(Image by Timothy Shouldice)
It is Monday, and what better way to start a week than to reflect over the course of the last several months and give thanks for the expected and unexpected items that have come my way, via mail and personal delivery. Many apologies to those of you for whom thanks are long overdue.
Seeing District 9 was bound to be an adventure. First and foremost because one of my favorite filmmakers, Peter Jackson, had a hand in bringing it to the screen, but secondly because I did something that I am not sure I have ever done in my adult life: I saw this film without having seen a trailer for it. And I’m a trailer junkie!
It certainly did not start out intentionally. I had not really heard anything about the movie until I read some coverage of Peter Jackson being at ComiCon on The One Ring dot Net site, and even then I got distracted and did not go check out a trailer, nor have I read anything about the film. I had seen the movie poster, and that was it. When I realized that fact earlier this week, I determined not to see a trailer, nor to discuss the film with anyone, so that I could go in entirely cold! And, in celebration of my friend James’ birthday, that is just what I did.
Good idea?
If you somehow stumbled upon this review without first seeing the warning in this post, I want to reiterate that I have a non-spoiler post that you can read here. This post is not going to do you any favors if you are planning on reading the book. And honestly if you have not read the book I do not want anything that I have to say to help formulate your opinion for you. I sincerely ask you to walk away and read the book for yourself. Go read my non-spoiler review if you want a general idea of how I felt about Her Fearful Symmetry.
You’ve been warned.
Some days you wake up and make what seems to be a simple decision, one hardly worth mentioning, and it turns out to be a choice that opens the door to a wonderful experience. While dawn was still breaking over Kansas City this morning, my sleep-addled brain brought forth the idea of taking advantage of my daughter’s return to work to take my wife out on a date to see Julie & Julia.
It was a good choice!
The Alchemy of Stone ~Ekaterina Sedia
–Published 2008
–293 pages, Prime Books
–5/5 stars
Mattie is an emancipated automaton, an alchemist, living in a city that is undergoing transformation. The old ways reluctantly making way for the new as her world undergoes an industrial revolution of sorts, thanks to the creations of the Mechanics. Mattie herself is the creation of one of the most skilled Mechanics, Loharri, a man who literally holds the key to her heart. Mattie’s adventure, and that of the reader, begins when the gargoyles, live creatures whose command of stone has been the foundation of this city, come to ask a favor: can she use her alchemical skills to stop them from turning to stone before it is too late and there are no gargoyles left to watch over their creation?
In her third novel, Russian-born Ekaterina Sedia has crafted a tale of wonder and of melancholy. A tale rich in old world feeling that weaves elements of fantasy and steampunk together to create a work with the resonance of myth and folklore. A tale that is easy to get lost in and hard to get away from, even when the last page is turned and the story comes to an end.