Book Reviews

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The Land of Laughs - Jonathan Carroll
“The Land of Laughs was lit by eyes that saw the lights that no one’s seen.”

Carroll’s first novel sets the stage for what becomes a kind of trademark later in his career, and his style is tough to explain. The words ‘magic’ and ‘surreal’ come to mind, but generally in Carroll’s stories the operative word would just be ‘real’. These are real characters, with real emotions, in real situations, and then some kind of craziness skews the reality. A uniting thread of weirdness exists throughout Mr. Carrol’s works, and The Land of Laughs marks ground zero.

An English teacher and his girlfriend travel to a small town to track down information on their deceased favorite author with hopes of obtaining permission from the author’s surviving daughter to write a definitive biography–one writing and the other researching.

Most of this novel plays out as a mystery. Closed-lipped townsfolk alternate between acceptance and rejection of the couple, with the author’s daughter providing the lion’s share of early information and misinformation while the two main characters pry into the author’s life. It’s a quick read, as Carroll seems to have an ability to keep any scene interesting enough to keep the reader motivated. Somewhere around 2/3 of the way through the mystery elements take a back seat as the weird fiction part of Carroll’s expertise takes over. By novel’s end you’ve witnessed the birth of a master fantasist.

A book like this isn’t for everyone, but everyone owes it to themselves to give this author a chance. If you’re a short story reader, a strong suggestion is to dip your toes into his world with his retrospective collection, The Woman Who Married A Cloud. No one writes like him, and his style is undoubtedly effective. The Land of Laughs is part mystery, part romance, part fantasy, and just a little part horror. It’s addictive enough you won’t really want to stop unless you have to.

4 stars

[bugen]

Thanks Marduk. I wholeheartedly enjoyed reading Toybox. The collection felt complex and writing it down helped sort it out. Received my hard copy today!

[TerryE]

"The Land of Laughs was lit by eyes that saw the lights that no one's seen."

The Land of Laughs - Jonathan Carroll

Carroll's first novel sets the stage for what becomes a kind of trademark later in his career, and his style is tough to explain. The words 'magic' and 'surreal' come to mind, but generally in Carroll's stories the operative word would just be 'real'. These are real characters, with real emotions, in real situations, and then some kind of craziness skews the reality. I've now read 3 of his books, 2 being of them novels - his first novel, reviewed here, and From the Teeth of Angels, considered by many to be his finest work, along with the magnificent collection, The Woman Who Married a Cloud. There is a uniting thread of weirdness throughout each, and The Land of Laughs marks ground zero.

An English teacher and his girlfriend travel to a small town to track down information on their favorite, deceased, author, with hopes of obtaining permission from the author's surviving daughter to write a definitive biography. One writing and the other researching.

Most of this novel plays out as a mystery, as closed-lipped townsfolk alternate between acceptance and rejection, with the daughter providing the lion's share of early information and misinformation while the two main characters pry into the author's life. It's a quick read, as Carroll seems to have an ability to keep any scene interesting enough to keep the reader motivated. Somewhere around 2/3 of the way through the mystery elements take a back seat as the weird-fiction part of Carroll's expertise takes over. By novel's end you've witnessed the birth of a master fantasist.

I don't believe a book like this is for everyone, but I do think everyone owes it to themselves to give this author a chance. If you're a short story reader, my suggestion would be to dip your toes into his world with the collection, The Woman Who Married A Cloud. I haven't yet seen anyone write like him, and his style is undoubtedly effective. The Land of Laughs is part mystery, part romance, part fantasy, and just a little part horror. It's addictive enough you won't really want to stop unless you have to.

4 stars

Great review! The only thing I would have added is that bull terriers now seem even creepier to me. And Carroll loves them, posting pictures all the time on his Facebook page.

[bugen]

Thanks Terry. I must admit I want a bull terrier after reading this. Affable, loveable creatures... perhaps a little dim. Until, of course, everything changes.

[bugen]

Strange Highways – Dean Koontz
“You don’t have to make the world peaceful,” she said. “It is to begin with. You just have to learn not to disturb things.”

Mr. Koontz has an entertaining and thoroughly enjoyable, worth every penny and then some, but not often eye-opening. If you’re a reader of his novels but haven’t seen this collection, you’re about to see an entirely different strength to his writing.

Opening with the novel, also titled Strange Highways, the book starts off strong with a kind of accidental time travel and remains strong after the novel finishes and the shorter works begin. In fact, this book has very little to hinder its momentum besides the 2 novels, and that’s not because they’re somehow at fault, it’s just the nature of novel vs. short story. The other novel contained in the collection, Chase (sometimes referred to as a novella), ends the book. In between the two novels are fast paced stories that nearly anyone who loves horror should enjoy. While Koontz is mostly known today for his thrillers, this book plays up the strange more than anything. It really is mostly horror while he takes a break from thrillers. Strangely enough, this was a good thing in regards to this book.

The story “Twilight of the Dawn,” may be the crowning achievement. If the novels weren’t book-ending the collection, this would be the final story.

“Twilight of the Dawn” is one of the least horror-themed stories contained here, but the author grips you by the throat in this heart-rending story and won’t let you go. There’s a good chance you’ll remember it for the rest of your life. The story focuses on the relationship between a young boy and his father, the latter whom grew up under such oppressive circumstances caused by his fanatically religious parents that he adamantly denies all religion and champions atheism. Tragedy strikes, and the father’s beliefs eventually become at odds with emerging beliefs of his son as the young boy is drawn to some of the answers provided by the vague religious doctrine he’s picked up over time despite his father’s best efforts. As the father grapples with this divide between the two, tragedy deepens, and as the tale approaches its close you will be moved, regardless of your personal system. A relentless, heart-breaking study of the father/son relationship, the nature of faith and the beauty and tragedy of life.

For traditional Koontz fans and horror lovers, this collection is where it’s at.

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[marduk]

Well, my review got pushed back a week, due to the book editor taking a vacation for his wedding anniversary. But that's ok; it'll be in the paper this Sunday.

[bugen]

It's great yours will be a published review, Marduk, can't wait! Will you still post here, or will you let me know which paper? Got my eyes on this title.

[bugen]

Wool - Hugh Howey
"It turned out that some crooked things looked even worse when straightened."

Due to extremely toxic factors on the Earth’s surface, survivors eek out an existence in a huge, underground bunker. With the Earth’s surface having been uninhabitable for hundreds, possibly thousands of years, the remaining men and women know of no other way of existence until chance, coincidence and a feisty mechanical engineer come together to challenge the status quo.

The beating heart of this story questions the inevitability of war while not really denying it. There are protagonists and antagonists–not so much ‘good guys’ and ‘bad guys’. Interestingly, the author deftly manages to get you to side with both for a while as information about the predicament is revealed and we get glimpses into opposing points of view, some logical and some emotional.

It’s a sizeable read, originally released digitally as 5 one-off purchases, to complete the work Wool (1-5 comprising book 1 of the Silo Saga). Mr. Howey was a kind of early adopter to the digital marketplace and went on to make a well deserved killing off the set. Despite its size the work moves along at a brisk, interesting pace that won’t allow you to set it down for long.

It’s a rich, fully realized, almost steampunk subterranean world, and at times the reader’s curiosity is aroused to the point where we can wonder about this world, how would we live in it, could we make the best of it as many of the characters have done? They have the advantage of never knowing anything different, considering the human capacity for adaptation.

The author even gives us impressions at times of a simpler, almost idyllic lifestyle. Clearly defined social structures, a sense of purpose for every individual, and by comparison to the modern world, a very peaceful lifestyle (peaceful until the story is underway).

Make no mistake, this book is about war. Not warfare, but war. Why do we fight? What does fighting do to us? What can we do in the face of war, and if any of us live through it, what happens after? And most important, is there any way to stop it?

4 stars

4 stars

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[bugen]

Hornet and Others – Al Sarrantonio
“Ain’t you gonna ask me why I shot her in the back?” I said . . .
“Because her front was too far away!”

Here we have another solid collection from Mr. Sarrantonio, and while containing a number of excellent tales it falls a little short of his previously reviewed collection, Toybox. However, since Toybox was so freakin’ good, this isn’t really an issue.

The book opens with “The Ropy Thing”, also included in this anthology 999. It’s an excellent story involving a creature seemingly wiping out everyone except a young boy and girl. Another great, horrifying story, ‘In the Corn’, follows a few tales later, but the book seems to have difficulty finding traction in its first half beyond these two.

The second half picks up considerably, culminating in the disquieting novella, Hornets, which perfectly taps into our innate fear of insects. Also found within this second half is the jewel of book, “White Lightening.”

“White Lightening,” is about two young boys running amok on a moonshine-induced murder spree and somehow manages to instill the sense of glee the two youngsters are feeling as they go about their rampage. It’s strange to see the body count rise yet be tied to the laughing boys, experiencing their unapologetic violence as if we’re reveling in it as well, but the author somehow accomplishes exactly this. As they happily move from target to target, the story ends in a kind of showdown you’d expect and a twist you probably wouldn’t. And it once again explores a kind of inevitability of violence that has cropped up repeatedly in recent reviews. Chiliad and Wool both address this, though in longer form. “White Lightening” has boiled this theme down to its essence but is told in the rip-roaring style similar to Lansdale. There’s top-notch storytelling here, no doubt.

Overall this is a very positive horror collection, containing its share of so-so stories, lots of good ones, a good number of excellent ones, and one glittering jewel.

3 stars

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[marduk]

It's great yours will be a published review, Marduk, can't wait! Will you still post here, or will you let me know which paper? Got my eyes on this title.

I'll post here, once it goes live tomorrow, along with a link. I've got the mock-up for the paper version. I like it. It'll be in the Daily Oklahoman (Oklahoma City).

edit: Gotta head to work, so for now, just the link.

http://newsok.com/book-review-half-a...rticle/4984894

[RJK1981]

Thought I would post another I read not too long ago.

Dereliction - Ray Garton

I have not read very much from Ray Garton yet, but this new book of his from Cemetery Dance is not like anything else I have read from him. This story did not have the gross out gory scenes I was prepared to read and enjoy. Instead, this story is a much more emotional, heartfelt and tragic story. It has some amusing and sweet moments in the early parts of the story before the horror sets in. Not horror in the way that many would think of, but a much more personal horror. What would you do if everyone started avoiding you? What if people who loved you suddenly stopped communicating with you? If everything in your life started to fall down like dominoes? What if all this happened and you had NO IDEA why any of it was happening and no one would explain their sudden changes to you? I loved this entire story, including the ending. There are some who hate how it ends, but to me it is the best way to end a story like this.

http://www.amazon.com/review/R1ETD1F...cm_cr_rdp_perm

[bugen]

RJ your review really makes me want to check this out. I love it when when authors combine horror with strong emotional elements, and I'll be looking this one up when I get a chance.

Thanks for posting!

[bugen]

Marduk thanks for the write-up on Half a King - killer! Can't wait to see how the book does, especially compared to his longer works.

[bugen]

More Than Midnight – Brian James Freeman
“Screaming wouldn’t open doors, wouldn’t extinguish flames, and it certainly wouldn’t put the demon back in the basement.”
(I had another, possibly even cooler quote here, but couldn’t use it because the three sentences literally end the story ‘The Final Lesson’)

“Screaming wouldn’t open doors, wouldn’t extinguish flames, and it certainly wouldn’t put the demon back in the basement.”

This is a concise collection of short stories, like Dreamlike States and Weak and Wounded, and packs a nice punch into a small package. More Than Midnight consists mainly of traditional horror, dealing with madness, psychosis and no small helping of the supernatural: young workers navigate a dilapidated and haunted basement, a vengeful husband gets his chance, the secret behind powerful lawyers, an escaped mental patient, and a funereal guardian protecting against the lingering spirits of the evil dead.

Some may feel this collection is stronger than Dreamlike States, containing not a single ‘meh’ story. The weakest of these 5 tales still ranks as good, and two stories in particular were excellent. “The Final Lesson” and “Answering the Call” were both superb, but each of the 5 tales is readable and interesting.

With a concise nature, this is solid, fear-inducing storytelling with a lack of fluff that sometimes populates collections.

4 stars

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[bugen]

Red Country – Joe Abercrombie
“No man capable of greater evil than the one who thinks himself in the right.”

A tough-as-nails woman, her pseudo-father and other unlikely companions gathered along the way track down a mercenary army across the brutal plains to retrieve her stolen brother and sister.

This is a western containing the throwback violence that we used to see in the old Eastwood films, even more blood and guts, and steel instead of lead. Perhaps most surprising is Abercrombie’s ability to infuse a dark, but laugh-out-loud humor throughout a story chock-full of death. Present throughout the book are catch phrases echoing truth and showing up often enough to be notable. Seriously, this kind of highlighting is reserved for philosophy books and college. Quotable truths appearing so often in a cynical world of pain and death, blood and dirt, help to counterbalance the constant devastation with a kind of strained but effective levity.

Red Country functions well as stand-alone and is extremely enjoyable by itself even without prior experience with the characters that are present in previous works. It’s a sizeable, decently complicated read, and is a highly recommended work filled with violence, compelling if unsympathetic characters and a biting understanding of the human condition. If this is your first Abercrombie, visiting the original First Law trilogy to see what you’ve been missing is in order.

Camling held one hand high. ‘May the best man win!’ he shrieked.
Over the sudden roar he heard Lamb say, ‘It’s the worst man wins these.’

4 stars

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