First published 1986. Bantam paperback, 1988, pp 276, c.110,000 words One might be forgiven for thinking that this book is about the sudden loss of gravity and how are people going to cope with floating around. That would be an interesting book, but this isn’t it. The title is taken from a Bob Dylan lyric […]
When Gravity Fails — George Alec Effinger Read More »
First published 2018. Picador paperback, 2019, pp 374, c.110,000 words (main text). If anyone knows how to argue their case it should be a barrister, and this book is certainly well argued. It is one of those books that makes me mad with every page (just like The Search for the Panchen Lama by Isobel
Secret Barrister, The — Secret Barrister Read More »
First published 1958. Focus paperback, 1967, pp 144, c.50,000 words. Amongst a small pile of a friend’s husband’s old SF books given to me I found two by Robert Silverberg whom I had never encountered before. What a treat this is for fans of the golden age of science fiction. The story centres around the
Recalled to Life — Robert Silverberg Read More »
First published 1974. Granada paperback, 1981, pp 304, c.110,000 words. Nowhere on the cover of this edition does it say that this is a collection of stories, presumably because the publishers know that would lower sales. There are actually five stories here, the first being the longest at about a hundred pages. I was just
Ebony Tower, The — John Fowles Read More »
First published 1930. The Hogarth Press paperback, 1985, pp 355, c.110,000 words. The cover of this edition shows a cartoon of Benson’s parents and siblings, so it was not unreasonable to expect something like a biography of his family, and indeed there is a little here. But the subtitle, ‘A Victorian Peep-Show’, gives a greater
As We Were — E F Benson Read More »
First published 2016. Bantam paperback, 2017, pp 553, c.175,000 words. This is a workman-like, if unoriginal, thriller. Luke Carlton is the protagonist, a former special forces officer who is now working for British Intelligence. This is exactly the same premise as Gavin Lyall’s Harry Maxim (see The Secret Servant, 1980, for example) or Andy McNab’s
Crisis — Frank Gardner Read More »
First published 1972. Granada paperback, 1979, pp 158, c.55,000 words. What a period piece this is with its surreal, trippy feel, characters with weird names indulging in every fantasy without guilt. It is a decadent world without want, reducing almost immortal adults to act out childish fantasies. It is set primarily in a very far
Alien Heat, An — Michael Moorcock Read More »
Golden Soak by Hammond Innes First published 1973. Fontana paperback, 1975, pp 286, c.115,000 words. This is a classic Innes thriller, with all the usual ingredients except the sea, which in this case in replaced by the harsh deserts of Western Australia. The protagonist, Alec Falls, is a mining engineer, and at the start of
Golden Soak — Hammond Innes Read More »
First published 1952. Triad Granada paperback, 1985, pp 333, c.135,000 words. The title of this book sounds like a quote from something, but a search reveals that it is not Shakespeare or any of the other usual sources. Only a song is mentioned and that was written to accompany the film made from this book.
Many-Splendoured Thing, A — Han Suyin Read More »
First published 1975. Fourth Estate paperback, 2014, pp 253, c.65,000 words. This is classic Ballard: set in a concrete tower-block in London, the characters never seem to engage one another at an emotional level and there is a steadily growing dystopia. The story concerns three main protagonists: Wilder from floor three, Laing from floor twenty-five,
High-Rise — J G Ballard Read More »