It would seem that I've stumbled upon a book sharing many features with Alan Moore's 'From Hell', and possibly a source of inspiration? I understand tIt would seem that I've stumbled upon a book sharing many features with Alan Moore's 'From Hell', and possibly a source of inspiration? I understand that both authors cite 'Lud Heat' as inspirations for their respective works. And, as an aside, don't you just hate reading a book that takes one of your own story ideas and just does it better, and even publishes it before you had the story idea in the first place? The more this happens, the more I believe in the concept of a collective unconscious. In any event, Hawksmoor is an interesting read. We don't get introduced to the titular character until halfway through the book (or do we?), and the split between the events of the Architect in 1711 and the Detective in the present (being the mid '80's in this case), makes for compelling reading, particularly when the past echoes in the present, which is fundamentally what the book is about. I'll admit, I wasn't sure where the book was heading, and clues dropped late in the book (assuming I didn't miss obvious ones earlier) lead to a potential solution, which was kind of partially realised and kind of not, but the way both storylines wrapped up was somewhat anti-climactic and somewhat open to interpretation. For myself, the juice in the book lay in Dyer's exposition on his occult influences on architecture, and his quiet subversion of Wren's plans. The scene where Wren and Dyer confront each other with their opposing philosophical views; Enlightenment principles vs Dyer's position which could loosely be aligned with Romanticism, quite neatly sums up a tension in Western tradition that has been smoldering since that time, and still exists today. Dyer's justification for his views, rooted in his childhood, give some weight to his rationale, without actually excusing his actions. It also ties in the effects of the Plague and the Great Fire of London as the psychological foundation for this period of the book, which itself lays a modern foundation for our own times. Dust is a common symbol of the weight (or lack of weight?) of history throughout the book, and one wonders whether Hawksmoor was ever in a position to solve the murders happening in contemporary times. Arguably him more than anyone, but what exactly was he solving? Ackroyd, judging by this book, and his lauded biographies on English figures, clearly has a deep passion for English history and people, and my copy of his biography on William Blake taunts me from my bookshelf. One day... Time to chase down Lud Head and start the 'trilogy' that I have been reading in reverse order?...more
There are few reading experiences that turn your idea of reading upside down, inside out, there and back again, and totally mess with you in an absorbThere are few reading experiences that turn your idea of reading upside down, inside out, there and back again, and totally mess with you in an absorbing way. This was one of them, and it was some kind of ride. There is a plot. There is analysis of the plot. There is analysis of the analysis. There is a maze and there is a monster. It's a horror, but it's a love story. It's a re-invented Greek Myth, but it's hyper-contemporary. There is a parallel story that is affected by the main story, which is not real, but becomes real. But it's safe to read. Or is it? I'll admit, early on when I'd started reading it, that a walk down my dark corridor searching for the lightswitch had me wondering briefly if it would take the same time it usually takes. And then things got really strange. This book totally re-invents reading. How many books can say that? I recently finished reading (and re-reading) Garth Ennis' 'A Walk Through Hell' (monthly issues), and I think I see echoes of 'House of Leaves' in that. The most moving moment came right at the end of the book (excluding the Appendix and Exhibits), and still has me re-thinking the entire book. In a book that already has me thinking and re-thinking even as I'm reading it. Is this our generation's 'Finnegans Wake'? I wouldn't go that far (I say, not even having read Finnegan's Wake, but knowing what I do know about it), but it's certainly a book that could mark a generation, and capture a buzz in a way that I haven't felt from a contemporary book since 'Generation X'. And yes, it's taken me 20 years to discover this book. I'm going to need time to digest this book. Already I'm looking at wiki's for this book, seeing the theories coming up, which I had to stop reading for fear of spoilers. But now I can go back, because there's many clues and pointers in the book that speak of much more than can be easily communicated. I'm very tempted to re-read and mark notes and thoughts in the margins. And highlight the shit out of it, because it will reward re-reads. The devil is in the anomalies, I fear, and there are a number that will no doubt hold meaning for subsequent reads. Is it all a bit too clever for its own good? Time, and re-reads will tell. ...more
I'm going to admit right off the bat, I'm not a big fan of mysteries, historical or otherwise. I don't mind dipping my toe into the occasional historiI'm going to admit right off the bat, I'm not a big fan of mysteries, historical or otherwise. I don't mind dipping my toe into the occasional historical mystery, and this was one of those indulgences. I recall reading an Ellis Peters medieval mystery ages ago and remembering it as being average. I quite enjoyed the two Stephen Saylor Roman mysteries that I'd read awhile back, and I'm actually quite fond of the Robert Van Gulik Judge Dee series. I picked up The Tournament of Blood a few months back, along with another in the series, moreso for the medieval angle, particularly the insight into everyday life around tournaments I'd hoped to glean, than for the murder mystery. I tend to glaze over the clues and characters, and trust that the author will bring it home for me, so I'm quite a lazy mystery reader when it comes to it. At first, possibly more so for this being my first Jecks book, I didn't feel it read as a particularly good immersive medieval read, but that did get better for me as I got further into the book. It chugged along ok without being an amazing read. It did strike me as a well researched topic jumping on an average tale with a bare-bones minimum mystery that seemed to have named the murderer right from the start. Characterisation was adequate enough to be able to distinguish characters without any compelling stand-outs or particularly memorable characters. Which, as stated, was probably fine for my immediate purposes of getting a bit of a feel about medieval English tournaments. I must admit to having been grateful for the suggested few books on the topic in the author's intro. I must admit Jeck's description of the initial joust was probably the most immersive part of the book, giving you a knight's eye view on proceedings. But on the whole I don't think I'd be able to recommend this book to anyone without any interest in medieval England, or the Middle Ages in general. ...more
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