‘Ghost #4’ – DeConnick, Borges (Dark Horse Comics)

One story arc comes to an end and so another begins. This is the way of comic books everywhere and no less so with ‘Ghost #4’, a book that doesn’t have a lot to say for itself (which is going to result in a very short and to the point post today…) but is laying the foundations for something to play out over the next few issues. I don’t know quite what but it looks interesting.

Elisa Cameron has defeated the threats of Dr. October, the White City Butcher and also the demon Beleth. Ghost can now start to protect the city of Chicago from itself while her friends start to piece together Elisa’s past life from the effects of a dead friend…

‘Ghost #4’ is essentially a chance to take a break from the frenetic events of previous issues and start to see what Elisa herself is really all about, both in her past and the path she is choosing to take right now. There isn’t a lot of difference between the two to be honest; you could say that as Ghost, Elisa is just continuing to be the person she always was, only with added power and purpose. The parallels are cleverly drawn and aren’t too obvious; I like a bit of subtlety so appreciate the approach taken here.

What does this mean for the future? It’s clear that Elisa’s past isn’t ready to let her go just yet and that there are questions still to be answered. Nothing major at the moment, these are the kind of questions that lead to even bigger questions I think. We’ll see how that goes.

One final word on the art though. I’d love to see a little more consistency with the artists; Noto, Sook and now Borges are all good but I would love to see this title pick an artist and then stick with them for an extended run; give them time to really make the character and setting their own and complement DeConnick’s excellent writing. Just a thought guys. ‘Ghost’ is starting to look really good in terms of moving away from the original and becoming its own tale; a little consistency with the art could really make all the difference as far as I’m concerned.

Cover Art - 'Gods of War' and 'The House of War and Witness'

Cover used to simply be something that I’d have a quick look at before opening the book and getting on to the story itself. I mean, no-one hands over hard earned cash just for the cover art do they? Do they?

Having been blogging for a while now (and read what other people think on the matter), cover art means a lot more to me than it ever did before. The work (and thought) that goes into something people might just look at for a second is astonishing, even if the results don’t always gel with me. Attention is paid to the smallest things in order to get you looking at a cover, for more than that one second, and I think that’s amazing.

I don’t really talk about fonts a lot, preferring instead to concentrate on the actual artwork, but I came across a couple of covers just recently where that little bit of detail made a bland/generic cover something a lot more. Have a look…  

At first glance, it looks like ‘Gods of War’ is just another WW1 novel with an aeroplane and a lot of cloud on the front. So far, so ordinary. Have a look at that font though with all its curls and stuff (no terminology here, there’s a reason why I don’t talk about this stuff much…) The slightly archaic style adds another layer of history to the cover and its lightness on the cover adds a sense of movement to the plane. I’m not sure that I’d read the book (love watching ‘Sherlock’ but have never really go on with the books) but I do like looking at the cover. Have a read through the blurb as well while you’re here…

1913. The clouds of war are gathering and Europe is in turmoil. A body is discovered on the shore below Beachy Head, just a mile from Sherlock Holmess retirement cottage. Suicide, or murder? As Holmes and Watson investigate, they uncover a conspiracy with shocking ramifications: men who welcome the idea of a world war are seeking divine aid to make it a reality.

‘The House of War and Witness’ is another one of those books with a cover that wouldn’t look out of place in a ‘3 for 2’ offer at WHSmiths or heavily reduced in price at Tescos. I can remember the days when supermarkets just sold food but that’s another story (and get off my lawn you pesky kids!) It’s a book that looks like any other historical novel then and that’s a shame because the blurb says that it’s anything but, I’ll show you that in a minute.

It’s curly whirly font time again though, sparingly used but to great effect. You know what you’re getting in a book when ‘war’ is highlighted on the cover and I like the way that the font deliberately contrasts with the one used for ‘witness’, suggesting two themes for the plot. I promised you the blurb and here it is,

In the year 1740, with the whole of Europe balanced on the brink of war, a company of Austrian soldiers is sent to the village of Narutsin to defend the border with Prussia. But what should be a routine posting is quickly revealed to be anything but. The previous garrison is gone, the great house of Pokoj, where they're to be billeted, a dilapidated ruin, and the people of Narutsin sullen and belligerent. Convinced the villagers are keeping secrets - and possibly consorting with the enemy - the commanding officer orders his junior lieutenant, Klaes, to investigate.
While Klaes sifts through the villagers' truths, half-truths and lies, Drozde, the quartermaster's woman, is making uncomfortable discoveries of her own - about herself, her man, and the house where they've all been thrown together. Because far from being the empty shell it appears to be, Pokoj is actually teeming with people. It's just that they're all dead. And the dead know things - about Drozde, about the history of Pokoj, and about the terrible event that is rushing towards them all, seemingly unstoppable.
The ghosts of Pokoj, the soldiers of the empress and the villagers of Narutsin are about to find themselves actors in a story that has been unfolding for centuries. It will end in blood - that much is written - but how much blood will depend on Klaes' honour, Drozde's skill and courage, and the keeping of an impossible promise ...

I’ll be reading this for the same reasons that I’ll be dipping into ‘City of Silk and Steel’ very soon. Mike Carey hasn’t let me down yet with his work and I’m looking forward to more of the same here.

‘Promise of Blood’ – Brian McClellan (Orbit)

It's a bloody business overthrowing a king...
Field Marshal Tamas' coup against his king sent corrupt aristocrats to the guillotine and brought bread to the starving. But it also provoked war with the Nine Nations, internal attacks by royalist fanatics, and the greedy to scramble for money and power by Tamas's supposed allies: the Church, workers unions, and mercenary forces.

Stretched to his limit, Tamas is relying heavily on his few remaining powder mages, including the embittered Taniel, a brilliant marksman who also happens to be his estranged son, and Adamat, a retired police inspector whose loyalty is being tested by blackmail.

But when gods are involved...
Now, as attacks batter them from within and without, the credulous are whispering about omens of death and destruction. Just old peasant legends about the gods waking to walk the earth. No modern educated man believes that sort of thing. But they should...

I read a lot of books in a lot of (sub)genres and love them all for the most part. You’ll soon hear about it if I don’t… Despite this, I’m still more than a little old school with my fantasy. Swords, spears and shields are all good but the second we move on to muskets and pistols then I’m not into it as much. If you’re wondering, I can just about put up with cannons ;o) I think this is the reason why the whole ‘flintlock fantasy’ thing passed me by; part of fantasy for me is people getting up close when fighting and you just don’t get that when your hero can pick someone off, from hundreds of yards away, with a rifle. So I didn’t read ‘Promise of Blood’ when it came out back in April last year (I didn’t read Django Wexler’s ‘The Thousand Names’ either so there you go) but the recent publication of ‘The Crimson Campaign’ prompted me to go back and give it a read (that and the fact that I still think Tamas looks like George Lucas, I really need to let that one go now).

The long and short of it? ‘Promise of Blood’ is the reason is why blog content here has been a bit spotty recently, when I haven’t been reading ‘Promise of Blood’ I’ve been thinking about what is going to happen next. Now I’ve finished ‘Promise of Blood’, I can’t wait to get home so I can pick up ‘The Crimson Campaign’ and get going all over again. Can you tell that I really enjoyed this book? I really did…?

How often have you read a fantasy novel where the plot to overthrow the King is foiled at the last minute? ‘Promise of Blood’ starts just after the point where that coup was successful. The King is about a day away from being executed; long live the reign of Field Marshal Tamas, a man doing the right thing but for reasons all his own… What you get then is a story where you can almost smell the blood right from the first page, a book where the risk of counter-revolution means that the stakes are high right from the first sentence. ‘Promise of Blood’ is a book that throws you right into the thick of a messy coup and leaves you wondering just how Tamas and his committee are going to sort it all out. That’s what kept me reading, the problems, that were laid up even more problems, that had to be solved in order to keep the country just ticking over; McClellan piles it all into the laps of several characters who may not be entirely likeable (I’m looking at you Tamas) but who believe in their convictions enough to make you want to get behind them.

Problems, and their solutions, frequently come in the form of pitched battles and gunfights which swept me up in a hail of bullets and blood; just the kind of battles that I like to read about. I still have a preference for swordplay in fantasy but the blend of magic here made for a refreshing change for me. McClellan pitches his battles just right and it’s all too easy to keep reading. And if that wasn’t enough there are two Gods in play as well; one is wrathful and wants to destroy Tamas’ country, the other… is an amazing cook… I’m looking forward to seeing how that particular confrontation plays out in future books.

‘Promise of Blood’ does suffer slightly from being the opening book in a trilogy; a lot of the sub-plots are relatively self-contained but I couldn’t get away from the feeling that events weren’t flowing into book two so much as they were being left hanging so you would have to read book two.  With everything else going on though, it’s incredibly easy to forget that and just be carried along on a wave of intrigue, magic and blood. ‘Promise of Blood’ is ultimately an awesome read and I’m looking forward to continuing with the trilogy.

‘Poison’ – Sarah Pinborough (Gollancz)

‘Take a wicked queen, a handsome prince, a beautiful princess and a poisoned apple…

and now read the true story of Snow White, told the way it always should have been…’

These days I’m a little loathe to pick up books promising to re-tell older tales, simply because I can never get away from the fact that I’ve already read it somewhere else. If I really want to re-read a book then I’ll go back to the original instead of reading a copy, a slight variation on the same theme. If it’s Sarah Pinborough telling the tale though, that’s a different matter entirely. I’ve read a few of Pinborough’s books now and have enjoyed the lot (just feel a bit sad that will be no more giant spider books…) so it was pretty much a foregone conclusion that I’d read ‘Poison’. Now I want the next two books to hurry up and get themselves re-issued; partly because I want to find out what happened to the mouse and see whether Aladdin makes another appearance but mostly because Pinborough tells an enthralling tale and I want more of that. Right now, I’m really hard pressed to remember a time when I tore through two hundred pages of book so quickly.

Pinborough takes the original tale of Snow White and, well… doesn’t actually make any changes to the main plot for the most part. The game changer comes right at the end (and completely blew me away) but the rest of the plot is as you would expect to find it. Where Pinborough really shines though is in her treatment of the source material. ‘Poison’ isn’t so much a re-telling of ‘Snow White’ as it is a piece with a lot more depth and feeling than the original tale ever had. And a lot more darkness too; Pinborough clearly knows that there is a strong edge of darkness to the classic fairy tales and uses that here to good effect. I know I keep going on about Aladdin but he is a seriously scary and messed up little boy who I would hate to come across and that is what partly what ‘Poison’ is all about, that darkness in our lives which can lead us down some very strange paths.

‘Poison’ isn’t just about that though, it’s about why the Snow White tale happened the way that it did and Pinborough adds real emotion and depth to the relationship between Lilith and Snow White; a relationship based on misunderstandings and jealousy from both parties as well as Lilith trying to make herself feel secure as Queen by imposing order on Snow White. You can’t help but feel sorry for both women, both of whom have their faults but are stopped from making it work by being totally incompatible. The way it all plays out makes for a compelling yet bittersweet read.

Oh yes and there’s a lot of sex, emphasising the raw humanity of our characters (it’s the only way that they can connect with each other) whilst ensuring that I will never again be able to watch the final scenes of the Disney ‘Snow White’ without keeping a straight face.  And that damn Prince, I really hope he gets his in a book to come…

‘Poison’ has been on the shelves for a little while now and I suspect I must be one of the last people to read it. If you haven’t read it yet, don’t wait as long as I did. Read ‘Poison’ now and find out what ‘Snow White’ was really all about.

More Books in the Post! 'Post-Interview/Shameless Filler' Edition.

I don't normally do one 'Books in the Post' post straight after another but I've spent most of the last few days preparing for an interview (which went pretty well thank you for asking!) and haven't really done a lot of reading. And, of course, a whole load of books were waiting for for me when I got home last night and I wanted to share :o) After this post I'll go straight back to the 'once weekly' format but in the meantime there's some very cool looking books here; check them out...

There were a whole load of books published last year that I never got round to, purely because I was having me a hiatus and was catching up on other stuff instead. 'The City of Silk and Steel' was one of those books (anyone here read it?) and I've bumped it up the pile, not only because I love Arabian style fantasy right now but also because Mike Carey's name is on the cover. It may not be Felix Castor (still holding out a forlorn hope here) but I haven't read a bad book yet from Mike Carey so am looking forward to reading this and seeing how this combined family effort comes out on the page.
'Poison' is another book that I'm really up for reading and probably should have read sooner, based on how I've found Sarah Pinborough's other books (excellent for the most part). I've got the house to myself tonight so might give it a go then.

Gollancz continue to publish Michael Moorcock's back catalogue and it's the turn of this collected edition of 'Jerry Cornelius' short stories to see the light of day. I will be reading this book, no question about it. The only question is in which edition; I think I may already have this one on the shelf (with a much nicer cover as well).

And then there's the books that I'd never heard of until last night.

I'd never really given it much thought but of course there would be a book that was Philip K. Dick's first, he had to start somewhere didn't he? It's a matter for slight debate but people in the know say that 'Gather Yourselves Together' was the first book written by Dick. I want to read more of his books so will definitely be picking this one up at some point.
I'm not really sure about Mitch Benn's 'Terra' though. I know it's a silly thing but the comparisons to Terry Pratchett have put me off, purely because I don't really find Pratchett that funny any more (not for a long time). Has anyone here read 'Terra'? Have a look at the blurb and see what you think,

No-one trusts humanity. No-one can quite understand why we're intent on destroying the only place we have to live in the Universe. No-one thinks we're worth a second thought. And certainly no-one is about to let us get off Rrth. That would be a complete disaster.

But one alien thinks Rrth is worth looking at. Not humanity, obviously, we're appalling, but until we manage to kill every other living thing on the planet there are some truly wonderful places on Rrth and some wonderful creatures living in them. Best take a look while they're still there.

But on one trip to Rrth our alien biologist causes a horrendous accident. The occupants of a car travelling down a lonely road spot his ship (the sort of massive lemon-coloured, lemon-shaped starship that really shouldn't be hanging in the sky over a road). Understandably the Bradburys crash (interrupting the latest in a constant procession of bitter rows). And in the wreckage of their car our alien discovers a baby girl. She needs rescuing. From the car. From Rrth. From her humanity.

And now 11 years later a girl called Terra is about to go to school for the first time. It's a very alien experience...

I'm half and half with this one, what do you think?

And Simon Ing's 'Painkillers'... I think he has a story in 'The Life and Times of Jerry Cornelius' so I might read that first and give 'Painkillers' a go if I like it. Or maybe not, I have the 'Game of Thrones Season Two' box set in my bag and that takes precedence because Season One was awesome. Any time that is left will be spent on working my way through a growing pile of unread books. Any here that you think I should start with?

Books In The Post, 'Lazy Bank Holiday Edition'

Well, I say 'lazy'... There wasn't a lot of 'laziness' going on seeing as Hope was full of energy and really happy to be on holiday. It was a great three days though and I don't think I read more than a couple of pages of anything over the long weekend. You know what? That was cool as well. I've become really aware that I'm the kind of guy who will finish a book and then pick up another one within seconds; there's nothing wrong with that just as long as you're doing it for the right reason. If you're not then take a step back and enjoy what's going on in real life. There may not be any dragons, or stuff like that, but real life can be pretty magical as well :o)

But the books, the books... Only three books turned up this weekend and that was fine by me as I'm trying to fit in time for the books gathering dust on the shelves. Have a look at what showed up...

'The Mabinogion' is, you guessed it, is another 'Fantasy Masterwork' that somehow found its way to my front door via Amazon. Strange how that happens... As with all the other Fantasy Masterworks, 'The Mabinogion' will be read at some point in the near future. Or the far future, haven't decided yet and right now, to be honest, I'm just enjoying watching the collection slowly take over the shelves... :o)

I've got no interest in reading 'Earth Awakens', in no small part because of the kind of guy Orson Scott Card comes across as. I don't want to support that kind of behaviour so that's the last you'll hear of 'Earth Awakens' here (which is a bit of a shame for Aaron Johnston but I'm sure he knew the score...)

'Cibola Burn' looks like an awesome read though. Seriously, check out the blurb...

The gates have opened the way to a thousand new worlds and the rush to colonise has begun. Settlers looking for a new life stream out from humanity's home planets. Illus, the first human colony on this vast new frontier, is being born in blood and fire.

Independent settlers stand against the overwhelming power of a corporate colony ship with only their determination, courage and the skills learned in the long wars of home. Innocent scientists are slaughtered as they try to survey a new and alien world.

James Holden and the crew of his one small ship are sent to make peace in the midst of war and sense in the heart of chaos. But the more he looks at it, the more Holden thinks the mission was meant to fail.

And the whispers of a dead man remind him that the great galactic civilisation which once stood on this land is gone. And that something killed them.

Looks amazing doesn't it? There's just the small matter of my being two books behind with this series that's stopping me reading this straight away. Sue and the girls are away this week so I might be able to catch up. Alternatively, I might just blow the whole week catching up with 'A Game of Thrones'. It's a tough one...

‘Restless Waters’ – Robert E. Howard

I have a feeling that you will find ‘Restless Waters’ in ‘The Horror Stories of Robert E. Howard’ (don’t quote me on that, can’t find my copy anymore…) but I found it in ‘The Gods of Bal-Sagoth’ collection; a great little book for people like me who want a ten minute chunk of story between meatier slices. More often than not, I’m absolutely in awe of what Robert E. Howard wrote (and how much of a back catalogue there is), especially his short fiction which packs one hell of a lot of story into a very small space. Howard was a master of the art, no doubt about that, and at only eight pages long, ‘Restless Waters’ looked like a nice little read to ease me into the day after a half four in the morning start with Elana. Things don’t often work out the way you want though and ‘Restless Waters’ ended up more than a little disappointing…

At only eight pages long, you’re looking for a simple premise and that’s what we get here with two sea captains talking about the death of one of the captain’s crewmembers and, as the tale progresses, it becomes clear that one of the captains is due a visit from beyond the grave as a result of his wicked ways (and he’s a bad’un, no doubt about it). A great basis for a tale of terror then but it’s signposted so clearly that you’re waiting for the inevitable payoff instead of being ready to be surprised by it. There’s no surprise here (given all the exposition, how can there be?), just a dull sense of the inevitable and that’s a real shame coming from the writer of classic stories such as ‘The Dream Snake’ (where the build-up just flows into the finale which is awesome) , which is as scary as hell. The finale here wants to be dramatic but arrives only to find that its surprise has been spoiled and it doesn't really know what to do with itself.

I've read enough of Howard’s tales now to be pretty sure that this is just a one off and that I still have a lot of great reading in front of me. Just can’t help feeling a little disappointed here. What is it about me and horror/supernatural fiction this week? I can’t pick a good story if my life depended on it. Any recommendations from you guys?