Reviews

Reviews Editor: Liz Grzyb

 + Black Pockets and other dark thoughts  : :  Shane Jiraiya Cummings
 + Ill Wind  : :  Karen Miller
 + The Outcast: An anthology of exiles and strangers  : :  Russell B. Farr
 + Song in the Silence  : :  Liz Grzyb
 + Fantasy Magazne #4  : :  Miranda Siemienowicz
 + Innocence Lost: Kingmaker, Kingbreaker Book 2  : :  P Niski

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Black Pockets and other dark thoughts   :   George Zebrowski

Golden Gryphon, 2006
ISBN: 1-930846-40-1
275 pages
RRP: US$24.95
Review by Shane Jiraiya Cummings

Golden Gryphon produce excellent quality books. Black Pockets, the 45th title in their catalogue, is a hardcover that exemplifies Golden Gryphon's quality — eye-catching cover, attention to detail, thoughtful layout and presentation — all packaging for what is an enjoyable collection of short stories.

A horror collection from a man best known for his galaxy-spanning science fiction is something to behold. Zebrowski has been producing notable books for decades, and as you might expect from someone who has written for so long outside the horror genre and not been influenced by its time-worn tropes, he has applied his craft and come up with a book that resembles horror, but is in many ways not.

Sure, there are easily recognised horror stories, such as the opener "Jumper", which is a very disturbing twist on the locked-room mystery. Perhaps it is the grouping of the nineteen stories into personal terrors, political horrors, and metaphysical fears that reveals the author's intentions. The first section, personal terrors, is the closest to traditional horror. The stories in the other sections, perhaps because they deal with intangible philosophical and societal aspects, aren't effective as 'horror', but they do challenge and disturb.

Fine examples of this include "A Piano Full of Dead Spiders", which deals with consequences of love, sacrifice, and the very strange source of one man's creative muse. "The Wish in the Fear", while in the personal terrors section, is similar, in that it deals with broader aspects: phobias and the way society functions around them, as personified by one man who can't help but absorb the phobias of others.

An interesting phenomenon that occurs in Zebrowski's prose is his repeated use of characters named Bruno and Felix. The device lends an air of familiarity as the reader skips from one story to the next that features these character names. They are never the same characters, but as Zebrowski says in his excellently analytic afterword, they could be "two guys who were on their way to Menshivik Hall in a story I once read by my friend William Tenn, but they never got there and wandered instead into my mind, and stayed. And this is the only way I know how to evict them." The repeated names sometimes leave a sameness of character in the reader's mind, which can be detrimental.

Another aspect of Zebrowski's writing that made reading slow was whole sections of borderline didactic infodumps explaining the state of the world. This felt, at least to this reviewer, to be more an authorial intrusion than the exploration of a character's perception. However, with such politically critiquing material, this was always a danger, and the majority of the content is both scathing in a back-handed way on the nature of the human beast and deftly handled.

While not horror per se, Black Pockets is certainly dark fiction, and sophisticated dark fiction at that. Well worth buying for the reader who enjoys an intelligent and unsettling discourse.

Black Pockets and other dark thoughts is available from Golden Gryphon and Slowglass Books.

Ill Wind: Weather Warden Book 1   :   Rachel Caine

ROC (Penguin imprint), 2003
ISBN: 0451459520
352 pages
RRP: US$6.99
Review by Karen Miller

Ill Wind by Rachel Caine, book one in her series Weather Warden is — pun intended — a breath of fresh air.

Much of the fantasy published today is set in historically based alternate realities, and while this isn't a problem at all (for this reviewer, anyway) a little variety is good for the literary diet, and variety is what you'll find with Ill Wind. It's a rousing romp of a contemporary alternate reality tale, an urban fantasy, in which the world's weather is controlled by powerful magicians known as Wardens, who work together to stop Mother Nature from wiping humanity from the face of the earth.

Our heroine is Joanne Baldwin, who's on the run from her fellow Wardens after being accused of corruption and murder. Her only hope of salvation is her friend Lewis, the world's most powerful Weather Warden. Unfortunately Lewis is also on the run, because he's stolen three Djinn: mystical creatures whose powers help the Wardens perform their duties.

If Joanne doesn't find Lewis, all hell — and a lot of wild weather — is going to break loose. Because there's a bad guy out to get her and the rest of the Wardens, and it's no longer possible to tell at a glance who's a friend — and who is the enemy.

Put in a nutshell, I loved this book, a lot. Caine's writing style is slick, relaxed, and eminently readable. She's chosen to use a first person narrative, and that fits well with the detective/crime/mystery elements of the story. There's also a little romance thrown in: not so much to tip the book into the full-blown romance category, but enough to add a certain piquant flavour.

If you're looking for a polished, expertly told tale of modern magic with a dash of crime, along the lines of Jim Butcher's 'Harry Dresen' series (but better, for my money), then you can't go wrong with Ill Wind. And if, like me, you loved it, you'll be pleased to know that Books Two, Three and Four: Heat Stroke, Chill Factor and Windfall, are currently available. Book Five, Firestorm is due out in September.

Ill Wind is available from Dymocks Online.

The Outcast: An anthology of exiles and strangers   :   Nicole R. Murphy (ed.)

CSFG, 2006
ISBN: 0-977519-20-1
213 pages
RRP: AU$20 (incl. postage)
Review by Russell B. Farr

The Outcast is the seventh publication from the Canberra SF Guild, and adds Nicole R. Murphy to their roll of editors. She presents 19 stories from a mix of old and new faces in the genre, collected around the vague theme of the outcast and not belonging.

Themed anthologies sometimes work, and sometimes they don't, depending on how writers approach the theme. In this anthology, the majority of the writers have chosen a fairly narrow interpretation, leading to a fairly bleak collection of characters fighting against being outcast: either succeeding or failing. Few stories presented protagonists revelling in being cast out or unconformity, as if the writers themselves feared being different.

Conversely, the quality of fiction in this anthology varied greatly. Two of the stories, "The Fallen" by Mik Bennett and Steven Cavanagh's "$@ve G@1axy F@$t" felt like they were only included to boost the page count as they possessed nothing of value to the reader. A number of other stories ranged from ordinary to needing more work in order to be convincing, though I did find seven stories that I considered to be the cream of The Outcast.

"Things of Beauty" by Susan Wardle is possibly the strongest story in the collection with its internally consistent setting, depth of characterisation and well structured, convincing storytelling. The world is ugly, dark and unmerciful to the unprivileged, and amidst this a kind-hearted Faginesque character manages to instil dreams of hope among the youth while inciting them to steal unappreciated items of beauty by night. Of the ClarionSouth graduates over the last few years, Wardle has possibly benefited the most, having produced a number of consistently excellent stories since she attended the workshop.

Siobhan Bailey's "Returned Soldier" marks Bailey as a writer who can sell the reader on a well-conceived idea, though delivering an unsatisfying twist. If she can build on her early stories I believe Bailey will be a writer to watch in coming years.

Kylie Seluka's "Awakening the Spirit" is a somewhat predictable tale that possesses a excellent sense of setting. Seluka creates an environment that carries the tale, and instils the world with a sense of mystery that is, I believe, a delicate yet deft tribute to the Aboriginal Dreamtime stories.

"Twisted Beliefs" by Cory Daniells is a well-crafted story with strong characters set in an exotically original world. Daniells creates a sense of mystery and intrigue among its society and religious orders, yet I was left feeling slightly unsatisfied: that I was missing some of the intricacies associated with the world (these were cleared up in the story's afterword). Daniells is adept at creating unusual, exotic worlds and societies that form a home to a series of stories, and such was the strength of this tale.

Lily Chrywenstrom's "The Rubbish Witch" was another exceptionally strong story in this anthology. This story's strength lay in the setting down of a convincing and unusual tale of urban magic and the conviction of the writer to make the story work. Chrywenstrom is another writer to watch: she has the ability to put together excellent settings and imagery and doesn't seem afraid to create something different. "The Rubbish Witch" is also one of the only stories in this anthology where the protagonist wants to remain an outcast.

"On the Way to Habassan" is an excellent offering by old hand Richard Harland, providing just enough of a glimpse of an alien culture while succeeding in delivering a convincing story. While there were a few too many “miraculous” events for my liking, this was the strongest young adult tale in the anthology.

Martin Livings' stories tend to fall into two categories: excellent, and one edit short of excellent. Unfortunately "Mine" belongs to the latter. Livings knows how to deliver horror at a short length, he knows how to make the reader thoroughly seat-squirmingly uncomfortable, however in this case does so at the expense of fully developing the story's idea.

While The Outcast marks the editing debut of Nicole R. Murphy, it is the seventh overall book to be published by the CSFG group. As such, I really expected more with this book: better presentation, a more professional layout, something to demonstrate the accumulated knowledge of a concern that has previously produced six books. If The Outcast was the first production by a new publisher it would be a very good achievement; as the seventh it is competent at best.

As anthologies go, The Outcast possesses some of the best fiction published by the CSFG to date, and I'd draw any reader's attention to the excellent third of the stories mentioned above. Most of the rest of the stories had solid ideas at their core, and I'm left to ponder that while Australian writers do have a lot of good ideas, the stories tend to fall down in the telling: our writers are selling themselves short in not spending enough time in developing their voices.

As always, buy this anthology, support the local scene: this is your chance to own a handful of really good stories at less than three bucks a throw.

The Outcast is available from Australian Speculative Fiction.

Song in the Silence   :   Elizabeth Kerner

Tor, 1997 (reprint 2006)
ISBN: 0-812-55044-7
404 pages
RRP: AU$12.95
Review by Liz Grzyb

Song in the Silence is a fantasy dragon story, but it's also a lot more. Told as an extended flashback, this tale about an alienated young woman and her dreams of dragons is an engaging and mostly fast-paced adventure.

The story starts with Lanen's dissociation with her home. Her mother left when she was a child and her father seems to hate the sight of her. After her father's death Lanen gets the chance to follow her ambition of taking the perilous journey to the legendary Dragons' Isle. Unlike the others who travel there, Lanen isn't after the invaluable lapsim leaves and fruit, but yearns to make contact with the Kindred, the dragons. However, Lanen is in danger from another source who has made a deal with demons.

Lanen is a believable and interesting character. She's human enough to dream of something better than her dreary life on her father's farm, and courageous enough to go after her ambitions. The suspense about Lanen's peril is dimmed somewhat by finding out early in the novel that later Lanen is referred to as Queen Lanen, but it also piques our interest to find out how this isolated daughter of a horse-breeder becomes a hero.

Although this story has a few ideas that in the real world seem preposterous – who could believe a romantic relationship between a human and a dragon? – the world of the novel is well-constructed enough that the logical problems of this match don't occur to the reader until afterwards. Plot devices such as a prophecy, seductively evil men consorting with demons for their own profit, dragon politics and of course, magic help to create the strong sense of tension.

The alternating first person point of view adds to the dramatic tension, but also makes the story somewhat disjointed. I would have preferred to read the whole story from Lanen's point of view, as she is the most interesting character. With the possible exception of Akhor the dragon, the other points of view are not necessary to the plot and serve to break up the flow of the narrative.

Song in the Silence is well worth a read if you're looking for a reasonably undemanding yet exciting fantasy novel. The characters are well drawn and empathetic. There is enough of the alien in the depictions of the dragons that they do seem dangerous yet seductively familiar at the same time.

Song in the Silence is the first in Elizabeth Kerner's Tale of Lanen Kaelar series from Tor. It was first published in 1997 and has been rereleased this year in Australia by Pan Macmillan.

Song in the Silence is available from Dymocks Online.

Fantasy Magazine #4   :   Sean Wallace (ed.)

Prime Books, Wildside Press, 2006
ISSN: 1558-0318
RRP: US$5.95
Review by Miranda Siemienowicz

Fantasy Magazine is a new quarterly magazine of speculative fiction that seeks to publish fantastic writing beyond the traditional ideas of the genre. Issue 4 is scheduled for release in October and contains seventeen stories, including a number by Australian authors.

The themes and approaches of the stories vary considerably, providing a rambling set of pieces that nonetheless sit well together. Highlights from this issue include Stephanie Campisi's "Why the Balloon Man Floats Away", in which a vivacious female protagonist travels through a dream-like landscape centring on the image of a balloon-seller who floats outside her bedroom window. Her bizarre experiences reference her role in sexual and romantic relationships and her reflections become confused gropings for meaning in a surreal landscape. This is a wonderful piece that departs from traditional story in a glorious babble of tangential logic.

Another excellent story is "Under the Red Sun", by Ben Peek. The setting, in a biomechanical otherworld society, is well developed in this longer story, with the world's unique religion forming an integral component of the plot structure. The morose and devoted protagonist is outstanding, his biased point of view consistent and satisfying.

Afifah Myra Muffaz's "Mosquito Story" describes two sisters' competition for the same man during an outbreak of disease in Hong Kong. Filled with the strong cultural background that is typical of Muffaz's writing, this piece lacks an overt fantastical element but is well-written and lyrical in tone. Unquestionably fantasy is "After Midnight", by Alison Campbell-Wise, a sinister retelling of the Cinderella story that uses the characters' motivations to create a devastating conclusion.

Matthew Johnson's "Irregular Verbs" is the final highlight, an islander tribal story about a population whose language changes so quickly that nightly Conversations are required to preserve the people's common tongue. It is a wonderful and simple story of loss and the importance of memory preservation in which communication becomes both the premise and theme.

Some stories in this issue fail to satisfy. "Bronson Rebellion", by Megan Messinger, is a haunting black slave story. Though the dialectal voice remains evocative and readable, the piece trails off to a sagging end. Hal Duncan's "Bizarre Cubiques", on the other hand, is a sparse narrative told amidst musings on the fictional art form suggested by the title. The action is minimal and the reader may have difficulty separating their prejudices of the self-indulgent or contrived nature of art criticism from their experience of this story.

Likewise disappointing is Catherine M. Morrison's "Mushrooms Sprouting in Your Footsteps Like Tears", a conversational first-person piece told by a woman to her lover. The setting is mystical but the character is frustrating in her submissive, domestic ideology, her identity unashamedly existing only within her unresponsive partner-master. Prettily written but discomfiting after the more profound themes underpinning Campisi's piece. "Dead Sea Fruit", by Kaaron Warren, is the story of a female dentist, her pro bono patients in an eating disorders ward and the anorexic girls' myths of a man with the power to induce their illness. In this case, the protagonist's insight tends to trail behind that of the reader while the speculative elements fail to incorporate themselves smoothly into the overall flow of the story.

The offerings within Issue 4 of Fantasy Magazine vary in quality but the approaches of these authors are fresh and lively, ranging widely across the possibilities of the genre. The publication is set to bring new flavour to fantasy fiction.

Fantasy Magazine #4 is available from Clarkesworld Books or in Australia through Cat Sparks.

Innocence Lost: Kingmaker, Kingbreaker Book 2   :   Karen Miller

HarperCollins, 2005
ISBN: 0-7322-8080-x
623 pages
RRP: AU$19.95
Review by P Niski

What do you get when you cross a storyteller whose way with words creates sorcery, and a woman whose imagination creates wonderful dreams and terrible nightmares?

You get Karen Miller. Her characters leap out of the book and into your heart.

Asher only wanted to earn enough money to buy a fishing boat to share with his father. Gar wants to serve his kingdom, both Doranen and Olken subjects, to the best of his ability. Dathne, Matt, and Veira would prefer ordinary lives, but are the servants of prophecy, whilst Conrad Jarralt seeks to serve himself, and serves Morg without knowing it.

The loves and hates, hopes and despairs of these people take the reader on a magical journey with up, down, and sideways trips into fierce elation, heartbreaking sacrifice, and surprising strength of heart and mind. The final revelations are stunning.

Karen Miller is not just another fantasy writer, she is a sorceress whose spells become books.

Innocence Lost is available from Dymocks Online.