The Plains of Passage - Jean M. Auel

The literary quality of Auel's The Valley of the Horses and The Mammoth Hunters, the second and third volume in her Earth's Children series, left something to be desired to put it mildly, so I wasn't sure if I wanted to continue this series of reviews. I've always had a soft spot for The Plains of Passage, the fourth volume, and since I recently came across an English language version (this is one of the few novels I've read both in English and Dutch translation) I decided to go ahead and reread it. My recent read of Kim Stanley Robinson's Shaman may also have something to do with it. The novels share a setting during the ice age, if little else.

After a difficult year among the Mamutoi, the Mammoth hunters, Ayla has decided Jondalar is the man for her and that if it takes crossing the continent to travel to his home is the price for being with him, she is willing to pay it. In early summer they set out on their journey. Knowing he is unlikely ever to travel that far again, Jondalar opts for the longer route that will have them follow the Donau, the Great Mother river for most of its length. It is his last chance to see his kin among the Sharamudoi people living on it's banks. Their journey will take them a full year and exposes them to every danger the unforgiving ice age environment has to offer.

The Plains of Passage can be accused of just about everything that bothered me in the previous two books. Ayla is still a Mary Sue. Fortunately, traveling doesn't give her too much time to invent new stuff although she does make a few steps in domesticating wolves. She does find the time to become fluent in three more languages despite spending weeks at most with the peoples in question. Her abilities win her admiration and several invitations to stay permanently. Despite this universal worship of her supreme abilities she still fears being rejected by Jondalar's people and is on the verge of asking Jondalar to stay with one of the peoples they meet along the way.

The repetitions that mar the later books in particular are also very present in this novel. With every new group Ayla is exposed to there is an endless string of formal introductions, disbelieve over her control of their animal companions and admiration for the inventions Ayla and Jondalar bring. After that, we usually find out what challenge is facing this particular community and what Ayla can do to fix it. Once the the proper steps are taken to fix the problem, Ayla and Jondalar are of to continue their journey. Another repetitive element in the story are the many graphic sex scenes. Personally it doesn't bother me, but in this book the scene where a young girl watching Jondalar and Ayla go at it helps her to overcome a gang rape was a bit too much for me.

Jondalar and Ayla also battle their personal demons during their journey. As mentioned before, it is her fear of rejection for Ayla. Jondalar struggles with an equally unlikely issue. He is afraid that the Great Mother won't find him worthy to create children of his spirit. He still refuses to believe in Ayla's theory linking sex and procreation and the uncertainty about whether or not he'll have offspring drives him to seek the aid of a holy man they meet along the way. He even goes so far as to try and get Ayla to have sex with another man. Given the story I guess it is consistent but it had me roll my eyes anyway.

There is plenty of about this novel I find extremely unlikely, incredibly annoying or outright ridiculous but there are a few aspects that appeal to me. As usual, Auel has done her homework. The novel contains rich descriptions of the ice age landscape and ecology. Some may find them boring or repetitive. For me, the way she describes the landscape is very interesting indeed. Some elements do turn up time and again but she has done a good job in describing the various landscapes her main characters travel through. The place might have been a bit colder than it is today, ecologically it was diverse if you know how to look at them. Picture yourself standing on the banks of the river, somewhere north of Belgrade where the Tisza river joins the Donau, trying to imagine what the place looked like some 30,000 years ago. It is quite a feat of the imagination, especially when you consider Auel describes a journey of several thousand miles this way. For some reason Jondalar's journey east in The Valley of the Horses lacked that kind of refined understanding of the environment he was traveling through.

Archaeological finds have also inspired Auel. A number of the artifacts described in the novel are based on archaeological finds. There is a big difference between the archaeological and ecological sides of this story in that the archaeological evidence is usually incomplete and lacking context. Auel built her story of people worshiping the Great Earth Mother around it and we have no way of knowing if it is anywhere near reality. In fact, I suspect she is wildly of the mark in many respects. Still, someone with an appreciation of prehistoric art and artifacts will enjoy these details in the book. Educated guesses and speculation about how these objects fitted into everyday life are part of what makes prehistory fascinating in my opinion.

The thing that most appealed to me when I first read this novel was the fact that at the heart of it, is an epic journey. It's something of a Fantasy cliche really, but one that remains quite popular. There is something about people being reduced to the basics with only their skill and ingenuity between them and disaster that makes for an appealing story. In that sense, the novel works better than Ayla facing impossible odds in The Valley of the Horses or the high school drama that fills The Mammoth Hunters.

Does that mean it's a good book? No, not really. The novel just has too many flaws for that. At best, I'd call it a guilty pleasure. It's a book that at a rational level, could be burnt to the ground in a review without requiring any great effort from the reviewer. Nevertheless, I have a soft spot for it. I don't think I would have bothered with The Shelters of Stone and The Land of Painted Caves without enjoying this book at some level. It is still more than a few steps down from The Clan of the Cave Bear however. The tragedy of this series is that Auel never managed to come close to the level she reached in the opening volume. Still, this minor step up was just enough to keep me going and even to convince me to reread the fifth book. I guess I will finish this series of reviews after all.

Book Details
Title: The Plains of Passage
Author: Jean M. Auel
Publisher: Bantam Books
Pages: 868
Year: 2011
Language: English
Format: Mass Market Paperback
ISBN: 978-0-553-28941-1
First published: 1990

Palimpsest - Catherynne M. Valente

Palimpsest is my ninth read in the Women of Genre Fiction reading challenge. I picked it mostly because Valente had caught my eye a few times in the last few years but I never got around to reading anything by her. I remember this novel being well received when it was published. It was nominated for the Locus SF, Hugo and Mythopoeic awards and took the Lambda Literary Award home. Quite an impressive list. The novel also served as an inspiration for Valente's crowd-funded novel The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making (2011) and it's sequels. In other words, more than enough reasons to have a closer look at it.

Palimpsest is a city unlike any you've heard of. It is a city of wonders, a mystery and a curse at the same time. Only a few people can gain access and only for a single night at a time, before being flung back into their mundane existence. Those who make the passage are marked forever but finding others to help them relive the experience isn't easy. The city keeps pulling them in however, the lure of Palimpsest is irresistible, and for a lucky few, permanent residence in the city appears possible. If they can overcome that challenges the city sets them.

The novel follows four main characters who have been introduced to the wonders of Palimpsest in their search for the city an each other. There is a Japanese woman, an Italian bookbinder, a Russo-American locksmith and a beekeeper from California. Each of them have been introduced to the city though sex with a stranger and it remains their portal throughout the novel. As a consequence their is a lot of sex in the book. Sex in all manner of places, sex between people of the same gender, sex with more than one person at a time. Valente is is poetic in her depictions of the act. Rarely very descriptive or unnecessarily explicit but if you don't like sex scenes in a book Palimpsest is not for you.

Some people have described the novel as erotic but personally I didn't really think that was the case. The four main characters are driven by a need that is not unlike a heroine addiction. They are constantly looking fro the next partner, the next trip to Palimpsest. Some of it is erotic but quite a lot of it is lusting after the city rather than the partner they are with. There is something compulsive about it. Something decidedly sordid. Sex as a price to be paid for what you really want, or, as some have observed, the city as a sexually transmitted disease.

As the story progresses and the obsession of the main characters with Palimpsest increased, a lot of the scenes become downright tragic. the characters cease to care about heir life in our world. They lose jobs and partners, the city disfigures them or drives them to physical and psychological extremes. For much of the novel we are reading about characters on the verge of destroying themselves. One might wonder if the city is worth it.

The characters seem to think it is and Valente does create a mysterious city, full of surreal cityscapes and strange inhabitants. I found it vaguely reminiscent of Miéville's New Crobuzon. Valente adds to that by her use of language. There is lots of imagery and de descriptions are very poetic. Some sentences practically beg to be read again and again. To an extend it distracts from the terrible process the main characters are going through. The story features lost of symbols having to do with finding passage to another places. Trains, keys, maps and dreams to name a few.

Palimpsest is clearly not without its dangers but attracts the characters at the same time. Each of them is damaged in a way and it provides the city with the leverage it needs to draw them in. While they have their own motivations for looking to escape to Palimpsest, they share that none of them makes much of an attempt to function in their own world. The novel doesn't show their own lives at all. They don't interact with anybody not involved with Palimpsest in some way. Their isolation and obsession is pretty much complete.

Valente takes her time in shaping the plot. Introducing the city and all four main characters take up quite a few pages. Just looking at the plot, the novel is a bit thin. Each of the characters is introduced to Palimpsest and ends up wanting it more than anything. Then they find a fairly straightforward way to get it. Not much of a story line for a novel really. If you are a very plot oriented reader than Palimpsest is probably going to be a tough read for you.

I must admit I'm not too fond of novels that use beautiful language for the sake of it. It took me a while to read it as I can only take in so much of this style at a time. Puzzling out the the language is challenging and this is one of the few novels I've recently read that make me feel I'm a second language English speaker. At some points I think Valente does go overboard on the poetic descriptions. Despite that, I enjoyed the novel more that I thought I would.  Novels like these are rare in fantasy and especially in the urban sub genre, overrun as it is by sparkling vampires and sexy werewolves. Valente has created something special here, but it will certainly not be everybody's cup of tea.

Book Details
Title: Palimpsest
Author: Catherynne m. Valente
Publisher: Bantam Books
Pages: 367
Year: 2009
Language: English
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 978-0-553-38576-2
First published: 2009

I, Robot - Isaac Asimov

For my fifth Grand Master reading challenge, this project may well be the only one at Random Comments that runs on schedule, I decided to read something by Isaac Asimov. Several of his novels feature prominently on all kinds of recommended reading lists and he is certainly one of the genre's towering figures. I read his Foundation novels (the original trilogy) a while ago and I can't say I was overly impressed. Asimov didn't lack ideas but his prose is barely serviceable and he has the tendency to explain everything in great detail to his readers. Perhaps I should have picked something from later in his career but I, Robot (1950) is such an iconic work in the genre that I felt I should give it a go. Much to my surprise, I liked this book better than the Foundation novels. Not that the flaws in Asimov's writing are absent in this novel, but the quality of the stories is more consistent and on the whole, I though them more entertaining as well.

I, Robot has been described as a fix-up novel or a short fiction collection. I think of it as the former but it is certainly true that most of the text appeared in the shape of various short stories between 1940 and 1950 in a Super Science Fiction Stories and of course John W. Campbell's Astounding Science Fiction, to whom the book is dedicated. Asimov has connected the stories with bits of interviews with Dr. Susan Calvin, a robotpsychologist working for U.S. Robots and Mechanical Men, Inc, as she is looking back on her long career in the field. She is not always the main character, or even a character, but she does provide just enough context to put the stories into a general future history. Asimov does this in his usual efficient way, not wasting a word more on it than absolutely necessary. I understand Asimov changed some of the details in the stories to make them more consistent. He is certainly making the most of repackaging these short stories with minimal effort here.

Being written in the 1940s, most or the novel is pretty badly dated and some of Asimov's depictions of the future will seem decidedly strange to new readers. We have caught up with the start of the series now. I, Robot starts in 1996, with the story Robbie (1940), about a primitive robot and playmate of the eight year old Gloria. The girl treats the robot like she would a human friend and this makes her mother uneasy. Robbie wil have to go. Asimov uses the story to outline the resistance against artificial intelligence, the fear of superior robots replacing human beings. First in the work space and later completely. It is an introduction to his famous three laws of robotics, which he will name in the second story Runaround (1942).

"We have: One, a robot may not injure a human being, or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm."

"Right!"

"Two," continued Powell, "a robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law."

"Right!"

"And three, a robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Laws."

Powell and Donovan discussing the Three Laws of Robotics - Runaround

Runaround, set in 2015, introduces the field testers Powell and Donovan and is a story in which Asimov examines the conflicts that may arise from these three laws. The laws are the kind of logic that Asimov seemed to have liked, simple, elegantly formulated and its intent easily understood. He was smart enough to see they are by no means flawless though. Most of the stories contain situations in which some conflict between these laws makes the robots behave unexpectedly or cause them to be caught in a loop, often jeopardizing the project they are working on or the lives of the unfortunate humans in their company. In Runaround it happens in the supremely hostile environment on Mercury, which shows just how little we knew about conditions on the planet in 1940. It gives Asimov plenty of room to speculate though.

Some six months after events in Runaround Donovan encounter a different sort of problem. In Reason (1941), which I consider to be one of the strongest stories, Asimov takes a more philosophical tone when our field testers are stuck with a robot who will not accept the (in its opinion) contrived and unnecessarily complicated explanation for its existence. A case of Occam's razor gone blunt I suppose. This story contains the most memorable quote in the book if you appreciate sarcasm.

"I have spent these last two days in concentrated introspection", said Cutie, "and the results have been most interesting. I began at the one sure assumption I felt permitted to make. I, myself exist, because I think..."

Powell groaned, "Oh Jupiter, a robot Decartes!"

QT-1 discussing its own existence.

Cutie retreats from reality along the same lines as a human being might do in the end by resorting to religion, shutting out the need for an explanation. It is one of several instances where robotpsychology runs parallel to human psychology. Something even Susan Calvin reluctantly admits later on in the book.

In Catch That Rabit (1944) robot behaviour shows some parallels to buggy software as well. It sees our field testers use drastic measures to get the robot back under control. Asimov spends a lot of the later part of the story lecturing (disguised as a conversation between Powell and Donovan). I can't say I particularly liked it. Liar! (1941) is more interesting.Set in 2121, it deals with a robot that can read minds. The conflict arises when it receives one sets of instructions verbally, that don't correspond with the real desires of the person giving the instructions. Calvin's behaviour in this story will no doubt make some readers groan but the concept is a strong one.

By the time Little Lost Robot (1947), robots have become quite advanced and exploration of the solar system is well under way. In 2029, one such space program employs robots with a slightly altered set of robotic laws, enabling them to ignore a human being putting themselves in danger. If the mere existence of such a robot was to become public knowledge on earth, the political consequences would be dire. When one of the robots is lost, the people who run the project are in deep trouble. Calvin is called upon to find it. The three laws of robotics can be quite a restriction I suppose, so the temptation to do away with them is clear. Asimov presents a perfectly reasonable argument for doing so in this story. It might have worked better if there had been more of an element of danger in the story though. The missing robot is still unable to actively do harm. Personally I wouldn't have been particularly worried to have it around.

In Escape! (1945), positronic brains have become so advanced they are capable of calculations comparable of those of a super computer. The Brain, as this robot is called, is set to the task of creating the means for interstellar travel, a problem that has already cracked a competing robot. Calvin is aware that there is a conflict with the three laws but doesn't know where. The company tries to avoid the problem by feeding The Brain the information is small sections. It features a lot of irrational behaviour on the Brain's part. I'm not particularly fond of this story but as usual, Asimov's rationale is perfectly logical.

The book then moves on to 2032, a year that poses a completely different challenge to Susan. A Turing with a twist. In Evidence (1946), Stephen Byerley is a brilliant district attorney running for mayor, when one of his opponents accuses him of being a robot. How do you prove someone is a robot when the subject is not cooperating and very aware of his rights? Written during the aftermath of the second world war, it is easy to see what Asimov (of Russian Jewish descent himself) was aiming at. It is the most politically charged story in the book, with a lot of it focussing on the suspicion and outright hatred of robots despite the fact they are incapable of harming a human being. Where Asimov usually explains the entire plot to the reader in detail, this story is certainly food for thought.

Interestingly enough I, Robot then goes to show us some suspicion of robots might actually be warranted. In The Evitable Conflict (1950), set in 2052, Calvin has realized that robots rule the world. They are responsible for the allocation of goods and services and the division of labour of the entire planet, which by that time is divided into four super states. Calvin is called upon to explain apparent imperfections in the solution the robots provide. These turn out to have a perfectly reasonable explanation in line with the three laws of course. This story has aged very badly, Asimov's future, at this point in time, seems positively silly, although from his perspective it might not have been entirely impossible. It was not my favourite part of the book though. Partly because of Asimov's tendency to explain everything and partly because of the fact that the plot is mostly a guided tour though planetary government in 2052.

With I, Robot Asimov lays the foundation of what would become one of the three main series in his career as science fiction writer. He is not technically a good writer (at this point in his career at least) but back in the days where science fiction was very much seen as the literature of ideas, you probably couldn't do much better than Asimov. He had ideas and was not afraid to explain them at length. For the modern reader a lot of I, Robot is dated but with lasting contributions to the genre such as the three laws of robotics and the positronic brain, it is one of the novels that shaped the genre. One of the thoughts that kept returning while reading this novel is just how many things Asimov discussed that were in the experimental stage at the time, or didn't exist at all. All things considered, I think it deserves at least some of the praise that is heaped on it.

Book Details
Title: I, Robot
Author: Isaac Asimov
Publisher: Bantam Books
Pages: 224
Year: 2004
Language: English
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 978-0-553-80370-9
First published: 1950

The Mammoth Hunters - Jean M. Auel

The Mammoth Hunters, the third book in Jean M. Auel's Earth's Children series, followed relatively quickly after the publication of The Valley of Horses. After this one, the gap between books increase. It would take Auel 26 years to get the last three published. I guess it was a good thing that Auel took more time for the fourth book. The Plains of Passage is not up to the standard of The Clan of the Cave Bear but it certainly beats this third volume. Still, there is something very readable about these books. She never managed to get close to the level of the first book but millions have devoured the other five anyway. Unfortunately, that still doesn't make this a good book.

Ayla and Jondalar meet a group of Mamutoi, Mammoth Hunters of the Plains north of the territory Ayla grew up in. It is her first encounter with a group of people and her introduction into modern human society. In their cold and mostly treeless environment, they survive by using every part of the largest animal on the plains. Including their bones as building material and fuel. Although they are not Jondalar's people, he's met other Mamutoi before and is much better prepared to blend into their society. For it is a complete culture shock. Their relationship is put to the test when Ayla finds acceptance she's been craving among the Mamutoi, and worse, one of their men takes an interest in her.

I guess I'd better start with the major problem with this novel and get it over with. The most important plot element of this novel is a love triangle between Ayla, Jondalar and the Mamutoi carver Ranec. He is portrayed as the opposite of Jondalar and very attractive in a way. Creative, witty and charming, he has no problem getting her attention. Something that enrages Jondalar. Jealousy is one of his very few negative character traits. The whole thing is one of the steps on Ayla's quest to introduce monogamous relationship/marriage and patriarchal cultures. Some people have interpreted the series as a whole as a fall from innocence for humanity. The sexual freedom and equality between the sexes crushed between the need to make sure your children are your own.

I've never been too impressed with the idea that prehistoric man didn't know that sex leads to children but the complications and high school drama it leads to in The Mammoth Hunters is an absolute low in the series. The misunderstandings are so unbelievable that I was tempted to skim those particular passages. Unfortunately this conflict covers most of the novel. I guess you could see the crisis as necessary for Ayla to completely let go of her past with the Clan and her son who still lives among them, or for Jolandar to accept all aspects of Ayla's personality (and past). In a way Auel accomplishes quite a bit in this novel but I don't think we needed Ranec as a catalyst to do all that.

As in previous novels, Auel weaves in a lot of details on the day to day life of the Mamutoi. Leather working in particular gets a lot of attention, with ways to produce various shades and decorations being discussed in detail. As usual Auel's research is meticulous. The huge amounts of work it took to produce clothing but also things not directly related to survival are staggering when you think about it. Auel also includes some archeologies finds, a particular kind of Venus figurine produced by Ranec appears to be inspired by finds in the Ukraine. Although Venus figurines were found all over Europe, these appear to be linked to the region. A recent technical development, the needle, also makes an appearance. The production of it is quite an interesting process if you can overlook your annoyance of it being yet another innovation linked to Ayla.

Archaeological finds don't give us many clues on what kind of a society our prehistoric ancestors may have had. In some ways Auel does a good job on speculating how they would have dealt with the confinement in a small dwelling during the long winter months. In a way, they don't deal with tension between people that different from what Auel describes in The Clan of the Cave Bear, by allowing each other a surprising degree of freedom within the framework of their society. One might see it as overly utopian, a society functioning almost as a perfect democracy, but I think she injects enough darker human traits into it to make it interesting. Auel hints at raiding and even full scale war and although Ayla doesn't experience either, the strained relationship with a neighboring people shows at least some of the Mamutoi have hands on experience.Their motivations to risk fighting remain unclear however. I thought it was a subject that could have done with more attention.

The Mamutoi concept of status plays an important part in their interactions with other groups of Mammoth Hunters. It is not a subtle as the idea of status of the Clan but certainly no less complicated. Status is a source of competition but also leads to jealousy, avarice and even hat. One of the cultural concepts I did wonder about the practice of setting a bride price and how this could clash with the freedom of choice the Mamutoi women have to select their mates. The novel does not go into it in much detail but it sounds like this freedom of choice could clash with the advantages of increased status for the whole group. It seems like something that would have been worthwhile to explore.

I guess that if you can put up with the high soap opera level of this book, there are some enjoyable elements to be found in the book. Personally, I had serious trouble not being distracted by the sheer unlikeliness of the adventures of our prehistoric Mary Sue to enjoy it. There were more than a few opportunities to create some more depth in the story but Auel seems to insist on ignoring those in favor of a relationship crisis the novel could have done without. Given my preferences, The Mammoth Hunters is clearly not a book for me.

Book Details
Title: The Mammoth Hunters
Author: Jean M. Auel
Publisher: Bantam Books
Pages: 723
Year: 1986
Language: English
Format: Mass Market Paperback
ISBN: 0-553-17302-2
First published: 1985

A Storm of Swords - George R.R. Martin

The third volume of George R.R. Martin's epic fantasy A Song of Ice and Fire is a book with quite a reputation. In the previous two novels, Martin had already made it clear that characters are not save and nobody should count on their favourite character making it to the end of the seven projected volumes. In A Storm of Swords, Martin takes it to a whole new level and many have named this book as their favourite of the series so far. Others dislike it for the high mortality rate among the important characters. I can see why, it is a novel that is hard to put down, but personally I still prefer A Clash of Kings, which builds the tension to a clear climax rather than hammer the reader with numerous plot twists. That is more a personal preference than a statement on the quality of the novel though.

The opening moves in the War of the Five Kings have been made and so far the Lannisters appear to have come out on top. Renly Baratheon has been killed, his brother Stannis has lost the bulk of his army and fleet, the Greyjoys are more interested in plundering than conquest and even their strongest enemy, Rob Stark, has managed to get himself in trouble despite winning all his battles. With the north under attack of the Greyjoys and the loyalty of the powerful Lord Frey uncertain, Rob is not in a position to take on the Lannisters just yet. That doesn't mean the Lannisters can rest easy, there is more than enough internal conflict to keep them occupied. In the mean time more trouble is brewing for the men of the Night Watch, as a gathering of Wildlings is spotted heading for the wall. To the south, Daenerys Stormborn is looking to acquire an army capable of winning her the Iron Throne.

Valar Morghulis, all men must die, is certainly the leitmotiv of this novel. And die they do, in large numbers. Where things are still more or less civilized in the first novel of the series, brutal violence erupts in the second, resulting in parts of the Kingdom where law and order are a distant memory at best. Through the point of view of Arya, Martin explores the consequences of war for the common people and what she sees is not pretty. Arya's decent into brutality, which starts in A Clash of Kings,  is probably one of the most disturbing elements in the story. Personally it affected me a lot more than the Red Wedding scene, which is one of the dramatic highlights of the novel.

Nobles are not safe either however. Warfare still takes its toll of course, but the court intrigue in Kings Landing and Riverrun is just as bloody in a way. Tyrion, who once had some grip on events at King's Landing, is not sidelined by his father, opening the old wound of his father's contempt for him. Driven by a need to be recognized as a human being, Tyrion is one of Martin's more interesting characters in the previous books. He's not quite as prominent in A Storm of Swords but his story line still contains an upset or two.

Where A Game of Thrones was mostly a story of House Stark, Martin continues to expand the number of point of views. House Lannister, who more or less take the central stage for events within the borders of the Seven Kingdoms, gain a point of view with Jaime Lannister. Once again, Martin shows us what he can do with a character. Jaime, up to this point, is thoroughly unsympathetic. He has tried to kill a small boy, slew his king and committed incest with his sister to pick the highlights of his notorious life. And yet, once you get inside his head, he doesn't appear to be the monster his enemies hold him to be. There is his love for his brother Tyrion, the respect he develops for Brienne of Tarth and his tense relationship with his father. In a few chapters, Martin turns him from a villain to an imperfect man. Not a nice man for sure, those are in short supply in the Seven Kingdoms, but much more human than one would expect.

The two manifestations of ice and fire in the novel also receive quite a bit of attention. In the north, Martin adds a point of view of Samwell, to depict events at the night's watch. Jon Snow is off running with the Wildlings after all, chasing girls kissed by fire. Martin shows us the full extend of the threat to the Kingdom in this novel, but I must admit, Samwell is not one of my favourite characters. His chapters don't reveal much more than that he is basically a good guy and too scared to be much good to anyone most of the time. Which Jon had shown us already.

Further south, Dany is making big strides. Where in the first novel, she was wife and basically property of Khal Drogo, and the second dealt with surviving his demise, Dany is now coming into power and finding out that ruling is a lot more difficult than conquering. Dany's choice in this novel is an interesting one. Without giving too much of the plot away, I think Martin still believed there'd be a five year gap between events in A Storm of Swords and the fourth book. Without that gap, she seems to loose momentum, which may well have contributed to the problems Martin had writing the next two volumes.

A few other challenges show through as well. For one thing the story keeps expanding as Martin adds Dorne to the over all conflict in the Originally, A Feast for Crows and A Dance With Dragons were to be one volume but Martin already has trouble fitting all he wants to add between the covers of A Storm of Swords. It is nearly a thousand pages in hardcover and moves the plot forward a lot in all of Martin's may story lines.A Storm of Swords is a fine bit of juggling, I must admit I am impressed that Martin manages to keep all those balls in the air, but it also raises questions of whether it can be sustained in subsequent novels. Reading this book, it shouldn't come as a surprise that the next book ended up being split into two, rather large, volumes.

I guess not all readers will appreciate Martin's tendency to kill off main characters but it does lend to book a level of tension it would not have achieved otherwise. A Storm of Swords buffets the reader with twists and turns in the plot, showing just how little control even the powerful have over the situation in the Seven Kingdoms. A Song of Ice and Fire is firmly rooted in fantasy tropes but this approach, one that basically puts the Seven Kingdoms up as the main character, rather than individual people, is one that you don't see too often. The first three books in this series shows what epic fantasy can be in the hands of a talented writer but I do think that a few cracks are beginning to appear in the story as well. Finishing this series is going to be a huge challenge but if anyone can do it, it is George R.R. Martin.

Book Details
Title: A Storm of Swords
Author: George R.R. Martin
Publisher: Bantam Books
Pages: 973
Year: 2000
Language: English
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 978-0-553-10663-3
First published: 2000

The Bonehunters - Steven Erikson

The Bonehunters is the sixth book in Erikson's sprawling Malazan Book of the Fallen series and the only one I haven't reviewed yet. Like the previous five books, it is absolutely huge. In fact, it may be the biggest book in the series up to this point. My mass market paperback contains well over 1200 pages. It wasn't a favourite of mine when I first read it in 2007, hemmed in as it is between Midnight Tides and Reaper's Gale, two of the stronger books in the series. It is a pivotal moment in the series though. Erikson is spinning events away from the Malazan Empire and heading for the continent that will be the setting of the finale of the series. In the wake of this book, he also leaves the space that will be filled by Ian C. Esslemont's Return of the Crimson Guard. You'll definitely want to have read the Erikson's series up to the sixth book before tackling that one.

This novel follows up on events described in House of Chains. The Whirlwind rebellion has been put down and the 14th army, commanded by Adjunct Tavore Paran is chasing the last remnants, a force lead by Leoman of the Fails towards Y'Gathan, a city where they are expected to make their last stand. It is not a random location, Y'Gathan holds bad memories for the Malazan Empire. It is the place that saw the downfall of one of it's greatest heroes, Dassem Ulthor. Plagued by bad omens and uncertainty regarding their leader, the relatively inexperienced 14th is heading for what looks like a difficult assault. Rumours of a plague rapidly approaching them force the Adjunct to decisive action. There is not time to starve out Leoman, they will have to take the city quickly.

The military element of this novel is actually quite small compared to some of the other books. The outcome of the battle is a forgone conclusion, only the way the Adjunct handles it is of import. Erikson moves on to a number of other things he needs to set the stage for Reaper's Gale and the final two novels of the series, Dust of Dreams and The Crippled God. We see the empire waste the last of its human capital and finally gain a bit of insight in Laseen's desperate bid to stay in power. I've always thought it was an interesting choice to leave the internal politics of the empire behind in later books as he focusses more on the upheaval taking place among gods and ascendants as well as events in Lether.

The war among the gods takes centre stage in the middle part of The Bonehunters in particular. Ganoes Paran, now Master of the Deck, has sanctioned the House of Chains, opening a whole new phase in the struggle between the Crippled God and the forces that oppose him. Ganoes is very active exercising his power in this novel. He does a lot of things that could be considered rash, stuff that has major consequences. It makes him one of the more interesting characters in the novel. He may have been in constant trouble in earlier novels, in this books he is clearly someone you don't want to mess with. As a number of supremely powerful beings find out.

Where Midnight Tides had a closer look at the dangers of unlimited capitalism, religious fanaticism are an important theme in The Bonehunters. We see a number of examples of fairly extreme religious practices and just how easily they can turn to large scale violence. It's something Erikson has been pointing to in the earlier books as well but this novel really drives how the way the relationship between gods and mortals is a two way street and that neither is safe from the other. It is absolutely one of the things that sets this series apart form most epic fantasy. The gods are at war and in a way mortals are caught in between. The gods had better beware who they mess with though.

Another notable figure in this novel is Karsa Olong. His conversations with Samar Dev on the nature of civilization are fascinating. Karsa mostly is of the opinion that civilization just brings the misery it says to raise people out of to ever larger numbers of people, while to Dev it is something one ought to strive for. The entire novel is full of references to to disappeared, failed civilizations. There appear to have been countless examples of this since the fall of the First Empire. Corruption, war and environmental degradation often causing their demise. In this respect, some of the comments of Laseen in the final chapters of the book, on the state of the Malazan Empire are very interesting. She is clearly a woman used to keeping her thoughts and emotions to myself but in these remarks a measure of desperation can be found. Which makes it all the more surprising that Erikson lets go of the eventual fate of the Malazan Empire. I guess the comments on the rise and fall of civilizations and those on burning up natural resources in particular can also be seen as a commentary on the state of our world. Either way, it is food for thought.

After this reread I still consider The Bonehunters something of a bridge between two stages of the story. As a novel, it is not quite as successful as the neighbouring volumes. That being said, it still contains the complex narrative, the huge cast, military heroics and tragedy, a overarching story of divine conflict and many more elements that makes the Malazan Book of the Fallen series stand out among epic fantasy. As with previous parts I've reread, I discovered a lot of detail I missed the first time around, making it even more obvious that this series is unrivalled in the genre. Especially the last of the four books the novel is divided into, contains a lot of interesting bits of information. I'm almost tempted to to reach for Reaper's Gale and reread that one as well.

Book Details
Title: The Bonehunters
Author: Steven Erikson
Publisher: Bantam Books
Pages: 1231
Year: 2007
Language: English
Format: Mass Market Paperback
ISBN: 978-0-553-81315-9
First published: 2006

Midnight Tides - Steven Erikson

Midnight Tides is the fifth volume in Erikson's Tales of the Malazan Book of the Fallen series and something of a favorite of mine. By this time the series is already ridiculously complex but Erikson manages to weave a new strand into his tale nonetheless. With the first four volumes going back and forth between events on the continent of Genebackis and the rebellion in the Seven Cities, a return to Genebackis might be what the reader expects. In fact, Erikson will get back to that continent for a while in volume six, The Bonehunters, but this book takes a step back in time and moves us to the distant empire of Letheras. I think this is by far the most interesting place Erikson has created in his series, certainly given recent events regarding the world's economy.

The empire of Letheras has been expanding for centuries. A combination of rampant capitalism, merciless greed and military might has lead numerous peoples to complete cultural annihilation. Now, the empire has turned it gaze towards the lands of six tribes of the Tiste Edur for new resources. In the eyes of the Letheri, the Tiste Edure are uncivilized people. Although the tribes don't have a monetary economy and are few in number, they do posses a dreadful kind of magic. For as long as anyone remembers the Tiste Edur have been divided, always fighting amongst themselves. Recently the Warlock-King of the Hiroth tribe, Hannan Mosag, has managed to unite all six tribes under his rule however. And his ambitions go far beyond the Tiste Edur lands. The two nations are on a collision course, one that will pit not long armies against each other but also dreadful magic and powerful ideologies. It is a clash that cannot fail to attract the notice of the gods.

In the previous book, House of Chains, Erikson dedicated a quarter of the text to the back story of a single character. Now, we take another step back to find out the history of Trull Sengar, the flooded realm we first encountered him in, and the actions of groups of Tiste Edur referenced to throughout the first four novels. The chronology of the these books is a bit problematic, with several contradictions cropping up in the text. For me it would make most sense to place the events in Midnight Tides several years prior to Gardens of the Moon but some people insist it is set later.

One of the things I like most about his book is the depiction of Letheri society. It is a culture where money is the most important status symbol and indebtedness leads to slavery. It's the Uncle Sam king of capitalism in overdrive, an economic systems that crushes anyone who plays the game poorly. Erikson shows us the follies of this system, many of which resemble to cycles of boom and bust in our own economy, though the eyes of two of my favorite characters: the apparently destitute financial genius Tehol Bedict and his (unpaid) manservant Bugg. There is a lot more to this comical duo than meets the eye. Their attempt to crash the Letheri economy is a story line that continues into the seventh volume, Reaper's Gale . It's a brilliant bit of satire that never seemed more relevant that these days.

I said Erikson makes things even more complex and he doesn't just do it by adding a new continent, the whole system of magic we've come to know in the previous four books is left behind as well. In stead of Warrens, a rawer, wilder, more primitive magic, tied to Holds can be accessed here. Curiously enough, the Hold of Death is empty, Hoods influence non-existent, meaning the dead can be made to linger. This gives rise to a number of phenomena we haven't seen before in these books. Armies of shades, curses that keep a soul tied to an already dead body, and even people who specialize in cosmetics for zombies. Some of it is utterly bizarre.

The manipulation of death takes another shape in the figure of Rhuald Sengar, younger brother to Trull. Rhuald is the subject of another ploy by the Crippled God, who abused the absence of Hood's influence to gain influence over the Tiste Edur. Rhuald is the character in which all the fractures in the Tiste Edur society come together. From the ancient corruption of historical events to the smaller scale of the conflicts in the Sengar family. Rhuald's bride, his relationship with his brother Trull and his meteoric rise to power all put an enormous strain on him. And that is on top of the manipulations of th Crippled God. It makes Rhuald one of the most convincingly insane characters in the entire series. Disturbing to read about but also a character who evokes pity in the reader.

Midnight Tides is also the book where Erikson starts to explain a few things in fairly plain language. That is not to say he coddles the reader, you'll still be thrown into strange situations that take a while for it to make sense, but for the first time we get a description of what a Warren is (or an interpretation of what they might be at least). He also sheds some light on the troubled history of the Tiste peoples. The prologue of this novel shows us a pivotal point in their history, one that will define the future of the Tiste Edur. Until now, we've mostly dealt with the Tiste Andi and only received hits of the trouble between Dark and Shadow. I don't think I caught the full significance of the prologue, both to this novel and the over all series the first time through. It's worth keeping that information in the back of your mind when reading this book.

New continent, new characters, new forms of magic and new gods. Midnight Tides almost feels like a new start to the series, but Erikson will merge this new story line into the other novels quite quickly in subsequent novels. It is also the first novel that will have the story spin outwards from the Malazan Empire. Not all readers may be pleased by yet another totally unfamiliar setting but I enjoyed the change of scenery tremendously. The fact that Erikson introduces a host of fascinating characters doesn't hurt either. From the comical Thehol and Bugg to Trull Sengar, turn between loyalty to his family and knowledge of an ancient wrong and a new threat to his people, Erikson once again delivers an epic, dramatic and superbly entertaining Malazan novel. I can't recommend this book highly enough.

Book Details
Title: Midnight Tides
Author: Steven Erikson
Publisher: Bantam Books
Pages: 960
Year: 2005
Language: English
Format: Mass Market Paperback
ISBN: 0-553-81314-5
First published: 2004

House of Chains - Steven Erikson

House of Chains is the fourth of ten volumes in Steven Erikson's Tales of the Malazan Book of the Fallen. Like everybody, I have my favourites in this series and two of the books I enjoyed most are Memories of Ice and Midnight Tides. House of Chains is in between these two and I consider it the weakest of the ten books. That is not to say I didn't like it, but it doesn't work quite as well as some of the others. It is a novel that sets the stage for taking the story far outside the boundaries of the Malazan Empire however. There are lots of hints and bits of information about events elsewhere in world that prepare the reader for what is to come. I missed a lot of that on my first read. It's very easy to underestimate the importance of the bits information Erikson provides in this book.

Once again, the story takes us to the Seven Cities where Adjunct Tavore Paran and her recently formed 14th Army have arrived to deal with the aftermath of the Chain of Dogs. She's an inexperienced commander, leading a green army, seriously outnumbered, short on mages and fighting on hostile terrain with supply lines stretched to the breaking point. In other words, the situation appears hopeless and Tavore doesn't even know the worst of it. Her sister Felesin, whom she allowed to be sent tot he otataral mines during Empress Laseen's latest cull of nobility, leads the Whirlwind rebellion. Now possessed by a vengeful goddess, Felesin awaits her sister's army in the Holy Desert of Raraku. Like her sister, Felesin has her problems. Her army is made up of a number of factions, each with their own agenda and often with ambitions that far exceed the Whirlwind rebellion. Such a clash of power and interests is bound to catch the attention of the gods. A convergence seems inevitable.

One of the things that is remarkable about this book is that the first part, about a quarter of the total novel, is completely taken up by the back story of one character. Karsa Orlong makes a brief appearance in Deadhouse Gates, the novel chronicling the events that lead up to this book. Karsa is Erikson's way of making fun of a fantasy cliché's, he's Conan on steroids. Especially early on, he's presented as a giant, barbarian warrior, obsessed with a quest for what he considers glory, and out to slay as many enemies as possible. When he leaves his isolated tribe and ventures into the lands of the 'children', as his tribe views ordinary humans, he has a hard confrontation with the world. Surprisingly, he learns that not all problems can be solved with violence. I absolutely love the way Karsa keeps expressing himself in the terms a Teblor 'barbarian' would use but tackles ever more sophisticated ethical and philosophical opinions with it. One such opinion leads to one of the most hilarious scenes in the novel as Karsa rides up to the Tavore, backed by a full Malazan army, and tells her of his change of heart concerning the Malazan Empire.

'Speak then,' Tavore said.
The giant bared his teeth. 'Once, long ago, I claimed the Malazans as my enemies. I was young. I took pleasure in voicing vows. The more enemies the better. So it was, once. But no longer. Malazan, you are no longer my enemy. Thus, I will not kill you.'
'We are relieved,' Tavore said drily.
Karsa Orlong and Adjuct Tavore - Chapter 26

Another aspect of Karsa's story I liked a lot was his quite literal demonstration of his opinion that man makes gods and not the other way around. As important as Karsa may be for the rest of the series, it does feel as if the first section is a huge prologue and that the novel doesn't get started until we fast-forward to the events following the Chain of Dogs. In terms of structure it was a peculiar choice of Erikson to include such a long section that is essentially set apart from the rest of the novel.

Another major player we meet in this novel is Trull Sengar. First of the four (and here I was thinking Erikson likes to do things in three) Sengar brothers, he is left chained in a destroyed part of a warren known as the Nascent. He's another character who gets surprisingly little done in this novel. Erikson is setting things up for Midnight Tides I suppose, a lot of which deals with Trull's back story. The friendship that develops between the Imass Onrack and Tiste Edur Trull is interesting to watch though. The author slips in quite a bit of history of the world into the conversations between the two and those they meet along the way. More bits and pieces of the ridiculously complex history of this world fall into place.

The finale of this novel is surprising in a way. There is a convergence of course, but the whole campaign plays out differently than one might expect. Erikson leaves a lot of cleaning up to do for Tavore, which will be dealt with in The Bonehunters. Although the final confrontation between Tavore and Felesin had to potential to be as dramatic as the finale of Memories of Ice or Deadhouse Gates it didn't have the same impact on me.

I appreciated what Erikson tried to do with this book a bit more on this second read. As with the three previous books, I picked up a lot of stuff I missed during my first pass through this part of the story. I still feel Erikson is building a bit too much in this novel. It is a bridge to the third major story line Erikson will open in Midnight Tides and events that will take place in The Bonehunters and beyond, but it doesn't stand on its own quite as well as the previous books did. That being said, it is still an amazing fantasy novel, once again underlining the enormous scope and ambition of the series. It is not my favourite but even so, it is a treat to fans of the series. And a novel that only gets better the second time around.

Book Details
Title: House of Chain
Author: Steven Erikson
Publisher: Bantam Books
Pages: 1035
Year: 2003
Language: English
Format: Mass Market Paperback
ISBN: 0-553-81313-7
First published: 2002

The Armageddon Rag - George R.R. Martin

Although Martin made his first sale in the early seventies, it wasn't until 1977 that his first full length novel, a science fiction tale called The Dying of the Light, appeared. In the years that followed, three more novels were published. In 1981, the fix-up Windhaven, a fantasy novel written in collaboration with Lisa Tuttle came out. It was followed by the historical horror novel Fevre Dream in 1982 and The Armageddon Rag in 1983. Martin started a fifth book, a historical novel this time, titled Black and White and Red All Over but due to disappointing sales of The Armageddon Rag, Martin was forced to look for other sources on income. He left for Hollywood to become a screenwriter and, aside from his Wild Cards adventures, did not return to writing novels until A Game of Thrones appeared in 1996. The Armageddon Rag derailed Martin's career despite being one of the best books he ever wrote.

The main character of the novel is Sandy Blair. Once he was deeply involved in the 1960s underground, writing for a radical magazine called the Hedgehog. That era has come and gone however, now Sandy is a moderately successful novelist. Life in the materialistic 80s doesn't suit him however. His next novel is not going anywhere, his relationship with realtor Sharon is shaky and their jointly owned brownstone house feels confining. It is not surprising that when the editor of the Hedgehog, now a respectable magazine, calls Sandy with an offer to do an article for him, Sandy is tempted. The manager of one of the hottest bands of the early 70s, The Nazgûl, has been brutally murdered in his own home. The more Sandy finds out about this murder, the more he's drawn back into his past. Especially when he finds out that someone is very eager to see a Nazgûl reunion. There is one problem though, the original lead singer was shot on stage during a concert in West Mesa, New Mexico in 1971. Someone is trying to wake the dead.

Martin likes changing genres and mixing them up. A lot of his science fiction has horror blended in. Martin has written in historical settings but also purely imaginary ones. His first four novels clearly show the breath of what his is capable of, which is why it is a shame that so much attention is focused on A Song of Ice and Fire. As much as I love that series, there is much more to Martin's writing. The Armageddon Rag is impossible to classify, which may have contributed to the poor sales. The setting is contemporary, it has some clear mystery elements (there is a murder to be solved after all) but also quite a bit of fantasy. The name of the band is far form the only reference to Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings for instance. The supernatural is not very heavily present in the story but it is clearly there. I have no idea what to call it other than a publicist's nightmare.

Another reason this book is unusual is the strong link with music. One of The Nazgûl's albums, aptly titled Music to Wake the Dead. Martin describes it with such intensity that you can almost hear the music when reading the book. There are bits of lyrics scattered throughout the book as well. The album and band are entirely fictional of course but you could be forgiven for thinking them real after reading Martin's descriptions. There is plenty of real music in the novel as well of course. In fact, the copyrights statements in the front of the book cover five pages and includes material by Jimi Hendrix, Simon and Garfunkel, The Doors, Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, The Grateful Dead, Creedence Clearwater Revival and The Beatles. There's music everywhere in this novel. Sandy believes their generation had the power to change the world and that this change was driven by music. Martin picked stuff that mostly stood the test of time so you don't have to be an expert on the era to appreciate it.

Sandy is one of the complex characters we've come to expect from Martin. When we meet him he is a mid-life crisis waiting to happen and not a particularly nice guy. He has let go of his radical roots and it troubles him. He clearly doesn't feel at home in a society that seems to have forgotten the message of the flower-power generation. It has become something of a romanticized bit of history to most people. As Sandy digs deeper into his past, meets old friends and relives some of the crucial, sometimes painful, parts of his past, we get to see another image of the period. Darker, sometimes unsettling images of the music business, the consequences of excessive drug use, the more violent elements of the underground and of course the complete incompetence of the authorities in dealing with large groups of young people demanding change. The great events of their youth have left their scars on Sandy and his friends. So many scars in fact, that one may wonder why Sandy is so eager to dig into the past.

Still, the power of the movement is not totally forgotten and this is key to the mystery element of the book. Someone means to once again raise the rebellious atmosphere of the early 70s. Spearheaded by a reunion of The Nazgûl, driven by the dark lyrics of Music to Wake the Dead, someone tries to recreate the events at West Mesa. It is an event Sandy considers the end of an era, the place where the spirit of the 1960s was murdered. From a single murder the focus of the novel gradually shifts the question what happened to the movement. Martin deviates from history quite a bit with his fictional band and the West Mesa concert of course, but is is a question that has been asked by quite a few people. Don't expect to find the answer in this book.

The Armageddon Rag is probably the most unusual novel Martin has written. If you look at his development as a writer up to the 1980s one can only wonder what might have happened if he had continued to write novels. The fragment of Black and White and Red All Over that Martin published as part of the collection Quartet: Four Tales from the Crossroads (2001), shows that he was well on his way to delivering another very good and very different novel. One of the good things about the enormous success of A Song of Ice and Fire is that much of Martin's older work is back in print again (in this case despite the nightmare of getting permission from the copyright holders of several dozen songs). Each of these novels is well worth the read but personally I consider The Armageddon Rag the strongest of the four. Read it and expect to want to play lots of very loud music when you're done.

Book Details
Title: The Armageddon Rag
Author: George R.R. Martin
Publisher: Bantam Books
Pages: 340
Year: 2007
Language: English
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 978-0-553-38307-2
First published: 1983

Memories of Ice - Steven Erikson

I've reread Memories of Ice, the third book in Steven Erikson's Tales of the Malazan Book of the Fallen this week. And it did indeed take most of the week, it's a massive tome. Although probably not the largest book in the series my mass market paperback weighs in at 1194 pages. This novel has been my favourite throughout the series. Erikson has gone on to write a number of very good additions to the series but I don't think he ever quite manages to pull of such a brilliant and multi-faceted climax as in Memories of Ice. In fact, there is so much going on, I was amazed at how much I missed during my first read and how much hints to future books Erikson drops. It's definitely a book that is even better the second time around.

Memories of Ice takes us back the continent of Genebackis, where the remnants of Dujek Onearm's army have been outlawed by the Malazan Empress Laseen in order to make a joint operation with their former enemies under the command of the formidable Caladan Brood possible. A new empire has risen in the south and it makes everybody distinctly uncomfortable. In fact, this Pannion Domin is considered such a threat that the two former enemies are willing to break off their nasty, decade old war and forge an unlikely alliance. Their first objective is the city of Capustan, a small city with limited defences that is about to be overrun by the Pannion's hordes. Defended by a mix of local militias and the Greysword mercenary company, the city will not hold out for long. It is highly unlikely their joint forces will reach the city in time to prevent if from being razed. They will need new allies to save it. On top of that, there is an additional challenge: they will need to keep their own shaky coalition intact long enough to push the Pannions all the way back to their capital and crush it once and for all.

In the second book in the series, Deadhouse Gates, Erikson opens up a whole new story, set on a different continent. Over the course of the series, these far flung events will coalesce into one huge overarching story but this early on in the series it is quite a challenge to let go of the characters from Gardens of the Moon and dive into a whole new, seemingly unrelated novel. A return to Onearm's host feels almost familiar after Deadhouse Gates. Familiar but not quite the same. The first novel in the series was written years before the others and it shows. Erikson has developed a slightly different view on some of the characters in the mean time. It is especially apparent in Tayschrenn, who is considered the villain and betrayer of the Bridgeburners in Gardens of the Moon. His return to the scene as a misunderstood hero is a bit awkward in my opinion. It's only a minor part of the story though. We gain a new perspective on Whiskeyjack as well. His story includes a bit of romance, showing us a side not may would have guessed the gruff, cynical former general possessed.

One other character that grows tremendously in this novel is Ganoes Paran. In Gardens of the Moon he has a number of ghastly things happen to him. Things that scar him, shape him and prepare him for the role his is to play in the rest of the series. All of that is gradually becoming clear to him. Paran clearly senses he is not meant to be a military commander. His command of the Bridgeburners remains problematic throughout the novel. A grudging respect between Paran and his soldiers does develop but fighting has little to do with it. Paran steps up to the plate as new Master of the Deck in this novel. Journeying into the realms of gods, the warrens of the Deck of Dragons. His decisions will ultimately shape the conflict between the gods that is rapidly approaching. Like his sisters Felisin and Tavore (notice how Erikson likes the number three), Ganoes is not satisfied with being a pawn in someone else's game, which I think is a definity improvement over his actions in Gardens of the Moon.

Despite the very emotional tone of much of the novel, it doesn't lack a great deal of violence. Some of the things done during the Chain of Dogs pale in comparison to what the Pannions are capable of. Erikson describes an army (and empire) that quite literally devours itself. It's this kind of irrational tactics that betray the hand of the gods, ascendants and elder races in the story. More than in previous books the soldiers seem to be aware of the game that is played over their head. The rise of the Crippled God is dreaded by many and most of them are not going to sit around and wait for him to break free. The cost is simply too high. Although Memories of Ice could be seen as another story of an impressive Malazan military campaign, the struggles of the gods are much closer to the surface than in other books. Erikson makes sure the reader understand that gods are not safe, even from mortals.

The very violent and sometimes grotesque scenes in Capustan are carefully balanced by more humorous episodes in the novel. The perpetually running two necromancers Bauchelain and Korbal Broach make their first appearance in this novel. Erikson went on to write four novellas, set well before the main series, with plans for a bunch more. Erikson probably pays too much attention to them in this novel, they don't seem to be all that important to the overall story and don't return in any of the other novels. Personally I can forgive Erikson for getting sidetracked, the scene in which the two necromancers are confronted by Quick Ben is absolutely brilliant. On top of that there is the banter between the soldiers of Onearm's host, the antics of Lady Envy and her servants (keep an eye on that one, she has quite an interesting family) and the Mott irregulars, who for some reason are all ranked High Marshall. Erikson has a decidedly dark sense of humour but it does keep the novel from spiralling down into lengthy descriptions of battles and slaughter.

Reading Memories of Ice for the second time was quite a different experience than my first pass through this story. More so than in it's direct sequel Gardens of the Moon, Erikson lays the foundation of the larger series. We won't return to Genebackis until Toll of the Hounds, the eighth book in the series, but so much of what is going on in this novel is important to the rest of the series that I think this book is the key to the series. Once you've made it to this point, things will start falling into place. I've found even more to like about this book than during my first read. If Memories of Ice doesn't convince you to stick with this series, nothing will. Next up is House of Chains, which I considered one of the weaker books during my first read. Let's see if my opinion of that book survives a second read intact as well.

Book Details
Title: Memories of Ice
Author: Steven Erikson
Publisher: Bantam Books
Pages: 1194
Year: 2002
Language: English
Format: Mass Market Paperback
ISBN: 0-553-81312-9
First published: 2001

The Lies of Locke Lamora - Scott Lynch

In the spring of 2007 my girlfriend won a contest organized by the Elf Fantasy Fair, one of the larger Fantasy oriented events in the Netherlands. The price included a meet and greet with one of guests of honour of our choice. We went over the list and quickly figured out we didn't have a clue who most of these people were. The only name that was vaguely familiar was that of Scott Lynch, who's début was a big hit in the English language world. The Lies of Locke Lamora was doing quite well in Dutch translation too. To make sure I didn't come across as a complete idiot, I quickly ordered the book and it arrived with a week to spare more me to read it. It took me just tree days. The Lies of Locke Lamora proved to be one of the best books I've read in 2007. In think my verdict at the time was that it suffered from a slight overuse of the word 'piss' but that it was otherwise excellent. After this reread my opinion hasn't changed.

The Lies of Locke Lamora is set in the city of Camorr. The city-state of Camorr thrives on trade and is a centre of ruthless mercantilism on the Iron Sea. The city is ruled by an ageing Duke who's ideas on justice are quite hard. Hanging of thieves is a common occurrence and more colourful punishments are frequently meted out as well. To keep crime in his city at an acceptable level, the Duke has made a pact with the leader of Camorr's thieve guild, Capa Barvasi. An agreement that prevents the city's thieves from preying on the nobility in exchange for certain privileges. This tactic has worked very well for the past two decades. There are always some who are not happy with those restrictions however. In recent years the Thorn of Camorr, a mysterious thief thought to be a rumour, has conned several members of the city's nobility out of huge sums of money, relying on sense of honour of the nobility to prevent them from talking. And now he is getting ready for a new confidence game, once again threatening the balance of power in the city.

A second strand of the story is set years earlier. It deals with Locke, a young boy fallen in the hands of a man called the Thiefmaker. This man runs a gang of boys and girls too young to be of use to the other gangs in the city and learns them the tricks of the trade in a rather brutal fashion. Locke proves to be a great actor and thief but he does not usually think beyond the immediate consequences of his acts. This gets him in trouble more than once. When the Thiefmaker finds out Locke is responsible for the deaths of several members of his own gang, there is only one option. The boy has to die. Unless the Thiefmaker can sell him to Father Chains, the man who runs the most peculiar gang of thieves in the city of Camorr.

Scott Lynch has the doubtful honour of being on the list of most anticipated releases of the year in the fantasy genre for several years running now. After the release of Red Seas under Red Skies (2007), the second book in what is planned as a seven book series, it grew very quiet and book three, The Republic of Thieves was postponed again and again. Earlier this year, what I assume to be part of reason for this became apparent when Lynch posted on his Livejournal that he was seeking therapy to deal with the bouts of depression and panic attacks he's been suffering. The contrast with the man I met couldn't be greater. He was in a very good mood that day. Obviously enjoying his time at the Fair, probably slightly bewildered by all the fruitcakes pretending to be elves around him. I certainly hope he'll be able to find that cheerful guy I met in April 2007 again. It looks like The Republic of Thieves will see publication next year, so I am going to try and reread the second book before that time a well.

The Lies of Locke Lamora is one of the strongest débuts I've ever read. Lynch wrote a thoroughly entertaining tale, combining a very interesting fantasy setting with what is essentially a heist story. There is some good action, smart dialogue, a dash of caper and a sympathetic but flawed main character, all worked into an irresistible mix. I suppose it is not the most complex or deep work of fiction I have come across, the book doesn't aspire to that. It is a terribly fun read however, in terms of sheer entertainment value it succeeds gloriously.

What I mostly admire about this book, and what I think raises it above other strong débuts, is the techniques Lynch uses to tell the story. A large part of the novel is written completely out of chronological order. The author weaves two story lines into his tale that are set years apart, the present story line is contained in the regular chapters and the past story line in interludes. Within the chapters he also writes out of chronological order, show us a scene and then going back to how this event came about. It sounds a bit confusing but Lynch manages in such a way that the story is perfectly clear even on a first reading. For an inexperienced author this is quite an achievement. The downside is that Lynch seems to like cliffhangers and awful lot. As a reader, I think it's very easy to overuse this technique and Lynch is constantly in danger of doing so. I must admit it didn't bother me in this novel, I guess the author recognized this danger as well.

The setting Lynch uses is a port city reminiscent of medieval Venice. As with a lot of fantasy, this novel contains quite a few made up words. In this novel, most of them seem to be derived from Spanish and Italian, reinforcing the Mediterranean atmosphere of the city. The author has clearly invested in developing his world. He describes a city with a turbulent history, founded by an ancient race that disappeared long ago but left remnants that cannot be reproduced by the humans that took their place. Lynch leaves all manner of historical and geographical hints that could be used in later books. He doesn't burden the reader with things they don't need to know (yet) but it is clear that he is planning ahead. Something that can also be seen in what is revealed about Locke's past. Lynch is very selective in what he shows the reader in the interludes, hinting at things to come in future books. There is one member of Father Chains' gang that has yet to make an appearance in the series. Someone who clearly has a lot of influence on Locke.

It is clear that Lynch is not done with this setting and these characters but despite this, The Lies of Locke Lamora stands very well on its own. The book is an absolute joy to read. It remains to be seen if Lynch can manage to keep meeting the high standard he set in future books, I have my doubt if this approach will work for seven books, but even if that does not turn out to be the case, this book should absolutely be present in the collection of any fan of the fantasy genre. You'll rarely find an author so in control of the story, with such a feeling of what to tell the reader and when to do it. If you haven't read it already, go find a copy.

Book Details
Title: The Lies of Locke Lamora
Author: Scott Lynch
Publisher: Bantam Books
Pages: 499
Year: 2006
Language: English
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 0-553-80467-7
First published: 2006

Gardens of the Moon - Steven Erikson

The tenth and final book in Steven Erikson's Malazan series, The Crippled God is expected in early 2011. I have no hopes of rereading this massive series but there is some time left before the last volume, concluding an enormous tale begun in Dust of Dreams, is published, so I thought I'd make a beginning at least. I read Gardens of the Moon for the first time four years ago and it left me thoroughly confused. In fact, things didn't begin to make sense until the third book in the series, Memories of Ice. Four years, with eight other Malazan books and three novellas under my belt (not counting the ones by Ian C. Esslemont), the book makes a lot more sense. I might not make it though the whole series but I think some more rereading is in order before The Crippled God hits the shelves.

As many other reviewers have observed, Erikson likes to throw the reader right in the middle of the story. The book opens with the confrontation that ends the siege of Pale, the latest target of the expansion of the powerful and ever growing Malazan empire. The empire faces formidable forces arrayed against it but mere victory is not enough. The empress means to achieve more in this final assault of the city. In an explosion of magic an entire Malazan army is retired, several members of the old emperor's elite are removed and the sorcerous, floating fortress of Moon Spawn is sent packing. But all of this is achieved at a price.

Those who pay most are the Bridgeburners. An elite military formation under the old emperor, they've received every dangerous job available under the new empress in hopes of culling their numbers. The siege of Pale does just that, when the dust clears only thirty or forty are left alive. To correct this slight miscalculation, a squad of Bridgeburners is sent ahead to the next target of the Malazan expansion. Once twelve free cities could be found on the continent of Genebackis, now Darujhistan is the only one left. And not for long if the empress has anything to say about it. The Bridgeburners have their own ideas about what should be accomplished in Darujhistan. The politics, intrigue, assassination and betrayal that rule the Malazan Empire do not stop just because one happens to be outside its borders.

Writing a synopsis for this book is a pain. There are an awful lot of story lines that start in the first hundred or so pages of the book. I finally decided to skip the prologue and first chapter entirely. These hint at the events that resulted in the take-over by empress Laseen and the resentment caused by this action. Although Kellanved is referred to as dead, death is not always final in the world of Malaz. You have to be pretty sharp to catch the relationship between the events that took place some ten years prior to the main part of this novel and the conflict between Laseen and the god Shadowthorn. Over the course of the books the general history of the empire will become clear but mostly the rise to power and rule of Kellanved is the stuff of legends. Only Ian C. Esslemont's Night of Knives is set during the last days of the reign of Kellanved.

Erikson hints at a much larger history than the brief era of the Malazan Empire. We meet creatures who's lifespans are measured in tens of thousands of years. Laseen's undead army of T'lan Imass for instance, have a history that stretches back three hundred thousand years. Their technological development is frozen in the Palaeolithic, I guess this is where Erikson's background as an archaeologist shows. I wonder if Erikson used Neanderthal culture as an inspiration for this elder race. Despite their primitive technology they have a surprisingly complex magical and spiritual life. In later books it is hinted that (some of) the Imass chose not the develop their technology beyond the hunter-gatherer level. The Imass have an interesting history, something to keep en eye out for in later books. The only Imass character in this book, Onos T'oolan gives us some tantalizing hints but leaves even more unsaid.

Gardens of the Moon has a different feel than the rest of Erikson's Malazan novel. It has quite a complex history. The world of Malaz started out as a role-playing environment which then developed into a movie script. When that didn't sell, Erikson wrote the novel. Most of it was written in 1991 and 1992 but it wasn't actually published until 1999. After the publication of Gardens of the Moon, Erikson wrote nine novels and four novellas in the Malazan environment in eleven years time. The world of Malaz was obviously further developed in the mean time. There are also some inconsistencies between this book and the rest of the series. In Toll of the Hounds we will return to Darujhistan but not all characters seems to have aged the appropriate amount of time. One other detail I noticed is the question of exactly how many warrens Quick Ben can access. There are probably a few more minor thing that I missed in this reread.

The biggest difference is in some of the characters though. What struck me most is how Anomander Rake was portrayed as something of a villain early on in the book. Erikson adds a touch of grey to his character later on but when we first meet him he comes across as cold, brutal and violent. A far cry from the character we see carrying an immense burden on behalf of his people in Toll of the Hounds. The role of the Malazan High Mage Tayschrenn seems to reverse as well. From the evil, scheming wizard, attempting to do the dirty work of the empress and suspected of aiming for the throne himself, he transforms into a misunderstood servant of the empire we see in Memories of Ice.They were not things that really bothered me but it does show that even Steven Erikson has limits when it comes to keeping all the details of his creation straight.

The tone of the later books will also change a bit. Although Erikson is no afraid to make fun of the genre in general, mostly though the characters of Kruppe and Crokus, Gardens of the Moon does not have as much satire in it as later books (I'm thinking about the story of Karsa Olong in House of Chains and the rabidly capitalist culture of Lether in Midnight Tides here). Given the differences with later books and the highly complex and far from complete story offerd in the fist book, Erikson doesn't make it easy on the reader to decide whether or not pursuing this series is worth their time. To make matters even more complicated the next book in the series, Deadhouse Gates, is set on a different continent with an almost entirely new set of characters. Not until the third book do we pick up the story line of Gardens of the Moon again and are some of the questions we're left with after Gardens of the Moon answered.

Gardens of the Moon is the first book in a series that took epic fantasy to a new level. It's a story painted on a canvas so large it defies belief. It is also a story that requires a patient reader who does not expect to be spoon-fed the facts the Malazan world. Gardens of the Moon is a pretty challenging read and as the series progresses it will be come only more challenging. Some of the story lines are more or less completed in this book but Erikson throws in heaps of names, places and references to events that can't possibly make sense to a reader who hasn't read at least some of the subsequent novels. Even the poetry at the beginning of the chapters is full of them. Given the fact that Erikson couldn't have known if there would be a sequel when writing it, or even if he would sell it in the first place, he set out on a very ambitious project. Gardens of the Moon is by no means a perfect book, Erikson has grown considerably as a writer throughout the series, but the outlines of what he would achieve in later volumes are already there. It's the beginning of a series that is a landmark in epic fantasy, a book that leaves the reader with so much more questions than answers, but also a book that covers the first steps of a fascinating journey. I liked it the first time around but this second read was a lot more rewarding. So if you're a new reader, hang in there, it's worth it.

Book Details
Title: Gardens of the Moon
Author: Steven Erikson
Publisher: Bantam Books
Pages: 729
Year: 2000
Language: English
Format: Mass Market Paperback
ISBN: 0-553-81217-3
First published: 1999

The Clan of the Cave Bear - Jean M. Auel

Recently it was announced that the sixth and final book in Jean M. Auel's Earth's Children series, titled The Land of Painted Caves, will be released in March 2011. Set in pre-historic times, the books deal with the possible interaction between Neanderthals and our own species among other things. They are renowned for there meticulously researched descriptions of pre-historic life as well as notorious for their sexual content and the Mary Sue like development of the main character. I've read all five books available so far and although I thought the were entertaining, I do think the literary quality of the books take a nose-dive after the first novel. The Clan of the Cave Bear is quite an interesting book however, the announcement that a new book was forthcoming prompted a reread.

The Clan of the Cave Bear is set somewhere between 30,000 to 25,000 years before present, a time when temperature and sea-level were lower than today and much of Europe was either covered with ice or cold steppe/tundra environments. Modern humans shared their environment with Pleistocene megafauna and another species of human: the Neanderthal. The story opens with an earthquake in which the parents of five-year old Ayla perish. Alone, in an environment full of predators capable of devouring a human child, she wanders the forest and steppe near her home. Weakened by hunger she accidentally disturbs a Cave Lion and her cub. Ayla manages to escape but gets mauled in the process. After thirst drives her from her hiding place, she once more wanders the steppe until fever, hunger, dehydration and sunburn finally cause her to collapse.

Ayla's string of misfortune comes to an end when a group of Neanderthal, made homeless in the same earthquake that took Ayla's parents, pass by. Their medicine woman Iza can not bear to see a child suffer, even a child of the Others. Their leader, a male in his peak named Brun, reluctantly allows Iza to take the child and when Ayla wakes up she is surrounded by her new clan. A tall, ugly child by Neanderthal standards, the Clan is unsure if they should take her in. Sending her away would mean certain death however, something Brun will not allow now that an effort has been made to save her. When Ayla find the Clan a new cave, she is allowed to stay. A choice that will have severe consequences for both Ayla and the Clan.

Auel has spent an astonishing amount of time researching her series and this first books clearly shows that. Some of the research for this book is outdated by now, it has been thirty years since it was released. The difference in height between Ayla and the Neanderthals appears to have been exaggerated for instance but the rich detail in which Auel describes the ice age environment is simply awesome. The uses of various plant species, the ecology of Pleistocene fauna and numerous survival strategies are woven into her tale to give those aspects of the story a very realistic feel. Despite all this research Auel has had to fill in quite a few blanks. Even with thirty years more research available since the writing of this book, our knowledge on the period and the Neanderthal species is limited. As a consequence, there is no shortage of speculation in this novel.

One problem for Auel was that until the early eighties a lot of scientists doubted that Neanderthals would have been capable of speaking a complex verbal language. Not until 1983 a find in Israel showed that this was indeed anatomically possible for Neanderthals (which still does not prove they did have a complex language). This came too late for Auel so she solved it by proposing a way of communicating that involved signs and body language but only a few spoken words. In fact, one of Ayla's earlier challenges is learning to communicate. Another, even more speculative plot element is the neurological difference between the two species. Auel proposes that Neanderthals posses a racial memory that enables them to tap into the wisdom and experiences of previous generations. To store all this information their skull, and particularly the area that stores memories has grown to the maximum size the Neanderthal women's birth channel can handle. In effect the full capacity of their brain has been used and making further growth and gaining new knowledge impossible.

In this way Auel rationalizes the eventual extinction of the Neanderthals. Science offers us several theories on why the Neanderthals went extinct but no definitive answer. One hotly debated matter is whether or not inbreeding between Neanderthals and humans was possible. Recent genetic research indicates it may have happened but this is far from universally accepted in the scientific community. The matter of interbreeding, cleverly worked into the plot by Auel, is the subject of a stunning insight into the future of the Clan by Creb, the Clan's Mog-ur or Magician. I consider this one of the most powerful scenes in the book.

Another thing about the extinction question I noticed, is the way Auel hints at a link between the extinction of the Cave Bear some 27,000 years ago. Finds at Neanderthal sites in Switzerland, Italy and France, among other places have given rise to the theory that Neanderthals worshiped the Cave Bear. In the book Auel develops a rich religious life for the male half of the Clan in particular, based on animal totems. The Cave Bear is the mightiest of these spirits. They see Ursus, as the spirit of the Cave Bear is referred to, as the protector of the Clan. They are his people. In several places in the story Auel drops hints that these animals are getting rare, suggesting that their fates are linked. Some recent finds in Spain indicate that the Neanderthals managed to hang on a little longer but I liked the parallel and the way Auel handled the worship of Cave Bears in general.

Auel's work has received some fierce criticism over the years for the explicit ways she describes sexual scenes. The first book in the series is a bit different in that respect. For a lot of the book Ayla is too young for sex, later she is considered extremely ugly in the eyes of the people surrounding her. Despite the absence of explicit sex scenes in The Clan of the Cave Bear, I still consider the way Auel deals with sexuality in this book is still a weak element in her story. As a consequence of the Neanderthal development of racial memories and the problems storing them in the vast but still limited brain, Auel's Neanderthals show a high degree of sexual dimorphism. Their roles in society are strictly dived. The man leads, hunts, provides and protects and the woman gathers, cooks, cares for the children and provides a relief for sexual tension. Because either sex lacks the memories of the other, they are incapable of taking over each other's roles, incapable of even learning the activities of the other. It makes their society very conservative and completely inflexible. Something that is bound to clash with Ayla's inquisitive and creative nature. The inflexibility of the Clan versus the creativity of the younger human species is a comparison Auel draws numerous times in the book.

Neither the Neanderthals nor the Others have made the link between sex and procreation, which frankly is one of the least likely of Auel's speculations. Personally I can't imagine someone not making the link. Unfortunately it develops into a key plot element in both this book and later parts of the series. With sex and reproduction not linked, monogamy is not required for the Clan. Any man can "relieve his needs" with any woman he chooses. Consent of the woman is not necessary but it is considered polite to ask the woman's mate for permission. And so it is possible for Broud, one of the younger males of the Clan and in many ways the embodiment of inflexibility and blind adherence to tradition, to openly abuse Ayla. Not because of any attraction on his part, of to father a child. He does this solely to make a point. He is the man, he has the right to order her to do whatever he wishes and he will make her stay within the bounds prescribed for a woman by Clan tradition. The whole sequence that leads up to this event in the book didn't work too well for me. Broud is too much of a stereotypical cave man in my opinion, and the Clans complete lack of understanding as to why Ayla objects to this treatment does not strike me as very likely.

The struggle between Ayla and Broud in many ways represents the enormous challenge Ayla faces in fitting into this alien society and conforming to their traditions. Although there are some aspects of it I didn't like, Ayla's story does carry an enormous load of suppressed emotion. The Clan of the Cave Bear is a tragic book in many ways. A story of the demise of a species as well as ultimate failure of Creb and Ayla to bridge the gap between their species. Ayla puts a very human face on this large theme, her actions constantly underlining the difference between their species but also highlighting certain human emotions the species share. Auel carefully builds up to the crisis that forms the climax of the novel. By that point it is not entirely unexpected but the way the story plays out is heart-wrenching at times.

The combination of meticulous research and an emotionally powerful story has made this novel into something special. Although I have read the other books in the series and enjoyed them, I don't think any of these books quite manage this same mix. I can't honestly recommend the other books in the series but The Clan of the Cave Bear is an unusual novel. Not without it's flaws perhaps, but still something of a landmark. One of those books one ought to have read. It works fine as a standalone so even if the others do not interest you, give this one a try.

Book Details
Title: The Clan of the Cave Bear
Author: Jean M. Auel
Publisher: Bantam Books
Pages: 495
Year: 1991
Language: English
Format: Mass Market Paperback
ISBN: 0-553-25042-6
First published: 1980