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Midnight
Lamp (Bold As Love book 3) by Gwyneth Jones check out website: www.orionbooks.co.uk and www.boldaslove.co.uk
In that volume, British civilisation was overthrown by environmental 'Green Nazis' and a surprising man defeated them to become king...flamboyant rock star Ax Preston aided by his lovers, Sage Pender - the infamous music programmer Aoxomoxoa - and folk singer Fiorinda. In 'Midnight Lamp', another title taken from a Jimi Hendrix song, Ax, Sage and Fiorinda are invited to Hollywood by the president of the United States, supposedly to make a film of their exploits during the British revolution. But it turns
out that the president needs them to help stop another super-powerful mage, a
'Fat Boy' amped up by government weapon research and brutal sacrifice. At least,
I think that's what it was about. There's a lot of backstory to this series, which is dragged into 'Midnight Lamp' a lot like excess baggage. Having
not read the previous parts of Ax's saga, I struggled to get into the setting
for long periods at the beginning. There's a lot of meandering in the plot-line
and none of it feels all that essential to the overall series, except the twist
at the very end, which seems quite tacked-on, despite its importance. That said, there's a lot of nice stuff here, too, and the quirky threesome's characters are explored expansively. Ax feels very much like the late Jimi Hendrix, a misunderstood genius given more respect than he thinks he deserves. Sage, recovering from near death is humble, and Zen and Fiorinda is the spark that ignites them when she goes missing half-way through the book. The adventure through Hollywood,
where 'virtuals' have replaced live-action movies, often throws up a cool idea
or technique and the cameo appearance by an ancient Robert Redford is an inspired
touch that made me laugh out loud. The timid AI car given to the characters by
the movie studio is another deft touch. Great ideas and neat passages dot this book liberally but the story skeleton behind it is sorely lacking. I got the feeling there was a good story in here but that still didn't help me know what was going on half the time. Jones spends the first half trying to help first time readers get into the characters and in doing so loses track of the story. By the time the important events actually start, there's not enough time to fill it all in satisfactorily, leaving this as not much more than set-up for the next book in the series. Tomas L. Martin
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OTHER REVIEWS - December 2003
Other reviews this month Dreams Underfoot by Charles De Lint Spirits In The Wires by Charles De Lint First Rider's Call by Kristen Britain Roma Eterna by Robert Silverberg The Life Eaters by David Brin and Scott Hamilton Midnight Lamp by Gwyneth Jones Dreams of the Compass Rose by Vera Nazarian One Lamp: Alternative History Stories edited by Gordon Van Gelder The Druid King by Norman Spinrad Star Trek: Nemesis novelisation by J.M. Dillard Unto Leviathan by Richard Paul Russo The Sundering by Walter Jon Williams Nylon Angel by Marianne de Pierres Falling Out Of Cars by Jeff Noon The Darkest Part Of The Woods by Ramsey Campbell Lord Of Snow And Shadows by Sarah Ash Tales Of Ten Worlds by Arthur C. Clarke Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Radio Sunnydale Dante's Equation by Jane Jensen Archform: Beauty by L. E. Modesit Jr
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Gwyneth
Jones won the Arthur C. Clarke in 2001 for her novel 'Bold As Love',
a peculiar mix of 70s rock homage, cyberpunk and urban fantasy.
In
the second novel in the series, 'Castles Made Of Sand', the trio
rallied together to defeat Fiorinda's father, a twisted mage in
the body of an Irishman.
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