REVIEW: THE AGE ATOMIC

Cover by Will Staehle

THE AGE ATOMIC

BY

ADAM CHRISTOPHER

ISBN: 978-0-85766-313-9

Pages: 346

Publisher: Angry Robot Books

First published: 26 March 2013

This edition published: 4 April 2013

On the cover:

The Empire State is dying

The Fissure connecting the pocket universe to New York has vanished, plunging the city into a deep freeze and the populace are demanding a return to Prohibition and rationing as energy supplies dwindle.

Meanwhile, in 1954 New York, the political dynamic has changed and Nimrod finds his department subsumed by a new group, Atoms For Peace, led by the mysterious Evelyn McHale. Their goal is simple: total conquest - or destruction - of the Empire State.

   As the cover states, this is the sequel to Empire State (link to my review). I wouldn't suggest you try reading this without reading that first, there's simply too much here that demands you have knowledge of what happened in the previous book.

   While Empire State was clearly influenced by Crime Noir, this novel seems to me to be influenced by old movie serials, at least in the later half. I had some problems with where to begin with this review, but this is a pretty good jumping off point. So, lets start with the later part of the novel.
   There is a lot happening when this novel really gets moving. The action is plentiful, and in the tradition of the movie serial carries a lot of suspense with it. There are plenty of cliffhanger moments and revelations. Unfortunately, there's also many of the flaws of these movie serials. Realism takes a bit of a backseat to creating cliffhanger moments. In movie serials that was done by inserting a short scene before the end of the preceding weeks final scene, a couple of instances does the same here.
   This isn't exactly a new narrative device in novels, but it becomes very noticeable when it's placed in a world where you more or less expect it to happen. It does take away some of the suspense, and makes the text itself seem unreliable at times.
   I didn't really take to what I have described in this paragraph, it simply didn't work for me. (Although it may do so on another read through of the book.) But I can't say this is something that is really wrong with the novel. It honestly read like that was intended, and it was a feature not a bug. And it was very well done. Although as you may have gathered, I found it transparent. Once I did that it became predictable, and some plotpoints felt very telegraphed.

   Let's back up a bit to the first part of the novel. It is a sequel, one that doesn't follow directly from where the preceding book left off. We are given a quick update on some of the events that have occurred since last time, but there doesn't seem to have been much happening. We do find out later though that there are actually things that are going on, and significant ones at that.
   We meet again detective Rad Bradley from the first book, and he has an even more prominent role this time around. He's at the centre of most of what is happening, and is also the reader's gateway into events. This is something he somewhat suffers for. Bradley is more of a guide through events that a part of them. He is there when significant things happen, but he's more or less along for the ride.

   Being along for the ride is also a pretty good description for what I felt as a reader with this story. The storytelling style made me feel distant from what was happening, there's really no time here to get a connection to either events or characters before you are moving on. While the disconnect from events in itself doesn't mean I can't get into the book, here I had no characters that brought me in either. I did feel some connection to Bradley, but that was because of the previous book. More of a memory of old friendship that a continuation of it.
   The other characters didn't really feel like someone I should connect to, they were pretty distant. Even Jennifer Jones, who follows Bradley all through the narrative, never really felt like she was someone I could feel sympathy for. And the rest of the characters does for the most part not give the reader much to grab on to.
   That being said, there were some glimpses here of great character moments. But I felt they were left undeveloped, they weren't really built upon and taken advantage off to create a connection to the reader. I felt that in many ways the characters were sacrificed to build the atmosphere of the novel. And the atmosphere is definitely the best thing about the novel.

   I've come back to what I began with now, the movie serial influence. This creates a rather distinct atmosphere for the novel. It helps a lot with establishing the feel of being in the era it is set in. Christopher really excels at this, you really feel the 1950s vibe coming from the page. I wouldn't have reacted at all if this was presented as a newly discovered tie-in to an action-adventure serial of that time.
   In this sense this is a really good development on Empire State. It feel like this is a natural successor to that, bringing us from Crime Noir to Matinee Movie Serial. But as I've alluded to above, I didn't really connect to that. It felt a bit too meta for me, like the framework was more important than the finished product.

   I realise all this makes it seems like I didn't enjoy this novel at all, that is not the case. It was a fast read for me and despite my problems with it an enjoyable one. This review has been very hard to write, because I am not sure I really can get across my ambivalence with this novel.
   On the one hand I really enjoyed the atmosphere, and there was some really good ideas in here. But on the other hand I felt disconnected from both events and characters. Christopher's writing is excellent, and at times his style is a real joy to read. But here I felt he put storytelling in the background.
   My experience can perhaps be best summed up as; I liked it, but... I haven't in any way been put off either Christoper's writing or his Empire State setting. I know I'll pick up more of Christopher's books, and if there is a follow-up to this novel I will get that too.
   This is a very well written novel, with an excellently created atmosphere. It does however have some issues, and your mileage may vary on how those will effect your enjoyment of it.

NOTE: I received an e-ARC of this book from the publisher/NetGalley. The review is however done from a finished copy I bought at the bookstore myself.

REVIEW: Empire State

LINKS: Adam Christopher  Angry Robot Books

COVER REVEAL ROUND-UP (XI)

   This is the cover to the second book in The Stormlight Archive. I liked the first book well enough that I will be getting this. The cover is technically very good. However, unless there's a serious shift in the story, 18th Century pirates/Revolutionary War soldiers are not going to be in this. So someone who is clearly one of those two should not be on this cover. If I had been in any way uncertain about buying this book, this cover would have made it a definitive no. It just doesn't look like an Epic Fantasy book I'd want to read. -You can read about how the cover was made here.

   This is a completely different cover than the one above. This one is done by Will Staehle for a January 28th 2014 release from Angry Robot books. This certainly catches my eye, but I am not sure if I like it or not. I actually think I'll have to see this "in the flesh" to decide. -Sketches for other versions of this cover can be found here.

   An upcoming collection of stories dedicated to David Gemmel has gotten a cover by Dominic Harman. It will be out 31 October, and you can find full table of contents here. I must say I really like this cover. It's simple and forceful, and fits the subject matter perfectly. Couldn't really think of any way this could have been better.

   The cover for the new Discworld novel, the third featuring Moist von Lipwig. The book is coming from Doubleday 24 October, and the cover is by Paul Kidby. Not much to say here really, I love Discworld, and I love the covers. Really looking forward to this one.

   I just reviewed the previous book in this series yesterday. (I actually found this cover when looking for the previous cover for my review.) I don't think I'm going out on a limb if I say this too is by Steward Noack/Don Sipley with design by Lauren Panepinto. It will be out 12 November from Orbit. I think the cover really fits with both the previous ones and the series as a whole, and I have a thing for redheads...so, great cover!

   Art by Andy Bigwood, release from Newcon Press Easter(Con) 2014. This one is really stylised, and has a colour that makes it pop out from a mile away. I really like this cover, sometimes simple is simply better.

   This is the cover, by Jason Chan, for the first book in a new series called The Book of the Black Earth, it will be released in March 2014 by Pyr. This cover makes me want to check it out. And that's really a cover's job, isn't it.


   Finally, there's three covers for paperback re-releases. At least one of these should be out already. I like the subtle difference from the original covers on these. I have only got as far as book one on this series (, and I liked that enough that I really want to read the next two now that I write this), but these covers are do suit the books better than the original ones in my opinion.

   As usual I welcome any thoughts you have on these. And I especially would like to hear if anyone has the same feeling as me on the cover for Words of Radiance.

COVER REVEAL ROUND-UP (IX)

   Only a week since last time I did one of these posts, so most of these will be pretty new, or at least new-ish, reveals. I'll just get on with it:

   First up we have a Science Fiction cover by Will Staehle, who also did the covers for Adam Christopher's books from Angry Robot Books. This book will be out in March 2014 from Tor Books, and you can read more about the design of it on tor.com.  I think it's a good cover, although I have to admit I am not a fan of that shade of green

   This the cover for the third Shadow Ops book, it's by Michael Komarck. The book will be out in January 2014 from Ace. I must admit that I haven't had time to get to Cole's books yet, they are however on my radar. This cover makes me more interested in reading the books, it's a really nice one.

   A good cover by Stephen Youll for this second book in another Dune trilogy. Kevin J. Anderson has some words about how it came into being on his blog. I have all six original Dune books, but have not even re-read the original novel (the only one I have read) after buying them. Based on this cover alone, I feel like I should get going on those so I can catch up.

    This Zach McCain cover is for a novella coming in March 2014 from Dark Fuse. This cover, combined with the cover copy, makes this something I really want to read. (That was a not-so-subtle hint that I'd appreciate it if you could get me an ARC, Colin.) The cover does have a certain At the Mountains of Madness feel to it, and in my book that is a very good thing.

   This is the cover for a collection of short stories by Adrian Tchaikovsky, coming from Newcon Press in (about) the middle of August, with art by Jim Burns. I think it's a good cover, it certainly has me curious about the stories in it. (You can see a list of stories here.)

    The last cover today is for the third book in the The Walking Dead novel trilogy, coming in October from Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin's Press. I've watched the TV series, and quite enjoy it - despite it being a bit uneven in story quality. I think this cover represents the franchise very well from what I know of it from watching the TV show.

REVIEW: EMPIRE STATE

Cover by Will Staehle

EMPIRE STATE

BY

ADAM CHRISTOPHER

ISBN: 978-0-85766-192-0

Pages: 416 +Extras

Publisher: Angry Robot Books

First published: 27 December 2011

This edition published: 5 January 2012

On the cover:

THE EMPIRE STATE IS THE OTHER NEW YORK

 It's a parallel-universe, Prohibition-era world of mooks and shamuses that is the twisted magic mirror to our bustling Big Apple. It's a city where sinister characters lurk around every corner, while the great superheroes who once kept the streets safe have fallen into deadly rivalries and feuds. Not that its colourful residents know anything about the real New York...until detective Ray Bradley makes a discovery that will change the lives of all its inhabitants.

   If you have read Crime Noir, you'll recognise both the atmosphere that this novel creates and its 20th century setting. But it's not as simple as that, this isn't "just" Crime Noir but rather a mix of genres. Christopher blends Crime Noir with superheroes and parallel universes, and he does it in such a way that his novel retains the rugged realism of Crime Noir.

   The story starts off in a way that isn't out of place in any 1930s set crime novel, but that changes very quickly, and we are soon transported into the realm of SFF. Structurally however the story stays in the realm of Crime Noir. It moves rather slowly, and it can feel frustrating at times that the answers to all the questions the novel poses take a long time to get answered. But that is not a flaw, Christopher deliberately holds his cards to his chest while he builds the characters and setting.

   The slow pace is wonderful for the atmosphere of the book, and Christopher really pays back the readers patience when he gives us the answers to the many mysteries we are presented with along the way. It's impossible to predict what will happen, or what role many of the characters eventually will have in the story. This makes each revelation more powerful, and adds a lot to the depth of the story.
    Although the pace is slow, the story never gets dull. Christopher's writing is great throughout, and he's very good at holding on to the readers interest. And more importantly there's no authorial cheating. When the answers come they do so in a way that feels natural to the story, and there is no revelations that come out of the blue.

   There is also quite a bit of action in the book, especially towards the end. The action is very well done, it is written in a way that creates a lot of tension, and the change of pace from the slower build up gives it a very nice urgency.

   When there's a mix of different genres, like in this novel, there's always a danger that some element of it feels like it is put there as an afterthought. That is not the case here at all, the SFF elements and the Crime Noir flow together seamlessly, and it is definitely all needed to make the novel a whole.
   I never felt that anything suffered in the mix either, there's full development of all the genre parts of this novel.  The crime, superheroes, and parallel universe all are fully developed. And together they make something that feels fresh and exciting.

   All in all this is a wonderful debut novel, there's not really any flaws at all. Whether your preference lies in parallel universes, crime, or superheroes, this is a novel that should find its way into your hands at the earliest opportunity. The world, the characters, and the story are all excellent and together they will give you a great reading experience.

LINKS: Adam Christopher  Angry Robot Books

COVER REVEAL ROUND-UP (IV)

   Let's start with a cover that was revealed over at Fantasy Faction earlier this week.

   From Jo Fletcher books, we have this rather minimalist cover for Tom Pollock's The City's Son. I like it, despite being minimalistic it manages to convey a lot. We have the creatures in the text, and the London skyline at the bottom that together says to me we are in for Urban Fantasy set in London. I like that this doesn't look like every other Urban Fantasy cover out there, it's a cover I think will stand out.

   Moving on to a trilogy being re-issued by Roc.

   I like the style of these covers very much, they are elegant, and uncluttered. Perhaps not very original for Fantasy, but it works very well in my opinion. Having read the first two of these books in Norwegian, and really enjoyed them, I'm looking forward to them becoming available again, and I will be getting them. Release dates are: Lord Valentine's Castle - May 2012, Majipoor Chronicles - September 2012, and Valentine Pontifex - January 2013.

   Then we have the Angry Robot Books cover for Adam Christopher's Seven Wonders (,out in September), with art by Will Staehle. Very nice design, it looks absolutely gorgeous - nothing more to say about it really.