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Nobody
True by James Herbert check out website: www.panmacmillan.com
So begins the startling first chapter of James Herbert's latest book. The mysterious and ghost-like narrator tells the story of his life and death. In a humorous incident at the age of seven involving a hot potato, he discovers he has the ability for out of body experiences. OBE's for short. We follow the development of his abilities as he grows and eventually goes to college, gets a job and gets married. He appears to have a perfect life.
Just why was he murdered? And what are the killer's real motives? But with no body, just what can he can do? A fast-paced, entertaining book which cleverly changes tone mid-way through from light-hearted fantasy to something darker and more horror-edged, 'Nobody True' once again confirms Herbert's skill in story-telling. It's interesting that we are not even told Jim True's name until part-way through the book. Herbert creates an otherworldly figure, floating through life and death in much the same way True's 'soul' floats through the world when out of his body. Yet the character still gains the reader's sympathy and the story becomes gripping and full of tension. Suspension leads to a surprise twist at the end and a first-person narrative in a chatty, informal style helps to engage the reader, making you want to follow True through the many twists and turns his after-life begins to take. It is testament to Herbert's skills as a writer and story-teller that he can cross the boundaries of conventional horror and fantasy and create a tale that should appeal to many fans of both or either genre. As True's life changes, so does the style of writing, keeping carefully within the character's head. Little details and humorous events also help to keep the reader engaged and for such a shadowy character Jim True is very vivid. Read it, but be warned, you may never look at a knitting needle in quite the same way again! Laura Kayne
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OTHER REVIEWS - February 2004
BOOKS The Outstretched Shadow by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory Diplomatic Immunity by Lois McMaster Bujold The Separation by Christopher Priest First Meetings In The Enderverse by Orson Scott Card Dragon Venom by Lawrence Watt-Evans The Dolphins Of Pern by Anne McCaffrey Reach For Tomorrow by Arthur C Clarke The Mammoth Book Of Best New SF # 16 edited by Gardner Dozois 1610: A Sundial In A Grave by Mary Gentle Eats, Shoots & Leaves by Lynn Truss Trading In Danger by Elizabeth Moon Richard Matheson: Collected Stories Vol. 1 edited by Stanley Wiater The Gates To Witchworld by Andre Norton Star Trek Deep Space Nine: Mission Gamma: Lesser Evil by Robert Simpson The Killing Of Worlds by Scott Westerfeld Star Trek: The Original Series: Gemini by Mike W. Barr MUSIC COMPUTER GAMES Wallace and Gromit - Project Zoo RPGs & WARGAMES MAGAZINES On Spec: The Canadian Magazine
Of The Fantastic vol 15 no. 2 & 3
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I wasn't there when I died.
Or
does he? Is it purely luck or fate that he was out of his body when
brutally murdered by a serial killer? With literally nothing else
he can do, he decides to search for the killer and in doing so uncovers
some disturbing truths, realising that some things are not as straight-forward
as they first appear.
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