cintra

category: fantasy, author:

Terry Brooks

book 2 of Genesis of Shannara
published by Orbit, original copyright 2007, read in May 2010

Agamedes' opinion: 6 out of 10

The first three books of Brooks' Word and Void series are, really, unremittingly gloomy. Sure, they end "satisfactorily" but you just know -- from the basic premise of the series -- that worse is yet to come. By linking the Word and Void series to the many Shannara books Brooks has managed to inject some optimism into the linking Genesis books.

Yes, the world is ruined. But we know that a reasonable world -- Shannara -- will rise from the ashes. Eventually.

On its own, The Elves of Cintra is not too bad. A bit episodic, partly due to to the multiple threads of separate adventures being followed. The short episode with the robots, though, seems to have no relevance whatsoever -- except, I guess, as an introduction to, an excuse for, some robots which appear in one of the "future" Shannara books. Distracting, really, since the robots have no further impact on this story.

Still, the good guys advance their various adventures and reach satisfactory conclusions. I appreciate the fact that yes, there are still challenges to be overcome, but Brooks avoids leaving the heroes in serious cliffhanger situations.

One aspect of this book that I do not like, is that the heroes are close to being merely protagonists... The last book that I read was one of the Dresden Files, White Night. Harry Dresden is a true "hero": he plans, he thinks, he acts deliberately. Suspense is maintained by the author not revealing some of the plans. Brooks' characters, however, do not really seem to plan:

Several characters in The Elves of Cintra are essential to moving the various plots forward. None of them, however, seem to know what is going on. Well, it's not quite that bad. But they do seem to drift a lot, to move forward based on feelings rather than thoughts. Kirisin the elf, for example, barely has a plan in mind. He drifts along, following the urgings of other goodies and the schemings of baddies. When he needs to use his developing magic, he seems to think, Oh well, better try to do something... and... something happens.

This let's-just-see-what-happens approach is common. It may amaze the reader. It also makers the fantasy seem even less believable.

It would really be quite nice if people did things for a well thought out purpose. Or at least for the best of deliberate intentions. The strongest motivation is, apparently, "The Word" -- the mystic super-power which directs the forces for good. "I should do this," thinks the good guy, "Because The Word says that I should." What happened to free will? What happened to human (or elf) independence? Ah well...

The book is worth reading. I look forward to reading the third and (I hope) final Genesis novel, just to see what happens.

Action rather than tension. Tough guys and nice guys but very few sympathetic characters. Worth reading, but not great.

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These reviews are provided by Agamedes Consulting. For an independent and thoughtful review of your processes, problems or documents, email nickleth at gmail dot com.

White Night / Jim Butcher

White Night

category: fantasy, action, author:

Jim Butcher

book 9 of the Dresden Files
published by Orbit, original copyright 2007, read in May 2010

Agamedes' opinion: 8 out of 10

It's great fun watching this author develop his skills. Actually, I just checked his website... Butcher has written Dresden Files books (twelve, now) -- plus ten or so other books. So the skill development is not just through the Dresden books that I've read. Too bad! I comment only on what I've read:-)

So, it's great to watch Butcher develop his skills. An earlier book had every chapter ending with, "Oh no it looks as though I'm doomed!" The next chapter would start, "With a final burst of magical energy, I used an amazing new spell to escape..." Butcher still likes his cliff-hangers -- but, in White Night, they are a bit more subtle! Except for the combination of cliff-hanger and flashback:

One of the earlier Dresden books used flashback, very effectively. There were hints of past battles -- which could well have been references to past books. The flashback revealed all -- at an appropriate moment -- without interrupting the flow of action. White Night uses a similar flashback technique... except that the flashback occurs just as the hero has said, "Oh no it looks as though I'm doomed!" Sure, it revealed essential information. But it was a bit of an unsubtle and overworked cliffhanger.

Then there's the title of the book; it has me a little confused. White Night. Ah! wait! now I see it! Of course!

Harry Dresden is a wizard, in modern-day Chicago. In White Night, he battles -- I had overlooked the obvious! -- he battles the vampires of the White Court! Vampires of the White Court kill you with pleasure, Red Court prefers misery, Black Court work on the agony angle. So this book is about the battle, possibly at night, of Harry & friends -- and the White Court.

And, as with other books in the series, the title is a pun.

Harry is a nice guy. Tough, but nice. Protector of the weak, defender of the innocent, always ready to help a damsel in distress. In White Night, Harry helps protect a whole coven of wiccan witches: sweet & cheerful ladies with only minor magical powers. A sort of sewing circle with cup cakes and candles, altars, magical wards and a nice, hot cup of tea.

Harry the hero rushes in -- like a white knight, of course! -- to save these (possibly) damsels in distress. Also convinces an evil spirit to become good, demonstrates that he is still true to his one true love, and wipes the floor with the very vicious ghouls.

Yes, this book has a strong theme of Harry the white knight hero. Yes, there is non-stop magical action -- backed up by plenty of non-magical bullets and bombs. Yes, there is a solid plot, gradual discovery of means and motives, a hint of sex, lots of good versus evil action and violence. Yes, there is humour, heroics and a good side to nearly everyone...

Yes, this is another, great, Dresden Files novel!

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These reviews are provided by Agamedes Consulting. For an independent and thoughtful review of your processes, problems or documents, email nickleth at gmail dot com.