BLOG TOUR - EQUINOX

TITLE - EQUINOX

WRITTEN BY - DAVID TOWSEY 

GENRE - FANTASY/FICTION

PUBLISHED BY - HEAD OF ZEUS/AD ASTRA 

PUBLICATION DATE - AVAILABLE NOW 

A gorgeous monochrome cover with a touch of gold, vividly depicting the contrasting night/day theme of the story, holds a breathtakingly original story about witchcraft, war and magic. In the magical land of Reikova, two souls inhabit each body, each “person” existing only by day or night exclusively; a night-brother has a day-brother, each night-sister, a day-sister, and vice versa.

In the city of Esteberg in the 18th century, Christophor and his day-brother Alexsander are two people in the same body; the former lives at night, the latter by day. Christophor, a Special Inspector, is called to a grisly act of self-mutilation at the local prison in his city of Esteberg and forced to investigate against his wishes. This leads him to the mysterious neighbouring town of Drekenford where untold horrors await him.

In two parts, the first deals with events from Christophor’s point of view and the second from Alexsander’s. (Trigger warning - This latter section begins with a detailed description of the violent death of a horse, following on from the end of the previous part). Alexsander is a totally different person to his night-brother with whom we have spent the majority of the book so far; thanks to Towsey’s excellent characterisation, this shift in perspective adds a whole new dimension to the tale. The position of Special Inspector is very much like a witch-hunter or demonologist, and Christophor has a reputation of being cold and ruthless while Alexsander is a pleasure-loving musician.

The concept of two people sharing the same body is original and quite mind blowing. People chew a drug called “ettiene” to ease the transition between their night and day selves. A small degree of communication is possible between the two selves that doesn’t need to involve the more direct act of leaving notes. This is in fact a clever literary device enabling the narrative to continue outside of Christophor’s point of view when he is “asleep” and Alexsander is “awake”. Also, each separate section of the narrative is illustrated by a small sunrise or crescent moon.

When Christophor finds his investigation hampered by his day-brother, the story becomes as much about Christophor’s war with himself as it does the wider conflict. In fact my first reaction on learning that he would have to travel to another town was to wonder how that would work with Alexsander “in tow”. Proof that the concept is solid and that David Towsey an excellent writer to pull me in to the story like that.

“Equinox” (such a clever title-the time of year when the day and night are of equal length, and in this story of equal importance) can be read as a more magic-y “Name of the Rose”, with a pseudo-policeman on the trail of witchcraft and murder; there is also a library of restricted knowledge where dangerous books have to be kept in the dark. The world has the feel of a particularly dark fairytale; an Eastern European setting hinting at being part of our world but at the same time, subtly different.

The story is sexy, scary and deep with an apocalyptic ending, and the perfectly paced plot hooks you in without you even noticing. Towsey writes vividly and richly, creating a living, breathing world that drips with hidden menace. This is a magical world you will want to lose yourself in - I loved it!

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A KIND OF LOVING

TITLE - A KIND OF LOVING 

WRITTEN BY - STAN BARSTOW 

GENRE - CONTEMPORARY FICTION 

PUBLISHED BY - PARTHIAN BOOKS 

PUBLICATION DATE - 10TH JUNE 2022 

A Kind Of Loving” was a “kitchen-sink drama” classic in its day, its reputation bolstered by the celebrated film starring Alan Bates. The novel returns in a brand new edition from Parthian Books - which is fitting because author Stan Barstow lived in South Wales in later life until his death - but does this slice of Northern life have any relevance today? 

It is, without doubt, somewhat dated, with characters and attitudes very much of their time; the language, for example, will surprise a modern reader, and it is not a novel that is likely to be a feminist “Book of the Month Club” pick - this is very much a book for men, with much talk of “bints” and other even less savoury epithets. Although Vic Brown is not a hero, or even an anti-hero; he’s just as flawed and human as any young man. 

Barstow makes Vic a likeable narrator despite his faults, and gives him some breathtakingly beautiful turns of phrase in his inner monologues which counterpoint the “bloke-iness” of the character. Vic’s rather awkward and fumbling pursuit of Ingrid is endearing, and there is a very funny section where Vic reads Molly Bloom’s soliloquy from “Ulysses” and can’t believe such sexual frankness is allowed in print. He is also a bit of a snob in his occasional scorn of certain Northern working-class traits; always restless and wanting something better. His treatment of Ingrid, (a character who is, by accident or design, not as well drawn as Vic, but she engenders sympathy from the reader) seems callous, and when he admits to himself that he doesn’t truly love her, it comes as a quite a shock. 

The story is timeless, but, more than anything, the novel, originally published in 1960, is a vivid snapshot of early ‘60s Britain, the North of England in particular. The politics and class divides of the time are prominent, especially in the factory where Vic works. Bus fares cost threepence, there are jobs for life, men work in coal-mines and go to the football on Saturdays, while their wives run the house. There is much talk of a “boom” in industry and business during the novel’s time period, and whether it can last. 

Stan Barstow was a very skilled and naturalistic writer, with a gift for observing the realities of life. The characters’ journey is one that virtually anybody can relate to. Ultimately, “A Kind of Loving” is an immensely readable, honest and captivating story from an era when you could have a red-blooded male as a hero without incurring a jail sentence, and the story itself can be enjoyed, with an open mind, on its own terms.

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BROOD X

TITLE - BROOD X

WRITTEN BY - JOSHUA DYSART [ILLUSTRATED BY M. K. PERKER]

GENRE - CRIME FICTION

PUBLISHED BY - TKO ROGUE 

PUBLICATION DATE - AVAILABLE NOW 

 

In ‘50s America, seven desperate men are tasked to build a bomb shelter in a remote forest clearing amidst a vast swarming of cicadas. As accidents and deaths occur, they start to suspect each other whilst nature itself becomes an increasing threat to them…

Wow! What an original and visceral thrill this book is! Set in the McCarthy era so communism is a shadowy presence, and so is the racism and anti-semitism endemic of that age; an allegory for the suspicion that brews in the construction site. There is a vivid passage that describes the cicadas emerging from the earth in a seething mass, a metaphor for the American fear of “Reds under the beds”. Soon the bugs are flying everywhere and singing in a deafening cacophony, their mating ritual driving the men mad in different, destructive ways. 

Author Joshua Dysart doesn’t have many pages in which to flesh out the characters, and he doesn’t need them either. Each character, their background, appearance and temperament, is vividly drawn. The pacing is spot on as the men go from nervous mutual tolerance to full-blown suspicion of each other - this is a headlong ride to oblivion, as profound as it is horrific. 

In many ways, “Brood X” is a “locked room mystery”, albeit a rather twisted one that Poirot couldn’t imagine in his worst nightmares. This is a short book, more of a novella than a full novel, and is better for it. Told in the present tense, it has a concise, direct power and I was sucked into the story very quickly thanks to Joshua Dysart’s exceptional writing. Gory in parts, Dysart’s descriptive skills are often too much to handle. Atmospheric b&w line drawings by M. K. Perker pepper the text, adding a haunting visual dimension to the story. The ending, just like everything that has happened in the story up to that point, is a tragic gutter-punch. 

“Brood X” is an unforgettable masterpiece; read it in one sitting, then read it again. Just read it.

IF I DIDN'T LOVE THE RIVER

TITLE - IF I DIDN'T LOVE THE RIVER 

WRITTEN BY - ROBERT PRIEST 

GENRE - POETRY 

PUBLISHED BY - ECW PRESS 

PUBLICATION DATE - 20TH SEPTEMBER 2022 

One of the poems in Robert Priest’s superb poetry collection “If I Didn’t Love The River” is entitled “What Francesca Does To English”, and upon reading it, you will be marvelling at the things Robert Priest does to English. This poetry will awe you. 

This book has many poems about love, but maybe no actual love poems in the strictest sense of that term. But there is much about the unpredictability and violence of love, and many a broken heart. 

Stars also play a role in several of the poems, affecting our lives in ways both benign and malevolent; but always randomly. There is humour too, as in “Why I See A Therapist” where Priest bemoans that everything reminds him of the Third Reich, but even this poem turns dark. 

Lighter moments are to be found though, such as the melodic and bouncy “Device”, a twisted tribute to the all-consuming power of the smartphone and its ilk. This is followed by a similar poem, “The Like Process”, an ode to that often elusive and addictive social media conformation. 

Several of the poems are visceral rants about nature and the planet and what mankind can and does do to it. Obviously the pandemic is one of the themes covered, resulting in the hilarious “Infection Prevention for Murderers” which cautions killers to practice social distancing. Sick, funny and brilliant. 

There are many sublime moments in this collection and I am grateful to have discovered Robert Priest’s work. I loved the words and the rollercoaster rhythm Priest imposes on them. Once you “get” his poetry, it gets you too and won’t let go. Mostly dark, even the humour comes at a price; Robert Priest makes you regret laughing as he skilfully twists the tone of the poems. Priest utilises many styles and poetical forms with a cornucopia of themes and images; the results are sometimes delicate, often brutal, but always stunning.

THE DANCING MEN

TITLE - THE DANCING MEN [EBOOK]

WRITTEN BY - ALEX WOOLF & ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE

PUBLISHED BY - ARCTURUS PUBISHING 

PUBLICATION DATE - 1ST JULY 2022 

This charming little book is such an obvious idea, it’s surprising that nobody has thought of it before. 

The Sherlock Holmes stories (16 in the series) have been adapted for children, complete with Eve O'Brien's delightful illustrations, by Alex Woolf. Here, the famous story “The Adventure of the Dancing Men” is retold in a much simplified version, but this doesn’t harm the tale: it still manages to be a complete story with a beginning, middle and end.  

Narrated, as usual, by Doctor Watson, the story is engaging and should keep the little ones guessing until the end. Holmes’ explanation of the true meaning of the dancing men is so clear that it puts Conan Doyle to shame! The chapters are short allowing the book to be read and enjoyed by parents and children in one go. It is slightly violent but not in a gratuitous way. Alex Woolf has a good command of the story and it doesn’t have any obvious triggers.  

Overall, “The Dancing Men” is a triumph and it is a book every child over seven will enjoy. I’m so interested to see how the other stories such as “The Hound of the Baskervilles” and “The Final Problem” are handled that I may end up reading them all myself!

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ELIOT AFTER THE WASTELAND

TITLE - ELIOT AFTER THE WASTELAND 

WRITTEN BY - ROBERT CRAWFORD

PUBLISHED BY - JONATHAN CAPE 

PUBLICATION DATE - 2ND JUNE 2022

“The Waste Land” by T. S. Eliot is one of my favourite poems, although anyone who has read it will know that the epithet “poem” barely does it justice. Eliot stands virtually alone in the pantheon of British poetry, creating verse that challenged the conformity and traditions of the time. 

I am a devotee of T. S. Eliot and I prepared for this book by reading Robert Crawford’s equally excellent first volume, 2015’s “Young Eliot: From St. Louis to The Waste Land”, in which he charted Eliot’s childhood and education, examining the eclectic (and often esoteric) influences on his burgeoning poetry that led to his epic poem. This second volume, entitled “Eliot After the Wasteland”, takes up Eliot’s life after the publication of that tumultuous, iconoclastic work; a period when he would write some of his most celebrated works, including “Four Quartets” and “Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats” and several successful plays. 

As author Robert Crawford states in the introduction to this second volume of his biography, he proffers a deep dive into the life of T. S. Eliot; not only of the celebrated poet but also to the secret life of “Tom” as his friends and family knew him. Throughout, Crawford refers to Eliot as Tom. With unprecedented access to surviving letters and interviews with people who knew Eliot at the time (indeed, Crawford is the last biographer to interview anyone who knew Eliot when “The Waste Land” was first published). This is very much a book about T. S. Eliot the man. Crawford paints an unvarnished portrait of Eliot, brilliant but human. He does not ignore Eliot’s failings in favour of a hagiography; Tom’s bawdy racist poetry and almost casual anti-Semitism will no doubt shock the modern reader. 

It is easy to dive back into Crawford’s work and continue Eliot’s life story, who now feels almost like an old friend thanks to the detail with which the first book brought him to life. The distinguished gentleman gracing the cover is T. S. Eliot as we know him; a world away from the nervous-looking youth from the first volume. 

This volume picks up the Eliot’s story from the end of the previous volume with little preamble, so while there is no absolutely pressing need to read that book first, some readers may feel like they should. This is merely an observation, not a criticism: having read the first volume, I can put myself in the shoes of someone picking up this book fresh. And as the second volume of this work, it is to be expected. Crawford offers intelligent analysis of Eliot’s poetry throughout but confesses that this isn’t the main thrust of his biography. 

There are many developments in Tom’s life in this book - his continued yet hidden feelings for another woman, Emily Hale; the protracted breakdown of his marriage;  the subsequent death of his wife, Vivien; his life-changing involvement with the fledgling publishing company Faber & Gwyer (soon to become Faber & Faber, which publishes his first book of poems), his conversion to Anglo-Catholicism and full British citizenship. Indeed, religion is one of the main driving forces of Eliot’s life; so too is his surprisingly complicated love-life. But above all, the main constant and unwelcome companion of Eliot’s life was Vivien’s and his own ill-health. Sadly, in the latter part of his life this would continue, especially for Vivien. There are unflinching passages about her suffering, and also of Tom’s - one doesn’t know whether to laugh or cry at how often Tom gets struck down by influenza or some such ailment. He agonises over guilt that he may have in some way caused Vivien’s illness, even metaphorically “killing” her. 

Obviously, the Second World War looms large in this period of Eliot’s life, and we feel the national tension grow as conflict and even invasion becomes ever more likely. There is a lot of interesting detail about Eliot’s experiences as an ARP warden and it is fascinating to read how the war developed on an almost weekly basis through the prism of his life. By the end of the book, Eliot has become a major celebrity, warranting front page splashes in the Daily Mail when he married his much younger secretary, Valerie Fletcher, and finally finding happiness (and not a little eroticism). 

“Eliot After the Wasteland” is a remarkable achievement and I enjoyed it immensely, and will return to both it and its predecessor. However, there are a couple of factors that make this book an often difficult read. Firstly, Crawford frequently mentions that various organisations, collections of writing, even the recipients of books from Tom, contained few or no women. This may warrant a single mention, but continually drawing attention to it as some kind of grievous sin almost a century later is egregious, and can only be due to the author wishing to score a few Brownie points with a progressive modern readership. 

Secondly, like its predecessor, this book is a weighty tome that includes a lot of painstaking detail on every aspect of Eliot’s life, both literary and personal, (in the case of Vivien’s illnesses, rather embarrassingly so) and as such the text can be a little longwinded at times: expect to read about every illness, night out and holiday the poet ever had. 

Criticisms aside, T. S. Eliot was a very intelligent and complex person, often self-absorbed, and his life-story requires a book of this calibre. Despite many highbrow passages, the book is very readable and there are moments of great poignancy - this is biography done right. “Eliot After the Wasteland” is a superb continuation of a groundbreaking biography of T. S. Eliot that is as close to definitive as we are ever likely to get.

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