After reading one too many technical books, I had to shift back into a bit of fictional fun, and Megan Chance's latest work 'The Spiritualist' caught my attention. According to her website, 'The Spiritualist' is...

...a tale of murder and intrigue, class and the occult, as one woman’s desperate search for a killer reveals that truth may be the greatest illusion of all...

More specifically, 'The Spiritualist' is a murder-mystery set in the 1800's, involving the heroine, Evie, who married into high-society. When Evie's husband disappears after a visit to a 'spirit circle', Evie is sucked into an intricate web of deceit between the elite social circles, her own family and an occult group led by a charismatic medium. It's a story of high-society, table-rapping spirits, charlatans, and romance.

Alright, so it isn't something I'd typically read. There weren't any ninjas or explosions in it. All the more reason you should be shocked and amazed at my assessment: Megan Chance is a *fantastic* writer, and 'The Spiritualist' is a great book.

The Good
Megan Chance writes believable characters. Even for the elite class and different time period the characters come from; I really believed in them. Their actions, reactions and motivations were understandable, if not forgivable. I never felt like I was watching 'The English Patient' where suspension of disbelief was pushed beyond superhuman limits.

The storyline was tight and linear, with few wasted pages. The plot pulls you in, and doesn't disappoint, keeping and a sure-and-steady pace. And just the right amount of intrigue, to keep you reading past your bedtime.

Anoter great thing about the book was the cover, and the lack of half-naked people embracing thereon. Let's be honest, that doesn't even belong on the covers of trashy romance novels. DISCLAIMER: The story has romance in it, and Megan Chance did win the "Romance Writers of America’s RITA award for excellence in Romantic Fiction". But don't hold that against her, or this story. The romance was tastefully done.

But the best part of the book is the writing. The sentences simply flowed, and made me realize how much my own writing sounds like a hastily translated 'Dick and Jane' book. Megan paints smooth, silky pictures of the 1800s in your head with her words.

The Bad
There weren't any ninjas or explosions. Yeah, that's about it. Note to self, Megan: 'Next book - needs more ninjas'.

The Upshot
'The Spiritualist' is a treat for anyone wanting an escape to a well-constructed, well-written, 1800s romantic-occult-murder-mystery.

Megan Chance's website.

'The Spiritualist' on Amazon.com

Art Is Resistance
-Zero

Labels: Book Review

Windows

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00010E36. The current application will be terminated.

* Press any key to terminate the current application
* Press CTR+ALT+DEL again to restart your computer. You will
lose any unsaved information in all applications

Press any key to continue

Art Is Resistance
-Zero

Labels: NIN

The title, "Demons" obviously caught my eye, and I simply had to read it. Not so much 'research' for the Demonslayer's Handbook, since that manuscript is finished, but more like; "I better read this since it came out before mine, and I need to make sure there's nothing too similar to my own book, so's I don't get sued for copyright infringement..."

"Demons" by John Shirley is actually two half-stories under the same cover. There is a 9-year jump between the stories, but it's not a problem. They both sport the same feel, mythos, and primary characters.

The Setup - Slightly futuristic in nature. In the first story, several species of demons descend upon the earth and attack humans, killing them off in very unpleasant ways. In the second half, corporate research into 'psychonomics' coupled with the research of a new pesticide are about to open the door for the Demons to re-enter the world.

The Good - Really good writing; good turns of phrase and wonderful analogies. The first book is gritty, and well-paced. Mr Shirley uses an interesting hybrid of first-person/direct-objective that I really enjoyed, taking me into the subject's head when appropriate, but stepping out for the remainder. The Demons are truly monstrous; their actions truly horrific, and each clan of demon is distinct from the others.

The Bad - Word choices are sometimes ostentatious [Editor's Note: Heh, and *that* observation isn't?] keep a thesaurus nearby. Ideals are completely Californian. The first story merely hints at the 'industry==evil' theme, but the second book will make you fucking choke on it. In fact, the second book isn't so much about Demons as it is about how chemical research and third world countries are Evil, and self-awareness is Good. The demons play such a small part in the second book that all references to them could be removed without significantly changing the story.

The Short Version - A pair of sly, well-written stories about how industries, corporations, and third world countries are evil. And Demons.

Art Is Resistance
-Zero

Labels: Book Review