novella – The Bibliophile Chronicles

Synopsis

In the pitch dark, witty fantasy novella Prosper’s Demon, K. J. Parker deftly creates a world with vivid, unbending rules, seething with demons, broken faith, and worse men.

In a botched demonic extraction, they say the demon feels it ten times worse than the man. But they don’t die, and we do. Equilibrium.

The unnamed and morally questionable narrator is an exorcist with great follow-through and few doubts. His methods aren’t delicate but they’re undeniably effective: he’ll get the demon out—he just doesn’t particularly care what happens to the person.

Prosper of Schanz is a man of science, determined to raise the world’s first philosopher-king, reared according to the purest principles. Too bad he’s demonically possessed.

Review

I must admit that part of the reason I decided to pick this up is because I was sucked in by that gorgeous cover. After reading the synopsis I thought this would be a perfect quick horror read, something spooky that I could read in one sitting. What I got wasn’t really what I had expected. It’s a unique and engaging story, following our unnamed narrator as he carries out exorcisms across the country. When he comes across the Prosper of Schanz, a man revered throughout the country as a genius and man of science, he discovers the Prosper is possessed, but what will the cost be if he exorcises him?

This is a pretty short novella, it’s a little over 60 pages so Parker packs quite a lot into the small page count. It’s definitely a more character focused tale, as our unnamed narrator discusses philosophy and art. The story definitely leans more towards humour than horror, the narrator is not afraid to voice his opinions, even if that makes him less than likeable.

It’s an interesting tale, and one that I really enjoyed reading. As I pretty much always do, I wish it could have been a bit longer – I would have loved the opportunity to get to know the world a bit more and understand the history of the demons in this world and those that are tasked with exorcising them. If you’ve looking for something unique with plenty of dark humour, this could be the perfect little novella for you.

Release Date: May 12th 2020
Publisher: Solaris
Pages: 208
Find it on: Goodreads. BookDepository. Waterstones.
Source: The publisher kindly sent me a copy of this book to review
Rating: 4/5 stars

Synopsis

A thrilling new limited-edition hardcover concerning class and climate change from Arthur C. Clarke award-winning author Adrian Tchaikovsky.

Firewalkers are brave. Firewalkers are resourceful. Firewalkers are expendable.

The Earth is burning. Nothing can survive at the Anchor; not without water and power. But the ultra-rich, waiting for their ride off the dying Earth? They can buy water. And as for power?

Well, someone has to repair the solar panels, down in the deserts below.

Kids like Mao, and Lupé, and Hotep; kids with brains and guts but no hope.

The Firewalkers.

Review

Firewalkers is the bleak and harrowing tale of a world in which Earth is burning, with very little water left. Very little is able to survive, but the rich are able to ascend to ships that have everything they could ever need. While they wait they remain at the luxurious hotel, able to buy water and live and peace. Mao and his team of Firewalkers are tasked with ensuring the solar panels continue to function, to keep the rich people happy. But as the venture into the burning deserts, they find that there’s much more out there than broken solar panels.

This novella might only be 200 pages, but it packs a punch. It’s a fast paced tale that doesn’t let up the entire time. I read it in a day, but I thought about it for a long time afterwards. Touching on themes like class, climate change and the power of technology, Firewalkers is certainly a book that will give you food for thought. With many of the themes being incredibly relatable, it makes for a gripping read. It’s a cleverly woven tale, and one that I think fans of Tchaikovsky will absolutely love.

The characters were really fascinating in this book and despite it being a short read you get to know them really well and are rooting for their survival. Mao, Lupe and Hotep make a brilliant team and I loved seeing them work together to survive the dangers of the desert.

The story does have quite a bleak outlook, with our main protagonists being made to risk their lives to keep the rich in comfort. The story does also have some pretty creepy moments, featuring some monstrous beasties as well as an ominous AI. Firewalkers is a brilliant read, and I can’t wait to pick up more from Adrian Tchaikovsky.

The Bibliophile Chronicles

Tag: novella

Book Review: Prosper’s Demon – K J Parker

Synopsis

Review

Book Review: Firewalkers – Adrian Tchaikovsky

Synopsis

Review