The Quatermass Book Reading Marathon Blog: Taking the Fifth

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And the next book will probably be The Raw Shark Texts.

Book 19...

REVIEW: The Raw Shark Texts by Steven Hall


I'm no stranger to strange, really weird fiction. One of the more interesting, yet weirdest books I have ever read, was House of Leaves, a multilayered psychological horror novel with strong metatextual elements and both literal and metaphorical labyrinthean meanings. Another book, the Doctor Who spinoff Faction Paradox: The Book of the War, dealt with metatextuality and conceptual entities, themes that feature prominently in the book that I have just finished reading, The Raw Shark Texts. So how does The Raw Shark Texts compare to these other works?

A man wakes up, with no memory of how he came to be in a strange house. He finds a letter addressed to him, signed 'the first Eric Sanderson'. The amnesiac is told to see a psychologist who tells him that he is suffering from a dissociative fugue, but the truth turns out to be much worse. Given enigmatic instructions on how to protect himself from an unknown enemy, the second Eric Sanderson finds himself in a word where conceptual fish exist, where sharks of thought and words are very real dangers, unspace is mapped and charted, and a man who wants to live forever has taken a very unhealthy interest in Sanderson. Struggling to recall his original life, helped by a mysterious young woman called Scout, Sanderson is forced to confront his original past, where he went to dangerous lengths, all for the woman he loved...

The Raw Shark Texts would be confusing to someone who didn't already know a little of the concept of a conceptual entity, that is, an organism made entirely of memes. Having read books like the aforementioned Faction Paradox: The Book of the War and the Doctor Who novel Alien Bodies, I found myself well-prepared for The Raw Shark Texts. It's a high concept novel, let down mostly by a singular plot that relies on an admittedly excellently-used gimmick to maintain interest. It is far from bad, it is in fact excellent, but I just wish there was some more meat on the bones of the story. More about the Un-Space Exploration Committee would have been nice.

The characters are interesting, if not as involving as I think they should have been. Eric Sanderson is mildly interesting, though his wife, Clio, isn't. Scout, as a possible conceptual 'reincarnation' of Clio, is more interesting. Professor Fidorous is a little more functional than a standout character, but is otherwise written well. More intriguing, but underutilised, was Mycroft Ward, a man who seeks immortality via conceptual overwriting and who is the main antagonist of the book. Unless you count the Ludovician, which has a presence throughout the novel, with images made of words often showing up and adding a certain uncertainty to proceedings, with even one 50-page sequence being effectively a flickbook of the Ludovician approaching.

Overall, The Raw Shark Texts, while not the best written novel, has many excellent concepts and enough involvement and entertainment value to draw one in. It grabs at your attention, and won't let go, worrying you like a shark. A conceptual shark, at that...



9/10


First words: I was unconscious.

Last words: Eric Sanderson.

BTW, for anyone still reading this, my next big book will probably be Little Dorrit. Whether it will be the next book reviewed is another matter, and while I hope to have it read within a week from now as a self-imposed challenge, I doubt that I can put the same amount of effort as I did into The Tommyknockers.

I'm about a third of the way through Little Dorrit now, and I'm doing fine.

I started re-reading At the Mountains of Madness a few days ago. I've been reading for about three hours every night. The story started on page 481 of the book and I'm on page 497 now. I can't even blame Lovecraft's sluggish prose at this point. Whatever my undiagnosed learning/reading disorder is, it makes me want to hurl whatever book I'm trying to read across the room on a nightly basis.

By the way, I watched one of the Quatermass movies for my latest Movie a Day topic. But I'll warn you, it's not pretty. Apologies in advance for trashing something dear to you.

I'll admit that I have never watched the Hammer Horror versions of the Quatermass serials. They're simply not available in Australia. But you do the Quatermass serials a grave disservice.

The serial and the movie, judging by the Wikipedia synopsis of the latter, are broadly similar (indeed, Nigel Kneale adapted his own scripts for the cinema), and I think you missed one very key point of the serial: that the Martian's influence on humanity also gave humanity its xenophobia, as the Martians were rabid xenophobes too.

I suggest tracking down the recent 2005 TV movie remake of The Quatermass Experiment, with Jason Flemyng and David Tennant. You might be able to find it on YouTube, or else order it via the UK (assuming you have a multi-region DVD player). It's not too bad, edited down from the original, and certainly has some decent characterisation.

And here's a few clips from the surviving episodes of the original. First, Quatermass considering how much he is responsible for what happened...

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iq01QnGk5pY[/youtube]


Then, a moment when the sole astronaut to come back to Earth out of a crew of three begins acting like another of the astronauts...

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rM8P5VkvX3c[/youtube]


And finally, one of Quatermass' fellow scientists discovers something very nasty in the rocket...

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KGfTXh0dzQ[/youtube]

Book 20...

REVIEW: Soul Eater volume 5: While our SOUL lasts till the limit by Atsushi Ohkubo


After reading the first few volumes of Soul Eater, I was starting to get a little impatient. I thought it was taking rather too long for the series to get up to speed. But the fifth volume soon proved to, if nothing else, be a payoff for everything that's come before. It's beginning the first true movement of the storyline, and the biggest conflicts so far in the series...

During the anniversary of the founding of DWMA, Maka tries to help Soul, while Franken Stein reveals to Medusa that he knows she is a witch. But it's too late, for Medusa's plans are going into effect. Medusa and her allies intend to unleash the kishin, a former Meister called Asura, who is imprisoned deep beneath the DWMA. However, Maka, Soul, and their allies manage to escape Medusa's trap, and confront Medusa and her minions, trying to prevent the release of Asura. While Franken Stein and Medusa face off, Maka and Soul fight against Crona and his weapon, Ragnarok. But as the battle rages on, can Maka fight this strangely strong opponent? Or will she be forced to use the direst of measures to defeat this foe?

While the storyline of Soul Eater isn't a particularly profound one, it is an entertaining one, but it is here that we learn more about kishins, and why Death cannot leave the DWMA. We also have some excellent fight scenes, particularly between Stein and Medusa, as well as Maka and Soul versus Crona. We also learn more about Crona himself (well, I use the manga's gender assignment, but Crona is androgynous), with Medusa's treatment of him as a child heart-rending. Those help raise the bar of this particular volume.

The artwork, as usual, conveys the quirkiness of the Soul Eater world, though there are some interesting art shifts. We see one where the backstory of Asura is revealed, and Death (or Shinigami-sama) in his original form is shown as closer to a traditional grim reaper. And there's a childish style that portrays Crona's backstory as he relates how he was forced by Medusa to perform an evil act.

All in all, it was a pretty good installment this time around. A bit jokey, but with some good fight scenes and exposition that help to raise the tone somewhat of this good series.



8.5/10


First words: I brought it!!

Last words: I'm the one who's leading.

Book 21...

REVIEW: Doctor Who: System Shock by Justin Richards


I try to use these book reading blogs as opportunities to read books that I haven't before in my collection, and I have plenty of Doctor Who novels from the New Adventures and Missing Adventures that I intend to read. I haven't exactly gone after them in earnest in this book-reading blog, so it's about time that I do so. So, then, I decided on System Shock, a Missing Adventure novel. But would it be any good?

Landing in 1998, the Doctor and Sarah find a world where everything electronic is also all but online. An MI5 agent slips them a CD from the I2 software company, shortly before he is murdered by a woman with inhuman strength. Detained by MI5, the Doctor and Sarah, much to their relief, find their credentials vouched for by an older Harry Sullivan, who is now working for MI5. For I2 seems to be the front for a terrorist organisation, but the Doctor and Sarah soon discovers that it is the front for far more. Mysterious incidents caused by computer malfunctions are merely the tests for a full-scale alien invasion using computer networks as the means. The Voracians have come to conquer Earth, and the Doctor, Sarah, and Harry may not be able to stop them...

The story, while good, seems to be written in a rather ho-hum way. In fact, a lot of the computer terminology is badly dated (who uses 'information superhighway' nowadays?), due to it being written in 1995. And the alien invasion, while novel at first, actually echoes previous Doctor Who stories such as The Invasion and Spearhead from Space, where invasions are aided by a ubuiquitous commodity. This is by no means a bad thing, but it is written a little too dry for my liking. There's some interesting foreshadowing of a sequel (which did get written, as Millennium Shock).

The Doctor, Sarah, and Harry are all written somewhat as they are in the TV series, but I'm not impressed by the other characters. And the Voracians, while a fairly intriguing race with some interesting quirks (like speaking for a good chunk of their dialogue in management-style buzzwords), become rather bog-standard Who monsters. They still have their charm by acting like alien villainous corporate managers, and the Doctor's way of stopping their main weapon, the Voractyll, is an interesting one.

All in all, System Shock was below average for a Doctor Who novel, but it still wasn't too bad. Some nice ideas and a decent enough execution, though I feel it could have been better. Oh well.


8/10


First words: The energy jolt nearly took his head off.

Last words: (Not recorded due to spoilers)

Book 22...

REVIEW: Soul Eater volume 6: Let my heart come in touch with your SOUL by Atsushi Ohkubo


Once more, I come to review a volume of Soul Eater. This strange, Burtonesque manga is an intriguing one, and in the last volume, my interested quickened, because the storyline was finally moving. Having left off on a very important cliffhanger, where Maka succumbs to the black blood madness, I was eager to move onto the next installment. But will the quality be maintained?

Maka has seemingly given in to the insanity caused by the black blood infection of her weapon, Soul, but there is a method to her madness. Soon, she manages to use the black blood to pacify Crona's deranged soul, and offers to be friends with the tormented child. But there is little time to waste, for Black Star and Death the Kid need help stopping Eruka and Free from reviving the kishin Asura. Meanwhile Franken Stein and Maka continue to battle the sadistic Medusa. But the sheer madness emanating from Asura's containment is affecting friend and foe alike, and if Asura gets freed, there may be nobody who can stop him, not even Shinigami-sama...

This volume seems to conclude the current story arc of Soul Eater. Medusa's plan to revive Asura comes to an end, and while things are left on something of a cliffhanger, there is just enough closure in what is seen in this volume. Asura is freed, and he is a grotesque villain who can induce insanity in people just by existing, a terrifying power. There's also some interesting fight scenes, but Maka's way of defeating Crona, by offering him friendship, while not unexpected, was still unexpected in terms of the method used.

The artwork used still has the quirky style as used before, and there is a nice art shift in the sequences within Crona's psyche. There, Crona engages in a mental conversation with himself, and then with Maka, in a first tragic, then heartwarming manner. We also see Asura being reborn in a rather disturbing way, still in line with the quirky artwork style, but still disturbing.

All in all, I feel that I would be satisfied with finishing Soul Eater with this volume. The story arc has come to a natural conclusion, even if some things are left up in the air, and it has been entertaining, though not particularly profound.


8.5/10


First words: How disgusting.

Last words: I'm pumped!

Book 23...

REVIEW: Fantastic Voyage by Isaac Asimov, based on the screenplay by Karry Kleiner, David Duncan, Otto Klement and Jay Lewis Bixby


Having dipped my toe into the realm of Isaac Asimov with the last book-reading blog and his seminal robot mystery The Caves of Steel, I have decided to read and review another of his works, his adaptation of the famous film Fantastic Voyage. I've never seen the film, just bits of it. So, how would this famous science fiction classic fare with me in a modern day context?

Humanity is making great strides towards perfecting a miniaturisation technology. At present, the process is limited: the time that can be spent miniaturised is reduced along with the size. But a scientist in the Eastern Bloc, Jan Benes, has perfected the means of permanent miniaturisation. Defecting to the West, while being delivered to the CMDF facilities to be debriefed, his car is attacked in an attempt to assassinate him. While he survives, his injuries cause a blood clot in his brain that will cause enough brain damage that, even if it doesn't kill him, it may erase his knowledge forever. A team is thus assembled to be miniaturised and injected into Benes' body, so that they may destroy the blood clot from the inside. But this fantastic voyage is filled with dangers, not just those from the enlarged hazards of Benes' body, but by a saboteur within the mission itself...

As a story, Fantastic Voyage is a nice Cold War thriller mixed in with science fiction. And while the explanation of the miniaturisation process is, as far as I am concerned, unfeasible BS, Asimov's descriptions of the human body speaks to me much better. It's a rather singular plot though, and while there is some logic as to the identity of the saboteur, it's a little disturbing why he did it, and what Asimov's attitudes may have been. Kudos, though, to Asimov writing out a plot hole in the movie. Even so, this story was a little too dryly written for my liking, though older fiction tends to be.

The characters have a few nice backgrounds, but in the end, they're not interesting enough for my liking. In fact, Cora Peterson, despite being an apparently competent woman at the start, degenerates into a more hysterical woman as the plot progresses. The rest of them sustain average interest, but no more than that.

All in all, Fantastic Voyage is a good enough story with an interesting premise behind it. It could have been better, and seems to be more a Cold War thriller than a true science fiction novel, but it holds up well enough.


8/10


First words: It was an old plane, a for-engine plasma jet that had been retired from active service, and it came in along a route that was neither economical nor particularly safe.

Last words: (Not recorded due to spoilers)

BTW, I may not be finishing Little Dorrit by my self-imposed deadline, but I will still be reading it.

Book 24...

REVIEW: Transmetropolitan volume 4: The New Scum by Warren Ellis, Darick Robertson and Rodney Ramos


After much waiting, I finally got my order of the fourth volume of Transmetropolitan, The New Scum. Contained therein are a number of pivotal parts of the now ongoing plot of Transmetropolitan, which was now focused on the presidential election. So, having seen a small downturn in quality in the series, now that it is focusing on a continuing story, will there be an improvement? Or will the downward march of quality continue?

Spider is still affected by the death of Gary 'the Smiler' Callahan's political director, Vita Severn, and with the Smiler's popularity on the rise, Spider has made it his personal mission to bring the Smiler down. Meanwhile, Spider's rehired bodyguard Channon Yarrow has discovered the proof that Spider's assistant Yelena Rossini slept with him, much to the horror of both. Spider travels the City, finding hope everywhere. But interviews with both presidential candidates shows that Spider's preconceptions about the two are not correct. The Beast, the incumbent president whom Spider loathes, has a pragmatic philosophy about the job, while the Smiler is not as bad as Spider thinks: he is even worse, and because Spider humiliated him, if he gets the presidency, he will make Spider's life a living hell...

As I have stated before, Transmetropolitan is not for everyone. This is a dark and disturbing future, and Spider is not the most pleasant of protagonists. Thankfully, the gore that ensues is not to the levels of the previous volume (Vita Severn's death being one of the bloodiest things I've ever seen in a comic), but it may still put some people off. Not to mention a disturbing sequence where Spider sends thousands of children to hospital for mental anguish because he claims to have killed Santa Claus in a side-story printed in this volume.

Even so, this is an excellent storyline, where Spider begins to learn what a mistake he made in, if not actually endorsing the Smiler outright, then advocating that the Beast should be voted out. That main story is intertwined with that of Yelena and Channon coming to terms with each other and Yelena having sex with Spider, as well as little vignettes that have less to do with the story per se, but shows that Spider, for all his misanthropy, is still a decent person. There is even a side-story just after the aforementioned Santa incident where Spider expounds his belief that winter should be celebrated, if only because it heralds a new year, and, in his opinion, every new year is a better one. If anything could be said to be Spider's creed other than his monomaniacal fixation on the Truth, this is it.

Spider gets a lot to do. We see him protecting a young man from religious fanatics who want to stone the young man for watching a porn film with his girlfriend (leading to a classic line from Spider: "This is a bowel disruptor, and you are just full of s**t."). We see him buying back a doll from a pawn shop for a child whose mother was forced to sell it for money. And we see him giving revivee Mary, seen a couple of volumes ago, a camera, not just to further his vendetta against the Smiler, but it's shown that he even bought her an apartment to live in. Channon Yarrow and Yelena Rossini undergo further development, with the two bickering over Yelena sleeping with Spider until during a party, she loudly admits it, as well as the fact that she isn't the niece of Spider's editor. Their joining Spider when he learns how the election turns out is heartwarming. We also see that the Beast, villified by Spider, has, if not a pleasant worldview, a pragmatic one. And we also see the Smiler for what he truly is for the first time, when he reveals his true nature as a power-hungry psychopath to Spider, and making sure that the interview was not recorded. He is a most chilling, and appropriate, adversary for Spider.

All in all, while not quite back at the heights volume 2 achieved, the fourth volume of Transmetropolitan manages to bring back quality to the series, and manages to balance it with the ongoing story. I'm enjoying it, and hope to continue with the series.



9/10


First words: Hey, Spider!

Last words: Heave.

And after a gargantuan effort, book 25...

REVIEW: Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens


I have come to Charles Dickens relatively late in my life. I did read, long ago during my childhood, an unabridged version of Oliver Twist, but it was the TV adaptation of Bleak House that excited my enjoyment of Dickens. Having read Bleak House and Our Mutual Friend, along with A Christmas Carol, I now turn to one of the more recently adapted Dickens stories, Little Dorrit...

Arthur Clennam, recently returned from overseas, has been tasked by his late father to write a wrong, but his stern, self-righteous mother refuses to divulge any information, leading to their estrangement. Even so, Clennam's eye is caught by a young woman whom his mother employed in an uncharacteristic act of charity, Amy Dorrit, aka Little Dorrit. She was born in the Marshalsea Debtor's Prison, and her father is imprisoned there, having become, perversely, a celebrity by dint of being its oldest and most 'dignified' inhabitant. Clennam, moved by her plight, resolves to try and find out why Little Dorrit's father was imprisoned at the Marshalsea, a process that will lead him through entangled bureaucracy, and benevolent landlords who hide a sharper side, and debt collectors whose harsh facades hide a truly benevolent nature. But even if Clennam can help the Dorrits, will their re-emergence into society be a good thing? And what secret does his mother hide, a secret that her servant Mr Flintwinch and the French rogue Rigaud intend to exploit?

Dickens excels at keeping a lot of plotlines in the air and not dropping the ball, so to speak. While it is often confusing keeping track of every single character and storyline, persistence is rewarding. Here, the themes are of society, money, and conceit. Mrs Clennam is conceited in her belief that she will be judged only by God, and not man, and the Dorrits, with the exception of poor Amy, become conceited when they come into money. The patriarchal landlord Mr Casby acts like Don Corleone hiding behind the nature of Santa Claus, while his debt collector Mr Pancks hides a caring nature behind his hard pragmatism. We even have a major fraud scandal that affects many of the main characters. There's a few aspects of the plot that feel extraneous, and others that feel disconcerting (especially the conclusion of Tattycoram's story arc), but overall, it is a fine piece of work that only barely manages to avoid collapsing under its own weight.

The characters all have their intrigues, though Amy Dorrit, the titular Little Dorrit, seems to be an echo of Esther from Bleak House in terms of her purity and determination to work things out, and her passive acceptance of the scorn and abuse her family put on her once they get rich seems ridiculous. However, Dickens' skill makes us accept her, along with the slightly more flawed but otherwise well-intentioned Arthur Clennam. Her family are interesting to a degree, but I want to throttle her sister at times, and her father too, once they get wealthy. In the villains, we have the slimy Frenchman, Rigaud, who, while melodramatic at times and even something of a stereotype, is nonetheless compelling, as is the abusive and dry Flintwich, whose abuse of his wife, Affery, strikes an uncomfortable chord with me.

Little Dorrit, at times, threatens to fall apart, but it is still a fine classic, and those new to Dickens should give it a go. You could probably use the book to beat a goat to death, but there aren't many finer books out there.



9/10


First words: Thirty years ago, Marseilles lay burning in the sun, one day.

Last words: (Not recorded due to spoilers)

Book 26...

REVIEW: Soul Eater volume 7: Let our SOULS drive us by Atsushi Ohkubo


Okay, so I didn't finish off my reading of Soul Eater with the sixth volume. I did say that I would consider leaving it at that volume, as it ended the current storyline. Even so, I did feel hungry for a continuation. So, now I come to volume 7, which picks up almost immediately after the last volume left off. It's also going to be the last volume I review for a while, as there are no further volumes available at the library...

Shinigami-sama has summoned a number of Weapons from around the world to Death City, so that he can have them prepare for the task of taking Asura down, as well as keeping an eye on Franken Stein, who is already becoming affected by the madness Asura left behind. Meanwhile, Maka continues to try and reach out to the gloomy Crona, who has been given a trial enrollment in the DWMA. But when they are sent to investigate claims of a rogue golem in Czechoslovakia, they find themselves at the re-awakening of the infamous witch Arachne, older sister of Medusa, and an even more immediate threat than Asura...

In this volume, we are introduced to a number of new weapons, including the incisive Azusa Yumi, the hot-tempered Marie Mjolnir, and the absent-minded but pious priest Justin Law, all of whom are adequate additions to the Soul Eater mythos. We have Franken Stein struggling with his madness, embodied in hallucinations of Medusa. We also have Crona struggling to deal with his new circumstances (with one hilarious sequence having Maka ask Crona to write some poetry as therapy, only for the end result to be utterly depressing for any readers), and while the introduction of Arachne is rather out of the blue and seems a little bit of an ass-pull, she is still enough of a distinct character from her younger sister Medusa that it doesn't matter much.

The story itself seems really to be a vehicle to expand the Soul Eater mythos and to introduce Arachne and her organisation, Arachnophobia, as a new adversary. It does it reasonably well, but Soul Eater isn't particularly known for its deep story, and it isn't as exciting or as involving as the previous volume was. The artwork is still up to scratch, portraying this quirky, Burtonesque world.

The last Soul Eater volume I review (until they release more and the library gets them) is not one of the best, but it's still fine, it's still entertaining. It fulfills its purpose, to be entertaining, which is better than nothing, I guess...



8/10


First words: Nevada, USA.

Last words: Now, let's begin!!

Book 27...

REVIEW: The Body Snatchers by Jack Finney


In my task to expand my horizons, I have decided to read a number of science fiction works outside my usual ken. And to that purpose, I have decided to read Jack Finney's work The Body Snatchers. Best known for inspiring the various Invasion of the Body Snatchers movies, this book therefore has something of a place in science fiction. But how good, truly, is it?

Mill Valley, a town in California, turns out to be the epicentre of a beginning of terror when Dr Miles Bennell is approached by his former wife, Becky Driscoll, who claims that her Uncle Ira is not himself. At first, Bennell is loathe to give this idea any credence, but as the cases continue, and Bennell finds mysterious objects and goings-on around the place, he realises that mysterious entities have started to take over people in the town. The invasion of the body snatchers have begun, and Bennell and his friends may not be able to stop it...

The story is straightforward and entertaining enough in its broad strokes. It is certainly one of the first works to deal with a covert alien invasion in this manner, and there is enough thought put into it. It is also a parable of Cold War paranoia (though I dare say the author would put it as vigilance against Communists). There's even some welcome commentary on humanity's worst instincts. But it is also an extraordinarily singular story with no branching, though this can be due to the first person writing style.

The characters are what drag The Body Snatchers down. They are all cardboard cutouts made to do what the author wants them too, and while there is some interesting dialogue, there is also some very badly dated concepts. And the ending is very much an ass-pull, given how determined the aliens seemed earlier to succeed.

Overall, The Body Snatchers was very average entertainment by my standards. Enough to kill a few hours, but not something you want to have on the home library shelf.


7.5/10


First words: I warn you that what you're starting to read is full of loose ends and unanswered questions.

Last words: Some of them- some of them- are quite true.

It's funny how the story of The Body Snatchers is so widely believed to be a metaphor for the Cold War, and yet Finney himself denied giving it any subtext at all.

Anyway, I may not get around to reading this book after all. Even if it came with an unqualified recommendation, it feels kind of unnecessary, having seen three of the four film versions (and loving two of them).