Customer Reviews

White Blood

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Remarkable! why have we not heard more about this author? I literally could not put the book down,I read with the open mouthed awe that I can only say
returned me to the joys of great fiction. The language is original and beautifully textured , rewarding. The novel was so gripping at time's that my heart was pounding out of my rib-cage! yes it was that good! Plenty of historical detail,extraordinaly complex sex and the most terrifying violence ever put onto paper. He writes like a horny Dylan Thomas with his sabre dipped in blood. This is entirely new in the history of fiction. This man will be hailed as the 21st century's greatest writer.
I immediatly went out and bought his other books to continue the fix.
Long may he write and all power to those brilliant digits.
WRITE WRITE WRITE MR FLEMING your FANS DEMAND MORE

This is a wonderful book with a great story that is beautifully told. Flemming's use of language is delicious and his descriptions are highly evocative. It also contains one of the raciest sex scenes I have ever read. I loved it!

"White Blood" is the story of a Russian naturalist/adventurer in the early 20th century. As he is not a very well developed character, the book takes on the tone of the secondary characters who are on stage at a particular time in his life. My favorite character is Misha, a rural Russian aristocrat, and the tone set reminds one of Chekov; then the Russian revolution reaches even into the rural backwater, and for one wonderful scene various characters including Misha are discussing political philosophy in a scene reminiscent of Shaw at his best.

What really saves this book is that the prose is colorful without being overwrought, and at times is simply very good. "Going to America was completely submerged by the effort of steering these very different engagements upon which I balanced precariously, like a logger keeping his raft of timber in one pack". "The sewage of the past will burst out and sweep across the plains and choke us to death".

I gave "White Blood" 3 stars based on the adventure story aspect. The specimen collecting was dull, and the bloody denouement seems written for effect only.

Naturalist Charlie Doig loves traveling the globe seeking new discoveries that support Darwin's theories almost as much as he enjoys discovering new women; however Charlie also appreciates his respites at his family "Pink House" near Smolensk, Russia. In 1914, the Academy of Sciences sends him to Turkistan, but the war breaks out throughout Europe leaving him without funds and at least for the moment ending his latest pursuit to prove Darwinism is the only religion.

His travels has delayed his plans to one day wed his beloved Cousin Elizaveta, but by 1917, he brings her into his home as his wife after her fiancé was assassinated. As civil war breaks out against Tsarist Russia, many come to the Pink House for refuge. When Bolshevik Prokhor Glebov arrives, Charlie recognizes the cunning ruthlessness of the Marxists; he believes they will prove in the short run victorious as the barbarians always take the early triumphs because they understand survival of the fittest means innocent people must die. He also understands social Darwinism that in the long run civilization will return to defeat the barbarian Bolsheviks because they will prove to be the truely fittest, but Charlie doubts he will be there to see it.

This is a superb historical thriller that uses Social Darwin theories to provide a powerful look at the survival of the fittest in Russia, which proves by 1917 to be the Bolsheviks as only the ruthlessly strong survive. The story line is action-packed whether Charlie is having adventures in the Far East seeks exotic species or at his Pink House where the prime three groups that make up the Russia struggle to rule converge. Genre readers will appreciate the contrasts between the competitors as each believes they will triumph in a brave new world.

Harriet Klausner

James Fleming's WHITE BLOOD is the work of a great storyteller and the most gifted descriptive writer I have read for a long time.
No detail, whether for the sake of colour or ambiance, is omitted and the story ranges from the steaming jungles of Burma to, ultimately, the harsh pitilessness of the Russian winter.
Carnal sex, passion, cruelty, murder and retribution are all emcompassed here as Russia, facing a German defeat in 1916, moves towards anarchy and the total elimination of its ancien regime.
A gripping tale, beautifully researched and not without moments of humour, and on no account to be missed.

If Amazon allowed half-stars I'd rate White Blood about 2 1/2 rather than
3 stars. I'm mystified by the seemingly glowing book reviews: maybe I
just was in the wrong frame of mind or something. The book appeared slow
at first, wandering about through South America and the far east, looking
at the central figure (Doig) looking for bugs. If it were the case that
Doig was going through important character development which would be
relevant for helping him in critical later episodes, that would have been
fine--but I got no strong sense of that in the book.

Eventually we get to Russia, where the blurb on the dust jacket indicates
suspenseful doings. But things remain slowly paced. Towards the end of
the book we get scenes of violence and death--but by that time I found
that I had not developed any great interest in or rapport with the main
characters, and so it seemed rather anticlimatical.

There are writers who are great storytellers, who have a sense of timing
and narration and color who can make seemingly insignificant things
capture you: T.R. Pearson's A Short History of a Small Place about his
mythical small town of Neely, North Carolina, is a perfect example of
this. There are writers who are superb at the drawing of characters:
Ford Madox Ford's Parade's End, or C.S. Forester's The General, etc.
There are writers who may be great at action/mystery/western/etc genres.
And then you have writers who may not be very good at any of these things,
but who somehow have novels on the best-seller lists--such as The Bridges
of Madison County. Ah! The mysteries of life! For me, I usually need a
hook--good storytelling, good character depiction and development, some
sort of element which involves me with a book. Other people may find what
they need in White Blood--but I didn't find what I needed.

To be frank and honest, this is just not a very interesting book. In theory, it should have been. Here is a historical novel that takes place on the eve of the Russian Revolution, but seen not from the more common eyes of the revolutionary, but rather from the about to be overthrown landed class. Most books that use this historical back drop tend to romanticize the rise of the working class, and potentially trivialize the landed and established class. It would have been interesting to see things from another vantage point.

The essential problem is that the central character - Charlie Doig - is neither sympathetic nor particularly well developed. Mr. Flemming spends way too much of the book having Charlies chase bugs, beetles and birds (he's a naturalist in the story) and way too little worrying about the seminal events that are happening around him. With World War I and the Russian Revolution errupting around him, Charles worries himself far more with sending specimens to a museum than in being a participatnt in the events unfolding. Even when he enters into an incestuous union with his cousin, the writing and emotions are empty. It is hard to grant credibility to Charlie's rage after the attack on his bride.

It could be argued that Mr. Flemming created such an unlikable character as a back handed way to once again support the rise of the working class. For sure, if all of the established class in pre-revolution Russia are like Charlie, then its no wonder that the workers overthrew the Tsar and formed what has to be one of history's great social experiments. I just don't think that was Mr. Flemming's purpose. I think he tries to show another side to history, and failed miserably. Mr. Flemming is the nephew of Ian Flemming - who could spin a story with the best of them - and the ability to tell stories vividly, with force and presence just doesn't seem to run in the family. James Bond is one of popular literature's most enduring characters (whether one likes the genre of thriller or not); Charlie Doig is one the least interesting characters in recent memory.

An exciting adventure with something for everyone--besides history and a stirring story, you have war, violence, betrayal, friendship, patriotism, love and death! A wonderful book--plan to read it straight through.

This is an excellent book that moves the reader comprehensively through all the many facets of human emotional experience. White Blood charts various key life changing events for Charlie Doig and as the book progresses it becomes necessary to re-evaluate ones own perception of right and wrong in order to fully empathise with the large variety of fascinating characters introduced throughout and the way in which they interact.
Not every reader will have the wit necessary to fully comprehend the genius of Fleming, but for those that do this is an amazing book, fully engaging and poignant, exhilarating yet lachrymose. Thoroughly recommended!

James Fleming redefines the historical novel with WHITE BLOOD. Part love story and part thriller, this book is as gray as the Russian winter sky and just as heavy, but as beautiful as a blanket of snow on the country landscape.

At age 14, Charlie Doig loses his father to the plague, a fatal disease passed from a rat to a tiny flea to the elder Doig. From that day forward, Charlie vows to avenge his father's death and embarks on a quest to discover rare bugs. That is his fervent desire. But it isn't his highest desire. His highest desire is to marry his cousin, Elizaveta. From early on, winning her heart consumes him. A man of passion, Charlie has patience, tenacity and determination. He will live abroad, hunting for new specimens of birds and insects with naturalist Hartwig Goetz. He will float upon rivers, scale mountains and brave drenching rains in search of an elusive white swift or some never-before-seen beetle. All the while, his heart simmers for Elizaveta.

Soon, war breaks out and the funds for Charlie's research dry up. Goetz exhibits a flurry of patriotism and deserts the birds to serve his country. Fortune smiles upon Charlie in the form of Kobi, a man with no family, a variety of very useful skills and an eagerness to earn money for the hard times ahead. When it becomes necessary for Charlie to return to his family's home in Russia, a manor house called the Pink House, Kobi accompanies him.

Charlie finds comfort and solace among his relatives, and settles in to woo Elizaveta. For a while, things seem to be going his way. However, the winter weather turns typically Russian, bitter and frozen with snow and ice. In the face of short funds and poor organization, disillusioned infantrymen straggle throughout the countryside, searching for food and warmth. Two soldiers come upon the Pink House, and it is agreed that they will have shelter and a meal for the night. With a nasty storm brewing, it becomes necessary for them to stay on a few days. Charlie takes an instant dislike to the pair of them, suspicious of their integrity and their motives. As well he should be.

With his distrust of the resident military men growing rapidly, he reinvigorates his plea to Elizaveta for her quick decision about moving to Chicago. With their own government in shambles, now seems like the right time to try out America for a while. Had they left earlier, they might have made it.

One of the most powerful stories to come along in ages, WHITE BLOOD will delight you, disgust you, infuriate you, make you laugh, and ultimately make you cry. It will take you through the full gamut of your emotions. Even when you know what's coming, you don't really know what's coming. It is not a pretty story, but a beautifully written one.

Fleming's prose is stunning, creating a story gritty and full of human frailty, passion and lust. It begins slowly and gathers steam, fleshing out the myriad characters with their faults, quick humors and base desires. By the book's middle, the political repartee reads as though one were at the dinner table with family arguing the state of the world.

His writing is distinctly masculine, the unequalled beauty of it due to an acute sense of detail. He leaves little without meticulous description, guiding the reader through his own vivid imagination to a flawlessly executed climax.

--- Reviewed by Kate Ayers.