Highly Recommended Reading - Joe Abercrombie and Joe Hill

Filed by: Darren on January 25, 2007 at 18:05
Filed In: Books

I've read two books so far this year* and they've both been quite wonderfully enjoyable, in quite distinct and different ways. Here are a couple of mini-reviews** to whet your appetite.

Before They Are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie

This is the sequel to my fantasy read of 2006, The Blade Itself [Amazon], and what a bloody marvellous sequel it is too. There's a rather unfortunate phenomenon that can strike a new author - something like 'second book syndrome' - whereby said author spends years honing their debut novel, a publisher buys it, then the publisher points out that the sequel really ought to be churned out in months rather than years, the eager-to-please new author complies, standards plummet as a result and the second book iend up a bit of a dog compared to the first.

But I'm delighted to report that there's not so much as a whiff of it in evidence here as Abercrombie successfully builds on the firm foundation of his debut to deliver a second installment that's equally entertaining, if not even more so. In the process he treats us to the same levels of superbly rich prose, desert-dry wit, excellent characterisation and effortless dialogue, all topped off with lashings of action, adventure, drama, conflict, politics, intrigue, love, laughter... you name it.

Admittedly, it won't be to absolutely everyone's taste; those who insist on the cut-and-dried, pre-meditated plotting of a bog-standard kiddie quest or lacklustre dragon-taming saga will be sorely disappointed... which is reason enough for celebration of its own accord, if you ask me. Instead, Abercrombie seems to take great delight in subverting some of the most seemingly-sacred of fantasy tropes and twisting our expectations wherever feasible. And I'll tell you for nowt, there's nothing I like more than a story that can take me by surprise.

Worth reading for one particular scene alone (I won't say which one exactly, but suffice to say it involves Jezal dan Luthar in the role of distinctly embarassed eaves-dropper), the whole book is a refreshingly delightful antidote to the painfully trite, staid and predictable fare that the bulk of the fantasy genre is so often guilty of delivering (and there be any greater crime in fantasy writing than predictability?)

So anyway, if you're a fan of any sort of fantasy fiction - but especially the sort of dark, gritty, character-driven fantasy fiction written by the likes of George R.R. Martin, Steven Erikson, David Gemmell, Paul Kearney, Glen Cook, Grey Keyes and co. - then you should definitely be reading this series. Pick up The Blade Itself first, or you'll miss out on a whole lot of essential story development, but go on... treat yourself.

Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill

This is one of the most enjoyable novels - never mind most enjoyable horror novels - that I've read in a very long time. It's about an ageing rock star by the name of Judas Coyne and a girl Georgia - the latest in his string of young goth-girlfriends - and what happens to them when Judas decides he's going to buy a dead man's suit on eBay... which comes complete (unbeknown to him) with the dead man's vengeful spirit, and a whole truckload of trouble.

As plot foundations go, it isn't a blindingly original one, but then it doesn't particularly need to be; because on top of this simple but effective premise, Hill builds a novel of superb characterisation and rising tension that builds to a denouement of highly cathartic power. Judas Coyne is haunted and his story will end up haunting you; it's packed full of imagery that's so rich, so vividly cinematic that it'll be almost impossible to shift from your head... as much as you might actually want to in some instances, because let's not forget that this is a horror novel, and bad things do happen to the people in it. Not one for the squeamishly faint-hearted.

Something else I genuinely enjoyed and appreciated was that Heart-Shaped Box is a straight-up, out-and-out supernatural horror story. Not one of those tales in which the ghost might be real, but then again might just be a figment of the protagonist's deranged imagination and hey, you decide, dear reader.

No, Joe Hill makes it damn clear that what's haunting Judas Coyne is not merely the psychotic summation of his past mistakes, internalised guilt and existential fear of losing his hair; it's a fucking ghost. A spectre, a spook, the immortal essence of a dead man; one that's now hell-bent on seeking revenge for... well, I'll not say, for fear of giving away too much too soon. But suffice to say, the bad thing in this story is something that's come back from beyond the veil of death, and it isn't going to go be sent packing with some sprinkled holy water and a few mumbled homilies.

In a comment on an earlier post John Berlyne said that he thinks this book is "...the best candidate in a long time to reinvigorate the novel length horror market". I do hope he's right and that the book's future success - I predict awards by the shelf-load - doesn't just spawn the usual raft of pale imitators, the same sort of schmaltz that dragged the same horror market down and almost knocked it right out in the mid-'90s.

And I just hope that when the movie version inevitably appears they do full justice to a story that's just crying out to be put right up there on the big screen. One of the worst things I've ever seen on television was a guy who looked like '80s TV comedian Russ Abbot playing the supposedly anti-Christ-like Flagg in Stephen King's The Stand. If some numpty studio exec signs the likes of Tom "the nutter" Cruise or Keanu "the plank" Reeves up to play Judas Coyne, I think I might have to top myself and then sell them my suit on eBay...

.
*Yeah, I know, but I get far less leisure reading time now than when I had to make a 40-min each way commute to and from work...

** Making them the first I've written in, oooh, must be eighteen months... about time I got back in that particular saddle, I reckon.

Filed on: January 25, 2007
Filed under: Books
Tagged with: Joe-Abercrombie | Joe-Hill | recommended-reading |

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10 Responses to 'Highly Recommended Reading - Joe Abercrombie and Joe Hill'

Ed on January 27th, 2007 1:17 pm

Like I need you recommending me any more books :)
Ariel on January 28th, 2007 9:35 pm

Hey, I just call 'em as I find 'em... :)
Ed on January 29th, 2007 1:35 am

Ordered Locke Lamora today, to get the Amazon total over £15.
Got the Margo Lanagan one for my birthday, picked up the Solaris anthology during the week, so getting through your recommendations that pique my interest.
Ariel on January 29th, 2007 8:07 am

Ah... then my work here is done :)

Halfway through the Solaris now, and there's some very good stuff indeed in there...
Joe on January 30th, 2007 9:56 pm

Ed, you won't be sorry - Locke was brilliant, sometimes reminded me of the sheer pleasure of the Stainless Steel Rat books (except in medieval Venice perhaps) and Margo's collection was gorgeous.

Ariel, bang on with the Heart Shaped Box, was raving about that myself on the last podcast - been so long since I read a really effective supernatural chiller. Most supernatural books right now seem to be supernatural/detective or supernatural/action - some of them, like Jim Butcher's or Lilith St Crow's are great, but I do miss an out and out creepy ghost tale and this was it, top notch stuff. Abercrombie is on my list, sitting on my desk now, once I get Hal Duncan's second one finished. So looking forward to Ken's next book to - Charlie Stross remarked that it was one of Ken's best yet.
Ariel on January 31st, 2007 6:51 am

I love the Jim Butcher series - as I may have mentioned - but couldn't get into the Lilith Saintcrow ones, to be honest. There was something repetitive and forced about the first few chapters that put me right off, I'm afraid.

I'll have a word with George W. for you, see how soon proofs of The Execution Channel are likely to be available...
Ed on January 31st, 2007 4:18 pm

That name Ariel crops up in the thanks list at the back of Locke Lamora.
Ariel on January 31st, 2007 4:28 pm

Yep... :)
Joe on February 3rd, 2007 7:34 pm

I'm sure George and Darren will look after me with a copy of Ken's book when its ready (not that it stops me dropping heavy hints of course, but I'm pretty sure they know where my tastes lie after all these years).
Ariel on February 4th, 2007 9:25 pm

Oh aye, I reckon they'll be pimping it pretty damn hard come the time... :)