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No book in modern times has matched the uproar sparked by Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses, which earned its author a death sentence. Furor aside, it is a marvelously erudite study of good and evil, a feast of language served up by a writer at the height of his powers, and a rollicking comic fable. The book begins with two Indians, Gibreel Farishta ("for fifteen years the biggest star in the history of the Indian movies") and Saladin Chamcha, a Bombay expatriate returning from his first visit to his homeland in 15 years, plummeting from the sky after the explosion of their jetliner, and proceeds through a series of metamorphoses, dreams and revelations. Rushdie's powers of invention are astonishing in this Whitbread Prize winner.
Book Description
Just before dawn one winter's morning, a hijacked jetliner explodes above the English Channel. Through the falling debris, two figures, Gibreel Farishta, the biggest star in India, and Saladin Chamcha, an expatriate returning from his first visit to Bombay in fifteen years, plummet from the sky, washing up on the snow-covered sands of an English beach, and proceed through a series of metamorphoses, dreams, and revelations.
Customer Reviews:
Yaar, what happens when you win?.......2007-10-10
I am of the belief that Ruhullah Khomeini made his infamous fatwa against Rushdie (and this novel) based on one line in the book: "when the aga khan drinks wine, it turns to water in his mouth." This is a direct mocking of Ruhullah Khomeini and probably was the real reason for the fatwa. Khomeini fiercely wanted to be the grand marja' of every shia; he worked to gain supreme power in the form of a theocratic revolutionary. I believe Rushdie's comment was probably more stinging to his assumed authority than anything else in the novel. Picking on Islam would have united people under Khomeini (uniting against a common enemy), but attacking Khomeini would usurp his power and divide his support base.
This is not to say that the book does not have plenty of subtle and intertwined criticisms and twists on the Islamic faith. To understand these moments in the book the reader does need a fairly large knowledge of Islam. There aren't direct and pointed attacks, they are more so the settings of scenes, the ruminations of characters (particularly Salman the Persian). Many of these episodes which display twists on early Islamic history are presented as in a dream by a crazed Indian actor, Gibreel Farishta. So Rushdie never goes so far as to suggest that any of these sequences is even possibly true.
But to balance the above, are moments where faith and willing suspension of disbelief courageously overcome and succeed. Magical experiences which suggest that those who mock religion are actually the fools.
Rushdie's writing style can be a bit difficult, but once you get used to it, its very melodic and rich. The reader gets the feeling that Rushdie never rushes (!) his prose; there is never a hurried sense to his narrative. Aside from religious content, sex and violence are topics that are, if not explicitly detailed out, present continually through the book. The book isn't for easily disturbed readers.
Weirdest Book I Ever Tried To Read!.......2007-10-09
I tried to read this book,but only got as far as the 3rd. or 4th page,besides being totally weird and uninteresting, when I came upon the second incidence of cursing in these few pages,I knew that as a Christian,this book wasn't worth it!
I couldn't put it down........2007-09-12
I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but this book and the writing of Salman Rusdie drew me in and I couldn't put it down. I promptly bought two more of his books.
Luxurious, blasphemous, and brilliant.......2007-08-10
I tried to think up an apt analogy to describe Rushdie's Satanic Verses, and the best I could come up with was watching a fireworks show explode into a thousand brilliantly streaming fireballs away from the center, then watching it in reverse as those streamers are brought back, flaming all the way, to the point of explosion. Each fireball of prose (or poetry or stage directions) blasts out from the story, seemingly on its own, only to be cleverly ushered back to the storyline, building a larger and more intricate story as it goes along. The words are a pleasure to read. They are luxurious, never spare. For the writing alone, I would give this 5 stars.
The topics that Rushdie approaches are broad and interesting. His use of "thesis + antithesis = synthesis" works well to bring all aspects of his thought to the fore. He is especially interested in purity vs. impurity and steadfastness vs. compromise. There are no villains, as such, in this story; there is only each person's struggle with themselves.
What we are led to discover is that purity and steadfastness obviously lead to suffering, that there is no solace either in impurity (mixing of cultures/dogma) and compromise. If any option leads us to pain, then what sort of choice have we been given?
Gibreel Farishta, a Bollywood megastar, represents the purity that Rushdie seeks to show. Though surfacely he may seem to be wholly entrenched in Western culture, his roots lie in his Indian heritage and he approaches everything from that angle. Even in his relationship with English Ice Queen Alleluia Cone, he never sacrifices his Indianness to make things easier with her.
On the other hand, Compromise is embodied in Saladin Chamcha, an Indian immigrant to England who has thrown away his heritage in order to become "more civilized" in the Western world. For him, his roots are something to be shunned, and in this drive to be un-Indian, he adopts a totally English posture.
The examination of immigrant attitudes is an enormously interesting aspect of the story, and Rushdie does a great job of bringing out the good and bad of each man's approach to their home culture and adopted culture.
As we are all aware, Rushdie was the target of a fatwa for his blasphemous depiction of a compromising and waffling and altogether unappealing Mohammed (Mahound, in the book). Taken on its own, the substory of Mahound and the Satanic Verses is lively and appealing, but the reader ought to also consider Rushdie's point that men are weaker and more likely to compromise than women, who are stronger and more steadfast in their beliefs. The substory of Mahound is played off against the substory of Ayesha who is offered similar choices as Mahound and takes a different tack, with very different results.
This is a thoughtful, well written, sometimes hilarious investigation into good and evil. I'm looking forward to reading it again soon.
a complex story with ingested criticism.......2007-07-29
The author is an expert when providing criticism that is interwoven into his narrative. I was drawn to this book bcause I read his short stories and because of the criticism by certain religious groups. What I find most interesting is that this book is not easy to read and the remarks he makes are not blatant. More than anything, you can easily find yourself bored at times when reading this book. No author in the world should be able to trigger any group this literally. ---Get something else to do. Go to a movie. Get laid. There is nothing here that couldnt be discounted the same way as changing the channel on the TV.
Customer Reviews:
A Modern Classic.......2007-06-08
Rushdie's The Satanic Verses is aruguably on of the most important works of the last half of the twentieth century. Full of Middle Eastern metaphor and sensibilities, Rushdie propels the reader into a world little seen nor understood in the west. The lyrical and poetic style reads as in a way that is timless, the reader may well forget that this work is a modern text. Yet at the same time the themes are as meaningful today as when this work was first published. Rushdie's work is required reading for anyone seeking understanding of our post-9/11 world
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- Views the outcry over Rushdie in a larger geopolitical context
- More Serious Than an Affair
- For anyone seeking a better understanding contemporary Islam
- Full of insights
- Flourish in a language lover's paradise
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The Rushdie Affair: The Novel, the Ayatollah, and the West
Daniel Pipes , and
Koenraad Elst
Manufacturer: Transaction Publishers
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Customer Reviews:
Views the outcry over Rushdie in a larger geopolitical context.......2005-09-20
THE RUSHDIE AFFAIR is Daniel Pipes' analysis of the uproar by Muslims over Salman Rushdie's novel THE SATANIC VERSES from mid-1988 to March 1989, with especial attention on Ayatollah Khomeini's death fatwa and the resulting diplomatic fallout. Though the book was published in early 1990 and so lacks a long-term view of the matter, it is still a valuable and informative historical document.
Pipes explains how the novel is offensive to Muslims, explicating its references to the founding of Islam which the average Western reader wouldn't grasp, as well as Khomeini's edict and voices of support and dissent with it. The second part of the book is an examination of larger issues evoked by the novel's reception, namely the relationship between Iran and the West, the efficacy or lack thereof of censorship and, quite pertinent to our times sixteen years later, the matter of Muslim communities living in the West. Pipes asks if perhaps the greatest danger against speech isn't far-off pariah states like Iran, but rather Muslim communities in Europe which refuse to integrate and wish to eradicate all opposition to Islam and its sharia law in the society around them.
It is clear right away that Pipes has little sympathy for Rushdie. In the short biography of the author, Rushdie is described as a haughty intellectual, an elitist, an a nihilistic Leftist. I thought this was unfair, and showed the author to have little understanding or appreciation of the literary art. However, Pipes' low view of Rushdie allows him to consider in greater depth the question of whether Rushdie deserved the criticism and fatwa. Ultimately, what Pipes feels about the matter is simple bafflement, because the Muslim world during the 20th century tolerated writers and intellectuals who said far worse things about Islam than Rushdie, and there's no real reason why Rushdie should have been singled out for such a great outcry.
The book is informative, but more on its coverage of international relations than any insights on the literary world. If you haven't read THE SATANIC VERSES yet, don't try Pipes' book, because you've been missing out on an entertaining and truly marvelous novel, and it will be baffling to read about a controversy over a book you know nothing about yet. The book may be worth flipping through if you're curious about why Rushdie's novel sparked such a reaction.
More Serious Than an Affair.......2005-01-18
This book is a must read for anyone contemplating the reading of Salman Rushdie's, "The Satanic Verses." It places into perspective an insight into all of the hoopla.
Salman Rushdie wrote a little book back in 1988 that literally placed his head on a platter. Was it literature or blasphemy against the Islamic religion? The debate continues to this day. In this book Daniel Pipes (author of several books on the Middle East), attempts to explain the controversy that exists around Rushdie's words. The satanic verses are basically a few words referring to the existence of Meccan goddesses and whether or not they were acknowledged by the Prophet Muhammad. Apparently historical beliefs exist that suggest the possibility of Muhammad being coerced by nobles to recognize their idols/goddesses in exchange for a chance to continue preaching within their vicinity without restrictions. The problem with this theory is that it then makes the religion of Islam non-existent as a faith because it goes against the monotheistic belief that Islam is based upon and also suggests that Muhammad wrote the Holy Qur'an as a human being and not as an inspired prophet of God. Rushdie ran into trouble when he wrote an extremely blasphemous novel based on these controversial verses and basically laughed into the face of the Islamic faith ruffling some very fundamentalist feathers along the way.
Daniel Pipe brings a relatable book to the table which explains how Rushdie, the Ayatollah and the West started and resolved the controversy surrounding, "The Satanic Verses." What was once a complicated issue now seems entirely explainable from all fronts due to this book by Pipes. Rushdie is explained as a highly educated man who spends his life basically making a mockery of many things with an intellectual snobbery and seemingly massive ego. However Rushdie has a right to freedom of speech that is without question, but was that right taken to extremes in order to create a platform for infamy? In my opinion Rushdie knew exactly what he was creating and in fact weathered the storm quite well while receiving a mountain of publicity and notoriety that quite possibly the novel on its own doesn't stand up to. I believe the average reader would not be able to relate to Rushdie's weighty style and cultural references and that had the uproar been non-existent the novel would be relegated to the discount book pile and soon forgotten. Rushdie has great marketing skills but at what price?
So why such a violent response? Pipes writes a thorough explanation as to why the Ayatollah decreed a fatwa against Rushdie and his publishers. In the western world this action appears rather harsh but in the Islamic tradition of punishment towards individuals who blaspheme God it was merely an action supported by a law most westerners do not understand. Call it cultural divide if you will with a huge exclamation point! And so it goes. This book provides additional insight into the ever present differences between the Middle East and the Western world and continues to pertain to modern issues as well. From a tolerant God stems the intolerance of man and his religions. After reading this book you might begin to understand the serious faith of the Islamic world and the laws they live by. Although we live in a complicated world taking a step towards understanding one another can begin with well-rounded explanations such as those found within this book by Daniel Pipe. The ideas are multifaceted but very necessary to contemplate in order to be a citizen of the world today.
For anyone seeking a better understanding contemporary Islam.......2003-07-26
Now in an updated and expanded second edition, The Rushdie Affair: The Novel, The Ayatollah, And The West by Daniel Pipes (Director of the Middle East Forum and a columnist for the "New York Post" and the "Jerusalem Post", studies the events that played out when Salman Rushdie's novel "The Satanic Verses" was denounced by Muslim clerics as blasphemous to Islam, resulting in a confrontation that led to an Iranian edict demanding the execution of the author. Scrutinizing not only modern history, but also what it shows about further relations between different nations and world views, The Rushdie Affair is a informed and informative account which is very highly recommended for anyone seeking a better understanding contemporary Islam in general, and this defining controversy in particular.
Full of insights.......2001-11-14
Here is one example: the title of Rushdie's book. Pipes explains that while in English "the Satanic verses" is a plain ordinary phrase that refers to an embaraasing event in Islamic history, this phrase is not used in Arabic. Most Muslims won't recognize the event by that designation; Muslims call it something quite different. But when "verses" is translated into Arabic the word used refers specifically to Quranic verses. So the title is translated roughly as "The Satanic Verses of the Quran" or "The Satanic Quran".
Don't assume from this that Pipes if profferring an apologetic. He is not; this book is critical of "fundamentalist Islam". But Pipes is careful to explain how such Muslims think and react.
Flourish in a language lover's paradise.......2001-10-11
Salman Rushdie is brilliant. He knows who to derive from and steal from: James Joyce being one of his main sources. Good for him. If you're going to steal, steal from the best. Joyce's footprints are all over THE SATANIC VERSES. I felt at home. And Rushdie's tough and demanding like Joyce. Even moreso because he's dealing with issues western readers are not familiar with. So you have to go slow and get internet help (plenty available). Slowly, the novel begins to take shape. It's a book of dreams and nightmares bounded by the first and last very moving chapters about Chamcha's domestic crises with his father and ensuing alienation. Chamcha's torn between cultures, a lost searching soul, an alienated man. He's also an intellectual prig who wears many protective masks to conceal his sufferings and with which he explores religious and emotional wanderings. Read the first and last chapters to make contact with the down to earth domestic issues of the novel. Very moving. In between, you have this massive and intensive and witty and funny and dark and brilliant exploration of Muslim religion as seen from a willing/unwilling, searching unbeliever's point of view. He mocks and participates all at the same time. The language is gorgeous because it moves on many levels--from slang to pop to literary to religious, back and forth--and from the point of view of two languages and cultures. At one minute it's blasphemous, at another it's holy...and it's always a rich and makes the reader smile, smile, smile at the author's brilliance and learning. It's linguistic magic. What does it all add up to? You got me. I haven't scratched the surface. It may or may not add up. Talk to me in a year.
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- The Many Sides of One Issue
- Exploring the backlash against The Satanic Verses
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The Rushdie File (Contemporary Issues in the Middle East)
Lisa Appignanesi
Manufacturer: Syracuse University Press
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Customer Reviews:
The Many Sides of One Issue.......2002-12-17
I picked up this book at random in a used bookstore, and as I have always enjoyed Salman Rushdie's writing I thought I would give it a read. I was wholly amazed by what I learned.
First of all, I can honestly say I did not catch any of the slights to Islam when I read The Satanic Verses, as I am very uneducated in Islamic culture. After starting the Rushdie File, I became uncertain as to whether I understood any of the main points of The Satanic Verses, but I do remember enjoying it. So there is at least a small lesson about the Islamic religion (especially as it relates to The Satanic Verses) in this book for anyone who is uninformed about it.
Even more importantly, however, and not entirely separately, is how much there is to be learned about Islamic culture. A lot of the articles go very far in explaining just why the Muslim community was so outraged by the passages, which, from an average Western sensibility, is not necessarily clear. And if you are like me, it might be hard to read certain parts of this book. I had a very hard time reading the calls for Rushdie's death, and an even harder time trying to understand why and how masses of people could react the way they did. It is a good educational experience for anyone who is baffled by the differences in culture that were brought to light by this incident. Some of these articles do not paint the Islamic culture in a flattering light, especially in my opinion, as a person who would never support censorship. But one of the best articles of the bunch talks about the difference between "interpreting" and "advocating" - that the West must understand Islamic culture and why our viewpoints can be so different before we can try to live in the same world peacefully, but also reminds that that is different from agreeing with how the other culture behaves.
This book also brings home the point that there are never only 2 sides to any issue. Every person will have a different viewpoint, and it is important for every person to think for herself before just accepting one party line or the other. This is displayed in The Rushdie File by the enormous amount of divergent opinions represented by the choice of material included, and there is guaranteed to be something for everyone to both agree and disagree with.
Exploring the backlash against The Satanic Verses.......2001-05-07
If you've read Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses and want to know more about the controversy over the book and the death sentence placed on him by the Ayatollah Khomeini, this book provides a variety of articles from critics, political leaders, authors, and reporters on the events that occurred after publication of Rushdie's novel and the issues that caused them. I found it to be very helpful in understanding what parts of the book exactly were found to be particularly offensive by Muslims, since my own knowledge of Islamic traditions and culture is lacking. Since it is a compilation of many sources, it provides a wide array of opinions and perspectives that help to shed light on differing views of censorship, freedom, tolerance, and sacredness.
Average customer rating:
- Helpful, informative book written by courageous individuals.
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The Rushdie Letters: Freedom to Speak, Freedom to Write (Stages)
in Association with Article 19
Manufacturer: University of Nebraska Press
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ASIN: 0803281986 |
Book Description
In February 1989 Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini of Iran announced that Salman Rushdie, author of The Satanic Verses, and "all involved in its publication who were aware of its content, are sentenced to death." Anyone who died in the cause of killing Rushdie, he said, would be "regarded as a martyr and go directly to heaven."
The death sentence—or fatwa—quickly drew blood. Bookshops in London, Oslo, and Sydney were firebombed. Five people were killed and a hundred wounded when demonstrators attacked the U. S. embassy in Islamabad. In Bombay, twelve rioters were shot dead. The Italian translator of The Satanic Verses was stabbed viciously and the Japanese translator was stabbed to death. In Berkeley, bombs were thrown in Cody’s Bookstore and Waldenbooks. Fifth Avenue in New York was sealed off after a bookshop received a bomb threat.
In The Rushdie Letters twenty-six internationally renowned authors respond to the most extreme example of censorship in modern times. Also included is Rushdie’s reply to their letters, his essay on exile, "One Thousand Days in a Balloon," and a chronology of the fatwa.
Customer Reviews:
Helpful, informative book written by courageous individuals........1997-04-08
I found this book helpful, informative and inspiring. I applaud the courage, spirit and conviction of those who contributed to this volume who spoke up and exercised their international human right of freedom of expression on behalf of Rushdie's own legal right to the same right under international human rights law. May the author Salman Rushdie continue to write award-winning fiction celebrated around the world by discriminating readers and writers and may there always be courageous and conviction-filled individuals who refuse to be intimidated by terrorists and other thugs who commit criminal acts around the world in violation of recognized international legal norms
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An Attempt to Understand the Muslim Reaction to the Satanic Verses (Symposium Series)
Victoria La'Porte
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Censorship in India
Girja Kumar
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- Putting Matters in Perspective
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Distorted Imagination: Lessons from the Rushdie Affair
Ziauddin Sardar
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ASIN: 185640000X |
Customer Reviews:
Putting Matters in Perspective.......2004-07-22
It has been awhile since the Satanic Verses affair exploded onto mainstream media. To many who lived through the period, it provided the first maddening look at Islam and its apparent medieval approach and mindset. But thanks to Sardar, I now better appreciate the Muslims' response to the whole event. Though I do not agree with the approach taken, the it is important for non-Muslims to understand the impetus behind Muslims violent reaction to the book. Firstly, the book is defamatory. Considering it was clearly about Islam and touches on events presumed by Muslims as historical, to Muslims it was a calculated insult. Noting Rushdie's previous books, as well as behaviour/words post-Satanic Verses, he does show a marked antagonism towards Islam. Though, there has been other books explaining the event. Sardar's book appears to be the most cogent because he analyses the issue from a macro-perspective, taking into account the historical circumstances colouring the event. However, as most apologists, he defends what is defensible but let the indefensible slide without remarks. These type of selective arguments had been one of the most mystifying aspects of Islamic intellectual discourse as it continues to choose the easier path of dispensing the obvious with hard facts and logical deduction but opting for convoluted logic to prop the indefensible. Progress will only be made if Muslims begin to agree that there are inconsistencies and infallibilities in Islam as with any other religion. That admission will help it strenghten the ummah to better face the realities of the modern world enmeshed with its own set of contradictions.
Customer Reviews:
A faithful pastiche.......2002-01-02
The author Randall Garrett wrote a series of novels and short stories about an alternate universe where Richard the Lion Hearted lived to a ripe old age, and his Plantangent descendents rule over a just and noble Anglo-French empire. Oh, and the laws of magic have been developed into basis of all technology and commerce. The orginal series was a lot of fun, full of humor, some decent mysteries, and tributes to a host of fictional dectectives. The central character is Lord D'arcy, a pastiche of Sherlock Holmes. After Garrett's death, Michael Kurland was commissioned to continue the series, with this book and "Ten Little Wizards".
In "A Study in Sorcery", Kurland successfully continues the tales of D'arcy and Master Sean, his forensic mage. A murder in a locked room in an abandoned Aztec temple in the imperial domain of New England (North America in our world) threatens the peace and stablilty of the world. Our intrepid heroes are dispatched to solve the case, with the assistance of Garrett's Doc Savage-type character, Lord John Quezcotl. Plenty of intrigue, romantic liasons with beautiful female spys, and danger from fearsome savages (my personal favorite fearsome savage, Chief He-Who-Laughs-Last, MA Oxford). Try it, you'll like it.
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- Too Many Magicians is a Great Nero Wolfe Pastiche
- Great fun!
- CSI: Alternate Universe
- Not My Cup of Tea
- Magic and Mystery in The Empire
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Lord Darcy
Randall Garrett
Manufacturer: Baen
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Customer Reviews:
Too Many Magicians is a Great Nero Wolfe Pastiche.......2006-12-03
Too Many Magicians, a full length novel included in this collection, is a Lord Darcy story, but a large role is also played by several characters clearly from the Nero Wolfe corpus. Archie Goodwin is Lord Bontriomphe, for example. Even if you do not like fantasy, and I don't normally, this book is still good. The magic is limited by rules to mainly the kinds of things now done in forensic laboratories. In fact, Master Sean is a "forensic magician"! The detection is scientific and fair to the reader. I recommend reading the 3 short stories that precede "Too Many Magicians" to get familiar with the limiting rules in advance.
Great fun!.......2005-04-10
In the 1960's of an alternative universe and with elements of Nero Wolfe, Sherlock Holmes and The Man from U.N.C.L.E., you have a delightful combination of fantasy and who-done-it. The stories - The Eyes Have It, A Case of Identity, The Muddle of the Woad, and Too Many Magicians - made me laugh, and think and marvel at the talent and imagination of Randall Garrett. I shouldn't read them back-to-back as they can get to be a bit much. If you enjoy Jasper Fforde, you might enjoy Lord Darcy as well.
CSI: Alternate Universe.......2004-10-03
In an alternate universe where magic works and Richard the Lionheart founded a dynasty that lasted for centuries, Lord Darcy investigates murder and espionage assisted by his able forensic sorcerer, Master Sean O Lochlainn.
The magic in these stories does not provide a deus ex machina for the writer to extricate himself from overwrought plotting. The magic (which obeys strict scientific laws) is used to solve murders, not commit them. Although forensic magic (which is much more helpful than real world forensic science) plays a pivotal role in solving the crimes, none of them would be solved without Lord Darcy's deductive powers.
"Lord Darcy" collects between two covers all the independently published Lord Darcy stories, including "Too Many Magicians," "Murder and Magic," "Lord Darcy Investigates," and two additional short stories. When these stories first appeared in book form in the early 80's, I was a science fiction fan and a mystery foe. Consequently, I missed almost all Garrett's allusions to the mystery genre. I could see Sherlock Holmes and James Bond, but the rest went right over my head. Regardless, I still thoroughly enjoyed the stories and I still have the well-thumbed paperbacks I bought approximately 20 years ago.
I picked up "Lord Darcy" because it promised to give an additional story I hadn't read. You can imagine my chagrin as I re-read the Darcy canon, recognizing further allusions to the mystery genre. My Lord de London turned out to be, not Mycroft Holmes (as I thought upon my original reading of the stories), but Nero Wolfe. "The Napoli Express" became "Murder on the Orient Express," and other allusions abounded. I'm still not much of a mystery fan, so I'm sure many of the allusions still escape me. But other reviewers assure us that they're there for the mystery connoisseur to unearth and enjoy. Happy hunting.
Mystery fans will have a special appreciation for the stories, but the non-mystery fan will enjoy them just as much without recognizing the allusions.
Not My Cup of Tea.......2004-02-16
Too much religionism in it for my taste.
I read to get away from reality and religion just reminds me of idiots who want to make war over their religion.
Magic and Mystery in The Empire.......2003-11-19
I had the pleasure of knowing Randall Garrett, and he was an incurable punster. Be warned, he really cut loose in this one.
This book is fun. The protagonist, Lord Darcy, and his Forensic Sorceror, Master Sean, serve the Plantagenet Empire, which in this time-line still exists. (Richard the Lion Heart recovered from that crossbow wound and founded an empire.) Together they solve many cases of murder and espionage. The stories are clever and good mystery stories in their own right. The "gimmick" is that in this time-line magic has been developed as a science, and we get to see a forensic Sorceror apply the laws of magic to crime scene investigation. Lord Darcy then applies his deductive talent to the evidence. They make a good team.
All the Lord Darcy stories are here, from the very first one, "The Eyes Have It," to "The Napoli Express." "Too Many Magicians" is a great fun read, long enough to develope several characters and fill in a lot of the background of the Empire.
In these stories Randall threw in as many puns and allusions to spy and mystery novels and series as he could. Nero wolf and Archie Goodwin, James Bond, the Man From Uncle, The Pink Panther, they're all here, as well as many more.
Finally we have "The Spell of War" an atypical story in that it is a war story, and takes place early in Lord Darcy's life, when he is a young officer in the Imperial Army in the war of '39.
Aside from that one the dates in the stories are approximate to the date they were written. Randall gives the impression that the stories were happening at the time of writing, in a parallel universe.
Highly recommended.
Customer Reviews:
A suspense/mystery in an alternate history England.......2000-11-11
Garrett's Lord Darcy revisited. The original 3 stories were take-offs of classic Sherlock Holmes stories but set in an England based on Richard the Lion Hearted having retained power and the Plantagenet dynasty having continued for several generations. A system of working magic has evolved to support technology instead of mechanical knowledge. This delightful story is a take-off of the classic Agatha Christie story, 10 Little Indians, and stars an older and mellower Darcy. The dry, factual style of the original Darcy stories is appparent in this book also and, other than the setting, this might be a straight mystery. The magical science is clever and logical although a bit belabored. The original 3 novels were among the first in the field to explore the consepts of magical technology and all the Lord Darcy books kind of point to their magical ideas and say "see how clever". Lord Darcy is an adventure hero, an alternate history James Bond. Thus, while this story is a good mystery in a fantasy setting, it will not apeal to readers looking for in depth characterizations. Readers who enjoyed Patricia Wrede's Merlion the Magicion might like the Lord Darcy stories because the setting is very similar.
Product Description
Welcome to the Anglo-French Empire, the dominion ruled by the descendants of King Richard the Lion-Hearted--who didn't die of an arrow wound in 1199 as he did in our world. This edition contains three novels of Lord Darcy: 'Murder and Magic', 'Too Many Magicians', and 'Lord Darcy Investigates'.
Average customer rating:
- Super Reader
- Things in Heaven and Earth
- Buy "Lord Darcy" instead of this book
- Lord Darcy does it again
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Lord Darcy Investigates
Randall Garrett
Manufacturer: Ace Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
General | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0441491421 |
Customer Reviews:
Super Reader.......2007-08-07
Four stories about the magical investigator, Lord Darcy. An attempted suicide, a dead secret agent, a man experimenting with immortality potions is found dead in a locked room, and there is a homage to Murder on the Orient Express.
Things in Heaven and Earth.......2006-07-10
"There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio," Hamlet tells his friend and fellow scholar, "than are dreamt of in your philosophy." (_Hamlet_, I,v,166). Lord Darcy makes a similar statement to Richard, Duke of Normandy, at the end of one of the stories in _Lord Darcy Investigates_ (1981). But he doesn't mean exactly the same thing as Hamlet. Hamlet comes from our historical timeline, and he is talking about the supernatural. Lord Darcy comes from a timeline in which magic developed as a way of understanding the world. And _he_ is talking about... something else.
For readers not in the know, the Lord Darcy stories are mysteries set in an alternate universe in which magic works, in which the Plantagenet line of kings (descended from Arthur, nephew of Richard the Lion-Hearted) rule England, in which Catholicism is the state religion, and in which the Anglo-French Empire is pitted against the Polish Empire.
There are four stories in this collection: "A Matter of Gravity," (_Analog_, 1974), "The Ipswich Phial," (_Analog_, 1976), "The Sixteen Keys," (_Fantastic_, 1976), and "The Napoli Express," (_Isaac Asimov's_, 1979). The first three stories are good, solid entries in the series, worth the price of the book itself. But the last story is something else again. It's an ingeniously plotted novella, with all kinds of twists, turns, and colorful characters. There are nods to Agatha Christie, G.K. Chesterton, and other writers scattered though the piece. It is a delight to read, one of the best stories that Garrett wrote (and he wrote a _lot_ of stories).
If I were going to compare the stories in _Lord Darcy Investigates_ with those of the earlier collection, _Murder and Magic_, I would say that the later stories are more concerned with espionage and the conflict with assorted Polish agents. If Garrett had lived a bit longer, if his health had been better, if he had been able to write more, I would have liked to see more domestic mysteries. Ah, well. We don't always get what we wish for...
Buy "Lord Darcy" instead of this book.......2005-03-22
This book contains four short stories about Lord Darcy, Chief Investigator for His Royal Highness Prince Richard of Normandy, and his sidekick Master Forensic Sorcerer Sean O Lochlainn. If you think you'd enjoy an 'alternate history' background where the Anglo-French Empire is ruled by descendants of King Richard the Lion-Hearted--who didn't die of an arrow wound in 1199--and where magic is commonplace, along with gas lights and steam engines, then these stories are worth reading. The atmosphere is very royalist--in a pinch, "the Royal Blood of England always came through"--and very Catholic. Evidently Martin Luther didn't nail his ninety-five theses to the door of the Wittenberg Church in this alternate reality. Lord Darcy himself is a bit of a stuffed shirt, and the author is always bringing in other characters to extol his 'deductive genius' (note to author: show us, don't tell us). However, the Sorcerer Sean is a very ingratiating Irishman who serves to balance Lord Darcy's stuffiness. Some of the mysteries are a bit labored, but I enjoyed them.
NOTE: you might be better off purchasing "Lord Darcy" instead of "Lord Darcy Investigates" because the former volume contains eight short stories (including the following four) and a full-length novel about the aristocratic detective and his sorcerous side-kick.
The stories in "Lord Darcy Investigates:"
"A Matter of Gravity"--Lord Jillbert, Count de la Vexin appears to leap to his death from his laboratory in the Red Tower of the Castle Gisors. Before he died, he had forbidden the marriage of his son and heir to the woman he loved, who happened to be the daughter of Captain Sir Roderique, his Chief Armsman. The Count's daughter believes her father was killed by Black Magic.
"The Ipswich Phial"--The body of a man who turns out to be an Anglo-Norman secret agent is found sprawled on a Normandy beach. He appears to have shot himself in the head, and there are no footprints on the beach except those of the woman who found his body. As usual, Polish secret agents seem to be involved in his death, and in the disappearance of the magical Ipswich Phial.
"The Sixteen Keys"--Lord Sefton is secretly prolonging his youth through magical means. When he is found dead in a locked room, his body has decayed to the point of mummification. The secret naval treaty that he had in his possession has disappeared.
"The Napoli Express"--This short story is a take-off on Agatha Christie's "Murder on the Oriental Express." If you know the solution to the Christie mystery, you might get yourself in trouble by trying to solve "The Napoli Express" in the same fashion. The author definitely sets you up to do so, but Lord Darcy and Master Sean are not fooled.
Lord Darcy does it again.......2000-05-30
Sadly, this is the last book that Randall Garrett wrote in the Lord Darcy series. Like MURDER AND MAGIC, it is a collection of short stories that can be read separately. Michael Kurland wrote two later Lord Darcy novels, A STUDY IN SORCERY and TEN LITTLE WIZARDS, continuing the play on titles from famous mystery authors' works that Mr. Garrett did with his own novel, TOO MANY MAGICIANS. Lord Darcy lives on an alternate Earth where a 13th century monk formulated the laws of magic so the laws of physical science have never been discovered. The scientists here are the sorcerers. In fact, Lord Darcy's assistant is a Forensic Sorcerer. They are in the service of Richard, Duke of Normandy, younger brother of his Imperial Majesty, King John IV of the Anglo-French Empire. On this Earth the Plantagenets still rule. The book will explain, so I won't. There is no USA, by the way, just the duchies of New England. The chief enemy of the empire is the King of Poland, who has been unable to annex any more Russian states and looks to take over King John's territory. This brings in the spy story element in a series that already combines the fantasy, science fiction, and detective genres. Also, Mr. Garrett does not neglect his chance to poke gentle fun at our world. Some of his characters are just as skeptical of what we would consider scientific facts as our people are of magic. This allows the reader to feel smug when a character scoffs at something we know is true. Fans who love both mysteries and SF should not neglect their opportunity to savor both combined. The stories are:
"A Matter of Gravity": A count stands in the way of his son marrying the beautiful daughter of his captain. The count goes through the window of the topmost room of the Red Tower. Did he jump, or was he pushed? A classic locked room puzzle. "The Ipswich Phial" The phial was stolen from the Ipswich Lab, where secret research in magic is conducted. The agent who pursued the thief is found murdered. Now Special Agent Sir James le Lien is asking Lord Darcy's help in recovering the phial before Poland gets it. (Yes, "Sir James le Lien." He was in M&M, just as TOO MANY MAGICIANS contained Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin tributes in the persons of Lord Darcy's equally brilliant cousin, the fat and lazy Marquis de London and his Chief Investigator, Lord Bontriomphe. Wolfe fans should be sure to catch the de London quotes in this and the following story. BTW, I am indebted to my friend, Charles Groak, for pointing out these tributes to me.) "The Sixteen Keys": The late Lord Vauxhall has aged 50 years and died in less than an hour. Who did this terrible deed? And where are the important papers Vauxhall took with him? "The Napoli Express": That vital treaty MUST get to Athens on time. Lord Darcy can't afford to be delayed by a murder investigation. He must solve the crime before the train reaches Rome.
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Lord Darcy
Garret
Manufacturer: Nelson Doubleday Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000J6Z67C |
Average customer rating:
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Lord Darcy
Randall Garrett
Manufacturer: Nelson Doubleday, Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000HQRU5K |
Product Description
FOR THE FIRST TIME -- ALL OF LORD DARCY'S AMAZING ADVENTURES IN ONE HUGE VOLUME: The Eyes Have It, A Case of Identity, The Muddle of the Woad, Too Many Magicians, A Stretch of the Imagination, A Matter of Gravity, The Bitter End, The Ipswich Phial, The Sixteen Keys, The Napoli Express, and The Spell of War. Also includes a Preface by Eric Flint and Guy Gordon.
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LORD DARCY 3 in 1 Volume
Manufacturer: Nelson Doubleday
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000H02KTM |
Books:
- The Strength of the Sun: A Novel
- The Trouble with Mary
- The Year of the Hare
- Thirteen Moons on Turtle's Back
- Three Great Novels: Hard Times; A Tale of Two Cities; Great Expectations
- Variational and Potential Methods in the Theory of Bending of Plates with Transverse Shear Deformation (Chapman and Hall /Crc Monographs and Surveys in Pure and Applied Mathematics)
- West of Rehoboth: A Novel
- Who Is the Beast?
- Wide Sargasso Sea: A Novel (Norton Paperback Fiction)
- Wild Colonial Girl: Essays on Edna O'Brien (Irish Studies in Literature and Culture)
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