Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld

Rating: 4 out of 5

It is one of the most familiar stories of the 20th century. Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, visits the newly acquired territory of Bosnia. There, in the city of Sarajevo, he and his wife are tragically killed by assassins. Their deaths became the catalyst that sparks the events that lead to the eruption of the First World War between Great Britain, France, Russia and their allies, against Germany, Austria-Hungary and their allies, a pivotal event that would change the subsequent history of the world forever.

This is the event which starts off Scott Westerfeld’s novel, Leviathan. But any similarity with that monumental historical event of 1914 ends there. In the book, the countries at war are divided not just according to political divisions but also by scientific philosophy. On one side are Germany and Austria-Hungary, also known collectively as the “Clanker” nations. Their society is based on reliance in mechanical technology where in this world, they have created innovative war machines, including various forms of steampunk versions of those famous Star Wars Imperial Walkers.

On the other side are the “Darwinists”, relying on the advancements in biology or, more precisely, genetic engineering. In this world Charles Darwin, not only formulated the Theory of Evolution, but taken his studies a little further and deciphered the genetic codes of all organisms. Using this knowledge, various creatures’ genes were manipulated into the purpose of the development of new species of animals that are tailor-made for the use of human society. This includes monsters that were developed for the purposes of war like the kraken, a gigantic octopus or squid (or possibly a combination of both!) that could crush a galleon in its tentacles, or bats that would eat metal-piercing darts and ‘drop’ them on a certain target. And then, there is the showcase of all, a large whale that is capable of floating in the sky and serve as a massive airship capable of bringing destruction to the enemy, of which one is named the Leviathan.

In this story, Archduke Franz Ferdinand leaves behind a son and heir, Aleksandar, of whose future and very life is placed into jeopardy upon his death. In order to save the boy, some of the Archduke’s loyal retainers devise a plan of escaping inside a Stormwalker and make a mad rush towards Switzerland before anybody is wiser.

Meanwhile in Britain, a young girl, Deryn Sharp, pretends to be a boy in hopes of being accepted into the British Air Service where she wishes to follow in the footsteps of her late father. She joins just in time as Great Britain finds herself embroiled in a coming war. And soon enough the stories of Alek and Deryn follow the same path where it seems that, for the moment, their futures are intertwined.

Scott Westerfeld created a story aimed at a young audience, but it is still an enjoyable story for readers of every age. The writing is simple and clear. And the two main characters are well fleshed out and interesting.

Westerfeld also plays with various themes. Firstly, while the story is based on his vision of an alternate past, he presents possible visions for the future, with mechanical wonders and genetically engineered creatures. He also gives readers a look at the present through the ideologies of the two warring sides. Through them, Westerfeld depicts the outlooks of two social philosophies: the conservative Clankers and the liberal Darwinists. It is particularly interesting to read the way each side views the other: the Darwinists sees the Clankers as somewhat backward, afraid of innovation and too much tied to tradition. While the Clankers see the Darwinists as irreverent, godless and playing at being God.

All in all, it is a wonderful story with very fine two main characters, and is very enjoyable to read. It doesn’t hurt that elements of steampunk are effortlessly integrated into the tale. In fact, it is probably one of the best stories which incorporates the said sub-genre of speculative fiction. If there is a downside to this, it is the fact that the reader can easily be immersed in the story, that it may seemingly end too quickly. It is the first book of a series, and Leviathan only sets things up. Leaving the reader fussing over when the next installment would arrive.

Midnight Tides by Steven Erikson

Book 5 of the Malazan Book of the Fallen

Rating: 4 out of 5

The world where the Malazan Empire exists is a vast world and includes continents where the Malazan name has never been heard. Here in this fifth novel of the epic Malazan Book of the Fallen, Steven Erikson takes us to those other places and displays more of his breath-taking and vivid imagination through world-building and myth-making. Erikson takes epic fantasy to the limits and beyond.

By doing so, Midnight Tides, seemingly represents a break from the continuity of the previous four novels. It is a different place, the story seems to have occurred in an earlier time period than that of its predecessors, and only one persona is familiar to the readers – an earlier, younger version of a Tiste Edur character named Trull Sengar, who only had a relatively small role in the fourth novel. Midnight Tides is the story of two empires, a kingdom based on total control of the resources of the continent – the Letherii Empire; and the newly-formed conglomeration of tribes previously warring against each other – the Tiste Edur (a group of people also fleetingly glimpsed in the preceding books). Lether, who has succeeded in campaigns of subjugating its neighbors in order to control their natural resources has only one great obstacle left before the total domination of the continent, the tribes of the Tiste Edur. However, the Edur have finally realized the only way stop the coming inevitable onslaught is to stop their in-fighting and unite against the larger enemy.

The tale unfolds mainly through the stories surrounding two families. The Sengars of the Tiste Edur – the warrior brothers Fear, Trull, and Rhulad, who become pivotal in the realization of the formalization of the Tiste Edur empire through their trials and most of all, disappointments; and the Beddicts of Lether, brothers also – Hull, who plans to betray Lether to the enemy; Tehol – making his way through Lether society as a seemingly-failed businessman, and Brys – the Emperor’s Champion. However, as it turns out in the other novels, the unfolding war is just a part in the bigger conflict among the gods who seem to manipulate the destiny of mortals. And it is through these immortals that Erikson reveals the background behind the history and myths of the peoples of this world, and connects the fifth novel to the vast unfolding story of the Malazan Empire.

Midnight Tides also is a novel where Erikson presents a society that is so overtly familiar to the contemporary world. He presents a society eerily and uncomfortably familiar to some readers, more particularly American society and the various mother nations of Britain and Western Europe that contributed to its culture and people. In explaining Letherii society, he presents the forces that molded today’s Western-driven culture. He presents a people relying not only in a monetary system, but on a systematic system of managing debts and credits; a society believing in the supposedly inherent greatness of its culture and its “manifest destiny” to impose that culture throughout their world; he presents a government that aims to protect the “interests” of its society by assuring that other cultures become subordinated and taken advantage of; a military that increasingly relies on impersonal destructive weaponry, taking away what little was left of humanity in what was already the most inhumane acts of society. Erikson gives a scathing rebuke of today’s ultra-competitive society bred in today’s media:

…You take your natural vices and call them virtues. Of which greed is the most despicable. That and betrayal of commonality. After all, whoever decided that competition is always and without exception a healthy attribute? Why that particular path to self-esteem? Your heel on the hand of the one below. This is worth something? Let me tell you, it’s worth nothing. Nothing lasting. Every monument that exists beyond the moment – no matter which king, emperor or warrior lays claim to it – is actually a testament to the common, to co-operation, to the plural rather than the singular.

Steven Erikson, by the way, is an archeologist by profession before he became a writer and has studied past cultures and histories. He probably knows what he is talking about. This background in archeology also shows in his writing in this novel and all the rest. His places are dotted with ruins here and there and helps define the culture of one of the people of his books and help tell their history. His writing has also shown a vast improvement from the first novel, and considering the story of Midnight Tides is, in the surface, just barely connected to the past four books, it’s almost seems like this is the way Erikson would like to start a series had he had the chance. His writing becomes crisper and clearer. And humor (albeit dark and sarcastic) has now become fully integrated.

On the other hand, some of the chinks in his writing still remain. Particularly the problem of giving ample time to develop a vast number of characters – nine hundred pages of fine print still isn’t enough. He still leaves explanation to things and events up in the air leaving this for further novels, or for the reader to research back.

Fortunately enough, Erikson’s story is so entertaining and so engrossing that the reader just moves on and enjoy the remarkable tale conjured from the creative imagination of a great writer and discovers a world so vast and dynamic, it rivals and probably surpasses any other fantasy world created before it. And the journey is only halfway over, which is great news for fantasy fans.

This review ends with Erikson's astute observation of man's progress through history:

We have a talent for disguising greed under the cloak of freedom. As for past acts of depravity, we prefer to ignore those. Progress, after all, means to look ever forward, and whatever we have trampled in our wake is best forgotten.

Second Foundation by Isaac Asimov

Book 3 of the first Foundation trilogy

Rating: 3 out of 5

This is the final book of Isaac Asimov's first Foundation trilogy, which was started with Foundation and continued with Foundation and Empire. The first story arc of that small outpost of knowledge at the edge of the galaxy, trying to shorten the projected 30,000 years of chaos to a mere 1,000 years by following the plans of Hari Seldon and his science of psychohistory, is coming to a close. But the Foundation, based on the planet Terminus, which has risen from obscurity to replace the Galactic Empire as the premier civilization in the galaxy has fallen to the powerful mutant known as the Mule. The long-dead Hari Seldon's well laid plan for the future is in ruins.

Or is it? For it seems that Hari Seldon has indeed planned for every contingency and has established a Second Foundation in an unknown location. This Second Foundation is the direct opposite of the First Foundation which had depended on physical science to develop their society. Instead of using physical science, the Second Foundation was composed of "psychohistorians" and developed a few mental capablities that access the human mind and having the directive of making sure Hari Seldon's plans would be fulfilled under any circumstances. These are capabilities which the Mule, now the undisputed ruler of the galaxy, consider a threat to his existence. So he devices a plan to find the Second Foundation and crush it once and for all.

The book Second Foundation, similar to the second book, is actually divided into two story arcs. The first details the aforementioned search of the Second Foundation by the Mule, followed by the story of the inheritors of the First Foundation making their own search for the Second Foundation, which they deem, for reasons to be mentioned in the book, as a threat to their own humanity.

The clean and simple style of Asimov's writing remain. It is, however, still flavored with that mid-20th century style that admittedly makes his writing somewhat outdated and the dialogue a little bit cheezy. And it is clear that sometimes the best scientific minds don't make the best artistic style which may turn away contemporary readers and may not have the impact it had 2 to 5 decades ago. Asimov could be very logical in his approach to storytelling that he sometimes forgets that actual people are involved in the events he presents. For example, his telling of a battle scene in space has the atmosphere of watching a video game where the destruction of vessels and the losing of lives are presented as casually and "unfeelingly" as can possibly be.

Having said that, Asimov presents ideas that are astounding even today and presents his own thesis in some aspect of the story of humanity. This landmark work, along with other books of the series, is a must-read for science fiction fans, if only for the importance it had with the genre. And with this series, along with his other works, Isaac Asimov demonstrates why he is one of the most brilliant minds of the 20th century and one of its greatest writers, if just in terms of ideas, and not in style. His first Foundation trilogy is a true classic.