Flesh & Blood / Graham Masterton

Flesh & Blood
a book by Graham Masterton
category: Horror
published 1995
read in October 2012
rating: 4 out of 10

A horror story written by the numbers.

1. Start with a brutal killing.
2. Add several more deaths, pointless and with plenty of blood and pain.
3. Switch to beautiful people in a pornographically detailed sex scene.
4. Use unbelievable coincidences to link magic, murder, science and human sacrifice.
5. Wrap it all up with a non sequitur, extremely violent ending.
6. Save the last paragraph for, "To be continued..."

What a load of rubbish.

Let's start with number three, the sex scene. Hog Girl, we are told, likes to be dominated because her friend the boar always dominates the sow. So how often have you heard of a boar using several silk scarves to tie up his sow-of-the-moment?! Good grief.

Oh, and the point of the sex scene? Could have been made more clearly, in far fewer words. Without the sex. (Sorry.)

Move on to number five where, we are told, it has been predicted that evil mutant villain will be destroyed by his own, more mutant, offspring. So what happens? Mutant child does nothing more than beg mutant grandad to kill him. Until policeman hero uses police issue shotgun to blast mutant grandad to pieces.

Following which, kindly hero -- and all his police buddies -- stand in a circle and blast mutant child. (Who is now a giant pig. Don't ask.) No worry that missing the pig will shoot a policeman on the other side of the circle. No thought of using the anaesthetic dart then giving the child/pig a painless death. Good grief.

Back to point four of the horror writers' primer, where mediaeval magic is "explained" as being scientifically possible. Just two words: Good grief.

It's violent, there's an irrelevant sex scene, it's easy to read. Feel free to read it. I don't recommend it.

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Problems ? Solved

The Man who would be King / Rudyard Kipling

The Man who would be King
by Rudyard Kipling
copyright 1888
cat: action
rated: 7 out of 10

As I began to read this book I was confused. What's it all about? It's an old book -- written in 1888 -- so a lot is unfamiliar. People, places, attitudes, all are unfamiliar. What I was reading did not make sense.

Then I realised that I was failing to recognise irony. Okaaaay...

Start reading again. From the beginning. And it makes more sense.

Well, perhaps Kipling is simply reflecting the reality of his times. Or it may be social commentary, making a point with slight exaggeration. To me -- reading more than a century after the book was written -- irony fits.

Remember the King and the Duke in Huckleberry Finn? Con-men to the core. Transplant them to colonial India. Add courage and some honest intentions. Offer them as being typical representatives of a common class of people. You have this story.

White men with guns, the urge to rule and the ability to improve the primitive local lifestyle. Superstitious natives, tribal fighting, overawed by the white man's guns and apparent power. Vicious retribution and honest loyalty...

A fascinating view of a past empire. With some interesting insights into today's national identities. Plus a rip-roaring yarn of two-fisted adventure!

This book -- novella, actually -- is fun to read. And provides unexpected depths for the modern reader.

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Problems ? Solved

Colours in the Steel / K.J. Parker

An enjoyable book but largely pointless.

There are characters that you can like. Not many that you can dislike. Some are vaguely sympathetic; most, you simply don't care.

The idea of legal cases being settled by sword fights is... interesting... but not a key element of the plot. The hero could as easily have been a fencing instructor, with someone determined to call him out for a duel.

The magic is interesting. Well,certainly the magic practitioners are interesting... If, in fact, any of them are really practising magic! It is still a bit uncertain.

So I read the blurbs for books two and three of the trilogy. And found no evidence of a conclusion! Book one raises some questions, some mysteries, that seem -- to me -- to be essential to the series. The blurbs give no indications that the mysteries are solved. Or even, not, solved.

We reach the end of book one and our hero goes on to... another adventure.

There may be a more coherent plot across the three books... I enjoyed book one enough to want to find out.

I enjoyed the book -- even though a lot of it is a how-to manual for middle-ages war and civilisation! (War and civilisation? Would it be enough to just write, civilisation? It is very hard to separate the two.) A manual with plenty of entertaining social commentary. Anyway...

Parker knows his/her stuff but a lot of the technical detail is too much. The idea of the Fencer occupation is great but largely pointless. The book is a detailed tale of the sack of one great city. I'm worried that the next books will be separate stories rather than a trilogy.

That said... read the book :-)

Despite its faults, it's a good book. I enjoyed it. I look forward to getting hold of the rest of the trilogy.

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Problems ? Solved

Little Brother / Cory Doctorow

Little Brother

category: science fiction, subadult, thriller, author:

Cory Doctorow

original copyright 2008

read in September 2012

Agamedes' opinion: 7 out of 10, well worth reading

Well worth reading? Really? For its paranoid conspiracy message, perhaps. For the quality of writing, no.

Little Brother is subadult. It aims at the teenage -- boy -- market. At least, I guess it does. The style gives the distinct impression that the book is written by an older adult, pretending to know how a teenage boy would speak and act. The style rings false... Or, perhaps, it's me that has never spoken with a teenager :-)

It is also a thriller, in that there is a major -- adult -- conspiracy that the hero must battle. No matter which way he turns, the villains are there, watching, waiting for him to slip. Standard thriller scenario.

The book is also -- and this is its main thrust -- science fiction. Set just slightly ahead of our time. With Big Brother taking over. (Still, could be worse. The city could have been taken over by Big Brother the tv show.)

The author's message is slathered on like marmalade, thick and heavy. Complete with the Heinlein touch, of classroom discussions, where hero and villain discuss politics and philosophy. The author's view is clearly the winner, though the villain then uses positional power to shout down the author... sorry... hero.

The whole subadult writing style is... laboured, overdone, contradictory. While reading, it did seem obvious, but I did check: the author is well past 25 years old. Yet his good guys are urged to not trust anyone over 25... Urged, in one major scene, by someone aged (if I remember correctly) 32. The hero's final success is driven by a reporter -- who is as old as his parents.

And what about the hero's under-25 supporters? Well... the hero does not trust them. He forms a "ring of trust", to keep out the treacherous under-25s. A teenage personal enemy wants to turn him in to the thought police. Another teenager has been acting as a police informer.

There are two messages about trust: do not trust anyone over 25 (shouted loud and clear) and, do not trust anyone 25 or under (this is shown by act and attitude). Which perhaps adds up to a perfectly valid message: if you are fighting the thought police -- do not trust anyone.

This book is rather poorly written. Easy to read, a touch of suspense, unbelievable action. (But then it is science fiction, so that's okay!) Contradictory, with heavy-handed authorial lecturing.

But perhaps the authorial lecturing is valid. Perhaps the conspiracy theory is correct. Perhaps we do need to protect our privacy, to protect our freedom. Perhaps there are people in power who like to keep us in perpetual fear, in order to control us. Little Brother is extreme -- but the conspiracy theory may have some basis in reality.

At the very least, we need to consider the possibility that the conspiracy theory could grow into absolute truth. That the people who are -- in reality -- prepared to do anything to maintain power, could be trying hard to destroy our freedom to think.

The message is slathered on with no subtlety. Still, a novel is easier to read -- and more likely to be read -- than a political treatise. And the message is worth our consideration.

..o0o..

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.

PissWeakly: the Index

Demon Mistress / Yasmine Galenhorn

Demon Mistress

by Yasmine Galenhorn

Otherworld (6)

published: 2009

Fantasy, Romance, Horror?

read in September 2012

rated 6 out of 10... read to pass the time

In the library catalogue this book is classified as both fantasy and horror. Horror?! Well, okay, there's supernatural stuff. And violence. But nothing that would lead to feelings of horror...

The story is based on three sisters, half human and half fairy. (Let's be clear about this. Each sister is half and half.) The sisters are based on Earth, battling against the Otherworld demons who (which?) would like to invade Earth.

To get the flavour of the book:

One sister has magic fire powers which tend to backfire. She also has three husbands and they all like sex at the same time. Sister two can turn into a vicious puma, to fight the demons with tooth and claw... and intelligent sword. She also, when over-excited, can't prevent herself turning into a cute and cuddly kitten. This sister has two lovers. She keeps them separate and worries over which one she will finally choose.

Sister three is a vampire. She is faithful to her lover, that is, she has promised to not sleep with any other woman. Both lovers are pleased that vampire sister is sleeping with a male demon, while lining up another male demon as a future lover. Will she, wonders vampire sister, Ever get true love?

The sex is of the style where his male organ is thrust into the warmth of her golden centre of pleasure, followed by waves of delirious rapture and, She awoke with memories of unforgettable pleasure... The violence may involve disembowelment but, it just happens. It may upset but will not offend.

When the sisters are called to help the police deal with ghouls in the park, they pause only to pick up car keys and purses... If they had also paused by the mirror to touch up their makeup -- I would not have been surprised... It's that sort of book: fun, light, romantic, girly. Very hard not to like it.

Sure, the sisters -- and their friends, and their lovers -- are fighting to save the world from unspeakable evil. Yet their concerns are much more everyday. The war is a major issue, good versus evil. The battles are at the human level and interpersonal concerns are still important.

It's a bunch of very human... supernatural... young women. Being very girly. While risking their lives to save the world.

Not a "great" book. But very easy to enjoy.

Woken Furies / Richard Morgan

Woken Furies

category: science fiction, author:

Richard Morgan

book 3 of Takeshi Kovacs
original copyright 2005

read in September 2012

Agamedes' opinion: 8 out of 10, really quite good

Another take-no-prisoners action thriller! So I categorise it as "science fiction"... Sorry, it is science fiction and that's enough for me :-)

Third in a series. The plot is more complex than number two, Broken Angels. More sex scenes, too. There is some development from book two to three but Morgan has kept it all under control... That is:

If there is an overall plot across the entire series -- perhaps the slow battle of the oppressed underclass against those who have and who fight to keep power -- then it does not overwhelm this book. The characters do not grow new super-powers. They do not have to save an even larger area from an even more evil threat. Morgan has taken the same threats to freedom from a different perspective and written an equally gripping story.

There is strong violence. Is it truly violence, when death is followed by resurrection of the personality in a new body? Well, yes. There are strong sex scenes. Is it truly sex when half of it occurs within a virtual environment? Well, yes. This is not a book for the squeamish, not for the easily embarrassed.

And, once again, I am amazed at my own acceptance of a powerful political message... when it is wrapped up in a well written science fiction story. Message presented as fact: I have to believe everything said by the author. Message as fiction: I can apply part or all of the message to whatever situation I choose. My apologies to John Pilger and his fellow factual writers... I prefer the message as fiction.

And my apologies also to Morgan, but... The hero has chameleon hands and feet, they grow spines to help him climb vertical walls. So why oh why does he wear rubber boots when he climbs a vertical cliff?!

The rest of the (science fiction) story was, of course, totally believable:-)

..o0o..

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.

PissWeakly: the Index

Talisman of Blood / Brad Higgens

Talisman of Blood

category: fantasy, author:

Brad Higgens

book 1 of Shadow of the Gryphon
original copyright 2005

read in September 2012

Agamedes' opinion: 4 out of 10, bad but could be read

There are the makings of a good story but it has failed.

Written in a simplistic style with very poor logic. It seems to be a series of incidents thrown together, with not enough thought given to transitions.

The characters are also somewhat flat. Actually... they are quite realistic. So realistic that they are boring.

There is action, there are parallel plots and some interesting characters. Just not very well presented.

Potential... but needs a complete rewrite.

Finally: As I suspected, the publisher is vanity press. For a price, they offer a complete publication service, from go to whoa. This includes copy editing...

And the copy editing has failed.

You pay for copy editing, you expect copy editing. So why are there repeated errors?! Can the copy editor read English? If I were Higgens I would ask for some money back, for failure of the copy editing.

The included-with-your-one-payment critical appraisal process was also weak. Sure, you are really paying to get printed. But was the appraisal truly critical -- or did the author fail to respond to constructive criticism.

Inside Talisman of Blood is the material for a good book. The good book has failed to eventuate.

..o0o..

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.

PissWeakly: the Index