Fantastic Metropolis

The Portrait of Mrs. Charbuque, Jeffrey Ford

(Morrow, USA)

When a renowned portraitist (a dying breed with the advent of photography) is commissioned to paint someone he can’t see, running after illusions becomes a dominant part of his life. Mrs. Charbuque’s stories are as dreamlike and full of wonder as only childhood memories can be, but the painter perseveres in following lead after strange lead in search of the mysterious woman’s identity until, eventually, illusions start chasing him back. The fantastic substance of the novel is only apparent, but then again so are its facts. The Portrait of Mrs. Charbuque is like a snowflake in those precious few seconds before it completely melts in your hand, somewhere between liquid dream and icy reality, complex and unique and intensely beautiful. My favourite Ford novel so far.

Behold the Man, Michael Moorcock, John Picacio (Illustrator), Jonathan Carroll (Introduction)

(Mojo Press, USA)

While being an agnostic myself, I’m very interested in religion as a social and historical phenomenon, so this novella was a real treat for me. Karl Glogauer is a time traveller in search of Jesus—literally. But when he learns that the son of Mary is nothing but an simpleton, he’s compelled to embrace the road not (yet) taken and eventually surrender his life at the cross for humanity’s sake. Behold the Man therefore asks a profoundly fascinating question: was Jesus Christ a historical inevitability? Or perhaps, because Glogauer already knew there should be a messiah, he sacrificed himself so the illusion would endure for generations to come. The answer is thus tainted by foreknowledge, but then again, it’s not this book’s job to give you answers, much less the Blessed Truth. No, that’d be almost as bad as being told what to do, say, and think. Not that I can think of any examples right now.

The Iron Dragon’s Daughter, Michael Swanwick

(Millennium, UK)

I confess: The Iron Dragon’s Daughter is my first Swanwick novel, one I truly regret not having read before. And what a great book it is, where traditional escapist fantasy—of the sort that’s cranked out of cookie cutters by dozens of Tolkien clones around the world—is put to the test under the harsh light of science fiction. Moronic clichés immediately fall apart, and tired tropes rearrange themselves in wonderful new configurations. Swanwick aims incisive criticism at commodified fantasy, and brings into the novel issues otherwise conveniently overlooked or simplified by the authors of fast fiction. A superb book.

Jack Faust, Michael Swanwick

(Orion, UK)

In the German town of Wittenberg, a delirious Dr. Faust is approached by the demon Mephistopheles with an offer he cannot refuse. Imagine, if you will, the past five centuries of western civilization on steroids. With a heart full of good intentions but not without some hypocrisy, Faust naïvely believes his newly gifted enlightenment will only improve the shitty world he’s in. But while most of humanity struggles to keep up with the changes, greed and opportunism are quick to catch up, and the good doctor eventually gives in to them in order to further his own goals. Not a flawless book, but Michael Swanwick nevertheless puts his scalpel to where important questions lie and cleverly dissects knowledge, power, greed, reason, and superstition in this bleak novel on the nature of mankind.