Demons and New Orleans

Several years ago I read an interesting fantasy novel by Tim Lebbon titled Dusk (rating: 7/10).  I noted at the time that I liked Lebbon's style and his imagination, although I thought his descriptions of violence were a bit over the top.  And I found the sexual references unnecessary rather than supportive of the story.  The world he portrays is a very ugly one, but it has the promise of being transformed if the heroes can only protect the boy who can bring magic back into the world.

I never did read the second volume, Dawn, probably because I was afraid that my hopes for seeing everything turn out for good might be dashed.  And I couldn't continue reading of ugliness if I didn't know for sure that beauty would finally return.

Now I've finished a very different book by Christoper Golden and Tim Lebbon, The Map of Moments (rating: 9/10).  An example of the sub-genre now referred to as urban fantasy, the story begins in post-Katrina New Orleans.  Driven to save his dead lover, the main character experiences a number of supernatural episodes showing him the sinister magic that has been controlling New Orleans for some two hundred years.

I found the plot of this novel to be very original and the story kept my interest.  I had to stay with it till the end, and I was rewarded by an ending that simultaneously tied everything together and surprised me both.  The Map of Moments was not marred the way I thought Dusk was (and feared that Dawn would be).  Just enough violence to make the supernatural truly horrifying, and no gratuitous sex.  And perhaps most importantly, the relationship between the main character and the woman he loved and lost to Hurricane Katrina was central to driving the plot.  This book is "A Novel of the Hidden Cities", and I'm eager to see if the other novels in this series (including Mind the Gap [London], The Chamber of Ten [Venice], and The Shadow Men [Boston]) are as good as this novel was.

Locus

Locus.  No, not the bug - that's "locust."  This is "Locus, The Magazine of the Science Fiction & Fantasy Field."  The August 2010 issue showed up in the mail today.

If you want to know what's going on in the science fiction & fantasy publishing industry, this is the magazine to read.  It covers everything from new books coming out to obituaries of noted authors to news on publishing mergers to legal battles.  I especially like to see what's new that's coming out.  But over the past few years this has included a large number of vampire, werewolf, and zombie-themed novels.  With the exception of World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War (rating: 9/10), I don't do vampires, werewolves, or zombies.  Another trend that I don't (and may never) appreciate is that of sci-fi/fantasy/romance crossovers.  I wish I had a nickel for every time I've re-shelved a book in Borders after seeing that it had romance in it.  Just not my cup of tea.

So what is?  Patrick Rothfuss, author of the fantasy novel The Name of the Wind (rating: 9/10), is featured in the lead article in the latest issue of Locus.  Like many other people, I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Name of the Wind and only wish the next book in Rothfuss' trilogy would come out sooner.  The Name of the Wind has no vampires, werewolves, zombies, or romance.  (Some might argue with me on the "romance" part - there is a component of a love-story - but it's not what I think of when I think of romance.)  Also, sitting on my shelf waiting to be read is the anthology Swords & Dark Magic: The New Sword and Sorcery, edited by Jonathan Strahan and Lou Anders.  That one I expect to thoroughly enjoy as well.

The Magicians

Lev Grossman's The Magicians.  How would I describe it?  Take Harry Potter and make him older, an anti-hero.  Take Hogwarts and make it far more serious, even perhaps a tad sinister?  Throw in a land like Narnia, but not quite so benign.  And then imagine giving Stephen King license to create some Evil.

I finished The Magicians quickly, partly because it was an engrossing read, partly because I was stuck in a plane on the tarmac for hours, and the next day stuck in an airport for hours.  This is not a book for kids by any stretch of the imagination (and this book does stretch the imagination).  It takes on some big themes head-on, particularly the notion of searching for happiness.  I was reminded more than once of the expression, "Be careful what you wish for - you may get it."

Icelandic Sorcery

I've always wanted to visit Iceland.  It's off the beaten path, it has mountains and glaciers and fjords and tremendous waterfalls and an active volcano that can disrupt air travel for thousands and thousands of people.  Janni Lee Simner chose Iceland as the setting for her young adult novel, Thief Eyes, and infused the story with scenery and sorcery in a tale that draws on Icelandic history and folklore.

I enjoyed Simner's first novel, Bones of Faerie, a merging of post-apocalyptic struggle and a supernatural world encroaching on our own.  When I learned that she was coming out with another novel, I was eager to read it.  Thief Eyes did not disappoint.  Simner's books, while written for a "young adult" market, are fun to read even if you're not quite as young an adult as you used to be, or would like to be.