Book Review: The Forbidden Tower

Book Review: 'The Forbidden Tower' by Marion Zimmer Bradley

2 / 5 Stars

‘The Forbidden Tower’ (364 pp) was published by DAW (book No. 256) in September, 1977. The cover artwork is by Richard Hescox.

This is the third of the ‘Darkover’ novels I have read and by now I am well aware that these novels are primarily melodramas, that focus on the interrelationships of a set of characters who usually are gifted with telepathy, and other extrasensory abilities.

Battles between fleets of spaceships, life-and-death struggles with alien invaders, intrigues involving rebellious mutants, and other elements of ‘action’ – oriented sf are not ingredients for Darkover novels.

Even with this qualification in mind, I found ‘The Forbidden Tower’ to be a weird cross between a sci-fi novel, and the vintage 1969 film about wife-swapping, ‘Bob and Carol and Ted and Alice’……. !

‘Tower’ is a sequel to Bradley’s 1974 Darkover novel, ‘The Spell Sword.’ The four main characters from that novel are present; these are: Andrew Carr, a Terran marooned on Darkover; his newly acquired girlfriend Callista Lanart, gifted telepath (or ‘Keeper’), and daughter of Don Esteban, leader of the Alton Clan; her sister Ellemir Lanart; and Damon Ridenow, longtime friend to Don Esteban and the Alton Clan.

Most of the narrative takes place within the confines of Armida, the Castle stronghold of the Alton Clan, and deals with the psychodrama attendant to Callista’s decision to marry Andrew…..a decision complicated by the fact that her training as a Keeper has left her frigid (?!). Andrew gallantly agrees to withhold acting on his Manly Desires, until such time as Callista can overcome her condition and participate in conjugal bliss as a truly Sensuous Woman.

For an sf novel written in 1977, ‘Tower’ shows the influences of the New Wave approach, and thus, the plot is primarily concerned with the ‘inner space’ of the four lead characters, and the complex mental pathways through which they communicate their emotions and intentions. This inevitably leads to much overwrought prose and contrived drama.

There are a few side-plots that, thankfully, intrude now and then to lend some momentum to the main plot. One of the side-plots involves treachery on the part of a clan member; another revolves around an increasingly bitter dispute with the overlords of the telepathic communication nodes that have been misappropriated by Damon and his friends. The conflict generated by this latter dispute serves as the grist for the novel’s climax, which, unfortunately, is underwhelming.

Summing up, ‘The Forbidden Tower’, like the other two Darkover novels that I have read, is really only going to be embraced by dedicated fans.

Heavy Metal magazine April 1985

'Heavy Metal' magazine April 1985

April, 1985, and on MTV, Murray Head's 'One Night in Bangkok' is in heavy rotation.

The April issue of 'Heavy Metal' magazine features a super-cheesecake front cover by Boris Vallejo, and a back cover by Michael Gross.

This issue also features the initial installment of a new serial by Corben, titled ' Bodyssey'. There are new installments of strips by Manera ('An Author in Search of Six Characters'), Pepe Moreno ('Rebel'), and Charles Burns's 'El Borbah', which I've posted below.....

Solar Wind by Peter Jones

Solar Wind
by Peter Jones
Paper Tiger (UK) 1980

Peter Jones was born in London in 1951 and began illustrating sf paperbacks in 1974, while he was a student at St Martin's School of Art in that city. He quickly became one of the most successful illustrators of UK sf and fantasy books during the 70s and 80s; today he does a variety of commercial and studio art works under the rubric of his company 'Solar Wind'.

clockwise from the upper left: Scenaptic Manhunt, Dark Twin,The Warlock in Spite of Himself, The Chalk Giants 

Solar Wind, the book, is a collection of Jones's sf and fantasy artwork published during the interval 1974 - 1980. While the majority of Jones's commissions were for UK-based publishers like Granda, Futura, and Sphere, some of his works are going to be recognized by US readers, particularly those repurposed as cover illustrations for classic early issues of Heavy Metal magazine.

The Second Experiment

Jones's artwork during the 70s had a more consciously 'artistic' sensibility as compared to some of the other artists also providing book covers at the time, such as Chris Foss. 

Jones tended to avoid a hard-edged, representational approach of Foss's compositions, and instead relied on depicting the spaceman, swordsman, serving-wench, or spaceship in a more metaphorical, figurative style.

Inferno

The Fabulous Riverboat

The Robert E. Howard Omnibus: 'Kidnapped'

If you were a sf and fantasy fan during the 70s, then it's highly likely that you'll be familiar with the works for which Peter Jones painted book covers. But there are certainly going to be some titles that are new, and seeing Jones's artwork may lead you to investigate reading them.  

A World Out of Time (top); Infinite Dreams (bottom)

So for that reason, as well as for those who simply appreciate great sf art, picking up a copy of 'Solar Wind' is well worth the effort. Both hardbound and softbound copies in good condition can be had for very reasonable prices, and as with all Paper Tiger / Dragon's Dream art titles, the reproductions are of good quality.

The Venus Trap (Perry Rhodan)

clockwise from the upper left: Buy Jupiter, Nightwatch, Today We Choose Faces, The Best of Robert Silverberg

The Wizard of Anharite

To Here and the Easel

The Neural Atrocity

New Eden

Altered States advertisement

Altered States
magazine advertisement, 1981

Book Review: Armor

Book Review: 'Armor' by John Steakley

2 / 5 Stars

‘Armor’ (426 pp) was published in December, 1984 as DAW Book No. 605, with cover art by James Gurney.

At the time, the genre of military sf was just beginning to take shape and was hardly the highly successful sub-genre it is today. Indeed, prior to ‘Armor’, the only military sf novels in existence were (arguably) ‘Starship Troopers’ and ‘The Forever War’.

‘Armor’ sold extremely well, going through 44 printings at last count, and remains one of the best-selling entries of the entire DAW catalog.

Despite its status as one of the foundational novels for the modern military sf genre, it’s actually a very mediocre book..........

For all practical purposes, the novel can be divided into thirds.

In the first third, we are introduced to G. Felix, a seeming everyman who is recruited as a Scout in the interstellar war between the Federation and the insect-like ‘Ants’. Every foot soldier is issued one form or another of the eponymous armor, a high-tech battle suit that protects the wearer from all but the most lethal of attacks.

Felix is teleported (‘Dropped’) onto the planet Banshee as part of the Federation’s first assault on an ant homeworld. The high hopes for a Federation victory soon are dashed by the realization that the ants, which are 8 feet tall and protected by a strong exoskeleton, attack in relentless waves, straight out of the 1997 movie Starship Troopers. As Federation casualties mount, it is Felix who emerges as an effective warrior, due in part to his ability to involuntarily enter into a kind of depersonalized, fugue state that makes him temporarily fearless.

The book then embarks on its second segment, which shifts its focus entirely away from Felix, and onto the first-person adventures of one Jack Crow, a notorious interstellar pirate. This shift is so abrupt and awkwardly managed – it’s utterly devoid of any attempt to give the reader any sort of framing exposition - that it leads me to believe that author Steakley may have decided, in the writing of the book, to take another, unpublished manuscript he was working on, and to graft it onto the ‘Felix’ narrative.

The second segment relates how Jack Crow, fleeing a certain death sentence in a harsh alien prison, takes refuge on the remote planet of Sanction, whose less fortunate inhabitants dwell in the single slum village of Sanction City. The luckier residents of Sanction are workers at the top-secret Federation research station located a short distance from the City.

Relying on his notoriety and personal charm, Crow befriends the research station director and most of his staff, and soon becomes involved in an unusual project, one that is tangentially involved with the armor worn by Felix.

The third segment returns to Felix, who has attained legendary status for his ability to survive Drop after Drop onto Banshee. As this third segment opens, Felix makes yet another Drop, this time as part of a special operation to erect an impregnable fortress, one that will attrit the Ants into oblivion by sheer firepower. But as formidable as the base’s firepower is, Felix can’t help feeling that something, somewhere has been overlooked…..

This segment also features some awkwardly managed revelations about who Felix is, and how he came to be enrolled in the Federation army.

In the closing chapters, the two storylines – Felix and Jack Crow – come together, albeit in a contrived way. The book ends on a note of ambiguity.

Author Steakley’s prose style is the major weakness to ‘Armor’. It relies heavily on lengthy conversations that are written in what can only be termed a ‘wooden’ style. 

Then there are copious internal monologues that are intended to provide the reader with Deep Insight into the post-traumatic stress that wracks both Felix, and later, Jack Crow. These monologues are overwrought, crammed with stilted prose, and burden, rather than support, the narrative.

While the combat scenes, when they do take place, are reasonably exciting, the fact is, the narrative in ‘Armor’ is meant to serve as a platform upon which author Steakley endeavors to demonstrate that his book is not a War Novel, but rather, a profound examination of the effects of modern combat on the human psyche…..

My verdict ? ‘Armor’ gained a lot of its commercial success from being in the right time, at the right place, when publishing was just beginning to embrace the military SF genre. In the years since its release, more deserving military sf novels have been published (Christopher Rowley’s The Vang trilogy comes readily to mind) than ‘Armor’.

Showcase Presents: Doc Savage

Showcase Presents: Doc Savage
DC Comics, 2011

Doc Savage has been bouncing around the comic book scene since the 1940s, in the hands of publishers such as Gold Key / Western, Marvel, Millenium, Dark Horse, and DC. 

[Starting in December, 2013, Dynamite Entertainment - the comics company perhaps best known for its Deja Thoris, Red Sonja, and Vampirella ultra-cheesecake comics - was the latest owner of the comic book rights to the franchise, and has released color comics with writing by Chris Roberson and artwork by Bilquis Evely.]

Probably the best of all of these Doc Savage comic book incarnations are the eight issues Marvel released in 1975 - 1977 in black and white, magazine-size format, under its Curtis Circulation imprint.

These first of these issues of `Doc Savage' debuted in the Summer of 1975 as part of a tie-in with the movie. The movie of course bombed awfully, permanently scarring many Savage fans even unto the present day. Nonetheless, Stan Lee and Archie Goodwin kept the magazine going for seven more issues, into 1977.

Demonstrating the sometimes esoteric nature of licensing legalities, in 2011 DC - who owned the comic book rights to the franchise - compiled all the Curtis issues into this Showcase volume. 

Needless to say the words `Curtis' or `Marvel' are not mentioned anywhere at all in this book, not even within the ISBN credits. Indeed, unless buyers know the history of the Doc Savage comics, they would be correct in presuming that all the material in this volume originated with DC....

What you do get in this Showcase volume are 450 pages containing all eight of the Curtis issues, including the cover art and pinups. [The other, non-comic art features that appeared in the magazines are not included, however].

Note that these comics were all originally printed in black and white, and they reproduce very well here (even though the book uses the cheaper grade of `phone book' quality paper).

Although the Curtis comics were technically magazines, and therefore exempt from adhering to the Comics Code, writer Doug Moench wasn't too adventurous with the series. His plots mimic those of the Lester Dent novels, featuring evil villains equipped with superweapons; damsels in distress; journeys to lost cities; jungles filled with giant insects and dinosaurs; etc. The Fabulous Five are active participants in all of the action, rather than being relegated to sidekicks making occasional appearances (Monk even starred in his own brief solo series !).

It's the artwork, by John Buscema, Tony DeZuniga, Val Mayerik, and later Ernie Chan, that makes this volume well worth getting, as it remains among the best the franchise has seen, and among the best Marvel issued in the 70s in its magazine format.

If you are a fan of 70s comic books, Doc Savage, or just well-illustrated comics, period, then getting a copy of this 'Showcase Presents' volume is necessary. Copies in 'very fine' condition can be had for $20 or less, but I expect that the longer the volume stays out of print, the higher the prices will go, so it may be best to act quickly...... 

Bats by Doug Moench, Paul Gulacy, and Duffy Vohland

Bats
by Doug Moench (script) and Paul Gulacy and Duffy Vohland (art)
from Vampire Tales (Marvel / Curtis), issue 7, October 1974

Entirely wordless, these kinds of comics look like they're easy to pull off, when in fact they are heavily reliant on the skill of the artist......and this comic does a great deal with its seven pages, thanks primarily to some great illustration by Paul Gulacy and Duffy Vohland.

Also of interest in this issue, a review of four Pinnacle / Zebra paperbacks from long, long ago....I have never heard of any of these. 

But then again, if they were representative of the typical Zebra horror novel, I'm probably not missing much.....

Anyways, here is 'Bats'.....