chuq@sun.UUCP (11/24/86)
OtherRealms
A Reviewzine for the Non-Fan
Where FIJAGH Becomes a Way of Life
Issue #11
December, 1986
Part 1
Novels of the Diadem
Alan Wexelblat
Always Coming Home
Dan'l Danehy-Oakes
Letters to OtherRealms
The Broken Worlds
Danny Low
Flamesong
Brett Slocum
OtherRealms Notes
Books Received
Part 2
Pico Reviews
Part 3
Words of Wizdom
Chuq Von Rospach
Two Views of the Hugo
Conspiracy? What Conspiracy?
Dan'l Danehy-Oakes
What's Wrong with the Hugo?
Chuq Von Rospach
Novels of the Diademi
by Jo Clayton
Reviewed by Alan Wexelblat
Copyright 1986 by Alan Wexelblat
ARPA: WEX@MCC.ARPA
UUCP: ut-sally!im4u!milano!wex
DIADEM FROM THE STARS 235pp, (c) 1977 [***+]
LAMARCHOS 224pp, (c) 1978 [***]
IRSUD 191pp, (c) 1978 [***]
MAEVE 220pp, (c) 1979 [***]
STAR HUNTERS 207pp, (c) 1980 [**+]
THE NOWHERE HUNT 208pp, (c) 1981 [*]
GHOSTHUNT 221pp, (c) 1983 [**]
THE SNARES OF IBEX 320pp, (c) 1984 [**+]
These eight books tell part of the tale of Aleytys, a half-breed member
of a semi-mythical super-race called the Vryhh. Although they could
probably be read independently, the significance of much of the theme
elements would be lost.
The stories are what I call soft SF in that they use psionics, magic,
and other non-hard elements, but are not sword-and-sorcery or any other
fantasy genre.
Jo Clayton has a real talent for description and detail. She writes
from a decidedly female perspective. Her feel for story is there, but
it often gets lost in the description she piles on. Daw did her a real
disservice by not assigning a tough editor to her manuscripts. The
quality of the stories varies widely. None of them are truly great, and
one is downright awful. Some of her characters are good; the problem is
that she seems to create her characters from about eight stock types.
Over the course of the books, this becomes a real problem, as the minor
characters from one story blend into those of another.
In addition, she has the annoying habit of using lots of alien words as
part of the scene-setting, and expecting the reader to figure out what
is going on. I find this annoying, as it detracts from the flow of the
story. In general though, Clayton's alien societies are pretty good and
shouldn't need this sort of cheap trick.
The first book, DIADEM FROM THE STARS, starts off with a Clayton
narrative favorite: the story is being told from the point of view of
someone other than Aleytys. The other person sets the scene, often by
outright exposition, and then we switch to Aleytys' point of view. In
this case, we follow a thief on his quest to steal the RMoahl diadem
and escape with it. He does, but fails in the escape attempt, crashing
on the primitive world of Jaydugar, where Aleytys lives in her father's
household. Her mother, once slave to her father, has escaped. Before
leaving, she wrote a letter describing herself, hinting about the
Vryhh, and telling her daughter how she can be found.
Aleytys, faced with the prospect of being burned as a witch (she has
some psionic powers, apparently inherited from her mother), runs away.
The rest of the book tells her story as she treks across her world,
meeting the thief, Miks Stavver, and getting the diadem. The diadem, it
seems, is a permanent gift because once put on, it doesn't come off
while the wearer is alive. However, it does greatly enhance her
powers.
DIADEM is the best of the books. Aleytys whines a bit too much, but the
story is interesting, as are the secondary characters. There are
several encounters with different cultures on Jaydugar, and Aleytys
really seems too mature.
LAMARCHOS is the name of the world where Aleytys goes after Jaydugar,
and the book tells the story of her trek across that world. There is a
strong druidic theme to the story, as part of Aleytys' new powers allow
her to work in concert with Nature on the planet. Unfortunately, Nature
demands some services in return for its aid.
From the readers point of view, Clayton works these out into
interesting plot twists as the characters move toward their goal.
Aleytys' character continues to mature, and her powers increase as she
learns more about the diadem.
This book is not quite as good as the first. Clayton is inconsistent
with Aleytys; she is mature, intelligent, and sophisticated when
dealing with the natives of Lamarchos, but naive and annoyingly
dim-witted when dealing with her off-world companions. Clayton needs
this in order to advance the plot, and that's a shame. She could have
achieved better results with a little more care.
IRSUD is the name of the world where Aleytys is brought as a slave to
be a host-body for the egg of the queen of an insectoid race. The egg
will hatch inside her and the new queen will absorb Aleytys' powers,
which have been suppressed with a psi-damping implant.
The plot is much simpler than the first two books, involving no
world-spanning treks. This is Clayton's first attempt at writing
intrigue. As with much of her work, it's all right but Clayton attempts
to write intrigue with exposition, describing in great detail how
everyone looks and how Aleytys feels. This weakens the impact
considerably in some places. Also, the aliens of Irsud are far too
human for my liking. What makes this book as good as it is is Clayton's
advancement of the meta-plot. The diadem has inhabitants, people who
wore it before and died with it still on. Their minds, personalities
and talents are still available to the diadem's current wearer. Once
again, I don't want to spoil the plot, but I took a great joy in
watching Aleytys grow in power.
MAEVE is the next world Aleytys travels to. Here is a book with several
good plot ideas, none of which are really well developed. The RMoahl
want "their" diadem back, Aleytys wants to help the natives of Maeve
(and Nature) against the ravages of the Companies (inter-planetary
mega-conglomerates), and the local machinations are endless. Clayton
weaves these threads together into a nice picture, but it ends up
looking forced. The theme also advances slowly, but enough to be
satisfying. The minor characters are also interesting.
STAR HUNTERS uses the other narrator trick to set the scene, and it's a
mighty confusing one. Aleytys has joined an organization known as the
Hunters, who perform special missions for hire. She is sent to
Sunguralingu to stop the ravages of a psionically-endowed villain known
as the Haremaster. Clayton appears to have grown bored with Aleytys at
this point; she spends much of the book on secondary characters,
switching viewpoints all over the place. The main story is barely
novella length, and most of the padding is dull. The only saving grace
is the climactic confrontation between Aleytys and the Haremaster;
unfortunately, even that has a weak ending.
THE NOWHERE HUNT should have been titled the Nowhere Book. It's a
terrible story that goes nowhere, and goes there at a snails pace.
Clayton has dropped the druidic overtones of the earlier books and
spends more than half the book on minor characters, most of whom we are
glad to see die. Aleytys doesn't grow at all, and the minor characters
seem repetitive. I would say skip this book entirely, except that the
theme is advanced in two important aspects so grit your teeth and bear it.
GHOSTHUNT is a vast improvement on NOWHERE, but it is still a weak
book. Clayton attempts a detective story here which doesn't work well
with her exposition. This book is much more cerebral than her others.
However, her switches in viewpoint are less annoying this time because
some of the other narrators are familiar and likable characters. Thus,
even though we know where the book is going, it's still fairly
enjoyable. Several of the loose ends from earlier books are tied up
here, and not too badly. Once again, the aliens are very human-like and
the minor characters look like ones from previous books, but the style
is more interesting and the characters motives are more moving. The
year layoff after NOWHERE definitely helped.
THE SNARES OF IBEX is a truly annoying novel in the sense that someone
should have edited out some obviously extraneous material. Why didn't
Daw? The story seems very unbalanced. About 90% of the books 320 pages
are used to describe half the journey that Aleytys undertakes. Ibex,
you see, is the world where her mother has left a means of contact. But
the only person on Ibex who knows how to access that data is missing
and must be tracked down.
Knowing all this in advance, the reader is led to expect a lot more
than Clayton delivers. At one point she falls into the pattern of
having characters tell each other stories. It's a change from Clayton's
usuall exposition, but not a good one. What makes this a good book is
its promise. If Clayton writes another, she will have some really
interesting material to work with.
Reading over these reviews, you might wonder why I read the books if I
felt so negative about them. It's hard to explain. There's so much
potential that I couldn't wait to see what Clayton would make of it.
Get these books used if you can; I don't think they're worth the cover price.
ALWAYS COMING HOME
by Ursula K. LeGuin
[*****]
Reviewed by
Dan'l Danehy-Oakes
Copyright 1986 by Dan'l Danehy-Oakes
UUCP: ptsfd!djo
There's a story about LeGuin's multiple-award-winning novel THE
DISPOSSESSED; I think it's relevant. She said once that, the founders
of the Odonian society knew that humans must have some harmless outlet
for their competitive instincts. Therefore they began the custom of
having every permanent settlement make pickles. These pickles became
the source of civic pride for each town; there was a pickle barrel set
up in the center of town, and persons from out-of-town were invited to
sample the local pickle and judge its superiority for themselves. For
whatever reason, this facet of the Odonian culture never made it into
THE DISPOSSESSED.
ALWAYS COMING HOME is chock-full of pickle barrels.
Another way of looking at this book: suppose that, instead of THE LORD
OF THE RINGS, J.R.R. Tolkien had published a vast miscellany of Elvish,
Dwarvish, and Gondorish poems and lore, mingled with tracts on their
social institutions; then suppose that he had mingled in with this
book, broken up into pieces, the story of Bilbo's journey -- and, as a
footnote to the last part, a brief summary (in the form of official
Gondorian documents) of the War of the Ring.
Somewhere between those two ideas you will find ALWAYS COMING HOME.
It is a book for those who revel in Tolkien's appendices. (I freely
admit that I am such a person.) Broken into three parts is the only
"novel" part of the book, the tale of Stone Telling, a woman who goes
"there and back again." Her journey is very different from Bilbo's, but
it bears a more than passing resemblance to those of Shevek and Genly Ai.
Let me explain that last comment. Shevek, Genly, and the occasional
protagonist of ACH begin in a country which the author seems to
"approve" of, move across barriers to one which the author seems to
"disapprove" of -- in each case, one which is bureaucratic and
oppressive -- and returns to the place where he/she began, sadder and
wiser. (I think my biggest problem with LeGuin, at this point, is
simply that she too easily divides her societies into "the peaceful
country" and "the warlike country" -- a surprisingly dualistic attitude
for an author of LeGuin's blatantly Taoist leanings.) In each case, the
protagonist comes at a time when he/she has some small influence on a
major change that is already occurring in the relationship between the
two countries.
ALWAYS COMING HOME is about the Kesh, a people who "might be going to
have lived" in the Napa valley of Northern California some very long
time from now. An unspecified event or series of events which may or
may not have been an atomic war has separated humanity from technology.
(I do not mean that technology has been destroyed, but to say more
would be to destroy one of th book's most pleasant surprises.) The Kesh
are a people of whom I -- and, I believe, the author -- can approve of
heartily while not in any way wishing to be one: their lifestyle is NOT
for me.
In the aforementioned tracts, poetry, lore, and so forth, LeGuin paints
a surprisingly holographic picture of the entire Kesh culture.
The book is told as if it were the report of an twentieth-century
archaeologist who has done her field work by living among the Kesh for
a time, learning their ways and taping their ceremonies. (Accompanying
the paperback of ACH -- but NOT the hardback -- is a cassette tape,
"Music and Poetry of the Kesh," a group of "in the field" recordings
which allow us to actually hear the language of the Kesh pronounced and
sung. It is a significant part of the book's overall impact and I
highly recommend NOT buying the hardback for this reason.) The various
documents from this fieldwork include, but are not limited to,
discussions of Kesh "religion" (not what we mean by religion), technology,
food, language, trading, warmaking, medicine, and much else; they include
samples of Kesh drama, poetry, literary prose, and mapmaking.
ALWAYS COMING HOME is one of the most complete books I have ever
encountered. It is an exhausting book to read, and I do not recommend
it as a "good read." It is hard work, but, if you enjoy the work of
reading, it repays the work amply.
Letters To OtherRealms
Dear Chuq.
I'll bet your friends call you "Up-Chuq".
You evince an inability to figure wordage, a wrongheaded perspective on
historical or scientific extrapolation, an intolerance of the tastes of
others, a tendency to condemn what you do not understand, and a desire
to censor according to your own limited horizins. In short, you have
the makings of a typical literary critic. You might consider confining
yourself in future to fantasy of your level, such as the works of Lin Carter.
I may quote from your comments on my work in the Author's Note for
Incarnations #6, which I am now writing. You have no need to read
material that distresses you, of course.
Piers Anthony
Inverness, Florida
The Broken Worlds
by Raymond Harris
[****]
Ace Science Fiction 1986 248pp $2.95
Reviewed by
Danny Low
Copyright 1986 by Danny Low
UUCP: hplabs!hpccc!dlow
This book starts out as a simple tale of intrigue, becomes a journey of
wonders and ends with a gigantic space battle with a deus ex machina
ending. You are warned of the ending towards the middle of the book.
Despite the rambling nature of the plot, the events are logically tied
together.
The story does move along at a leisurely pace, but it manages to avoid
boredom. The history of the universe has the complex feel of reality.
The culture appears to be your basic Western culture with a few exotic
oddities thrown in to give a suggestion of alieness. However, it
becomes evident that the culture is truly different and the
"westerness" is only the echo of our present day culture.
The characterization is quite good. Harris has a good feel for
RealPolitik. The relationship between the various interstellar states
has verisimilitude. In many ways, this book is a collection of hoary
science fiction cliches done with just the right amount of originality
to succeed while still being recognizable as cliches.
If Harris is to be compared with an established SF writer, then that
writer would be Jack Vance. Harris' characters do not all speak with
the same baroque style of a Vancian book, but there is that same
richness in the background culture. This is definitely a worthwhile
book to read.
Flamesong
by M.A.R. Barker
[*****]
DAW Books, Sept. 1985, $3.50, pp. 412.
Reviewed by
Brett Slocum
ARPA: Slocum@HI-MULTICS.ARPA
Copyright 1986 by Brett Slocum
M.A.R. Barker is one of those writers who has created the perfect
combination of fantasy and science fiction. His world of Tekumel is a
delightfully rich tapestry unlike any other. The depth of detail rivals
or surpasses Middle Earth, Darkover, or Arrakis. While basically
fantasy, elements of technology are not far under the surface,
sometimes quite literally. Technology exists in the form of artifacts
of the Ancients, whose knowledge has been lost many tens of millenia ago.
Barker draws from East Indian, Chinese, Middle Eastern, and
MesoAmerican sources, rather than European, and his societies are
reminescent of Imperial China or Mayan civilizations. This is not your
run-of-the-mill medieval fantasy story that so many new authors write.
A quality of strangeness is inherent.
In Flamesong, his second book (Man of Gold is his first), Barker tells
of the adventures of a young military officer's attempts to bring an
enemy commander home as a prisoner, while dealing with a strange form
of Ancient transport, magic, a country that still believes itself part
of an empire that fell twenty thousand years ago, and numerous other
problems that impede his progress.
Barker writes about adventure and intrigue, palace plots and pitched
battles, magic and technology. I especially enjoy the way he describes
technological artifacts in non- technological terms, as the characters
would see it. This book has complex characters with real motivations,
unusual often bizarre cultures, and a story that won't let you put it
down. (I read this substantial book in two days, and I work full time.)
Barker is a linguist as Tolkien was, and it shows. Each country has
its own language, customs, naming conventions, etc. (e.g. At one point,
the characters are trying to figure out the nationality of a stranger
from just a name.) For those of you who are unwilling to handle unusual
names and words -- beware, this book is full of them.
Barker has been involved with the Role-playing games industry almost as
long as Gary Gygax and Dungeons & Dragons. A role-playing game called
The Empire of the Petal Throne based on Tekumel, has been available
since 1975-6, and recently a new game called Swords and Glory has been
published. Swords and Glory was written and playtested by Barker and
his two weekly gaming groups. The sourcebook which describes Tekumel is
several hundred pages long and so full of detail that it is mind-boggling.
In conclusion, I would strongly recommend Flamesong and the earlier Man
of Gold for anyone looking for unusual settings and cultures, realistic
characters, and exciting plots.
Lead miniatures for wargaming are available as well as a bi-monthly
newsletter both produced by Tekumel Games, a company that deals
exclusively with Tekumel products. If you are interested in the
roleplaying aspects of Tekumel, contact:
Tekumel Games
Box 14630
University Station
Minneapolis MN 55414
Dungeons & Dragons is a trademark of TSR, Inc.
OtherRealms Notes
Please remember that this is the final OtherRealms of 1986. I'll see
you all back in January with a new year of reviews and comments on the
worlds of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror.
The Lettercol is back dept.: Readers should note that the lettercol
has returned, and I hope that it will be again a permanent home for the
alternative viewpoint. If we got it wrong, if we missed something, or
if you simply have something to say, drop a note to the OtherRealms lettercol.
Things to come dept.: Next year will continue to see changes to
OtherRealms. First and foremost, I expect to start using a Laserwriter
in in 1987, giving me a much cleaner final look. This will also allow
me to put more material in the same number of pages, so the amount of
material will increase for the same final cost.
I'm also going to start a series of new review columns by people who
have been involved with OtherRealms for a while. The hope is to make a
wider range of viewpoints available. The details of these and other
changes will be in #12.
Books Received
Books Received lists books sent to OtherRealms for review. OtherRealms
tries to list books around the time they are shipped to bookstores, so
these books are (or soon will be) in distribution.
Avon Science Fiction
Anthony, Piers. Macroscope, 1969, 480 pages, $4.50. A good work
brought back into print.
Shulman, J. Neil. The Rainbow Cadenza, 1983, 366 pages, $3.50
Leigh, Stephen. The Bones of God, 1986, 289 pages, $3.50.
Baen Books
Scott, Melissa. Silence in Solitude, 1986, 313 pages, $2.95. Sequel
to Five-Twelths of Heaven.
Bantam Books
Auel, Jean M. The Mammoth Hunters, December, 1986, 723 pages, $4.95.
Third book in the Earth's Children series, 2,000,000 copy first
printing.
Flint, Kenneth C. Storm Shield, 1986, 310 pages, $3.50. Sequel to
Challenge of the Clans.
Fowler, Karen Joy. Artificial Things, 1986, 218 pages, $2.95. First
collection of the short stories that won her the Campbell award for
best new writer.
Hill, Douglas. Colsec Rebellion, 1986, 161 pages, $2.75. Final book
in Colsec Trilogy (previous volumes were Exiles of Colsec and The Caves
of Klydor). Tor Fantasy
Fenn, Lionel. Blood River Down, 1986, 310 pages, $2.95.
Paxson, Diana L. Silverhair the Wanderer, 310 pages, 1986, $2.95. the
new Westria novel.
Pini, Richard, Asprin, Robert, and Abbey, Lynn. Elfquest Volume 1: The
Blood of Ten Chiefs, 314 pages, 1986, $6.95 trade paperback. Shared
world anthology based on Elfquest.
Tarr, Judith. The Golden Horn, 1985, 262 pages, $2.95. Volume 2 of
the Hound and the Falcon Trilogy.
Tor Fiction
Benford, Gregory. Artifact, 533 pages, 1985, $3.95.
O'Donnell, Peter. Modesty Blaise: The Silver Mistress, 1973, 284
pages, $3.50. First paperback release (and first in a series) about
the female answer to James Bond.
Rogers, Mark E. More Adventures of Samurai Cat, 1986, 127 pages, $9.95
large trade paperback. 8 1/2 x 11 format, lots of drawings. Not quite
a graphic novel. Attempts to parody everything.
Westlake, Donald E. A Likely Story, 1984, 317 pages, $3.95.
Tor Horror
Bloch, Robert. Night-World, 252 pages, 1972, $3.50. First Tor
printing.
Grant, Charles L. The Orchard, 287 pages, 1986, $3.95.
Neiderman, Andrew. Love Child, 1986, 319 pages, $3.95.
O'Callaghan, Maxine. The Bogeyman, 1986, 320 pags, $3.95.
Relling, William Jr. Brujo, 338 pages, 1986, $3.95.
Simmons, Dan. Song of Kali, 1985, 311 pages, $3.95. Just won the World
Fantasy Award.
Tor Science Fiction
Anderson, Poul. Time Wars, 1986, 374 pages, $3.50. Time Travel/War
them anthology.
Anthony, Piers and Margroff, Robert E. The E.S.P. Worm, 1970, 191
pages, $2.95.
Dickson, Gordon R. Alien Art, 1973, 184 pages, $2.95. First Tor
printing.
Douglas, Carole Nelson. Probe, 383 pages, 1985, $3.50.
Farmer, Philip Jose. The Cache, 1981, 292 pages, $2.95. Third Tor
printing.
Kelly, James Patrick & Kessel, John. Freedom Beach, 259 pages1986,
$2.95.
Kornbluth, C. M. Not This August, 1955, 255 pages, $2.95. Revised and
new forward by Frederik Pohl.
Murphy, Pat. The Falling Woman, November, 1986, 287 pages, $14.95
hardcover
Saberhagen, Fred. The Berserker Throne, 319 pages, 1985, $3.50.
Silverberg, Robert. Across A Billion Years, 1969, 249 pages, $2.95.
Wolfe, Gene. Free Live Free, 1984, 403 pages, $3.95.
OtherRealms is Copyright 1986
by Chuq Von Rospach
All rights reserved
One time rights have been acquired from the contributors. All rights
are hereby assigned to the contributors.
Reproduction rights: OtherRealms may be reproduced only for
non-commercial uses. Re-use, reproduction or reprinting of an
individual article in any way on any media, is forbidden without
permission.
--
Chuq Von Rospach chuq%plaid@sun.COM Delphi: CHUQ
{decwrl,hplabs,ihnp4,seismo}!sun!plaid!chuq
The azure sun beat down upon my face, fluffly white clouds skittered their
way across the scintilating sky, and this moment could have been nominated
for perfection if it wasn't for that giant leech attached to my thigh.chuq@sun.UUCP (11/24/86)
OtherRealms
A Reviewzine for the Non-Fan
Where FIJAGH Becomes a Way of Life
Issue #11
December, 1986
Part 2
Pico Reviews
AN ALIEN HEAT by Michael Moorcock []
Harper SF, SFBC, 1972
Volume 1 of the "Dancers at the End of Time Trilogy," Moorcock attempts
to write about a dead, decadent society at the end of the Universe.
Immortal, any wish possible, with not a care in the world, a small
group of hopelessly adolescent brats attempt to party their way to
eternity. Rather than being about decadence, I found the work decadent
itself, and gave up halfway through. The companion volumes, "THE
HOLLOW LANDS" and "THE END OF ALL SONGS" were left unread. I just
don't seem to tolerate Moorcock's writing for some reason.
-- chuq von rospach
THE ARCHITECT OF SLEEP, by Steven R. Boyett [****]
Ace Fantasy, 290 pages, $2.95.
Alternate universe stories are common enough, but imagine, if you will,
a world populated by sentient racoons -- racoons who can't talk, but
have a rich and expressive sign language. Then imagine the plight of a
human who's mysteriously transported to that world, displayed as an
animal, etc. Add in powerful emotions, twisty court politics, and
believable characters (even if they are racoons, and possibly -- as a
friend of mine would describe them -- humans in zipper suits), and you
have a wonderful book. The only problem is that ARCHITECT is just the
first book of two or three -- and they *don't* tell you that. Nor do
they tell you when the next book is coming out, for which I seriously
fault the publisher.
-- Steven Bellovin
ulysses!smb
ARIEL, by Steven R. Boyett [***]
Ace Fantasy, 325 pages, $2.95.
On the strength of THE ARCHITECT OF SLEEP, I picked up ARIEL, Boyett's
first novel. It's okay, though nothing special. The writing, and the
predictability of the plot, are very characteristic of first novels
(and it's amazing how much Boyett has improved by his second novel).
The book is a typical post-Apocalypse novel (i.e., lots of scenes of
character scavenging the stores from Before); this time, though, the
change is that technology has suddenly stopped working, in favor of --
you guessed it -- magic. The title character is a unicorn, who (of
course) will only associate with virgins; this time, thankfully, we
have a male virgin. Rate this book [**] if you're not willing to give
brownie points for a reasonable first effort by a new author.
(Translation: the book does have many strong sections, but doesn't
hang together as a whole.)
-- Steven Bellovin
ulysses!smb
THE BOOK OF THE THOUSAND NIGHTS AND A NIGHT: A Plain and Literal
Translation of the Arabian Nights Entertainments
Translated by Richard F. Burton; Privately printed by The
Burton Club; $55; 10 Volumes
Any lover of fantasy should not be satisfied until they have read this.
Almost everyone has heard about the tales of Shahrazad but few have
actually read them. Most books only contain a few of the tales, and
these are usually censored greatly. The actual Burton translation is
10 volumes, including 6 extra volumes of additional tales. These have
it all! Great magic, mighty wizards and Djinni (Jinn), crafty heroes,
quests, betrayed lovers! The wealth of material here is astounding,
both for the fantasy within it, but also the insight into the
beginnings of arabian culture. Be warned that this is not for the
prudish! Burton translates the stories literally and he leaves in all
the parts which are removed from the childrens' edition you read when
young. You will probably have to mail order this. Mine was a gift
costing about $55, but I believe it has been released in a cheaper
edition lately.
-- John R. Mellby
jmellby%ti-eg@csnet-relay
THE COPPER CROWN by Patricia Kennealy [****+]
Signet, $3.50
Over a thousand years ago, Celts for whom Western Europe was no longer
a home settled on a number of planets [collectively Keltia] discovered
by St. Brendan the Astrogator. Over a thousand years from now an
expedition from Earth contacts them. The contact triggers a local
sword-and-spaceship war. This book is fun to read. Kennealy is of the
school of writers who paint their characters larger than life and spend
a lot of time describing what they wear. The science is very soft, but
she does a creditable job of describing a fusion of traditional Celtic
values and modern technology without ever descending to travelogue.
(And -- thank heaven -- she provides a usable pronunciation guide!) I'm
looking forward to the sequel[s].
--Dani Zweig
haste@andrew.cmu.edu
THE CUNNINGHAM EQUATIONS by G.C. Edmondson and C.M. Kotlan [****-]
Del Rey, $2.95, 1986, 295 pages
This is mystery, with our Nobel prize winning drunken protagonist
trying to find out what a gene-splicing company is doing, and why the
they are hiding it. At a deeper level, it's a lecture on the evils of
loosing untested technology on the public. The writing is very good,
except for the occasional slips into lecturing on the technology. For
many, a worse flaw will be that this is a VERY depressing novel.
*SPOILER WARNING* All the characters - which you know and
like/dislike/detest - die or will soon be dead by the end of the book.
-- Mike Meyer
mwm@berkeley.edu
DINNER AT DEVIANT'S PALACE by Tim Powers [**]
Ace Science Fiction, 1985, $2.95
DINNER is a grittily realistic view of post-Bomb Los Angeles. Powers
writes a strong story about a society on the edge, supported by
decadence, drugs, and the hyper-Fundamentalist Jaybush cult, a
combination Reverend Moon, Jim Jones, and Crystal Cathedral.
Unfortunately, Powers lost me when he moved the story towards the
extraterrestrial alien evil influence, but the book will probably work
for most people who follow Gibson and the Cyberpunk people.
-- chuq von rospach
ENGINES OF CREATIONS by K. Eric Drexler [****]
Doubleday, $17.95, 1986, 298 pages
Space Systems scientist Drexler extrapolates developments in the
molecule building and expounds a method for defining the limits and
potentials of any future development in any science. Non-fiction, but
a must-read for SF authors and would be SF authors.
-- Ray Farraday Nelson
THE FORGOTTEN BEASTS OF ELD by Patricia McKillip [*****]
Like her Starbearer trilogy, this is a work rich in legend and lore
with significant development of the main characters, and good insights
into human nature without lessoning or lecturing. A basic Name-based
magical world with knights, magicians, and the fantastic beasts of
legend, all woven together with language and descriptions appropriate
to the story and the setting. It follows a white haired witch raised
in the solitary silences and power of magic through her discoveries of
love, hate, revenge, fear, and self-knowledge. A very well crafted
work that is one of my favorites.
-- Phyllis Li
li@uw-vlsi.arpa
FORTUNE OF FEAR by L. Ron Hubbard [*****]
Bridge, $18.95, 1986, 365 pages
Ron Hubbard, by his own admission, learned from Jack London the way to
combine profound philosophical concepts and non-stop action adventure.
In FORTUNE OF FEAR Hubbard continues the ten-book "Mission Earth"
series. Where the over-rated Asimov turns the whole galaxy into a
Manhattan Island, Hubbard finds in Manhattan Island a whole seemingling
infinite galaxy. Almost unheard of in the SF ghetto is his still more
amazing feat; he starts out funny... and stays that way!
-- Ray Farraday Nelson
THE GAME OF FOX AND LION by Robert R. Chase [****+]
Del Rey
A very good intricate-political-games-during-wartime novel. This book
is *very* well done, and kept me turning pages, as well as thinking.
It does one of my favorite themes (the superman theme... the main
character has artificially enhanced intelligence), but with less
sophomoric concentration on the flash-and-dazzle, and more on serious
human consequences of the imagined situation. Background material is
sometimes a little clumsily inserted, but never implausibly. And, as I
say, it kept me flipping pages and thinking, things that don't normally
happen for me together in a book.
-- Wayne Throop
dg_rtp!throopw
THE HEIRS OF BABYLON by Glen Cook [***]
Signet, 1972, $.95, 192 pp.
The bombs were dropped decades ago. The US and USSR are no more. What
is left of the world's population is engaged in ritual world war. Once
every 10 years the call goes out to each region to patch together the
creaking remnants of the old naval fleets and set out for the
Gathering. Will this be the last time? Why must we continue to fight?
This is an early foreshadowing of Cook's gift for bringing characters
to life, from the naive young fisherman turned navigator to the aging
and sinister political officer charged with maintaining their zeal for
war. A rather depressing story, as many post-holocaust stories are,
but told with skill and imagination.
-- Kirk Webb
HER MAJESTY'S WIZARD by Chrisopher Stasheff [**]
Del Rey, $3.50
A university student is transported to a medieval world where magic
works. His knowledge of poetry and technology make him an unbeatable
wizard. The gimmick has been done to death (best by Platt and de Camp)
and is not redeemed here by good handling. One interesting aspect of
the world in question is that not only does magic work, but many other
aspects of the medieval world view hold true, such as the divine right
of kings. This book does not particularly resemble the Warlock books
by the same author.
-- Dani Zweig
haste@andrew.cmu.edu
MATADORA by Steve Perry [***+]
A wonderfully written, fast-paced action story with brains, a
conscience, and character. I read this book first, and found out about
the trilogy at the end. After buying and reading the other books I
found this one to be far more to my tastes than the other two, rare in
a second, transition book of a trilogy; but, Drisha, the black, lady
martial artist, steals the show with her steadfast inclinations for
survival and sheer dimensionality. Almost all of the other characters
pale in comparison, and my only motivation to get through the other two
were for incidents of her. I enjoyed the philosophy of the Maradors in
this book much more than in either of the somewhat heavy handed
presentations of that philosophy in the other two books. Perhaps the
bias towards this book is that I could identify a lot more with an
independent, survival motivated protagonist than one who is in it
because of a Vision. In any case, not a deep book, but it is fun.
-- Phyllis Li
li@uw-vlsi.arpa
A MATTER OF TIME by Glen Cook [**]
Ace, 1985, $2.95, 268 pp.
This book is just a gritty detective novel with the villains being time
travellers from the future. I say "just" because the main characters
never rise above their drab caricatures and grab your interest. The
hero is hopelessly outclassed by the clever villains through the entire
book. As he often tells his companions, it's not the brilliance of
Sherlock Holmes, it's just dogged detective work. A disappointment
from Cook, usually a master of characterization.
-- Kirk Webb
THE MEMORY OF WHITENESS, by Kim Stanley Robinson [***]
TOR, 351 pages, $3.50.
MEMORY is rather disappointing. It takes effort to read the book
(which is not at all bad, but don't expect to breeze through it before
bedtime one night), but doesn't reward the effort. It portrays music
as a universal means of communication -- everyone in the societies is
far more musically literate than almost anyone today -- but spends most
its time on music as a metaphor for physics, and from it life, the
universe, and everything. But the central theme is ultimately
mystical, and I have little feel for other people's mysticisms. Worse
yet, since the music and the mysticism are the major forces acting on
the characters, I found it difficult to understand why they acted as
they did. He does introduce one sparkling concept: metadrama, which
consists of players interacting with random, unknowing people, trying
to steer their actions into a desired course.
-- Steven Bellovin
ulysses!smb
MOONFLASH by Patricia McKillip [**]
A disappointment, it seems an attempt by a fantasy author to give a
science fiction explanation to a fantasy society. Scientifically
consistant the book has none of the richness in character development
that I have come to expect from McKillip's works. The protagonists are
likable, but barely two-dimensional; practically all the scientists are
only one-dimentional; and the premise for the societys of the world is
only a single point flash. It can be read through, but I took four
days to finish it, a real rarity for someone that almost always
finishes books in a single sitting.
-- Phyllis Li
li@uw-vlsi.arpa
NOTES TO A SCIENCE FICTION WRITER: THE SECRETS OF WRITING SCIENCE
FICTION THAT SELLS by Ben Bova, [****]
Houghton Mifflin tradeback, 1981, $5.95, 193 pages.
This book is basic intro to writing SF that uses an interesting format.
The book is divided into four parts: Character, Background, Conflict,
and Plot. Each section has a Theory chapter, a example short story,
and a Practice chapter that discusses how the story uses the principles
of the Theory chapter. These are Bova's own story and the book is
almost worth it just for the stories. Nothing fancy, just good simple
SF. This book is a good one for the beginning writer who wants to write
SF The expert will enjoy the stories.
-- Brett Slocum
PASSAGE AT ARMS by Glen Cook [***]
Questar, 1985, $2.95, 265 pp.
Just as an old time space opera was a typical western novel with
sixguns transformed to blasters and horses traded for spaceships, this
future war yarn must have started life as a World War II U-boat novel.
The sheer inventiveness of the translation into space is captivating.
If you can't find Lothar-Gunther Buchheim's The Boat (Das Boot), this
book is a good substitute. It is a tension-packed voyage accompanied
by fear and misery as you watch the crew slowly disintegrate under the
pressure of the inhuman living conditions, the menacing enemy ships and
the indifference of high command. Claustrophobes and weak stomachs
beware!
-- Kirk Webb
REALITY MATIX by John Dalmas [****]
Baen Books, 310 pages, $2.95.
I'm not normally fond of "psi" books, even when the paranormal powers
are wrapped in a scientific cloak, but I'll make an exception for this
one. (If you're wondering why I bought it, it's because the cover and
blurb make no mention of psi, probably with malice aforethought.)
There are themes drawn from Heinlein's "Year of the Jackpot" (with
explicit acknowledgement), and some vague similarity to some of
Chalker's works, but on the whole we have an original, fun book. Be
warned, though -- this book may call for not just suspension of
disbelief, but suspension of distaste. But give it a try.
-- Steven Bellovin
ulysses!smb
SOULSTORM by Chet Williamson [**]
Tor Horror, 1986, $3.95
One of the recent titles in Tor's new Horror line, Williamson writes
well but puts together such a hodgepodge of classic Horror kitsch that
the book collapses into itself like the House of Usher. We meet the
rich man, impotent and dying of cancer; his pretty wife, and three
mercenary down-and-outs, offered a million dollars apiece to spend 30
days in a haunted house with the rich man, who hopes to sacrifice them
to the evil beings in return for immortality. It doesn't work, of
course, as the evil beings have their own ideas. The book doesn't
work, either, but if Williamson can find his own Horror voice instead
of kludging together from everyone else he'll be a name to reckon with.
-- chuq von rospach
SPIDER PLAY, by Lee Killough [**]
Questar, 232 pages, $3.50.
More adventures of Janna Brill and Mama Maxwell, law enforcement
officers extraordinaire. Unlike DOPPELGANGER GAMBIT, there's
(understandably) less attention paid to detailing the culture. Too
bad, because it was a fascinating culture indeed. And the clash of
honor and instinct versus police regulation doesn't carry any weight
this time around. I have to score this one a miss -- too bad, because
DOPPENGANGER GAMBIT was Killough's best work.
-- Steven Bellovin
ulysses!smb
THE SPIRAL DANCE by Starhawk [*****]
Harper & Row, 1979, trade paperback, $10.95
A book that details the practice, ritual, and meaning of Witchcraft in
modern society. A thorough examination of Goddess worship from the
ground up. A wonderful reference work, a good introduction into the
world of Wicca.
-- chuq von rospach
THE SWORDBEARER by Glen Cook [****]
Timescape, 1982, $2.75, 239pp.
From a smorgasbord of unoriginal plot devices, Glen Cook has produced
an exciting well-crafted fantasy adventure. With the demon sword that
drinks souls, the silent but stout-hearted dwarf companion, the evil
undead warriors on their winged dragon mounts and the naive young hero
unaware of the growing feelings of the beautiful princess, you just
know you're in for a boring Shannara lookalike! But Cook lets you look
inside each of these characters, from the ambitious emperor to the
undead warriors and brings their hopes and fears, joy and despair to
life and makes you care about each one. While the final outcome is
never in doubt, you will enjoy every step of the way! -- Kirk Webb
TERROR, by Fredrik Pohl [**]
Berkley Science Fiction, 220 pages, $2.95.
I expect better of Pohl. Although superficially an exploitation book
about terrorism, it's actually somewhat broader in theme. Pohl is
interested in military/political evil. To do this, he paints all sides
-- terrorists, the U.S. government, the Soviet government, assorted
other governments (in cameo roles) -- in short, just about everyone --
as evil. You get at most a cursory set of motivations for why the
different folks act evilly (except for the Hawaiian nationalists -- is
there such a movement?), but Pohl is so interested in speaking ill that
he never explores the larger questions the book raises (or could raise,
to be more precise). I'm thinking of questions like these: is
violence ever moral? is a pre-emptive strike ever moral? Are all
governments really on the same moral plane? Call the book preaching,
and not very good preaching at that.
-- Steven Bellovin
ulysses!smb
TOM O'BEDLAM by Robert Silverberg [***]
Donald I. Fine, Inc., ISBN 0-917657-31-4, 320 pp., $16.95
In a future California ravaged by refugees from the Dust War, roving
bands of outlaws, and the excesses of the past, poor, crazy Tom
transmits his visions of a wondrous intergalactic civilization to those
around him. But are the aliens the saviors of mankind, or is Tom
merely hallucinating them? Silverberg juxiposes his characters' vivid
dreams of better worlds with the reality of their decaying civilization
to great effect. The characters are well-drawn and believable. I
could sympathize with them all, no matter how disagreeably they
behaved. Recommended.
--Roger Goun
goun%cadlac.DEC@decwrl.ARPA
TWISTING THE ROPE by R.A. MacAvoy [***]
Bantam, $3.50
A disappointing sequel to Tea With the Black Dragon. A man is killed
and everyone who knew him turns out to have had motive means and
opportunity. Generic murder mystery number 17. The charm of TWtBD
resided largely in the characters of its protagonists--especially the
Dragon. In this book we know that Long is the Black Dragon only
because we have read the prequel. We know that he is extraordinary
only because we are told that he is. The third star is partly for
highly competent writing and partly for the pleasure of meeting old
friends. If you haven't read TWtBD, or didn't enjoy it, don't read this
book.
--Dani Zweig
haste@andrew.cmu.edu
THE VAMPIRE LESTAT by Anne Rice [*****]
Ballantine, $4.50, 1986, 552 pages
From Clark Ashton Smith to Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, the California School
of Horror has specialized in the rational exploration of the irrational
realms of the supernatural. Now San Francisco Novelist Anne Rice
writes the best book yet in this tradition. Instead of lurking
offstage, as in DRACULA, the vampire becomes not only the protagonist,
but the narrator, and he heads us into the deepest exploration yet of
the dark continent of the Living Dead.
-- Ray Farraday Nelson
THE WARLOCK IS MISSING by Christopher Stasheff [***]
While the Warlock is Wandering, all the baddies on Gramarye emerge to
take advantage of his absence. Unfortunately for the baddies, and
fortunately for the reader, the Warlock's four children have grown old
enough to be interesting and formidable characters themselves. (They
are powerful, but they are still children. They make a number of bad
misjudgements that will come back to haunt them.) Readers of the
Warlock series will not be disappointed. Those who haven't read the
excellent Warlock in Spite of Himself should read it and then the
adequate King Kobold Revived -- and be warned that the many sequels
tend to resemble the latter book.
--Dani Zweig
haste@andrew.cmu.edu
THE WARRIOR'S APPRENTICE, by Lois McMaster Bujold [***]
Baen Books, 315 pages, $2.95.
THE WARRIOR'S APPRENTICE is a sequel (or, more properly, a follow-up)
to SHARDS OF HONOR. Unlike the earlier work -- a powerful study of
cultural clashes and strong emotions -- this one follows a young man as
he stumbles and gropes his way to adulthood. Part of the book is comic
-- I rarely laugh out loud while reading, but I did here -- and part of
it is fairly gory, as if Bujold couldn't decide what she wanted to do.
The strict codes of Barrayar come into play, of course, but it isn't
clear that they make much sense to anyone who hasn't read SHARDS OF
HONOR. Still, a pleasant few hours.
-- Steven Bellovin
ulysses!smb
WARRIOR WOMAN by Marion Zimmer Bradley [*]
Great premise, bad writing. Bradley gives a classic example of how not
to use the first person. The book feels cramped by the severe
limitations she puts on communication of the story through her
protagonist. The idea of a woman warrior is fascinating to me and the
premise that she gives for the existence of that woman on the planet is
great, the only reasons that I gave this book a single star; however,
she does not use the premise for anything other than a deus ex machina
to drop the heroine in and out of the story. There is also a great
amount of preaching done. A very disappointing work from a lady that
has done such wonderful writing.
-- Phyllis Li
li@uw-vlsi.arpa
YARROW by Charles de Lint [***+]
A fantasy writer whose inspirations come from her [true?] dreams of
another realm is victimized by a psychic vampire who feeds on dreams.
The story is almost entirely based in Ottawa, with little of the
folklore/fantasy element which the author handles so effectively. One
senses that the author is deliberately trying to develop new skills.
His success will be well worth waiting for. In Yarrow, though, he is
writing to his weaknesses. Most of his characters are shallow. (This
is not a problem with the mythical or mythologized characters he is
used to portraying, because we know so much about them the moment we
encounter them.) His parasite, too, is a dull thing, but his portrayal
of the pain of being deprived of dreams is powerful.
--Dani Zweig
haste@andrew.cmu.edu
OtherRealms is Copyright 1986
by Chuq Von Rospach
All rights reserved
One time rights have been acquired from the contributors. All rights
are hereby assigned to the contributors.
Reproduction rights: OtherRealms may be reproduced only for
non-commercial uses. Re-use, reproduction or reprinting of an
individual article in any way on any media, is forbidden without
permission.
--
Chuq Von Rospach chuq%plaid@sun.COM Delphi: CHUQ
{decwrl,hplabs,ihnp4,seismo}!sun!plaid!chuq
The azure sun beat down upon my face, fluffly white clouds skittered their
way across the scintilating sky, and this moment could have been nominated
for perfection if it wasn't for that giant leech attached to my thigh.chuq@sun.UUCP (11/24/86)
OtherRealms
A Reviewzine for the Non-Fan
Where FIJAGH Becomes a Way of Life
Issue #11
December, 1986
Part 3
Words of Wizdom
Reviews
by
Chuq Von Rospach
Copyright 1986 by Chuq Von Rospach
The best Fantasy of the year should be hitting the bookstores as you
read this. Pat Murphy's THE FALLING WOMAN (Tor hardcover, November,
1986, $14.95) is the best thing I've read in a year of very strong
offerings. Elizabeth Butler is an archaeologist working on a Mayan dig
in Mexico. She also sees ghosts, the shadows of the dead that live in
the ruins she is investigating.
This is primarily a psychological Fantasy, but is enriched with a
strong sense of Mayan background, history, and folklore. Elizabeth's
long estranged daughter, Diane, joins the dig after her fathers death
trying to find herself. She can, like her mother, see shadows but
doesn't understand the ability. The story revolves around the two of
them trying to come to grips with themselves, with each other, and with
a train of events that a long dead Mayan priestess weaves around them
in an attempt to bring back the slumbering God's of her time.
The real selling points of the book are the characterizations and mood
that Murphy evokes. She builds an emotional tension just short of that
found in the horror genre, drags you in and gets you involved. The people,
even the minor characters, are fully fleshed individuals, not the
stereotypes or caricatures found all too often in books these days.
She makes you care, puts you on the edge of your seat, and doesn't let
you go until the end of the story. If there is any justice, this is
next years World Fantasy Award winner, and the people who vote Nebula's
need to take a close look at this work. I can't recommend it highly
enough. If you like substance in your reading, authors like Wolfe
or LeGuin or Wilhelm, this is the book for you. [*****]
* * *
THE LEGACY OF LEHR (Walker and Company, 235 pages, $15.95) is the new
book by Katherine Kurtz. It is the first in a new series of books
being packaged by Byron Preiss called Millennium, where each book will
deal with a major them of Science Fiction. LEHR is primarily a locked
room murder mystery set on a space ship. A luxury space liner is
diverted to a backwater planet to pick up an emergency cargo -- four
bright blue, telepathic, noisy lions destined for the Emperor.
Shortly, people start dying, their throats ripped out, a small amount
of bright blue fur gripped in their dying grasp. The lions have been
under full guard the whole time, but it is obvious that somehow they're
getting out of their cage, walking through the ship, killing people,
and getting back in -- past cameras, guards and locked doors -- all
without being seen. Or is something else going on?
Kurtz takes the story seriously enough to make it work, but with enough
camp to keep it from getting overbearing. She throws in strange aliens
(including one set whose main religious devil is a bright green, telepathic,
noisy lion), vampires, religious fanatics, native rituals and all sorts
of other strange concepts without making you feel like she's playing
games with the reader. When it all comes down to it, this book is
well written and an enjoyable read. Preiss seems to have a winner
with this new series, and I'm looking forward to future books. [****]
* * *
Last month's Books Received had a number of titles from a small press
called Space and Time. The small press is an area that tends to get
overlooked by most readers, and if THE SPY WHO DRANK BLOOD by publisher
Gordon Linzner (Space and Time, 1984, 127 pages, $5.95 trade paperback
from 138 West 70th Street (4B) New York, 10023-4432) is any indication
of the quality of the field, much to the readers disadvantage.
Frankly, my initial thought was to say something like "this book is
good enough to be published by a major house" but that implies that the
small press publishes lesser quality books, which isn't true. There
ARE areas where the small press is little more than a vanity press, but
in many occasions the books are works that slip through the less
flexible publishing standards of the major houses.
SPY is a good example. Like all Space and Time works, it is
cross-genre, combining Science Fiction, Mystery, and Horror into a
single work. Immediately, this gives a major house heartburn -- how do
you market something that doesn't fit into the genre cleanly? The
small press doesn't have to worry about that, fortunately.
Linzner writes a story about Blood, a secret agent who happens to be a
vampire. In between assignments, he is literally kept on ice, being
kept frozen cryogenically until he is needed to keep his drinking
habits under control. Unlike human beings, cryogenic freezing doesn't
kill him, it just makes him thirsty and allows him to survive daylight
(to Linzner's credit, the only modification to the vampire folklore he
allowed himself).
His keeper's daughter is abducted in the Everglades by a band of insane
radical terrorists. The first agent who goes in doesn't come back out,
so he turns to Blood. Blood travels down there, finds the girl and the
group, and then watches as the group gets decimated by something even
worse...
Be aware that Blood is pretty ruthless, and that Linzner is not afraid
to write him that way. Forgiving or merciful he's not. It isn't
particularly graphic, gory, or gruesome, but it can be intense.
I liked it, a lot. I think most people would, if they could find it.
Small press books don't get into many bookstores, so you'll have to
search for them, or order directly from the publisher. I think it's
worth it. The small press field is a relatively new area for me, but
after Space and Time I hope to be reading and reviewing more in the
future from the alternative publishing houses. [****]
* * *
If you're looking for Horror, a lot of people are starting to publish
it. If you're looking for GOOD Horror, though, look at Graham
Masterson. Where Steven King writes very personal, real life Horror
books, Masterson write the more traditional "things are going to pop
out and chew on your hand for a while" kind. It is very different from
King's works, but as good in his own way. His latest, DEATH TRANCE
(Tor Horror, September, 1986, 409 pages, $3.95) is a good example. He
mixes the mystique of the Hindu death trance (where adepts can actually
walk among the dead and talk to them -- something very few priests can
accomplish and survive) with modern societal horrors in such a way that
it all flows together and crawls up your spine.
The president of an independent cottonseed oil refinery company has a
plant burned. His family is brutally massacred. It is obvious that
the rival Cottonseed Oil association (who just lost a major contract to
him) is involved somehow, but why stoop to inhumane torture and murder?
While recovering from the shock of his loss, he is told of the death
trance, and decides he has to say good-bye to his family before he can
start his life again. So, off to Java he goes in search of an adept,
taking along a few people (some good, some uninvited and not so good).
The horror of everyday life -- the torture, the slimy business
dealings, corruption, and inhumanity -- counterpoints the death trance
and the fantastical horrors found beyond, and makes it acceptable.
Everything falls together, and everything ties together in the end. The
book isn't explicit or graphic. It doesn't need to be, as Masterson is
a superb writer that generates pictures in your mind better than
anything that could be put on a page. Pictures, mind you, that will
take time to go away -- the mark of a good Horror writer.
I find horror a wonderful change of pace from an overdose of Fantasy.
No Unicorns, no dwarves, no cute little elves and their pointy little
ears. The basis between the two genres are very similar, but horror
twists things into the realm of darkness instead of light. If you
haven't tried to read horror, you should. This book is as good as
place to start as any I've seen in a while (anything by King is, too).
Be sure you have a nightlight, though. You might need it. [****]
* * *
Imagine, for a second, that a living fossil is discovered. A real,
live, breathing member of the long extinct species Homo Habilis. Our
forefather. What do you think would happen?
You were right. He'd get married and have a kid and be a successful
artist.
That's the premise of ANCIENT OF DAYS, from author Michael Bishop.
Bishop starts with 100 pages of the best Hard SF I've read since BLOOD
MUSIC, but my overworked sense of disbelief threw me out of the book
when he got overly cute and started playing games. I could accept Homo
Habilis. I could even accept how he got into rural Georgia. I could
even accept him being adopted by a lonely (but beautiful) woman artist
who wants to protect him from the world.
But, with the Klan and the Government and the Black Radicals and
everyone with a Cause breathing down her neck, the two go out and get
secretly married. Okay, I can believe that, sort of. Nobody finds out
about it. (my disbelief is creaking). WE find out about it when the
Immigration people come to arrest him as an illegal alien so that the
anthropologists can get their hands on him.
Uh, the government didn't know they were married? Right. Even less
plausible, once the marriage is shown to be legal, everyone goes off
and leaves them alone? Can you REALLY believe that all the
anthropologists in the world are going to be nice and wonderful and not
try to take midnight urine samples and make themselves into royal
pests? Well....
Even if you could buy an entire arm of academia acting like rational
human beings over the Rosetta Stone of ancient humanity, Bishop takes
your disbelief one step further, as Adam (the obvious name) learns to
drive and sits around in the evening reading C.S. Lewis, PILGRIM'S
PROGRESS, the Koran, and other similar kiddie books.
That pop you heard was my disbelief snapping. One of the physiological
traits of Homo Habilis is the lack of pre-frontal lobes. Bishop has
just postulated a pre-humanoid species with an I.Q. and cognitive
powers greater than most of humanity, but without enough brain power to
handle it. Now, maybe you can get past the absurdity of a glorified
chimpanzee reading the collected works of human philosophy, but I
couldn't. Bishop should have played Adam straight. He didn't, which
successfully ruined whatever Bishop was trying to say with this book.
The story is too convenient, and he strays too far from the realm of
possibility for a hard SF work. Too bad, I wanted the book to work for
me. Not recommended [*]
* * *
Signet is the latest publisher to develop a shared world anthology
similar to the very popular THIEVES' WORLD series. If you like these
kinds of books, you'll really like BORDERTOWN created and edited by
Terri Windling and Mark Alan Arnold (Signet, 251 page, $2.95). It is
set in Bordertown, an enclave of humanity and elves in the netherlands
between our world and Fairie, where both technology and magic work.
Sort of.
It is a lot closer to Ace's LIAVEK series than it is THIEVES' WORLD.
This shouldn't be surprising, because the lead story (and the best in
the book) is DANCELAND by Emma Bull and Will Shetterly, creators of
LIAVEK. It is completely separate from LIAVEK, though, but like that
series avoids the dreary depression endemic to THIEVES' WORLD. Three
of the four stories are winners, and the worst (MOCKERY by Ellen Kushner
and Bellamy Bach) still rates a solid so-so on the interest meter, so
the book as a whole is pretty solid. If you like the concept of punk
elves, you'll love BORDERTOWN. The cover, by British artist Phil Hale,
is, if not the best cover of the year, certainly the most distinctive.
I hope other publishers take a close look at it, at the covers they're
doing. It IS amazing how much more attractive a book that stands out
on the racks can be. I hope this one sells well. [****]
* * *
THE POSTMAN by David Brin was a 1986 Hugo nominee for Best Novel.
Bantam has just released it in paperback (321 pages, $3.95) so everyone
who hasn't read it yet can find out what they're missing. It's a very
good work, and a big change from the kind of novels Brin has written in
the past. It isn't SF as much as it is folklore, as Brin spins the
tale of a post-holocaust survivor who steals the jacket from a long
dead postal worker and finds himself spinning the stories of a rebuilt
United States. THE POSTMAN stands with Johnny Appleseed, Paul Bunyan,
and the other larger than life figures that tell the stories of our
country. Through rain or sleet or fallout, the mail will go through,
and with it, hope. [*****]
* * *
Michael Perrin, the boy turned man in the worlds of the Sidhe, has
returned in the sequel to Greg Bear's wonderful INFINITY CONCERTO. THE
SERPENT MAGE (Berkley books, 343 pages, $3.50) carries on the story as
the Sidhe and all of the inhabitants of the other realm start migrating
to our world. Greg Bear is one of the few writers today who can handle
any flavor of the genre from Hard SF (BLOOD MUSIC) to straight Fantasy.
This is another fine book from a fine author. Highly recommended. [*****]
* * *
John Varley has always been a writer whose strength is in the shorter
works. His latest collection is BLUE CHAMPAGNE (Berkley books, 290
pages, $2.95) and includes "Press Enter []", his award winning short
story as well as seven other works. Some of the works, such as
"Lollipop and the Tar Baby" will probably be familiar to Varley
readers, but many of these have been collected from relatively small
distribution publications. This collection also contains what I think
is the best Varley story ever in the title work, which was originally
published in NEW VOICES, an anthology series most people have probably
never heard of -- the price of admission is worth this gem alone. The
weakest story of the bunch, believe it or not, is "Press Enter []",
which I found to be a very powerful story the first time I read it, but
re-reading it was a disappointment, there doesn't seem to be the imagery
or staying power I'd expected. Still, a good book from a master. [****]
* * *
When Gene Wolfe was writing the Book of the New Sun series, Locus
magazine accidentally used the title THE CASTLE OF THE OTTER for one of
the books. Wolfe liked the title enough that he wrote a book for it.
The result, originally published by the small press Zeising Brothers,
is now available through the Science Fiction Book Club. It is a small,
113 page book in which Wolfe discusses the writing of the series, the
background, history, flavor and etymology that went into the classic
series of books. Many authors, when they try this, end up sounding
egotistical and self-indulgent. Wolfe carefully peels away the skin
and bone, layer by layer bringing to light the mental processes inside
a writers skull. It is a definite must for any writer or prospective
writer, and anyone with an interest in the series or in what goes on
behind the series should take the time to track this book down. It is
of limited enough interest that I doubt it will show up on the mass
market, so if you don't belong to the SFBC, find a friend who is and
order it. [****]
* * *
Sometimes I wonder if Baen Books is self-destructive or if someone
simply put a curse on them. Earlier this year they upset the
bookstores with an abortive Book Club. So far, every book from them
I've reviewed I've panned (for example, the HEROES IN HELL series
ripoff of THIEVES' WORLD). Now, I've found a good book, but it is so
poorly packaged and mismarketed that I doubt it will have a chance of
selling well. It is beginning to look like they can't win.
The book in question is ZOBOA by author Martin Caidin. Caidin is a
solid author with credits such as MAROONED, THE MESSIAH STONE, and THE
FINAL COUNTDOWN. Here he's written a very good action adventure SF
Thriller with a topical subject. In a few days, a multi-national crew
will be taking a space shuttle into orbit in front of a large crowd of
dignitaries from around the world. Unfortunately, four nuclear bombs
have been hijacked by a radical Arab death squad -- the target, the
shuttle and dignitaries. Nine days to get the bombs back from a group
of suicidal maniacs happy to take millions with them, or risk a major
international disaster.
This is a very well written book, with one proviso. It was not really
written as a Science Fiction book, but as a mainstream adventure. The
women jiggle, and when they're wearing anything it is tight fitting.
The men cuss a lot, as Real Men are wont to do. The action is fast
paced, moving along at a breakneck speed. This book could sell very
well nestled into the mainstream lists next to Lawrence Sanders.
Unfortunately, it has the Science Fiction label attached prominently,
so the mainstreamers (who don't realize they're reading SF when they
read Sanders...) won't touch it. And I think the mainstream aspects
of the writing will turn off a lot of genre readers. This book has
Best Seller written all over it if someone had just marketed it right.
Unfortunately...
We come to the second problem. The cover, by David Mattingly, is
painted in colors that can only be described as putrid purples and
pinks. It shows a shuttle blasting from the launch pad, surrounded by
fighter planes and troops in combat gear. And the cover blurb says
"This time it wouldn't be an accident." Now, it is obvious that this
book was in preparation long before the shuttle accident early this
year. There is a place in the book where the people who died in that
accident are acknowledged briefly. Caidin looks like he tried hard to
keep the book from capitalizing on our country's loss while
acknowledging it. The cover blurb, though, is thoughtless, tactless,
and in very poor taste. I found myself simultaneously revolted,
insulted and outraged that someone could take the shuttle accident and
try to turn it into a marketing tool.
If it wasn't for that blurb, I could recommend the book with
reservations about the mainstream slant of the writing. As it stands,
unless they re-do the cover and re-issue the book, I won't. That
someone at Baen can be so thoughtless, and that nobody else caught it
before it shipped, is inexcusable. If you DO buy this book, I suggest
you take the cover and mail it back to Baen and tell them what you
think about it. I hope Caidin had a few choice words about how they
treated this book -- I certainly would have. [*]
* * *
SONG OF KALI by Dan Simmons (Tor Horror, November 1986, 311 pages,
$3.95) is another example of Tor's dominance in the growing horror
field. It recently won the World Fantasy Award (we can argue about why
a horror title should win a Fantasy award some other time) and the
award is well deserved. Robert Luczak, his wife and infant daughter
travel to the city of Calcutta in search of a new manuscript from an
Indian poet thought dead. What they find is horror, the horror of
man's inhumanity to man, the horror of the squalor of the human cesspool
that is Calcutta. Simmons uses Calcutta, the Indian culture and a brush
with the death cults that worship the Goddess Kali as examples of larger
problems. There is no happy ending in KALI, but the slighest ray of
hope peeks through the clouds of despair. Highly recommended. [****+]
Two Views of the Hugo
The following articles are not Copyrighted, and have been placed into
the public domain to make it as easy as possible to reproduce and pass
around. Feel free to copy and distribute these articles to anyone you
feel would be interested.
E-mail: chuq@sun.COM, djo@ptsfd.UUCP
[In issue 9, I plugged the 1987 Worldcon and suggested that everyone
should get involved in choosing the Hugos. The Hugo is the most
visible award given in Science Fiction, and carries weight with the
press, with the publishers, and with the general buying public.
As you might guess, my suggestion to get involved or get out started a
few discussions. It's continuing with the next few pages, where Dan'l
Danehy-Oakes looks at what is wrong with the Hugo award today, and I
take a few potshots from the battlements at what I think would make it
better. I want to try to revive the lettercol in the next couple of
issues, and I can't think of a better topic: these are the opening
comments, but I want to know what you think of the Hugo as well, and
I'll make sure the best of the comments get passed along in OtherRealms.
The Hugo isn't perfect, by any means. But it IS important, so ignoring
it isn't the answer. Lets see if we can make it better, instead.]
CONSPIRACY? WHAT CONSPIRACY?
by
Dan'l Danehy-Oakes
A while ago Chuq suggested that you all "Join the Conspiracy" --
purchase a supporting membership in the upcoming Worldcons so you could
vote for the Hugos. I would like to suggest that the last thing the
Hugo award needs is more people voting in its selection.
Now, I realize that you are a person of excellent taste and fine
sensibilities; that you are of refined and sophisticated critical
judgement; otherwise you would not be reading such an estimable and
excellent publication as OtherRealms. But does mere good taste and
critical judgement qualify one to vote for the Hugo awards? Ideally,
no. I'll explain that in a moment, but first...
In fact, there is only one qualification currently enforced if one is
to vote for the Hugo awards, and that is a financial qualification.
You must be able to pay for at least a supporting membership in the
World Science Fiction Association, the official name of the
Convention's membership.
This means that to vote for the Hugo, you don't even have to read the
books and stories nominated.
Think about that for a minute. Then think about this. In 1978, at the
IguanaCon (the World Science Fiction Convention held in Phoenix that
year), a small group of individuals buttonholed a rather larger group
of attendees, and asked them whether they had voted for that year's
novel Hugo; and if they had, how many of the nominees they had actually
read prior to voting.
Of those who had voted, less than 40% had read all the nominated books.
Try this logic. The number of people who have read a book is
proportional to the number of people who bought it. There is no reason
to believe that this is less true within the population who vote for
Hugos than outside it. The only substantial difference that can
reasonably be expected between the Hugo- voters and the non-Hugo voters
is a greater likelihood to buy and read hard- cover SF.
The greater a book's advance publicity budget and/or the greater the
author's reputation based on her PREVIOUS books, the greater the sales
of a book will be.
Hypothesis: Nobody votes for a book she hasn't read for the Hugo, over
a book she has read, unless she -really- hated the one she read.
(At this point, some Nimrod is jumping up and down, saying, "But being
a best-seller doesn't mean a book is bad!" BINGO! Best-sellerdom
doesn't mean a book is ANYTHING It means the publisher spent bucks, or
the author has a reputation. But DelRey Books spent big bucks pushing
THE SWORD OF SHA-NA-NA, and a man with a real big reputation once wrote
something called FARNHAM'S FREEHOLD. Neither of the principal
contributors to best-sellerdom is a reliable mark of quality.)
Given these likelihoods and facts, a books advance publicity budget and
the author's prior reputation have an unwarrantedly high degree of
influence on who wins the Hugo.
What can be done?
In an ideal world, the Hugo might work like this. There would be two
ballots for the general membership of the convention. The first would
allow them to nominate the books and stories which would end up on the
final list. The top five (or three, or seventeen) of each category
would be that year's nominees. The second public ballot would be a
slate of persons each of whom had agreed to read all the nominees
before voting. The general membership would select who, from that
list, they wished to represent them in selecting the winners of the
Hugos. Perhaps a system of "weighting" their votes based on their
support from the general membership might be adopted.
At any rate, this would ensure that only people who had taken the
trouble to become qualified to vote, by reading the nominees, would
make the selection.
In the real world, of course, such a plan would never be accepted. "It
ain't democratic." Well... neither is writing talent. Some people
have it; some don't. Democracy may not be the best way for judging an
inherently UNdemocratic phenomenon.
In the real world, there is only one thing that can be done. And only
you can do it. If you are going to vote for the Hugos, read the
nominees. Otherwise, you may help keep the best book from winning.
If you can't make a commitment to read all the nominees... stay away
from the ballots. Because the last thing the Hugo award needs is more
uninformed voters.
What's wrong with the Hugo?
by Chuq Von Rospach
Dan'l's article notwithstanding, I don't really think there is anything
significant wrong with the Hugos. They do just what they are designed
to do: show the world what the membership of the annual Worldcon
thinks are the best in the genre for that year.
Perceptions, on the other hand...
The big problem is that the general public thinks that the membership
of a Worldcon represents the readership of Science Fiction as a whole.
Wrong. Because of this, there is a lot of breastbeating every year
because people feel that the Hugos don't represent them.
Most of these people, of course, would never be caught dead voting for
the Hugo, of course. Which goes back to my comment in #9. If you get
involved in the voting process, you CAN make the Hugo represent what
you think they should. If you don't get involved, you shouldn't gripe
about the results.
The griping will continue, of course, no matter what I say. And the
Hugos are in good company. The SFWA fights a running battle over the
Nebula, and neither of these comes close to the second guessing and
backbiting that goes on around the Oscar. Personally, I think the
controversy is a good sign -- it shows people are paying attention and
thinking about the results. Its better than being ignored.
* * *
There are a number of ways that the Hugo can be improved, though.
First and foremost, to me, is the silly Australian ballot preference
system used for counting votes. I won't attempt to explain the system
-- it looks like a statisticians masters thesis and makes keeping score
while bowling look easy. Rather, the following excerpt from Locus #309
says it all:
"'The Only Neat Thing to Do' [...] had the most nominations AND the
most first place votes and led for the first three rounds. It lost
to the Zelazny story because it didn't command enough second place
votes. The story eliminated next to last was the C.J. Cherryh, and
most of these voters preferred the Zelazny story in their second place."
In other words, Tiptree got the most votes, (208 to 194 for the winning
Zelazny story) but lost because people who like C. J. Cherryh stories
(who placed fifth in the voting, even though she got more votes than
the fourth place Robinson story) prefer Zelazny to Tiptree.
Huh?
I'm sorry, but if you get the most votes, you take home the award. Except
under a balloting system that requires an MBA, two computers, and an
astrology chart. In 1986, out of 13 categories, the person with the most
first place votes LOST in three categories. I'm just glad they don't do
this with the presidential elections; can you imagine the possibilities?
* * *
It also seems obvious that the No Award award doesn't work. People
will simply not vote rather than vote for nothing (two entirely
different things!) thereby letting an award go to someone who doesn't
have the support of the membership. One way to make the Hugo more
valuable is to stop giving it out when it isn't deserved. No Award was
supposed to do this, but it hasn't worked. Rather than forcing someone
to take a positive action, I think it is better to simply remove No
Award from the ballot completely, and only give the award in a category
when 50%+1 of the valid ballots have a vote for the category. If 50%
of the voters don't vote, the membership is saying there isn't
something in the category worth voting for, and the award isn't
justified. In the case of Best Fanzine this year, there was a major
campaign for the No Award. If it hadn't been for the Australian
counting, it would have "won" (239 votes vs. the winning Lan's Lantern
153). Under the suggested rules, there were 1267 legal ballots, and
805 voted for Best Fanzine. When you subtract the 239 No Award
ballots, you end up with 566 votes for the category, well below the
awarding level. The Fan Writer category would also not have been
awarded, and the Fan Artist is right on the edge.
Hugos should be given out for a reason, not because they exist.
Changing No Award will make sure that when there isn't a mandate for an
award, there isn't an award.
* * *
Finally, I think that the Best Pro Artist category needs to be
rethought. Michael Whelan pulled himself from contention next year
because he has won consistently. When someone builds enough of a
presence in the industry (as Whelan deservedly has) it's possible for
him to win even though they didn't do a single work of art in a given
year, simply because they are well known. Does this make sense?
We might as well be voting for Best Author instead of Best Novel. Best
Pro Artist shouldn't be tied to the person, but to the work. Don't
vote for the artist, but for the cover or illustration or painting that
you feel is best. This does mean, potentially, that Whelan could be
nominated two or three times in a year, but if that happens, it is
simply showing his dominance of the field and not his name recognition.
* * *
None of this, of course, will make the Hugo perfect. I do feel,
though, it will make it better. Still, a lot can be done if people
simply get involved. The Hugo is, like it or not, your award, and it
represents everyone involved in the SF genre. If you don't get
involved, you aren't part of the solution -- you're part of the problem.
The Masthead
OtherRealms is Copyright 1986 by Chuq Von Rospach
All Rights Reserved
One time rights have been acquired from the contributors. All Rights
are hereby assigned to the contributors.
Reproduction Rights: OtherRealms may be reproduced only for non-commercial
uses. Re-use, reproduction, or reprinting of any individual article in
any way on any media is forbidden without permission.
OtherRealms is published monthly, except for the January issue in
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main focus is reviews of newer and lesser known authors and their
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All books are rated with the following guidelines. Most books should
have a three star rating. Anything rated three stars or above is
recommended. Stars may be modified with a + or a - to show a half star
rating, with [***-] being slightly better than [**+].
[*****] Classic, Hugo quality
[****] Hugo Nominee quality
[***] Average book, good read
[**] Somewhat flawed, has its moments
[*] Not recommended
[] Avoid at all costs
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--
Chuq Von Rospach chuq%plaid@sun.COM Delphi: CHUQ
{decwrl,hplabs,ihnp4,seismo}!sun!plaid!chuq
The azure sun beat down upon my face, fluffly white clouds skittered their
way across the scintilating sky, and this moment could have been nominated
for perfection if it wasn't for that giant leech attached to my thigh.