May 31

Losing Latitude part Three by Cory Cramer

Losing Latitude part 3

Review of Part One
Review of Part Two

Even though it’s been over a month since I reviewed part two I had no problem at all getting right back into the world and characters when I started Losing Latitude part three.

The tale is definitely getting more emotional. The modern day section finds Lilly, the survivor of a shipwreck that killed her parents, preparing to leave the Naval hospital at Guantanamo Bay to enter the world free and alone for the first time in her life. She’s also developing quite an attachment to Rufus, the nurse who has been helping her survive her lengthy recovery from her own wounds.

In the journal Lilly’s father left behind, which chronicles the story of Buck, a young man being chased by a demon, the plot also picks up. Buck’s tale is far more interesting once the pursuing demon forces him to leave his underage girlfriend behind because instead of wallowing in happy love he’s fighting for something again. Between the sympathetic inclusion and tragic loss of Buck’s only friend in New Orleans, and the knowledge of Miss Mable, the voodooine who finally sheds some light on what the demon is (but not why it’s after Buck) the story definitely picks up here, both in action and in plot.

The sea really seems to be Cramer’s fuel, his knowledge of sailing and fishing among other things lends this section of the story a credibility and touch of realism that balances well with the increase of magic with the increased appearances of the demon himself.

On technical and textual levels Cramer also seems to be stepping into his stride, leaving me hoping he keeps it up and nails the climax and finale.

Review of Part 4 coming soon…

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May 30

Seven Days in Benevolence by Steven E. Wedel

Seven Days in Benevolence

“Mommy, the skelegan head wants to talk to you.”

Recently divorced mom of two Dena has come to rest in Benevolence, a small town where she thinks she can find peace after the turmoil of leaving behind her husband and trying to make a life of her own with her two daughters. Unfortunately she’s run straight into Benevolence’s most historically interesting–and haunted–house.

Everyone in the town seems eager to tell Dena and her older daughter the tangled tale of murder, lynching, witchery and hauntings. But Dena wants nothing more than to make a clean break from her troubled past and enjoy her luck in finding a lovely home. The house’s invisible occupants also want Dena to stay and make her and her two daughters part of their own story.

A classically creepy ghost story, Seven Days in Benevolence is a fast paced, tantalizingly horrific novella that’s perfect for hungry ghost story fans. The short length makes it an easy read, and its dazzling climax will leave readers breathless.

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May 30

Literary Meme

There’s always time for a meme!

* What was the last story you read?

I’m almost done with Seven Days in Benevolence by Steven Wedel.

* What was the last poem you read?

“The Passing Bell” by Sophia Ahnikalish Schwan

* What was the last comic you read?

Garfield

* What was the last movie you watched?

Knocked Up. It wasn’t as funny as people made it out to be, and I didn’t like the two lead female characters. I did like Seth Rogan’s character though.

* What song are you listening to now? Say something about it–what it means to you, who introduced you to it, something like that.

I’m not actually. I have Dr. Phil on. I know, I know.. but I find that talk shows and court shows are good studies for character building and dialog.

* What’s your guilty-reading pleasure?

It depends on which community I’m talking to at the time. I love dark and tragic stories, but sometimes when I’ve had too much dark and tragic I love a paranormal romance, especially if it’s erotic to lighten things up.

* Say something about the last poem you wrote!

I like it. It’s been forever since I wrote it, but I like it.

* Say something about a story you’re writing now!

I am in the middle of a short story and a novel. The novel is a significant (ie total textual) rewrite of my first ever novel, which I still feel has merit. It’s the dark tale of a werewolf pack and now not everyone dies at the end 😉 The short story is a dark sf tale. I think it’s sort of Heinlein-ish. It centers around a business where you can pay to fulfill your murderous fantasies.

* If you were a fictional character, who would be writing you?

Charlaine Harris. I feel like and ordinary person in a magical world, but not really part of it. Her stories pretty much encompass my opinion of my life.

* Last story you recommended to someone?

Do reviews count as recommendations? Outside of that technically it was Bad Candy House by Jeff Strand. I recommended a peer listen to Jeff reading it to help her read her own work.

* And a link to your favorite magazine, because they probably need your help. 😉

Apex Digest
Murky Depths

* Lastly, link to a friend’s copy of this quiz!

GUD started it 😛

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May 24

Death and the Maiden part 4

Death and the Maiden 4

Part four of Death and the Maiden moves outside of the restrictions of a magazine strip and into a space of its own. It features full color pages of the same surreal, near pornographic art that can also be found in the first three sections (in Issues 1-3 of Murky Depths).

The Black Order and the whores of New Babylon are caught up in a war of pornacracy and gendercide. In the midst of it all Flip, an outcast whore from New Babylon falls for Mr. Death, an outcast from the The Black Order. With the expanded space Calder has the chance to not just catch new readers up on the premise, and expand the world tenfold, but Flip and Mr. Death also face down metal-lined clones determined to carry out the sentence of execution on them for their crimes. A spot of action takes the comic out of the reflective and pushes boldly forward.

Calder “pornographizes” (his word) our vanilla world, from the inside out, creating a skewed world of up the skirt shots and Barbie-doll bodies. Death and the Maiden is like no other comic, veined with social commentary and cloaked in unrelenting sex.

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May 20

Observations…

Clinton won Kentucky by about 35%. I’m disappointed. Yes, I’m officially beginning to cheer for Obama, most because I’m incredibly tired of the same old same old which is McCain and Clinton respectively. But then, I’m not at all surprised seeing as Obama gave us Kentuckians a single “I’m here because I have to be” visit.

Also, I’m watching FitTV right now. There’s a show on bellydancing called Shimmy. I have a blast doing my completely amateur interpretation of bellydancing. But this is just disturbing. It’s showing groups of 1 to 3 women doing specific moves in these really weird surreal locations, like a basement with a sand floor and a rooftop where you can see dome skylights behind them but the sky is a misty orange. Not only is is disturbing to see these women, all dressed similar and moving EXACTLY the same way (yes, I know that’s the point, but it’s disturbing when you see it) with the exact same look on their face, but they also keep doing tight close ups on bare stomachs and thrusting hips that makes it look rather like a soft core droid porn.

This of course means that I expect to see a Jennifer Pelland story along these lines soon.

(Oh look, and now the back ground is a parking garage that has a serious leak, or perhaps there’s a typhoon occurring.

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