Well, there wasn't as much discussion about hardboiled and
noir SF as I'd hoped, but it's been a quiet month all over. I
won't give away any spoilers, just in case, but the ending to
THE DEMOLISHED MAN by Bester really made me groan. Surely it
wasn't original even back then? Maybe it was the
psychoanalytic approach? Aside from that, an excellent
book.
Lethem's GUN, WITH OCCASIONAL MUSIC I'd say is a fine first
novel. The Chandler characters and Hammett plot are nothing
fresh, except that some of the people are actually
artificially evolved animals. The SF side of it is a bleak
future where people sniff legal drugs that make them forget
daily life and are watched by cops who can send them into
cryogenic freezing if their karma points get too low.
Now, next month is James Sallis month. I e-mailed him and
asked if he'd like to join, and didn't hear back. If any of
you know him well, perhaps you could ask again. If not, speak
up if you've read any of the Lew Griffin stories; if you
haven't, try one out. Sallis is admired by many rare
birds.
Bill
-- William Denton : Toronto, Canada : http://www.miskatonic.org/ : Caveat lector.
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