Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Yummy Fiction Goodness

Ah, today I have been reminded why Gath Nix's Austrailian self totally owns almost any other competitor in the field of modern fantasy. I just finished reading Lady Friday, his newest book in his The Keys to the Kingdom series, and it did not disappoint. I completely love this series. I had noticed before the author's favoring of the number seven, but it really shines here. There will be seven books when the series is done, each of which is named after one of seven villainous characters who have borrowed the names of the seven days of the week. Each villain possesses one of seven magical keys, has hidden one of seven parts of a magical living document, and is afflicted by one of the seven deadly sins. In fact, one of the fun parts of the series is figuring out which character is indulging in which sin ^_^ It's usually pretty obvious, although Lady Friday was a tricky one. Of course, all of this probably makes very little sense, so I will back-track a bit and give a small series overview. The story starts (for the main character, at least) on a Monday. The day, in fact, that he, a thirteen year old boy named Arthur Penhaligon, is supposed to die of an asthma attack (damn gym teachers). His life is saved by a magic scrap of metal in the shape of a clock hand that is given to him by a rather odd man named Mister Monday. This all leads to a series of events where-in Arthur discovers the true center of the Universe, a weird building known as the House. The House is made up of seven domains, each ruled by a Trustee appointed by the original creator of the Universe. Over the millenia, however, the Trustees have grown corrupt, and Arthur is charged by one fragment of the Will, a living document left by the Universe's creator, to overthrow the Trustees and restore order, as the Universe is suffering from serious neglect and abuse. Arthur goes around reluctantly fighting for a cause he wants no part in, and trying to maintain his humanity. And that pretty much sums it all up. The characters are likable, the main character especially so, and Nix's sense of humor is a delicate balance between light-hearted fancy and dark wit. Or perhaps light-hearted wit and dark fancy ^_^ Anyway, good stuff all around. And yet, the Abhorsen Trilogy still kicks its ass. Sorry, you just can't beat zombies. All of this talk about good books has put me in the mood for another one of my lists. So here it goes... Roboartemis' Awards For Greatest Living Fantasy Writer Australia: Garth Nix (Abhorsen Trilogy, Keys to the Kingdom) United Kingdom: Diana Wynne Jones (O_o How many novels?!) United States: Clive Barker (Abarat) Yes, I've gotten over my reluctance to admit any American into my Great Fantasy list (and to tell you the truth, he's from England). I still think we're way too interested in quantity over quality here, but Barker's Abarat just can't be ignored. It embodies awesomness. Plus it's got lots pretty pictures. -Quotation of the Day- "The Boundary Fort was defended by a detachment from either the Legion, the Horde, the Regiment, or the Moderately Honorable Artillery Company." -Sir Thursday-

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