Customer Reviews

Doomtime (Daw UE1619)

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Far in the future, the numbers of mankind have dwindled. One small population lives in a cave-ridden cliff, their needs supplied by machines they no longer understand. Strange red and green trees, all named either Tedron or Krake, begin springing up nearby, promising healing and refreshment for the mind and body...for a price. Tree-dipping: the total immersion of one's body in the trunk of the tree, leaves the human's mind vulnerable to the vegetable force. What are the original Tedron and Krake up to? And what can humans do against the arborified forces of Nature? This is one of the weirdest of Piserchia's books, and depicts a druid's worst nightmare. Great reading, though. I wish I had a tame Tedron or Krake nearby, and a friendly bug-snapper (who was no doubt inspired by Birdman's sidekick/eagle Avenger, who can be seen in reruns on CArtoon Network). I still get a chill every time I pass by a dying, red-needled lodgepole pine.

Welcome to the fevered fungal/vegetable nightmares and uncanny vistas of Doris Piserchia. A virtually forgotten science fiction author -- her books are all long out of print -- who deserves to be read and remembered.

Doomtime (1981) is by no means a classic (and not her best work) but should be read for its sheer imaginative and haunting power. Despite the fact that the pacing is poor, the characters undeveloped, and Piserchia's prose often falters, the world she creates is memorable and disturbing (sadly, the volume is "graced" with some atrocious cover art, well, besides that weird bug thing -- a Piserchia stable).

The book opens with Creed surviving an assassination attempt but with the assassin (now missing a section of his brain) attached to his head. How did this happen? Well, Creed's people produce most of their food from a gigantic brass bowl (a technology developed in the distant past) filled with proto-flesh (which gurgles out into various molds creating chickens, etc). The assassin attempted to push Creed into the pool (which Creed cleans for a living) but bubbles of the proto-flesh melds the two together. Perhaps this gives you an idea of Pierchia's imagination?

Creed eventually discovers a series of bizarre occurrences, strange molds near the brass bowl produce pinkish creatures which spin like tornadoes and kill people, people disappear into trees only to reappear, and others hunt him with bows and arrows. He realizes that one can meld with the trees which are suddenly growing prolifically near the city. The green ones are called Tendron and the redish ones Krake. These trees -- linked to each other by roots and eventually to gigantic Everest sized trees of each color -- are fighting a war between each other. By dipping (melding) into a tree, humans becomes addicted and subtle commands implanted into their minds -- the humans become pawns in their war.

Creed sets off to rectify the situation and meets fungus creatures which meld with humans, strange fungus pools who unravel peoples' psyches, humans sucked dry by Tendron and Krake, humans mutated beyond recognition by the trees, humans turning into trees, fuzzy smallish fungus which grow around peoples' necks, addicted humans stuck in hibernating trees desperate to meld.... Eventually Creed comes upon the central Tendron and Krake -- separated from each other by a mountain range -- and an unusual secret in their upper limbs.

The most disturbing element of this novel is how little the humans have control over their situation. Entire groups of humans are transformed by these trees -- humans are in no way the superior lifeforms. Piserchia is the master at showing instead of telling -- often in an offhand matter of fact way which intensifies the dread and unease. This has to be one of the more unusual and disturbing worlds I've ever read about.

Sadly, Doomtime`s structure is a let down. The entire middle section drags as characters endlessly explore in groups, get separated, manipulated by the trees, betray their companions, feel sorry for them, escape, get separated, get tree manipulated some more, and go out and explore as if nothing happened. Piserchia clearly did not know how to finish the novel (or perhaps reach her page limit). Also, Piserchia writes using clustered vignettes. Thus, an individual narrative thread rarely goes beyond a page or two. This style is really frustrating.

That said, the world itself with its bizarre technology, creepy female fungus creatures, twirling pink creatures, proto-flesh weapons, tree dipping, fungus melding activities, human transforming, and of course the weather creating world destroying trees, is staggeringly inventive.