This was absolutely fantastic. It's the story of Adelaide, a Black woman homesteader in Montana, where lone women and indeed Black people were allowedThis was absolutely fantastic. It's the story of Adelaide, a Black woman homesteader in Montana, where lone women and indeed Black people were allowed to claim land. Adelaide has a secret (which kicks off on p.1 as she secretly burns her murdered parents' bodies, there's a hell of a way to start a book) but so do all the other women we come across, although hers is more dramatic than most.
Redolent of Western atmosphere--the cold, the distances, the isolation, the way people are both necessary and a terrifying threat. This is in particular underpinned by the relentless racism--the settlers hang together in mutual aid but as soon as there's sufficient white people to throw the other groups under the bus, it starts. Notable is the racism/erasure of Chinese immigrants, and there is also an extremely deliberate vacuum with not a single Native person on page.
Not for the first time, this is a horror novel that says humans are basically more threatening and awful than any supernatural monster. But, equally, that kindness, understanding, acceptance of difference and of flaws is what will save us if anything will.
It's also a super female dominated book, where the men are mostly a goddamn nuisance at best, which I liked. And the ending works wonderfully. A terrific book....more
A Russian man gambles with the devil, loses, and is cursed with immortality. It doesn't really bear the comparisons with The Master and Margarita: RubA Russian man gambles with the devil, loses, and is cursed with immortality. It doesn't really bear the comparisons with The Master and Margarita: Rubashov isn't a very interesting character, more just a viewpoint on a fairly limited account of twentieth century history (all Europe, overwhelmingly male with women barely getting to speak), and very heavy on the horrors of humanity. If you're trying to argue against the stereotype of the gloomy Scandinavian, I would not start here....more
Very good indeed. A history of the runn up to WW1 themed around the monarchs of Britain, Russia and Germany, culminating in the cousin King, Tsar, andVery good indeed. A history of the runn up to WW1 themed around the monarchs of Britain, Russia and Germany, culminating in the cousin King, Tsar, and Kaiser who presided over the mess. This is the opposite of a Great Men of History book: it's more a demolition of the concept of monarchy by demonstrating how these untalented, unimaginative, self-centred charisma voids didn't even make the best of their limited capacities.
Wilhelm is probably the worst, being not entirely sane, uttterly unreliable, ego-crazed, profoundly damaged by terrible parenting, and an absolute shocker at administration. Nicholas would probably have been harmless if he hadn't been born into a position to do an incredible amount of harm by a combination of insane self regard and horrendous inaction. George comes out relatively sympathetic if only because he did occasionally get over himself long enough to try to do a decent job.
It's terrifically written with deadpan humour and some actual laugh out loud moments, and it conveys the complex family structures and wildly shifting politics extremely well. Highly recommended. ...more
Well, I've discovered where I draw the line with Victorian and Edwardian pulp. It's about three miles in front of this thing, and it's drawn in nitricWell, I've discovered where I draw the line with Victorian and Edwardian pulp. It's about three miles in front of this thing, and it's drawn in nitric acid.
I would say on the whole this 'London pulp classic' is actually worse (grosser, nastier, makes you more depressed to be human) than The Way of a Man with a Maid which is remarkable, since that one falls under "would rather read AI-generated takes on Pride and Prejudice for the rest of my life", and yet here we are.
Please note we're not talking 'entertainingly awful', or 'regrettably a product of its time'. The phrase here is 'suppuratingly racist paedo shit, the fuck is wrong with you, Mr Burke'. Abort, abort....more
Interesting bio of a man who decided to climb Everest on his own despite not having any meaningful mountaineering experience. Spoiler: it was a poor iInteresting bio of a man who decided to climb Everest on his own despite not having any meaningful mountaineering experience. Spoiler: it was a poor idea.
This is intriguing mostly for Wilson's character (coping with war trauma from the WW1 trenches, locked in an affair with a married woman which may have been some sort of menage a trois, possible gender issues, open minded, intermittently ascetic, incredibly strong willed). He was wildly, implausibly full of himself but able to achieve a startling amount because of that including learning to fly and then, more or less on qualifying, taking a small plane to India. He defied the governments of several countries at once to get to Everest. He pretty much set himself to do amazing things and achieved them, until he set himself against the highest mountain on earth.
A weird story, and I was irritated by the author's peculiar choice of second person to put in his own experiences, but lots of great period detail and a fascinating look into an extraordinary psyche. ...more
1980s written book on the actual spy career of various authors. Bought it primarily for the Dennis Wheatley chapter (uninformative if you've read the 1980s written book on the actual spy career of various authors. Bought it primarily for the Dennis Wheatley chapter (uninformative if you've read the excellent Baker bio) and also the incredible title which, props. My version also has an excellent cover.
I'm kind of running out of good things to say here because honestly this just reeks of old boys network. The entire British intelligence community was basically jobs for the boys: ridiculous numbers of relations and chums who went to school together, a fact that is made abundantly clear in the book, right up to the chapter on John le Carre who is presented as a vaguely unpatriotic meanie for writing about, er, how the place was run by old school chums. The author is basically revelling in his personal connection to all the authors still alive (wtf was the Len Deighton section except fluffing). It reeks of snobbery and low level homophobia. Bah, basically.
Also, let's be honest, the only author who comes out of this sounding like you'd trust him to run a whelk stall, still less an intelligence department, is John Buchan, a man of actual major talents and moral fibre, who gets sneered at for his 'Boys Own' stories throughout. (I would say the authors featured here couldn't organise a piss up in a brewery but actually it's fairly clear heavy drinking was well within their capability.)...more
Absolutely cracking thriller of British spies in Germany in World War I. Tommy Hambledon makes his first appearance as a schoolteacher who lures youngAbsolutely cracking thriller of British spies in Germany in World War I. Tommy Hambledon makes his first appearance as a schoolteacher who lures young Michael into a life of espionage. Great detail as ever, but what's really good is the desperate bleakness and bravado, Michael's increasing drinking, the mistakes, the paranoia, the shame and guilt, the friendships developed with Germans that are real for all the false pretences. Much more serious than the rest of the books by this authorial team, and thoroughly compelling. You can tell that one of the authors had experience of living a double life, the weird shifting of identities and what it does to its people. ...more
This is a really tremendous and comprehensive biography, way beyond what Wheatley as prose stylist or human being deserved. But he was a towering figuThis is a really tremendous and comprehensive biography, way beyond what Wheatley as prose stylist or human being deserved. But he was a towering figure of popular writing, and he pretty much invented a large chunk of the British occult as it is now, plus it's absolutely fascinating. The depth and indeed length allows the author to delve into the wine trade (fascinating), Wheatley's relationship with a criminal who feels like a 1920s book character, his shenanigans in both wars including being part of the deception teams that helped D-Day happen, and of course the business of being a mega-author.
Which he was, for all we now vaguely think 'oh that was the black magic bloke, right?' He sold millions. In the mid 60s, he single-handedly represented 15% of Hutchinson's turnover. Apparently Giles Gordon's first act on starting at Hutchinson was to send a Wheatley MS to a reader without the name, get an inevitably negative review, and go tell the boss that Wheatley's books were terrible schlock (as if he didn't know) and shouldn't be published. (I note he didn't refuse 15% of his salary, or agree to drop 15% of the literary novels he liked that sold 700 copies and could only be published because Wheatley sales propped the firm up.)
Obv, Wheatley's books were indeed terrible, terrible schlock. There's a very funny story of someone commenting that his books had been translated into every European language but one, to which someone else suggested, "English?" And let's not even talk about the attitudes to sex and women and the racism and Wheatley's many other unappealing characteristics (all fully acknowledged here and mostly treated with thought). This is definitely not a hagiography, how could it be, but it's a hugely interesting read, written in a very lively style with some absolutely cracking jokes (the deadpan line re his predictable reaction to the Black Panther movement, "Wheatley was far from keen on bad motherfuckers", made me howl)....more
Part gazetteer, part biography, which is to say a wonderfully entertaining life of Aleister Crowley told through a sequence of London addresses. Very Part gazetteer, part biography, which is to say a wonderfully entertaining life of Aleister Crowley told through a sequence of London addresses. Very evocative of time and place. Some proper laugh-out-loud lines and stories, and a lot of references I've highlighted to follow up. If you're interested in early C20 occult or seedy characters, this is a terrific and engaging read....more
Highly entertaining Edwardian pulp nonsense. English wastrel baronet encounters German exiled nobleman in Africa (immense racism in this bit). German Highly entertaining Edwardian pulp nonsense. English wastrel baronet encounters German exiled nobleman in Africa (immense racism in this bit). German decides to kill Englishman and take his place as a spy because obviously they look identical, went to school together, and know each other's language perfectly. But the Englishman overhears! The Englishman then turns up in London, except he's the German posing as the Englishman, unless he's the Englishman posing as the German posing as the Englishman! WHICH IS IT?
Complications are added by the Englishman's discarded wife and discarded mistress *and* the German's lost love, all of them determined to get our frankly overworked protagonist, and also there's an unsolved murder and at least three Secret Spies knocking about and it's enormous fun (except, as noted, the opening racism, general xenophobia, strongly pro-massive-Euro-war views, mild misogyny, and sodding weird obsession with one of the women looking like a child because that's apparently hot. Which is to say, pretty standard Edwardian pulp.)...more
The frankly grotesque story of the 5th earl of Lowther. Eye wateringly rich yet managed to spend it all, hugely privileged but completely uneducated, The frankly grotesque story of the 5th earl of Lowther. Eye wateringly rich yet managed to spend it all, hugely privileged but completely uneducated, oblivious to that privilege but beloved by working people as their sporting champion, amazingly well travelled but apparently had no sort of expanded horizons and constantly told massive honking lies about his experiences. Basically a great example of how male/class privilege could start distorting a life into a complete waste of time, even before introducing stupid amounts of money. Very guillotine-inducing. On the plus side, apparently the reason the AA uses that grating shade of yellow is that he was their first president (he was obsessed with his vehicles all being in his yellow livery and got them to use it).
This is a reprint of a 1965 book and there's some fairly grating casual racism, heads up....more
What a ride. A pulp occult novel with a rip roaring 'antichrist sells soul to devil, does evils' plot, and an absolutely fascinating lot of stuff on gWhat a ride. A pulp occult novel with a rip roaring 'antichrist sells soul to devil, does evils' plot, and an absolutely fascinating lot of stuff on gender, queerness, women's sexuality, redemption, and all. I'm going to spoiler from here even though this is from 1909 because I didn't see all the plot twists coming and thoroughly enjoyed the surprises.
(view spoiler)[So we have Dirk and Theirry and their incredibly passionate friendship. The opening scene as they negotiate the discovery that they have the same unlawful passions could be out of any m/m romance. Whoops, no, it's a passion for the occult. Could have fooled me. Intense love declarations, pining, eyefucking, and vows of mutual devotion follow.
About half way through it begins to be made clear that Dirk was AFAB. The book continues to call him Dirk, and he's identified as a man throughout except when he chooses to adopt a female identity for his purposes. At the end Theirry, who is imperceptive and insensitive as a box of rocks, attempts to check under the dead Dirk's robes (he became the Pope, we'll get to that) whereupon Dirk dissolves in a shower of dust. Fuck you, panty police. The only and brief transphobia in the book comes from Theirry on learning Dirk's birth identity, but this seems to be primarily because, as noted, Dirk has become the Pope. Let us note that, of all the characters, Theirry's the only one showed to be an utterly useless and irredeemable fucknugget throughout.
I do acknowledge that the trans character being, like, *the Antichrist* might sound negative. Honestly, it's not that kind of book. Dirk is sodding great: viciously determined, never faltering, happy to do genuinely bad things such as murdering saints, politics like a champ, becomes the Pope and lives it the hell up. Obviously it ends poorly, but that's kind of inevitable because antichrist, and he's on top till about the last chapter. He's a superb character, whose only weakness is the useless but hot Theirry (whose infidelity is the reason for Dirk's downfall), and we're with him all the way.
Meanwhile the women are equally fascinating. Theirry's other love interest is kind of soppy and virtuous right up to the point she is persuaded (by Dirk) to order her hot steward to murder his wife. Which he does. LI then repents, as you do, but her entire attention is focused on the murdered wife--praying for her soul, thinking about the wrong she did her. Not the man, he buggers off to Palestine, we don't care, and not Theirry, in whom she loses all interest forever. It's just the two women, one taking all the space in the other's head, until they're gloriously reunited after death.
And the Empress! A sly evil witch who murders her husband to make her fancy man the new emperor...and then loves him, attempts to sacrifice herself for him and for peace, and eventually becomes the heroine. Didn't see that coming. Women in this book are driven by love and sex to do terrible things *and are forgiven*, and good things come from bad beginnings. You don't get much of that in gothic. (hide spoiler)]
The writing is purple, there's a few racist lines and a lot of religious stuff, obviously, and certes the cod medieval language is painful. But it's a fascinating read with a hugely enjoyable plot and a fascinating set of attitudes for 1909, and as such streets ahead of most occult trash. And I should know....more
I was really looking forward to this as the world is genius and I adored the short stories, but the full novel didn't quite click for me. Perhaps becaI was really looking forward to this as the world is genius and I adored the short stories, but the full novel didn't quite click for me. Perhaps because it's a mix of mystery and fantasy thriller, and we had a lot of setting up of the mystery element, with clues and red herrings, which I thought slowed the first half down. It worked a lot better for me once the adventure/fantasy element hit its stride and Fatma was able to act rather than react. ...more
Very interesting overview of con-men in the US. It was used as the basis for The Sting, which is pretty obvious (as in, if you haven't seen The Sting Very interesting overview of con-men in the US. It was used as the basis for The Sting, which is pretty obvious (as in, if you haven't seen The Sting for some reason, watch it first before reading this or it will give away all the twists.)
Written in 1940 and it shows in the casual asides re race and gender, so heads up.
Oddly amoral too. The author clearly admires the con-men and takes the view that you can't con an honest man, therefore all the conned people must be dishonest, therefore it's basically all right. I think that stance could use a tad more ethical analysis, myself.
I've been wanting to read some Sexton Blake for a while but given the variety of authors (jobbing work) and likely landmines of pulp awfulness, I haveI've been wanting to read some Sexton Blake for a while but given the variety of authors (jobbing work) and likely landmines of pulp awfulness, I haven't known where to start. Rebellion have reprinted a curated set of Sexton Blake stories in order to dig out the best ones and remove some of the more glaring racist epithets, so that's handy. (Still lots of stuff modern readers will find offensive, needless to day.)
Obviously the stories are complete derivative tosh (the the intro points out, hilariously, that though Sexton Blake is the cleverest detective and best fencer and also a doctor and a super cunning genius who knows everything, he never actually manages to *catch* any master crooks because they always have to escape for sequel reasons.) And boy howdy a modern adaptation would have fun with Tinker, the Cockney Robin character who matters more than life itself to Blake for unspecified reasons, uh huh. Still, what's not to like about our hero fencing with a disgraced aristocrat master criminal on a ledge over a vat of molten metal, or being trapped in the Paris Catacombs by a master of disguise. Good fun for a 1920s pulp value of good.
I did not like the rather cheesy 'character interview' device used for the introductions, and would have got a lot more from a more conventional style with some actual information. ...more
Interesting 1922 read by the then head of CID on his career chasing down German spies in WW1 (very much on the admin side). Lots of great if obviouslyInteresting 1922 read by the then head of CID on his career chasing down German spies in WW1 (very much on the admin side). Lots of great if obviously apocryphal stories and he's a good writer--became a detective novelist once he'd been disgraced due to a public indecency conviction. Predictable misogyny and anti-trade union attitudes; *massive* warning for gross anti-Semitism so proceed with caution....more
A vastly enjoyable history of the Savoy hotel and the three generations of D'Oyly Cartes who established and ran it, along with the Gilbert and SullivA vastly enjoyable history of the Savoy hotel and the three generations of D'Oyly Cartes who established and ran it, along with the Gilbert and Sullivan light opera empire. Very well written, with a lively but not poppy style, and a great eye for character, plus a satisfying willingnesss to go off piste for a good story, of which there are many. My favourite fact is that the Subterranean Homesick Blues video was filmed round the back of the Savoy when Dylan was staying there. How countercultural.
Obviously it's all about obscene wealth and privilege but the D'Oyly Cartes actually come across surprisingly sympathetically as dedicated, passionate, decent non-arsehole people (we bitterly regret the loss of Richard D's elder son, who was the model for PG Wodehouse's Psmith). Particularly interesting if you've read Imperial Palace which is strongly based on the operations of the Savoy. ...more
A new Jordan L Hawk series is always a thing of joy, and this starter is pure Lovecraftian fun. Set in the Widdershins world! And, even better, among A new Jordan L Hawk series is always a thing of joy, and this starter is pure Lovecraftian fun. Set in the Widdershins world! And, even better, among the Librarians!
This was enormously enjoyable. Vesper is a great creation (I won't spoil his identity but it's deeply satisfying) and the mystery/threat setup is genius. Adored every minute of the Librarians and the many excellent running jokes (also, big shout-out to the underwhelming fossil fish). I didn't connect quite as much to Sebastian but this is a series and we have plenty of time for him to develop. Plus his sister and family set-up absolutely rock. I wolfed this down in an evening with immense pleasure.
A fascinating social history of Campbell Street, a horrendous slum, and the lives and struggles of its inhabitants between the 20s and 40s. AbsolutelyA fascinating social history of Campbell Street, a horrendous slum, and the lives and struggles of its inhabitants between the 20s and 40s. Absolutely horrifying stuff at points, with the depiction of human degradation and awfulness, but also a kind of exhilarating, stubborn defiance. The first part is hard going because the author is taking a Marxist view of history with associated verbiage, but at least I've finally learned what lumpenproletariat means. Terrific London history from the expert. ...more
Academicish look at the Benson family of queer Victorian/Edwardian writers, heavy on self-defining and religion. If you're interested in the Bensons iAcademicish look at the Benson family of queer Victorian/Edwardian writers, heavy on self-defining and religion. If you're interested in the Bensons it's a useful approach, though really heavy on the fundamentally unbearable, priggish, timid Arthur at the expense of his far more interesting siblings....more
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