The Damned Lies Project

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Wherein I have a long discussion with myself and testicular pain occurs.

I watched my clone through the high powered camera lens sticking out from the bushes.  He sat on a park bench with Claudia.  They looked the happy couple – smiling, giggling, leaning close to each for a look or a touch, completely at ease.

It made me sick. Read the rest of this entry »

The dead drag the living down.

You’ll hear this or some form of this countless times in Joe Hill’s Heart-Shaped Box, but it never stops being eerie, it never stops giving you a chill.  Hill has managed to put forth a horror novel that evades the trap of most horror novels: it never stops being creepy.  This is a problem that happens often with horror novels.  Great beginning, great ending, but somewhere in the second third, it stops being scary.  Sometimes the author pauses so the reader can catch their breath, but never returns to that same tension.  Maybe the author blows their wad, pushing the fear and creep factor to such a high level that the reader becomes numb and future scares can never match.  Other times the author seems to realize they can’t keep this going, and they switch over to having characters figure out the mystery or a resolution for their desperation.  I’m happy to say that none of these things happen in Heart-Shaped Box, creepy old men remain creepy straight on through to the climax. Read the rest of this entry »

Wherein there is a sort of reunion.

It was a dark and stormy night.  The type of dark and stormy night that authors love and movie cinematographers shake their heads in annoyance of when the books are finally made into movies.  The rain was coming down in sheets and lightning whipped across the sky, momentarily revealing the darkness.

A lone figure walked up the driveway and knocked on the door.  The doorbell was ignored.

Bruce opened the door.  He opened only the main door, the storm door remained closed.  He looked at the figure out there.  A dark figure, not easily recognizable in the dark rain.

He gnawed at the pretzel rod he had grabbed before opening the door and turned back towards the house.  “Hey Victor, did one of your monsters escape again?” Read the rest of this entry »

Kallisti – To the prettiest one.

This is the word that started the Trojan War.  Angry at being snubbed for a party the other gods were invited to, the goddess Eris tossed a golden apple with these words into the party.  Immediately three goddesses claimed it for their own: Hera, queen of the gods, Athena, goddess of wisdom and war, and Aphrodite, goddess of love.  Unable to come to an agreement, they left it in the hands of a young Trojan, Paris.  Of course, being goddesses, all three cheated, in private offering him his hearts desires.  Aphrodite offered him the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen of Troy, and ultimately Paris sided with Aphrodite.  Helen fell in love with Paris, left her Greek husband and went to Troy.  The Greeks then started a war of honor, besieging Troy for ten years to get her back.  The gods were divided, some taking the Trojan side, some taking the Greek side.

This is not the plot of Carrie Vaughn’s novel Discord’s Apple but it is the most important context from Greek myths for understanding her story.  Her story is told in three threads alternating chapters, and the myths surrounding the Trojan War permeate them all. Read the rest of this entry »

I know I’m going to get a bunch of people telling me it’s still wrong.  And maybe what the hell the yak’s horn is.

Here’s a nice catch up for anyone needing a refresher on the continuity.  Next week: new and exciting plot developments!  Somebody dies!*

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Steampunk! Zombies! Airships! Mad Science!

Wonderful things for the Scifi fan, but difficult to pull off without being campy or formulaic.  However, Boneshaker by Cherie Priest pulls them all off with an enjoyable expertise.

In 1864, scientist Leviticus Blue unleashed his Boneshaker drill machine on the unsuspecting downtown of Seattle.  He ravaged the terrain and unleashed a gas called the Blight that turned the unlucky into zombies.  Blue was never seen again and downtown Seattle was walled up.  Sixteen years later, the disobedient son of Blue infiltrates Seattle looking to prove his father’s innocence.  This prompts the real story, the tale of his mother Briar, and her task of getting in to Seattle, finding her son, and getting them both out alive.

Since Seattle is closed, this involves employing an outlaw airship captain to drop her on the city.  Once inside the walls, she finds that Seattle has changed much in those sixteen years.  Those left behind forged their own sort of society made from those who refused to leave and immigrants who couldn’t leave.  Complex systems keeps the Blight and the zombies out.  Trading is mandatory, but there’s in-fighting among factions.  Briar also finds that her connection to Leviticus makes her a person of interest; one that certain factions would love to use as a bargaining piece.  A new scientist appeared shortly after the incident, one by the name of Minnericht.  Many believe he is Leviticus Blue, but none can tell because of the mask he always wears.  Briar categorically denies he could be Leviticus, but as time goes on she starts to wonder…

Steampunk has been a subculture waiting on the fringes for a long time.  Though there have been Steampunk novels, they hit upon this aspect or that, rarely pulling together all the elements.  In other cases, the classic Steampunk novels are just difficult to read for people exploring the genre.  In Boneshaker, Cherie Priest has set upon making the easiest accessible Steampunk novel, or in some ways, a Steampunk primer for the mainstream.  While the elements are there, at no point is there a showboating of “Hey, it’s Steampunk!”  Within the entire novel, all elements are well-folded into the story, creating a seamless experience.  Those picking up the book casually might never know about the genre, as the story is compelling in its own right.  Those still interested in those elements, however, will find that a brave new world of Scifi awaits them…

The writing in this novel is accessible without feeling dumbed down or opaque.  Priest balances well action and description.  It is a fascinating world she has developed, but unlike other authors, she doesn’t spend a tremendous amount of time feeding it to the reader like a travelogue.  The exploration of the world is well integrated into the writing.  The climax of the novel does come quickly, perhaps one of the few criticisms that may be said.  The rest of the novel is well-paced, but the final act can feel like it was sprung upon the unaware reader.  That said, the final act is fun, full of zombies, resolutions, and tying up loose ends.

Gamers may find it thematically similar to two great and beloved games of recent years: Fallout 3 and Bioshock.  Like Fallout, there are plenty of underground passages with zombies and gas masks.  Like Bioshock, there’s plenty of hermetically sealed areas as well as the culture left behind in the sealed areas, left to fester incestuously.  That’s not to say this is some sort of a mashup.  It strikes those thematic chords but is obviously drawn from other sources.  But those who are fans of the above games will find much to like within Boneshaker.

Above all, this is Steampunk accessible to the mainstream.  Whether you’re a fan of the genre or have never heard the word before, this is worth reading.  If you love historical fiction with a twist, zombies, Steampunk, mad science, or an airship adventure, this is a novel worth your time.  And even if none of those fit you, I recommend reading this.  You may find a new love.