Customer Reviews

The Dawning Shadow: Light on the Sound (Inquestor Series)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This was probably one of the most intriguing authors of science fiction of the 1980's. Anything he wrote during that time, including this series, along with Mallworld, Starship and Haiku, was brilliant. The writing is witty, cynical, literate, and bold. The plots are fantastic and original. It's like Vonnegut on steroids. Unfortunately, his fascination with death has now seemingly grown to an obsession, and today he writes only gothic horror. In this genre his dark side is no longer a contrast, but the only color visible. So skip anything written by him about vampires, and read this book, or other SF written while the nova burned brightly.

I feel that this is one of the best books that I have read and feel that the entire series is equally good. Sucharitkul creates a world with a blend of Science fiction and fantisy and spins a wonderful tale. If you can get a copy of this book, Read It.

The author's imagery in this book is wonderful. It's chalked full of beautiful compound words like darktouch & lightpoem. The linguistic crossover of the five senses is beautiful enough to fall in love with. Many passages have an aura of mysticism, a halo of etherealness, a greater sense of awe. However, some passages are naturally mundane, so the chatoyant passages are sometimes abrupt. As for the broader plot, there's a ring of fantasy about the whole story which detracts away from the science fiction elements (the galactic empire and whatnot). The extended scene of the caverous enclave is an impressive read.

If it's so beautiful then why was I forced to gaffaw and/or hurrumph through a few of the passages? Well, I have a low toleration for the inclusion of sex in fiction (not because I'm religious and not because I'm sex-starved but mainly because I think most of it is just an outlet for male fantasy), and the sex scenes (or love scenes, AS it has been pointed out) are between the two of the main characters (Kelver & Darktouch), who are preteens (or teens, AS it's been pointed out). I don't want to read about these types of characters engaging in sexual acts and I don't want to read about Darktouch's menarche. If the characters were of sexual maturity then the scenes in question would have been acceptable to me. There are other ways for an author to show the love between two characters besides the cheap literative outlet of carnal union.

THAT said, the book as a whole is gorgeous and I agree that it should be reprinted (though edited) and heralded as a classic. It may be up to a 4 or 4.5 star rated book if the said scenes were to be deleted and the cast characterized though different means. It's a keeper for the collection but the rest of the series has recently seen a quick visit to the second-hand book store.

This was a re-read for me - but it's been over 20 years since I first read it. It's interesting to come back to something after so long. I'm happy that I still really, really liked it.
It's a reading experience that's more like experiencing a poem or a song than a typical novel. This is not to say that the plot is not clear and easy to follow (if anything, the plot might be overly simple, given such a rich and complex universe), but it is suffused with almost a synaesthesia of the senses, with music and glittering darkness. It's full of weird and wonderful imagery.
That said, perhaps some people might find it dated in some ways - personally, I found it giving me a nostalgia for the time period when it was written, which was much more filled with over-the-top fantasy, with an unabashed flair for the dramatic. Although this is sci-fi, it's definitely aesthetically influenced by the goth scene of the time, and reminds me of when goth was all about beauty, decadence and playing at cruelty and power, skirting the edges of convention. Some people found goth rock too bombastic too. I don't.

I wish Somtow would write more SF. Being a conductor is all very nice and worthwhile, but.... More Books! :-)
For now, I think I'll re-read this entire series.