Comments on: The Anubis Gates by Tim Powers

By: Dread Pirate Terje

Dread Pirate Terje — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 20:02:58 +0000

Oh, yeah, that whole Docotor Who/Torchwood thing. I forgot I read about that in the last issue of SFX. Interesting what people choose to obsess about.

By: Loki

Loki — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 11:16:39 +0000

Gods, I loathe fashions. Of any kind.

By: Amras Elensar

Amras Elensar — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 08:19:11 +0000

“Oh, of course you didn’t; if you had, there’d be more gay German spacemen. :P”

If that was the case then I’d be reading ‘Three Days to Never’ right this instant. Also, you guys don’t know it yet, but gayness in sff is supposedly all the rage right now, so if there HAD been gay German spacemen in this book, it’d be way ahead of its time (which I suppose you can say about all sf-books…)

By: Loki

Loki — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 01:58:11 +0000

Hyperboles are in their very nature a very liberal treatment of the concept we so cavalierly refer to as “truth”, dear chap, and as such, I find liberal employment of them to be very much in theme.

By: Dread Pirate Terje

Dread Pirate Terje — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 01:48:22 +0000

I say, while I believe you are employing the hyperbole a tad too liberally, I am quite humbled by your compliment, kind gentleman.

By: Loki

Loki — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 01:34:00 +0000

“Oh, of course you didn’t; if you had, there’d be more gay German spacemen.”

Never has anyone been so thoroughly burned. I applaud your biting wit, good sir.

By: Dread Pirate Terje

Dread Pirate Terje — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 00:10:40 +0000

You know, I believe that to be one of the most bizarre plot synopses I’ve ever read. Are you sure you didn’t just make it up? Oh, of course you didn’t; if you had, there’d be more gay German spacemen.

Also, “The Stress of Her regard”? Brilliant title, indeed.

By: Amras Elensar

Amras Elensar — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 23:06:44 +0000

This is a classic Powers novel and it’s certainly on my own writing ledger (if I had one, that is). I’ve personally gone to the point of buying one of Powers’ latest offerings, ‘Three Days To Never’ in hardcover (mostly because I saw it compared to ‘American Gods’ in a review). Here’s the plot synopsis:

When Frank Marrity’s grandmother dies unexpectedly during 1987’s New Age Harmonic Convergence, his 12-year-old daughter, Daphne, steals a videotape from the old woman’s Pasadena house that turns out to be a Chaplin film long believed lost. Before Daphne can finish watching the film, its powerful symbolism awakens a latent pyrokinetic ability in her that burns the tape. Frank later discovers letters that prove his grandmother was Albert Einstein’s illegitimate daughter. This comes to the attention of a special branch of the Mossad specializing in the Kabbalah as well as a shadowy Gnostic sect interested in a potential weapon discovered by Einstein that he didn’t offer to FDR during WWII—a weapon more terrible in its way than the atomic bomb.

Sounds interesting, yah? If I like it, I’m totally reading ‘Anubis Gates’, ‘Last Call’ and ‘On Stranger Tides’. Maybe also ‘The Stress of Her Regard’, but that’s because I love the title

By: Loki

Loki — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 20:55:05 +0000

As soon as I got to the battle of Y’Ghatan it got very exciting. It’s just that Icarium and Mappo’s (as well as Apsalar and her new dreadfully boring “familiars”) never managed to hold my interest, and everytime they get a chapter, I put it away for a couple of days. Or weeks. And sometimes those weeks turn into months.

By: Dread Pirate Terje

Dread Pirate Terje — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 20:53:32 +0000

Also, congrats on the Bonehunters! I can understand why it has taken you so long (kinda), even though I read it in a day or two, myself.