Today marks the second stop on the official Blog Tour for author Carrie Ryan’s newest release, The Dead-Tossed Waves – book 2 in her planned trilogy documenting a world ravaged by the zombie apocalypse. You can check out the first stop on the tour over atCynsations and her interview with Carrie yesterday.

Poignant. Memorable. Heartbreaking. These are words that describe Carrie Ryan’s work – and The Dead-Tossed Waves is no exception.

We are proud to have the incredibly talented Carrie Ryan over for a chat about her book, and to talk about her own favorite zombie books/comics/movies. Without further ado, we give you the awesome Carrie!

The Book Smugglers: Ever since delighting and terrifying mainstream audiences vis-a-vis George A. Romero’s NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, zombies have been an iconic “monster” in popular culture. Some authors and films use zombies for the obvious schlock, horror and gore…but some authors, like yourself, use the zombie story as an insightful critique of human nature. To you, what does the zombie represent? Why do you write about humans living in a zombie-plagued world?

Carrie: Wow, great question! I think the zombie can represent so many things: the inevitable and inescapable march of death, fear of the future, nihilism, uncertainty about the world. In my stories I think the zombie often represents existence for existence sake — the idea of plodding through time for no other reason than to occupy space. This is something that I think we all wonder about at some point — the idea of why am I here, what do I contribute to those around me, what will I do with my life?

As for why I write about humans in a zombie-plagued world, I think I’ve just always been fascinated by the idea of survival and the extremes people will go through to stay alive. I’ve always been fascinated by books like Hatchet or movies like Alive. The zombie apocalypse is something that the world wouldn’t recover from quickly and I really enjoy pondering the question of what you do when everything you’ve ever known so radically changes?

The Book Smugglers: There are some striking themes in THE FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH and THE DEAD-TOSSED WAVES – the loss (and restriction) of knowledge, fear of the known and unknown, and in the midst of this oppressing fear, love and the will to survive. Instead of overwhelming bleakness (i.e. Cormac McCarthy’s THE ROAD and other post-apocalyptic novels), there is the light of hope in your books – can you tell us why you choose this path for your stories? Are you an optimist?

Carrie: I’m glad you see the hope in my stories because to me it’s definitely there! I think that since the dawn of time people have had to struggle to survive and carve out a place in the world but even in the most daunting of circumstances, they find time for love, friendship, companionship. To me this is what life is about — it’s sort of the phrase you always hear that life isn’t about the destination but the journey. My characters could focus only on getting through the life they’ve been given or they can choose to take advantage of the calm moments.

I like to think of myself as an optimist though I think I have an uncanny knack for coming up with the worst-case scenarios (which served me well as a lawyer).

The Book Smugglers: Another resonant image in both of your books is that of fences and barriers. These enclosures keep inhabitants safe from The Unconsecrated/Mudo, but simultaneously imprison them – not only are the walls obstacles, but their fear and lack of knowledge shackles them too. Do you think these barriers are more harmful than helpful? If you were faced with the decision to stay safe behind the fences or risk the outside world, what would you choose?

Carrie: I definitely think the lack of knowledge is more harmful than helpful — I think that it’s hard to ask someone to make a decision about their life without giving them all the tools they need to make that decision, including all relevant information. At the same time, I think Sister Tabitha withheld knowledge purely out of love (you learn a lot more about her in my short story Hare Moon coming this summer in the Kiss My Deadly anthology edited by Trisha Telep).

To use another quote I had in my “quote journal” growing up: “a ship in harbor is safe, but that’s not why ships are built” (William Shedd). This is how I see Gabry in The Dead-Tossed Waves. I think it’s easy to want to stick with the status quo and avoid scary/hard to take risks. I remember the first time I had to go to court and I was terrified. My initial reaction was to say no but if I wanted to learn, I had to overcome the fear (yes, my fly was down when I stood up in front of the judge so I figured it could only get better from there).

That’s a great question, what would I choose? I think there are a lot of people who live very happy and fulfilled lives in my books — people content in Mary’s village and in Gabry’s town and so I don’t think they made bad choices for wanting to stay behind their barriers. At the same time, I know Mary would never be content to stay safe and Gabry made her decisions out of fear which constantly held her back. I’d like to think that I don’t make decisions out of fear, but that I’m also not reckless — that I appreciate what I have.

The Book Smugglers: Why did you decide to write Young Adult novels, as opposed to any other genre or category?

Carrie: When I was in high school I read about a romance author who said she sat down to write after reading a book and thinking “I can do that!” Reading those words I thought to myself “if she can do that, I can too!” And I think that because I was reading romance at the time I always assumed I’d write romance when I grew up. For a couple of years after college I did write romance and then after law school when I dedicated myself to writing again I realized that what really inspired me were young adult books. These are the books that taught me to love reading, to escape in other worlds and kept me up late speed reading to the end. The idea that I could join those ranks was just too tempting for me to give up!

I also really love that young adult books are all shelved in one mass — you can combine romance and sci fi and fantasy and horror and anything else and not worry about where you’ll get shelved in the bookstore.

The Book Smugglers: What books do you recommend for readers, ravenous for more books like yours after they have devoured THE FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH and THE DEAD-TOSSED WAVES?

Carrie: Anyone interested in the zombie apocalypse would probably enjoy World War Z by Max Brooks. For tense dystopia I’d recommend The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. For action Diana Peterfreund’s Rampant and for romance Graceling by Kristin Cashore and The Season by Sarah MacLean.

And now, for Carrie’s Favorite Zombie/Post-Apocalypse/Dystopia Books/Comics/Movies!

1. World War Z. Max Brooks is just a genius with this book — not only does he go through the zombie apocalypse step by step but he creates a huge cast of very distinct voices and stories along the way. Utterly absorbing.

2. Dawn of the Dead. I know most people hate the remake, but it will always have a place in my heart as the movie that started it all.

3. Night of the Living Dead. George Romero’s movie that really created the modern zombie (though they weren’t called zombies in the film). I actually really hated this movie the first time I saw it because I was so frustrated at the characters inability to get it together to survive. But then I heard Romero talk about the point of the movie which was society’s inability ot get their act together to solve really big issues in the world like poverty, hunger, war, etc. This made me love the movie.

4. Shawn of the Dead. This zombie flick perfectly nails the kitch humor of zombies and then the utter pathos and despaire that can come along with it. I don’t think I’ve laughed as hard at a movie or been more moved.

5. The Walking Dead. Robert Kirkman notes that his goal with this graphic novel series is that it has no end — there’s not set story arc but instead he just wanted to explore what happens to people constantly trying to survive after a zombie apocalypse.

6. Left 4 Dead (1 and 2). Brilliant video game with lots of zombie killing.

7. Zombie Fluxx is a fun little card game where the rules are constantly changing. And one rule is that every time you draw a zombie card you have to groan like a zombie – best rule ever!

8. 28 Days Later. Sure some zombie purists don’t count this as a zombie flick, but these fast zombies are utterly terrifying.

Born and raised in Greenville, South Carolina, Carrie Ryan is a graduate of Williams College and Duke University School of Law. A former litigator, she now writes full time. She lives with her writer/lawyer fiancé, two fat cats and one large puppy in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are not at all prepared for the zombie apocalypse.

You can read more about Carrie on her website HERE, or her blog HERE.

A huge thank you to Carrie Ryan! And make sure to check out the next stop on The Dead-Tossed Waves blog tour! Tomorrow, she’s at MTVNews.com’s “Hollywood Crush”.

Title: The Dead-Tossed Waves

Author: Carrie Ryan

Genre: Horror, Post-Apocalypse/Dystopia, Young Adult

Publisher: Delacorte
Publication Date: March 2010
Hardcover: 416 Pages

Gabry lives a quiet life, secure in her town next to the sea and behind the Barrier. She’s content to let her friends dream of the Dark City up the coast while she watches from the top of her lighthouse. Home is all she’s ever known, and all she needs for happiness.

But life after the Return is never safe, and there are threats even the Barrier can’t hold back.

Gabry’s mother thought she left her secrets behind in the Forest of Hands and Teeth, but like the dead in their world, secrets don’t stay buried. And now, Gabry’s world is crumbling.

One night beyond the Barrier…

One boy Gabry’s known forever and one veiled in mystery…

One reckless moment, and half of Gabry’s generation is dead, the other half imprisoned.

Gabry knows only one thing: if she is to have any hope of a future, she must face the forest of her mother’s past.

Stand alone or series: Book 2 in a planned trilogy, however can be read as a stand alone novel.

How did I get this book: Review Copy from the publisher

Why did I read this book: I am a huge Carrie Ryan fangirl. Her first novel, The Forest of Hands and Teeth was one of my Top 10 Reads of 2009 – needless to say, I was chomping at the bit (ho-ho!) for the chance to read The Dead-Tossed Waves.

Review:

On the shore of a horizon-spanning placid ocean is a lighthouse, its beacon a lone, strong light in the night, cutting through the darkness that enshrouds the seaside town of Vista. With her mother, Mary, Gabrielle tends to the shore, living a life of relative calm and security. When the Mudo wash up on the shore following high tides, Gabry helps her mother decapitate and dispatch of them, as is their duty as keepers in the small town. Gabry has always known a life of safety behind the village barriers; a beloved daughter, a dear best friend, and maybe even one day, someone’s girlfriend. When her friends decide to sneak over the barrier for a night in the rundown amusement park just outside the walls, Gabry is terrified. She has never broken the rules and does not wish to step beyond the safety of her world; especially not into a place where the insatiable Mudo could be lurking. But, urged on by her best friend Cira and the boy that makes her heart race, Catcher, Gabry sneaks out with the others into the ruins. It is here that she shares her first kiss with Catcher, and revels in the promise that her life holds. All of those dreams and hopes, however, come crashing down – a “breaker” senses the humans nearby, and sprints towards the group of teens, infecting and killing three of the group, Catcher among them. In an instant, Gabrielle’s life, and her friends’ lives, have been turned upside down. While Gabry is able to escape, her surviving friends aren’t so lucky, and are sentenced to service with the Recruiters – the force that patrols and protects the villages of the loose confederation from the Mudo threat – but without reward of citizenship at the end of their two year term. To Gabry’s mind, this is a death sentence – and still shocked by the loss of Catcher to infection, she’s also losing everyone she’s ever known. When Cira begs her to find out, to follow her brother Catcher until his demise, Gabry cannot refuse – and so she makes her way across the sea of the dead, and beyond the barriers of her safe, now shattered, world.

Well, wow. The Dead-Tossed Waves was my numero uno; my absolute MOST highly anticipated novel of 2010. In other words, The Dead-Tossed Waves had quite a bill to live up to – and, for the most part, I am happy to report that it does.

There’s a strength of plot and of continuity with The Dead-Tossed Waves. We readers get ANSWERS in this book. We learn why some of the Mudo/Unconsecrated are fast, and some are slow; we finally see the origins of Mary’s village in the forest of hands and teeth; we learn about the outside world, how it is governed, and what future is available to the living, surviving amongst the undead.

Beyond the strengths in terms of plotting, The Dead-Tossed Waves works so well because of how tragically flawed and heartrendingly human all of its characters are. This novel is a continuation of The Forest of Hands and Teeth, but instead of following protagonist Mary, the novel follows Mary’s daughter in an interesting twist. Inevitably, this invites a whole bunch of comparisons between Mary and Gabry, as heroines and narrators. Gabry is not as winsome as her mother – but that’s a tough legacy to live up to. Heck, even Gabrielle knows this, as she constantly compares herself to her mother! Countless times, she extrapolates about her lack of strength, her lack of curiosity and lack of a sense of adventure – especially since her mother was willing to risk so much on a mere dream. Though, Gabry is much more like her mother than she gives herself credit for – she too makes a number of impulsive, not-so-hot decisions yet is strong in her own, different way. It should be said, however, that Gabry is ever-so-slightly irritating with her emotional equivocating between two devoted boys (seriously, where do YA heroines find these guys?), and in her tendency to put blame on herself for EVERYTHING (which reads as slightly ego-centric).

But… isn’t that what people are really like?

Not always brave and strong, not always right, not always knowing what they want, not in tune with where their hearts lie? I loved that Gabry was terrified, paralyzed by fear, and unlike Mary. In stark contrast to her mother, who grew up with dreams bigger than her village’s fences could contain and who lost her family to the Unconsecrated, Gabry has grown up in love, and in a home sheltered in safety. Does that make her “weak”? I don’t think so. In fact, it makes it harder for her, because she has so much more to lose. And the most endearing thing about Gabry is the fact that she is so afraid of the outside world, and in spite of that fear, she does take the risk and lives, challenging the barriers that have held the Unconsecrated/Mudo out, but also trapping her in, too. And that, dear readers, is really, really freaking cool.

Beyond the first-person protagonist, the other characters of The Dead-Tossed Waves are similarly endearing. Elias, the boy shrouded in mystery, is awesome. He is a shadowed, uncertain figure; an outsider that uses Gabry’s mother’s terminology to describe the Mudo – Unconsecrated. Then there’s Catcher, Gabry’s first love interest – who also is a very interesting character, connected to Gabry in a way that Elias never really can be.

All this said, The Dead-Tossed Waves is by no means a perfect novel. It falls short of its predecessor, straying towards the melodramatic in its last few chapters, with plot twists thrown in to tear apart characters for the sole reason of emotional exploitation. There’s also the familiar YA syndrome of two dreamy dudes head-over-heels in love with the same girl, and you know how that song goes. Yet, despite these minor drawbacks, The Dead-Tossed Waves is a beautiful, heartwrenching novel. These are very genuine characters, in an impossible, terrifying reality, confronted with the choice to survive, or to live.

And that, my friends, makes all the difference in the world.

You’ve got to love (or at least respect) an author that does not shy away from heartache. When you live in a forest of jagged teeth and sickly moans, on the shores of a sea teeming with bloated, ever-hungry corpses, you are unquestionably surrounded by death. Death is inevitable. And for all this sorrow and bitterness, The Dead-Tossed Waves is tempered with hope, and with love. That’s a wonderful, rare thing. Written throughout with Carrie Ryan’s dazzling, almost poetic, poignant prose, The Dead-Tossed Waves is a novel to be read over and over again.

I loved it. And I cannot wait for more from this incredibly talented author.

Notable Quotes/Parts: From the first chapter:

The story goes that even after the Return they tried to keep the roller coasters going. They said it reminded them of the before time. When they didn’t have to worry about people rising from the dead, when they didn’t have to build fences and walls and barriers to protect themselves from the masses of Mudo constantly seeking human flesh. When the living weren’t forever hunted.

They said it made them feel normal.

And so even while the Mudo—neighbors and friends who’d been infected, died and Returned—pulled at the fences surrounding the amusement park, they kept the rides moving.

Even after the Forest was shut off, one last gasp at sequestering the infection and containing the Mudo, the carousel kept turning, the coasters kept rumbling, the teacups kept spinning. Though my town of Vista was far away from the core of the Protectorate, they hoped people would come fly along the coasters. Would still want to forget.

But then travel became too difficult. People were concerned with trying to survive and little could make them forget the reality of the world they lived in. The coasters slowly crumbled outside the old city perched at the tip of a long treacherous road along the coast. Everyone simply forgot about them, one other aspect of pre-Return life that gradually dimmed in the memories and stories passed down from year to year.

I never really thought about them until tonight—when my best friend’s older brother invites us to sneak past the Barriers and into the ruins of the amusement park with him and his friends.

“Come on, Gabry,” Cira whines, dancing around me. I can almost feel the energy and excitement buzzing off her skin. We stand next to the Barrier that separates Vista from the ruins of the old city, the thick wooden wall keeping the dangers of the world out and us safely in. Already a few of the older kids have skimmed over the top, their feet a flash against the night sky. I rub my palms against my legs, my heart a thrum in my chest.

There are a thousand reasons why I don’t want to go with them into the ruins, not the least of which is that it’s forbidden. But there’s one reason I do want to take the risk. I glance past Cira to her brother and his eyes catch mine. I can’t stop the seep of heat crawling up my neck as I dart my gaze away, hoping he didn’t notice me looking and at the same time desperately wishing he did.

“Gabry?” he asks, his head tilted to the side. From his lips my name curls around my ears. An invitation.

Afraid of the tangle of words twisting around my own tongue, I swallow and place my hand against the thick wood of the Barrier. I’ve never been past it before. It’s against the rules to leave the town without permission and it’s also risky. While mostof the ruins are bordered by old fences from after the Return, Mudo can still get through them. They can still attack us.

“We shouldn’t,” I say, more to myself than to Cira or Catcher. Cira just rolls her eyes; she’s already jumping with desire to join the others. She grabs my arm with a barely repressed squeal.

“This is our chance,” she whispers to me. I don’t tell her what I’ve been thinking—that it’s our chance to get in trouble at best and I don’t want to think about what could happen at worst.

But she knows me well enough to read my thoughts. “No one’s been infected in years,” she says, trying to convince me. “Catcher and them go out there all the time. It’s totally safe.”

Safe—a relative term. A word my mother always uses with a hard edge to her voice.

Additional Thoughts: Delacorte has released new covers for both The Forest of Hands and Teeth (for the paperback version), and the current cover of The Dead-Tossed Waves is another replacement for an earlier model. I, for one, prefer the older covers. The new ones are still rather pretty, but more…commercial. I suppose that’s a good thing for a book, but those first covers are so hauntingly gorgeous! Any thoughts?

Also, make sure to stop by later today as we host a stop on the official blog tour for Carrie Ryan’s release!

Rating: 8 – Excellent

Reading Next: A Local Habitation by Seanan McGuire

Title: Impact

Author: Douglas Preston

Genre: Science Fiction, Thriller

Publisher: Forge
Publication Date: January 2010
Hardcover: 368 pages

Wyman Ford is tapped for a secret expedition to Cambodia… to locate the source of strangely beautiful gemstones that do not appear to be of this world.

A brilliant meteor lights up the Maine coast… and two young women borrow a boat and set out for a distant island to find the impact crater.

A scientist at the National Propulsion Facility discovers an inexplicable source of gamma rays in the outer Solar System. He is found decapitated, the data missing.

High resolution NASA images reveal an unnatural feature hidden in the depths of a crater on Mars… and it appears to have been activated.

Sixty hours and counting.

Stand alone or series: Stand alone novel (although a protagonist from this novel has been seen in a prior Douglas Preston novel)

How did I get this book: Review Copy from the publisher

Why did I read this book: I’m sticking to my vow to read more of different genres, and this sci-fi thriller was a good way to continue fulfilling that resolution. It’s a pre-apocalyptic type story about some crazyass gamma rays being beamed at Earth. How could I NOT be excited about this book?

Review:

One starry night in a small Maine fishing town, a meteorite races across the dark sky in a brilliant streak. The newspapers theorize that the meteorite hit somewhere in the Atlantic, and while a physically stunning event, is nothing more than another mundane space rock falling to earth. Abbey Straw, an intelligent, enterprising young woman, however, has other ideas. Out photographing the Andromeda Galaxy with her new Celestron six-inch Cassegrain telescope, she captures the meteroite on film – and using that image, she extrapolates the meteroite’s impact location, which was not in the ocean, but on a small island off the coast. Eagerly, Abbey sets out to find the meteroite, with the intent to sell it to the highest bidder. On the other side of the globe, ex-CIA agent Wyman Ford signs on for a contract job to Cambodia to find the whereabouts of a mysterious new mine, responsible for flooding the international market with new, and extremely deadly, gemstones called “honeys.” Meanwhile, an ambitious and intelligent scientist named Mark Corzo has just received a promotion to head a division of the National Propulsion Facility’s Mars Mapping Orbiter project, following the professional demise and murder of his former mentor. When Corzo receives a package in the mail from that same mentor, sent just days before his death, Corzo becomes consumed with shocking new data concerning gamma rays – originating from Mars. Abbey, Ford and Corzo’s lives are on a collision course, with one of the most important and most dangerous discoveries in the history of mankind.

I hadn’t had the chance to read any of Douglas Preston’s work – neither on his solo work nor his popular co-authored books with Lincoln Child (I have, however, seen and loved Relic). Impact marked my first exposure to the bestselling mainstream thriller/speculative fiction author, and, while I’m not jumping out of my seat, I generally had a positive experience with this novel. The prose is clean (if somewhat simple), and the story fast-paced and easy to keep straight, following the standard separate characters whose fates eventually merge storytelling technique to build tension. What I liked the most about Impact – what caught my eye in the first place – was the premise (unidentified object falling to earth) and the overall idea for the story (well, at least the science fiction element). Rather than being another meteorite/asteroid/comet on the way to decimate life on earth as seen in many apocalyptic works (see Additional Thoughts below for a list), Impact takes a slightly different, unexpected route. The object seen streaking across the Maine sky is no mere clump of ancient space rock, but something infinitely more sinister. While the SF and actual science on the whole is more than a little wobbly (e.g. the open acceptance of miniature black holes rampaging through our solar system and more than a few questionable applications of astrophysics), it’s not really that big a deal as Impact is far more of a summer blockbuster movie than hard science fiction tome. Which is perfectly cool by me.

With the good, however, comes a lot of the mediocre. The characters are decidedly flat and really stretch the limits of credulity. Abbey, the small town adventurer girl, is also a pre-med Princeton dropout (forced to leave after losing her scholarship when she failed Organic Chem) who “took a few astronomy classes” and knows how to calculate the origin and trajectory of any body from outer space (amongst myriad other technical and scientific skills), in addition to being a master sailor and intrepid adventurer. Then there’s Ford, the ex-CIA op who is your typical Jason Bourne-grade badass (with a heart and troubled conscience) – smart, dashing, dangerous, unbeatable in hand to hand combat, etc, etc, etc. There’s also a huge plausibility problem in terms of timing (how did the gem mining in Cambodia become so lucrative in such a short period of time, just days after the meteorite strike?), in the chain of command seen at the NPF (the fictional equivalent of JPL) and in the US government in general. There are more than a few Jerry Bruckheimer-esque scenes involving the president and policy makers -heck, the whole book is very Armageddon! Which isn’t always a bad thing, but unfortunately it just did not work for me here in book form because…well, the thing that disappointed the most with Impact was how there was so much time spent on mindless and almost completely unnecessary action scenes, with barely any focus on the only true interesting part of the book (that would be the science fiction element). The questions that the gamma ray analysis raises, the implications of these scientific findings are brushed away in a few scant conversations, replaced instead with car chases, flooding boats, and bar shootouts. It’s just not really my thing, and I found myself getting impatient with each chase scene.

That said, I should mention that I loved the ending – which was a bit anticlimactic, but in a good way (at least in my opinion). While I was disappointed in the disproportionate nature of the book, with the interesting parts only filling about a third of the final product, the writing is solid and I can understand why adrenaline junkies or more action-craving readers would be thrilled with Impact.

Notable Quotes/Parts: From Chapter 1:

The trick would be to slip in the side door and get the box up the back stairs without making a sound. The house was two hundred years old and you could hardly take a step without a ?urry of creaks and groans. Abbey Straw eased the back door shut and tiptoed across the carpeted hallway to the landing. She could hear her father puttering around the kitchen, Red Sox game low on the radio.

Her arms hugging the box, she set her foot on the ?rst step, eased down her weight, then the next step, and the next. She skipped the fourth step—it shrieked like a banshee—and put her weight on the ?fth, the sixth, the
seventh…. And just as she thought she was home free, the step let out a crack like a gunshot, followed by a long, dying groan.

Damn.

You can read the first two chapters online HERE.

Additional Thoughts: Though Impact doesn’t really qualify, there are quite a few books and films that embrace the ‘celestial bodies slamming into the Earth’ (or the Moon, or some Earthly neighbor) apocalypse. If you’re looking for some books in this, I highly recommend Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle’s Lucifer’s Hammer (comet slamming into Earth).

Other books worth checking out are “The Conversation of Eiros and Charmion” by Edgar Allan Poe (short story again about a comet), When Worlds Collide by Philip Wylie and Edwin Balmer (death of Earth by rogue planet), and of course, one of my personal favorites, YA novels Life As We Knew It and the dead and the gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer (in which an asteroid hits the moon and changes its orbit, unleashing disastrous, apocalyptic effects on Earth).

Verdict: Great premise and original idea, but somewhat lacking in the execution. Still, I enjoyed some parts of Impact and recommend it to any thriller fans looking for a light dose of science fiction.

Rating: 6 – Good

Reading Next: Blackbringer by Laini Taylor

Title: Raiders’ Ransom (UK titles Reavers’ Ransom/Flood Child)

Author: Emily Diamand

Genre: Speculative Fiction, Post-apocalypse, Dystopia, Young Adult

Publisher: The Chicken House (Scholastic) (US & UK)
Publication Date: July 2009 (UK) / December 2009 (US)
Hardcover: 352 pages

Stand alone or series: Book 1 of a planned series

How did I read this book: ARC from Publisher

Why did I read this book: We were sent an ARC for this title from the publisher, and one glance at the synopsis – a flooded, post-apocalyptic London overrun with pirates and danger – and I was sold. Game, set, match.

Summary: (from amazon.com)
It’s the 22nd century and, because of climate change, much of England is underwater. Poor Lilly is out fishing with her trusty sea-cat when greedy raiders pillage the town–and kidnap the prime minister’s daughter. Her village blamed, Lilly decides to find the girl. Off she sails, in secret. And with a ransom: a mysterious talking jewel. “If I save his daughter,” Lilly reasons, “the prime minister’s sure to reward me.” Little does Lilly know that it will take more than grit to outwit the tricky, treacherous piratical tribes!

Review:

The year is 2216, and a thirteen-year old orphan named Lilly leaves the home she shares with her Grandmother on a morning like any other, searching the coastline in her small boat with her seacat (named Cat) for fish. When Lily returns home, however, her life is turned upside down – fearsome Raiders have invaded her village, abducting the Prime Minster’s daughter, burning the village ships, and killing Lilly’s Grandmother. The Prime Minister, furious at his seven-year old daughter’s kidnapping and the cowering villagers who did nothing to prevent the abduction, turns his wrath on the townspeople, forcing all the men and boys into jails with the intent to execute them all as an example. With Lilly’s best friend, Andy and his father among those captured and waiting to be put to death, Lilly decides to take matters into her own hands. Stealing a letter and a rather large, very precious jewel from the Prime Minister’s sister, Lilly cuts off her hair and masquerades as a boy and makes way for Lunden to find the raiders and pay them ransom for Alexandra’s return home. Along the way, Lilly grudgingly befriends a young Raider boy named Zeph – who happens to be the son of the Raider leader responsible for the kidnapping. As their two paths intertwine, Lilly and Zeph come to a crossroads and must decide with whom they will align themselves – especially when it turns out that the large jewel Lilly has taken for ransom is anything but a gem, and instead is something infinitely more precious. The ransom item is in fact a powerful, self-aware war-game computer; a relic from the time before “the Collapse” and the floods that have isolated and destroyed much of lower England. And even more troublesome is how desperately Greater Scotland – the dominating, more advanced nation to the north of the water-logged ten counties of England – wants the computer, and will go to any lengths to recover it.

Ms. Diamand’s novel came to publication after Reavers’ Ransom (the novel’s original title in the UK) won the first ever London Times/Chicken House Children’s Fiction Competition, and I have to applaud the judges’ taste. Raiders’ Ransom is a complete surprise of a novel – behind its bubbly, almost cartoonish exterior, it is a swashbuckling adventure and a cautionary post-ecologocial apocalypse thriller, narrated smartly by two different and genuinely likable protagonists. I say this is a “surprise” of a novel because I honestly wasn’t expecting to like it nearly so much as I did – but once I got started with this book, I couldn’t put it down. From its engaging, action-filled plot and its compelling, wholly believable characters, Raiders’ Ransom is an incredible start to a very promising series, reminiscent of Philip Pullman’s The Golden Compass or J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. (Yeah, I just dropped those two comparisons. That’s right.)

In terms of pure story and plotting, Raiders’ Ransom is awesome in its depth and its simplicity. The novel is deceptively slim, and deceptively quick to read. The writing is such that middle grade readers should have no problems picking up this book – but don’t mistake this for a dearth of sharp, carefully executed, hefty ideas. The simplicity of the book actually works to its favor – there’s no excessive, boring rundown of HOW exactly things became the way they are, no data-dumps concerning humanity’s demise into a sort of 18th century level of existence. That’s not to say that the Collapse isn’t exampined at all – but Ms. Diamand takes a much more clever route in examining humanity’s demise, dropping tantalizing hints and delightful little easter eggs (one of the Raider tribes is from “Chell Sea”, a Metallica t-shirt makes an appearance, and even Harry Potter rears his head in the novel). This also means that there’s little to staunch the flood of action in the book – which is another point in Raiders’ Ransom’s favor. The pacing is impeccable; there’s nary a dull moment in the book. Furthermore, the simplicity of the writing only strengthens the impressions that the narrating characters make on readers – adding an even stronger sense of genuineness to these two young teen protagonists.

Ms. Diamand’s pose sparkles, as she has a gift for storytelling and first person narration – not only does she convincingly create a voice for a thirteen-year old fisher girl in a low-technology post-apocalyptic setting, she also manages to do it for an adolescent Raider boy as well. As each chapter alternates between Lilly’s and Zeph’s narratives, this easily could have been a confusing, jarring read – but Ms. Diamand creates such a distinct voice for each character, it’s easy to discern who is narrating at any given time. Heck, even the dialects of both characters are distinct (and as both of them speak in a sort of derivative slang, this is a pretty big accomplishment). The dual narrators also add a broader understanding of this futuristic vision of a drowned Britain, as told from the clear eyes of two very different children of two very different backgrounds. Lilly, an orphan and fishergirl, reviles the idea of marriage (at thirteen, she should already be paired off and married), and instead of letting her best friend face execution or merely accepting her grim fate following her grandmother’s death, she undertakes the dangerous task of rescuing Alexandra. She’s headstrong and brash, but a truly compelling heroine – especially for young female readers.

Then, there’s Zeph, the Raider boy who so desperately wants to impress his powerful father. The Raiders from Lilly’s perspective re boogeymen – pirates that will eat their captives, and burn and pillage anything in their path. But Zeph offers a different insight to the cutthroat world of Raider Clans and lends a humanity to a group that Ms. Diamand could simply have boiled down to “Bad Guys.” Zeph’s struggles, his sibling rivalry with his older (but illegitimate and therefore lower ranked) brother, his attempts to get his father and his clan to take him seriously and see him as a man are very compelling character storylines. There is so much potential for growth and explication here with Ms. Diamand’s characters; Raiders’ Ransom gives me the feeling that she’s only begun to scratch the surface of this compelling new world and her young characters. In this sense, the novel feels very similar to the world of Ms. Rowling’s Harry Potter – with both first books, there’s this sense of wonder and the possibility for so much to develop as the characters grow older and their adventures continue. And this, dear readers, is a rare, beautiful gift.

Notable Quotes/Parts: Lilly’s dramatic decision:

When I get home, I hurtle about getting clothes, oilskins, a knife, extra rope, my rope splicing kit and what food I can find. Which turns out to be a bag of oats and some hard sea biscuits. Well I’ll just have to catch the rest.

“I’m going on Mrs Denton’s mission,” I say to the empty dark house. Hoping Granny’s there somehow, hoping she can hear me. “So I’ll have to take the money from the jar.”

I put my hand under Granny’s bed and pull out a small jangling jar. Granny’s savings jar, where she was hoarding every extra penny for the winter storms, when it’s too rough to go fishing. The coins rattle out of the jar and I put them into Granny’s purse, which hangs from a loop of leather. I put it round my neck, next to Granny’s locket. It ent heavy, there ent many coins in it, but it should last me. After all, things can’t cost much in London, can they?

I pat my shirt, where the bulge of the purse shows through. I reckon the purse should be safe from muggers, cos all that really shows of it is a bit of leather at my neck. But what about the jewel? All it’d take is one peek and any thief would be after me. After a bit of thinking, I take out my fishing belt. It’s got plenty of pockets for stashing spare line and hooks and all the other stuff you don’t want to go searching for when you’re out.

I wrap the jewel in a dirty cloth, then I squeeze it into the largest pocket of my belt, where it just about fits. It looks bumpy, but I reckon it’ll be safe. After all, who’d ever think there’s a big jewel inside a fisher belt?

I’ve got my bag on my back, and I’m heading for the door, when I catch a glimpse of my reflection in the dark window; round brown face, dark brown eyes, bundled up in stained oilskins, long hair tied back in a ponytail. Girl’s hair. But Mrs Denton said she was looking for a captain or a young lad to do her mission. I take the letter out of my bag, and carefully prise it open, trying not to tear the envelope too badly. I read down through her scrabbly writing, and all her fancy phrases. Halfway down are the words that matter.

“I commend this man to you. Please give him any aid you can.”

This man! I ent a man! How will I explain that to Mrs Denton’s London trader? What if he guesses I took the letter and the jewel? He’d never help me then.

And that’s why I take out Granny’s kitchen scissors, use the window as a mirror, and start to cut my hair. When I’ve finished, I look into the window and there’s a boy looking back at me. I lift my hand to my short hair, and he does the same. I open my mouth at what I’ve done, and he opens his right back. I’m a boy now. A boy who Mrs Denton could have asked to go on a mission.

You can read more about Raiders’ Ransom online at Emily Diamand’s official website HERE.

Additional Thoughts: Check out the awesome Japanese covers for the book:

Awesome, no? Also, check out the upcoming sequel, Flood and Fire out in May 2010.

Flooded England, 2216 …

Lilly Melkun has outwitted the bloodthirsty reavers, who prowl the waters that cover most of England – and has escaped to Cambridge. But Lilly is far from safe, because still in her keeping is PSAI, the last hand-held computer in existence – a now malfunctioning treasure from the past.

Inside the jewel-like computer, is a sinister- looking chip with an unknown purpose. Worse follows, when the professors of Cambridge plug it into an ancient mainframe computer, setting in motion a fiery chain of events leading back to London.

A false anti-terrorist alert has been activated. Strange, out-of-control robots from a long-ago technological time threaten to use ‘maximum force’ to control everything in their way. Once again, it’s up to Lilly, Zeph and friends to save the world from burning.

Verdict: If you couldn’t tell – I loved the book. It will be a fun adventure for younger readers, but also has some surprising heft and depth that will satisfy older ones too (there are no easy bad or good guys – all of the adults in the book are of questionable motives and allegiances, in a very C.S. Lewis kind of way). Absolutely recommended, and I cannot wait for the next book in the series.

Rating: 8 – Excellent

Reading Next: Witch and Wizard by James Patterson & Gabrielle Charbonnet

Giveaway Details:

Hey, it’s another giveaway! We have ONE copy of Raiders’ Ransom to give away to a lucky reader. The contest is open to residents of the US only, and will run until Saturday December 19 at 11:59 pm (PST). To enter, leave a comment here letting us know what your favorite environmental (post) apocalyptic book or movie is. GOOD LUCK!

Title: The Maze Runner

Author: James Dashner

Genre: Dystopian/Apocalyptic, Horror, Speculative Fiction, Young Adult

Publisher: Delacorte Books
Publication Date: October 2009
Hardcover: 384 pages

Stand alone or series: First book in a planned series.

How did I get this book: Review Copy from a fellow blogger (thanks Amy!)

Why did I read this book: I have been crushing on this book for a while now – ever since I saw the cover and read the synopsis, I’ve been dying to get my hands on it. A while back I was tweeting about how much I was drooling over this title, and the lovely Amy of My Friend Amy was an absolute doll and offered me her copy! Naturally, I accepted. And, here we are.

Summary: (from amazon.com)
When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his first name. His memory is blank. But he’s not alone. When the lift’s doors open, Thomas finds himself surrounded by kids who welcome him to the Glade—a large, open expanse surrounded by stone walls.

Thomas might be more important than he could ever guess. If only he could unlock the dark secrets buried within his mind.

Review:

A dark room ascends. A young boy awakens with no idea where he is. With no idea who he is. All that he can grasp in the lonely darkness is a name – “My name is Thomas.” When the ascent stops, Thomas is hauled out of the dark room and into a strange new world where he’s greeted by teenage boys of different ages and sizes. Thomas is the latest addition to the Glade – a large open green square, surrounded by an immense labyrinth. By day, the Glade is a place of hard work as boys dedicate themselves to their specific, important jobs: farming, cleaning, tending, killing. No job, however, is more important than that of the Runners – the smartest, quickest boys who go out into the Maze every day to document its paths and attempt to find an exit. The Runners must be quick because every day come nightfall, the immense doors connecting the Glade to the Maze shut, and unspeakable monsters called Grievers roam the labyrinth. As the new boy (the “shank greenie”), Thomas grows increasingly frustrated when no one answers his questions about the Glade, the surrounding maze, and the Grievers that roam its exterior in the dark – but soon Thomas learns that the rest of the boys are just like him. None of them can remember anything prior to the box, nor do they recall why they are in the Glade or who put them there. All they know is their dedicated safe routine, and their precipitous existence – work your job, keep your head down, and hope that the runners will one day find the exit to the elaborate, ever-changing maze.

Until the day after Thomas’s arrival, that is. Everything changes. There should not be another delivery from The Box for another month – but the following morning, someone else arrives in the Glade. A beautiful teenage girl, bears a disturbing message. Everything is about to change. Somehow, both the new girl and Thomas are connected to the mystery of the Glade and its Maze, and they must do everything they can to find a way out, and to lead the other Gladers to safety.

The Maze Runner is every bit as delectable as advertised – it’s everything I love in a novel. Isolated characters in an impossible setting, fighting for their lives – check. Futuristic sci-fi/post-apocalyptic/dystopian setting – check. Mass amounts of tension and violence – check. The only thing that could have made The Maze Runner even more of a “Thea book” would be to set it in outer space, with zombies and time travel in the mix somehow (then again, that may have been a tad much). My point is, I loved the setting and the premise for this novel. There are quite a few young adult survival of the fittest types of stories pervading the marketplace now, which may have some readers skeptical of another new similar title. Rest assured, dear readers – reminiscent of The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and the Gone books by Michael Grant, The Maze Runner is a shining new entry in this particular subgenre, completely worth your time.

The most striking thing about The Maze Runner is the strength of its world-building and the adrenaline-fueled plot. This is akin to a novelization of Lost (one of my favorite television shows ever) – no one knows what’s going on, and mystery and danger abound at every turn. Somehow, all these teenage boys have been transplanted to an isolated world surrounded by an ever-changing maze with only one objective – find a way out. The idea of the Glade and its surrounding, shifting maze, filled with heinous monsters is incredibly compelling and raises a number of questions – why are the boys there and who put them there? Is there anything outside the Glade? Is it some sick experiment or type of imprisonment for crimes they have committed in the past? These questions and countless others are raised – and even more importantly, are addressed – in this provocative novel. Also impressive is the writing style of The Maze Runner. Similar to Patrick Ness’s Chaos Walking books, The Maze Runner employs a particular new slang – the Gladers have evolved their own way of dealing with problems and speaking, using words like “shank,” “greenie,” “griever,” among others. It’s a little strange initially, just as it is strange to protagonist Thomas’s ears, but makes sense in the context of the story.

I don’t want to say anything much about actual plot points as these are things best discovered upon reading without spoilers, but suffice to say that the writing and plotting are irresistibly tight and crisp, and Mr. Dahsner knows how to write a thrilling mystery. Just when we receive an answer and one part of the puzzle is uncovered, that leads to an even larger question. And he manages to keep you interested in the story, dying to find out what’s next, with only a minor level of annoyed “WTF is going on!?”-ness (And trust me, as a long-time Lost devotee, I can honestly say in terms of pace of revelations, The Maze Runner is not even close to the level of impotent frustration that it could have reached).

These strengths in terms of pacing and plot reveals are also in part due to the strength of the main character, Thomas. Thomas is a clever young man and he asks all the right questions (whether or not he receives answers to them, well, that’s a different story). Because Thomas is completely new to the Glade and the way of life of the boys there, his own burning questions and frustrations are ones that we share as readers, which makes for a very effective device. As far as protagonists go, Thomas is a fine one with a natural curiosity and ability to voice his opinions, even when they may not be the popular or safe choice. He’s tenacious and brave, but not so flawless to render him one-note. Considering that Thomas and the other characters in the Glade cannot remember anything about their pasts, they are all distinctive, well-rounded characters and very believable. In particular, I loved Minho, Newt, Chuck, and Gally – each has their own charms and distinct personalities.

The only character I wish we got to see more of and understand more was the lone female member of the cast, Teresa. We get tantalizing glimpses into her past and her abilities as linked with Thomas, but as she’s in a coma and ostracized for most of this first book, we don’t get to truly know her. However, this is something I think that will be remedied in the next two books.

In many ways The Maze Runner is a reflection of the Maze that surrounds the Glade itself – little pieces of the puzzle gradually are shuffled and revealed throughout the book, keeping readers on their toes. We keep guessing what could be next, and what each individual piece means until finally the whole picture comes into dramatic crystal sharp clarity. And when you talk about a cliffhanger ending that leaves you salivating for more, I don’t think you can get any more compelling or infuriating than the end of The Maze Runner (I’d put it on the level of The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness). I need the next shankin’ book. NOW.

Notable Quotes/Parts: From Chapter 1:

He began his new life standing up, surrounded by cold darkness and stale, dusty air.

Metal ground against metal; a lurching shudder shook the floor beneath him. He fell down at the sudden movement and shuffled backward on his hands and feet, drops of sweat beading on his forehead despite the cool air. His back struck a hard metal wall; he slid along it until he hit the corner of the room. Sinking to the floor, he pulled his legs up tight against his body, hoping his eyes would soon adjust to the darkness.

With another jolt, the room jerked upward like an old lift in a mine shaft.

Harsh sounds of chains and pulleys, like the workings of an ancient steel factory, echoed through the room, bouncing off the walls with a hollow, tinny whine. The lightless elevator swayed back and forth as it ascended, turning the boy’s stomach sour with nausea; a smell like burnt oil invaded his senses, making him feel worse. He wanted to cry, but no tears came; he could only sit there, alone, waiting.

My name is Thomas, he thought.

That… that was the only thing he could remember about his life.

He didn’t understand how this could be possible. His mind functioned without flaw, trying to calculate his surroundings and predicament. Knowledge flooded his thoughts, facts and images, memories and details of the world and how it works. He pictured snow on trees, running down a leaf-strewn road, eating a hamburger, the moon casting a pale glow on a grassy meadow, swimming in a lake, a busy city square with hundreds of people bustling about their business.

And yet he didn’t know where he came from, or how he’d gotten inside the dark lift, or who his parents were. He didn’t even know his last name. Images of people flashed across his mind, but there was no recognition, their faces replaced with haunted smears of color. He couldn’t think of one person he knew, or recall a single conversation.

You can read the full excerpt and the first nine chapters online HERE.

Additional Thoughts: If you liked The Maze Runner and want more of the same dystopian style goodness, where children are put in drastic situations, you might want to try some of the novels below. These include – The Hunger Games and Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins, Battle Royale by Koshun Takami, The Lord of the Flies by William Golding, The Long Walk by Stephen King, Gone and Hunger by Michael Grant, The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan, and The Girl in the Arena by Lise Haines.

Also, for more information on The Maze Runner (including audio excerpts, a game, author interview, and discussion forum), check out the book’s awesome website HERE.

Verdict: If you couldn’t tell, I loved The Maze Runner. Anyone looking for a thrilling, white-knuckle read should look no further. This title from James Dashner totally rocks. Absolutely recommended…and is it October yet?

Rating: 8 – Excellent

Reading Next: The Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson

For the past few months, we have been including an “On our Radar” section in our weekly stash for books that have caught our eye; books we heard of via other bloggers, directly from publishers, and/or from our regular incursions into the Amazon jungle. This is how the Smugglers’ Radar was born, and because there are far too many books that we want than we can possibly buy or review (what else is new?) we thought we could make it into a weekly feature on its own – this way YOU can tell us which books you have on your radar as well!

On Ana’s Radar:

Coming out in January 2010, this book has been getting all the raves from authors that I LOVE such as Julia Quinn, Sherry Thomas and Joanna Bourne. AND it just got a starred review from Publishers Weekly. I can’t wait!

Jenny Keeble has never let her humble upbringing stop her. She’s made her way in the world as a fortune teller, one who convinces her clients her predictions are correct by telling them what they most want to hear. Business is good . . . until she meets her match in the form of Gareth Carhart, the Marquess of Blakely, a scientist and sworn bachelor.

Broodingly handsome, Gareth is appalled to discover his cousin has fallen under the spell of “Madame Esmerelda,” and he vows to prove her a fraud. But his unexpected attraction to the fiery enchantress defies logic. Jenny disrupts every facet of Gareth’s calculated plan— until he can’t decide whether to ruin her or claim her for his own. Now, as they engage in a passionate battle of wills, two lonely souls must choose between everything they know . . . and the boundless possibilities of love.

I saw this at Lurv a La Mode’s upcoming YA list and it sounds and looks awesome

Wade Jackson has always felt split, his love for playing and writing music competing with his ambition to do well in school. But when his mother dies, this need for order competes with his desire to leave it all behind. What follows is a split in his consciousness that takes him to two very different worlds.
Told in alternating chapters that together form one cohesive story, Split follows both Wades as they pursue what they think is the correct path. One Wade continues working hard in school, pulling all-nighters to write a computer code he believes will save the world. The other Wade pursues the dream of being a dive-bar singer, pulling all-nighters to party, gamble, and live on the edge. But when these two worlds begin to collide, each Wade will need to find a balance between control and abandon, order and chaos, life missed and life lost, in order to save himself.

This one is an anthology and I LOVE the premise:

These 22 all-new tales pay tribute to the true heroes—the people who enable and put up with heroes. From what it’s like to be Hercules’ wife (complete with an appearance by Hercules in drag) to the trials of H.P. Lovecraft’s housekeeper, from the perils of being King Kong’s girlfriend to the downside of dating a shapeshifter, this anthology turns heroism on its head, revealing the behind-the-scenes drama, as opposed to glorious rescues. From the Pied Piper’s power trip to David acting like a giant you-know-what after slaying Goliath, these stories show heroes in all their ignominy and shine a light on the unsung faithful standing in their shadows.

Saw this one at the publisher’s site:

I’m marooned.

Abandoned.

Left to rot in boarding school . . .

Viola doesn’t want to go to boarding school, but somehow she ends up at an all-girls school in South Bend, Indiana, far, far away from her home in Brooklyn, New York. Now Viola is stuck for a whole year in the sherbet-colored sweater capital of the world.

Ick.

There’s no way Viola’s going to survive the year – especially since she has to replace her best friend Andrew with three new roommates who, disturbingly, actually seem to like it there. She resorts to viewing the world (and hiding) behind the lens of her video camera.

Boarding school, though, and her roommates and even the Midwest are nothing like she thought they would be, and soon Viola realizes she may be in for the most incredible year of her life.

But first she has to put the camera down and let the world in.

AND, Julia Quinn’s next book has a title (but not a blurb or a cover) for her next book coming early summer 2010.

Ten Things I Love About You

I am so, so, sooooooooo there!

On Thea’s Radar:

Hey, another apocalyptic YA novel! I’m not predictable…right?

2097 is a transformed world. Thirty years earlier, a mysterious plague wiped out 97 percent of the male population, devastating every world system from governments to sports teams, and causing both universal and unimaginable grief. In the face of such massive despair, women were forced to take over control of the planet–and in doing so they eliminated all of Earth’s most pressing issues. Poverty, crime, warfare, hunger . . . all gone.

But there’s a price to pay for this new “utopia,” which fourteen-year-old Kellen is all too familiar with. Every day, he deals with life as part of a tiny minority that is purposefully kept subservient and small in numbers. His career choices and relationship options are severely limited and controlled. He also lives under the threat of scattered recurrences of the plague, which seem to pop up wherever small pockets of men begin to regroup and grow in numbers.

And then one day, his mother’s boss, an iconic political figure, shows up at his home. Kellen overhears something he shouldn’t–another outbreak seems to be headed for Afterlight, the rural community where his father and a small group of men live separately from the female-dominated society. Along with a few other suspicious events, like the mysterious disappearances of Kellen’s progressive teacher and his Aunt Paige, Kellen is starting to wonder whether the plague recurrences are even accidental. No matter what the truth is, Kellen cares only about one thing–he has to save his father.

Thanks to Alert Nerd buddy Sarah Kuhn for alerting (hoho!) me to this title:

Beth Michaels isn’t sure when it all began, but she’s pretty sure that the pink dots came first. Pink dots everywhere in her vision, clouding the people who stood before her. And then, little movie screens started to play, telling her more than she ever wanted know about their lives. Now, she can’t even eat a hamburger without seeing how the poor cow met his maker. As she approaches her eighteenth birthday, her visions just keep getting worse. And when a little gold envelope shows up proclaiming the words YOU ARE MORE THAN YOU THINK YOU ARE, she starts to do the super-freak. What does all of this mean? It means she’s in for a long senior year.

If you lost someone you loved, what would you pay to bring them back from the dead?

Old Marsh, the gardener at Belerion Hall, warned the Villiers girl about the old ruins along the sea-cliffs. “Never go in, miss. Never say a prayer at its door. If you are angry, do not seek revenge by the Laughing Maiden stone or at the threshold of the Tombs. There be those who listen for oaths and vows….What may be said in innocence becomes flesh and blood in such places.”

She was born Iris Catherine Villiers. She became Isis.

From childhood until her sixteenth year, Iris Villiers wandered the stone-hedged gardens and the steep cliffs along the coast of Cornwall near her ancestral home. Surrounded by the stern judgments of her grandfather-the Gray Minister-and the taunts of her cruel governess, Iris finds solace in her beloved older brother who has always protected her.

But when a tragic accident occurs from the ledge of an open window, Iris discovers that she possesses the ability to speak to the dead…

Be careful what you wish for…it just may find you.

Also, the first chapter of Maria V. Snyder’s upcoming YA novel, Inside Out is now up online! Check it out:

I’m Trella. I’m a scrub. A nobody. One of thousands who work the lower levels, keeping Inside clean for the Uppers. I’ve got one friend, do my job and try to avoid the Pop Cops. So what if I occasionally use the pipes to sneak around the Upper levels? Not like it’s all that dangerous – the only neck I risk is my own. Until I accidently start a rebellion and become the go-to girl to lead a revolution. I should have just said no…

And finally, a new cover from Lisa Shearin, for the latest novel in her ongoing Raine Benares fantasy series:

What about you? Any books you are really looking forward to reading? Do share!

Title: Elegy Beach

Author: Steven R. Boyett

Genre: Fanatsy, Post-Apocalypse, Urban Fantasy

Publisher: Ace
Publication Date: November 2009
Hardcover: 384 Pages

Stand alone or series: Sequel to Ariel (1983)

How did I get this book: Review Copy from Publisher

Why did I read this book: I read and really enjoyed author Steven Boyett’s first novel, Ariel, which was recently redistributed in preparation for the long-awaited release of Elegy Beach. These books blend two of my favoritest things: the apocalypse, and high fantasy. How could I resist? I eagerly jumped at the opportunity to read and review Elegy Beach.

Summary: (from barnesandnoble.com)
Thirty years ago the lights went out, the airplanes fell, the cars went still, the cities all went dark. The laws humanity had always known were replaced by new laws that could only be called magic. The world has changed forever. Or has it?

In a small community on the California coast are Fred Garey and his friend Yan, both born after the Change. Yan dreams of doing something so big his name will live on forever. He thinks he’s found it-a way to reverse the Change. But Fred fears the repercussions of such drastic, irreversible steps.

Review:

First, a caveat: this review contains mild spoilers for the novel, as it is impossible to really discuss the book without divulging these plot points. If you have not read Ariel, or if you wish to go into Elegy Beach completely fresh and unspoiled, you have been warned.

Elegy Beach begins in the Changed world, years after the events of Ariel. Decades after the fateful afternoon when the laws of the universe shifted, technology stopped working, and mythical creatures emerged to roam the streets, a teenage boy named Fred Garey works as a casting apprentice in the small, coastal town of Del Mar. Bored with the monotony of conjuring avatars of pretty unicorns for customers, Fred yearns to learn more powerful and complex magic from his master, Paypay – for Fred and his best friend Yan have a goal to understand all magic in the world, in a way that has never been done before. When Fred and Yan open the proverbial can of worms as they devise a way to mass produce spells and unlock a magical impossibility, Yan’s ambition and vision leads the two friends on diverging paths. Yan leaves Del Mar with a vision that means the end of the Changed world, and in his insatiable desire for magical knowledge, he sets events in motion that bring old friends together once more. Ariel and Pete reunite, and they set out on one last dangerous road together – this time with young Fred and Yan’s father, as they race to stop Yan’s ultimate show of power.

It’s impossible to think about Elegy Beach without comparing it to Ariel – and in fact, these novels are so closely tied, it would be wrong not to discuss them together. As its title suggests, Elegy Beach is a moving tale, tinged throughout with the profound sadness of change, an elegiac ode to moving on. When I began this book, I had no real idea of what to expect. I had read and enjoyed Ariel, but I thought that Elegy Beach would be more of a loose novel set in the same world. Imagine my surprise then, as I read the book only to discover that it was a direct sequel. Though narrated through the pen of young Fred Garey, just as Ariel was told through his father Pete’s written words, Elegy Beach is more the end of Pete and Ariel’s tale than it is Fred’s. As Mr. Boyett mentions in the afterword to this novel, at times it felt that Fred was an observer to his own book, watching and documenting the final chapter in Pete and Ariel’s story together. This is not a bad thing, though, as long time fans of Ariel will be happy to see the reunion of these two old friends, and new fans begin to connect with a new generation of the post-apocalyptic world with Fred Garey.

The writing style of Mr. Boyett’s second novel of the Change is markedly different from that of Ariel, though structurally the books are similar in concept. Both begin simply but become more complex as their stories continue, eventually becoming road quests on the path to dramatic, ultimate showdowns – and of course, following the showdowns, there are the inevitable consequences of decisions each character has made. Though the format may be similar, it is clear that the author writing Elegy Beach is an older, more seasoned one than that of Ariel. This comes across in the elegance of the descriptions of the changed world, the more tangible understanding of the laws of the Change, but most importantly in the narrative voice of the novel. Fred’s style is far rougher than his father’s in Ariel. Elegy Beach is written in a series of staccato-like sentences, as Fred hardly uses question marks or other inflection, selectively hyphenating (or not hyphenating) certain words, and phonetically spelling out certain abbreviations he cannot have any real understanding of (i.e. “Pee Em” for “P.M.”). The concept underlying this new narrative style is fascinating, but also is a bit of a gamble on Mr. Boyett’s part, as Fred’s voice is initially hard to get used to and new readers unfamiliar with the mythology of the novels may be turned off by this intentionally difficult style. As for me, I loved it. Though initially hard to get used to, the style is beautifully conceived as one of the main underlying themes of Ariel is the generational difference between those alive before the change, and those born after it like Fred and Yan, inheriting the new world. Fred, a teenager who has no concept of Beethoven, of the Apollo missions, of electricity or formal schooling would write in a manner completely different, even alien to our modern eyes – whereas Pete’s written narrative in Ariel was more simplistic, direct and comfortably familiar.

Fred’s characterization as a narrator was wholly genuine, down to his punctuation – and these strong characterizations are some of Elegy Beach’s greatest assets. As a narrator, Fred is observant but frustratingly unreliable at times, as he does not tell us everything we want to know, or taking a long, roundabout way to get to those answers. It’s infuriating, but again genuine and in keeping with Fred’s character. And of course, there’s Pete Garey – this version of Pete is a far cry from the innocent, thickly naive young man from Ariel. Life has tested Pete harshly, and his “great adventure” has long since been completed. We do not know everything that has happened in the decades between the end of Ariel and Elegy Beach for much of this second novel, only seeing a bitter, tired man aged beyond his forty-odd years through the eyes of his uncomprehending son. Those missing years of Pete’s story are gradually revealed, and it’s another profoundly moving, hard path that has shaped Pete’s adult life. Mr. Boyett takes a little traveled road with Elegy Beach, answering the question of what happens to a hero once his grand adventure is over – because they cannot go home again, and Pete and Ariel are proof of that.

The other characters, are similarly well-defined through Fred’s eyes, from Yan’s father, the good Doctor Ramchandani to a young straggler girl they encounter on the road. The only character I wish I could have known better was Yan himself, the Magneto to Fred’s Xavier. Even with Yan, though, readers understand his motivations and desires – I only (selfishly) wish that more time was spent developing the growing differences between Yan and Fred.

In terms of world-building and setting, Elegy Beach also is more complex than its predecessor, changing certain aspects from the Ariel mythos. There’s a time jump that’s quickly apparent concerning the era of the Change. As Ariel was initially written in the 1980s, the Change in that novel accordingly reflected ’80s technology. In Elegy Beach, however, the time of the Change has shifted to present day (as there is reference from the pre-Changers of cell phones and iPods). Though this was a little confusing, I believe this was a conscious decision by the author, to make the Change applicable to a new generation. Personally, I didn’t mind this revisionist interpretation of the Change, and I liked the attempt to make sense of the universe created in Ariel with new, hard rules – older devotees, however, might not. There’s a total re-interpretation of “magic” in this novel as well, which I found fascinating. Magic is described as a language, interpreted in a software/computer-literate manner, and the ideas of magical “stasis” and spells that work like programming macros were bizarre, but oddly effective visualizations. I wish there was a bit more about the rules of magic in this novel and Fred’s efforts at codification and implementation of those rules…but I suspect that’s an adventure for a future book.

On a less analytical note and a more emotional level, Elegy Beach simply works. It’s an older, smarter, more viscerally evocative novel. Author Steven Boyett and protagonist Pete have come a very long way from where this journey began in a lake, when a young man spied a unicorn with a broken leg. And Elegy Beach FELT like it began one way but ended in a completely different, unexpected direction – to Fred, to Pete, and to the author himself. Ariel may have lacked denouement, but Elegy Beach doesn’t – it has the emotional release that the story requires, not rushing through the hard, cruel bits at the end. It’s a cautionary post-apocalyptic tale in some respects (as it has been marketed), but it’s more a story about growing up, putting the past to rest, and letting go. As Ariel might say, everyone is betrayed and yeah, it isn’t fair – but any fairness is a gift. There is humor in this book at times, but some readers may understandably be put off by the lack of whimsy and naive lightheartedness that was more present in Ariel and is not-so present in Elegy Beach. As for me, I chalk the quieter humor up to hard living in a hard, changed world, and I thought Elegy Beach was all the better for its grittiness. The best post-apocalypse novels are tinged with sadness, and such is the case with this profoundly moving novel.

I want more. I want Fred’s story, because this is just the beginning for him. I can only hope that Mr. Boyett returns to the new Changed world once more.

Notable Quotes/Parts: From Chapter 1:

The last thing in this world I wanted to see was another damned unicorn. They were the big deal for schoolgirls in Del Mar this year. Gaggles of them came into Paypay’s shop wanting their vewwy own unicorn that would wait for them outside Miss Cowardan’s school with tail swishing to walk them home. Some women wanted one in the living room like some sort of knick knack. They could have one too, for a half a pound of coffee, a couple ounces of chocolate, a jar of decent homebrew, or whatever else Paypay was trading for this week.

It seemed pretty hollow to me. Maybe unicorns had been common as cock-roaches back in the days just after the Change, but clearly they’d long since left for greener and more hospitable pastures. If we were what they had to rub elbows with, who could blame them.

Older ladies always moaned about this while I made the charm in Paypay’s shop. Poor widdle unicorns, them all go bye bye, how sad, could you make it shinier, please? I smiled and nodded. They were customers.

Today it was Mrs. Gloster who wanted her unicorn shinier. “I just like having them around the place,” she said. “They make things feel so warm and friendly.” She smiled at me. “Inviting.”

Mrs. Gloster was a regular, went through about a unicorn a week—pretty good deal for Paypay, considering their trade value and the fact that they only last a couple of days. I smiled and nodded and uncapped the potion thermos. I’d taken to mixing up the unicorn potions in big batches first thing in the morning and pouring doses into thermoses. It saved a lot of time. Paypay was oldschool and hadn’t thought of this. He did castings without wondering how they worked or why, or figuring out ways to make the whole messy process more efficient. I wish I’d thought of the thermos trick last year when everyone had wanted lawn gorgons. I wondered if Mrs. Gloster would be as happy to trade dear for her shiny unicorns if she knew I brewed them from ready mix.

“My guests just love them,” Mrs. Gloster was singing on. “Your work is so accomplished, Fred.”

“Well, I’m glad you like them.” I lit the camp stove. Propane was one of the items we traded for. More Paypay logic: trade castings for items you use to make castings that you trade for. How do you get ahead that way?

I held up a finger for her to be quiet and turned to recite the charm. Paypay liked castings to be dramatic and in full view of the customer. “Customer think magic belong on stage, you know? In movie. Make exciting. Make big.”

Whatever; I’d never seen a movie. And it was hard to act excited when I’d recited the unicorn charm so many times that I once woke myself up saying it in my sleep. But Paypay was my boss, so when he was around I did the whole bit, raised arms and flourishes and dramatic voice.

But he wasn’t around now. I cracked my knuckles and made the passes over the cauldron—really just a saucepan on a rusty old campstove—and recited the charm. Just because I said it ten times a day didn’t mean that I couldn’t still mess up, and when castings go wrong they tend to go memorably wrong. My first unicorn charms had been these horrible lopsided skinless popeyed mutant horselike things that had gimped around the back of the shop braying and falling down a lot for two days before fading out. Well if casting were easy every-body’d do it.

The door jangled as another customer came in while I was reciting the charm. I’d asked Paypay could he please lose that damned bell—it could throw you off at a crucial moment, and it seemed to jangle only at crucial moments. Paypay’d just shrugged and said, “You get used. Concentrate is good.”
The eidolon unicorn was taking shape in front of me. Mrs. Gloster liked her unicorns small and shiny, golden horned and glossy—more like ceramic ornaments. I’d learned to leave some things out so she could make helpful suggestions and feel she’d contributed a creative hand. Everyone’s an artist if they only had the time. Well what was the harm.

This week’s unicorn was “a cute little one for the upstairs.” I made it doe-sized and made the head too big for the body and the eyes too big for the head and gave it thick black lashes. Mrs. Gloster asked could I make it shinier. I added faint blue to the coat to give it more glow indoors and made the tail fluffier and backed off on the eyes and lashes. You’ve got to have some standards.

You can read the full chapter online, along with Chapter 2 & Chapter 13 at the book website.

Rating: 8 – Excellent

Reading Next: Unclean Spirits by M.L.N. Hanover

GIVEAWAY DETAILS:

Courtesy of Ace and author Steven Boyett, we are offering TWO prize packs, which each include an autographed copy of Elegy Beach, along with bookmarks, book fliers, and a signed copy of author Steven Boyett’s live DJ set from WorldCon. To enter, leave a comment here answering the following question: If YOU had to survive the end of the world, what would your “apocalypse of choice” be? Answers include but are not limited to alien invaders, the zombie plague, global warming, asteroid impact, The Change (as in Ariel & Elegy Beach), etc…

The contest is open to residents of the US and Canada, and will run until Saturday November 7th at 11:59pm (Pacific). Good luck!

Steven R. Boyett is a multi-tasking guy – in addition to being the author of the cult classic, post-apocalyptic fantasy novel Ariel, he’s also a renowned DJ, and produces three ridiculously successful music podcasts. Oh, and he also has a new book out this month, the highly anticipated sequel to Ariel, twenty-six years in the making, Elegy Beach. We read and loved Ariel, and so when we were presented with the opportunity to review Elegy Beach and interview the author, we were thrilled.

Ladies and Gents, please give it up for the talented Steven Boyett!

The Book Smugglers: First and foremost, thanks for taking the time to “chat” with us!

Steven: Almost all of the afterword to Elegy Beach concerns this very thing. The (relatively) short version is that I didn’t really decide to write it so much as it decided to be written. I never had any intention of writing a sequel and have said so for decades, quite publicly (including in Ariel’s afterword – oopsy). For a few years I’d had a notion of magic as a kind of operating system, a code set to which the universe would respond. I called it spellware. It was a cool idea but just that, not a story. Then one day I realized that spellware fit perfectly into the Ariel milieu, to the extent that it offered an explanation for it. Something in me had some things it wanted to say (some of it to the rest of me, which is always an interesting surprise), and so I set down to work on the book over my own objections, really. The writer in me wrote it while the rest of me enabled him and kept a watchful eye on the guy.

As for what people can expect from Elegy Beach, since it’s a Boyett book you can expect a road trip and a story that uses genre conventions but refuses to adhere to them. I’d like to think that they can expect a more mature version of this approach to fantasy, and to fiction in general, from someone who is more mature in his craft and in his life. And if they don’t think so, then they’re just big stinky doo doo heads.

The Book Smugglers: Ariel’s title character is, of all things, a unicorn. And, as unicorns are often reduced to “girly” stereotypes (magical ponies with horns that live on sunshine and rainbows, or what have you) it had to take some guts to write your first novel with a talking unicorn for a protagonist – especially considering your largely male (adolescent) target audience. So, why did you choose to write about a unicorn? Did you do any mythological research about unicorns for the book? Do you have any favorite or recommended unicorn novels (or rather, books with unicorns in them)?

Steven: Science fiction and fantasy are chock full of tropes worn so smooth by overuse that nothing will stick to them any more. Even at 19 I couldn’t understand why anyone would want to utilize them for any reason other than to subvert them. Do we seriously need another quest story about humanoids who set out in a bunch to destroy/recover/trigger some talisman? Fiction at that point is nothing more than a Mad Lib. Hemingway wrote that “What a writer in our time has to do is write what hasn’t been written before or beat dead men at what they have done.” The ample evidence contained in bookstores demonstrates that apparently this isn’t easily done, which frankly boggles me. It’s the difference between talent and creativity

To my view (boy is this gonna go over well) the mere and continual reenactment of stories and iconography that have all occurred before, the mere and constant reshuffling of the deck of tropes, is just a kind of pornography. It exists to placate, it serves as an engine of distraction. What endeavors to break from that, or even only to recontextualize it, as Star Wars did, is memorable. What elects not to pander or be safe is memorable. I am not remotely impugning people who do are able to feed their dog and put gas in their car by virtue of the power of their imagination. It’s a great good thing and a lot of hard debilitating work. But the need to buy groceries becomes itself a pressure not to take chances, because by definition the new is hardly ever met with recognition. I have no desire to be another snowflake in that avalanche. I would rather not be able to buy groceries, and often I did not.

I don’t believe in unicorns and I need convincing. My hardwired approach is that readers are of the same view. (Readers who are predisposed to believe in unicorns don’t represent much challenge at all, do they?) I sure as hell don’t believe in talking unicorns. So I’m more inclined to go fo rit if the unicorn has to have a foul mouth and be a smartass who constantly messes with people’s perceptions of it as a fwuffy magic bunny thingy. Then you’re commenting on the idea of unicorn itself. You’re pulling off a magic trick: by calling attention to what the unicorn says and how the unicorn says it you’ve completely distracted the reader from the fact that the unicorn is saying at all. You’re carving your name on that wellworn trope. You’re winning over the cynics and not preaching to the choir. Hallefrigginlujah. To me the most obvious and natural reaction to seeing a talking horse would be Holy shit a talking horse! But how often do we see that happen? It’s as if the writer fears the illusion will break down if it’s pointed out. But in fact the illusion is fortified by concrete detail.

I did do some research on history and depictions of unicorns in history (I can recommend Odell Shepherd’s The Lore of the Unicorn as a great reference), but regarding unicorns themselves I have absolutely no interest in them and no unicorn bibliography. I care about characters and good plotting and admirable prose. I’ll read about washing dishes if it’s beautifully done. To read a book because it’s got a unicorn in it seems to me to (if you’ll forgive me) put the cart before the horse. Anyone who knows me (and it’s not hard to infer from my curmudgeonly tone in the above) knows that the last thing in the world you’d think I’d write about would be unicorns. And they’re right! The only reason to do it is to pee in the pool! Make it yours! No one will hurt you. Readers will be pissed and critics will ding you, but in the long run it will be a singular creation and not another item in a long run excreted by some factory. I’d rather take a chance and fail than be safe and succeed.

I didn’t really choose to write about a unicorn; it chose me. I had a vivid image of a young man and a unicorn walking along an abandoned interstate, and the contrast and mystery of that image were powerful enough to set me on my way. I think that image drives the novel. I hd no target audience of adolescent males; I pretty much was an adolescent male when I wrote the book. In that sense it’s probably true to say that Ariel did not adhere to the traditional girly-girl meets fwuffy unicorn cliche not because of some great bravura step-outside-the-box auteur approach but because I was a 19-year-old kid who didn’t know any better.

The Book Smugglers: Ariel blends elements of post-apocalyptic fiction with traditional fantasy. What inspired you to mix these two genres?

Steven: I don’t think it was a conscious decision, really. I actually grew up reading more science fiction than fantasy, and (to be a bit reductionist here) I think I take a more SF approach to fantasy. A lot of fantasy has a fairy-tale mindset that we’re all just going to suspend our disbelief and go with whatever gets thrown our way, an approach that lets Harry Potter pull a rabbit out of his ass every time he’s cornered. I need more interior logic than that. My impossible things need some foundation. Ultimately this has to break down, because when pushed for ultimately possible explanations, really in fantasy it won’t be there. Thus the designation fantasy. In an ironic way it’s a kind of failure of imagination on my part: I can’t just make something up and be done with it; it’s got to be anchored by something I can work with. Oddly enough it’s the contrast that makes it work. Ariel set in some magic happy elfie land would be perfectly forgettable. It’s been done a thousand times and there was no need to make it a thousand and one. But setting a flat-out quest-type fantasy in our own world is interesting to me. It adds a lot of texture, and lets you comment on the purposes of fantasy itself. I’m all meta like that.

The Book Smugglers: What are your favorite (post-)apocalyptic/dystopian and fantasy novels?

Steven: Dhalgren, by Samuel R. Delany. The Road, by Cormac McCarthy. The Stand (original version), by Stephen King. On the Beach, by Neville Shute. I Am Legend, by Richard Matheson. Emergence, by David Palmer. I’m sure there are a bunch more, but those stand out for me. Some of the books regarded as classics in the field are missing here because they bored me to tears. I’ll be nice and not name names.

The Book Smugglers: Ariel has been blessed by the Gorgeous Cover Gods – all three cover images are fantastic, as is the cover for the upcoming Elegy Beach. Which one is your favorite?

Steven: I’ve definitely been lucky, haven’t I? I’m told it’s easy to illustrate my work because I’m a very visual writer, so maybe that’s helped, but I certainly can’t take credit for these astonishingly good covers. I don’t have a favorite because I really do love all three. I own the original Barclay Shaw painting for the first cover. People tell me it’s dated now (without seeming to realize that the new cover will be dated 30 years from now as well), and certainly the fashion and more airbrushed look reflect the period. But I simply love the characters he presents here. They look like my characters to me (weirdly enough, at the time friends assumed Barclay had used a photo of me for Pete because the depiction looked a lot like me, but it was just another of the many wonderful coincidences that populate my life).

The Rob Alexander cover for the original Scorpius e-book version captures the novel’s mood perfectly, I think. He understands the poetry of decay and manages to make the unicorn a contrast to it and yet part of it at the same time. In the Shaw and Alexander paintings I also think it was probably difficult to paint a unicorn without being sappy or clichéd.

The more recent Steve Stone cover is a perfect representation of the novel’s approach. There is no unicorn at all (there’s no human on the Rob Alexander cover). Everything in it screams postapocalypse. But then there’s that katana in the character’s hand to lend it a kind of videogame aspect. It’s hard-edged, concrete, detailed, gritty. It would be difficult nowadays to put a unicorn on the cover and still convey the fact that Ariel is a very concretely written novel. It would stand a good chance of scaring away the very audience that might like it, whereas elfie stuffed-animal unicorn bunny lovers would read it and say What the living hell is this? Ace’s marketing people were very canny about this, I think, and they have my undying admiration and gratitude for reading the book (itself a miracle, really) and understanding how best to represent it.

Ditto Elegy Beach. It just feels like the book to me. Steve Stone did a wonderful job.

The Book Smugglers: World-wide nuclear war breaks out; aliens invade from outer space; zombies awaken with an insatiable hunger for human flesh; a deadly virus sweeps the globe; a hellbent comet crashes into the earth; the laws of Newtonian physics fail and magic rules. What’s the disaster scenario you would choose to live through?

Steven: Gotta go with the Change on this one. No stinky bodies to clean up, no zombies to fight, no megatsunamis to surf. In fact I think that’s probably why the Change exists as a background: I didn’t want to get bogged down in the why of it and in the details of the disaster’s process; I wanted to deal with what followed. I’m fascinated by what happens to groups when the rules are removed, from massive power failures to The Lord of the Flies to Burning Man. I just wanted it to have already happened and be largely inexplicable; now let’s move on, thank you, drive through.

Cormac McCarthy gets dinged by SF readers for not explaining what happened to the world in The Road. I think that’s a laughably irrelevant thing to ask of him. It’s not about the thing, it’s about what happened to people after the thing. A science fiction writer would have brought in a guy with broken Buddy Holly glasses and a shredded white coat crawling around the ruins and muttering something about how sorry he is for being part of the hadron collider experiment, if only he’d known. And it would just sit there in that book steaming like the pile it would be. I think SF self ghettoizes in this way: it becomes about the explanations.

The Book Smugglers: In addition to being a bestselling author, you also are a DJ and (according to your biography) a didgeridoo player. Why did you turn to music from writing? And how the heck did you get interested in the didgeridoo?

Steven: This is part of that myth that seems to manifest, that you’re either one or the other. I’m a DJ and podcaster for a living and a writer for a living. I’m both. Two full-time careers in one full-time life. I could give up one and make a living solely from the other. But why do that? This is so damned fun. Challenging, time-consuming, frustrating, Type A fun. But fun nonetheless.

Having said that: I did actually quit writing for about four or five years. It’d take too long to explain why, though I touch on it in the Elegy Beach afterword. Suffice to say the universe didn’t seem to want me to write, and I know better than to argue with the universe. But I had only ever been a writer (well, and for 25 years a martial artist), and had no idea what to do with myself when I stopped. What to call myself.

I taught myself to play the didgeridoo because I’d always loved the sound of the instrument, and also because it was something that I couldn’t exploit. I’ve never known how to create something without then taking a lot of effort to put it out there in the world. The didgeridoo is a hollow log. I wasn’t gonna get hot chicks, have a world tour, pay my rent, or fret over royalties because I played it. I had no expectation regarding it. In that way it was pure: I was simply doing it because I liked it.

But being me I couldn’t leave well enough alone. I’d become obsessed with electronic dance music, and I wanted to record didge over it. That’s been done a bunch by now but at the time I’d never heard it. So (being me) I started composing electronic dance music, and learned about audio production and mixing and digital recording systems and a ridiculous amount of stuff. DJ culture is very tied in to this, and I became interested in learning how DJ’s stitch together these electronic pieces, so I learned how to DJ. I put up two music podcasts, and immediately one of them (Podrunner) was featured on iTunes and has been one of the world’s most popular podcasts ever since. It has set me on a great adventure, doing things I never otherwise would have experienced. Playing in a tower in front of a stage surrounded by sound-activated flame cannons at Burning Man. Playing the Hard Rock in Vegas. I mean, jeez.

I’d actually started Elegy Beach when Podrunner hit, and the novel got derailed for three years while I learned an entirely new career. So yet again here I am not knowing how to leave something the hell alone. I mean, my luck is ridiculous – it’s the product of a lot of work and careful consideration and timing but it’s luck nonetheless and I certainly don’t take it for granted.

But what I learned by learning to play the didgeridoo (there’s video of me playing at the end of this long talk at http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/963796) is that I really can do things for the fun of it and approach them without expectation. Where it all went after that is a horribly lucky ironic joke, really.

The Book Smugglers: Aaargh! The Change has come, but by virtue of some strange magic you are able to save ONE book, ONE movie and ONE song. Quick! What are they?

Steven: Dhalgren, simply for its complexity, narrative scope, density, and ability to yield more treasure on every reading.

Toto the Hero, by Jaco van Dormael, my favorite movie. Good luck finding this in the U.S.

Ninth Symphony, Beethoven, if I can be allowed to count it as a song. Otherwise the thought of listening to my one favorite song over and over strikes me as some horrible fate. But if I can’t count the Ninth, then “Solsbury Hill,” by Peter Gabriel. How’s that for eclectic.

As owner of Sneaker Press Boyett published poetry chapbooks by Carrie Etter and the late Nancy Lambert. He has also been a martial-arts instructor, paper marbler, advertising copywriter, editor, typesetter, and proofreader. He designs websites, plays the didgeridoo, and composes electronic music. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife, composer Maureen Halderson, and their two parrots.

A huge THANK YOU to Steven for taking the time to chat with us! You can read more about Steven online at his website, blog, and official sites for Ariel and Elegy Beach.

Make sure to stick around, as tomorrow we review Steven’s long awaited sequel, Elegy Beach, with a giveaway opportunity!

Title: Dying to Live: Life Sentence

Author: Kim Paffenroth

Genre: Horror, Zombies, Post-Apocalyptic Ficiton

Publisher: Permuted Press
Publication Date: October 2008
Paperback: 232 pages

Stand alone or series: Sequel to Dying to Live, but can be read as a stand alone novel.

How did I get this book: Review Copy from the author

Why did I read this book: I loved Dying to Live, and was eager to give the sequel a try. A few months back, the annual Horror Writer’s Association Bram Stoker Awards were held here in Los Angeles, and I drove out to meet and congratulate nominee Joel A. Sutherland. While I was there, I also got to briefly meet author Kim Paffenroth! (And, of course, made a bumbling buffoon of myself in the process) A few weeks later, the author contacted us with a review request – and I of course was most happy to oblige.

Summary: (from Amazon.com)
At the end of the world a handful of survivors banded together in a museum-turned-compound surrounded by the living dead. The community established rituals and rites of passage, customs to keep themselves sane, to help them integrate into their new existence. In a battle against a kingdom of savage prisoners, the survivors lost loved ones, they lost innocence, but still they coped and grew. They even found a strange peace with the undead.
Twelve years later the community has reclaimed more of the city and has settled into a fairly secure life in their compound. Zoey is a girl coming of age in this undead world, learning new roles–new sacrifices. But even bigger surprises lay in wait, for some of the walking dead are beginning to remember who they are, who they’ve lost, and, even worse, what they’ve done.

As the dead struggle to reclaim their lives, as the survivors combat an intruding force, the two groups accelerate toward a collision that could drastically alter both of their worlds.

Review:

Taking place twelve years after the events of Dying to Live, Life Sentence tells the tale of a young girl named Zoey, growing up in a world where the living and dead must coexist. It also is the tale of a man named Wade Truman – a gentle zombie, capable of cognition. Each chapter alternates between Zoey and Wade’s narration, as their two paths eventually collide.

The Dying to Live books have been called the “thinking man’s zombie novel[s]” (Dave Wellington), and I cannot think of a more apt description. Mr. Paffenroth’s writing dares to explore more deeply and explicitly the philosophical implications of the zombie plague and its aftermath, continuing here what he began in the first book. This isn’t so much a “zombie” novel as it is a novel about humans, both living and dead, trying to coexist in a world that has been transformed. This second novel is an extension of the apocalypse, growing past the struggle for immediate survival as a community of humans have cleared out a city and have lived peaceably for years. In Zoey’s narrative, we learn that her city is built on an understanding and reverence for all life – which includes the dead. Instead of killing and eliminating the zombie threat, Zoey’s people revere those who have passed on by keeping the undead locked in a storage facility. They never kill zombies except in self defense and in the situations when there is no way to restrain them safely – a novelty in a genre known for its violent, sensationalist approach to blood, guts and gore. Mr. Paffenroth’s novel has its share of action and danger, but is a much more subdued, reflective book, built more on the strength of its characters than bloody descriptions. And these characterizations are what take the book to the next level, setting it apart as a truly wonderful, memorable novel.

Zoey, the “normal” human narrator is a young girl entering adolescence and preparing to take her vows and become a full-fledged member of the community. Zoey has always felt like an outsider to her fellow community members – different from her adopted mother and father who knew of the “real” world before the zombie apocalypse, different from the children her own age who do not question and view things as Zoey does. Zoey’s written narrative, told in the first person, is a truly searing perspective of someone who has no ties to our world of office jobs, prom dresses and ethnic specialty foods – all she knows is the community she’s grown up in, the way that the dead always reanimate, and the way of life of guns and farming she has lived since her birth. Zoey’s story is that of a new generation, born of the survivors of the apocalypse and with no roots in the world as we currently know it. All this strangeness and detachment from our technology, customs and mores comes across beautifully in Mr. Paffenroth’s writing through Zoey’s perspective. Her voice is immensely moving and believable – she has a thoughtful, introspective tone as a character, questioning not only the tangible differences between our world and her own (as she questions why she must study history of dead kings and plays that no longer seem to hold relevance in humanity’s current situation), but her unique vantage point applies to concepts as abstract as the idea of “memory” and as tangible as the pain of loss.

The other narrator of the novel is Wade Truman – a zombie who is able to think rationally, understand and communicate with others. “Smart” zombies are not exactly novelties – George Romero has examined the idea that zombies can remember certain actions and reason in his films Day of the Dead with Bub, and in Land of the Dead with Big Daddy’s zombie revolution – but I have never read nor seen a film that captures the zombie perspective so completely and hauntingly as does Mr. Paffenroth in Life Sentence. Wade’s narrative answers the questions we hardly ever think to ask of the walking dead – do they feel their mortal wounds? Why do they hunger so, and how do they quench that hunger? Do they remember their pasts? Do they dream, hope, or fear? Just as Zoey’s voice is beautifully distinct and compelling, so too is Truman’s first person narrative. His voice is full of sadness and loss, as he cannot remember his past and struggles to make sense of his present. His story, told through a typewritten journal, is an elegiac lament, a heartbreaking ode for the living dead. Unable to sleep, unable to rest, Truman refrains from eating human flesh and befriends humans and zombies alike. Though he cannot remember who he was, his ability to reason and understand, to think but not speak or communicate initially beyond the most basic signals is a very powerful, saddening story.

Life Sentence is an elegant, eloquent novel about how humanity endures after an unthinkable disaster, honoring the living and dead alike. At times philosophical, Mr. Paffenroth blends action and intellect beautifully in this powerful book, with only occasional missteps. Absolutely recommended for fans and for new readers alike.

Notable Quotes/Parts: You can read an excerpt of the first chapter of Life Sentence online HERE using Amazon’s “Look Inside” feature (click the book cover image).

Additional Thoughts: Kim Paffenroth has a new, extremely limited edition novel out called Valley of the Dead. Though the novel is no longer currently available for order, but hopefully will see a wider release at a later date. Here’s the gorgeous cover and synopsis:

For seventeen years of his life, the whereabouts of the medieval Italian poet Dante Alighieri is unknown to modern scholars. All we know is that during this time, he traveled as an exile across Europe, while working on his epic poem, The Divine Comedy. In his masterpiece he describes a journey through the three realms of the afterlife. The volume describing hell, Inferno, is the most famous of the the three.

Valley of the Dead is the real story behind Inferno. In his wanderings, Dante stumbles on a zombie infestation, and the things he sees there – people being devoured, burned alive, boiled in pitch, torn apart by dogs, eviscerated, impaled, crucified, etc. – become the basis of all the horrors he describes in Inferno. Afraid to be labeled a madman, Dante made the terrors he witnessed into a more “believable” account of an otherworldly adventure with demons and mythological monsters, but now the real story can finally be told.

Rating: 8 – Excellent

Reading Next: Malpractice Anthology

Title: Ark

Author: Stephen Baxter

Genre: Science Fiction, Post-Apocalypse

Publisher: Gollancz (UK)
Publication Date: August 2009
Trade Paperback: 416 pages

Stand alone or series: Book 2 in a duology, following Flood.

Why did I read this book: Despite a slow start and a strange sense of complete detachment, I ended up loving Stephen Baxter’s Flood, the first book in this apocalyptic duology. I loved it so much, in fact, that it is on my shortlist of favorite books of 2009. So, when I found out that Ark was being released in the UK this August, I was thrilled – and immediately begged Ana to procure me a copy. And she did. Good Ana. Gooooooood Ana.

Summary: (from amazon.com)
As the waters rose in FLOOD, high in the Colorado mountains the US government was building an ark. Not an ark to ride the waves but an ark that would take a select few hundred people out into space to start a new future for mankind. Sent out into deep space on an epic journey centuries, generations of crew members carry the hope of a new beginning on a new, incredibly distant, planet. But as the decades pass knowledge and purpose is lost and division and madness grows. And back on earth life, and man, find a new way. This is the epic sequel to the acclaimed FLOOD; a stirring tale of what mankind will do to survive and the perfect introduction for new readers to one of SF’s greatest tropes; the generation ship. Written by one of the most significant SF writers of the last 30 years, a man considered to be the heir of Arthur C. Clarke as a writer with a unique ability to popularize science and science fiction for the largest possible audience FLOOD and ARK together form a landmark in modern SF.

Review:

I have discovered a new “autobuy” author this year, and Stephen Baxter is his name. I cannot quite explain what it is about his writing that simply works for me. Objectively, I can see that his work is rather verbose and bleak, and at times very dense which can put off many readers. In fact, this often puts me off many authors. But there’s something about his books that hit all the right buttons for me. Perhaps it’s the scope of his writing, blending human elements with the harder elements of science fiction. Perhaps it’s the cool – almost cruel – impassivity he shows his protagonists. Perhaps it’s some mystical, perfect blend of the two that I find irresistible. The point is, I have become a full-fledged fan. Ark, along with Flood easily makes the shortlist of two of my favorite novels of 2009.

Overlapping and following the events of Flood, the first book in this duology, Ark tells the story of the birth and culmination of a top secret project to send a genetically diverse, brilliant group of young humans away from the flooded and dying Earth, to travel that final frontier of space – to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before. In a long-shot hope to save the human race and rebuild on an as of yet unknown planet, Ark is the story of how the Ark One was conceived, how it left Earth, and the fate of those on board. While Flood is a dramatic apocalypse novel documenting the systematic flooding and the end of the world by water as a subterranean sea reservoir covered all the land on the face of the planet, Ark is a science fiction story about humanity’s last ditch effort to prevail. Following two main characters, Grace, a dejected, tired and hopeless woman whom readers will remember from Flood, and Holle, groomed since childhood for a chance to get on Ark One, Ark is a visceral, intelligent, tragic, and ultimately hopeful novel about the end of the world, and how humanity endures.

As with Flood, and as I suspect might be indicative of all Stephen Baxter’s work, Ark is a story with an incredible sense of scale and scope. Beginning with a six-year old Holle who makes it to the Colorado Rockies with her father in the year 2025, Ark spans fifty-six nominal years and a distance of over one-hundred light years, to the fate of the remaining members on the Ark in 2081. When a small group of far-sighted and very wealthy men move to Denver as the last stronghold of high land in a flooded America and water-logged world, they learn that the water will not stop rising and decide they have three options for survival: build habitable environments on Earth that will thrive beneath the ever-rising global ocean; build habitable environments on Earth that will survive afloat on the ever-rising global ocean; or leave Earth entirely for a new world. And, when some members (Nathan Lammockson, as you may remember from Flood) pursue the Earth-bound options, a smaller contingent begins diligent work on building a last-ditch honest to goodness spaceship, training children in physics, astronomy, and highly technical and theoretical coursework, while attempting to scan the skies for likely candidates for Earth II. The Ark has a lot working against it – predictions of the exponential water rise say the project must launch by 2041, leaving the scientists and later military less than fifteen years to not only accomplish all this building, but also to create a superluminal warp drive (a way to travel faster than the speed of light, which actually has scientific merit by the use of a “warp bubble,” or Alcubierre Drive) in order to reach a suitable distant planet in the first place. From these technical limitations, Ark follows the actual launch of Ark One, and its journey through space, and all that which befalls the humans on board – encompassing political strong-arming, a revolution, and hopes crushed and reignited.

But beyond the science and technicalities – which are wonderful, informative, and completely believable – Ark is a story about characters. Holle, who has been in the candidate program for the Ark since her childhood, a girl who has studied astrophysics since the ripe age of twelve and military survival protocol at the same time, is our main protagonist. We know Holle intimately from her time as a child and young woman on Earth; her hopes to get on the Ark, her fears that she or some of her fellow candidates might not make it, and the pain of having to leave her father behind. We also see her grow as a character, from a young hopeful idealist to a tough woman who will do what is necessary to keep the people on Ark One, and thereby humanity’s chances for survival, alive. It’s also the story of Grace, who is put on the Ark due to Lily (protagonist of Flood)’s maneuvering and manipulation. Grace too grows from a shell of a woman who cares for nothing, to a loving mother and invaluable member of the Ark crew in their many cold years in transit. Nothing is simple or cookie-cutter here; there is love and friendship, but also bitterness, backstabbing, and passion, all in a roil of human emotion that is compelling and genuine. Stuck on a spaceship for decades, with children born in transit who have never seen Earth or the sunlight who are resentful of the elders’ uncompromising command, things aboard the Ark are messy and destructive. And when they finally reach their destination, other tough decisions must be made.

I loved this book. I loved this book. I’m not exactly sure how else to say it. From the compelling characters, to the science fiction elements, to the balance of hope and despair in equal measure, I loved Ark. I loved Holle and Grace’s narrative, just as I loved the detailed and genuine secondary characters both on the Ark and back on Earth, especially the character of Kelly (ruthless, ambitious leader of the ship), Venus (astronomer and theoretician), and the broken Zane. I loved the hard science aspect, with the development of the warp bubble, the day to day life on the ship, the observations of other star systems and viable candidates for a new home. I loved the writing, the blend of physics, hard science fiction, and compelling plot lines. I loved the emotional turmoil, the self-destructive nature of humanity, and the messiness of survival.

Simply put: I loved this book.

Notable Quotes/Parts: From Chapter 1:

Grace had spent most of her life on the road with Walker City, fifteen years walking with her home on her back, like a snail or a crab. The time before that, when she was younger than five years old and a pampered prisoner of her father’s family in Saudi, was a blur, unreal, as were the years she had most recently spent as another kind of prisoner on Nathan’s liner. Now here she was yet again passed from one stranger’s hands to another.

Only the walking was real, she sometimes thought. Past, future, the vast cataclysm humanity was suffering – none of it mattered if all you could actually do in the world was put one foot in front of another, day after day, kilometre after kilometre. She could just walk away now. Walk off with nothing but the clothes on her back, just as it had been with Walker City. But she had her baby growing inside her, a baby she hadn’t wanted by a ‘husband’ she loathed, but hers nonetheless. She didn’t want to manage the pregnancy on her own.

Gordo said, “They’re lifting.”

The wind from the rotors battered Grace’s face. Lily Brooke leaned out of the chopper and stared down at Grace. She mouthed what looked like, “Forgive me.” Then Thandie pulled her back into the machine, and the bird lifted smoothly.

“Are you OK?”

Grace was angry with herself for showing weakness, angry at Lily for her manipulation and abandonment. She snapped, “What do you think?”

Gordo shrugged. “They left you behind to give you a shot at getting into Ark One. A Chance of a better life than any of them face now, especillay if they’re right that their boat has been sunk.”

“I don’t even know what Ark One is.”

“You’ll find out.”

“I’ll never see any of them again.”

“I guess not.”

“Once again I’m alone, with strangers.”

He sighed, pushed back his peaked cap, and scratched his scalp. “So are we all. The whole world is screwed up, kid. At least here we got something to do.” He looked around. The last dust from the chopper was settling now, and the homeless were pushing back to recolonise the space they had cleared, like water pooling in a dip. In a few minutes there would be no sign that a chopper had landed here at all. “Well, that’s that. Come on, let’s get you out of here.” He released her arm and set off back through the town, towards the waiting cars.

She followed, having no choice.

Additional Thoughts: Stephen Baxter is the author of a number of science fiction novels, including The Time Ships, the Hugo Nominated sequel to H.G. Wells’ classic The Time Machine.

So far, I have bought this and Evolution, and plan on reading both very soon. Are there any other Stephen Baxter – or otherwise wonderful science fiction books – anyone would care to recommend?

Verdict: While Ark might not be the perfect book for everyone, it was the perfect book for me. I loved it from beginning to end, I couldn’t put it down, I couldn’t stop thinking about it when I finished it. With that said, I give it the highest rating possible – and my first and so far only “10 rating” for 2009. Bravo, Mr. Baxter. Bravo.

Rating: 10 – Perfection

Reading next: Triumff by Dan Abnett