The Crooked God Machine [Kindle Edition]

Autumn Christian (Author)

Book Description

The Black Planet is an oppressive world terrorized by a masked god. Charles is a young idealist who lives in constant fear of being taken from his family for his heretical ideas. When Charles meets an enigmatic and scarred woman named Leda, she gives him hope for an existence outside of the god's regime. When Leda disappears, Charles leaves his small town to search for her. Along the way he will uncover the truth of the origins of the Black Planet, and confront the god that would destroy all life in the pursuit of a perfect and unchanging paradise. 

The Crooked God Machine is a dystopian horror about a broken family and a broken world. Compared to the work of David Lynch, H.R Giger, and Philip K. Dick, it's at once darkly romantic, violent, and uncomfortably familiar.

Editorial Reviews

Review

This debut novel from Autumn Christian is full of a thick, ancient darkness; Christian has a voice and a worldview unlike any author I've ever read, able to twist the most unexpected objects and symbols into a cohesive, unforgettable story. - SLUG Magazine

I'm hesitant to classify this book in any particular genre but it's definitely dark, and it's definitely disturbing, and it's definitely beautiful, and sad, and not for the faint of heart or stomach. A tragic, endearing love story against a twisted backdrop that draws on the horrors of religious fanaticism, human complacency, and political corruption. At times it's terrifying, heartbreaking, sweet, wickedly funny, or any combination of the four. A powerful, unique, and engrossing story that has easily won me over as a fan. I very much look forward to reading more of Autumn Christian's work - Greg Sisco, Author of "Thicker Than Water."

About the Author

Autumn Christian is a fiction writer who lives in the dark woods with poisonous blue flowers in  her backyard and a black deer skull on her wall. She is waiting for the day when she hits her head on the cabinet searching for the popcorn bowl and all consensus reality dissolves.

She's been a freelance writer, a game designer, a cheese producer, a haunted house actor, and a video game tester. She considers Philip K. Dick, Ray Bradbury, Katie Jane Garside, the southern gothic, and dubstep, as main sources of inspiration.

Product Details

• File Size: 439 KB
• Print Length: 276 pages
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B006PNJ2L4
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Not Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #482,741 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Twisted, Dark and Beautiful March 31, 2012

By Dagger One Bravo

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Thumbing through my reviews will show you that I give almost nothing a 5-star review so please take the time to see why I gave one to The Crooked God Machine.

This book is a must-read for fans of the genre. I don't actually read a lot of this kind of stuff because I think it's literary worth is often overshadowed by it's perversity and violence but this one, while containing a moderately high level of violence and unpleasant images, is full of heart and thick with substance. I read it through in two sittings, never wanting to put it down. If I didn't get such a late night start on it, I'd have easily read it entirely in a single sitting and as it was I had to force myself to put it down and go to bed.

The characters are likeable and while not fleshed out in the greatest detail I don't think it's a shortcoming. The author preserves for them an air of mystery and unapproachability that works well within the context of the story, never letting you feel like you can fully relate to their existence but still allowing you ample opportunity to bond with them enough to care about what happens to them.

So, anyhow, the setting of this story is apparently, since the characters do not know what "21st century earth english" is, far into the future or maybe in some sort of alternate reality. The only clues the reader is given is that most of the story takes place in a town called Edgewater on "The Black Planet". No state or country is named, unless I somehow missed it.... The world is on the brink of apocalypse at the hands of an angry and seemingly cruel god although the reason for this god's anger and cruelty is not given nor is it, in my opinion, safe to assume that God is just evil for the sake of being evil so I guess it would be okay to assume that his motives are justified if that's more to your liking. I won't attempt to judge the author's motives behind her portayal of this god but there is a single reference to both a trinity and the 144,000 but the god of any specific religion is not expressed and a trinity is not inherent to just one religion. To me, this was done in good taste and is an effort appreciated by this reader, who has no religious affiliation but doesn't seek pleasure in bashing those that do.

Regarding the previous reviewer's reference to "savage religious extremism", I disagree with this analysis even though I suspect the reviewer has some affiliation with the author. I disagree because in this story there IS a god (of sorts, if nothing else) and God DOES control the world. So, whatever "savage religious extremism" exists, it exists on the part of the very real and very powerful "god" and the human extremists that exist in the story act at God's direction. Or so it seems, at least. Again, work it out how it best pleases you. There is room for you to do that in most places.

The story, and I don't want to spoil it in any way so I'm not going to go into anymore detail than this, almost disappointed me because it looked like it was going to deviate from it's present path onto... a different one. Thankfully, it did not and what I perceived to be a deviation turned out to be the framework for a conclusion that, immediately upon reaching, left me confused as to how I felt about the way the story ended. I think this is a good thing because the ending is complex and thought provoking. No, it isn't a mirror into our culture that makes you want to turn things on their head so that our world doesn't become their's. The provocation forces you to reflect on the characters - their trials and tribulations throughout the story. In the grander scheme of things, I suppose it wasn't a happy ending but on a personal level, with relation to how things could have turned out for the main characters, it was bittersweet but very warm.

It's a very well-written book as far as the author's efforts and talent are concerned. Plot holes and such are practically nonexistent and the ones that do exist are very minor points and their presence has no impact on the flow of the story. They are quickly forgotten because something is always happening to move the story along. Editing errors do exist but they are few in number and minor as well. At no point are you not able to read through them and continue unaffected.

In conclusion, I say that I think this book is definitely worth every grown person's time if they like this kind of stuff. It's not for kids. There's a couple of fairly graphic sex scenes and a couple of references to acts that, in the real world, would get anybody convicted of them put into a sex-offender registry but in no way is any of it pornographic.

Read the book. I can't imagine anybody not liking it. In fact, it's one of the best books I've ever read, in or out of the genre and I'm an avid reader.

And remember kids: The Yes/No buttons below are there for you to say whether this review gave you any helpful information before you made your purchase, NOT to voice your negative opinion of the book or as a statement of disagreement with some point I made. The comment box is where that stuff belongs and if you've already read this book then the Yes/No buttons are of no use to you anyway nor is my review of any use to you beyond it's entertainment value which can hardly be much. Please join me in my crusade to stop the misuse of the Yes/No buttons!! Read more ›

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Wildly Unique, Beautiful, Macabre March 28, 2012

By A. T. Lubrano

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

The Crooked God Machine is the first publicly-available novel from cult-favorite Autumn Christian. The book is a subtle dance that combines elements of horror, science fiction, future dystopia, surrealism, tragedy and social commentary. It is an incredibly approachable book and reads very quickly. Christian's writing can be addictive at times, reaching levels of feverish beauty, captured in moments that punctuate and embolden the violent, twisted world she creates.

CGM's setting is altogether unique, forgoing apologetic realism for gritty swamp-laden fantasy. The story follows the protagonist Charles as he grows up in a world dominated by savage religious extremism and populated by wandering monsters and demigods. Christian's world-building dabbles in the grotesque and the absurd.

However, her characters are strikingly real and touching. Christian weaves a distinct sense of humanity through each character, unfolding their strife, anger, fear, doubt, despair, love, hope... Scenes become intensely charged and personal, beautiful, complex. This is what sets the story (and Christian) apart.

I can't recommend this book enough. It's a hidden classic and at times feels exquisitely intellectual. The story pulls themes from books like Angela's Ashes, The Diary of Anne Frank, and 1984 and paints them into something that looks like a Salvador Dali rendition of Stephen King. And yes I will stand by those comparisons. The book rocks.

Fans of the author should also check out A Gentle Hell, her recently-released collection of short stories available from Dark Continents Publishing.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars She put an arrow through my heart May 21, 2012

By S. Lucas

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Please, please, please, for the love of God, to all my fellow readers out there, check out Autumn Christian. She is a female horror author. I just finished her book The Crooked God Machine and I haven't read anything like this in my entire life, which is saying a lot with the amount ofbooks I consume. This novel was nails on a chalkboard, a David Lynch film, van-driving pedophiles, Jack in the Shining, thinking about your parents having sex, that moment when you know you cant stop your car from crashing into the concrete wall creepy. This chick has imagination. More then imagination, maybe God writes through her. My body was tense like I was waiting for my plane to crash: almost every line. Shes got hooks in my back and I cant wait for her next book to smack me in the face.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Horrible and Beautiful July 29, 2012

By M L Kennedy

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Right off the bat: this book is not for everyone. If you can't untie your mind and let in some seriously surreal dystopian horror wander in, you may not enjoy it. I implore you, for the good of your soul, to try, because this book is fantastic. This debut novel from Autumn Christian is full of a thick, ancient darkness; Christian has a voice and a worldview unlike any author I've ever read, able to twist the most unexpected objects and symbols into a cohesive, unforgettable story. The book follows Charles, who lives on the Black Planet, where dead babies are fed to a swamp witch, plague machines roam across the land terrorizing the citizens with ice storms and locust swarms, and God himself is on TV in a black horned mask is on TV, nightly damning mankind and warning of the coming apocalypse. The emotional tone of the work is thick and heavy, and almost feels like a sludgy poison in your veins. And yet there is a lightness that shines through in the irrepressible hope of Charles, a hope that keeps drawing what little beauty is left in the world to him like moths to a flame, which only strengthens his hope and keeps him fighting to somehow undo the horrifying world he lives in. The imagery is unlike anything you'll read: demented, blazingly imaginative, unsettling and unforgettable, far above par for any novel, let alone horror. Christian's pacing has a deliciously crawling dread that builds to a somewhat abrupt ending, but it doesn't leave the reader unsatisfied. It's only that you, like its poor inhabitants, become completely trapped by the black planet by book's end.

More About the Author

Autumn Christian is a fiction writer who lives in the dark woods with poisonous blue flowers in her backyard and a black deer skull on her wall. She is waiting for the day when she hits her head on the cabinet searching for the popcorn bowl and all consensus reality dissolves.

She's been a freelance writer, a game designer, a cheese producer, a haunted house actor, and a video game tester. She considers Philip K. Dick, Ray Bradbury, Katie Jane Garside, the southern gothic, and dubstep, as main sources of inspiration.