Lentils... I've never eaten them, are they so good? Emily Barton seems to think so, and so, behind all the alternate timelines, historical inevitability, struggling Jewish cultures, and semi-sentient mechanical horses - she has written, truly, a book about her love for this mystical legume. Do I need to say more about The Book of Esther? Probably, and I will. But, clearly, I needed to mention the lentils. I'll get it right out of the way, The Book of Esther is about an alternate timeline that inevitably leads the Jewish peoples to have their very own country, and invite wildly strange technologies. I am not Jewish, I do not know much about anything to do with Jewish culture. BUT, that strangely kept me invested in this story. The fact that I had no idea about Jewish people, had me learning new things left and right about them. I was just as invested as I would be when it came to fictional societies, countries, and cultures. Right off the bat, I was hooked and it wasn't hard to dive right in. You won't find anything else like it out there. Emily Barton has created a thoroughly complex world, and surprisingly doesn't simply create a story where the Jewish peoples take revenge on Germany because of... history. Nope, she took the high road here. The Jewish people have a minimalist society, tribes, ranking systems rife with abuse (Esther herself seems very intent on using marriage to achieve a particular title), discrimination when it comes to refugees, non-Jewish peoples, light sexism, and the most bonkers technology you could ever imagine. Most of the time, these people have no idea how to combat the Germanii threat, their intelligence often fails due to human error, and guns are just a weapon they don't use. When it comes to tech, they use semi-sentient mechanical horses that feed off troffs of oil (what?), have their own will, and sound extremely cool, but I can't feel a bit iffy on their actual usefulness. Could you not trip a mechanical horse? What is the weight limit? Why are they sentient? Atop that you have other questionable inventions such as wooden air vehicles... I have no words. I can't even decide if these are cool, or just ridiculous. Characters, to me, can be just a little bit odd. Everyone has been part of this culture for so long that, they are completely familiar with the way it runs, and the history. Oftentimes they'll be saying Jewish phrases, and talking about things that you don't know about until later in the story. It took me a long time to get a hold on what people were thinking or talking about when they weren't dealing with the situations at hand. Everything about their country, especially Esther, is so important that everyone needs to talk about it constantly. It can be, at times, a lot to swallow and borders on exposition. Esther, the titular character can be loud, and isn't often right when it comes to everything. She likes to say what seems right, demand it from everyone, without knowing if it is. And, since her name is derived from Jewish religion, she seems intent on being someone important to her people. Therein, Esther is naive, takes on far too much, has a self-determined sense of responsibility, but ultimately she is still trying to do the right thing - not always in the right way. Her family isn't much different, and often their views on how to handle situations collide and make things very interesting. I can't say that The Book of Esther is for everyone, it requires a good deal of dedication to move past it's trickier moments. Sometimes the presumption that a reader is Jewish gets in the way, definite due to me not being Jewish, but Emily Barton always seems to find a way to explain what words mean, and what exactly is happening in her world. Moments felt loss always eventually come together. And, there really is nothing as vast in the alternate-history subgenre as this book. You will not find another book like The Book of Esther, I mean that in the best possible way. -L. BROOKS Find out more, if you're interested... The Book of Esther - Penguin/RandomHouse More about Emily Barton
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Numenera: The Night Claive releases this November. Keep an eye out if you're interested... Muad'dib bless your soul. Numenera is a franchise which includes both a pen-and-paper RPG and PC game, two things I really like. And, now, it seems that the creators have some idea about getting into novelizations - much like Dungeons and Dragons, Dragonlance, and, for a little while, Magic: The Gathering. The idea is great, I love when a franchise based on a book-contained game works to expand its universe and express the function of character classes and their places within this imagined world. Sadly sometimes the idea and vision doesn't always translate well or is handled badly by the writer at hand. I couldn't tell you which is the case with Numenera: The Night Clave, as it's co-written, apparently, by the creator, but for everything this book strives to be - it fails to do much more than be annoying. No doubt, there is a lot of passion behind this novel. A lot of attention to the details of the world, but that all falls flat as the story is utterly forgettable. It all begins with an assassination plot, of a man who may or may not be evil, or maybe he is just evil to the characters at hand. It is honestly hard to tell what the motivations or exact goings-ons are as the writing tends to be over bloated and circular in execution. If a character has even one indication of a prior event, even something as mundane as preparation, then you are immediately presented with a bulk of expository information about something else that happened, or paragraphs upon paragraphs of equipment descriptions. The first chapter took me almost an hour to read, page upon page of this - meanwhile the characters at hand have literally done nothing besides move to a position and fire. There is just way too much exposition and, sadly, things do not get better. Continuing on, viewpoints switch, and you have to deal with a character who is written in spotty sentences. For. Some. Reason. I think it’s to provide a sense of urgency, but I didn’t feel it worked at all. Not to mention, there are still expository instances abound and it’s a layered event - the same thing is still going on as before, just another character is coming to make some change in that particular instance. Worse yet, the same details are mentioned over and over again, merely paragraphs from each other: he’s about to fire the launcher, he’s going to fire the launcher, I can’t watch him firing that launcher, I got to go the guy with the launcher. As much as I want to get into this book, I’m just pulled out completely by redundancy and poor stylistic choices. Horrible writing and pacing aside, the characters are not much more than generic slates and flat, blank, characters. Perhaps this is due to the RPG being based on character creation and classes, but characters cannot just be the weapons and things they carry, or the powers they have. They need to have some real substance, and being mad at the bad guy, the only dilemma being if he’s truly good or bad, is weak at best. The setting, as well, is all over the place. Everything but the kitchen sink is thrown into the equation, and when the given writer can’t explain something, they simply say that whatever an element is, the character didn’t understand the purpose - so it just can’t be explained (didn’t stop every single other little thing from being explained). You can tell that, whomever the cover artist was, they really couldn’t get past the fatty boring chapters and instead opted to describe the setting of the first chapter. Why not, it’s there for way longer than it should be anyhow. Numenera, what a place I’d like to learn about! But I couldn’t with this book, instances of the game's mechanics are here but they are the peanut butter on a hair sandwich. Yes, that metaphor was bad - but at least you didn’t have to read about for an eternity. I’ll take the sandwich over this book any day. -L. BROOKS Within a matter of days, I devoured the story of Remy and this strange dark world he inhabits. Rather than providing a typical Aladdin-esque story-line of 'street-rat turns hero', Christina Lay has clearly went to great lengths ensuring that Symphony of Ruin's main character is both an accidental, and extremely flawed one. From the get-go, Remy sips liquor with his friends, stolen from a man who'd taken him in, and of whom he has no real appreciation; he is willing to take advantage of the people around him, blatantly lie in pursuit of reward, and is rather uncaring upon sight of the people, who'd once been his friends, lying dead from a mysterious form of attack. Because of this, Remy is constantly thrown into situations where he has to act the hero in order to ensure that he can live another day - either because of frivolous spending, leaving him unable to support himself while his master is gone, or due the fact that people are threatening him, or the money he could make. Remy is so flawed and cocksure that it's almost comedic, and he stands out as an interesting example of an accidental hero who is doing the right thing for all the wrong reasons. I rarely have comments on the individual elements of a novel (usually opting to provide my thoughts on the whole) but The City, a brooding little haunt where plagues, monster attacks, ghosts, vampire creatures, and supernatural plots seem far too common to it's residents, stands out as a character all on it's own. Life is just terrible for everyone here, even the higher ranking officials, and it's even at the point where Alchemists (basically wizards in this universe) have found a way to make a living from this fact. However, just like the main character, the dark and twisted elements of this place are portrayed in an almost comedic manner. Everyone is just so okay with others dying; the only consistent occurrence in The City being death. Why do they stay here? No person knows - even the nobility of this place are being killed off and requiring some form of exorcism due the ways they’ve been killed, sit atop magic portals to cult layers, and are victim of magical abuses. And, who will do something about this state? Not a person, unless there is a reward. Way to reflect the nature of humanity, am I right? My only gripe, besides a singular typo, is that Chapters whip from one location to another, constructed like episodes or scenes of a television show. This isn’t all bad, I still very much loved Symphony of Ruin, but it had me confused at times - having to get a read on where Remy was, who he was talking to, what was going on. Honestly, I just feel that this was a stylistic choice I don’t see often and had to get used to. Not truly a detriment to the novel. For a great, very strange, dark comedy that provides death and mystery at every turn - I suggest Symphony of Ruin. It is well written, well paced, and Christina Lay has given me one of the most interesting and fun characters I have ever had the chance of experiencing. It is entirely straight-forward and to-the-point, with no unnecessary filler, but it makes for a stress-free read. Not every fantasy novel needs to be as big as a concrete block to please, or provide a compelling or entertaining narrative. Let Symphony of Ruin be a prime example of this. -L. BROOKS For those interested... SHADOW SPINNERS - Christina Lay Symphony of Ruin - On Amazon Anyone that has played Saga of the North Wind, even read it's descriptions, knows that I'm going to immediately draw parallels between this 'game' and Choose-Your-Own-Adventure books. But, really, what is the point. If you know what a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure book is, you don't need to be caught up because they had such a spastic existence - constantly fading in and out of the public eye. If you don't, to experience on is simple - just download this 'game' from the app store and be prepared to experience three amazing chapters for free. And, no, I've not been paid for this review - I just really enjoyed my experience with this title. Tom Knights has clearly fulfilled some kind of dual ambition, to both write and create videos games, as he's flawlessly combined the pair. Saga of the North Wind is a CYOA, almost a text-adventure game, but not only that - it is a evolution that neither managed to make during their brief popularity. Behind all the interesting choices, some delightfully gray or leading to events you would not expect, there are subsystems at play that track and allow you to manage your character's personality and favoritism with certain Gods. Every choice changes your character's traits, who you can customize through clever in-game interactions, and favoring certain gods throughout the story will drastically change your relationship with others. To add more depth, and risk, to the game, Tom Knights has even included a damage system that can, as far as I know, ultimately result in the death of your character. Now, you must be wondering - have I completely lost my mind and resorted to reviewing some video game as opposed to books? No. I do play video games, but I do not review them. You see, if there is one thing Saga of the North Wind boasts about, besides the length, it that it includes no graphics whatsoever. There is no actual game-play, just reading and manipulating the game through choices. Yes, when I say this is a CYOA, it genuinely is. You won't be doing much besides interacting with a very well written novel - as well, probably the only place where I'll find the 'present-tense' narrative acceptable. If you're up all night, looking for something to dive into, take a chance with Saga of the North Wind. I discovered it by chance and I absolutely have no regretted the hours I've put into this experience. It is great to have a 'game' that can genuinely appeal to readers and lovers of old, oh so very old, Choose-Your-Own-Adventure books. -L. BROOKS There is something to be said about the generous amount of poetry books which exist these days, and that is that they are usually utterly generic and typical - usually lacking any semblance of rhythm or meter. Personally, I blame those who abuse the self-publishing industry, dropping words in the quickest fashion possible. It's almost offensive to those who read actual poetry. And, well, if this makes it seem like I dislike Wizard Bound, I'm sorry. I don't. Whilst other offerings usually pine on about the mundane consequences of loneliness, depression, and relationship - this one bothers to have a theme! Oh, what do you know - a spark of creativity lies in the many poems within this collection. Wizard Bound features a bevy poems within a span of 73 pages. Usually this would be a red flag for me, but it seems like the writers, Adam and Christian Boustead, have bothered to consider the structure and flow of their poetry. Therein, the entirety of Wizard Bound feels like experimentation with fantasy and poetry, rather then one of those typical 'Look at what I made!' poetry books the kids print out these days. It all works too, I must admit. Even extremely brief poems such as Alp, Deaths Face, and Ether convey ideas in a clear, understandable, yet undeniably interesting manor. It's good stuff. Now, for my gripe. As someone who reads epic poetry, such as Homer's Odyssey, Virgil's Aeneid, Beowulf, and numerous Arthurian works - I can't help but wish that these works were connected by more then just a genre. The potential for a story, conveyed through poem, is here and a mass interconnected story would probably make this more appealing. The Boustead's most certainly have the creativity to do so, if Wizard Bound is any indication of their talents. And, I'd like to see something bigger from them - a mythos, something interconnected and large, incredibly memorable. Perhaps that is too much for a small-time blogger to ask. -L. BROOKS Where can I find this book?: You can find Wizard Bound on Amazon if you are interested. Click here. This whole mess of an article was going to be a review of The Mirror Empire by Kameron Hurley, a abysmal book I'd picked up at my local dollar tree because... it looked interesting. Well, it wasn't and this piece has mutated into something terrible. It was confusing, badly paced, and worst of all: it forced social politics, gender politics, on it's readers. And, by forced, I mean it wasn't a necessary aspect of the world, it didn't change anything but the wording, it was just there to appeal to a group, but, more specifically, it was marketed towards said group. Which means that it wasn't really written in a way where the inclusion of reversed gender roles and gender fluidity work, it's just put there to sell books to certain people. Understand? No. Well, that's alright. You see the endless social war of feminism, gender fluidity, and gender defined roles has been a hot button subject for years now. Some members of these groups know what they are taking about, they can be reasonable human beings, and will debate intelligently. However, there are sadly a whole lot of extremists and ignorant individuals that rise up, usually by being brazen yet somewhat unhinged and selective in their facts and arguments, and ruin the point of these movements entirely. These more extreme individuals, who basically ruin it for everyone, are so prone to backlash and wild reactions that they become viral - allowing others to feel that, maybe because they are so prominent, that these extreme people and their extreme viewpoints, are the right way to feel. Others take the opposite approach and become just as infuriating with their warlike presentations and penchant to point everyone out as idiots for not opposing these extremists. Some of us, like me, just don't pay attention to this and we move on, and somehow we get sucked into writing articles we didn't think we'd ever write. Funny how that happens. Point is, The Mirror Empire is an example of someone appealing to a movement they don't truly understand. There is not real point in the gender roles being reversed, the females don't change what it means to say, rule, or be in a certain role. They don't make these horrifying characters be more or less just because they are female - they just are female. Males characters are constructed in a way that makes them, basically, be the meek and passive females one would see in outdated literature - presented in a way that says 'ha! how do you like that?' to male readers, basically just making the whole thing seem as immature as possible. Oh, and males get raped by females and, as a man who has went through this as a young boy, I really don't find it too shocking or in-my-face. I didn't like the concept of rape in my stories when it was happening to females either, what is with this assumption that men do? Of course, you are going to have a legion of sociopolitical extremists clinging to what it sounds like it is, what it claims to be, rather then reading the book and realizing that the whole thing is garbage. Well, if this was truly a book made to spread a message and push the apparent 'patriarchy/male supremely' out of the picture, why is the author selling the book? Clearly, and obviously, to profit off of this group. But, who knows, the fact I've found this book at a Dollar Tree clearly demonstrates that, perhaps, this group isn't as malleable as people have come to believe. I'm not saying feminism, gender fluidity, or anything like that doesn't belong in Fantasy or Science Fiction - books like Dune portray females as supremely powerful and intelligent beings, almost always more capable then any male character, but that world had a difference made because of this. If your book simply switches the roles, with no difference, and they act exactly the same then why bother. If a female is put in that role, she has a history and reason that really shows that she is right for that place within the tale - then, by all means, that character should be female. But, none of the characters in The Mirror Empire are anything but archetypes with interchanged genetalia, and this book is not made to support gender politics, it is made to make money off of them. This book is a wet pile of human refuse, fermenting in the sun. I, quite literally, tossed it in the garbage after reading it. -L. BROOKS I'm always looking for a new series to read, and I love when I can hop aboard as a new set of books launches. You never know what you are getting and you never truly know what to expect. It can be a great experience or one you regret buying into. Well, sadly, The Summer Dragon fits into the latter category. And, though there are hints of brilliance along the way, no doubt due to the fact that illustrator Todd Lockwood is the author, it inevitably has too many flaws and attempts to cater to a more marketable group Reading through The Summer Dragon, I couldn't help but feel that it had been rewritten at some point. There is a lot of evidence that points towards the book either originally being in a third person perspective, rather then the highly constrictive first person narrative presented here, or being for a much older audience. You see, it's mostly YA, but it doesn't feel like it should be. The book opens, for instance, with a third person perspective prologue, then abruptly throws readers off when it switches to the perspective of Maia. Initially, Maia is a completely incompetent and insufferable character, the first chapter paints her as a run-of-the-mill snappy female lead, destined for adventure. I got to say, for how brief the first chapter is, it took me a long time to read. Maia is annoying, her brother is annoying, her father is the typical gruff-yet-knowledgeable sort of father you see in these types of books, and her friends are flat, just there to express that there is some small community around dragon breeding. They, ultimately, prove to just be flat names and their dragons are given one character trait each to define them; compliment their given owner. I must point out, as well, that Maia inadvertently almost kills a family friend in this chapter - you'll see why I bring this up later. After the first chapter, the whole book wildly changes in both style and quality. Explanations and descriptions go from short, brief, and almost dumb - to well done and almost poetic. Maia's view of the world also shifts entirely, as if shes someone else completely. No longer is she snappy, but instead she's a little young minded, yet, but earnest and understandable. You can see how she views the world around her as a beautiful place and genuinely loves the work she does with dragons, they are more to her then just vehicles or weapons. It's great, for a bit, and I couldn't help but feel like this was some remnant of what the book had initially been - because this Maia is a better character, and this Maia makes sense. However, this Maia also doesn't seem to care enough to regret almost killing her family friend. She doesn't even bring it up. The gore described from the incident, she could care less, and the incident just passes her by without her caring. She does seem to care about ancient, mysterious, ruins that coincidentally skirt a buried city, which is coincidentally near where she lives, and, coincidentally, one of the legendary dragons that is described almost instantly shows up. Of course, Maia and her brother are surprised, but instead of caring that a legendary dragon of myth, the real Summer Dragon, has presented itself to them - they are just concerned about themselves. Oh, is this good luck? Maybe that means we'll get Dragons now, what we want. Then there is a dead dragon, possibly poachers and - it utterly ruins any wonder, becoming tedious, as the book hops from scene to scene ad nauseam. Further in the book, when he does decide to commit to a scene or idea, it is entirely too drawn out. And he just keeps stacking things on - including a side character that is just there to segway the story into a second book. It's a mess, and though the ideas may be good individually, they make for a confusing spotty story-line when placed together as they have been. Worse yet, it's all YA. Trying to cater to a scene that people make more money from in the short-term and it further harms this book. As I mentioned, there are times when the writing breaks through into more mature prose, but other times it seems dulled or dumbed down for a younger audience. It made me feel a little alienated as a reader, confused as well. We already had the Eragon series for YA Dragon stories, and no one has been asking for them since. So, why bother? The content here demands a sprawling, massive, fantasy world - not a forgettable, by-the-numbers first person YA fantasy. I yern for what could have been. -L. BROOKS NOTE: This is the second part of a large review, you can view the second part by clicking here. It took me a long time, when I was younger, to catch this second part of Merlin. This was mostly due to cable being wildly expensive, and a thing that my family couldn't afford. At the time, however, I distinctly remember the praise the first part received and how this second part was so highly anticipated that it had been on magazine covers, though I don't think TV guide was one of them. Thankfully, a teacher had been so impressed by this series that, in high-school, I was able to watch it in whole. Because of this, I was able to experience the entire mini-series, and eventually bought the DVD myself. The second part of Merlin immediately presents watcher's with far more complicated dilemma's then the first. Now, Merlin is paired with Arthur (The King Arthur of Legend), a young boy he raised to become King and immediately cements the boy as such. Though he is raised to be good man, he inevitably falters at times, though one has to wonder - is the bulk of Arthur's problems simply because of Mab and Merlin's, increasingly petty, feud? I think so. A good deal of loose ends left in the first part come together here: Arthur's true mother had a sister, she returns here and develops an interesting relationship with Frik (who is no longer merely comic relief), Nimue's mental state slowly deteriorates as she rarely sees Merlin anymore, as he is off doing things without her, minor characters from the first part stick around, and either become obstacles to Arthur or new allies. Almost nothing is left out aside from a few things, such as the fate of the soothsayer, or the reason behind Mab placing a stone in Arthur's crib when he was a child. The latter, to me, seems like the element of a plot that might've been left on the cutting room floor - no doubt kept in because it begins Mab and Frik's relationship with Morgana. If you were to think that the inclusion of rape in the first part was shocking, this time we get incest. Yes, Morgana's ugly sister is given beauty by Mab and Frik - only to go absolutely insane immediately, and agree to take part in a plot that involves her being impregnated by Arthur. Uniquely, the writers didn't just gloss by the monstrosity of Mab's actions (or how, maybe, she'd done this in response to Merlin's part in Arthur's conception), when Arthur finds out he is genuinely disgusted, distraught, and, in my opinion, begins to understand the terrible nature of this universe's magic. Merlin, however, seems to treat the situation as if it's a nuisance rather then something that could harm his cause later on. In fact, Merlin pretty much treats all further issues in this series as if they are merely annoyances, rather then genuine threats. I'm not sure if this shows how tired the character has grown with everything, or that the other characters, and their subplots, are more interesting. A lot does happen, the rise and fall of Lancelot, the repercussions of Arthur's obsession with the Holy grail leads to his Queen (played by a young Lena Headey long before Game Of Thrones) falling for the supposedly gallant Knight, Merlin learns that he's gotten a little bitter about everything and is, indeed, a man who can make mistakes, Frik falls in love with Morgana, confronts Mab when she kills her, and becomes mortal because of it. However, the main plot here is Mab's final bid, Mordred, a insufferable super-powered nutcase who exists strictly to undermine and annoy his father. What is interesting is that Mab does develop a connection with this miserable manufactured man, and grows to love him - making his eventual and expected Death a somewhat sad moment. Merlin ends on a rather bitter-sweet note, as main characters die, and the nature of good and bad, as well as the power of belief is fully explored. Merlin himself does get a good ending with Nimue, and we end on a high note for Frik. But, a person can't help but feel that maybe nothing would've happened if Merlin simply left things be, or moved past his pride, and vengeful goals. This series brings up issues that were far ahead of it's time for fantasy films, and far outshines the storytelling of most, if not all, of them (including Peter Jackson's LoTR and the Hobbit). I'm not talking about adventure and spectacle, I'm talking about the overall questions that could be asked - what is truly good or evil? What is right and wrong? Are these characters truly just, or merely doing these things to achieve their own goals? And, what does desperation truly bring? It is these questions that Merlin leaves me with every time I watch it, and its because of this that I highly recommend you watch it. It is a highly complicated masterpiece that is, sadly, overlooked nowadays and one that desperately needs attention (and an eventual BluRay release). -L. BROOKS I'm pretty open about my dislike for George R.R. Martin's untimeliness, but it has given me a chance to further explore more of his works. There are some decent works outside of Westeros, but as I am a big fan of the ASOIAF books (going so far as to own the Game Of Thrones cookbook), I couldn't help exploring the alleged 'prequel' novellas involving the characters Dunk and Egg. And, boy, did I fall for one hell of a marketing ploy - an unnecessary one at that! If you're picking up The Hedge Knight (A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms) in hopes of exploring your favorite ASOIAF characters, in which there are plenty of stories that could be told about them, prepare to be sorely disappointed. This novella is a prequel to the state of the world, not the inhabitants you've been following for the better of... seemingly forever. No, The Hedge Knight aims to take you back to a simpler time - when things like chivalry and honor still existed, somewhat, in the Seven Kingdoms. There is no magic, dragons, Whitewalkers, zombie bears, wildlings, incestuous relationships... but there are Targaryens, and you can bet that wherever they are, there is sure to be a little political intrigue. With The Hedge Knight, Martin dials back his staple of massive multi-character story-lines, and instead opts to tell the entirety of the tale from the viewpoint of Dunk, a simple man who aims to put himself in the boots of a Knight, as his master was. While Dunk is a relatively good-natured man, he doesn't shy away from lying to get what he wants. For instance, he's never been Knighted, but he knows enough about the process to lie and enters the tourney. Of course, he soon finds that this world of Knights and Lords is a little different then he imagined - more of a popularity contest, then he imagines, and his views on Knighthood often clash with everyone else's. It's a smaller struggle then those you'd see in the main ASOIAF series, but I feel like it was a issue that a man would have in this world - at least, while war, magic, and metaphysical beings weren't threatening everything. A good portion, though I admit not as much as I'd thought, of this story is the relationship between Dunk and a boy he meets, Egg. Both of them are oddities in this world: Dunk being a honest, yet not so intelligent, man who seems things in a rather simple way, and Egg, who is a young, extremely intelligent, boy who has strong opinions on what a Knight should be, and is drawn to Dunk because of this. The latter also has a backstory that ties heavily into the plot, but I'll try not to spoil it for you. Together these two oddballs attempt to enter a tourney, with Egg as Dunk's squire . No, they don't really get embroiled in some massive plot, but there is a bit of intrigue to be had near the end of this tale. Which is nice and doesn't pull the story so far from whats expected from ASOIAF that it's completely alien. There are more of these stories out there, and I honestly am surprised more people don't know about them. It's true that The Hedge Knight is not the most complex thing Martin's wrote, nor is Westeros as dark and gritty as it's portrayed in either the original book series or the GoT television series. However, there really is enough of that to be had in the books, and I really enjoyed exploring a more contained plot in a friendlier world - The Hedge Knight shows readers how far the Seven Kingdoms have fell in a span of roughly a hundred years, -L. BROOKS WARNING: There are just so many spoilers here. If you haven't seen this, stop reading, hop in your time machine and go back to 1998 when it was new and airing on Television. No, all plot details are not described here, only a few key moments I fell are essential to deeming the quality of Merlin. Back in the day, before internet culture had absolutely dominated the planet, when the opinionated masses didn't feel as if everything had to be torn apart for not taking their views into consideration, torn apart just because something was old or silly, there was a period of television dominance. Wherein, if a movie was good enough to be on a major television network - it was therefore deemed a success, that was it. FOX, ABC, NBS, CBC, etc had the sway of things back then (even in Canada), they determined what media you consumed, and late night movies were major events for families who tuned in. Eventually, companies caught on - separating major movies, like Robocop 2, into two separate nights, and eventually making massive star-studded spectacles strictly for television, rather then just airing low budget junk that was cheap and easy to fill in the spaces between all the high-ranked television sitcoms and dramas that were airing at the time. So rolled out the miniseries, a not-quite-movie-not-quite-television-program hybrid - it bore the likes of Salem's Lot, IT, Rose Red, The Stand (that is a lot of Stephen King), The Magical Land of Leprechauns, The 10th Kingdom, Gulliver Travels, and went on to pave the way for more massive venture such as The White Queen, Band of Brothers, Pillars of the Earth, and so many other obvious titles. Somewhere, somehow, in the middle of all that was Merlin - a star-studded Arthurian epic about the struggle between master and creator, new and old, right and wrong. I could, certainly, go on all day about the actors in this movie - all the big names, all the care they took with their roles (aside from Rutger Hauer, who mostly just plays himself). Yes, this movie was treated like a major film, despite it being of a slightly lower quality, and even the smaller, almost unknown to this day, actors mingle with the high-profile performers flawlessly. But, this is a blog about stories and I'm not exactly great at judging the caliber of an actor. So I'll save it for those more qualified. I do have to note, however, that I absolutely love Miranda Richardson in her dual role as both Queen Mab and her sister, The Lady of the Lake. Getting right into it, Merlin begins somewhat slow and simple. For a long time magic has been the way of things, and Queen Mab has presided over most everything for a good long while, both human and magical. This is all threatened, however, as the Christian faith has brought the creator god into existence, and day by day the old ways, of magical abilities and creatures, are pushed out of the minds of mortals. In desperation, Queen Mab brings the wizard Merlin (Sam Neil) into existence, in a bid to make mortals continue their belief in magic - therefore, keeping it alive. This setup is magnificent, as it does show that Mab was once a little more benevolent before the advent of the Christian faith, and that it's rise had clearly taken many of the things she held close away (Ambrosia, Merlin's caretaker, even states that she once had love, but it was no more). Almost everything she does is the product of manipulation, and she uses her dwindling power only when she thinks it will absolutely aid her and her people. Everything she does could be considered evil to the Christians, but good to the magical world. Not only that, Mab is the only character willing to fight for her people - as her sister, the Lady of the Lake, simply accepts that she'll fade into nothingness, and the Rock of Ages believes he can never be subject to death. It's important to take note of this, as this situation is what drives Mab's every action. My only gripe with the opening bit is that the man playing young Merlin is just a little too old-looking for me to believe he is a teenager, and the creators saw it fit to stick Nimue (Isabella Rossellini), the daughter of a powerful lord, into probably the dumbest situation possible: sinking into a bog of quicksand. Worse yet, her servants and handmaids just let her walk off - it doesn't make much sense. Merlin, of course, saves her - but that is just about where his overall heroics end for the movie. Surprisingly, this is for the better. When the series finally gets Merlin off the ground, shedding weak attempts at comedy through characters like Frik (Martin Short), he is immediately flawed and the concept of magic, the nature of his creation, and Mab herself have left a bitter taste in his mouth. Despite him being the product of the old ways, he wants the Christians to win strictly because he wants that world to fade away - feeling that magic has a price and the power it brings imbues people and things with a careless nature towards others. And, damn, this series uses every opportunity to show that the price of magic is high. Anyone that uses it or has it is is a tool for something greater, ultimately Mab, and in the end they are discarded. Ultimately, Merlin sees the need for certain kingdom's to fall, as they align with Mab, and he sets about trying to aid the men who can do it. The Lady of the Lake gives him Excalibur, and he uses it to take down a man he feels is evil with those he feels are good. However, it's not that simple. At this point, Merlin uses the sword to kill a King, but in turn he gives power to a man who can't control himself; who lusts for another man's wife. Sure, the Christians are a little more powerful and Mab is a little weaker, but Merlin has inadvertently given power to a deviant. It really makes you wonder, when Merlin was given a vision earlier int he series, was it his own, or a subtle ploy put in place by Mab to torment him? Now, readers, if you think that Game of Thrones is a originator of complicated dramatic situations in a fantasy environment - prepare to be blown away. Merlin puts Excalibur in stone, asking the Rock of Ages to deem the man who pulls it as worthy. He, however, turns to Ulther, the new King, and agrees to go forward with a plot involving rape. He will transform Ulther, for a night, into the lord of Cornwall for a time, so that he can have the lord's wife. A child will be born from this, and Merlin wants it, he wants to groom this child into a good man. It really was at this point that I questioned Merlin himself. Through all the years he spent trying to do the good thing, failing at times, as any man would, he is clearly willing to do the wrong thing in order to get at Mab. To me, the first part of Merlin ended as a mono-myth. Merlin set out to stop Mab, he suffers greatly, so did those around him (such as Nimue, who is badly scarred due to his refusal to use magic) was a hero to some, but in the end he became just as desperate and flawed as Mab herself. Merlin, at this point, is willing to use people as devices to achieve his goals and push the Christian faith. He and Mab, have become the same. (Stay tuned for the second part) -L. BROOKS I have to confess, I own a rather nice little compilation of Kafka's shorter works. It is through this that I've been able to read his work, and share my thoughts on his stories. Some of them aren't fantasy or scifi, but they are certainly all obscure. Of course, I'm not going to just be reviewing every little story that I read by him, I'm simply pointing out the ones that I feel need attention drawn to. And, I can confidentially say, The Metamorphosis deserves a little attention. When Gregor Samsa wakes as a giant bug, his life takes a turn for the worse... but if it was ever good is the real question. The Metamorphosis is, hands down, the most popular tale that Franz Kafka ever turned out - and for good reason. Not often can a story deal with topics such as ignorance, desperation, the expectations of others, and alienation without being completely heavy handed. Somehow, the concept of a travelling salesmen being turned into a giant bug is the perfect device in which to express these ideas. Who would have known? I can't say I had high expectations with this one. Many times have I read the stories of the late 1800's and early 1900's, heard endless praise about some extremely unique idea, and been completely disappointed with the overall execution. It feels like the stories of that time had some very brave ideas, but no one really knew how to make them be. The Metamorphosis succeeds in expressing a unique idea, and explores it in a completely unique and satisfying way. Page One, Line One, tells you that Gregor has been changed. He has no idea how to get off the bed, how to interact with others, or how to walk; deal with his condition. A lot of times is spent watching him adjust to his new body and it's quirks, and getting over his single minded mentality when it comes to work. You see, Gregor's biggest issue is his obsession with work and providing for others, his life as a man was little else. And, strangely but effectively, its through Kafka's exploration of Gregor's human life and his family that you learn that things really never were ideal. Gregor was never a man of much besides work, same with his father, and because of this, when Gregor's work-life and money is removed from the equation, he becomes a burden on his parents and sister - a spec that they soon grow tired of taking care of, and long to move on from. Wow. As a man, who was often told that if I didn't work I'd be useless (by both real parents and step parents) in his youth, I can relate. Its also due to this relation that I can look over some of the overall silliness of the writing. At times, Kafka's confidence shines through and it can really hurt what he's trying to say. Moments that are supposed to be dreadful or profound realizations can come off as too direct or too preachy, especially during the end of the story. Ultimately, the tale concludes with the reader being filled in enough on the family, their situation, and Gregor's life to accept his eventual fate. Kakfa has a strange way of making you feel like, perhaps, it was the best option - providing a significant moral dilemma for the reader. It really does, I read this story nearly a week before writing this article and I can say that it sticks with you. The Metamorphosis really is a harrowing tale about a man who is turned into a bug, and the story and themes it expresses are easy for anyone to relate too. Better yet, Kafka's more simplistic and essay-style of writing really works here, almost anyone out of high-school could read this without any difficulty. - unlike Lovecraft or the Lord Dunsany. - L.BROOKS Some years ago, I picked up the A Song of Ice and Fire series in hopes that, perhaps, enough time had passed since the last book that it's writer, George R.R. Martin, might finish the series. Maybe it was a stupid assumption, or hope, but the fame of the television series really had me sure that, maybe, Martin would pull together and complete his most successful series. He wouldn't. I can't tell you how many times, over the last several years, that I've followed every possible tidbit about the forthcoming book 'The Winds of Winter,' getting my hopes up every time Mr. Martin claimed that 'it will be finished this year' or how far progress was coming, how he was writing it, or how it was about to be dropped as this massive 1500 page epic that editors and publishers would just hate for the length alone. Aside from a few iffy preview chapters, almost none of this amounted to anything. Constant delays, theories that the writer was looking for other writers to possibly take up the mantle if he passed on. Yeah, the George RR Martin was busy too - hitting up every single book related event that you could think of, soaking up fame, appearing in documentaries, expanding side projects, hosting airings of the HBO adaption of ASOIAF in Sante Fe, and just about everything but finishing this series - even to this day he does these things. Where the hell is 'The Winds of Winter'? Well, recently, it's apparently come to light that the book will be released during, or possibly after, the final season of HBO's Game of Thrones, a show that had dipped in quality since and failed to be faithful to its source material for quite a while. There are talks of this decision being made due to spoilers, but that is a flimsy excuse - as I've said, the television show has not been faithful for some time, and, wouldn't you know it, 'The Winds of Winter' isn't even supposed to be the final book. No, that is supposed to be 'A Dream of Spring' - does that mean that the television series will not feature even a scant depiction of this content, or is it that elements have already been put into the series? What is going on here? Well, to me, it feels like maybe George RR Martin is enjoying all the fame and respect he's garnered over the books and television series. He is an old man, but he's also a writer who has worked very hard to obtain little in his lifetime - now he has something he can hold onto in his age. Every bout of fame for him, as I've gathered from numerous interviews and Q&As, has been extremely momentary, and whenever his ideas strayed too far from a path others found acceptable, he suffered for it (example: The cancellation and handling of the original Beauty and the Beast TV series). There are even moments in his life that he's spoken of, in interviews, where people had become his friends in times of fame and fortune, only to abruptly drop him when they were over. It wouldn't be too far-fetched to think that maybe these delays and happening because Mr. Martin doesn't want to fizzle out of the spotlight. Things are good, he's cemented himself in both television and literature, but he knows well that these things are fleeting. Who would want to lose that? Nobody, I'd gather. -L. BROOKS NOTE: I have not yet completed this novel, I've just read up to the end of Book I within the story. This review is ongoing. I picked up the initial Mistborn trilogy some time ago, right as the series was branching out with further timelines and histories. But, it's been sitting on my shelf collecting dust, and a bit of the covers have been, regrettably, nibbled at by mice that had wandered in during a previous winter. Most of the reason for this was that I had been completely distracted by the Game of Thrones hype, digging into the A Song of Ice and Fire series - devouring A Game of Thrones, sputtering through A Clash of Kings, and burning out after A Storm of Swords. I also bought up a few of the show's seasons, until I got frustrated with their brevity and, eventual, poor handling of the source material. Still, on the shelf sat Mistborn, until I finally got around to reading this much praised book. And, I can honestly say it was my own fault that I didn't read into it more; only paying attention to those who gave it unending praise in reviews on Amazon and Youtube. Because what nobody seems to say is that Mistborn is tough, slow, and intentionally limited. Every new or smart idea, is met with a somewhat plain or uninteresting one - at least, so far. Firstly, the concept of Allomancy is great, but the strict rules and boring ongoing explanations behind it make me feel sort of underwhelmed whenever its used. The main character, Vin, doesn't seem to particularly care about her own ability or anyone else, always simply acting like 'Oh, that person can do this' in a very passive manner. As well, the abilities Allomancy can provide seem to be coincidentally suited for the characters who need it, almost exactly tailored for a cast of thieves, scoundrels (which the cast of this book happens to be), and the 'Mistborn' class basically having the ability to use all the metals. Its cool for a bit, until you realize that there are so many rules put in place that it chokes out the possibilities of something genuinely amazing, horrific, or experimental - melange, this is not. No mixing metals, no burning too many, only certain metals work, don't burn them too long, and so on. The mystery of this weird magic is quickly thrown out the window. Weirdly, Sanderson seems to have a complete obsession with control over whats going on in this novel. Using not only strict rules on his Allomancy system to ensure things go certain ways and are useful only to certain individuals, but he also intentionally shrinks the world down into a controllable state long before it begins. Not unlike other novels with similar poor, struggling, and lower class characters - everything pretty much sucks unless you are rich. And, due to some apocalyptic event where everything was reduced to a little land where ash, mist, fog, and horrible mutants roam the night, there is little besides the lowerclass, upperclass, and slaves called Skaa - little more then a continent exists, maybe less, where people can live. Most places are considered either shiny or dead and dirty, and this grim imagery is interesting until you realize that everything is reduced to a either-or scenario. You get nothing in-between, not yet. To further illustrate my point, there is a anti-hero middle ground kind of guy trying to free them. He is decidedly trying to hide his past, pain, and intelligence behind a facade of egotism and self-assurance. But its frail and weak and predictable, you can guess the details behind his past before it happens, and just to establish him as a anti-hero, not just a misunderstood one, he kills a few guys here and there. But he isn't a bad guy, he isn't inbetween, because there is such an obvious and exact divide with everything in Mistborn that, because he isn't a antagonist, he is a protagonist. Also, there are blurbs before every chapter about the big bad guy having once been a hero and how he somehow failed. I'm half interested in seeing where that goes, I also half really am getting frustrated by the author meandering about. Because, again, he once was good, yes, but now he isn't... not in this story. So, naturally because he isn't a protagonist, he is an antagonist. That is how things just seem to go in this book, nothing seems to every manage a grey area and, when it does, its through cheap melodramatic and sorrowful reasons or excuses. Vin herself is boring and meek, probably intentionally due to her past and the mysterious circumstances behind her brother betraying her and being used as a tool for a group of thieves, but I feel like she is just too welcome to people ordering her around. She goes through the motions, from one place to another, with very little question, and sometimes it seems like it might be due to the influence of Allomancy, while sometimes it just seems like poor character design. This makes it very confusing when, say, she is being trained to use Allomancy and, for no reason, just starts mistrusting the man she's been mindlessly following around anyhow. Then, out of nowhere, decides that trust is a big part of her character. Also, for some reason a heist turns into a bid to save the slave race, Skaa, and possibly a war will... happen? My question right now: Is Vin a Mistborn or not? Nobody really says she is or treats her like one, most of the time, but suddenly its implied she is... but no one seems to care that she is some sort of rarity in the world? She can use all the powers, I know that much. So she must be. So, my impressions so far? Well, I hope it gets better. Really, I have no idea how I could read the whole series if things are like they are for the next two books, or even in the further histories of this world. But, hey, tough ideas are difficult to do exactly right at first and perhaps Sanderson has some surprises in store for me? We'll see. -L. BROOKS |
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