Customer Reviews

Code Noir (Parrish Plessis 2)

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In this sequel to Marriane de Pierre's debut `Nylon Angel', the original no-nonsense grrrl, Parrish Plessis, continues to avalanche through life, ripping up anything or anyone in her path, while collecting mutants and reprobates along the way.

The high festival of King Tide is fast approaching and the Cabal Coomera call in Parrish Plessis' goma - a blood debt - to rescue their clever men.

During the mission Parrish hooks up with her sexual Achilles-heal, Loyl Daac and they head into Mo-Vay - a toxic, genetically modified hell. But it's the least of her worries. Her bigger concerns include flushing out the voodoo queen Leesa Tulu and Mo-Vay's answer to Dr. Frankenstein, Ike while fighting her own internal evil manifest in the form of a parasite, the Eskaalim. However, she surprises even herself when she discovers a spiritual strength that usurps her usual gun-toting, ass-kicking self and leads her into victory.

In this series Marianne de Pierres manages to subtly integrate indigenous Australian spiritualism with the exploration of dark speculative themes that are allayed only by her well-honed and highly appropriate black humour.

First if you haven't read Nylon Angel, stop. Go back, read it then pick up Code Noir. Not essential but it sure helps when following the sf aussie style lingo and to a get a feel for the characers.

With that said after NA, I couldn't wait a whole year for the publisher to get it out to the US market and ordered it from the UK(Canada has it too). Parrish Plessis is muscle for hire who managed to wipe out her cruel mob boss to become her own warlord and should be able to take it easy and catch her breath.

Not so. Her new allies(?), the aboriginal and mysteriously spiritual Cabal Coomera has a job for her than she can't refuse(even if she wanted to), find their missing shamans and do it before a crucial Spiritual equinox called King Tide. As if that's not enough of a problem, she still has to protect her new turf, settle issues with Loyl-Me-Daac whom she can't decide whether to kill as ordered or sleep with as fantasized about, provide for the orphaned ferals that keep looking to her for help, or, oh yeah, when she gets around to it she may want to do something about the ESKALIM PARASITE that's trying to take over her body and soul to remake into something less than human.

But hey, everyone's got problems, right?

Seriously, I can't think of a cyberpunk series this good since Effinger's Fire in the Sun or Stephenson's Snow Crash. Easier to follow than GIBSON and more action that Blade Runner with characters you can't help but invest in.

Make Mine PARRISH! Titanium tough and loaded for gritty, up close and personal, bloody lip, brawling and knife/gunfighting, plus sexy to boot. What's not to like?