Patricia Flewwelling

Um...wow?

I was not expecting this.

Okay, let me back up... Disclaimer, known Flewwelling for years, blah blah, good friends, blah blah, read damn near everything she's written, blah blah blah.

I've read the first three Helix novels, and, while I enjoyed them, they've never been my favourite works from the author. To me, it always felt like Flewwelling was origamiing herself into unnatural shapes to explain the science behind werewolves, etc. The books got a bit tech heavy.

Then along comes this show more book (that, truth be told, I didn't even know she'd written until a few hours before I got my copy) and it grabbed me by the face and smacked me around...in the best way.

This novel opens with unexpectedly brutal action. It then proceeds to carry on with even more brutal action, and about the last quarter of the book is strap-your-ass-in, hands-and-feet-inside-the-vehicle-at-all-times, airsick-bags-are-in-front-of-you, now-hold-the-fuck-on! action.

Yes, there's some tech along the way. But it's tempered with some fantastic dialogue, amazing scenes that I need to let you discover like I discovered (I'll just say two things: zombie town, and vampire abilities), and an author who knows her concepts well enough to give you the cringe-inducing, yet spit-take funny lichen-thrope line. Oh, and there's vampires and zombies and world domination thrown in, too.

And I've got to say, the antagonist in this book (don't wanna give names, cuz I don't want to spoil anything) is the grossest, nastiest, and most subversive villain I've read in a long time. I enjoyed the heck out of them.

Seriously, this is the novel I've been waiting for Flewwelling to write for years, because I knew she had it in her.

She kicked ass with this one.

Go buy some protective headgear and a cup, and then read this.

Seriously. show less

I gave the first book in this series, [b:The Fog of Dockside City: The Obliteration Machine|18146717|The Fog of Dockside City The Obliteration Machine|Pat Flewwelling|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1381752114s/18146717.jpg|25498739] a four-star review. But this one...this one just smokes.

I was lucky enough to read an advance copy, and in conversation with the author at one point, I said, "It's a pulpy story overall, but there's such awesome, deep, mature undertones that the show more whole thing is completely elevated."

What I mean by that is, if you look at the cover (and by the way, it's a gorgeous cover, isn't it?) you'll get a sense that this is some sort of steampunk adventure.

Well, actually, it is, I'm told, dieselpunk. Whatever. I hate these restrictive genres. It's a damn good story. It's part SF, part Fantasy, part Superhero, part Horror, part Pulp Mystery. Flewwelling has her feet firmly planted in the era of old time radio plays. That's what I mean by the "pulpy story overall" comment.

But. But.

This one transcends all of those genres through two major improvements over the first novel (not that the first one was bad, hell, I gave it four well-deserved stars).

The first is the plotting. This one has an awful lot going on. There's the search for the plans for the Obliteration Machine. There's Sheldon's increasing knowledge of his power. There's his boss's subplot. There's the strange goings on with Sheldon's previous "family" and then there's...well, there's the monsters. Yes, monsters, plural. And yet, Flewwelling keeps all the plates spinning smoothly and effortlessly.

The second quantum leap in this story is all the characterization that Flewwelling gets in there. When I read a pulp type story, I don't go in expecting a lot of insight into the human condition. But, here, in this story, these characters climb out from the pages and live and breathe. They become people you love, people you hate, people you root for, people you hope will get their asses kicked.

Which of course, elevates this novel miles above any other comparable story.

Why should you read this book? Well, obviously you don't need to take my word for it, but I've read a ton of Flewwelling's writing. Her published stuff, and a lot of stuff that has not yet been published. And out of all of those stories, I can say, without a trace of doubt, this is the best thing she's ever written.

So, you want to read a work by an author at the top of their game (so far...I expect it's all going to just improve from here), this is one book you want to read. It's deep, it's action-packed, it's poignant, it's irreverent. But most of all, it's fun as hell. show less

Before I start, I'm going to disclose that I've known the author, Pat Flewwelling, for almost fifteen years. I've read a lot of her work, both the published and the unpublished. And finally, I'll disclose that I'm a fan.

Pat and Tyche were kind enough to let me read an ARC of the novel prior to publication for an honest review. That's what they're gonna get.

On to the review.

This book, Helix: Blight of Exiles, the first in a series of books (a trilogy, if I'm not mistaken), has a lot going for show more it. It's a strange novel to try and slot into a genre. To be honest, for me, it felt, despite the very obvious [b:Moby-Dick; or, The Whale|153747|Moby-Dick; or, The Whale|Herman Melville|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327940656s/153747.jpg|2409320] references, like a more feral cousin to [b:The Island of Doctor Moreau|23311937|The Island of Doctor Moreau|H. G. Wells|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1412577408s/23311937.jpg|42865861]. Same genetics, but also with some Andromeda Strain and The Howling tossed in there.

Flewwelling sets up a fascinating set of mysteries very quickly. What is The Wyrd? Why is Ishmael where he is? Where the hell is he? Why is everyone else here and what's going on with them anyway?

Then there's the characters. Ishmael is a walking question mark. You get some glimpses into his past, then Flewwelling pulls the curtain shut again. Then there's Dr. Foster. What is she studying, exactly? And for whom? There's Padre and Shuffle and Digger...oh, Digger. And then there's some fascinating secondary characters. I'm particularly enamoured with Ferox, myself.

You get all of this in the first half of the novel. Yes, it's a touch dense. There's a lot thrown at you, as a reader. At times, it can feel a touch chaotic, or a bit like trying to sip from a fire hydrant. Flewwelling basically straps you into the roller coaster, then throws the switch. While she'll give you some breathers occasionally, the thing I respect is, she'll never talk down to you, never insult your intelligence. You buy the ticket, you get the full ride.

Don't get me wrong. It's not that the first half is badly paced. No, along with the mysteries, you get a some fantastic action scenes that are an absolute standout in the story. And, to my mind, the author has come up with a ridiculously cool and modern take on lycanthropy…or is that therianthropy?

So, while there's a fair amount of setup in the first half, it's necessary setup, and it all goes to the payoff that is the second half of the novel.
So let's talk about that second half. The first half takes you to the top of the highest spot on the roller coaster. The second half is that crazy drop down the other side.

The second half is where all that setup begins snapping together. But it's so much more than that.

There is a particular action scene near the end. I will not ruin it for anyone, so, no spoilers. But all I can say is, "Holy crap!" Flewwelling opens her bag of tricks and weaves some magic. And that's all I'm going to say. You'll know it when you read it.

And you should read it.

Is it a perfect book? No. Then again, how many are? But is it a book worth your time and money? Hell yes.

I’m really looking forward to where this goes next. show less

I'm a big comic book fan, so I love superheroes. Granted, most of my favourites wield an Asgardian hammer, or a red, white and blue shield, or wear a high-tech suit of gleaming metal armor, or shoot webs, or...

Well, you get the idea.

What I'm not fond of is historical fiction. Also, not a big fan of radio plays.

But when I get to read the origin story of a new hero, regardless of setting, I'm there. And that's what this first installment of The Fog of Dockside City is...a superhero origin show more story.

It's also a fun romp with some engaging characters. But I think the major thing that caught my imagination in this one is the slow building of the subplot. Yes, you meet Sheldon Webb, yes, you find out how he becomes The Fog, and yes, you also get some great scenes as Webb learns to deal with his newfound powers. But you also get a small peek, just a slight lifting of the lid, into Sheldon's past, and the characters that are attached to that are fascinating.

So, while you get to see the start of Sheldon's powers, and have a great time reading that, I think the next book's going to be even better, because that (hopefully) will be the true origin story of Sheldon Webb. The one that lets us see exactly where he came from.

I said I wasn't a fan of historical fiction or radio plays. This book is built up just like an Olde Tyme Radio Play, however, there's no more engaging story than the "who am I?" story. Flewwelling's done that that this time as Sheldon determines who he is now, as the Fog, but she's also masterfully set up a confrontation with his past as well.

I'm really looking forward to the rest of this series. show less