Arcane Underworld - The Irresponsible Reader

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

Splintered by Jamie Schultz

By HCNewton

On July 1, 2015

In Fiction

Splintered

by Jamie Schultz
Series: Arcane Underworld, #2

Mass Market Paperback, 336 pg.

Roc, 2015

Read: June 9 – 10, 2015 Last year’s Premonitions stuck with me more than many Urban Fantasies I’d consider equal to or better than it. For example: Seanan McGuire’s The Winter Long blew me away, but when I finished it, I thought about it for a couple of days and then moved on. But Schultz’ debut (which I thoroughly enjoyed) stuck around the back of my mind, and every so often I’d speculate about Karyn’s future, Genevieve’s motives, etc. Part of it was that is that McGuire’s got 7 novels of history in her series, I have (some) idea what she’ll be putting Toby et al. through in the future and had a solid idea about what had happened in The Winter Long. But Schultz is a question mark, who knew what he had up his sleeve for the future, and there were still some questions about what I’d read hanging in the back of my mind. But it was more than that — something about the book as a whole — the world as a whole — that lingered.

So, yeah, I was more than ready for Splintered by the time I got my hands on it. Thankfully, I can report that Schultz stepped up his game a bit.

It’s been a few weeks since the events of Premonitions, most wounds and injuries have healed, Karyn’s still overcome by an onslaught of visions and is unable to care for herself, Anna’s dividing her time between caring for her and running around for Enoch Sobell (while suffering emotional damage from Premonitions), Sobell’s just about finished piecing his organization back together, and everything else is returning to normal. Now, Anna and the team aren’t exactly sure what Sobell’s got them running around doing — but they’re not crazy about it.

Then things get serious — Sobell “asks” the team to do something for him that’s another level of criminality than they’ve engaged in before — with yet another inevitably following. This involves a handful of magic users in a class beyond what they’re used to. In the middle of all this, the FBI raids Sobell’s headquarters (making it difficult for him to keep the team on task). Oh, and someone’s looking for a Karyn. Someone Anna’s never heard of, and isn’t so sure about. Things get complicated, twisted, and disturbing from here — hopeful steps and/or events, are tarnished by failure or corruption; every victory looks Pyrrhic, and defeat seems inevitable.

Which is not to say that this book is all doom and gloom, a read only fit for the masochistic or self-loathing. On the contrary, there’s a lot of life in these characters, hope, gumption and devotion. You want to know what’s happening to them, you want to see them prevail in some small way (at least). This world may not be filled with blue skies, but there are patches of blue in the smog.

There’s something about the L.A. of these books that make me think Schultz is depicting a near-future dystopian city. But I’m so glad that Nail’s around so we get references to 9/11 and the Iraq War, and I can be reminded that this is taking place roughly now and that what I consider to by a dystopian future is simply a dystopian present for far too many people.

I don’t typically spend enough time thinking about titles, it’s one of those things I keep meaning to do. In this case, however, it doesn’t take a lot of effort to see the title’s applicability. At some point — if not several points — every character in this book is on their own, splintered off from the rest and looking out for their own interest with no attention or care about any one else. Occasionally, it’s in opposition to anyone else (even those they’re supposed to be aligned with). This cuts across all the various relationships depicted; from the purely financial, to the heartfelt, to the creepy and cultic. Each individual makes a deal with someone along the way — almost always for short-term gain (shorter than many expect, it should be added) and potentially long-term loss (longer than many expect). Sometimes, the characters can think that there might not actually be consequences to the deal, but they feel dirty just thinking about making it. Even those characters who start out at least partially altruistic or team/family/friend-centered in their approach to a problem, end up cutting a deal with someone. Anna, for example, primarily makes deals to help — or at least give her a chance at helping — Karyn. That act of caring doesn’t shield either one from the price to be paid for it.

Throughout Splintered (but not a stranger to Premonitions) is the deep sense that there are always consequences for one’s actions. Most serialized fiction will deal with consequences for “the big stuff” — X killed Y, so in 3 books, Y’s family will come for revenge. Or some seemingly insignificant event will turn out 5 books from now to have significant effects on the world/characters/etc. But here, every single time someone does anything magical, there are consequences, potentially (probably?) eternal consequences. This alone sets the Arcane Underworld books apart from the crowd. But it’s not just the magical actions; it’s conversations, it’s the past, it’s these deals, it’s being in the wrong place at the wrong time. What these characters do matters. Sometimes it matters for them, sometimes it matters for their loved ones, sometimes it’s their enemies. Horrifically (and realistically), sometimes, it’s complete and utter strangers. I’m not suggesting that Butcher, or Hearne, or Harrison don’t have Harry, Atticus or Rachel deal with repercussions of their actions — but somehow, Schultz is able to permeate the atmosphere with this idea. Some of his characters see the consequences and shrug them off before acting, others see the consequences and accept them, others figure they can find a way to get out of them (or have someone else rescue them).

But at the end of the day — if not before noon — no one comes out unscathed. Well, okay, some tertiary (or quaternary) characters do — but most of even them don’t. I don’t think there’s a single thing that remains the same from beginning of the book to the end — health, relationship, financial status, legal situation, family, soul — I think every character takes a hit on at least two of those, if not all. Not many authors can achieve that in 350 pages.

Lastly, I like the fact that the FBI is aware enough that strange things are happening in the world to have the Non-Standard Investigations Branch. Primarily, because it reminded me of the Chicago Police Department’s Special Investigations division in the early Dresden Files, but I also liked that the FBI is clever enough to see the need for something like that in a world where magic actually exists (see almost every other UF series for worlds where the authorities aren’t that insightful). It sure looks like they’re going to be around for a while, making life difficult for everyone. I’m looking forward to getting to see Special Agent Elliot and the rest in action.

What keeps this from getting a 5-star rating? I’m not sure I’m always engaged as I should be in either the action or with the characters. Some of that could be my subconscious refusing to get to tied to these people so that it’s easier to take when they meet the supernatural equivalent of Vic Vega/Mr. Blonde in a warehouse with a straight razor. Maybe it’s because these characters are the kind that we usually root against. Or maybe it’s just that I’m not reading it right.

Can you read this without reading the previous novel? Yeah. But I don’t recommend it, too much of this is a reaction to it.

With Premonitions, Jamie Schultz promised something new to the genre. Splintered shows us that he’s keeping that promise. I have no idea what book three of the Arcane Underworld is going to bring, but I can’t wait for it.

—–

Note: I was provided a copy of this novel by the author, which didn’t alter my opinion of the work — I can be bought, but not that cheaply.

—–

4 Stars

Premonitions by Jamie Schultz Redux

By HCNewton

On June 9, 2015

In Fiction

I read this one last year, and in anticipation of the sequel, decided to take another crack at it over my vacation. On the whole, I’ll stand by what I said below — that’s about what I’d say about it today if I was starting from scratch. There is one new thought that I’ll add, I thought about deleting/reworking some of what I said before, but…eh, it’s close enough (and I’m tired). Still, the main point stands: this is not your typical UF, and it’s worth your time.

Premonitions

by Jamie SchultzSeries: Arcane Underworld, #1

Mass Market Paperback, 384 pg.
Roc, 2014
Reread: June 7, 2015I spent a lot of time staring at a blank screen trying to figure out how to talk about this. I came close to just posting, “This is seriously effed-up. But in a good way. Read it!”

Really, that might have been the way to go. But let’s give this a try…

Premonitions is not your typical Urban Fantasy. Karyn isn’t full of spunk, battling her way through some challenges with only her wits, a snappy line and her powers in a quest to defeat evil/save a life/protect justice. Nope, all she’s trying to do is survive. Same for the rest of her gang — they steal, they work only to make it to the next day. They’re not well off, they’re really not even comfortable — borderline desperate, really. So when they’re given the opportunity to split a 2 million dollar score, it’s an offer they cannot refuse (in many ways)

In this world, magic — or precognitive abilities — come with a price. A nasty, dirty, life-altering price. Neither the magic or the precog life seems at all worth it — and with one possible exception, everyone we meet in these pages with some sort of ability realizes that. Yet, those who can choose to pay that price or not, keep coming back to it. Karyn, on the other hand has no choice. Her abilities come with horrible hallucinations that she has to keep suppressed with a drug. Which is, of course, hard to find and only available on the black market. So like any good junkie, she steals to support her habit. Karyn’s psychic ability is like a less-pretty, less specific and more unreliable version of Alex Verus’ magic. Not that I think for a second that Schultz was going for that — it’s just what occurred to me as I read. I like the slightly different take on the idea.

Premonitions is a Heist story — so, of course, things go horribly wrong (that’s the point of these, right?), it’s watching how this particular band of thieves respond to this that makes this compelling. In fact, the broad brush strokes of the plot are pretty apparent within the first few pages — this isn’t a knock on Schultz, it’s just evidence that he knows what he’s doing. This is a classic Heist story, told in his own particular way, with his unique blend of characters — thieves, marks and obstacles.

We have two central characters — Karyn and Anna, with a crew of others — magicians(is that the word?), an ex-Marine and — well, some others they pick up along the way. Years ago, Karyn and Anna become friends, and for reasons we’re not privy to, and Anna may not fully recognize, Anna hitched her wagon to Karyn. She could’ve gone off and had a successful career, family, and whatnot. Instead, she’s a criminal scratching by, doing all she can to help her friend make it to the next day.

That’s the heart of this novel — the friendship between these two. Their dedication to each other, to each other’s needs, wants, desires and lives — and by extension, those members of their team, romantic partners, and miscellaneous allies. There’s no flashy swords, or government conspiracies, or prince to rescue — but this is really a one for all and all for one group. As long as they remember that.

This is the new thought:
One thing I’ve been thinking about lately is the concept of found-family, especially as portrayed in TV, movies and novels. There are two found-families here — probably three — and each is under stress in some ways. There’s one rotting from within, one that’s dealing with a defection, and one that’s dealing with an addition or two (and some subtractions). Each responds to the stress in a different way — mostly in a pretty destructive way. If you step back and think of them as families — and not criminal organizations or cults — the reactions are entirely understandable, and you can sympathize with those lashing out (actually, they’re understandable for criminal enterprises or cults, too — but far less sympathetic). I’m not suggesting this is terribly profound or anything, but this time through this idea jumped out at me. Particularly when the various characters are thinking about/voicing what connects them to their “family.”

There is a pervasive atmosphere that characterizes this novel, a mood. The whole thing is dark and moody. In my mind, it looks like the sets from Season 1 of The Wire, lit by whoever picked the look for Blade Runner. This gives it a different feel than most of your Urban Fantasies on the market. Not that they’re all rainbows and unicorns, but there is a “blue sky” feel to Urban Fantasies by Underwood, Butcher, Hearne, Harrison, Briggs and whatnot — that is not shared here. Schultz is not Richard Kadray-dark, but he’s close. Honestly, this reminded me of the Twenty Palaces world of Harry Connolly. Obviously, the magic system is different — but I’d have no problem at all seeing Ray Lilly and Annalise Powliss bump into Karyn and her crew (thankfully, I’m pretty sure their magic isn’t the sort that Annalise would feel compelled to eliminate anyone).

When I was 34 pages from the end of the book, I jotted down a note: “Not only do I have no clear idea how all this will end (frankly, I didn’t see what happened three pages ago happening), but I also have no clue what a sequel to this looks like.” That’s not normal, that says a lot about how Schultz is working. Now, by the end of the novel, that wasn’t the case — I had a clear idea what to expect Splintered to be like (I’m also prepared to be totally wrong). But to be that close to the end, and not sure what’s around the corner? That’s pretty cool. To be fair, it could be that I was being dumb — but I’m going to give the credit to Schultz for keeping me on my toes.

Give this one a try, folks, don’t think you’ll be sorry.

—–

Note: I was provided a copy of this by the author, who seems like a pretty cool guy — which made the fact that I really enjoyed this a relief.

—–

4 Stars

Premonitions by Jamie Schultz

By HCNewton

On September 26, 2014

In Fiction

Premonitions

by Jamie Schultz
Series: Arcane Underworld, #1

Mass Market Paperback, 384 pg.
Roc, 2014
Read: September 9 – 12, 2014

I spent a lot of time staring at a blank screen trying to figure out how to talk about this. I came close to just posting, “This is seriously effed-up. But in a good way. Read it!”