Tag: 4 Stars Page 13 of 83

DETAILS:
Publication Date: July 17, 2008
Format: eBook
Length: 253 pg.
Read Date: December 7-8, 2022

And there goes the last DJ
Who plays what he wants to play
And says what he wants to say
Hey hey hey
And there goes your freedom of choice
There goes the last human voice
And there goes the last DJ

Sure, that’s Tom Petty and not Ian Shane. But I had that song stuck in my head for almost the entire novel, they might as well be writing about the same guy.

What’s Radio Radio About?

Erik Randall is a DJ—that’s all he’s ever wanted to do. He loves being on the radio, sharing music with whatever corner of the world he can. He comes alive on the microphone, he seems to be good at the technical bits, and he loves the medium. What it has been, what it is, what it could be—but he’s very much not a fan of what it’s becoming.

He’s a True Believer, though, and is convinced that if given the opportunity, radio can still be great. He’s even formulating a plan so that one day, he can make at least one station great.

We don’t meet him on that day—in fact, shortly after we meet him, his station comes under the thumb of a corporation that makes cookie-cutter stations all over the country. In the same way you know what you’re going to be served at an Olive Garden in a different state from home, you know what you’re going to hear on the radio in your rental car once you hear a familiar station tagline. That’s what they’re going to turn his radio station into.

About the same time, he meets a local singer/songwriter, Myra. Erik’s still reeling from a semi-recent breakup and isn’t in the right frame of mind to think about romance—but she’s the kind of woman he’s dreamed about. His co-worker/friend, Shakespeare, has been pushing him for months to date again, and once Shakespeare meets Myra, he increases the pressure.

His professional life is falling apart, his personal life is looking promising for the first time in forever—can Erik handle it?

So, what did I think about Radio Radio?

I thought there was something grating—something blindly immature about Erik’s attitude and antics at work. Yes, he’s firmly in the model of the rebel DJ who cares more about the art than the business side. And as such, I can enjoy the character. Maybe it’s because I’m reading this through the eyes of someone in 2022 so I have 14 years of insight to know just how Quixotic Erik is being and how reality is going to hit him hard. Shakespeare, on the other hand, I could get behind—he’s a realist. There’s a romantic streak in him—he wants Erik and his vision to have a chance, but he knows better. I was enjoying the novel, but I really wasn’t on board with it. Which isn’t to say I didn’t find Erik amusing—I just found him a grating sort of amusing.

But then, Myra comes on the scene and two things happen. Erik starts to change, the bits of his personality that grate on me get pushed to the background.* Secondly, Ian Shane writes this stuff really well—like the way that Erik and Myra interact, the way that Erik makes an utter fool of himself because of her, the way that Myra and Shakespeare interact—this is where Shane’s later novels shine, and you can see him building that ability here. If this was the first Ian Shane book I read, shortly after Myra comes on the scene is where I’d order his next two books.

* I am fine with a protagonist grating on me—as long as there’s something about them or their story I can get behind. But I prefer the alternative.

I should also note, that some of Erik’s work attitudes and behaviors remind me of other characters in similar situations—the works of Adam Shaw, Matthew Hanover, and Andy Abramowitz jump to mind—so I’m not trying to say that Shane messed up by having Erik be this way. I just find it grating. What he does and says are, by and large, what an immature twenty-something would think and do. As he is an immature twenty-something, he’s spot-on.

Speaking of needing to grow up a little—a lot of the ways he approaches the big changes he needs to make, the conversations around them, and the way he reacts to people like Shakespeare making those changes himself, displays that immaturity. In those cases, I find it endearing and relatable.

Maybe I’m just the office crank? Out of the office issues don’t bother me as much.

One other challenge for me is that like with Postgraduate, I felt like Shane was judging me for my musical taste. And he probably should—because my musical taste not the kind of thing that Erik Randal (or anyone at Championship Vinyl) would approve of—very I’m fairly plebian, really. Frankly, I’m okay with that—and I did make a note or two to follow up on some music. I do wish I could hear Myra’s stuff, because I think I could get into it. That’s not a reflection on the novel, I just wish Shane would write a character with mainstream taste who is seen in a positive light.

This is a sweet book—there’s good character development, a strong cast of supporting characters (most of whom I didn’t mention) that I would love to see again in some form, great banter, solid comedy in a variety of forms, insight into an industry I know practically nothing about, and a sweet and well-told romantic story. It’s not as strong as his later novels, but it’s easy to see that he’ll be capable of greatness. Buy this book, it’ll make you happy.

4 Stars

Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett: Journaling Her Investigation into the Hidden Ones of the North

By HCNewton

On December 26, 2022

In Fantasy, Fiction

Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries

by Heather Fawcett

DETAILS:
Series: The Emily Wilde Series, Book One
Publisher: Del Rey
Publication Date: January 10, 2023
Format: eARC
Length: 336 pg.
Read Date: December 19-21, 2022

What’s Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries About?

Emily Wilde is a dryadologist. Imagine, if you will, what post-Darwin scientists and naturalists were doing for the study of plants and animals in the late nineteenth/early twentieth centuries; or what Carter and the rest were doing in Egypt; but dryadologists are studying fairies (oh, in this world, they are as real as the tomb of Tutankhamun—she’s not a literary theorist). Humans have been dealing with fairies for centuries, but what we know about them is really limited. Mostly left to legends, tales told around the fire or in an inn—where a third or fourth-hand account is rare and as close to an eyewitness as most people will ever get. Emily and her counterparts throughout the world are seeking to bring that to an end. She has a position at Cambridge but is hoping her current project is the kind of thing that will secure her tenure and allow her to further her research.

Her project is the first comprehensive Encyclopedia of Fairies (hence the title). She could publish what she has now and probably receive scholarly acclaim—and tenure. But she’s driven. She’s a completist. And, to be honest, she has a little bit of an ego and she wants more than probable acclaim. So she rents a small shack in a Norwegian village for a few months to try to find, interact with, and document the least-understood fairies in the world. The northern Hidden Ones (both the common and regal varieties) are powerful and secretive. They don’t interact much with humans—and when they do, it’s generally bad for the humans. If Emily can be the first to get any scholarly research done, it will definitely put her on the map.

Sadly, as good as she is at dealing with and understanding Fairy, Emily is bad with humans. She has no people skills, is aware of it, and doesn’t care. But in this inhospitable climate, she really needs help to survive—much less to learn a lot about the Hidden Ones.

Thankfully (?), soon after her arrival, a colleague/competitor—and her only friend—gatecrashes her trip and takes up residence in her shack with her. Wendell Bambleby is the very picture of a Victorian gentleman-scholar. He’s a charmer, and soon has the villagers eating out of his hand. He’s also pampered and demanding (would probably have been considered a bit of a dandy at the time)—and has a really hard time not wrapping his head around things like cooking for himself, working to keep the fire burning, etc. He’s decided that he’s going to collaborate with Emily (not really caring if she agrees) and that their work in Norway will be the thing to help him reclaim some academic respectability following a scandal.

He may be under a cloud, but Wendell has connections and can open doors for Emily to get her the audience she really needs. So she accepts his proposal to collaborate, assuming she’s going to do almost all of the work.

Things ensue. I really can’t say more than that.

Poe

The first fairy that Emily meets is a young brownie—she ends up referring to him as Poe. It’s great to see her in action with him. it shows that she does know what she’s doing—we don’t just have to take her word for it (not that we have any reason to think she’s lying, but it’s good to know).

Poe really ends up showing us so much about Emily—and other characters, too. He’s ultimately so integral and important to the novel—and in a very real sense, not important to the plot in any way. But through his interactions (both that the reader sees on the page and those that happen “off-screen”) with various characters, so much of the plot becomes possible and the reader gains a whole lot of insight. Really, he was well, and cleverly, used by Fawcett. I can’t say it better without spending a few hundred spoiler-filled words, but the more I think about him, the more impressed I am by Fawcett.

Knowing More than Emily

Around the time—probably a little before—I figured out that the story of the novel isn’t really what you think it is, I figured out a couple of things that Emily is utterly blind to for a very long time.

Knowing more than a protagonist can be frustrating—I spend a lot of time yelling at detectives in mystery novels in particular. But sometimes, it can be fun watching them catch up to the reader. Fawcett’s able to draw humor from us knowing things that Emily doesn’t. It also helps us empathize with both Emily and other characters as we see her work through various situations and conversations.

And then, when Emily catches up with the reader—and reality—it’s all the more satisfying. Most/all of what we know that she doesn’t really wouldn’t be that believable if we learned it when she does. We get to spend many pages urging, “Come on, come on, come on…open your eyes/pay attention/etc.” And then, finally, cheer when she does. It’s the closest many readers will get to the position of a sportsball fan yelling at their TV to communicate to someone in a stadium miles/states away.

Slamming on the Brakes

I did have one significant problem with this book. As part of her research—part of her life, really—Emily specializes in stories about faeries. She shares some of them as part of her journal. It makes sense, they serve both the character and the overall novel. They’re truly fitting.

However.

It was like slamming the brakes on. Everything that had been building, all the tension, the momentum, the development, and so on all came to a rapid stop. And then picked up again after the stories. It reminded me of a time in Kevin Hearne’s Hammered when everything stopped for some of the characters to tell stories. As fun as those stories were, it really made that novel hard to get through (that series went on for 6 more books, two spin-off series, and a number of novellas and short stories—so the jarring stop was obviously not too catastrophic).

If the transition to them had been smoother—or maybe they had been more spread out. Just something, I probably wouldn’t have mentioned them—or I’d have talked about what a great way it was for us to get an understanding of the Northern Fairies without an infodump. Instead, it came across as a stumble—one that the novel recovered from nicely. But in the moment, it really bugged me.

So, what did I think about Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries?

Stick with me for a minute—I could tell from the opening pages that this was a well-composed and well-structured novel full of fantastic world-building. But it took longer for me to move beyond appreciation and admiration for what was being done to really care about it. I did, though, the book started out slowly and picked up momentum as it went—and as it did, I got more and more invested (and my appreciation and admiration increased, too). Somewhere around the mid-point, maybe a little later, I was as invested as is possible and only my notes tell me it took time for that.

I think I just used too many words to say—it’s a slow burn of a novel in almost every conceivable way. Not unlike Emily’s rented shack—it takes a while for a fire to really start heating the place, but once it has time, it’s nice and toasty warm.

There’s a lot I’d like to talk about, but I’m not sure how. I can see later installments being easier, but so much of the novel is about beginnings. To really talk about it would be to discuss the last 20% of the novel. And no one wants me to do that.

Just because of my own prejudices, I could spend a few paragraphs on her dog, Shadow, too. As much as he deserves them, I’m going to leave it with “he’s a very good boy.” I hope to see more of him in the books to come, too.

This book is rich in character, story, world-building (and world-revealing), magic, and subtlety. I’m not sure if you can be rich in subtlety, but Fawcett pulls that off. This is absolutely something I recommend and imagine the next few months are going to be filled with people gushing over this. Readers of this post might as well get in line now to be one of those gushing.

Disclaimer: I received this eARC from Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine, Del Rey via NetGalley in exchange for this post—thanks to both for this opportunity.

4 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.

12 Things God Can’t Do by Nick Tucker: 12 Reassuring Truths

By HCNewton

On December 25, 2022

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

12 Things God Can’t Do:
…and How They Can Help
You Sleep at Night

by Nick Tucker

DETAILS:
Publisher: The Good Book Company
Publication Date: May 31, 2022
Format: Paperback
Length: 184 pg.
Read Date: December 4-18, 2022

What’s 12 Things God Can’t Do About?

A lot of Theology Proper is negative*—God can’t do this, He can’t do that, He won’t do another thing. This has been the case since the beginning and is still true today.

* A lot of the rest is the omni- attributes. Theology Proper is really an all-or-nothing kind of thing.

Nick Tucker wants the believer to consider 12 of the things God cannot do. No, we’re not talking about foolishness like “Can he make a rock so heavy that he can’t lift it?” These are the big things—the stuff a faith (collective and individual) can be built on.

But…God…

Along with these 12 things, Tucker pauses for five interludes. These interludes look at things the God-man, the Incarnate Word, could and did do. He could learn, He could be tempted, and He did sleep. As He took on humanity, The Son was now capable of these things—and that’s proof of His humanity. He became truly human—and as such, He could (and did) redeem us.

So, what did I think about 12 Things God Can’t Do?

I’ve read a handful of books on the attributes of God over the last few years (and have one more scheduled), but this one approaches the idea from a very different perspective. Well, most of the other books touch upon Tucker’s purpose, but they have other things going on—Tucker’s more single-minded.

Most books on the topic are about advancing or defending orthodoxy, buttressing right thinking about God (and it is right to do so). Tucker’s focused on what the believer is to do with orthodoxy. What’s the whole point of understanding who God is? It’s for the reassurance, confidence, hope, and comfort of the believer—look at the way the Psalmists, prophets, and apostles used these doctrines. Reflecting their priorities, Tucker points the reader to these can’ts.

We can sleep well at night, knowing that God will not slumber. We can trust His promises because He can’t change or lie. And so on. Which makes this book one of the more rewarding reads I’ve come across lately.

Tucker writes in a simple, clear, and straightforward style. There’s a little gentle humor in his illustrations and style—but the book isn’t a showcase for Tucker’s writing. He writes to point the reader to God. This book is encouraging, devotional, and should lead to doxology. It’s wholly sound, and easy to read and, in turn, to lead to trust. It’s well worth the short time it takes to read and re-read.

4 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.

Sacrifices by Jamie Schultz: To Destroy, or to Be Destroyed

By HCNewton

On December 22, 2022

In Urban Fantasy

Sacrifices

by Jamie Schultz

DETAILS:
Series: Arcane Underworld, #3
Publisher: InterMix
Publication Date: July 19, 2016
Format: eBook
Length: 351 pg.
Read Date: December 14-16, 2022

I look around, though, and I ain’t stupid. How’s this end? Just keep going like this forever? Naw. People gonna die.

What’s Sacrifices About?

That opening quote sums it up—the story, characters, and events of this trilogy can’t keep going. This ends—and not everyone is going to make it out alive. Maybe no one does.

After the end of Splintered, things were bleak—the team was, well, splintered. People were dead. Demons had infected (for lack of a better term) two of the team—and the biggest and most powerful one seemed to be working with the crime boss/would-be supernatural force that they’d been working so hard to get away from. But even Sobell didn’t seem to be fully in control and might be in danger from this demon.

This brings us to Sacrifices, Karyn had a vision/prophecy that gave hope that there was a way to defeat Belial. If they could just figure out what it said—of course, Belial heard it, too, and was at work to prevent anyone from fulfilling it. The FBI is lurking around—they may be willing to help, but are more interested in slapping the cuffs on Sobell and anyone else they could.

Now it’s just a matter of seeing what happens. Will their (literal and figurative) demons defeat them? Will Belial end up wreaking destruction on Los Angeles/the world? Will…actually, I don’t know if the reader—or any of the characters, actually—really gets a picture of the ultimate stakes here. I don’t think our minds could comprehend it—but it’s big, nasty, and possibly apocalyptic.

The solution to all this may lie in the fact that demons have an enemy. An enemy even more terrible and awful (especially if you look at older definitions of those words). But what will have to be given up to secure their presence?

I’m So Glad this Isn’t a Scratch ‘n Sniff Book

It came to her that this was the world as it really was, just thin tissue floating atop an unknowable black ocean teeming with horrifying, malicious creatures— creatures at the command of the demon before her. For the first time, she saw him as much greater than simply another enemy, if more revolting than most. For the first time she really understood that he was also unspeakably ancient and filled with knowledge and power beyond reckoning. This was the type of entity she dealt with each time she delved into magic

Some authors will mention the smell of sulfur or something like that and talk about rot and decay when talking about demons. Other authors will basically make demons out to be Byronic hunks (the Cullening of demons). Schultz does not do that—either of them. He dwells on the rot, the decay, the blood, grime, disease, and filth that comes with demonic possession, power, and or presence.

His demons aren’t misunderstood, they’re not occasionally benign or honorable, and there is nothing to them other than destruction and power—they may seemingly aid a human for a time, but it’s for a price. A price that no one should pay.

Schulz’s descriptions of the demonic effects—and just the life in L.A.’s heat for those without much in the way of resources—are so vivid that you feel a little grimy just reading it. From the description of the clear bottle that one man uses as a spittoon, bloody sweatpants that have been worn for days, various wounds, and so much more—Schulz makes sure that your visual images of these events are real and substantial.

A quick personal note

I’d fully intended on jumping on this book when it came out in 2016—and cannot tell you why I didn’t. It’s just been sitting there collecting dust on my Kindle since then—and it’s been so long at this point, I didn’t think I’d remember the story enough to make it worthwhile.

But within a few pages, I was right back—Schultz did a little bit of recapping, but not much. Mostly it was the tangibility of this world and these characters, just seeing them brought it all back to me, and it was like no time had passed at all. There are few authors that can pull that off, but he did it. And I’m impressed as all get out by that.

So, what did I think about Sacrifices?

“Funny, isn’t it? Lack of a demon isn’t usually a problem to be addressed. Quite the opposite.”

“I’m not laughing.”

Sobell made a clucking noise. “That’s your prerogative, but from my position, I’d have to say that if you don’t find any of this funny, you’ll find it unspeakably bleak.”

On the whole, this book is closer to the unspeakably bleak end of the spectrum, but there are a couple of moments of brightness (and maybe a little bit funny). And I do mean a couple of moments, a handful at best.

Even the more optimistic statements and moves come with the air of “This is probably not going to work, but it’s something to do.” The only characters that are operating without a sense of impending doom are those who are on the outside of the occult happenings in the city. The futility of every scheme, plan, and idea taints everything—but these people (and/or magical/spiritual entities) keep moving forward, scrabbling after the chance that someone will make it out alive. This is hard to read—I wasn’t even sure the planet would exist when the book ends—but once Schultz got his talons into your brain, there’s just no way that you stop reading—you have to know what’s around the corner, even if it will leave you despairing.

This is a great UF trilogy, and one that I am so sad that didn’t get the attention it deserved (including from me for the last 6 years). Pick up the set, you won’t be sorry.

4 Stars

The Spare Man by Mary Robinette Kowal: Classic Mystery and Classic SF in One Contemporary Package

By HCNewton

On December 19, 2022

In Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, Science Fiction

The Spare Man

by Mary Robinette Kowal

DETAILS:
Publisher: Tor Books
Publication Date: October 10, 2022
Format: Hardcover
Length: 348 pg.
Read Date: December 5-6, 2022

“The same, but different.”

Despite it being on my list since High School, I’ve never gotten around to watching The Thin Man or the sequels. I haven’t read Hammett’s novel, either (on a similar list for almost as long). I know enough about them to catch the occasional allusion and to make the right guess when it comes up in a trivia game or crossword puzzle.

Still, when I saw Kowall’s piece on CrimeReads last month, “On Writing a New Take on The Thin Man, Set in Space“, I was intrigued and my library put it into my hands a lot sooner than I expected.

So, all I know about the comparisons between this novel and the source/inspiration material comes from this piece. So I can’t judge how much is Kowall being clever and inventive with her reworking and how much is just Kowall being clever and inventive. I can tell you there’s a whole lot of Kowall being clever and inventive, though. I’m going to write this pretending it’s all Kowall so if I give her credit for something I shouldn’t have…whoops.

So I’ll tell you now a couple of things before we dive in: 1. I won’t appreciate everything she did in the way I maybe should. 2. (more importantly) You don’t have to know anything about the movies or the book to appreciate this novel. You just have to appreciate goodness.

With that out of the way, let’s dig in.

What’s The Spare Man About?

Tesla Crane—heiress, noted inventor, and celebrity—is on her honeymoon. Her new husband, Shalmaneser Steward, is a retired detective and isn’t exactly a non-celebrity either. They are traveling under assumed names and in disguise to stay under the radar. They do get their fair share of attention, however—thanks to something we don’t get to know about at the beginning, Tesla has a service dog—an actual dog, which is apparently a very big deal to see.

They’re on a cruise from the Moon to Mars, and the ship they’re on puts the lux in luxury (wow, that’s a lame line). They plan on spending their time drinking ridiculous cocktails, having fun with various activities on board, and other honeymoonish activities. Sadly, someone is attacked while they’re nearby and Shal’s old instincts kick in and he chases after the assailant. The victim dies and Shal becomes the prime suspect because running away from the victim in pursuit of someone only you see tends to make the ship’s security think you’re lying.

Shal is content to let the authorities take care of things, certain that by the time actual law enforcement gets involved, he’ll be exonerated. Besides, he’s retired. Tesla cannot sit by and wait and she investigates on her own (ultimately Shal will get on board, but Tesla will do the bulk of the work).

Tesla and Shal

The best part of this book is probably the relationship between these two newlyweds. She shows a couple in love. Not a meet-cute followed by chapters of misunderstandings and near-misses, not a love unrequited for whatever noble/stupid/bureaucratic reason, not a couple in the first blush of infatuation and love, nor a couple trying to recapture something or having doubts. They are in love, they respect and support each other, and they actually like each other. I see this so, so rarely in stand-alones or series that it just fills me with joy to see.

They’re not perfect (who is?), they bicker a bit—and there’s some lying back and forth—mostly of the “I’m not in that much pain” type (which they generally readily admit to when asked). But even then, it’s typically a lie told so the couple can accomplish something without the other being distracted by worry.

Sure, it’s their honeymoon, so they are a little extra-lovey-dovey. But you get the impression they’d been together for a while pre-wedding and that this is pretty much the way they are together (if only because of the way Gimlet interacts with them).

I cannot express just how much I loved this couple. I wish I could see things like this more.

Fantine

The only element of this book that I liked almost as much as their marriage was Tesla’s lawyer, Fantine. Fantine isn’t crazy about the way that Tesla and Shal are being treated and starts threatening various lawsuits.

Depending on where they are in the journey, there’s a communication lag between the ship and her office, so she’s continually responding to people 3-8 minutes after they’ve said something. The comic opportunities from that alone are great.

Add in Fantine’s aggressiveness and you have gold. Think Dr. Perry Cox, but angry, her gift for creative insults and threats are gold. Fantine is clearly a power to contend with and has lawyers and security officers on the ship jumping to keep her from making the lawsuits she’s planning from becoming even bigger. I could read a novella full of nothing but her yelling at people.

So, what did I think about The Spare Man?

I feel like I should be raving over this, shooting up fireworks, and putting on a song and dance show here, but I can’t quite. The entire time I was reading, I wondered why I wasn’t liking it more.

The dialogue was great—especially when it veered toward the banter (between Tesla and Shal, either of them bantering about the other, between them and a particular security officer). The characters leaped off the pages and were practically alive. The setting and all the SF accouterments were perfect. The mystery…was pretty good. Everything else I can think of to point to was outstanding.

But I never felt engaged with the work—I admire it, I can praise a whole lot of it, but I was never grabbed. It felt like an exercise, like someone executing a recipe or equation. Wonderfully executed, but it left me cold.

I expect I’m a minority report on that—at the same time, I want to stress that this is a really good book. I’m just saying that I feel I should be giving this 5-Stars, instead of the 4 I’m giving it. There’s just so much to relish, so much to enjoy in this book that you should really ignore this last section and go get the book. It’s taken a darker turn than I intended—or want to leave you with.

This really is a great mixture of SF and Mystery, with a classic feel to both elements and yet it’s very much something that could only be produced in this moment. Kowall captured something here and you should really check it out.

4 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.

Low Anthropology by David Zahl: How Realism Should Lead to Compassion and Charity

By HCNewton

On December 18, 2022

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

Low Anthropology:
The Unlikely Key to a
Gracious View of Others
(and Yourself)

by David Zahl

DETAILS:
Publisher: Brazos Press
Publication Date: September 12, 2022
Format: Hardcover
Length: 203 pg.
Read Date: November 27-December 4, 2022

This is another one of those books that I have to fight the temptation to dig deep and spend a few thousand words laying out the ideas in detail and responding to them in kind. But that’s not what I do around here—nor is it what I have time to do. But mostly, I wouldn’t do it as well as the author did in the book—so why not just stick with what I do and tell you to buy the book?

What’s Low Anthropology About?

Zahl’s concern is the way we think about human nature—our anthropology—not in some academic sense (or just that), but how, individually, what we believe about human nature impacts the way we live and think.

High anthropologies are based on some idea about basic decency and goodness in humanity and that with the right ideas, the right amount of effort and ambition, we can improve ourselves, and fix ourselves. Low anthropologies start off with the idea that people are broken, sinful, a mess, and that while we’ll do the right thing sometimes, those times are the exception. And yes, with help, we can stumble through life in a way to be of service to others and do better ourselves.

By realizing—and remembering—that everyone is broken and struggling, we can be gracious. We know ourselves and that we are a mess, we deal with bad habits, addictions, imperfections, and sin on a more-than-daily basis. But we forget that’s true of others, too, especially in a social media world where we only see the airbrushed images others put forward.

High anthropologies tend toward self-righteousness, perfectionism, and judgementalism (toward ourselves and others). Low anthropologies can and should free us from that—to compassion, humor, and charity.

At least that’s the basic idea—he fleshes it out and argues for it much more convincingly. Then he applies it to various aspects of life—relationships, politics, and religion.

So, what did I think about Low Anthropology?

This really reminded me of Alan Noble’s You Are Not Your Own: Belonging to God in an Inhuman World and Kelly Kapic’s You’re Only Human: How Your Limits Reflect God’s Design and Why That’s Good News (it’s not that surprising, really, I invoked Kapic’s book when I posted about Noble’s). The three books approach similar topics in very similar terms—just changing the focus a little bit. The chapter on politics reminded me of the relevant chapters in Michael Horton’s Recovering Our Sanity: How the Fear of God Conquers the Fears that Divide Us (and there’s probably some overlap with other chapters, too).

I guess what I’m saying is that there’s a lot in this book to tie to things I read over the course of the year—2022 ended up being along a theme. In essence, humans are limited creatures—and when we remember that (as true of ourselves and others) and recognize the legitimacy of those limitations, as well as who put those limitations on us—it will affect the way we live and think of ourselves. It will free us to obey as we ought, to live as we ought, and treat ourselves and others along the lines we’re supposed to. We can think of it in terms of limitation and creaturely dependence, in terms of being those purchased by Christ, or in terms of realism about human nature. All call us to humility, all put the emphasis on our hope in Christ, and all will help us serve others because we’re in the same situation as them.

Zahl’s treatment of this is a bit briefer—and he applies it to more situations than Noble or Kapic, so it’s inevitably shallower. Not worse, I want to stress, but he can’t get to the same depth as the others.

Zahl’s sense of humor is evident throughout, and his engaging style really carries this work—it’s not just a helpful book, but you want to be helped by it because you’re having such a good time reading it. He brings in good illustrations and insights from psychology and culture alongside his points from Scripture and theology.

This is a practical work—the theory is sound and worked out well, but it’s not theory for theory’s sake—Zaahl’s eye is on doing something the whole time—living better, serving others, and being gracious. I wondered a little bit about particular applications he makes, and if they’re as consistent as I’d want them to be. Thankfully, a low anthropology ensures there’s plenty of room for Zahl and me to be wrong on those points and not get too worked up about it.

I really liked this work and suggest you find some time for it.

4 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.

The World Record Book of Racist Stories (Audiobook) by Amber Ruffin & Lacey Lamar: Records No One Should Want to Hold (but too many vie for)

By HCNewton

On December 8, 2022

In Audiobook, Humor, Non-Fiction, Politics/Current Affairs

The World Record Book
of Racist Stories

by Amber Ruffin & Lacey Lamar

DETAILS:
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Publication Date: November 22, 2022
Format: Unabridged Audiobook
Length: 4 hrs., 54 min.
Read Date: November 28-29, 2022

An Issue with Sequels/Follow Ups

As I’m sitting here thinking about what to write, I keep comparing this to last year’s You’ll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey: Crazy Stories about Racism. This is intentional because this is very much a Part II to that book. But it’s different, too. So it makes sense to contrast it so I can give an idea of how it’s different.

At the same time, I run the risk of sounding dull—”You’ll Never Believe did X, The World Record Book did Y,” “The World Record Book is more Z than…,” and so on.

I don’t know how to avoid that—so I guess this is an apology in advance? I’ll try to limit the comparisons and keep this interesting, if only because the book deserves to give a good impression, even if I’m not able to do that.

What’s The World Record Book of Racist Stories About?

Because they got to share a bunch of stories in the first book—primarily about Lacey—the sisters wanted to give the rest of their family, and some friends, the chance to get their stories told. Or, as they put it, “air out [their] dirty racist laundry.”

Ruffin warns:

FYI: You’ll be able to tell the difference between this book and the last book. This one’s gonna be a bit heavier. A touch more serious. The reason for that is with the first book, Lacey and | got to giggle through silly racism stories, and it felt great. So, if the family wants to share their stories too, however they want to share, we welcome that. We want them to feel great and heard and blah, blah, bloo. There’s plenty of silliness, it’s just that the rest of the family is less likely to remember the funnier racist stories. They have not been keeping journals. But those terrible, scary racist stories? Maaaan, they remember those like a mug. So, to emotionally prepare you, I’d call this book fifty-fifty silly-scary racist stories. Okay? So, don’t come to me talking about “It wasn’t like the first book” ‘cause you’ve been warned.

To balance out these stories, the interplay between the sisters seems a bit sillier than before (in the print version, each has their own typeface so you can see it)—up to, and including, them singing their own little ditties in the audio. The authors also include some pictures for illustration of the ridiculousness of the story or for a little burst of joy or cuteness to alleviate the heaviness of the stories they’re telling.

I should add there are a couple of anecdotes that really silly or scary, just heartbreaking.*

* Granted, there’s a sense in which all of these are heartbreaking, humanity’s inhumanity always is. So I guess those stories are extra-heartbreaking. Heartbreaking cubed.

The Organization of the Book

So, the theme of this book is there in the title—it’s a Guinness World Records collection, but no one wants to get their stories told here (names have been changed to protect those involved—according to the authors, at Lamar’s insistence over Ruffin’s intentions). The anecdotes are arranged under broad topics (or for the person they’re about), and they are each given a title like “Most Confusing Racist Phrase,” “Worst Car Service,” “Most Racist Pilot,” “Worst Celebrity Look-Alike,” “Worst Teacher,” and so on. Several of the category names are clearly exercises in creativity by the authors, like “Most Regular Degular, Day-to-Day Racism” or “Most Racist Comment I Was Not Part Of”

These Worsts and Bests, it must be remembered, apply to their family and circle of friends. Most minorities in this country can probably come up with their own “Worst Nursing Home Experience,” “Second Worst Bar Patron,” or “Worst Interview.”

A Variety of Storytellers

In the previous book, the stories were predominately told about things that happened to Ruffin or Lamar, as I’ve said. This time out, they bring in stories about their mother, father, all their siblings, a sibling-in-law, a former Nebraska state senator, and even a couple of white people (for contrast).

In fact, the book opens with an anecdote from a white, male friend about a traffic stop. It’s really atypical encounter, and one that this white, male would enjoy having. But, Ruffin says that it’s the story that shocked her the most. I don’t blame her if what follows is what she’s used to. Roughly midway through the book, we get another five quick anecdotes from a friend that Ruffin trades “opposite stories” with:

Stories where I’m suffering some racist nonsense and she’s getting away with everything but murder. It’s so shocking to me. I can’t believe this is happening to my little bud. Being white is hilarious. So, as you read these next five stories, try to think about how out of place they are in this book. Try to imagine a Black man getting away with any of this. It’s fun because you can’t!

With at least four of these, I agree—I can’t imagine that. Probably not the other, either.

They also include some anecdotes from state senator Tanya Cook, a nice (?) reminder that it’s common to find this kind of behavior anywhere.

So, what did I think about The World Record Book of Racist Stories?

Lamar writes in her closing remarks:

I’m glad our family and people from the community got the chance to share these stories with you. No matter how you feel about them, they have happened and are happening out there to not just a small group of people in Omaha, Nebraska, but to absolutely anyone at anytime, anywhere. I personally feel that by sharing these stories we are shining a light on racism, ignorance, and just some all-around hilarious shit.

That’s a pretty good way to summarize this book. And it’s a light that needs to be shone in a way that the masses will take it in. In our culture, for better or worse, the best way to do that is to make it funny and chopped up into digestible bits*. Which is what Ruffin and Lamar did here.

* See Planet Funny by Ken Jennings for more on that.

I didn’t enjoy this as much as the first—no offense to the authors and contributors, but it wasn’t as fun. If only the Introduction had warned me… But the authors worked hard to make it enjoyable—it’s just hard to do with the subject matter. As it grawlix-ing should be. The fact that they succeeded at all is remarkable.

Pretty much, you can read what I said about You’ll Never Believe and apply it here, just with a little less laughter. But I did laugh audibly at a few points, so there’s that. I also shook my head enough in unbelief/despair/denial that I’m surprised I didn’t pull something.

It may not be my favorite non-fiction read of the year (but it’s close), but it might be the most important one. Pick this (and the predecessor) up, folks.

4 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.

Little Ghost by Chris McDonald: Women and Money—The Deadliest Combo

By HCNewton

On December 2, 2022

In Chris McDonald, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

Little Ghost

by Chris McDonald

DETAILS:
Publisher: Red Dog Press
Publication Date: November 25, 2022
Format: eBook
Length: 151 pages.
Read Date: November 28-29, 2022

I’d enjoyed snooping around people’s lives. Poking at their secrets and unearthing dirty little details that earned me my payday. It wasn’t honest work, but it was fun.

Mostly.

The beatings weren’t, and I’d taken a few in my time.

Asked the wrong question to the wrong person. Asked the right question to the wrong person. Wisecracked at an inappropriate time. My crooked nose and the waxy scar on my cheek would be the lasting reminders.

What’s Little Ghost About?

Irving Ash is a Denver PI on rough times. His divorce is about final, this most recent romantic relationship (note the distinction) is over, and thanks to some recent headlines, he’s having a hard time getting work. He’s about to be evicted from his office, and it probably won’t be long before he’s out of a home, too. On the plus side, his cat, Cleo, seems to like him.

A friend connects him with a job. Well, not really a friend, an acquaintance. Okay, technically the bartender of his regular stop—Ash calls him an “enabler.” This may be out of the goodness of his heart, but it’s more likely that he’d like Ash to be able to pay his growing tab. The job is doing security work for Roxie Pictures—a porn studio (the owner, Gordon Rock, describes their work as “art…Beautifully shot videos, made by passionate people for passionate people,”*). Cleo apparently has some qualms about the job, but the pay is good enough he can’t pass on it.

* That sentence alone gives you everything you need to know about the character. You can feel the sleeze dripping off of him. The next sentence of his description will make you want to wash your hands before picking the book up again.

It’s not too long before Ash finds the studio’s biggest star, Brandi Dyvine, in a confrontation with someone. Then she goes missing, potentially kidnapped. Rock’s in love with her and is willing to fork over ransom money—Ash talks him into trying to buy some time instead. Ash figures finding and rescuing her is far more likely to result in Dyvine and Rock not being killed at the end of the transaction.

Ash starts combing through the details of Brandi’s life—and well, things get messy from there. In the world that Ash finds himself in, women and money are the deadliest combination—and he learns that the hard way.

Brother John

Like any good PI who finds themselves near the morally gray areas, Ash has a friend who is far more comfortable in the gray—maybe even the black. The Hawk/Joe Pike/Bubba Rogowski/Mel Frost role.

For Irving Ash, that friend is a man named Brother John. Brother John is the kind of friend you want when things get hard—he’s resourceful, dedicated, and willing to go the extra mile. I’m unwilling to say more about him because Ash should be the one to introduce him to you (I’d just ruin it). But I couldn’t not say something about him.

So let me say this—I’ll be the first backer for a Kickstarter for a novella or two about Brother John before Ash moved to town (or be the first to pre-order). I don’t see McDonald doing that, but if he did…

Pesky Britishisms

I really hate to pick at these nits. Truly. But my biggest fear when I heard that McDonald was going to write this was that it was going to sound like someone from the British Isles pretending to be an American. Sadly, that fear was realized.

And I get it—we still owe a debt for Dick Van Dyke’s Bert. I’m not sure how much longer we need to atone for this (but it’s a while)—and there are several other lesser offenses we need to make up for, too.

But, no one in the US uses a biro to make notes on pages of A4, gets aspirin from a chemist, or plugs an address into a car’s sat nav. (there are smaller examples, but let’s stick with some of the more egregious ones). Do I—like many/most readers–know what’s being said there? Sure. But when I come across something like that it jars me, takes me out of the moment. And I really don’t like that when I’m enjoying the moment so much. I was in Ash’s head, I was fully invested, and then McDonald slips and throws ice water on my face. Yes, I’m able to get back into the moment, back into Ash’s voice, etc.—but this whole experience would’ve been so much richer if I didn’t have to get back into it, but could’ve just stayed there.

Now, this all goes away if Irving was someone who grew up in England and moved to the States, eventually to Denver, instead of going to University or something along those lines. Then these slips are character moments, not the jarring errors they become as he’s a guy from the East Coast who moved to Denver.

Is any of this that big of a deal? Not really. Is it unforgivable? Of course not. Did I lose some appreciation for the novel because of it? Yes. It’s something that could’ve been explained away, or reduced with another editing pass or two. When the rest of the novel is so good, the tiny flaws really stand out.

So, what did I think about Little Ghost?

‘So, what’s the plan?’

‘Whoever it is has Brandi, I’m sure of that. So, we hit them, and we hit them hard.’

‘Revenge?’

‘Absolutely.’

‘I love revenge,’ Brother John smirked.

I know I was supposed to think of classic PI types when I read this novel—and I did to an extent. But really what this made me think of more than Chandler or Hammett was Stephen Mack Jones and Walter Mosley’s Down the River Unto the Sea.* Both of those were very much in the classic PI mold, but incredibly contemporary, too. That’s what Irving Ash felt like to me, a 21st-Century PI, and regular readers know what kind of catnip that is to me.

* I also want to mention Michael Koryta. I’m not sure why, every example I can think of from Koryta fails to match up. But I can’t shake the feeling that Little Ghost shares some DNA with something he did or would write.

I saw the bigger elements of the final reveal coming—but not all of them, and the ones I missed were the more important and disturbing ones (if you ask me). So I was able to feel good about myself and be taken unawares at the same time. I really can’t ask for more than that. Along the way, McDonald hit me with at least four moments where I couldn’t believe I read what was on the page, and had to go back to verify. After the second moment, it became clear to me that McDonald wasn’t playing around, no punches were going to be pulled here.

McDonald has crafted a compelling story with a central character that will get you invested and hoping he’ll come out on top–even while he’s doing things that most of the time you’d find abhorrent. The writing is crisp and terse–McDonald gets his money’s worth out of each syllable. Ash is a damaged man, and you can sense it–and you can see when it gets worse, just because the text isn’t verbose, doesn’t mean you’re not going to find a lot of emotion and depth in the scenes. McDonald has given us both.

This says something about his talent. If you gave this to me without an author’s name on it and told me it was someone I’d read before, I don’t know that McDonald would be in my first five guesses. I think that’s true of his DI Erika Piper series, too–I wouldn’t have picked the Stonebridge Mystery author for those. So far, that’s three distinct voices and styles he’s displayed in three subgenres. You’ve got to wonder a little what he’s not capable of at this point.

I strongly encourage PI fans to pick this up–and soon. Maybe if enough of us do it, we can convince him to keep this from being a stand-alone.

4 Stars

Snowstorm in August by Marshall Karp: Retired Cops Face Off Against a Cartel to Save NYC

By HCNewton

On November 22, 2022

In Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

Snowstorm in August

by Marshall Karp

DETAILS:
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
Publication Date: June 6, 2022
Format: Hardcover
Length: 279 pg.
Read Date: September 12-13, 2022

What’s Snowstorm in August About?

Joaquín Alboroto is the head of Mexico’s largest drug cartel—and is a character straight out of Winslow’s Cartel Trilogy (and, likely, reality). He’s powerful, ruthless, calculating, and vengeful—and right now, he’s angry. His anger is directed at New York City and the family of one judge from NYC, and he goes after both.

The first step in this process is blanketing Central Park in cocaine—it looks like a snowstorm swept over the park. Horses, dogs, squirrels, birds, children, and adults out for a fun day in August are killed or hospitalized—countless lives are irrevocably damaged at once. And Alboroto promises more to come.

The NYPD is totally unprepared for this—the current commissioner isn’t the right man for this moment, he’s better known for working the political and bureaucratic sides of things. Preventing attacks of this type isn’t in his wheelhouse.

A former counter-terrorism officer in the NYPD is recruited to head up a group of retired officers to confront Alboroto and similar threats. This is a vigilante group with private funding, but in their hearts, they’re still NYPD and want to serve the city. Using old contacts (on both sides of the law), liaising with the Mexican government, and armed with the best hackers and technology that money can buy—plus their own experience and grit—this small group just may be able to stop Alboroto before his next strike.

The Baltic Avenue Group

This right here might be my favorite idea in this novel. So you’ve got a non-governmental anti-terrorist strike force—you need to fund them if they’re going to be effective at all. So, sure, you could have one of them be a super-genius inventor/entrepreneur (like Tony Stark), an orphaned heir of a super-rich man (Bruce Wayne), a group of thieves and con artists turned Robin Hood (Leverage), or a Powerball winner. Something.

Karp gives us a group of billionaires who know the economic impact that a terrorist attack can bring on the city—and on themselves. They don’t want to go through that again, so they’re willing to spend a lot of money to keep them from losing much more. They’re benevolent and out for themselves at the same time. That’s as close to a perfect description of heroes for our time as you’re going to find anywhere.

So, what did I think about Snowstorm in August?

This book made me flashback to a book that I hadn’t thought of in years—I posted about it on October 25, 2013, so probably the last time I gave it any thought was the 26th (though probably the afternoon of the 25th)—Dick Wolf’s The Intercept. There’s a very similar elite group of cops ready to take down terrorist threats with all the fancy tech and everything. That group, however, was part of the NYPD and should’ve been controlled by things like the Constitution, the courts, and the city’s budget. This book, however, features retired cops acting as vigilantes with a budget that probably shames even all of The Big Apple’s. Also, the writing is crisper, the characters aren’t cardboard, and it’s more entertaining. My intent wasn’t to find another excuse to disparage The Intercept, but because the books were similar in so many ways, I had to figure out why I really liked one and had little good to say about the other.

Sometime after 9/11 I remember reading about (and I think I heard one or more of the participants discuss this), some governmental agency brought together some thriller writers, movie makers, etc. to think up some possible, but unlikely attacks that could be launched on the U.S. so contingency plans could be thought up as well as ways to deter this. Does anyone else remember this? Anyway, a lot of what Albortoro gets up to in this book feels like the product of those meetings—possible, but unlikely. Still, if you picked up your phone tomorrow morning and whatever social media feed gives you your news described the attack on Central Park (or any of the other things in this book), you’d believe it. I’m not so sure how willing I am to believe that a handful of ex-cops and federal agents could stop it. But I’d like to think it could happen. (I clearly have more confidence in the ingenuity of criminals and killers than I do in people who’d want to stop them).

There’s an incredibly cinematic feel to this—if your brain doesn’t project a lot of these scenes onto a mental movie screen in your head, something’s wrong. That cover shot alone deserves a Wagner score (although that seems overused, maybe substitute Harold Faltermeyer*). That cinematic feel lets Karp get away with a few things that I’m not sure that other thriller writers could get away with (and some thriller writers use all the time)

* Composer of Top Gun‘s score.

Combine all of those two paragraphs, and what Karp has given us is a blockbuster novel with a very realistic grounding, but it doesn’t necessarily play out that way. But Karp hooks you quickly and keeps on hooking you—he’s not content to get you invested just once, he wants it all. There’s a romantic subplot that works well and rounds out Danny’s character, but I wondered a couple of times if it messed up the pacing a bit (and made me wonder about Danny’s priorities at least once). Aside from that, the pacing was spot-on, and the novel kept picking up speed as it goes and you barrel into the conclusion—I don’t know how someone is supposed to put this down during the last 50 pages (it’s slightly easier in the 50 before that—slightly).

Satisfying action, well-executed plot twists and turns, characters you want to see again, and very believable villains. Snowstorm in August is the action-adventure novel you need to read.

Disclaimer: I received this ARC from the author in exchange for this post and my honest review.

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.

The Veiled Edge of Contact by James Brayken: Apotheosis Through Union

By HCNewton

On November 21, 2022

In Science Fiction

I’ve got a a Q&A with the author coming up in an hour or so. I haven’t read his A’s yet (so I didn’t have to rethink anything I wrote below), but I’m betting they’re worth your time. Come back and give them a read, will you?

The Veiled Edge of Contact

by James Brayken

DETAILS:
Publisher: Oh Gentle Night
Publication Date: May 10, 2022
Format: eBook
Length: 384 pg.
Read Date: October 26 - November 1, 2022

…right now, I’m not discounting anything— time travel included— just because it sounds unbelievable. Unbelievable is the new norm.

What to Say? What to Say? What to Say?

This is one of those books that I have a lot of things that I want to talk about. There is so much worthy of discussion. But if I talked about it all—in the ways that I’m tempted to—you’d finish reading this post and say, “Yeah, H.C., this book sounds like it’s full of interesting ideas, but now I don’t need to read the book.” Then I’d have to admit you were right, and I’d feel bad and the tens of you that read this wouldn’t buy Brayken’s book. So then I’d feel guilty, because he seems like a real nice guy, so then I’d buy multiple copies of it to make up for the copies you don’t buy. Then Mrs. Irresponsible Reader would see what I spent and a fi—ahem—an intense discussion would ensue. Annnd….

Well, let’s just say that’s just too much drama. So I’m going to have choose what I discuss carefully.

What’s The Veiled Edge of Contact About?

Okon is no one’s idea of an SF hero—including his own. A former chef of some notoriety, he hasn’t worked in some time, instead, he’s lived a life of comfort. His wife, Efawi, is an engineer-entrepreneur who is very politically active. Okon isn’t sure that he shares her politics—he definitely doesn’t want her as active as she is (particularly as it puts her under the unfriendly gaze of the government). A few years back, she’d become hugely successful and he’d quit working, and mostly sat around all day playing video games and watching movies (or a futuristic equivalent).

It’s been seventy or so years since a large war of some sort in Africa (and, possibly, other places, it’s not made specific). They live in a country near the largest jungle—but the specifics (again) aren’t given. The couple has little in common beyond a shared history and commitment to each other. As all marriages do, they’ve had their ups and downs—they’re currently in the middle of a prolonged down—but Okon is sure (fairly sure), they’ll turn it around.

But before they can, Efawi’s political activity puts her on the outs with the government, she’s accused of some serious crimes and goes missing. Several days later, Okon finds messages for him to come after her and meet her—she’s on the verge of a discovery that will change everything. Assuming she can finish it without being arrested. She wants her husband with her and has left him directions and equipment—including an armored exosuit—to follow.

Weeks after she’d gone missing, Okon follows her into the jungle. Something about the jungle (and he assumes what she came looking for) interferes with almost all of his tech—particularly the communication portions. So he’s relying on data drops Efawi left behind giving directions to the next one, and the next, and both are starting to despair about how long it’s taking him to catch up.

Okon then stumbles upon a group that call themselves Wuchumbu. They’re possibly the last people group on Earth unfamiliar with and untainted by technology, “modern” culture, etc. They want nothing to do with anyone not in their group and set to attacking him. Stuff happens, and he ends up living with the Wuchumbu and looking for his wife. He’s certain that there’s something about the Wuchumbu, their practices, their location…something that is tied to the tech issues. And therefore, this is where he’ll be able to find Efawi.

And then a whollllle bunch of other stuff ensues.

The Tone of the Novel

This doesn’t read like an SF novel (not that there’s a monolithic tone/voice for SF, but not many come across this way). It might feel like a Mike Chen SF novel, if it was set in an African jungle. But that’s as close as you’re going to find.*

* If I wasn’t late getting this up in the first place, I might spend 3-4 paragraphs on this point. Part of me wants to restart the whole post and say “Pretend Mike Chen wrote a book that’s set…” The more I think about this comparison, the more apt it feels.

The whole novel is rather dark and dystopic but is written in such a way that you can easily forget that. Okon is a likable fellow and his voice (it’s a first-person narration), is pretty much what you’d expect from an adult male who spends his life watching movies and playing video games while his wife revolutionizes science and tries to shake up her country’s government. That same, laid-back attitude crosses time and culture, apparently.

When you wipe everything away, this is the story about a man looking for his wife, increasingly concerned that he can’t find her—but who habitually (and through force of will) is optimistic in the face of increasing challenges. Making this ultimately a sweet—and potentially sad—story. Largely because of Okon’s outlook, his voice, and his devotion to Efawi. Those challenges—mostly those things we just wiped away—take the form of the Wuchumbu, the government Efawi is fleeing from, Okon’s tech issues, and a mess of other obstacles.

A Question of Genre

The descriptions for this book describe it as “genre breaking.” I’m not sure about that. I don’t know that it’s wrong, but I fear that it might mislead some readers (I went into it with skewed assumptions, for example). I’ve got a Q&A with Brayken coming along later today, and he might convince me otherwise—I haven’t read his responses yet, so I don’t know.

What I would say is that The Veiled Edge of Contact is a great example of the wideness of Science Fiction, the range of ideas and settings that it’s capable of, the diversity of characters, and more. I’m not saying that Brayken has done things I haven’t seen in SF before, but the way he combined most of the aspects of this book is pretty rare. (I’d say it’s unique, but as soon as I do that, someone’s going to point out something similar out there, so let’s stick with rare).

The fact that he mixes so many ideas together successfully, with wit and polish not usual for a first novel makes this stand out.

So, what did I think about The Veiled Edge of Contact?

I want to go home—to the one made from bricks. I crave my room. I crave walls and ceilings. I’ve never felt so strongly about carpet.

I felt a little lost at the beginning—there’s a pretty big disconnect between the Prologue and Chapter 1. But I pushed on through and Brayken quickly won me over and I forgot about everything that I got hung up on in the Prologue and the disconnect I felt. Literally forgot—so much so that when that material became relevant again, I had to work to remember it. Which is a compliment, Brayken got me so sucked into to Okon and the Wuchumbu and everything that was immediately going on that it consumed all my attention.

I wanted to see what was around the corner, what was going to befall our (mostly) hapless protagonist next. But I also just wanted to live in the moment and spend more time with him and that moment to go on—because whatever befell him next was going to push the narrative to an end and I’d have to say goodbye. We’ve all been there before with novels, you know that sensation. I got a major dose of it from this book.

I don’t know what more to say about the book than that. Brayken plays with SF concepts, tropes, and mainstays, and does things with them that are familiar and are strikingly unfamiliar. Mostly at the same time. But on the whole, while he’s doing that you don’t care—you just want to see what’s coming next. All the thoughts about what he’s doing and why and how it changes the story come after you’re done—or when you step away for a while for work or whatever.

I would love to sit down and pick his brain some time over a meal and dig down into his thinking and some of the choices he made. I’m not crazy about all of them—but they were absolutely the right choices, and I’m glad he made them (maybe especially the ones I’m not crazy about). Brayken immersed me in another world and I really didn’t want to leave. There’s not a whole lot more I can say that’s more complimentary than that.

Now, I’ve behaved and haven’t said too much. It’s your turn to keep the other end of the bargain. Go and do the right thing and buy this book, will you?

4 Stars

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for this post and my honest opinion.