Dan
Kit Burgoyne is Ned Beauman writing under a pseudonym, although no one seems to be making any secret of this, so I’m not 100% sure what the point is. The (excellent) NB books are at least genre adjacent, so a move into outright horror isn’t a complete swerve. This is schlockier than those, to be fair, but that’s also a big part of the enjoyment. And it is very enjoyable and fast moving enough that at no point do you stop and go “hang on…”, which is some achievement in a book that mixes revolutionary anti-capitalism with The Omen. It’s a hugely fun romp (as long as your definition of “fun romp” includes devil worship, mass death, and human sacrifice, which I’m afraid mine does), with a healthy political / satirical edge (guys, what if capitalism actually was the devil?). Makes me wish Dennis Wheatley had turned out to be a pen-name of George Orwell’s.
Kit Burgoyne is Ned Beauman writing under a pseudonym, although no one seems to be making any secret of this, so I’m not 100% sure what the point is. The (excellent) NB books are at least genre adjacent, so a move into outright horror isn’t a complete swerve. This is schlockier than those, to be fair, but that’s also a big part of the enjoyment. And it is very enjoyable and fast moving enough that at no point do you stop and go “hang on…”, which is some achievement in a book that mixes revolutionary anti-capitalism with The Omen. It’s a hugely fun romp (as long as your definition of “fun romp” includes devil worship, mass death, and human sacrifice, which I’m afraid mine does), with a healthy political / satirical edge (guys, what if capitalism actually was the devil?). Makes me wish Dennis Wheatley had turned out to be a pen-name of George Orwell’s.
Michelle Paver’s previous ghost stores have relied on empty and barren landscapes to heighten the spookiness, but here she takes completely the opposite approach, opting for the maximalist sensory overload of a Central American rainforest. It’s a move that pays off, and the evocation of dripping humidity, tangled vegetation and ever-present life is probably the strongest thing here. Conversely the handling of the protagonist / narrator undermined the book a bit for me. He is not in any way a sympathetic or likeable character, which to her credit Paver does not shy away from, but this also meant that the final parts of the book where the horror builds to a climax feel more like watching a bad guy get his comeuppance than any kind of empathetic horror. Bluntly, I didn’t much care what happpened to him. It’s a very well written book, but somehow while it immerses you in it’s landscape it pushes you away from the narrative voice.
Michelle Paver’s previous ghost stores have relied on empty and barren landscapes to heighten the spookiness, but here she takes completely the opposite approach, opting for the maximalist sensory overload of a Central American rainforest. It’s a move that pays off, and the evocation of dripping humidity, tangled vegetation and ever-present life is probably the strongest thing here. Conversely the handling of the protagonist / narrator undermined the book a bit for me. He is not in any way a sympathetic or likeable character, which to her credit Paver does not shy away from, but this also meant that the final parts of the book where the horror builds to a climax feel more like watching a bad guy get his comeuppance than any kind of empathetic horror. Bluntly, I didn’t much care what happpened to him. It’s a very well written book, but somehow while it immerses you in it’s landscape it pushes you away from the narrative voice.
I love wuxia movies, but it's a genre largely untapped in contemporary (Western) fantasy. If names like Tsui Hark, Yuen Woo-Ping or King Hu quicken your pulse a little, then be assured there are sequences in this book that will make your heart sing. The fight scenes are gloriously visualised, the characters (especially Taishi!) are memorable and believable, and the plot rattles along in splendid fashion. As ever with multi-part series, final judgement will have to wait until it's complete, but I am definitely along for the ride.
I love wuxia movies, but it's a genre largely untapped in contemporary (Western) fantasy. If names like Tsui Hark, Yuen Woo-Ping or King Hu quicken your pulse a little, then be assured there are sequences in this book that will make your heart sing. The fight scenes are gloriously visualised, the characters (especially Taishi!) are memorable and believable, and the plot rattles along in splendid fashion. As ever with multi-part series, final judgement will have to wait until it's complete, but I am definitely along for the ride.
We’re nine books in at this point, you’re not reading this to see if Slough House is for you, you just want to know if the latest one is any good. And of course it is. It might even be the funniest one yet, which is a big claim, but I laughed out loud several times reading this, and I’m usually super grumpy so there you go. There’s the usual twisty plot, where Jackson lamb and Diana Taverner are always a mile’s worth of steps ahead of the reader, and a climax that could well radically alter the future direction of the series, but the real pleasure is just spending time with this characters and this setting. Gold.
We’re nine books in at this point, you’re not reading this to see if Slough House is for you, you just want to know if the latest one is any good. And of course it is. It might even be the funniest one yet, which is a big claim, but I laughed out loud several times reading this, and I’m usually super grumpy so there you go. There’s the usual twisty plot, where Jackson lamb and Diana Taverner are always a mile’s worth of steps ahead of the reader, and a climax that could well radically alter the future direction of the series, but the real pleasure is just spending time with this characters and this setting. Gold.
I love wuxia movies, but it's a genre largely untapped in contemporary (Western) fantasy. If names like Tsui Hark, Yuen Woo-Ping or King Hu quicken your pulse a little, then be assured there are sequences in this book that will make your heart sing. The fight scenes are gloriously visualised, the characters (especially Taishi!) are memorable and believable, and the plot rattles along in splendid fashion. As ever with multi-part series, final judgement will have to wait until it's complete, but I am definitely along for the ride.
I love wuxia movies, but it's a genre largely untapped in contemporary (Western) fantasy. If names like Tsui Hark, Yuen Woo-Ping or King Hu quicken your pulse a little, then be assured there are sequences in this book that will make your heart sing. The fight scenes are gloriously visualised, the characters (especially Taishi!) are memorable and believable, and the plot rattles along in splendid fashion. As ever with multi-part series, final judgement will have to wait until it's complete, but I am definitely along for the ride.
