The Sea Came in at Midnight

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God invented millennia for writers like Steve Erickson. Erickson's previous books have buried L.A.'s freeways in sand, set bonfires in Paris streets, and hitched along for the 1996 presidential campaign. In terms of madness, doom, and sheer human folly, what could possibly be left? Plenty, as it turns out. As The Sea Came in at Midnight opens, 17-year-old Kristin works in a Japanese "memory hotel," where despite her so-so looks she's in high demand. As an American, "Kristin represents the Western annihilation of ancient Japanese memory and therefore its master and possessor, a red bomb in one hand, a red bottle of soda pop in the other." After one of her best clients expires in the booth, she finally tells him her own story--which turns out to be quite a tale, involving escape from a millennial suicide cult and nude solitary confinement at the behest of a man known only as the Occupant. Add in the novel's other threads, which span 40 years and include a dream cartographer, a chaos-based calendar, time capsules, and both real and faked snuff films, and you have a heady mixture indeed. Fans of Erickson's unsettling, dreamlike style are legion, and they won't be disappointed in his latest take on the End Time, Blade Runner-style. But in a way, the millennium is beside the point; with a plot like this one, a mere flipping of digits seems so much apocalyptic icing on the cake. Combing a lyrical surrealism with a jittery, jump-cut technique, Erickson writes like the 21st-century heir of Pynchon and DeLillo. --Chloe Byrne

Book Description

Steve Erickson is a visionary novelist whose time has come. Considered by many the secret heir to Pynchon and DeLillo, he has steadily acquired a passionate following of readers over the course of five previous novels. Now, with The Sea Came at Midnight, Erickson delivers a masterwork of intense feeling, scope and power--an intimate epic of late twentieth-century civilization in free fall, an unforgettable young woman's revelation amid the ruins.

In the final seconds of the old millennium, 1,999 women and children march off the edge of a cliff in Northern California, urged on by a cult of silent men in white robes. Kristin was meant to be the two-thousandth to fall. But when at the last moment she flees, she exchanges one dark destiny for a future that will unravel the present.

Answering a cryptic personals ad for a woman "at the end of her rope," Kristin finds temporary haven in the Hollywood Hills with an older, unnamed man as obsessed as he is spiritually ravaged. In a locked room at the bottom of his house, he labors over his life's work: a massive blue calendar the size of a tsunami that measures modern time by the events of chaos and pinpoints the true beginning of the new millenium as not midnight December 31, 1999, but the early hours of one May morning in 1968. This calendar is shot through with the threads of other lives-those searching for a small measure of redemption and an answer to the question, "What's missing from the world?"

From a ritual sacrifice in the name of salvation to a ritual sacrifice in the name of pleasure, from an ancient haunted Celtic tower in Brittany to the revolving memory hotels of Tokyo, from a cinematic hoax in Manhattan that costs five women their lives to a mysterious bloodstained set of coordinates tacked to the wall of an abandoned San Francisco penthouse, The Sea Came at Midnight is a breathtaking literary dance of fate and coincidence. And, unknown even to her, at the center of that dance is the seventeen-year-old.

Customer Reviews:

Best Book I've read in 3 years.......2007-01-10

It is a shock that the name Steve Erickson is not well known. His books sit comfortably alongside books by DeLillo, Pynchon, Margaret Atwood. If you like any one of those three, then you owe it to yourself to try Erickson. Personally I think he's more enjoyable -- and this book is his best. It is a tour de force of characters who are all prisoners of something -- each other, their own past, the future. It's funny, moving, and complex.

A delirious dream of the end of the world.......2006-03-23

We are all our own private millineum, walking through the world, our own apocalypse (or apocalapse), our own world of chaos tucked just under the skin. It could start with a gunshot in May of '68, or sometime much later. You will live and think the world means something and then one day you will wake up and it will not mean anything and you will join the countless others who are living in time void of meaning.

I can't say more about this book. His ideas are stunning. I'm enraptured.

If a dream is a memory of the future..........2003-01-23

A sometimes beautiful, sometimes disturbing "memior of the future", this novel contains plot twists that in themselves are nothing short of amazing. The books many protagonists live as if in a surreal dreamworld of cultural movements, apocolyptic fear, horrific urban legends and even worse histories of the last century. The writing is very lyrical, but the narrative also has a frenetic science-fiction like pace that keeps you turning the pages with each cosmic coincidence. Very much like Delillo in delivery and Pynchonian in plot.

What is The Sea?.......2001-02-13

The three nights I spent reading Erickson's "The Sea Came at Midnight" were both riveting and disturbing. Rarely do I dream, but Erickson's fantasy gave my nights urgent and almost panicked visions. In retrospect I fancy my mind unable to process the wild implications and subconscious import driven to point by only the experiences of his few characters. "The Sea Came at Midnight" is not only beautifully written and well-composed, but it is also ominous... Like all significant works of writing it leaves you hungrier than sated, straining to bring into focus the looming world you know lays waiting behind the words -- A world that is more your own than Erickson's, because he has only given you a fleeting, piercing glimpse at all you refuse to perceive about humanity.

So good itýs scary.......2001-02-06

`The Sea Came in at Midnight' is so good it's scary. I'm worried that it will be a long time before I read another novel that is so accomplished and successful in its intent. Maybe I shouldn't worry...maybe I only have to wait until I read another of Erickson's novels before I encounter such mastery again.

For me, the most enjoyable aspect of this novel was the elliptical paths the characters took. The way they crossed and re-crossed paths, never knowing the significance of the other in the way their lives have been shaped. Erickson manages this without forcing the relationships or situations in an artificial way.

The story itself, though, is artificial and contrived - but I mean that in a positive way! Erickson's settings, the novels events and the characters motivations are grandiose and on an epic scale. He wants you to be confronted by his themes - the decay of society, the power of redemption and self-belief - so they are enlarged and made more bold by their scale. `The Sea Came in at Midnight' is a novel that trades in challenging the reader and the reader's perceptions. You will never forget the desperation of some characters and the despair of others. Never forget the hyper-realistic imagery - Tokyo memory hotels, the mass suicide, the shattered aquarium. And finally, never forget that you have been privileged to read a novel of truly stunning accomplishment.

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The Sea Came in at Midnight.(Review) (book review): An article from: The Review of Contemporary Fiction
Trey Strecker
Manufacturer: Review of Contemporary Fiction
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

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ASIN: B00099MJKG
Release Date: 2005-06-01

Book Description

This digital document is an article from The Review of Contemporary Fiction, published by Review of Contemporary Fiction on September 22, 1999. The length of the article is 985 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: The Sea Came in at Midnight.(Review) (book review)
Author: Trey Strecker
Publication: The Review of Contemporary Fiction (Refereed)
Date: September 22, 1999
Publisher: Review of Contemporary Fiction
Volume: 19 Issue: 3 Page: 176

Article Type: Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

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A Masterpiece of Magical Writing

A Great Read!

Best Mary Stewart ever

Brilliant descriptive suspense and romance

Such a wonderful piece of work
This Rough Magic
Mary Stewart
Manufacturer: HarperTorch
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0060747471
Release Date: 2004-11-30

Book Description

British actress Lucy Waring believes there is no finer place to be "at liberty" than the sun-drenched isle of Corfu, the alleged locale for Shakespeare's The Tempest. Even the suspicious actions of the handsome, arrogant son of a famous actor cannot dampen her enthusiasm for this wonderland in the Ionian Sea.

Then a human corpse is carried ashore on the incoming tide ...

Customer Reviews:

A Masterpiece of Magical Writing.......2003-09-16

As in other Mary Stewart classics, the action of "This Rough Magic" takes place in a mere matter of days. Lucy Waring, a twenty-something actress steps off the London stage and onto the idyllic Ionian island of Corfu. In a the course of a morning swim, paradise transforms to a place of sinister doings: someone shoots at a tamed dolphin, a young Greek drowns off the coast of Albania, and a smuggler washes up dead in a nearby cove. Stewart uses all her formidable skill, crafting a strong story that is both literary and fast moving. Told from Lucy's point-of-view, the reader's is kept as taut as a wire as the tension mounts not only while Lucy attempts to determine the identity of the wrongdoer and the reason for his misdemeanors but as she inadvertently puts herself in harm's way.

Playfully, Stewart pulls out all the stops, introducing one of her most cleverly contrived secondary characters, Sir Julian Gale, a Lawrence Olivier facsimile whose theory that the island setting of Shakespeare's "Tempest" and Corfu are one and the same adds much charm and ambiance to an already gloriously depicted exotic locale. Cleverer still, she employs the idea of the deus ex machina in a most enjoyable sequence, where the 'god' is a young Greek male and the 'machine', his improbable motorcycle.

As always, the Stewart heroine impeccably relates each event as it occurs with an astonishing literacy--the language employed borders on poetry; the reader actually smells every flower, is blinded by the lush colors of the foilage and stung by the salt of the Ionian Sea. In kind, Stewart characterizes her Greeks with an affectionate curiosity and love of the stranger; their traditions and rituals are reported with much respect and admiration.

As noted in some of my other reviews of Stewart's work, this author's masterly use of plot, character, language and style puts her in a genre all her own. She is quite definitely incomparable. 'This Rough Magic" is one of my favorite Stewart selections: one of a trio of novels set in Greece and the Greek Isles that uses the strained politics of the late 50s and early 60s as a backdrop to catapult a rather normal UK female protagonist into an abnormal situation where the British sense of responsibility is shown to positive advantage.

Recommended with the wish that all the Stewart suspense tales are reissued in trade paperback with Reader's Questions.

A Great Read!.......2003-03-09

I love everything Mary Stewart has written. Her books are classics. This was the first book I read of her's, and to this day I think it is still her best. This Rough Magic is a truely charming story. When I think of the story I get a smile on my face. That's how good this book is. I highley recommend this book and all her others.

Best Mary Stewart ever.......2002-07-22

This Rough Magic is one of those perfect books-it draws you on with suspense, involves you deeply with jewel-cut prose, and unlike most Stewart novels, is quite funny in spots. I love this book for its lightheartedness and its tragedy and its lovely romance, if that makes any sense. This is perfect romantic suspense, great for constant rereading.

Brilliant descriptive suspense and romance.......1999-06-23

An out of work actress staying in Corfu with her rich pregnant sister becomes embroiled in a dangerous mystery after encountering a famous reclusive actor and his passionate son. Throw in a few murders and our heroine is out to determine the who and why. One of Ms Stewart's best novels, it is totally absorbing describing a country and lifestyle in such vivid detail, and impressing her characters with warmth, understanding and plenty of realism.

Such a wonderful piece of work.......1999-02-24

Mary Stewart is a great writer with spectacular talent! I have heard that this is not even yet her best yet and am quite excited to read more of her books. This is a fabulous story and I encourage you to read it!

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excellent alternate history, diverse characters, well written
"Rough but Sweet"
Only okay
Couldn't put it down
Excellent

This Rough Magic (Heirs of Alexandria)
Mercedes Lackey , Eric Flint , and Dave Freer
Manufacturer: Baen
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0743499093

Book Description

Venice had been thrown into chaos by the scheming of Chernobog, who came within a hair of seizing absolute power, but was thwarted by the guardian Lion-spirit, who awoke to protect his city from the power-mad demon. But the power of the Lion does not extend beyond Venice, and Chernobog has a new ally in the King of Hungary, who has laid siege to the island of Corfu as the first step in his plan to seize control of the Adriatic from Venice. Trapped on the island is the small band of heroes who awoke the Lion and blocked Chernobog's power grab before. They are far from the Lion's power to help them, but as Manfred and Erik lead a guerrilla movement to fight the Hungarian invaders, Maria discovers that the ancient magical powers of the island are coming to life again, stirred by the siege. If she can make an alliance with them, she may be able to repel the invaders-but not without paying a bitter personal price. . . .

Customer Reviews:

excellent alternate history, diverse characters, well written.......2007-04-30

I like both the prequel Shadow of the Lion and this book a lot. I do not always have the patience and concentration for this type of book, very long, many strands, many characters, definitely not a quick read. But well worth it, the ideas, the people, the religious background, the historical intrigue, all very well done, quite gripping and easy to read once you have the characters and places fixed in your mind. For those who like a lot of intelligent politics and strategy in their fantasy, highly recommended.

For those who are looking for the continuation of this series:
I found this info hard to find - there is an excerpt of the book at the end of the ppbck edition of This Rough Magic, but it also does not say clearly that it is a sequel in this series:
Dave Freer has written "Mankind Witch", alone, which is part of this series, and his website says that he plans two more.

I regret that this is not to be found here in some reference (i.e. tag the book as an Heirs of Alexandria series book) or put on the website of Mercedes Lackey, or Baen, I like this story and its people, and I will read Mankind Witch as soon as I find it. Maybe others will find this useful info.

"Rough but Sweet".......2006-11-11

This is the following tale of "The Shadow of the Lion". It takes place in Corfu rather than Venice. Actually, it is an alternate reality in whichmagic persists and good and evil emesh the characters in a struggle for supremacy. The strength of this tale lise in the character development, especially of Maria and Benito. Most of the carryovers from the previous book are developed and humanized except Francesca, who seems a bit wooden and Marco and Katerina, who are reduced almost to caracatures. However it is in many ways a superior tale, and if you likked the first book, you will love this one.

Only okay.......2006-08-28

First off, I will admit that I didn't read the first book. I didn't know there was a first book until about halfway through. However, I wasn't very impressed. I generally love Mercedes Lackey so I can only attribute the lackluster performance of this book to the other authors. I felt there was too much jumping around to the different groups which made me confused as to who was where and with whom. In addition, I wasn't much engaged with many of the characters.

I also thought the blood sacrifice descriptions were a bit much. I understand wanting to make the evil characters really loathesome, but I don't think it added anything to the story to describe the sexual activities and satanic human sacrifices. To me, it cheapened the book, as if the authors couldn't write anything more engaging. Besides if they had cut out all that description, the book would have been much shorter. Long books are not, in and of themselves, bad, but they have to be extremely well-written in order to keep from lagging. This book lagged and lost steam a few times throughout.

At the same time, the plot was reasonably interesting and the characters fairly well developed. I knew from the beginning who Benito would end up with, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Happy endings are good in my opinion, and this book had that even with the bittersweet background. That's why it gets three stars instead of two.

Couldn't put it down.......2006-05-14

A captivating sequel to 'Shadow of the Lion'. I read all night!

Excellent.......2005-01-03

I read this book without reading the first one.

Very very good, quick paced, with enough background that you can read it without reading the first.

I have been a long time Mercedes Lackey fan, this book just confirms and renews my faith in her:)

Mary Stewart: Four Complete Novels (Touch Not the Cat, This Rough Magic, The Gabriel Hounds & My Brother Michael)

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A fine exhibition of the work of Mary Stewart

Mary Stewart: Four Complete Novels (Touch Not the Cat, This Rough Magic, The Gabriel Hounds & My Brother Michael)
Rh Value Publishing
Manufacturer: Random House Value Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

ASIN: 0517412969
Release Date: 1988-12-12

Customer Reviews:

A fine exhibition of the work of Mary Stewart.......2000-03-31

This compilation is a true example of the fine work of Mary Stewart. She is a master craftsmen in the field of literature, her books are interesting and enjoyable to read. The fine exhibition of her work is praiseworthy. Although now out of print, it is quite worth the wait if you buy this book through Amazon.com. My reccommedation: seek this book out!

This Rough Magic: A Biography of Sylvia Plath

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Wow. Loved this.
Wonderful, compassionate account of the life of a beloved, tortured artist
A Brilliant Book on the Life of a Brilliant Poet
Balanced and well researched---a compelling read.
Multi-faceted portrait

This Rough Magic: A Biography of Sylvia Plath
Paul Alexander
Manufacturer: Viking Adult
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

ASIN: 0670818127

Book Description

Since her infamous suicide at age thirty, Sylvia Plath (1932-1963) has been celebrated for her impeccable and ruthless poetry, which excels at describing the most extreme reaches of human consciousness and passions. The bestselling autobiographical novel The Bell Jar illuminated her life for millions of fans, followed by The Colossus, Ariel, and the Pulitzer-Prize winning Collected Poems.

Based on exclusive interviews and extensive archival research, Rough Magic probes the events of Plath's life-including her turbulent marriage to the English poet Ted Hughes-in the first biography to take a compassionate view of this fiercely talented, deeply troubled artist.

Customer Reviews:

Wow. Loved this........2007-09-19

I am not even a real fan of poetry, but read Sylvia's journals just to read about what life was like back then (I am a lover of detail). This book made sense of the intense journals and it also was a fascinating read by itself. I loved this book from beginning to end. It gave a lot of insight. I recommend very highly.

Wonderful, compassionate account of the life of a beloved, tortured artist.......2007-03-08

"Rough Magic" by Paul Alexander is a pure and objective account of the life of Sylvia Plath. It begins with her family history; a brief overview of her grandparents and parents, and follows with her childhood, including the tragic, influential death of her father when she was a young girl. Her years as a growing adolescent and emerging writer are retold with clarity and insight into the events which went on. Topics of focus include her intense, dramatic need for academic success and her longing to always remain a socially accepted person, two things which were embedded into Sylvia as a young child. The biography goes into great detail about the romantic relationships she experienced, with everything from a stolen kiss from a not-so-secret admirer during her teen-years, to the sad and turbulent end to her marriage to Ted Hughes.

In the end, you'll put this book down with a greater sense of compassion for Sylvia and a better understanding of who she really was: a loving mother and writer who tried, through her precious poetry and prose and the safety and security of a loving family, to shake the demons that followed her throughout her life, a life she considered "blessed." And you'll probably laugh a little and cry a little, and you'll miss her, because she was the type of person that you miss. And hopefully, you'll take a step back and realize that we ourselves are blessed, in just "knowing" her; that, in the story of her life and in her work, there are whispers-- graciously spoken and lovingly heard, left for us to understand and to keep.

A Brilliant Book on the Life of a Brilliant Poet.......2006-12-05

this book touches every aspect of her life and in terms it puts you in an emotional state to where you feel that you are friends with her. knowing she is dead is nothing compared to reading this book to the pages that reveal the end of sylvia plath's short life. it will overwelm you with heartack and grief.

while you read, you smile, you get angry ( once i was so angry at ted hughes i wanted to hit him ), you get emotional, and you get heart-felt. paul alexandra knows how to tap in to your emotional states of mind and he uses that to push you to read more of the perfect book on sylvia plath!

i recomend this book! it's brilliant, it's perfect! it shows how she looks at life and at her skum of a husband Ted Hughes ( and his beloved Assia who he cheated on sylvia with, whom in the long run tried to be like sylvia by writing, which she failed and then when ted treated assia like he treated sylvia - she commited suicide, and killed her baby like sylvia ended hers. )

- at the end i had alot to think about, and alot to go by. at the end i hated people and loved others.

Balanced and well researched---a compelling read........2006-08-22

I am two-thirds of the way through this compulsively readable biography and I find it excellent. For the first time, I feel I'm getting a balanced and well researched sense of Plath's life and personality. I find I'm gaining a broader understanding of her poetry thanks to this well written book.

Multi-faceted portrait.......2006-06-03

Stumbling upon such a complete biography of Plath's life was a cause for celebration. This book explains Sylvia as a person, and a writer. You travel through her different relationships and then see her work grow out of her experiences. This is the most comprehensive and interesting biography I have ever found on Plath and I loved every page of it, though I felton occasion the author was quick to point out Ted Hughes's faults and gloss over Sylvia's. With a little more objectivity this biography could represent a well rounded view of Sylvia Plath in all her facets.

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This Rough Magic
Mary Stewart
Manufacturer: William Morrow and Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: B000LVCL96

Product Description

Dust jacket art by Biro. When Lucy Waring, a young actress temporarily out of a job, comes to stay in Corfu with her sister, she finds the peace of the idyllic island rudely broken by a series of tragic and frightening events. 8.25 inches tall, 284 pages.

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THIS ROUGH MAGIC
Mary STEWART
Manufacturer: Fawcett Crest Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000GSKR3G

The Spell Of Mary Stewart: This Rough Magic & The Ivy Tree & Wildfire At Midnight

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The Spell Of Mary Stewart: This Rough Magic & The Ivy Tree & Wildfire At Midnight
Mary Stewart
Manufacturer: Nelson Doubleday
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: B000HKP41S

This Rough Magic (Silhouette Intimate Moments, 260)

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This Rough Magic (Silhouette Intimate Moments, 260)
Heather Graham Pozzessere
Manufacturer: silhouette
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0373072600

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This Rough Magic: The Life of Teaching
Daniel A. Lindley
Manufacturer: Bergin & Garvey Paperback
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0897893662

Book Description

Borrowing Prospero's "rough magic" as a descriptor for his examination of the art and craft of teaching, Lindley sets out to heighten the awareness of experienced and novice teachers alike. He explores the teaching/learning process and how teachers' own feelings affect their work. A hands-on book, it uncovers the nature of what really happens in the teacher/student interaction in the classroom. Lindley emphasizes the practical: He makes use of his own teaching life, and that of others, as it exemplifies theoretical positions derived from studies of classroom teaching and analytical psychology (Jungian). In the process, he has created a book of value in re-energizing the in-service teacher and educating the pre-service teacher. Parents, administrators, anyone interested in the process of teaching will find the book fascinating and useful.

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THE SPELL OF MARY STEWART THIS ROUGH MAGIC THE IVY TREE WILDFIRE AT MIDNIGHT
Mary Stewart
Manufacturer: Nelson Doubleday
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000IOQY3A

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