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Saturday, 25 January 2020

The Manifestations of Sherlock Holmes by James Lovegrove - Book Review

'Tales of treachery, intrigue and evil… Maverick detective Sherlock Holmes and his faithful chronicler Dr John Watson return in twelve thrilling short stories.

'The iconic duo find themselves swiftly drawn into a series of puzzling and sinister events: an otherworldly stone whose touch inflicts fatal bleeding; a hellish potion unlocks a person’s devilish psyche; Holmes’s most hated rival detective tells his story; a fiendishly clever, almost undetectable method of revenge; Watson finally has his chance to shine; and many more – including a brand-new Cthulhu Casebooks story.'

The Manifestations of Sherlock Holmes is the latest Sherlock Holmes release from Titan Books, bringing together a dozen short stories by the acclaimed James Lovegrove. Having written many full length novels, and short stories about the world's greatest detective and his faithful partner, John Watson, Lovegrove is one of those rare writers that can not only tell a great mystery story, but captures the essence of the characters wonderfully.

This collection seems to aim to offer a little of everything, with some stories that could have very easily fit into the original tales as written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, whilst others show the characters in some very different, and far removed scenarios.

The Adventure of the Marchindale Stiletto, the first story in this collection, feels like a very early adventure in the Sherlock Holmes canon, one where Holmes is presented with a relatively simple puzzle (for him at least), and there's no real criminal element at work. The story revolves around a missing family heirloom that Holmes is asked to find. The story doesn't go out of its way to give you the solution to the puzzle, but gives enough clues that even if you don't work out every single detail you end up figuring out the broader strokes.

This is also true for The Problem of the Emperor's Netsuke, which sees Holmes called in to investigate the theft of dozens of priceless artifacts on loan from the Emperor of Japan, thefts that have been cunningly hidden by well crafted duplicates. As with the first story, it's a fairly harmless case where no one is hurt and the 'criminal' is actually a really nice person, and you'll find yourself figuring out who's responsible before Holmes reveals it.

These are nice little stories that show the almost fiendish simplicity that often accompanied some of Sherlock Holmes' stories, where just enough information is given to the reader to allow you to feel like you're there working it out alongside Holmes. Some of these stories, however, are decidedly different.

The Affair of the Yithian Stone is set within the world of Lovegrove's Cthulhu Casebook trilogy, where Holmes and Watson battle against the otherworldly forces of Cthulhu and other denizens from Lovecraft's world. Here the two detectives are having to deal with a deadly ancient artifact imbued with technology and magic far beyond our understanding. Whilst it's not the usual kind of Sherlock Holmes story it still feels like the same characters, and getting to see them interacting with the world of the Cthulhu mythos is brilliant.

Another story that takes inspiration from other literary works is The Strange Case of Dr Sacker and Mr Hope. Taking a cue from Robert Louis Stevenson's Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, this story sees Holmes being transformed into a terrifying murderer by a potion made up by Dr Jekyll. Targeting those criminals he was investigating this new Mr Sherringford Hope begins a murder spree before transforming his old partner Dr Watson into Dr Ormond Sacker. A chilling and horrific tale that shows how deadly a person Holmes would be if he ever turned to evil, the story is also a good bit of fun Sherlock Holmes history, as the two names Lovegrove gives these new personalities are the original names given to them when Conan Doyle firs started developing the characters.

Whether you're interested in these new and strange versions of the characters, or want stories that feel true to the original works, The Manifestations of Sherlock Holmes can provide readers with brilliant stories that are sure to entertain. Not only is Lovegrove able to tell interesting and engaging mysteries, but he's able to write versions of Holmes and Watson that feel right, that capture that magic that made them such a success when written by Arthur Conan Doyle.

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Wednesday, 22 January 2020

Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia - Book Review

'The Jazz Age is in full swing, but Casiopea Tun is too busy cleaning the floors of her wealthy grandfather’s house to listen to any fast tunes. Nevertheless, she dreams of a life far from her dusty small town in southern Mexico. A life she can call her own.

Yet this new life seems as distant as the stars, until the day she finds a curious wooden box in her grandfather’s room. She opens it—and accidentally frees the spirit of the Mayan god of death, who requests her help in recovering his throne from his treacherous brother. Failure will mean Casiopea’s demise, but success could make her dreams come true.

In the company of the strangely alluring god and armed with her wits, Casiopea begins an adventure that will take her on a cross-country odyssey from the jungles of Yucatán to the bright lights of Mexico City—and deep into the darkness of the Mayan underworld.'

I have to be honest, I'd not read the blurb for Gods of Jade and Shadow before I started to read it. I'd been given a copy to read and thought the cover looked great so just picked it at random from my to be read pile. At first I thought that it might end up being the kind of book that I wouldn't usually enjoy, as the first few chapters were centred on Casiopea and her life in her grandfather's home. She is presented as a young woman that has become stuck into a poor situation thanks to events outside of her control. She's barely better than a servant to her family, just because of decisions her mother made in her youth.

These first few chapters play out like many 'normal' novels, where there's nothing that happens in the book that's outside the realms of everyday life. I thought this was going to be a story about a young woman breaking free of her family and finding her own place in the world. And it was, to be fair; except for she's doing it whilst on a road trip with an ancient god. The sudden introduction of Hun-Kame, the deposed lord of the underworld was a surprise twist that I honestly didn't see coming. But it was something that the book desperately needed.

The road trip that Casiopea and Hun-Kame go on, crossing Mexico and meeting various magic users, gods, and demons, plays out well, and doesn't rush in its pacing. The two lead characters get to spend a great deal of time together, and their relationship feels pretty real. It's nice to see Casiopea get to break free of the negative thoughts and feelings that her family have worked into her and become her own person, whilst seeing Hun-Kame gradually begin to become more human is fascinating and engaging.

The story of Casiopea itself, and her issues with her family are the weakest parts of the book, and the story only really seems to come to life when she's journeying with Hun-Kame in order to find the missing pieces of his body so that he can return to his former godhood. Whenever Casiopea's familial struggles took centre stage the book would lag, and because of this I found that I'd occasionally get bored with the narrative.

In contrast, the more that the author delved into this world of Mayan mythology and magic the more I was drawn in. The setting and the mythology of the book is one that I've not read before. I've seen stories use christian mythology a lot, and things like Norse and Egyptian mythology are pretty well known and well used in sci-fi and fantasy. Mayan mythology, on the other hand, felt new and exciting because it was something that I'd not seen used before. In some ways the book made me think of Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi, which drew on other underutilised mythology and cultures as inspiration.

Gods of Jade and Shadow is a fun road-trip coming-of-age style story where a young woman gets to forge her own future. The mystical elements are definitely the draw though, and actually make her personal story feel all the more real. It's a shame the book ended the way it did, as I'd want to see more from these characters and this world, but don't get the impression that Silvia Moreno-Garcia will return to it. If she does, I'm definitely interested to see what would come next.

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Monday, 20 January 2020

Marvel Action: Avengers #9 – Comic Review

Originally published on Set The Tape

Slug-like aliens and sad Avengers abound, as Marvel Action: Avengers #9 brings the story of the Fear Eaters to a conclusion, as the alien invaders sweep through New York City.

An invasion of alien parasites that feed off the fear of the populace should be a big threat, and should feel like an epic fight for the Avengers. It’s been building for the better part of a year (especially with some of the long gaps between issues), and this should be the big pay off. Unfortunately, it doesn’t really feel like there are any stakes in this issue.

The Fear Eaters, which always seemed quite large and looming in their previous appearances, are suddenly very small. They’re slugs the size of a cat with a weird goat/dog face and antennas. They float around ‘menacingly’ and make the Avengers see their worst fears. There’s very little about them that seems frightening or deadly at all; I’m a little surprised that average New Yorkers aren’t beating them back with sticks or something.

This sudden disappointing drop in threat level from the villains makes the majority of the issue more boring than anything else. Other than a few of the Avengers having to stand around looking at things that they’re scared of nothing really happens. Even the defeat of the aliens feels uneventful.

It turns out that the armour Black Panther has been working on is an adaptation of Iron Man’s stealth armour, one that’s been reinforced with vibranium, and now transmits a person’s thoughts rather than shields them. This means that T’Challa is able to don the armour and use it to attract the Fear Eaters to him. Once the aliens have been summoned to him T’Challa ends the invasion by confronting his own fear of his father’s disappointment, which for some reason causes the Fear Eaters to run away.

I know that the Marvel Action line is aimed at younger readers, and that they might not want to overly complicate their stories so as not to confuse kids, but there’s pretty much no reasoning for the events in this issue. How were the Fear Eaters going to destroy Earth when they just float around making people sad and sacred? Why were they drawn to Black Panther by reversing its ‘brainwave systems’? And why is one person getting over their fear enough to end an entire planet-threatening invasion?

I don’t want to make it sound like one huge rant about the issue, but this simply feels like one of the weakest conclusions to a story I’ve read. The good guys win because they’re the good guys, and that’s about it. Sadly, I find it hard to believe that even their target child audience would feel satisfied with this conclusion. Hopefully the next story arc will prove to be be better.

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Thursday, 16 January 2020

The Hunger by Alma Katsu - Book Review

'Evil is invisible, and it is everywhere. Tamsen Donner must be a witch. That is the only way to explain the series of misfortunes that have plagued the wagon train known as the Donner Party. Depleted rations, bitter quarrels, and the mysterious death of a little boy have driven the pioneers to the brink of madness. They cannot escape the feeling that someone--or something--is stalking them. Whether it was a curse from the beautiful Tamsen, the choice to follow a disastrous experimental route West, or just plain bad luck--the 90 men, women, and children of the Donner Party are at the brink of one of the deadliest and most disastrous western adventures in American history.

While the ill-fated group struggles to survive in the treacherous mountain conditions--searing heat that turns the sand into bubbling stew; snows that freeze the oxen where they stand--evil begins to grow around them, and within them. As members of the party begin to disappear, they must ask themselves 'What if there is something waiting in the mountains? Something disturbing and diseased...and very hungry?'.'

The Donner Party is a name that brings some very clear images to mind, a group of people travelling across the vast wilderness of America, falling victim to bad weather and poor directions until their only course of action was to resort to cannibalism to survive. Just on its own it's a disturbing and somewhat horrific story, one about the desperate need to survive. Alma Katsu adds a whole new layer of horror to the story with her novel The Hunger when she makes the group the victims of something much more evil.

Katsu mixes together historical fact with fiction, and real life people with her own creations incredibly well. I was familiar with the story of the Donner Party before reading this book, and was able to pick out certain places and people that I remembered, but those that were fabricated were done so with a huge amount of skill. There's no obvious moment where you can tell a person if completely new to this story. Katsu is able to bring a great deal of life to all of the characters in her book, making the factual and fictional feel alive.

The story of The Hunger begins with the wagon train already on their journey west, trying to find a better life, when tragedy hits in the form of a missing child. The mutilated body that they find is only the beginning of their woes, and almost becomes something you forget about as things worsen for the group, not realising that this dead boy hints at so much more to come.

Along their journey the group begins to fracture, falling to infighting and various mishaps, such as broken equipment and lack of supplies. People turn against each other, protecting their own and suspecting all those around them of wanting to harm them. It's a very real and believable set of events, one that highlights humanities ability to quickly turn on itself when it feels threatened. This fractured and disheartened group discover that their own squabbles are far from the worst thing that can befall them on the journey, however, when strange creatures begin to stalk them, picking them off one by one.

The reveal of the supernatural elements in the book is slow, choosing to let readers get to know the characters first, to understand their motivations and personal conflicts before it turns more towards horror. The horror elements are quite subtle too, with often only one or two people seeing what's happened and the rest of the group finding it hard to believe. The fact that there aren't monsters terrorising the entire wagon train or big set pieces helps to make things feel more believable, perhaps even part of the real events. The fact that some of the people who see these outside forces are considered to be unreliable by other members of the group, for various reasons, and that people are beginning to fall into depression and desperate hunger makes you begin to question if certain things are even happening. Maybe it's psychosis brought on from hunger and fever that's really tormenting these people?

The Hunger is not a fun book to read, it's depressing, grim, and creepy. This isn't just because that's what the author set out to do, but because you know whatever happens isn't going to end well before you even open the book. The story is based upon a tragedy, so when characters suffer and die awful deaths you don't feel shocked or outraged, but a sad resignation. There were characters that I liked, that I wanted to see live because they seemed like good, decent people, and seeing them slowly suffer and die felt like it was eroding me away too. You can enjoy the book, take pleasure in the well told story and great characters, but you're not going to finish it with a sense of happiness; unless perhaps at being happy the awful events are finally over.

Alma Katsu merges together historic fiction and horror in a great way with The Hunger, taking one of the best known tragedies in US history and putting a new spin on events. Whether you're familiar with the story of the Donner Party or not, this story is sure to chill you.

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