Blood Dreams

[commonpeople1]

George R.R. Martin, Fevre Dream, 1982
Forget the Twilight Saga. Forget The Vampire Diaries. Forget the mediocre books by Charlaine Harris and the TV series, True Blood, spawned from them. What you really need is a trip back in time to 1857 with the help of George R.R. Martin; sail down the Mississippi in the legendary steamship Fevre Dream and feast your eyes on the world that briefly grew on the river’s banks. The Fevre Dream’s captain (and our hero) is a three-hundred pound man covered in hair and warts, famously known as the ugliest man alive. If you can overlook that, you might earn a loyal friend who will fight for you against any trouble along the way – especially if the trouble involves pale creatures that only come out at night and feast on human blood. Exactly those creatures you’ve found so lacking in modern vampire series.

Sure, there will be one or two bumps along the way – those rapids that jolt the reader and leave him queasy (in particular, a certain banquet scene on the Fevre Dream with a nasty surprise at its end). But as with any other sure-handed thriller or horror story, you know your destination will soon be in view and as you step on firm land you’ll carry the journey in your heart – for better or worse – as you walk away. And when you reach home, you’ll make sure the doors and windows are locked before you say a prayer and fall asleep on your pillow covering a double-barreled shotgun.

Comments

[sparklielizard.livejournal.com]

Yep, it was a good book. I definitely enjoyed it :-) About the only vampire story I've ever enjoyed, but then I am totally BORED of vampires and I was even before all this Twilight bollocks. I only read this book because I like the author.

I like his other books too, especially the Dances with Dragons etc series - have you read them?

[steer.livejournal.com]

Yes... I loved this book... but it's cruel to start him on the Song of Fire and Ice series until they're finished. I've been waiting impatiently for TEN YEARS now and the series is still ongoing.

Tuf Voyaging is great fun if you can get hold of it.

[sparklielizard.livejournal.com]

Gah, I know - I've had that book on pre-order since 2007, maybe even 2006 I think! I am fully expecting it to be rubbish given he's taking this long to write it.

Haven't read Tuf Voyaging..

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

I stopped reading fantasy years ago because of the so many series that went on and on - even when they initially promised to just be a trilogy (Raymond E. Feist, etc). But, as I said to Rosie above, Martin's epic fantasy books are being turned into a HBO series so I might read them for that alone.

[steer.livejournal.com]

That's the series we're talking about (song of fire and ice) but it's not actually finished being written yet. I started reading that series more than ten years ago. I think the fifth volume is due out in about a year. The fourth was so large it had to be two volumes when it was paperback.

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

No, this is the first time I read something by him. I've heard his Dances with Dragons books are being made into a HBO series (debut 2011) so I'm tempted to get cracking with them now - I imagine it will be an interesting epic fantasy show.

[sparklielizard.livejournal.com]

I'm looking forward to the HBO version - I always felt it was unfilmable! They're filming it in Ireland I think :-)

They're great books.. but as steer says, they're unfinished. Depends if that bothers you or not!

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

Well, if they are great books then that won't bother me! Perhaps by the time I'm done with them he'll have a final chapter out? ;-)

[sparklielizard.livejournal.com]

Ha! It's been "coming soon" (i.e. no more than 6 months away from release) for getting on for four years I think! It gets put back again every few months. And apparently there's still more books to come after this one. There is a strong feeling he's never going to finish it!

[steer.livejournal.com]

That's publishers for you -- those dates are made up. His LJ is grrm (it's not worth reading as he talks about sports 90% of the time) and it's clear he's not finished writing the next one yet -- by some way I'm afraid.

[sparklielizard.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I never believed for a moment that those dates were going to be met - that's them giving him arbitrary deadlines!

To me it sounds like he's fed up of the story - the last book wasn't nearly so engaging and seemed quite a muddle to read. Which is a real shame, but also understandable!

[steer.livejournal.com]

the last book wasn't nearly so engaging and seemed quite a muddle to read

Ah... actually, therein hangs a tale. Apparently the book was going to be hugely big, bigger than the previous one by a long way, so a decision was taken to split it in two and only deal with half the characters properly. Hence there was very little mention of some major characters in the last book. However, he's pretty clear that this was a decision taken for publisher purposes and the practicality of fitting his words inside one book rather than because he'd lost interest in the characters. However, it did give a frustrating disjointed feel because there were people I wanted to know about not featured in the last book.

I'm hoping that when the next one comes out it will all feel a little more "together". I was also frustrated that a whole new raft of characters were introduced who I did not care so much about when older characters were (for the reasons I mentioned) being neglected.

[sparklielizard.livejournal.com]

Yep, I'd heard that too. I still maintain he's lost a bit of interest though.. I mean, everyone takes their time to write a novel but he got out the first few pretty fast and now there's this enormous delay. Maybe he's got a Douglas Adams style writers block going on or something.

[steer.livejournal.com]

There's other writing projects he's involved with too which slows things up but he was certainly adding to the book as of yesterday and sounding enthused about it. (And also posts enthusiastically about the TV series and the other associated stuff sometimes).

[sparklielizard.livejournal.com]

I'd heard about his other writing projects.. can't say I blame him for being more interested in new stuff than the characters he's had kicking around for what feels like decades now ;-)

Hopefully the TV series has given him a bit of a kick up the bum and reignited his interest! I'm looking forward to seeing if they can pull it off.. had to laugh at the role Sean Bean has though. Talk about typecast!

[desayuno-ingles.livejournal.com]

didn't you give me the 2nd in a george rr martin series ages ago? some fantasy series. or maybe rr martin's name has just been told to me before as a good writer to check out.

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

Hmmm... I'm not sure! I remember finding it in the second hand books sold underneath Waterloo bridge.

[desayuno-ingles.livejournal.com]

it was a series you'd read and liked but only had the second in the series.

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

Hmmmmm! I can't remember!

[desayuno-ingles.livejournal.com]

and the book must be in storage in NYC...

[moral-vacuum.livejournal.com]

Just re-read it, on your recommendation (first time in about 18 years, I think).

I still think that he should have told York to feck off on numerous occasions. Honour is all very well, but York was taking the piss.

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

I think in other circumstances, or with other people, who would have told them to fuck off. But York seduced his soul with money to create his dream steamboat - at a point when his company was near collapse - so I think that must have played a big part in him giving York the benefit of the doubt. Also, I think the way he took to poetry by way of York's introduction shows that they were more similar than they realised - and perhaps it was that coincidental similarity in personality gave power to their friendship.