**************************************************************
* *
* R E A D I N G F O R P L E A S U R E *
* *
* Issue #19 *
* October/November 1991 *
* *
* *
* Editor: Cindy Bartorillo *
* *
* Reviews by: Cindy & Drew Bartorillo, Howard Frye, *
* Carl Ingram, Darryl Kenning, Janet Peters, Robert *
* Pittman, Peter Quint, Carol Sheffert, Annie Wilkes, *
* Robert Willis *
* *
**************************************************************
CONTACT US AT: Reading For Pleasure, 103 Baughman's Lane, Suite 303,
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~ DISTRIBUTION DIRECTORY
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Editorial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
1991 Readercon Small Press Awards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Mainstream Fiction Reviews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Murder By The Book (Mystery Fiction Reviews) . . . . . . . . 581
Loosen Your Grip On Reality (SF&F Reviews) . . . . . . . . . 1360
Frightful Fiction (Horror Reviews) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2322
Nonfiction Reviews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3259
Computer Corner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4253
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~ EDITORIAL
Here's our third annual Halloween Issue, and it sure is a big one,
isn't it? A lot of great books have arrived here at RFP central, and
our roving readers have dug up a few more, so there are lots and lots
of titles for you to pick from. Hope you find some worthwhile
suggestions.
Don't hesitate to write to us, either electronically (on CompuServe,
GEnie, or our home BBS, The Baudline II) or by regular post (Reading
For Pleasure, 103 Baughman's Lane, Suite 303, Frederick, MD 21702). We
really appreciate hearing from you, whether it's with suggestions,
questions, or material suitable for including in RFP. If you do submit
material for inclusion (a book list, a review, etc.), please state
specifically that it is OK to print your material in a future edition
of RFP. We don't use contracts, but we'd still like to be on safe
legal ground.
Our second favorite thing to get in the mail (after books) is news. We
love to hear about new books that are being written or about to be
published. Nobody here at RFP has an inside track in the book
industry; we have to pick up our news in the back alleys like everyone
else. So if you've got a book coming out, please drop us a note so we
can pass the word along. Be sure to let us know what it is, when it'll
show up, and where we can get it. (There is nothing in the world worse
than a great-sounding book that you can't get your hands on.)
Have a safe and spooky Halloween, and we'll see you again in RFP's
Holidays Issue, being released December 1, 1991.
**************************
~ 1991 READERCON SMALL PRESS AWARDS
Novel: RED SPIDER, WHITE WEB by Misha (Morrigan)
Magazine (Fiction): JOURNAL WIRED edited by Mark Ziesing & Andy
Watson
Magazine (Nonfiction): NEW YORK REVIEW OF SCIENCE FICTION edited by
David Hartwell et al.
Magazine Design: JOURNAL WIRED designed by Andy Watson
Collection: THE BRAINS OF RATS by Michael Blumlein (Scream/Press)
Anthology: WHEN THE BLACK LOTUS BLOOMS edited by Elizabeth Saunders
(Unnameable Press)
Value in Bookcraft: SLOW DANCING THROUGH TIME edited by Gardner
Dozois (Ursus/Ziesing)
Short Work: ENTROPY'S BED AT MIDNIGHT by Dan Simmons (Lord John
Press)
Reprint: THE ATROCITY EXHIBITION by J.G. Ballard (Re/Search)
Nonfiction: ACROSS THE WOUNDED GALAXIES by Larry McCaffrey (Univ. of
Illinois Press)
Jacket Illustration: H.R. GIGER'S BIOMECHANICS by H.R. Giger
(Morpheus Int.)
Interior Illustrations: H.R. GIGER'S BIOMECHANICS by H.R. Giger
(Morpheus Int.)
**************************
MAINSTREAM FICTION REVIEWS
^ BOY'S LIFE
by Robert R. McCammon
(Pocket Books, August 1991, $21.95, ISBN 0-671-74226-4)
review by Cindy Bartorillo
"No one," Mrs. Neville whispered, "ever grows up...They
may look grown-up...but it's a disguise. It's just the
clay of time. Men and women are still children deep in
their hearts. They still would like to jump and play, but
that heavy clay won't let them. They'd like to shake off
every chain the world's put on them, take off their
watches and neckties and Sunday shoes and return naked to
the swimming hole, if just for one day. They'd like to
feel free, and know that there's a momma and daddy at home
who'll take care of things and love them no matter what.
Even behind the face of the meanest man in the world is a
scared little boy trying to wedge himself into a corner
where he can't be hurt."
If you'd like to recapture the magic of childhood, you couldn't do any
better than Robert McCammon's latest novel, BOY'S LIFE. (Also check
out SUMMER OF NIGHT by Dan Simmons, reviewed in this issue's Frightful
Fiction section.) Up till now, McCammon's stories have been solidly
within the Horror genre, but BOY'S LIFE refuses to be constrained by
any category and wanders the entire depth and breadth of the life of
one 12-year-old boy in 1964 Alabama. Interestingly, McCammon has used
his familiar palette to paint this original and distinctive picture:
within BOY'S LIFE you will find murder, monsters, voodoo, and zombies.
And yet all of this fits easily in the world of childhood--there are
no discordant notes.
Cory Mackenson is accompanying his father as he delivers milk to the
inhabitants of Zephyr, Alabama, when a car jumps across the road in
front of them and falls into the bottomless hole that is Saxon's Lake.
Cory's father swims to save the driver of the car, only to find that
the driver is already dead and is naked, hideously beaten, has a piano
cord around his neck, and is handcuffed to the steering wheel. When
the local sheriff can find no one missing, nor anyone who knows
somebody with a tattoo like the dead man had, the case is dropped. But
it is not forgotten by Cory, who has the only clue to the murderer: a
green feather. Nor is it forgotten by Cory's father, who is being
consumed by bad dreams. As he tells Cory:
"When I was your age, I wanted to believe I lived in a
magic town...where nothin' bad could ever happen. I wanted
to believe everyone was kind, and good, and just. I wanted
to believe hard work was rewarded, and a man stood on his
word. I wanted to believe a man was a Christian every day
of the week, not just Sunday, and that the law was fair
and the politicians wise and if you walked the straight
path you found that peace you were searchin' for...There
never was such a place," my father said. "There never will
be."
During the year covered by BOY'S LIFE there will be comedy and
tragedy, wonderment and pain, all the colors that life comes in. There
are at least half a dozen characters that are simply unforgettable.
The best description of BOY'S LIFE is given by one of the characters
within it: Vernon, a rich man's son and failed writer describes his
one completed novel:
"It was the flow and the voices, the little day-to-day
things that make up the memory of living. It meandered
like the river, and you never knew where you were going
until you got there, but the journey was sweet and deep
and left you wishing for more."
Robert McCammon is a master storyteller and BOY'S LIFE is his finest
novel to date. The opportunity to spend 1964 with Cory Mackenson, his
parents, his friends, and the other inhabitants of Zephyr, Alabama, is
not to be missed. Highly recommended.
NOTE: A recent article in Publishers Weekly states that Robert
McCammon is currently either writing or outlining his next TEN books.
His last novel, MINE, recently won the Bram Stoker Award for Novel
from the Horror Writers of America. Reviewed in RFP #14, MINE is a
terrific suspense thriller about two women who were politically active
in the sixties. One became a yuppie, the other's unbalanced mind leads
her to kidnap the yuppie's newborn baby. Fast paced and exciting.
**************************
^ THE FIRM
by John Grisham
(Doubleday, 1991)
review by Robert Pittman
This is a gripping story of suspense and intrigue written by a
practicing lawyer, John Grisham who is a criminal defense attorney in
Mississippi. He also has political experience having served two terms
in the Mississippi House of Representatives. His professional
background is evident in the quality and style of his writing and
lends authenticity to a tale that demands reader attention and
guarantees reward.
The "Firm" is Bendine, Lambert & Locke, a small, very rich, very
private tax law firm located in Memphis, Tennessee. It infrequently
recruits new lawyers to its staff, but when it does, it goes for the
best. The principal character in the story is Mitchell McDeere who has
been a hard working, dedicated student at Harvard Law School and is
about to graduate third in his class and take a job with a large,
prestigious law firm in Wall Street. Bendine, Lambert & Locke
aggressively recruit Mitch, and on his interview visit to Memphis, he
is immediately taken with the operation of the group and the qualities
of the partners and associates. The firm demands total commitment and
long working hours, but young lawyers are paid well (including a new
BMW as a starting bonus) and the pathway to partnership is short for
those who produce.
Mitch's wife Abby, who has been a loyal supporter throughout his years
in law school, joins in the decision to accept the Memphis job. She
has an uneasy feeling about the generosity of the employment offer and
the implied excessive demands on Mitch's future time, but both feel
that they can cope with most anything for a year or so as Mitch earns
his place among the associates.
His first few months at the firm are uneventful except for the quick
discovery that security at the firm is unusually strict. There is a
large, round the clock security staff of rough, tough characters who
function in a dictatorial and militaristic manner. He also learns that
certain physical areas of the office are closed to most of the staff
for security reasons. His concerns about this are sublimated to his
desire to excel and his struggle to cope with the demands of work
which increase and become more complex daily. Sixteen hour days and
twelve hour weekends are rapidly becoming his normal schedule.
The story accelerates and the intrigue is heightened on a day during
his lunch break when Mitch is approached by a man who identifies
himself as an FBI agent. As they walk along the street together, the
agent tells him that his law firm is not legitimate. It is a front for
money transport and money laundering and is owned and operated by
organized crime figures. Mitch is shocked and unbelieving but the
agent presses his case as he explains that he leads a team that has
been investigating Bendine, Lambert & Locke and that until recently,
two of the senior lawyers were providing him with inside information
necessary for indictments. Regrettably, both were killed in a boating
"accident." The agent needs a new inside source and Mitch is the
chosen one. Mitch's doubtful attitude is erased when the FBI shows him
that his telephone is tapped, his house is bugged, and even his BMW
carries a transmitter linked to the firm's security office. Mitch is
in danger within the firm if he cooperates, and if he does not
cooperate, he is party to a criminal enterprise and will eventually
face felony charges.
With wiser eyes, it does not take long for Mitch to verify that his
firm is deep into evil doings and that the partners are murderous
connivers who amass their great fortune in serving the criminal
organization. His dilemma is that becoming an FBI informant puts his
life and Abby's life at risk and failing to do so puts their future at
risk.
Mitch and Abby become a clever team in dealing with the two forces
between which their present and their future is trapped. Youth and
inexperience often take them to the brink of disaster, but they are
fast learners, resourceful, and creative as they do battle with the
firm, satisfy the demands of the FBI and plot for themselves a secure
and safe future.
THE FIRM is good reading! An adventure with innovative and surprising
twists and turns all leading to a comfortable, satisfying ending.
**************************
^ GENUINE LIES
by Nora Roberts
(Bantam Fanfare, September 1991, $4.99, ISBN 0-553-29078-9)
review by Janet Peters
Author Nora Roberts, the winner of numerous romance writing awards and
first inductee into the Romance Writers of America Hall of Fame,
displays her narrative talents once again in GENUINE LIES. It's part
contemporary romance, part Hollywood saga, part mystery.
Eve Benedict is an aging superstar of the silver screen who has been a
major Hollywood player for almost 50 years. Her marriages, feuds, and
affairs have been the highlight of many gossip columns. But now Eve's
decided to reveal all her secrets, push the lies aside and tell the
whole truth to Julia Summers, the writer whom Eve has chosen to
produce her biography. Julia is a single mother who has poured her
heart into motherhood and her career for too many years and has built
a tidy and safe world for herself and her son Brandon. Eve's stepson
Paul threatens Julia's tidy world--he is instantly attracted to Julia,
but is desperately against the projected biography.
There are other people who are against the publication of Eve's
biography, people who have secrets they don't want revealed: friends,
ex-husbands, ex-lovers, current lovers. GENUINE LIES is all about
secrets--sometimes they serve a purpose, sometimes they are a
destructive force. Will Eve tell Julia everything? Will Julia print
everything? Or will some nervous element from Eve's past prevent the
biography from ever reaching a publisher? GENUINE LIES is an exciting
and satisfying story--also great fun.
**************************
^ THUNDER OF EREBUS
by Payne Harrison
(Crown Publishers, 1991)
review by Robert Pittman
Mount Erebus, we learn from this book, is a volcanic mountain located
on Ross Island in the Antarctica. It is close to an exploratory
drilling site at a U.S. base on the Ross Island ice shelf where
scientific teams from Russia and the U.S. are engaged in a joint
venture. In carrying out their mission, they share equally in the
scientific effort and the scientific discovery. While many projects
are under way as part of this joint venture, the principal undertaking
involves drilling through the ice shelf into the lava beds below and
beyond that into the geological history of the Antarctica land mass.
The story takes place a few years in the future. Gorbachev has been
displaced as the leader of Russia but some of his initiatives have
survived. The Russian society is more open and there is more interface
with the international community. Military power, however, has enjoyed
a resurgence and has again become the dominant force in government.
Relations between the two superpowers are cordial, but each is very
cautious about guarding its ability to protect its own interests.
As the summer season in the Antarctica draws to a close, the
scientific team packs up and begins its annual departure, leaving
behind a small guardian force to sustain the base during the long,
inhospitable winter. A final core sample is taken from the drilling
site, divided between the Russians and the Americans and off it goes
for study and analysis at home. That action triggers a conflict
between Russia and the U.S. which is told with a spellbinding
technique and breathtaking suspense that almost precludes putting down
the book until it is finished.
When the core sample is examined, it is found to be composed of the
carnallite mineral which contains a large amount of the rubidium-96
isotope. This isotope, which is rare, has been successfully used by
the U.S. in an experimental strategic missile defense system based on
graser energy. Full application of the graser could yield a capability
that equals the power of atomic weapons without the problem of
fall-out and radio-active contaminants. To the Americans, it would be
the ultimate conventional weapon for controlling and defending the
Persian Gulf area so critical to a world in which oil supplies are so
precious.
A successful, ongoing espionage program made the Russians aware of the
graser experiments and they also understand the American need for
additional supplies of rubidium-96. The Russians want access to the
Persian Gulf oil as sources in Russia too are falling short of demand
and they have no counter to the development of graser weaponry as
there is no source of the rubidium-96 isotope in Russian territory.
Thus the stage is set for a reluctant but desperate conflict between
the two superpowers.
The Russian leaders conclude that America will not share access to the
source of rubidium-96 with them, and that they must have the isotope
in order to maintain their relative position in the international
community. Their choice then, is to forcibly take over the Antarctica
base and defend it from an American counterattack for the ten to
twelve weeks which they will need to mine the source and take home
enough mineral to provide them a supply of rubidium-96.
From that point on the reader is locked into an awesome battle which
the author stages in a series of "short clips" that transpose the
reader directly into the action and into the elements creating the
action. We become part of each side in the conflict and feel that we
have a presence with each battle group - from submarines to air crews
to the high-tech troops operating on the ground. It is an exciting way
to tell the story and leaves the reader with a vivid impression of
having been directly involved.
The conflict does not end quickly. It is a true tug of war
demonstrating that both the Russians and the Americans have competent
military leaders and a surprising array of tools to support their
campaigns. They are also subject to mistakes, to faulty information,
and at times are profoundly affected by the forces of nature. It is a
costly conflict for both nations. The price in lives, in resources and
in individual ambitions is great. While the entire world suffers some
penalty from this war, positive lessons do emerge if humanity is alert
enough to find them.
The final signature to this story is written by Mother Nature as Mount
Erebus adds a small hiccup to the grand designs of humankind.
**************************
^ GLITTERBUG
by Tony Kenrick
(Carroll & Graf, October 1991, $18.95, ISBN 0-88184-748-8)
review by Cindy Bartorillo
Carroll & Graf demonstrate once again why they are one of my favorite
publishers--studying their catalog always gets me books that are not
only great, but that I would never have known about otherwise. (Write
to Carroll & Graf, 260 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10001 and see if
they'll send you a catalog too.) GLITTERBUG is one more terrific novel
that I have C&G to thank for, and I bet you'll like it too.
(Apparently various Hollywood types liked it, because it's been bought
by Tri-Star Pictures to be made into a Bruce Willis movie.)
In the opening pages of GLITTERBUG, Jerry Parrish wakes up in a
hospital with total amnesia. He doesn't remember who he is or how he
got there. Jerry learns from the doctor that he was in a serious
automobile accident and required brain surgery. He also finds out that
he was a skip tracer, someone who finds people who have run away from
their debts or other responsibilities. And he was very, very good at
it--he frequently had these unexplainable hunches that almost always
worked out. At least this is what people are telling Jerry; he has no
memory of his job at all.
After his body heals, Jerry returns to his job and discovers that he
is, indeed, very good at finding people. But there are more ominous
notes in his brand new world: Why does a stranger on the street call
him Jack? How did a skip tracer get so competent in hand-to-hand
combat? Why does he prefer chicken when his girlfriend says he prefers
beef? As his reality becomes fluid, Jerry is in for some shocks and
the reader is in for a very exciting trip. There's not much more I can
say about the plot without giving away some of the many, many
surprises. GLITTERBUG is one of those thrilling stories that proceed
at breakneck pace and keep you up all night trying to finish it in one
sitting. If you like thrills and surprises, you really shouldn't miss
GLITTERBUG.
**************************
^ CALLING HOME
by Michael Cadnum
(Viking, 1991, $14.95, ISBN 0-670-83566-8)
review by Janet Peters
"Impersonating the dead is easy"--so begins this young adult novel by
the author of such disturbing books as NIGHTLIGHT, SLEEPWALKER, and
SAINT PETER'S WOLF (reviewed, respectively, in RFP #12, #16, #18). The
dead referred to is Mead, and the impersonator is his best friend
Peter. Everyone believes that Mead has simply disappeared, run away
for reasons of his own. Only Peter knows that Mead is dead, and that
Peter himself is responsible. Mead's parents are distraught, Peter is
truly worried about the father's poor health, so to relieve their
anxiety, Peter calls them pretending to be Mead, just to tell them not
to worry. Peter is certain that telling the truth would just make
things worse. But now Peter learns what it's like to live with an
adult burden. Cadnum catches the feel of adolescence wonderfully, and
his moving portrayal of Peter's anguish makes CALLING HOME another
disturbing tale by a great new(ish) talent.
**************************
^ DREAM BABY
by Bruce McAllister
(Tor, October 1991, $4.99, ISBN 0-812-51098-4)
commentary from the publisher
Mary Damico, a nurse on the front lines in Vietnam, begins to have
dreams--nightmares--about the fatally wounded soldiers she's working
to save, dreams that tell her about the soldiers' past, hopes and
fears. Nightmares are not unusual in combat, but the day after HER
nightmare, the soldier from her dream is brought into her unit. She
sees the terrible wounds. She hears the screams and cries and watches
him die AGAIN.
The CIA in Vietnam is very interested in people like Mary. They
collect stories about soldiers who always seem to know where the
booby-traps are; soldiers who know where the snipers are going to fire
from; nurses who know in advance who is going to die. The CIA wants to
know how these powers work--and they want to use those who have them
to change the course of history.
**************************
^ THE FIRST MAN IN ROME
by Colleen McCullough
(Avon, August 1991, $6.95, ISBN 0-380-71081-1)
review by Darryl Kenning
A paperback book 1,076 pages is enough to intimidate almost anyone.
Don't let that happen to you. THE FIRST MAN IN ROME is a lively,
readable account of Rome during the last few decades of being a
republic. A number of the names will be familiar to anyone with a
basic education in western civilization, names like Sulla, Gaius
Julius Caesar, Gaius Marius and the like. But don't get confused by
the Caesar names since this is also a story of the relationships
between the families of the men we learned about in school.
"Rich tapestry" as a description of a novel has come to be a bit
shopworn with overuse, and yet it is an uncannily descriptive phrase
for this book. Colleen McCullough has written a number of other highly
successful books so far including THE THORN BIRDS. This gargantuan
novel will certainly embellish her reputation. I found the book
eminently readable in spite of the length. The characters seem more
human than the Roman legends usually come off in historical novels of
the period. The book seems enormously well researched and the flavor
of government, in all it's venality and sleaze in the day to day
workings with real people comes booming through.
I really enjoyed this book and think you will too. I recommend it
though if your one of those folks who has a hard time putting down a
book to take care of your day-to-day commitments you'd better be sure
you can take a week or so off.
Kenning Quotient (KQ) = 4 (0=rotten, 5=best)
**************************
* THE STAND-IN, a psychological thriller by Deborah Moggach (Little,
Brown) about the tangled lives and destinies of a movie star and her
stand-in, has been purchased for a theatrical production. The two lead
roles will both be played by Anjelica Huston.
#:#:#:#:#:#:#:#:#:#:#:#:#
# MURDER BY THE BOOK #
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editor: Cindy Bartorillo
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Murder By The Book is a division of Reading For Pleasure, published
bimonthly. This material is NOT COPYRIGHTED and may be used freely by
all. Catalogs, news releases, review copies, or donated reviews should
be sent to: Reading For Pleasure, 103 Baughman's Lane, Suite 303,
Frederick, MD 21702.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
^ A COUNTRY OF OLD MEN
The Last Dave Brandstetter Mystery
by Joseph Hansen
(Viking, May 1991, $17.95, ISBN 0-670-83826-8)
review by Cindy Bartorillo
Well, here it is--the book that so many fans never wanted to see--the
last Dave Brandstetter mystery. Dave is the insurance investigator
(now retired) whose adventures we've followed over the course of
twelve novels and 21 years. It is also the series of books that taught
many of us what it means to be a homosexual in America. As Joseph
Hansen himself explains,
"Dave is nearing seventy, and has been sensing his
flagging energies for some time. The price a writer pays
for letting a character age naturally is that, as in real
life, the moment comes when they must say good-bye."
In this last story, Dave is called out of retirement to solve the
mystery presented by a small child with a large bruise on his face. He
says he was kidnapped by a woman named Rachel. Zach had been hiding
around an apartment development at night when, hearing gunshots, he
ran around a corner and found this woman standing over a body holding
a gun. She took him at gunpoint so he couldn't tell anyone what he had
seen, but he finally managed to escape toward morning. Dave learns
that the murdered man was Cricket Shales, a rock guitarist and junkie
who was just released from jail. Rachel was his former girlfriend, and
it was outside her apartment that Cricket died.
The cast of suspects all agree that Rachel, who now can't be found,
would never do such a thing. She's such a gentle person. They are all
fond enough of Rachel to protect her, and they all have good motives
for killing Cricket. And they're ALL telling lies. Dave Brandstetter
must sort through the facts and fallacies and piece together the story
of Rachel and Cricket and little Zach. Along the way the reader is
treated to some of the most elegant spare prose to be found in the
mystery section of the bookstore. I was very taken with a passage
about Dave's reaction to a good friend with AIDS. Dave has driven over
to talk to his long-time friend Ray, who has been living with another
good friend who is now in the final stages of AIDS. Dave hadn't known
until he sees the man carried upstairs to his bedroom. His reaction,
and the ONLY words about the illness at all, are in this paragraph:
"Dave turned away, went out through the open door, and
stood on the porch, back turned to the hallway, waiting
for Ray. He didn't see the trees, the sky, the lawn-mower
jockey, the passing traffic. Something was wrong with his
eyes."
Joseph Hansen is still alive and writing, and is now working on a new
series of novels based on his own life and times. To help you complete
your collection and have all 12 Dave Brandstetter mysteries on your
shelf, here's a list of them all:
Fadeout
Death Claims
Troublemaker
The Man Everybody Was Afraid Of
Skinflick
Gravedigger
Nightwork
The Little Dog Laughed
Early Graves
Obedience
The Boy Who Was Buried This Morning
A Country of Old Men
**************************
^ DARK CRIMES
Great Noir Fiction from the '40s to the '90s
edited by Ed Gorman
(Carroll & Graf, September 1991, $21.95, ISBN 0-88184-699-6)
review by Howard Frye
"Noir" fiction is aptly named, "dark" being appropriate for the tone
of such stories, the perspective, and frequently the setting. Noir
fiction is suffused with a bleak or cynical attitude that suits a
character living in a one-room cockroach-infested apartment in a city
slum, sitting up at 2:30 AM staring at what's left of a bottle of
Scotch. It's also fitting that this category is known by a French
word. Though noir is an American invention that was nurtured in the
1940s in the pulp magazines, and later translated into Hollywood
films, the genre has always been best appreciated by the French. Noir
fiction is basically a subgenre of the crime story, and Ed Gorman has,
in the pages of DARK CRIMES, provided a fascinating overview of noir
past and present.
There are two short novels included here: my favorite is THE RED SCARF
by Gil Brewer, about an average man down on his luck who winds up with
a whole suitcase full of mob money. He thinks he'll be able to keep
both the money and his skin. What do you think? The other novel is
ANATOMY OF A KILLER by Peter Rade, about a hired gun whose careful
life is coming unraveled. Some 19 short stories fill out the rest of
this hefty volume, most of which are superb. I particularly like Evan
Hunter's "On the Sidewalk Bleeding", the title of which refers to a
young member of an urban street gang. And then there's "Souls Burning"
by Bill Pronzini, packing an extraordinary amount of emotion into a
very small package (notice to fans: It's a "Nameless" story). I also
enjoyed Karl Edward Wagner's "But You'll Never Follow Me", with its
last line that lingers. "Dust to Dust" by Marcia Muller is about the
traces that events leave behind them, and is as wonderful as all of
her stories are. And I also liked F. Paul Wilson's "Faces", a
disturbing story about the emotionally wounded.
Then there's an ingenious Amos Walker story by Loren D. Estleman, "The
Crooked Way"; the grisly "Hot Eyes, Cold Eyes" by Lawrence Block"; an
emotionally satisfying story by Edward Bryant called "While She Was
Out"; the haunting story, "The Seventh Grave" by Vann Anson Lister;
the ambiguous "A Handgun for Protection" by John Lutz; "Exit" by
Andrew Vachss, an ugly short-short; a touching story by editor Ed
Gorman, "Deathman"; "The Tunnel of Love", a typically ghoulish treat
from Robert Bloch; William Relling's tiny slice of psychopathology,
"Tony"; the gothic "By the Hair of the Head" by Joe R. Lansdale; a Ms.
Tree story from Max Allan Collins called "Red Light"; the mythic
"Taking the Night Train" by Thomas F. Monteleone; the comically
horrible "Stoner" by William F. Nolan; Robert J. Randisi's
"Night-Walker", a dark piece of comeuppance.
DARK CRIMES is both an introduction/overview of noir fiction, and a
gripping collection of stories by some of the finest writers of the
last 50 years. Just take a look at the authors represented. What a
lineup! DARK CRIMES now has a place of honor on my shelves right
beside my Cornell Woolrich collection.
**************************
^ THE PERFECT MURDER
Five Great Mystery Writers Create the Perfect Crime
by Jack Hitt with Lawrence Block, Sarah Caudwell, Tony Hillerman,
Peter Lovesey, Donald E. Westlake
(HarperCollins, 1991, $18.95, ISBN 0-06-016340-2)
review by Cindy Bartorillo
THE PERFECT MURDER is more of a novelty than a novel. It all started
with Jack Hitt who created a character called Tim. It seems that Tim
was a young man with no talents and no prospects, but who managed to
make himself agreeable enough to marry a lady of great wealth. Now his
wife is having another affair, this time with his best friend, and Tim
has had enough (of his wife, that is, not of her money). Tim wants to
murder his wife and frame his best friend for the crime. Since Tim is
still without noticeable talents of any kind, he writes to five of the
best murder-plotters to ask for their guidance. THE PERFECT MURDER was
the result.
The five suggested courses for Tim to take couldn't have been more
varied in particulars or in tone. Donald Westlake's clever strategies
are presented with a cheerful friendliness, while Peter Lovesey's
enthusiastic recommendations are theatrical and comical. Tony
Hillerman reverts to classical methods with a no-nonsense efficiency,
and Sarah Caudwell's proposal is nothing short of a Scottish costume
drama. Finally, Lawrence Block's response is shockingly cynical,
condescending, and grisly. After the replies are all in, Tim writes to
the five a second time, letting each one see the others suggestions,
and asking for professional criticism. The five dutifully turn on each
other with varying amounts of crankiness and glee, and then the party
is over. I'm not sure that any genuine breakthroughs were made in the
academic subject of murder, but a good time was had by all, including
the reader. THE PERFECT MURDER is great fun.
**************************
^ BAYOU CITY SECRETS
A Hollis Carpenter Mystery
by Deborah Powell
(Naiad Press, 1991, $8.95, ISBN 0-941483-91-6)
review by Carol Sheffert
The first novel by Deborah Powell and the first mystery of what is to
be a series, BAYOU CITY SECRETS reminds me mostly of the stories of
Raymond Chandler. The same hard-boiled detecting, the same political
corruption, the same unprincipled rich people, the same general time
frame, the same wry humor and hard truths. Well, there ARE a few
differences. For one thing, our detective Hollis Carpenter is a
journalist covering crime in 1936 Houston, not a California private
eye. For another thing, Hollis is a woman. For a third thing, Hollis
is a lesbian.
BAYOU CITY SECRETS opens with Hollis being taken off her normal crime
reporting and assigned to cover the centennial celebrations in Dallas
and Houston. A naturally bristly personality not given to compromise,
Hollis quits. As she puts it,
"It is a physical impossibility for me to write about who
designed Miss Edwina Snott's dress that she wore last
Thursday night to the very chic party given by Mrs. Rear
End in honor of Mr. Peg Leg who is in town visiting his
fiancee Miss Jug Butt. I cannot do it."
After that, strange events take over her life. The owner of the paper,
the very rich Andrew Delacroix, invites Hollis to dinner to persuade
her to go back to the paper and cover the centennial. Other than
introducing Hollis to Andrew's fantastically beautiful wife Lily, the
evening is a waste of time for everyone. Then Hollis' apartment in
broken into. Then her cop friend Tony is murdered. And someone keeps
following her in a green Chevrolet. After another murder or two, the
police want to know why she keeps showing up around dead bodies. Brand
new dead bodies.
BAYOU CITY SECRETS is lots of exciting hard-boiled fun, with Hollis
never far from a wisecrack or her Schnauzer named Anice. The period
flavor is a delight, as in:
"He played dumb about the girl until I slipped him a bill
and he opened his beak and sang like a canary."
One of the great things about a mid-1930s mystery written in 1991
rather than in the mid-1930s is that the reader gets exactly the
details that are most interesting. Like a character who is reading a
brand new book called GONE WITH THE WIND. Or prices: a phone call is 5
cents, a movie is 15 cents, you can bribe a hotel clerk with a dollar,
and I don't even want to discuss the price of gas. A piece of literary
and American history, with a few twists, BAYOU CITY SECRETS is a very
fine mystery. And if you'd like to visit Hollis Carpenter too, be sure
to bring some gingersnaps for Anice.
If your local bookstore can't get BAYOU CITY SECRETS for you, send the
list price plus 15% postage and handling to: The Naiad Press, PO Box
10543, Tallahassee, FL 32302. If you'd like to charge it you can order
by phone: 1-800-533-1973. Be sure to ask for their catalog--Naiad
Press has a lot of other good books.
**************************
^ UNSOLVED: GREAT TRUE CRIMES OF THE 20th CENTURY
by Kirk Wilson
(Carroll & Graf, April 1991, $10.95, ISBN 0-88184-703-8)
review by Cindy Bartorillo
In UNSOLVED author Kirk Wilson has taken what he judges to be the top
ten unsolved crimes of the 20th century and written a brief but
comprehensive synopsis of the case and all the major theories
concerning its solution. The lack of editorial bias, and the author's
consistent application of logic to all evidence and testimony, make
UNSOLVED unparalleled as a basic reference for the ten cases he
covers. Those cases are: the JFK assassination, the Jimmy Hoffa
disappearance, the murder of Sir Harry Oakes, Marilyn Monroe's death,
the murder of Serge Rubinstein, the von Bulow case, the T. Cullen
Davis case, the murders of Joan Robinson Hill and John Hill, the
disappearance of Helen Brach, and the Lord Lucan case.
UNSOLVED not only makes a good place for the beginning true crime buff
to begin, it can "clean the palate" of the more experienced reader.
After reading several books in which authors push their own
interpretation of the evidence, UNSOLVED will help you clear the air
and get back to facts and logic. The pros and cons of each theory are
adequately covered, with paradoxes and unanswered questions allowed to
stand as such. If you love chewing over names, dates, fiber samples,
and the other details of crime detection, you'll love UNSOLVED. One
can only hope that a future edition will include a much-needed photo
section, to illustrate the scenes of the various crimes and to give
faces to the cast of characters. At $10.95, this is a True Crime Best
Buy. Highly Recommended.
Kirk Wilson is an investigative journalist, creative writer, film
producer, and former police reporter who has won more than seventy
awards for his work in various media.
**************************
^ THE MURDERS OF MRS. AUSTIN & MRS. BEALE
by Jill McGown
(St. Martin's, September 1991, $17.95, ISBN 0-312-06422-5)
review by Carol Sheffert
Mrs. Leonora ("Lennie") Austin was an artist who married for financial
security. Her husband is an up-and-coming politician who married for
respectability. Mrs. Rosemary Beale was an ex-hooker who married her
gangster-husband for both money and respectability. The two women had
so little in common, and yet both were violently murdered on one
particular night. And they were connected by an open phone line. Why
were both women murdered that night? Why were they both found near
their phone, with a still-open line connecting their two houses? Did
they know each other?
Newly-promoted Detective Inspector Judy Hill must solve the Beale
case, and cooperate with her live-in lover, Detective Chief Inspector
Lloyd, on the Austin case. DI Hill's burden is considerable as she
tackles a difficult case while still getting accustomed to her new
seniority, bucking the male chauvinists in the department, and
fighting her own tendencies toward obsessiveness. To make matters
worse, she knew Lennie herself, and had received a suspicious phone
call from Lennie's husband the night of the murders. Also, intimations
that Judy's career is still on the upswing cause a few frictions with
Lloyd, who finds that, while the prospect of a partner who is an equal
is perfectly acceptable, the possibility of a partner who is a
superior is troubling.
Slightly confusing in the early pages before the characters sort
themselves out, THE MURDERS OF MRS. AUSTIN & MRS. BEALE is a complex
and fascinating case that carries the reader right through to the very
end, with plenty of surprises and clever twists. I particularly liked
the way a suspect is finally caught in a lie with a trick right out of
DIAL "M" FOR MURDER. Interesting characters, fascinating puzzles--THE
MURDERS OF MRS. AUSTIN & MRS. BEALE is a great read. Jill McGown is
also the author of A PERFECT MATCH (1983), AN EVIL HOUR (1987), THE
STALKING HORSE (1988), MURDER AT THE OLD VICARAGE (1988), GONE TO HER
DEATH (1989), and MURDER MOVIE (1990). All are from St. Martin's
Press.
**************************
^ HONEST MONEY: And Other Short Novels
by Erle Stanley Gardner
(Carroll & Graf, July 1991, $18.95, ISBN 0-88184-683-X)
review by Cindy Bartorillo
We have a lot to thank Carroll & Graf for, not the least of which is
collecting early Erle Stanley Gardner stories and getting them back
into print. Once Gardner had created his most famous character, Perry
Mason, his earlier works became overshadowed and were soon forgotten.
But Gardner could tell a pretty fair mystery with lots of action even
before the appearance of Mason, Street, and Drake, and the Carroll &
Graf collections prove it.
Back in the 1930s, BLACK MASK magazine published six short novels by
Gardner about a contentious young lawyer named Ken Corning. The were:
HONEST MONEY (November 1932), THE TOP COMES OFF (December 1932), CLOSE
CALL (January 1933), MAKING THE BREAKS (June 1933), DEVIL'S FIRE (July
1933), and BLACKMAIL WITH LEAD (August 1933). Shortly after that, Ken
Corning evolved into Perry Mason and was never seen again. Now, for
the first time, all six Ken Corning mysteries are available in book
form, in Carroll & Graf's HONEST MONEY. An absolute must for any Erle
Stanley Gardner fan's library.
NOTE: Another early Gardner character from BLACK MASK was Ed Jenkins,
featured in stories collected in Carroll & Graf's DEAD MEN'S LETTERS
and THE BLONDE IN LOWER SIX.
**************************
^ SLEEP OF THE UNJUST
by E.X. Ferrars
(Doubleday, August 1991, $16.00, ISBN 0-385-41707-1)
review by Carol Sheffert
Virginia Freer arrives at the Appleyard home expecting to attend the
wedding of her friend's niece, but instead she finds shocks and
puzzles. The first shock is meeting her long-estranged husband Felix,
who was invited without her knowledge. The second shock is the
unexpected arrival of Andrew Appleyard, the Appleyard's movie actor
son who hasn't been home in years. And the third shock is Andrew's
body, an apparent suicide, discovered the morning after his arrival.
The only trouble with the suicide theory is that there are three
suicide notes! The police finally solve the murder of Andrew
Appleyard, with just a little bit of help from Virginia and Felix.
SLEEP OF THE UNJUST is a readable and pleasant example of the Cozy
mystery, but it is certainly a minor example of E.X. Ferrars' talents.
The pace drags a bit in the middle as each character strains to come
up with a still more implausible explanation of Andrew's suicide and
the three notes. When the truth of the matter is finally uncovered,
it's only marginally more believable than the crazy theories. E.X.
Ferrars is the author of more than 60 works of mystery and suspense.
The British Crime Writers Association recently presented her with a
special award for continuing excellence in the mystery field. She
lives in England.
**************************
^ DEATH IN FIVE BOXES
by Carter Dickson
(International Polygonics, June 1991, $5.95, ISBN 1-55882-098-1)
review by Cindy Bartorillo
"I don't see it," returned Sanders. "On the contrary,
that would make the whole crime absolutely impossible. One
of them would have had to drug the cocktails--which is
impossible. One of them would have had to get in and out
of the building without being seen--which is impossible."
"Uh-huh. I know. But," said H.M. gently, "I've had to
deal with these impossible things before."
He certainly has: H.M., also known as Sir Henry Merrivale, also known
as The Old Man, solved more impossible crimes during the 1930s and
1940s than almost anyone except Dr. Gideon Fell. And, of course, both
Dr. Fell's stories and those of H.M. were written by the same man:
John Dickson Carr, one of the most prolific, and best loved, of the
mystery writers from the Golden Age. Because his publishers were
worried about the number of books being published under his own name,
they insisted that the Merrivale mysteries be by "Carter Dickson", a
thin disguise that never fooled anyone. Carr was an American by birth,
but lived much of his life in England, and set most of his mysteries
there. (The tradition of Americans writing British mysteries is
carried on most ably today by Martha Grimes.)
Sir Henry Merrivale is bald, overweight, pigeon-toed, smokes cigars,
is loud and rather vulgar, and embarrasses his friends. Several
reviewers mentioned early on that he resembled Winston Churchill,
which apparently appealed to Carr because the Churchill-like traits
expanded in later books. Merrivale was the favorite fictional sleuth
of mystery expert Howard Haycraft (author of MURDER FOR PLEASURE) and
was Carr's favorite from among his own characters.
In DEATH IN FIVE BOXES, four people sit down at a dining room table:
Sir Dennis Blystone, Mrs. Bonita Sinclair, Bernard Schumann, and Felix
Haye. A surgeon and peer, an art expert, a dealer in Egyptian
antiquities, and an investment broker. When found, Blystone, Sinclair,
and Schumann are unconcious, the victims of atropine poisoning. They
are taken to a hospital and all recover. Haye is dead, but not of
atropine. He's been stabbed. To make matters more complicated, the
three atropine victims have items with them that were apparently
stolen from someplace else AFTER they were drugged. So the problem is:
Who? Or, possibly even more important in an Impossible Crime story
such as this: How? How did someone put atropine in the cocktails that
were under constant scrutiny? How did someone slip in and out of the
building that was locked in the back and had a witness at the front?
You'll just have to follow The Old Man as he solves the puzzles.
Another classic mystery brought back into print by International
Polygonics Ltd.
~ SIR HENRY MERRIVALE NOVELS:
The Plague Court Murders (1934) $5.95
The White Priory Murders (1934) $5.95
The Red Widow Murders (1935) $4.95
The Unicorn Murders (1935) $5.95
The Punch and Judy Murders (1936; British title: The Magic Lantern
Murders) $4.95
The Peacock Feather Murders (1937; British title: The Ten Teacups)
$5.95
The Judas Window (1938) $5.95
Death in Five Boxes (1938) $5.95
The Reader Is Warned (1939) $5.95
Nine--And Death Makes Ten (1940; British title: Murder in the
Submarine Zone) $5.95
And So to Murder (1940)
Seeing Is Believing (1941)
The Gilded Man (1942) $4.95
She Died a Lady (1943)
He Wouldn't Kill Patience (1944) $5.95
The Curse of the Bronze Lamp (1945; British title: Lord of the
Sorcerers)
My Late Wives (1946)
The Skeleton in the Clock (1948)
A Graveyard to Let (1949)
Night at the Mocking Widow (1950)
Behind the Crimson Blind (1952)
The Cavalier's Cup (1953)
NOTE: The prices are for the IPL editions, available by sending the
stated price plus $1 postage and handling for the first book and $.50
for each book thereafter to: International Polygonics, Ltd., Madison
Square, PO Box 1563, New York, NY 10159-1563. Ask for their catalog as
well; IPL has other mysteries by John Dickson Carr and a lot of other
great mystery writers (like Margaret Millar, Craig Rice, Ellery Queen,
Anthony Boucher, etc.).
**************************
^ ACT OF DARKNESS
A Gregor Demarkian Holiday Mystery
by Jane Haddam
(Bantam Crime Line, July 1991, $4.50, ISBN 0-553-29086-X)
review by Carol Sheffert
It's the Fourth of July and the cast is gathering: Senator Stephen
Fox, a not-very-bright puppet politician; Dan Chester, Stephen's
political manager and general puppeteer; Dr. Kevin Debrett, school
chum of Stephen's and Dan's, a man who can't stand blood but who
enjoys money; Janet, the senator's cooperative but aloof wife; Patchen
Rawls, the senator's latest girlfriend; Victoria Harte, Janet's famous
movie star mother; Clare Markey, the lobbyist; Gregor Demarkian,
former FBI agent who has been invited to investigate the senator's
mysterious "spells"; Bennis Hannaford, Gregor's friend; and Carl
Bettinger, an FBI agent who shouldn't be hanging around but is.
You see, they've all gathered at Victoria Harte's mansion on Long
Island for a political seminar and the July 4th holiday. Senator Fox
has recently begun to have these spells where he suddenly becomes
paralyzed and falls to the ground, recovering a few minutes later. The
doctors find nothing wrong, and all the suspects are always on the
scene whenever one of these spells occurs. What most of the suspects
have in common is children with Down's syndrome. The Senator has
recently introduced a bill in Congress on their behalf; Dr. Debrett
specializes in retarded children; Clare Markey lobbies for a group
that aids retarded children; and Janet Fox gave birth to a child with
Down's syndrome 10 years ago, a child who died several days later.
Gregor Demarkian not only must discover what is causing Senator Fox's
spells, but soon he must solve the murder of Dr. Debrett, who is found
peacefully in his room with no apparent cause of death. There will be
another murder before the case is solved, and Gregor will have to work
fast before more deaths occur.
This is one of a series of Holiday Mysteries by Orania Papazoglou
writing under the pseudonym Jane Haddam, but it's the first I have
read. Like the Patience McKenna mysteries she writes under her own
name, this Gregor Demarkian novel is filled with carefully drawn
characters. Even minor characters are incompletely-revealed
three-dimensional people, not cardboard cutout "types". The front of
ACT OF DARKNESS reveals two previous Holiday Mysteries: NOT A CREATURE
WAS STIRRING (obviously a Christmas story), and PRECIOUS BLOOD
(possibly an Easter story?). At the end there is even a preview of the
next Holiday Mystery, a Halloween story called QUOTH THE RAVEN, which
sounds great. It even has raven called Lenore.
**************************
^ BLACK LIGHT
by Daniel Hearn
(Dell, August 1991, $3.99, ISBN 0-440-20787-8)
review by Howard Frye
There was another letter. It was postmarked Los Angeles,
California. Inside were a simple piece of typing paper and
ten one-hundred-dollar bills.
The message typed on the paper read:
ANIMAL FARM
NOVEMBER 20, 1970
"ALL PIGS ARE EQUAL, BUT SOME ARE MORE EQUAL THAN OTHERS."
TALK TO LENNY BYRD. CECELIA KNOWS WHERE HE IS.
HER NAME IS NOW CELIA MATTHEWS. SHE IS AN ACTRESS IN NEW
YORK.
Typed at the bottom of the page where the signature
would ordinarily be were the words "KEVIN MOON".
Now I had two clients and they were both dead men.
BLACK LIGHT is the second mystery novel featuring New York private eye
Joe Noonan, who is a combination of Dashiell Hammett's Sam Spade,
Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlowe and Bill Pronzini's Nameless
detective. Joe has an unshakeable code of ethics, a weakness for
booze, and a one-eyed cat named Lord Nelson. This time out, Joe gets a
stroll down memory lane when he is hired by old acquaintance Evan
Mattingly to find Lenny Byrd. Evan and Lenny were college-student
members of a commune (called Animal Farm) back in the revolutionary
sixties, along with various others like Alex Cutler, Ed Henits, Kevin
Moon, and Carol Murdoch. Joe wasn't a member of the commune of course,
but he was infatuated with Carol, who had an on-again, off-again
relationship with leader of the pack Alex Cutler.
Now Evan wants to locate Lenny Byrd, but Evan is killed almost
immediately. Was it gay bashers, or possibly someone Evan was
investigating for the consumer rights organization he worked for, or
does it have something to do with why he wanted to find Lenny? Noonan
must find Lenny and answer these questions, for he has accepted Evan's
money and alive or dead Evan deserves his money's worth. Soon Joe is
digging up the past and finds that Alex and Ed were drug dealers,
Kevin Moon mysteriously died when the commune's house burned to the
ground, and electronic genius Lenny Byrd is now an alcoholic cabbie.
Noonan also gets to see Carol again, now a wealthy woman in Los
Angeles working in the film industry. Why did Evan want Lenny found?
Why was Evan killed? Is Kevin Moon really dead? BLACK LIGHT is a
winner from the beginning to its slam-bang ending. Not to be missed.
(The first Joe Noonan novel was BAD AUGUST.)
**************************
^ AND SOON I'LL COME TO KILL YOU
by Susan Kelly
(Villard, 1991, $18, ISBN 0-394-58415-5)
review by Carol Sheffert
Liz Connors used to teach college English, but now she supports
herself by writing true-crime articles and the occasional short story.
Her true-crime pieces are often disturbing to readers and infuriating
to their subjects, so she gets a crank letter every once in a while
and calls it part of the job. But when she begins to get a series of
nasty messages, she takes them to her boyfriend Jack, who happens to
be a policeman. When the letters get specifically threatening, she
moves into Jack's place, but the letters follow her. Apparently her
enemy is watching her every move. Despite her determination to live a
normal life, Liz soon finds herself carrying a gun and making lists of
potential enemies.
AND SOON I'LL COME TO KILL YOU is an excellent suspense story that
carries the reader along at breakneck pace from the first message
("You vicious bitch") to the last page. Several scenes are powerful
enough to have you holding your breath--Susan Kelly is definitely a
writer to keep your eye on. Why, though, did I get the impression that
the story had been "sanitized"? Bad guys just didn't seem all that
bad, and Liz's traumas didn't seem that upsetting (making the taut
suspense of virtually every page all the more impressive). With or
without the visceral edge, AND SOON I'LL COME TO KILL YOU is an
exciting story of suspense; another fine novel from the author of THE
GEMINI MAN.
**************************
^ SENATOR LOVE
A Fiona Fitzgerald Novel of Suspense
by Warren Adler
(Donald I. Fine, September 1991, $18.95, ISBN 1-55611-244-0)
review by Cindy Bartorillo
The title politician is the seductively attractive Senator Sam
Langford, a presidential hopeful with a lovely (rich) wife, the usual
two wonderful children, and a afternoon hobby that's been going on for
years. His current girlfriend is the wife of the Austrian ambassador,
who shows up at all the Washington social events, as does Senator
Langford and his wife, as does the Senator's ex-wife. It's lucky that
Senator Langford is charming enough to juggle his women, past and
present, and make all of them happy.
Fiona Fitzgerald, a senator's daughter and now a homicide detective,
also attends many Washington social events, and she is amused by the
Senator's shenanigans and briefly falls under his spell at a party.
The next day she is at the scene as "old bones" are found in a
residential backyard. It's a perfectly preserved skeleton, apparently
buried nude, but with a slave bracelet inscribed "MY BET". Fiona and
her partner Cates soon discover that the bones belonged to Betty
Taylor, a beautiful young woman who worked in Washington and
disappeared a dozen years ago. When the Austrian Ambassador's wife
turns up missing, and then dead, similarly buried in the backyard of
an untenanted house, the connection is unmistakable. When the
Senator's "fire control" man confirms that a previous girlfriend was
named Betty Taylor, Fiona is off and running. Who is killing the
Senator's girlfriends? Have there been others?
Warren Adler keeps the reader guessing and turning the pages until the
very end, with a few last twists just to keep the reader alert. I
enjoyed this book even more than the last Fiona Fitzgerald mystery,
IMMACULATE DECEPTION (reviewed in RFP #16). A very good mystery.
**************************
^ SOMETHING NASTY IN THE WOODSHED
by Kyril Bonfiglioli
(International Polygonics, August 1991, $7.95, ISBN 1-55882-090-6)
review by Cindy Bartorillo
How can I possibly give you an idea of what this book is like? When I
began reading it I thought What Ho! This is written very much in the
style of P.G. Wodehouse, right down to the characters. The story is
told by a hard-drinking upper crust British gentleman with a bizarre
manservant. After reading a while longer I noticed that an odd note of
Thomas Harris had crept in. While the plot of SOMETHING NASTY IN THE
WOODSHED isn't as horrifying as SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, the mystery does
revolve around a series of violent rapes. This unusual dichotomy
continues throughout the story, with an occasional Monty Python
interlude to keep things jolly. As I read the last page, however, the
whole bubbling stew turned into something more along the lines of
Albert Camus. The author himself described the book:
"A tragedy told by a compulsive comedian. Both the bad and
the good end unhappily; that is the meaning of life."
SOMETHING NASTY IN THE WOODSHED is enormously funny, but it is also
shocking, perplexing, and sad. If you're tired of the same old thing,
this is what you need.
NOTE: SOMETHING NASTY IN THE WOODSHED is actually the second book
starring the Hon. Charlie Mortdecai. The first was called DON'T POINT
THAT THING AT ME and it won the first John Creasy Memorial Award. Both
are available from IPL for $7.95 each. Send the list price plus
shipping and handling ($1.00 for the first book, $.50 for each
additional book) to: International Polygonics Ltd., Madison Square, PO
Box 1563, New York, NY 10159-1563.
**************************
^ STATE STREET
by Richard Whittingham
(Donald I. Fine, September 1991, $18.95, ISBN 1-55611-250-5)
commentary by the publisher
The old song goes, "On State Street / That great street / I just want
to say / They do things / They don't do / On Broadway", and Richard
Whittingham captures the spirit of the song and the Windy City in
STATE STREET, his authentic and thrilling foray into crime fiction.
It's been over a year since Chicago detective Joe Morrison was
transferred from Homicide to Organized Crime, but the images of the
murder victims he has seen still wake him up in a sweat in the middle
of the night. Now he spends most of his time in the State Street
police headquarters acting as a liaison with other police departments,
the Illinois Crime Commission, the FBI and his partner Norbert Castor,
who knows more about the Mafia than "anybody below the level of
consigliore in the Outfit itself". But Morrison is pulled back into
the most violent sphere of Chicago's underworld after a mob capo's
daughter is raped.
Morrison and Castor begin their investigation of the rape--even though
the Mafia boss has his own idea of justice--but Morrison finds himself
sidetracked when an old family friend, Theo Warner, is murdered. As
Morrison works with his old homicide colleagues to solve the Warner
case, some colorfully raffish suspects emerge, including commodities
trader Dennis Courtland, "major street animal" Tommy Bates and his
girlfriend Jo Kane. When Norbert Castor is shot, Morrison is left to
his own street-smart devices, in the honored tradition of Hammett's
Sam Spade and McBain's Steve Carella, to make sure justice is served.
STATE STREET captures the same excitement and flavor of the Chicago
streets that Richard Whittingham chronicled in his nonfiction work,
JOE D: ON THE STREET WITH A CHICAGO HOMICIDE COP. STATE STREET is his
first novel.
**************************
^ LIE TO ME
by David Martin
(Pocket Star Books, August 1991, $5.95, ISBN 0-671-73876-3)
review by Drew Bartorillo
Mary and Jonathan Gaetan are fabulously wealthy and own a mansion in a
plush Washington D.C. suburb. They are very happily married and
looking forward to going to a party this fateful night. While they are
gone, an intruder breaks in, a serial killer who has been watching
Mary and Jonathan's house. The killer carries with him the hand of his
last victim, a fifteen year old hitchhiker, and has chosen the
Gaetan's for his next victims. In a night of terror, he threatens
them, tortures them, and then goes on to reveal secrets about them no
stranger could ever know or possibly guess.
The next day, Jonathan Gaetan is found dead in his bathtub, brutally
mutilated with a Bowie knife. His penis is severed, hanging by a
thread. When the police arrive, Mary Gaetan tells them nothing about
the vicious killer. Instead, she claims that Jonathan committed
suicide. With the bathroom door locked from the inside the police have
no recourse but to believe her.
Just to be sure, though, investigator Teddy Camel, the human lie
detector, is asked to interrogate the widow. Teddy is within two years
of retirement and relegated to a desk job. His major accomplishment
each day is managing to stay awake at his desk, not too successfully I
might add. After interrogating the widow, Teddy claims she is telling
the truth. Is she? If not, why is Teddy hiding the awful truth? How
many victims will our serial killer claim before he is finally
stopped?
Now here is a book that will make you sleep with one eye open! I
especially like two opening passages in the book:
"He sits in the woods holding her hand."
"Squeezing the girl's hand and speaking softly......"
We come to find out that all the killer IS holding is the girl's hand,
not the rest of her. This is pretty much the way the entire book goes.
The killer carries around this hand, plus items from other victims, in
his deranged, psychotic killing spree. I enjoyed LIE TO ME very much
and found it well paced and difficult to put down. The intermingling
of the stories of the psychotic killer, Mary Gaetan, and the off-beat
cop Teddy Camel was very well done. The novel has an "Ellery Queen"
type of ending and even a twist that you won't be prepared for. I
highly recommend LIE TO ME and look forward to reading other novels by
the same author, David Martin.
**************************
* THE COFFEY FILES by Joe Coffey and Jerry Schmetterer is a nonfiction
book coming from St. Martin's Press. It's the story of Joe Coffey who
saw his father almost killed by the Mafia and grew up to join the New
York Police Department and head a unit specializing in Mafia murders.
The book has been optioned by New World Television who is planning to
turn it into a movie-of-the-week that will, they hope, turn into a
long-running TV series. Best bet to play Coffey, as I type this, is
Ken Wahl, best known from the TV series WISEGUY.
* Be sure to get the latest catalog from Mystery Loves Company, a
mail-order mystery bookstore run by Sue Feder, Kathy Harig, and Paige
Rose. Write to them at: Mystery Loves Company, 1730 Fleet Street,
Baltimore, MD 21231; 301/276-6708.
* Delilah's back in SET-UP, a mystery by Maxine O'Callaghan coming
from St. Martin's in November 1991 ($17.95, ISBN 0-312-06462-4).
Delilah's luck has changed. She even has all those nice C-things: car
phone, condo, computer. But, as usual, she's up to her ears in
trouble--this time of the explosive kind--when she finds herself in
the crossfire between Orange County land developers and
environmentalists.
<-*->:<-*->:<-*->:<-*->:<-*->:<-*->
< >
< LOOSEN YOUR GRIP ON REALITY >
< >
<-*->:<-*->:<-*->:<-*->:<-*->:<-*->
<< Editor: Darryl Kenning >>
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Loosen Your Grip On Reality is a division of Reading For Pleasure,
published bimonthly. This material is NOT COPYRIGHTED and may be used
freely by all. Contributions of information, reviews, etc. should be
sent to:
Darryl Kenning CompuServe: 76337,740
6331 Marshall Rd. or GEnie: D.Kenning
Centerville, Ohio 45459 HeavenSoft BBS 513-836-4288
The Annex BBS 513-274-0821
---------------------------------------------------------------------
THE KENNING QUOTIENT (KQ) is a rating applied to books read by the
editor of this section, a number ranging from 0 (which means the book
is an unredeemable stinker) to 5 (meaning the book is absolutely top
drawer).
---------------------------------------------------------------------
~ RANDOM ACCESS
#Interesting Times AGAIN!
No one who lived through the 50's or 60's would have foreseen the
world events in Eastern Europe as they have swirled around us in the
past year. In fact, I would bet that any such musings would have been
dismissed as mere wishful thinking. Whatever the ultimate outcome it
undoubtedly will be more different than any of us can imagine.
What brings these ramblings on was a short newspaper article that
mentioned that a Soviet (is that the right description?) Mars Buggy
will be tested in California this year after undergoing some
"preliminary" tests in one of the Russian Republics. That started me
to thinking about the impressive level of technology - albeit a brute
force technology - that They have accomplished. More importantly, what
is going to happen to that technology.
Given the social difficulties they are facing for the next decade or
so, and given the propensity for politicians to prefer to do the
expedient, I have a real concern that the space related technology
will disappear and be lost to us all. On the plus side of course is
that newspaper article that seems to imply that the much wished for
cooperative ventures may be more of a reality than most of us had
dared hope.
The other concern that I have is that the level of spending for space
related technology in the U.S. may continue to slide without the
political bogeyman to justify the expenditures. The really sad part of
all this is that the Space Program is about the only thing (besides
Defense) that the Federal Government has undertaken that has given us
much return on the investment. It does almost make you cry to think of
the billions of dollars spent on social programs, later abandoned as
wasted, that might have us living and working in space right now.
I'm afraid that I have no quick answer, no magic wand to wave and fix
all this. You know that about the only thing we can do as individuals
is to let our federal officials, especially in Congress, know that we
want a say in how our money is spent. But it is important to let them
know that, and it is important to ask about ways we can work with the
Soviet Government, whatever that may end up looking like, to preserve
our technological heritage for the benefit of all mankind.
dkk
**************************
~ JOHN W. CAMPBELL MEMORIAL AWARD
For Best SF Novel of 1990
Winner: PACIFIC EDGE by Kim Stanley Robinson
Runners-up: QUEEN OF ANGELS by Greg Bear (2nd place)
ONLY BEGOTTEN DAUGHTER by James Morrow (3rd place)
~ THEODORE STURGEON MEMORIAL AWARD
For Best Short SF of 1990
Winner: "Bears Discover Fire" by Terry Bisson
Runners-up: "Episodes of the Argo" by R.A. Lafferty
"My Advice to the Civilized" by John Barnes
(both tied for 2nd place)
**************************
~ OWLSWICK PRESS
by Cindy Bartorillo
Owlswick Press publishes beautifully bound volumes of SF and fantasy
for very reasonable prices. You can get their catalog by writing to:
Owlswick Press, PO Box 8243, Philadelphia, PA 19101-8243. Here are a
few of their titles. (The prices include postage and handling, so you
can just send the listed price, plus 6% sales tax if you're in PA, to
Owlswick Press to get any of the following books.)
^ ANITA
by Keith Roberts
(November 1990, $20.25, ISBN 0-913896-27-6)
This is a reprint of a classic 1970 collection of stories originally
published in SCIENCE FANTASY and THE MAGAZINE OF FANTASY AND SCIENCE
FICTION. They are all centered on a teenage girl named Anita Thompson,
very similar to teenage girls everywhere, except that she is a witch.
A real one. She lives with her grandmother, who is a witch of the old
school--broomstick, bubbling cauldron and all. With one foot in the
mists of antiquity and one foot in the modern world of boys and fast
sports cars, Anita is a perfect point-of-view character for Roberts'
serious comments about life, morality, and dreams. In addition to the
stories from the original collection, ANITA contains a new
introduction by the Roberts and one additional story ("The Checkout").
With a full-color dust jacket and interior illustrations by Stephen
Fabian, ANITA is a lovely book, both to look at and to read.
^ THE ADVENTURES OF DOCTOR ESZTERHAZY
by Avram Davidson
(January 1991, $24.50, ISBN 0-913896-28-4)
A collection of all 13 Enquiries of the celebrated sage of the Triune
Monarchy (Scythia-Pannonia-Transbalkania, bordering on Graustark and
Ruritania), including several long stories never before in book form.
In his foreword, Gene Wolfe writes: "The few writers whom we read with
continued pleasure become our friends, although we may never encounter
them outside their own pages...Avram Davidson is the author we should
all read." THE ADVENTURES OF DOCTOR ESZTERHAZY has a full-color dust
jacket by George Barr and interior drawings by Todd Cameron Hamilton,
and is also available in a signed, limited, boxed edition for $50
(ISBN 0-913896-30-6). Avram Davidson is the author of THE PHOENIX AND
THE MIRROR, PEREGRINE: PRIMUS, and PEREGRINE: SECUNDUS, along with
many other classics of erudite, witty fantasy such as this.
^ THE INFINITE KINGDOMS
by Michael Rutherford
(December 1990, $12.00, ISBN 0-913896-32-2)
Three journeys through the Infinite Kingdoms by Michael Rutherford, a
new talent to watch in the fantasy field. The first is "The Tale and
Its Master", in which the fatally proud Remus, who thought himself
master and not servant of the enchantments of Storytelling, seeks and
finds a new and shining tale (told here in full). He wins it from a
witch--at a price. The second is "Wager of Dreams" wherein the world
loses belief in anything that cannot be touched or tasted. So potent
is the smog of materialism that the creatures of Dream inevitably must
lapse into nonbeing--unless Trundle, the last of the Dreamers, will
take on himself the burden of a quest. Lastly, "Knights of Darkness,
Knights of Light", which begins with the chance encounter between the
freebooter Ragnack and Apollyon, a demon disguised as human, sent by
the Soul Eaters on a desperate quest for untainted souls. Thus the
stage is set for an epic conflict of two worlds. With a full-color
cover and interior illustrations by Janet Aulisio. (THE INFINITE
KINGDOMS is also available in hardcover for $24.)
**************************
^ THE DRAGON REBORN
Book Three of THE WHEEL OF TIME
by Robert Jordan
(Tor Fantasy, November 1991, $22.95, ISBN 0-312-85254-1)
commentary from the publisher
Robert Jordan has taken the mythologies of four continents, from
Celtic and Norse to Hindu, from African to Amerindian, and woven
together the common and uncommon elements to create something
completely original--something new that we can almost believe is the
source of those ancient legends.
THE EYE OF THE WORLD ("the best of its genre"--THE OTTAWA CITIZEN; "a
combination of Robin Hood and Stephen King that is hard to resist--
MILWAUKEE SENTINEL) and THE GREAT HUNT ("leaves the reader hovering
between the desire to know the outcome now and the promise of much
more good reading ahead"--NEWS AND COURIER, Charleston, South
Carolina), are Books One and Two of THE WHEEL OF TIME series.
Book Three, THE DRAGON REBORN, tells of the long-prophesied leader who
will save the world, but in saving it will destroy it. Rand al'Thor is
on the run from his destiny--able to touch the One Power but unable to
control it, he only knows that he must face the Dark One.
Winter has slowed the war, yet men are dying, calling out for the
Dragon. But where is he? Perrin Aybara is in pursuit with Moiraine
Sedai, her Warder Lan, and Loial the Ogier. Bedeviled by dreams,
Perrin is grappling with a deadly problem that threatens his own
humanity.
Egwene, Elayne, and Nynaeve are approaching Tar Valon, where Mat will
be healed, if he lives until they arrive. They cannot know that worse
things await in the White Tower.
Ahead, for all of them, in the Heart of the Stone, lies the next great
test of the Dragon Reborn.
**************************
^ ECCE AND OLD EARTH
Book Two of the Cadwal Chronicles
by Jack Vance
(Tor, September 1991, $21.95, ISBN 0-312-85132-4)
commentary from the publisher
Environmental conservation calls for political action. In Jack Vance's
ECCE AND OLD EARTH, set 1,000 years in humanity's future, these
politics mean life or death--both for the planet Cadwal and for the
young couple fighting the opposition to save the Conservancy.
World Fantasy Award-winning author Vance returns to the planet Cadwal
for the second novel in his intriguing hard science fiction trilogy,
which began with ARAMINTA STATION (Tor, 1988). Cadwal, a world of
extraordinary beauty with an abundance of strange and unique species,
has been protected from human exploitation by the Conservancy
established by the Cadwal Charter 1,000 years earlier. Now, opposition
groups are calling for the abolition of the Charter. They want to open
lands on the unsettled continents for settlement, allegedly for the
underclass known as the Yips. Leaders of the opposition (the Life,
Peace, and Freedom Party, or LPFers) come from the aristocratic
families, whose power dates back to the founding colony at Araminta
Station. Ulterior motives lurk behind the apparent altruism of these
powerful LPFers--specifically lust for huge estates and wealth, at the
expense of the Yips.
Vance, one of science fiction's great stylists, has won many Hugo and
Nebula awards, and his 1989 novel, MADOUC, won the World Fantasy
Award. LOCUS said ECCE AND OLD EARTH "is Jack Vance in SF adventure
mode, redolent of the '50s and perfumed with the even more exotic
essences of adventure fiction (and travel literature) predating the
pulps." PUBLISHERS WEEKLY said "Vance's rich lyrical style makes this
follow-up to ARAMINTA STATION a pleasure to read...provocative and
fun."
**************************
^ STREET MAGIC
by Michael Reaves
(Tor, July 1991, $18.95, ISBN 0-312-85125-1)
commentary from the publisher
"I'm not crazy, am I? There IS real magic in the world,
isn't there?"
So says Liz Gallegher, a hardboiled editor of the tabloid STAR, at the
climax of Michael Reaves' STREET MAGIC, voicing the universal feelings
of all the characters in Reaves' engaging glimpse of Faerieland.
Michael Reaves brings Faerie--usually found only under the hills of
Ireland--to life in contemporary San Francisco. Danny, a runaway from
an abusive, control-crazy father, now lives among the street people of
the city. Squatting in an abandoned hotel with drug addicts, Danny
scams nickels and dimes on the street for a living, while dreaming of
escaping to his fantastical Middle Earth, populated with trolls and
wizards, as well as Robin Hood, Flash Gordon, and Godzilla. You see,
Danny half-believes he carries magic deep within himself.
Danny's dreams seem to have a chance to become real when a troupe of
Scatterlings recognizes him as a changeling and takes him in. The
Scatterlings are themselves runaways from Faerie, and want to go home,
but they need a Keymaster, one who can open the GALLITRAP into
Faerieland. Danny will become that Keymaster, if only he can tap into
his latent magic abilities.
However, Danny's pathological father wants him back. He hires Scott
Russell, a down-on-his-luck unemployed private detective. Finding a
runaway on the streets of San Francisco seems a hopeless task, but
with the help of editor Liz, they follow leads through comic book
shops and science fiction bookstores.
Reaves builds his story around his well-defined characters, with the
chase to claim Danny revealed to the reader through their experiences.
Exposure to so much magic affects the lives of all involved--some
gain, some lose in the end.
**************************
^ THE JUNGLE
by David Drake
(Tor, September 1991, $18.95, ISBN 0-312-85197-9)
commentary from the publisher
"The terraformers' centuries-long work continued. Later
cylinders spewed the seeds and eggs of multicelled
lifeforms onto the newly receptive planet. Trees of myriad
species; vines, grasses and epiphytes, ALL the diversity
of Earth, plus multiple mutations for every original
species. Through the burgeoning jungles stalked
beasts--insects, arachnids, crustaceans...Human-engineered
changes to gene plasm had coupled eagerly with the virgin
environment and the high level of ionizing radiation
penetrating the clouds of water vapor. The result was a
hell of aggressive mutations like nothing ever seen on
Earth."
Welcome to Venus, as depicted in David Drake's THE JUNGLE, where
humans have been able to survive UNDER the planet's oceans in vast
"Keeps", each one ruled by a Council of Twelve. Now, rival Keeps are
competing for resources and fishing grounds, and the next step may be
to explore the planet's vast, impenetrable jungle populated by
monstrous aliens and deadlier plants, turf where no one has survived
before. Officer-Trainee Henry Wilding wants to direct human energy to
taming and utilizing this land surface, but the choice is made for him
as war begins between the Wyoming Keep (Wilding's family is one of the
Twelve Families directing affairs) and the Asturias Keep.
Wilding and the hovercraft team of mercenaries commanded by Ensign
Brainard endure a virtual trial by fire when they are driven ashore
and forced to enter that ominous environment. In THE JUNGLE Drake
reprises the universe first created by Henry Kuttner in the classic
CLASH BY NIGHT, which describes life on Venus after Earth has been
destroyed.
While the inhabitants of the Keeps continue to party, Wilding,
Brainard and the crew encounter three-inch man-attacking ants,
meat-eating fish, super-strong eels, infections, hunger, grievous
damage to their craft--a vast array of plot-moving, page-turning
debacles.
**************************
^ THE PHOENIX GUARDS
by Steven Brust
(Tor Fantasy, September 1991, $19.95, ISBN 0-312-85157-X)
commentary from the publisher
Alexandre Dumas gave us THE THREE MUSKETEERS in 1846, an action-filled
tale of the dashing D'Artagnan and his trio of heroes. Steven Brust
takes off exponentially on the classic Dumas pere adventure. We still
have a D'Artagnan-type leader, Khaavren, and three intrepid comrades
who rely on swordplay, sorcery, skill, wits and blind luck to see them
through a series of adventures, secret plots, and fabulous intrigues.
But Brust is not rooted in the history and imagination of the 19th
century. In THE PHOENIX GUARDS, the author transports his readers far
into the future, into an ambiance never dreamed of by Dumas.
Brust returns to the Dragaera Empire, the world he created for Vlad
Taltos, the hero of his ongoing series, but the time frame is 1,000
years BEFORE Vlad's birth. In THE PHOENIX GUARDS, Khaavren is a young,
somewhat naive swordsman who decides to join the Imperial Guards, and
on his way to meet the Phoenix Emperor, encounters three other
blade-flashing, smooth-mannered aspirants...and the games begin.
Steven Zoltan Brust, whose ancestry is Hungarian, was born in 1955. He
describes himself as the father of ten novels and four children, not
necessarily in that order. He is also one of the founding fathers of
the Minneapolis Fantasy Writers' Group--aka "The Scribblies"--that has
produced such stars as Patricia C. Wrede, Emma Bull, Kara Delkey,
Pamela Dean and Will Shetterly.
**************************
^ CUP OF CLAY
Book I of The Taliswoman
by Carole Nelson Douglas
(Tor Fantasy, September 1991, $19.95, ISBN 0-312-85146-4)
commentary from the publisher
Carole Nelson Douglas is a versatile writer who gracefully swings from
stories about shrewd women who can out-sleuth Sherlock Holmes (GOOD
MORNING, IRENE and GOOD NIGHT, MR. HOLMES), to mysteries involving
literary cats (CATNAP), to her new Taliswoman Trilogy, in which she
mixes feminism, fantasy, horror, and ecology in her fictional world of
Veil.
In this first book of the series, CUP OF CLAY, we meet Alison Carver,
a reporter for a Twin Cities newspaper, who discovers that in the
magical land of Veil, water is not safe to drink--the stunning
waterfalls are actually poisonous--and that while the vegetation is
lush, the flowers emit a vile stench.
Even worse, in Veil, although women are put on pedestals, they have
virtually no rights...and although children are loved, they are also
exploited. The children of Veil, known as the "Littlelost", are exiled
by their parents and sent to live in the beautiful forests, where they
are captured by brutal men, the "Takers", who are not exactly running
a day-care center.
Alison wants to help the kids, but she also wants to return to Earth.
Her best way out is with the help of Rowan, a red-haired young man,
who unfortunately has another agenda: his mission is to become
guardian of the "Cup of Earth", the Cup of Clay, a talisman that is
won by song...and song alone.
**************************
PAPERBACK BOOKSHELF
^ BARRAYER
by Lois McMaster Bujold
(Baen Books, October 1991, $4.99, ISBN 0-671-72083-X)
review by Darryl Kenning
BARRAYER is the newest in the extraordinarily popular Miles Vorkosigan
series of novels. If you hadn't noticed Lois McMaster Bujold has won
both the Hugo and the Nebula award. This book continues the rich
legacy we have come to expect. A nice plus is the timeline she added
to the end of the book that matches dates with novels and the events
in Miles's life.
This particular novel deals with Cordelia Naismith, who married Aral
Vorkosigan and ultimately became Mile's mother. The story picks up
after the marriage but just before Lord Vorkosigan become the regent
for the boy king. This nicely leaves the earlier part of her life
available for another story (soon I hope). The author continues to
show a fine flair for creating characters that have real depth. The
universe she has assembled works well and there are enough "human"
inconsistencies in the way the social fabric comes together to
convince the reader that this version of reality could come into
being. I am impressed with the way the stories and people stay in
character so well with how I remember the other books, which is where
many authors seem to have trouble with connected stories.
I had to exercise real self discipline to keep from devouring the
entire book at one reading. If you've read the other books by Ms.
Bujold you'll want to make a special trip to the bookstore for this
one. If you haven't this a good one to start with. Need I say more?
KQ = 5
**************************
^ THE SUM OF THINGS
by Roland J. Green
(ROC, May 1991, $3.99, ISBN 0-451-45080-9)
review by Darryl Kenning
When you see this book on the newsstands the first thing to catch your
eye will be the name of the series STARCRUISER SHENANDOAH. This is
book #3 in the series by Roland J. Green. An accomplished writer, this
series is an attempt to blend the traditional space navy book with the
ground war novel. In the main it succeeds reasonably well.
I found the plot turns a little more intrigue than I normally like and
was hard pressed to keep the characters straight - a problem I did not
have in the earlier books. This story uses the triangular complexities
of multiple antagonists; some using surrogates to influence events in
ways that will be helpful to their long-term interests - but not so
apparent in the short run. There are some nice underlying commentaries
about diplomacy and the difficulties inherent in the attempts to
negotiate reasonable solutions given the problems of individual and
societal greed.
This book fits in nicely with the rest of the series and it is easy to
identify with at least one of the main characters. I enjoyed this book
and have no hesitation about recommending it for a pleasant stint of
reading.
KQ = 3
**************************
^ THE ALBINO KNIFE
by Steve Perry
(Ace, July 1991, $4.50, ISBN 0-441-01391-0)
review by Darryl Kenning
Another in the series that began with THE MAN WHO NEVER MISSED. The
action is just as hard-boiled as ever, the plot twists move in plenty
of unexpected ways, and in the end this is a very readable action
story. The book picks up after the Confed has been toppled and life
has returned to near normal for the Matadors.
Suddenly the daughter he didn't know he had appears to Emile Khadaji
and his former wife has been kidnapped. The hero and his friends must
now follow the trail with the newly found daughter to its ultimate
conclusion. It is fun having the characters we have seen developed in
the series reappear. Unfortunately the authors tips the reader to the
main plot a tad too early in the story and for those of us who have
read the earlier books the outcome is pretty much what you would
expect. In spite of that very minor flaw, if you like action-adventure
space operas you'll enjoy this one.
KQ = 3
**************************
^ THE YEAR'S BEST SCIENCE FICTION: Eighth Annual Collection
edited by Gardner Dozois
(St. Martin's, July 1991, $15.95, ISBN 0-312-06009-2)
review by Cindy Bartorillo
Seems like every year this collection wins one or more major
Collection awards, and likewise every year Gardner Dozois wins one or
more major editing awards. Every year, the vote comes up the same: if
you care about Science Fiction, the Dozois collection is the one book
you have to buy. Not only does it collect a ton of wonderful short
fiction from the previous year (as the cover says, "More than 250,000
words of fantastic fiction") but you get Gardner Dozois' terrific
"Summation", with everything you need to know about that year in the
world of SF. If you missed something you shouldn't have, the Summation
will point it out.
In this year's collection, with fiction covering the year 1990, you
get award-winning stories like: "Bears Discover Fire" by Terry Bisson,
"Tower of Babylon" by Ted Chiang, and the short novel THE HEMINGWAY
HOAX by Joe Haldeman. The other authors represented read like a who's
who of the SF world: John Brunner, Ursula K. Le Guin, Michael
Moorcock, Pat Murphy, Lucius Shepard, Lewis Shiner, Robert Silverberg,
Bruce Sterling, Kate Wilhelm, Connie Willis... You get the idea. An
important volume in any SF fan's core collection, THE YEAR'S BEST
SCIENCE FICTION puts 1990 into one convenient affordable package.
**************************
~ NEW SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY FROM TOR
commentary from the publisher
SEPTEMBER TITLES:
^ N-SPACE
by Larry Niven
($5.99, ISBN 0-812-51001-1)
Once when noted science fiction author Arthur C. Clarke was
interviewed on a Los Angeles TV talk show, he was asked who his
favorite writer was. Without hesitation, Clarke replied, "Larry
Niven." N-SPACE, a major Niven retrospective, combines previously
published work with unpublished short stories and excerpts from longer
ones. Rich with gossip and storytelling vigor, N-SPACE offers a
fascinating insight into one of our most prolific and
thought-provoking authors.
Niven, author of such classics as RINGWORLD and THE INTEGRAL TREES,
began his writing career in 1964, quickly moving to the top of the
field. RINGWORLD won both the Nebula and Hugo awards, and Niven also
won the Hugo Award four times for his short fiction. His successful
collaborations with Jerry Pournelle and Steven Barnes resulted in the
NEW YORK TIMES bestsellers THE MOTE IN GOD'S EYE and FOOTFALL. N-SPACE
is a major event in science fiction, coming from the author who has
been an influence among both readers and writers in the genre.
(NOTE: N-SPACE is a fabulous one-volume introduction to a classic SF
writer--almost 700 pages of material that also includes a
bibliography.)
^ BERSERKER LIES
by Fred Saberhagen
($3.99, ISBN 0-812-50563-8)
Machines invented during a long-ago war, the Berserkers were
programmed to kill all enemy life forms, wherever they are found. But
they were programmed badly, and instructed instead to eradicate all
life. The race that invented them was among the first to be wiped out.
Able to build more of themselves, in every shape and size that seems
useful to their quest, the Berserkers still roam the galaxy,
ruthlessly obeying their ancient orders.
^ THE PRINCES OF THE AIR
by John M. Ford
($3.99, ISBN 0-812-50958-7)
Here are the swashbuckling adventures of three young friends from the
planet Riyah Zain. Orphaned, indentured, and illegitimate, they share
a passion for computer games, a flexible approach to the truth, and a
burning desire to get off the world of their birth. THE PRINCES OF THE
AIR is as thrillingly plotted as a Dumas adventure, and as sharp and
quick as a computer simulation game.
^ ECHOES OF VALOR III
edited by Karl Edward Wagner
($3.99, ISBN 0-812-55758-1)
This third volume of the sword-and-sorcery classics from the golden
age of pulp adventure includes the rarely-reprinted original story of
RED SONYA, by CONAN creator Robert E. Howard, now famous through comic
book adaptation and movies. The writers in ECHOES OF VALOR III helped
create the genre of sword-and-sorcery which thrives today. By going
back to the pulp magazines of decades past, Karl Edward Wagner brings
the classics to modern fans of fantasy adventure.
^ WHITE JENNA
by Jane Yolen
($3.99, ISBN 0-812-51840-3)
WHITE JENNA, a 1991 Nebula Award nominee, continues the story of
Jenna, the child of prophesy in Jane Yolen's SISTER LIGHT, SISTER
DARK. Jenna, now the beautiful and proud White Queen, desperately
oversees a battle-torn land. As a child Jenna had learned the lore of
the mountain women who raised her. There, she had called forth her
dark sister, Skada, who exists only in moonlight, or fire's glow. NOw
the Dark Queen remains bound to Jenna's side, but confined to the
dark. A tour-de-force fantasy, WHITE JENNA tells a powerful tale of
the events that ended a culture and created a new mythology.
Winner of the Caldecott Award for her children's book OWL MOON, Jane
Yolen is one of the most respected Young Adult authors in the United
States. Also the author of many adult novels, she won the World
Fantasy Award for FAVORITE FOLKTALES FROM AROUND THE WORLD.
^ MOON CALLED
by Andre Norton
($3.99, ISBN 0-812-51533-1)
Thora, chosen from birth to serve the Lady, must struggle to survive
in a world menaced by the dark underground empire of Set. Can Thora
unravel the secrets of the Dark, and remain true to her Lady?
Author Andre Norton, creator of the WITCH WORLD series, has won the
World Fantasy Award for life achievement and been named a Grand Master
by the Science Fiction Writers of America.
^ STEEL BROTHER
by Gordon R. Dickson
($3.99, ISBN 0-812-51547-1)
An outstanding collection of short stories and nonfiction, STEEL
BROTHER is both an anthology and an appreciation of the work of Gordon
R. Dickson. With several unforgettable science fiction stories by the
Nebula and Hugo Award-winning author, STEEL BROTHER also presents an
original essay by Dickson on the creation of his acclaimed CHILDE
CYCLE, and a revealing interview with the author. This book will be
eagerly sought by Dickson's growing legion of fans.
^ CONAN THE HERO
by Leonard Carpenter
($3.99, ISBN 0-812-51907-8)
In the steaming jungles of Venji, Conan fights a seemingly endless war
against drug-crazed raiders who strike without warning and vanish like
smoke, and the implacable wizard, Mojourna.
Conan also faces enemies which he cannot see. The powerful court
eunuchs and the generals who covet the throne lay plots to thwart him.
Even his own mind turns against him. Only one man could survive all
this and triumph...only CONAN THE HERO.
Special Re-Release!
^ ENDER'S GAME
($4.95, ISBN 0-812-51349-5)
SPEAKER FOR THE DEAD
($4.95, ISBN 0-812-51350-9)
both by Orson Scott Card
Tor Books is pleased to re-release the first two books in Orson Scott
Card's ground-breaking "Ender Wiggins" saga, in connection with the
publication of XENOCIDE, their long-awaited sequel. Both ENDER'S GAME
and SPEAKER FOR THE DEAD won the Hugo and Nebula awards, becoming the
first series titles to win this pair of prestigious honors. XENOCIDE,
in its first few weeks, quickly climbed onto bestsellers lists across
the country.
(NOTE: RFP reviewed all three Ender novels in issue #17.)
OCTOBER TITLES FROM TOR:
^ IMMORTALITY, INC.
by Robert Sheckley
($4.99, ISBN 0-812-51931-0)
Tor once again makes available IMMORTALITY, INC., a classic tale by
Robert Sheckley, and the story on which the soon-to-be-released
Paramount motion picture--FREEJACK--is based. FREEJACK, starring
Anthony Hopkins (SILENCE OF THE LAMBS), Emilio Estevez (YOUNG GUNS)
and Mick Jagger (lead singer of the Rolling Stones) could well be the
BLADE RUNNER of the '90s.
Junior Yacht Designer Tom Blaine dies in a car crash in the 20th
century, but wakes up in a strange new future where poltergeists are
scientific fact and the Afterlife is open to anyone who can pay the
price. Hunted by assassins legalized by the Permitted Murder Act,
Tom's only allies are the beautiful Marie, a Ghost named Ray and a
Zombie named Smith, who wants Tom alive for deadly reasons of his own.
Can Tom move fast enough to keep body and soul together in a world
where Death is not the end?
^ CONAN THE DESTROYER
by Robert Jordan
($3.99, ISBN 0-812-51401-7)
The fabled city of Shadizar contains many attractive opportunities
--none more alluring than the beautiful maiden Jenna, who must be
taken to recover a sacred gem. This key will unlock a treasure even
greater than Conan could ever imagine.
Conan must battle with Bombatta, the murderous henchman of an evil
princess and fight for his life against the many-fanged demon-god
Dagoth. Deadly to his body and to his soul, this peril is one that
Conan MUST vanquish. To survive he must be--CONAN THE DESTROYER.
^ A TRANSATLANTIC TUNNEL, HURRAH!
by Harry Harrison
($3.99, ISBN 1-812-51591-9)
From Harry Harrison, creator of THE STAINLESS STEEL RAT and BILL THE
GALACTIC HERO, comes an imaginative novel of alternate history and
high-tech thrills. Two hundred years after the American Revolution
failed, with George Washington hanged as a traitor, Her Majesty's
Empire attempts the greatest engineering feat in the history of
mankind: an underground train tunnel linking Great Britain and North
America. Over 4,000 miles in length, it is a project that will take
years to complete, risk lives and fortunes, and make or break the
reputation of one man: Captain Augustus Washington, descendant of the
infamous rebel.
^ DAWN FOR A DISTANT EARTH
by L.E. Modesitt, Jr.
($3.99, ISBN 0-812-51613-3)
The Empire spanned the galaxy, leaving behind the ruins of Old
Earth--now a frigid devastation of gray deserts and poison, ice storms
and land spouts; a wasteland home only to coyotes and rats, degenerate
shambletowners and feral devilkids. Sometimes a fad would sweep the
Empire to reclaim the homeworld. But environmental salvation took too
long, cost too much, and the fads were always forgotten--except by
MacGregor Gerswin.
As a captured devilkid, Gerswin was trained for space combat. But he
was too savage, too brilliant, too independent for the military, which
exiled him to his home. There Gerswin found a challenge that would
consume all his strength and rage, through the decades and centuries
of his life. He conspired to wage a one man war against the
indifference, the incompetence, the vanity of an empire. In his
struggle, he would use patience, politics and manipulation--even
sabotage, scandal and ambush. Somehow Gerswin would find a way to
bring Earth back from the dead.
^ AMBIENT
by Jack Womack
($3.99, ISBN 0-812-51605-2)
It's the near future in New York City, and Seamus O'Malley is the
bodyguard, secretary and right-hand man to Mister Dryden, son of the
richest man in the world. When he isn't helping Dryden and his father
consolidate their iron grip on a city gone crazy, Seamus lives in
Loisaida (the Lower East Side) with his sister Enid, an Ambient. The
original Ambients were radiation scarred mutants from out on Long
Island, where permanent war rages and no one goes any more. Enid, and
a growing number of others, are Ambients by choice, those who
masochistically alter their bodies beyond the realm of normal.
Ambients have their own religion (in opposition to the mainstream
Church of Elvis), their own mysterious trans-human powers...and their
own unique way of looking at life.
When Mister Dryden offers the hand of his mistress, Avalon, if Seamus
will kill the elder Dryden, he takes the offer--only to be swept up
into the murderous secrets of the Dryden family. There he learns the
true secret behind the Ambients, and discovers how the Drydens have
managed to inherit control of what's left of the United States.
^ GRAND MASTER'S CHOICE
edited by Andre Norton
($3.99, ISBN 0-812-50619-7)
GRAND MASTER'S CHOICE offers up the best short stories from each of
the first eight Grand Masters of science fiction, as chosen by the
Science Fiction Writers of America. Previously published only in a
limited hardcover edition by the New England Science Fiction
Association, one of the first established science fiction clubs in the
world, in commemoration of the fiftieth World Science Fiction
Convention. That edition sold out its entire printing immediately.
GRAND MASTER'S CHOICE includes stories by Robert A. Heinlein, Isaac
Asimov, and Arthur C. Clarke (perhaps the three bestselling science
fiction authors of all time) along with perennial bestsellers Clifford
Simak, Fritz Leiber, and Andre Norton. All are prolific novelists
beloved by millions of readers. Jack Williamson and L. Sprague de
Camp, among the most durable favorites in the field, have been
entertaining their legions of fans with a special brand of fantasy and
science fiction for decades.
**************************
~ BOX SCORES
.....................................
/: KQ :
: : BARRAYER :
: : Lois McMaster Bujold....5 :
: : THE JUPITER WAR :
: : Bill Fawcett editor.....3 :
: : SYNNERS :
: : Pat Cadigan.............2 :
: : PYRAMIDS :
: : Fred Saberhagen.........3 :
: : THE ALBINO KNIFE :
: : Steve Perry............3 :
: : THE SUM OF THINGS :
: : Roland J. Green........3 :
: : :
: : by darryl kenning :
: :...................................:
:..................................../
**************************
People with narrow minds usually have broad tongues.
**************************
~ TREKOLOGY
TNG - Stardate Sequence:
41153.7 Encounter at Farpoint - Part I 101 09/26/87
41153.8 Encounter at Farpoint - Part II 102 09/26/87
41209.2 The Naked Now 103 10/03/87
41235.2 Code Of Honor 104 10/10/87
41242.4 Datalore 114 01/16/88
41249.3 Lonely Among Us 108 10/31/87
41255.6 Justice 109 11/07/87
41263.1 Where No One Has Gone Before 106 10/24/87
41294.5 Haven 105 11/28/87
41309.5 Too Short A Season 112 02/06/88
41365.9 11001001 116 01/30/88
41386.4 The Last Outpost 107 10/18/87
41416.2 Coming Of Age 119 03/12/88
41463.9 Home Soil 117 02/20/88
41503.7 Heart Of Glory 120 03/19/88
41509.1 When The Bough Breaks 118 02/13/88
41590.5 Hide And Q 111 11/21/87
41601.3 Skin Of Evil 122 04/23/88
41636.9 Angel One 115 01/23/88
41697.9 We'll Always Have Paris 124 04/30/88
41723.9 The Battle 110 11/14/87
41775.5 Conspiracy 125 05/07/88
41798.2 The Arsenal Of Freedom 121 04/09/88
41986.0 The Neutral Zone 126 05/14/88
41997.7 The Big Goodbye 113 01/09/88
42073.1 The Child 127 11/19/88
42193.6 Where Silence Has Lease 128 11/26/88
42286.3 Elementary, Dear Data 129 12/03/88
42402.7 The Outrageous Okona 130 12/10/88
42437.5 The Schizoid Man 131 01/21/89
42477.2 Loud As A Whisper 132 01/07/89
42494.8 Unnatural Selection 133 01/28/89
42506.5 A Matter Of Honor 134 02/04/89
42523.7 The Measure Of A Man 135 02/11/89
42568.8 The Dauphin 136 02/18/89
42609.1 Contagion 137 03/18/89
42625.4 The Royale 138 03/25/89
42679.2 Time Squared 139 04/01/89
42686.4 The Icarus Factor 140 04/22/89
42695.3 Pen Pals 141 04/29/89
42761.3 Q Who 142 05/06/89
42779.1 Samaritan Snare 143 05/13/89
42823.2 Up The Long Ladder 144 05/20/89
42859.2 Manhunt 145 06/17/89
42901.3 The Emissary 146 06/24/89
42923.4 Peak Performance 147 07/08/89
42976.1 Shades Of Gray 148 07/15/89
43125.8 Evolution 150 09/23/89
43152.4 The Survivors 151 10/07/89
43173.5 Who Watches The Watchers 152 10/14/89
43198.7 The Bonding 153 10/21/89
43205.6 Booby Trap 154 10/28/89
43349.2 The Enemy 155 11/04/89
43385.6 The Price 156 11/11/89
43421.9 The Vengeance Factor 157 11/18/89
43462.5 The Defector 158 12/30/89
43489.2 The Hunted 159 01/06/90
43510.7 The High Ground 160 01/27/90
43539.1 Deja Q 161 02/03/90
43610.4 A Matter Of Perspective 162 02/10/90
43625.2 Yesterday's Enterprise 163 02/17/90
43657.0 The Offspring 164 03/10/90
43685.2 Sins Of The Father 165 03/17/90
43714.1 Allegiance 166 03/24/90
43745.2 Captain's Holiday 167 03/31/90
43779.3 Tin Man 168 04/21/90
43807.4 Hollow Pursuits 169 04/28/90
43872.2 The Most Toys 170 05/05/90
43917.4 Sarek 171 05/12/90
43930.7 Menage A Troi 172 05/26/90
43957.2 Transfigurations 173 06/02/90
43989.1 The Best Of Both Worlds, Part 1 174 06/16/90
44001.4 The Best Of Both Worlds, Part 2 175 09/22/90
44012.3 Family 178 09/29/90
44085.7 Brothers 177 10/06/90
44143.7 Suddenly Human 176 10/13/90
44161.2 Remember Me 179 10/20/90
44215.2 Legacy 180 10/27/90
44246.3 Reunion 181 11/03/90
44286.5 Future Imperfect 182 11/10/90
44307.3 Final Mission 183 11/17/90
44356.9 The Loss 184 12/29/90
44390.1 Data's Day 185 01/05/91
44429.6 The Wounded 186 01/26/91
44474.5 Devil's Due 187 02/02/91
44502.7 Clues 188 02/09/91
44614.6 Galaxy's Child 190 03/09/91
44631.2 Night Terrors 191 03/16/91
44664.5 Identity Crisis 192 03/24/91
44704.2 The Nth Degree 193 03/31/91
44741.9 Qpid 194 04/21/91
44769.2 The Drumhead 195 04/28/91
44805.3 Half A Life 196 05/05/91
44821.3 The Host 197 05/12/91
44885.5 The Mind's Eye 199 06/02/91
44932.3 In Theory 198 06/09/91
Unknown The Ensigns Of Command 149 09/30/89
Unknown First Contact 189 02/16/91
Unknown Symbiosis 123 04/16/88
Unknown Redemption 200 06/23/91
**************************
The moon may be smaller than Earth, but it's further away.
**************************
~ NEWS 'N' NOTES
Received: RADIO FREE THULCANDRA
RFT is a fanzine edited and published for Christian Fandom, and
interdenominational fellowship of christians and SF fans interested in
the courteous and accurate representation of Christian viewpoints in
the fannish community. Edited by Marty Helgesen. For info and samples
etc. ( follows the tradition of most fanzines) write:
Marty Helgesen
11 Lawrence Ave.
Malverne, NY 11565-1406 USA
please mention that you saw this information in READING FOR PLEASURE
**************************
The problem with the gene pool is that there is no lifeguard.
**************************
* Disney has purchased the film rights to the WILD CARDS shared-world
series edited by George R.R. Martin. Martin will write the screenplay.
* Gay Star Trek fans have started the Gaylactic Network, and they're
currently engaged in a letter-writing campaign asking that STAR TREK:
THE NEXT GENERATION have a character who is openly gay. If you'd like
to add you voice, send your petition to: Gene Roddenberry, 5555
Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90038, with a copy to Brandon Tartikoff
at the same address. For more information about the Gaylactic Network,
write to: The Gaylactic Network, Box 1051, Back Bay Annex, Boston, MA
02117-1051.
* Carroll & Graf, one of our favorite publishers, has recently
purchased reprint rights to the entire available backlist of SF novels
by A.E. van Vogt. By "available backlist" I mean books whose rights
are not currently owned by someone else. For instance, Tor (another of
our favorite publishers) holds the rights to the "Weapon Shops" series
and SLAN. Carroll & Graf plan to put every out-of-print van Vogt novel
back into print over the next three to four years.
**************************
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
* *
* FRIGHTFUL FICTION *
* *
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
Editor: Annie Wilkes
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Frightful Fiction is a division of Reading For Pleasure, published
bimonthly. This material is NOT COPYRIGHTED and may be used freely by
all. Catalogs, news releases, review copies, or donated reviews should
be sent to: Reading For Pleasure, 103 Baughman's Lane, Suite 303,
Frederick, MD 21702.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
~ BRAM STOKER AWARDS
Given out by the Horror Writers of America.
Novel: MINE by Robert R. McCammon (Pocket)
First Novel: THE REVELATION by Bentley Little (St. Martin's)
Novelette: "Stephen" by Elizabeth Massie (BORDERLANDS)
Short Story: "The Calling" by David B. Silva (BORDERLANDS)
Collection: FOUR PAST MIDNIGHT by Stephen King (Viking)
Nonfiction: DARK DREAMERS by Stanley Wiater (Avon)
Lifetime Achievement Award: Hugh B. Cave & Richard Matheson
**************************
* I'm sure you're aware of THE BRIDGE by John Skipp and Craig Spector,
being released by Bantam Books October 1991. But did you know that
this book also has an original soundtrack CD? The authors wrote,
performed, recorded, and produced the material, and the CD should be
available at the same time as the book.
* Speaking of Skipp & Spector, remember the zombie anthology they
edited called BOOK OF THE DEAD? The one that was supposed to have a
sequel, which got hung up for awhile? Well the sequel is back on track
now, called STILL DEAD, and will contain stories by K.W. Jeter, Gahan
Wilson, Nancy Collins, Kathe Koja (THE CIPHER), Poppy Z. Brite, Pat
Cadigan, and maybe even a few surprise contributors. I hope to find
out the release date by next issue.
* Movies Filmed Recently: RED SLEEP, screenplay by Richard Christian
Matheson, directed by John Landis, possibly starring Robert DeNiro.
Also, SLEEPWALKERS, screenplay by Stephen King, directed by Mick
Garris.
* An emergency medical and financial hardship fund has been
established by the Horror Writers of America. It was kicked off with
several thousand dollars raised by auctions and donations. If you'd
like to donate to this fund, send your check to: Horror Writers of
America (Hardship Fund), Cheryl Curry Sayre, Treasurer, Box 1301,
Ontario, CANADA 91762-9991.
* Richard T. Chizmar is the editor/publisher of CEMETERY DANCE
magazine (see Peter Quint's article in this issue). He is also the
editor of an anthology of "dark mystery fiction" called COLD BLOOD, a
genre-crossing book whose stories include elements of horror, mystery,
suspense, crime, and murder. It should be available by the time you
read this from Ziesing Books (Mark V. Ziesing, PO Box 76, Shingletown,
CA 96088, 916-474-1580). We now hear that Chizmar is editing another
anthology for Ziesing Books called THE EARTH STRIKES BACK, "tales of
ecological/environmental terror", and yet another anthology, of
original horror/suspense stories, called SHIVERS for SpineTingling
Press (see reviews of SpineTingling Press' BONE-THROWER and FREAK LINK
audio books in RFP #18 and information about their book SEXPUNKS &
SAVAGE SAGAS in this issue).
* Because of the success of the TV mini-series adaptation of Stephen
King's IT last year, ABC has bought the rights to his THE
TOMMYKNOCKERS for another mini-series. King's latest, NEEDFUL THINGS,
the last Castle Rock novel, has also been purchased (but for the movie
theater, not TV). It is rumored that the price paid for TOMMYKNOCKERS
might have set a record for TV, and the grapevine has it that King got
$1.75 million for the movie rights to NEEDFUL THINGS.
**************************
^ THE SHAPE UNDER THE SHEET
The Complete Stephen King Encyclopedia
by Stephen J. Spignesi
(Popular Culture Ink, 1991, $110, ISBN 1-56075-018-9)
review by Cindy Bartorillo
If you're hoping that this is another overpriced piece of nonsense
cranked out for King fanatics with more money than sense, I've got
some bad news for you: THE SHAPE UNDER THE SHEET is not only wonderful
throughout its 780 gigantic pages, it is easily worth all one hundred
and ten dollars it takes to buy yourself a copy. Let me try to give
you a hint of all the neat things in THE SHAPE UNDER THE SHEET:
The core of the Encyclopedia is the concordance section. Each
published--and unpublished--work by Stephen King is listed
chronologically, and for each work you get a skeleton, or outline, of
the entire work, plus an alphabetical listing of entries under the
headings: "People", "Places", and "Things". Not just the SIGNIFICANT
people, places, and things, you understand. ALL the people, places,
and things. For instance, one of the Things listed for THE DEAD ZONE
is "JUDE THE OBSCURE--A book read by Chuck Chatsworth." Can't remember
who Chuck was? Look under People and you'll find "CHATSWORTH,
CHUCK--The seventeen-year-old boy that John Smith tutored." According
to the publishers there are 18,000 entries in the concordance area.
Other sections of THE SHAPE UNDER THE SHEET include: discussions about
Stephen King's background, interviews with friends and relatives,
articles about King, articles about King fandom, all about CASTLE ROCK
(the Stephen King newsletter), complete coverage of film adaptations,
discussions of King's poetry, a guide to audiotape versions of King
works, an annotated bibliography, interviews with King's literary
contemporaries (about King, of course), coverage of material King
hasn't finished and/or hasn't even begun yet. Also, every section
contains numerous "sidebars" of related interesting material, making
this a fabulous browsing book as well as a reference volume. And this
Encyclopedia is meant to be used. There are two Tables of Contents,
with the material arranged sequentially and then classified by type.
There are over a dozen Indexes, so you can look up King material any
way that suits you. And the front and rear endsheets provide two of
the most important Indexes in the easiest to find location.
Out of all the books published about Stephen King (and I've got almost
one entire shelf of them myself), THE SHAPE UNDER THE SHEET stands out
as the one book to have for King fans. I'm having a particularly good
time with THE SHAPE UNDER THE SHEET and King's new NEEDFUL THINGS.
This latest novel from King is supposedly the last that will be set in
his fictional town of Castle Rock, and many of Castle Rock's
residents, seen in previous books, make a curtain call. With THE SHAPE
UNDER THE SHEET nearby, I can remind myself about these previous
stories and enjoy many King plots and characters all over again. Don't
miss THE SHAPE UNDER THE SHEET.
If your local bookstore can't help you get THE SHAPE UNDER THE SHEET,
you can write to the publisher at: Popular Culture, Ink, PO Box 1839,
Ann Arbor, MI 48106. Better yet, get your credit card ready and call
1-800-678-8828 (orders only).
**************************
^ SUMMER OF NIGHT
by Dan Simmons
(Putnam, January 1991, $22.95, ISBN 0-399-13573-1)
review by Howard Frye
"Dale Stewart sat in his sixth-grade classroom in Old
Central and was quietly certain that the last day of
school was the worst punishment grown-ups had ever devised
for kids.
Time had slowed worse than when he was in a dentist's
office waiting, worse than when he was in trouble with his
mom and had to wait for his dad to come home before
punishment could be meted out..."
SUMMER OF NIGHT is a both an evocation of childhood worthy of Ray
Bradbury and a horror thriller worthy of the author of THE SONG OF
KALI and CARRION COMFORT (Dan Simmons). Taking place over the course
of a couple of months, SUMMER OF NIGHT weaves a shocking tale of evil
against the backdrop of a small rural town. The cast of characters
includes eleven-year-old Dale and his younger, 8-year-old brother
Lawrence, and the rest of Dale's contemporaries: the mature and
religious Mike; the budding writer and overweight egghead Duane; the
slightly strange newcomer Kevin; the good boy from an unfortunate
home, Jim. All the kids you knew as a child are here: the school
bully, the bully's moronic sidekick, the most beautiful girl in the
class, your best friend, the dirt-poor family and the filthy-rich
family. They're all here.
Also very much present in SUMMER OF NIGHT is the setting: the summer
of 1960 in a small rural town in Illinois. John F. Kennedy is winning
the nomination as Democratic candidate for President, the Echo space
satellite is being launched, rural homes didn't get locked at night,
entertainment consisted of picnics and outdoor movies, and a boy's
best friend was his bike. (Do you remember your bike? How many
possessions do you have today that mean anywhere NEAR as much to you
as your bike did back then?) I don't remember any author that has
caught the Babyboomer childhood as well as Dan Simmons has here.
Reading this book brought back to me the sense of "territory" that I
had as a child, how well I knew the position of every tree, every
brook, every hiding place in my neighborhood. Dan Simmons has once
again stretched his boundaries as a writer and written a story that is
truly different from anything he has done before.
But SUMMER OF NIGHT is not all campouts and ballgames--there is a
terrific horror story drawn onto this backdrop. Tubby Cooke, one of
the poorest students in Old Central (both academically and
economically), is introduced on page 15 and lasts only to page 20, at
least as a living character. There are forces alive in the small town
of Elm Haven that apparently only the children can sense--they hear
voices, see lights, feel drafts. Soon there will be apparitions, and
much, much worse. Tubby's sister Cordie calls them "night things", and
it will take the combined talents of Dale and all of his friends to
fight the evil that is taking over his town. Not all will live through
the battle; the end of summer and the end of innocence will go hand in
hand. The ending, which of course I won't give away, is wrenchingly
wonderful--I have always been in awe of Dan Simmons ability to END a
story with a bittersweet sense of finality and closure.
SUMMER OF NIGHT is another rousing and literate horror tale from Dan
Simmons. Whatever you do, don't miss this one, and be sure to check
out the earlier SONG OF KALI and CARRION COMFORT if you haven't
already. Tor is reprinting SONG OF KALI in a paperback edition this
month--October 1991. (And I can't very well talk about Dan Simmons
without at least mentioning HYPERION and FALL OF HYPERION, a two-book
SF/horror combination that is simply breathtaking.)
SIMMONS UPDATE: His next novel, CHILDREN OF THE NIGHT, has been
turned in to Putnam and is tentatively scheduled for publication in
July 1992.
**************************
^ THE STAKE
A Novel of the Supernatural
by Richard Laymon
(St. Martin's, June 1991, $19.95, ISBN 0-312-06016-5)
review by Drew Bartorillo
On the way home from a weekend outing, Larry Dunbar, a famous horror
novelist, his wife and the next door neighbors decide to do some
exploring in an old ghost town called Sagebrush Flat. Underneath the
floor of what used to be the town's main hotel, they find a coffin
containing a shriveled female corpse impaled by a wooden stake.
Everyone's initial reaction is that someone had killed a vampire (of
course no one REALLY believes in vampires). Larry is having a hard
time getting started on his next horror novel (hasn't even decided
what to write about yet) and decides to come back later and take the
corpse home. His intention is to write a horror nonfiction novel
mirroring his real-life adventures with the corpse. During the writing
of his new novel, Larry finds out who the corpse is and eventually
even who killed her, along with two other young girls in the town
where they all live. But, the whole time, the corpse is in Larry's
garage attic with the stake still in her chest. What would happen if
someone pulled out the stake? Is she REALLY a vampire and would she
come back to life?
I found THE STAKE very enjoyable and extremely fast paced. Richard
Laymon's writing style will keep you riveted to every word and
anxiously awaiting the final outcome of the story. I found myself
screaming for someone to pull out the darned stake and see what
happens (after all this is a supposed to be a novel of the
supernatural). Well, someone