A comically sinister tale of wicked spirits and suburban mediums from the Man Booker Prize-winning author of ‘Wolf Hall’ and ‘Bring Up the Bodies’.

Alison Hart, a medium by trade, tours the dormitory towns of London’s orbital ring road with her flint-hearted sidekick, Colette, passing on messages from beloved dead ancestors. But behind her plump, smiling persona hides a desperate woman: she knows the terrors the next life holds but must conceal them from her wide-eyed clients. At the same time she is plagued by spirits from her own past, who infiltrate her body and home, becoming stronger and nastier the more she resists…

Beyond Black is one of those books that really gets under your skin. It’s visceral, gritty, beautifully written and full of such powerful imagery, shocks, scares and even domestic drama, that it deserves to be called a masterpiece.

But aside from it being labelled the greatest ghost story in the language by Phillip Pullman (well, I haven’t read them all, but it has to be up there with the very, very best) it’s also a very clever look at the process of writing and creativity. Mantel said herself that she sees many parallels between clairvoyance and writing: the solitary existence; dealing with characters that no-one else knows exist; seeing the world in a different way to other people. And this parallel offers even more food for thought to a book that you want to devour in one sitting.

This could be my shortest review, in three words: I love it.

It’s one of my favourite books. I keep coming back to it because it is genuinely haunting; the language hypnotic; the characters so fascinating.

I’m surprised at some of the negative comments I’ve seen about this book. Perhaps those readers who were not blown away by it were looking for Wolf Hall in suburbia, or maybe a poltergeist stalking a Victorian corridor. If you’re looking for that kind of thing, maybe read the Woman In Black by Susan Hill.

Beyond Black is a book that takes you by surprise. It’s dark, it’s creepy and it will stay with you long, long after you’ve finished it. That is, if you give it a chance, which you absolutely should.

It’s a hard book to pigeon hole (who would want to anyway?) because it’s more than the sum of its parts. If I could write as well as Mantel, then I might be able to put in to words how much I love this book, but I can’t, so I’ll just say: read it.

Silas Williams is the brilliant geneticist in charge of preparing the U.S. entry into the Olympic Gladiator competition, an internationally sanctioned bloodsport with only one rule: no human DNA is permitted in the design of the entrants. Silas lives and breathes genetics; his designs have led the United States to the gold in every previous event. But the other countries are catching up. Now, desperate for an edge in the upcoming Games, Silas’s boss engages an experimental supercomputer to design the genetic code for a gladiator that cannot be beaten. 

The result is a highly specialised killing machine, its genome never before seen on earth. Not even Silas, with all his genius and experience, can understand the horror he had a hand in making. And no one, he fears, can anticipate the consequences of entrusting the act of creation to a computer’s cold logic. 
 
Now Silas races to understand what the computer has wrought, aided by a beautiful xenobiologist, Vidonia João. Yet as the fast-growing gladiator demonstrates preternatural strength, speed, and—most disquietingly—intelligence, Silas and Vidonia find their scientific curiosity giving way to a most unexpected emotion: sheer terror.

The Games is one of those books that on the face of it, looks pretty derivative. There have been umpteen books on genetic experimentation, and the load of techno-thrillers out there is immense, but despite this, I still found myself enjoying this taut and tense thriller.

The story of genetically engineered animals fighting each other in a futuristic Olympic Games is a pretty compelling (and enjoyably ludicrous) one. The future that we see isn’t one of flashing neon and hover cars, but something which feels genuine- with glimpses of technology that have changed people’s lives, such as a shot that reverses being drunk. The book hangs on a strong idea, and Kosmatka has built a very efficient story around it.

The one major draw back is the characterisation. With such a high concept plot, it’s easy to see why Kosmatka didn’t feel the need to flesh them out completely, as you are constantly distracted from moments of introspection by a moment of tension or peril. But, the central character, Silas, is essentially morally dubious, given his involvement in genetically mutating animals to create ‘gladiatorial entertainment.’ This could have been developed and looked at in  more detail to make the reader sympathise with him, to question why and how he justifies his work and to make him a more complex character. But, as it’s a techno-thriller, that’s not really the point. It’s a gung-ho, tense and exciting thriller that doesn’t dwell on bigger issues (though it does touch on them). You know where the book is going from the first chapter and it’s no less fun because of it.

It’s a great bit of holiday popcorn that kept me entertained, so I’d recommend this one in the same way as you might the latest Tom Cruise film: you know what you’re going to get, so don’t over-think it.

Heaven’s Shadow begins with the discovery of an object of unknown origin headed toward Earth. Speculation as to what it might be runs high, and leads to an international competition to be the first to land on it, to claim both the prestige and whatever other benefits there might be. Thus, two rival teams of astronauts begin a thrilling and dangerous race – but what they find when they reach their goal will turn out to be unlike anything they could have imagined . . .

What they have landed on is no asteroid but a spacecraft from a civilization that has travelled tens of thousands of years to reach earth. While the team try to work out what it is they are needed for, more sinister occurrences cause them to wonder if their involvement with this alien race will lead to anything but harm for humanity.

This is one of those stories that immediately hits you as a fleshed out screenplay, with a fast pace, broad cast of characters and a plot which simply doesn’t allow you to put the book down. Moody lead character? Check. Astronaut love interest? Check. Stroppy teenager? Check. Wheelchair bound genius? Check.

Each chapter feels like a 30 minute episode (perhaps the original idea?) but that’s not to say it doesn’t work as a book. It whips you along in a truly gripping tale of differing space centres racing to get to `Neo’ first (an asteroid that is heading towards earth) and the strange happenings that occur once they land…

It has summer blockbuster written all over it- and that’s no surprise since it was written by David ` Dark Knight’ Goyer. This is as close as I’ve come this year to a popcorn movie, and I’m glad that I picked it up. So glad in fact, that I’ve already bought the sequel.

Surrounded by a vast, poisonous desert, Echo City is built upon the graveyard of its own past. Most inhabitants believe that their city and its subterranean Echoes are the whole of the world, but there are a few dissenters. Peer Nadawa is a political exile, forced to live with criminals in a ruinous slum. Gorham, once her lover, leads a ragtag band of rebels against the ruling theocracy. Nophel, a servant of that theocracy, dreams of revenge from his perch atop the city’s tallest spire. And beneath the city, a woman called Nadielle conducts macabre experiments in genetic manipulation using a science indistinguishable from sorcery. They believe there is something more beyond the endless desert . . . but what?

It is only when a stranger arrives from out of the wastes that things begin to change. Frail and amnesiac, he holds the key to a new beginning for Echo City—or perhaps to its end, for he is not the only new arrival. From the depths beneath Echo City, something ancient and deadly is rising. Now Peer, Gorham, Nophel, and Nadielle must test the limits of love and loyalty, courage and compassion, as they struggle to save a city collapsing under the weight of its own history.

Echo City is one of those books I picked up because I loved the title. Simple as that. I’m not a die-hard fantasy or sci-fi reader but I like to dabble, so after reading the synopsis, I was intrigued. Then, after reading it, I was completely satisfied that I have great taste in titles, because it’s everything a good sci-fi fantasy book should be (for me) with all the elements that make an exciting story, though not gratuitously included. There’s horror, action, violence, technology, genetics, even ghosts.

Lebbon has created a fascinating world here – a city that is so well realised you can almost smell it; a cast of characters to whom you immediately relate and an ominous, hidden menace which changes the book from being a world – building epic to a frenetic race against time thriller.

The middle section does perhaps drag on a little, but it more than makes up for it with a thrilling climax. If you haven’t read much sci-fi fantasy then I’d suggest Lebbon is a great place to start. I’ve often been put off fantasy works because writers spend 500 pages describing the weather and architecture. Lebbon doesn’t do that. He builds this universe brilliantly, but he never lets it take over the story.

This book reminded me of Twelve Monkeys, with it’s strange tech and otherworldly atmosphere. But while Lebbon has crafted something that may have echoes (sorry) of familiarity, he has created something  totally unique, which I highly recommend.

America, 2036: a wasteland in economic ruin. Terrorism and ultra-violence plague a once powerful society, whose only escape is to numb itself on flashback – a euphoric yet cripplingly addictive drug that allows its users to re-visit their happier, past experiences.

Ex-cop Nick Bottom is about to receive a proposition. Flashback dependency has taken his badge, his reputation, and the love of his son. All he has left are the flash-induced memories of his beloved wife, Dara, taken from him in a tragic car accident.

Now powerful magnate Hiroshi Nakamura needs Bottom’s services, and, in particular, his memories.

After reading The Terror a couple of years ago, I was looking forward to reading another Dan Simmons book. Despite the gushing reviews for Hyperion and the other space operas he’s written, they have never really been my cup of tea. After picking up Carrion Comfort (too heavy for my bag) my interest was piqued when I saw that he’d turned his considerable imagination to the near future in Flashback. But this is a disappointing and at times, a morally repellent book, where Simmons’ right wing politicking, racism, islamophobia, and patriotic gung-hoism gets in the way of what could have been a good thriller.

The story concerns a down and out detective, called Nick Bottom, who is a flashback junkie living in the near future. This future is a dire mess of poverty stricken former superpowers – islamic fundamentalism; terrorism as a daily occurrence; warring factions; independent states; Orwellian levels of state interference, and some rather nifty technologies like stealth-copters.

Flashback is a highly addictive, inhalation drug which allows the user to tap in to their own memories and re-live them with crystal-clear clarity. For Nick, this means constantly revisiting a happier time when his wife was alive, six years ago (that isn’t a spoiler) and before the birth of their son (now a wayward, estranged teen).

At the start of the book, Nick is hired by an outrageously rich Japanese man (in the book, Japan has become one of the predominant powers in the world) to find the person who killed his son six years ago. Nick was a policeman during the original investigation, which turned up no leads and, since that time, Nick has fallen deeper in to Flashback usage. But he takes the job, in order to get more of the drug so he can revisit his wife in happier times.  Nick is hired to use flashback so he can re-read the police reports of the original investigation, find new leads and, if all goes well, solve the case. All clear so far?

Now, much of the writing is good. In fact, Simmons has a knack for an action sequence. His imagery can often be vivid and startling. But just as you are becoming immersed in this world, Simmons strides in and smears a right wing diatribe across the page, pulling you from the action and forcing the reader to question the very purpose of the book.

Because this book reeks of one man’s fear of Islam, where the Caliphate has taken over the world, essentially because America and the West were too conciliatory to Islam in the early 21st century. Different cultures live alongside each other in this dystopian America, but loathe one another. It isn’t made clear why racism is so prevalent, or why Nick continues to mock Japanese pronunciation – a recurring ‘joke’ which has no relevance to the story.

In a few historical asides, it becomes clear that Obama is  to blame for the emasculation of America and the US is now being invaded by a huge variety of countries. It is no longer the power it once was and Simmons is using this near future tale to highlight the dangers of Islam; to suggest attacking it is better than making peace and that we simply cannot let America be ‘turned.’ There are sections here that smack of a flag waving, gun-toting patriot rallying the troops.

The basic plot line is interesting: it has the ingredients for a film noir-ish investigative thriller. The basic premise is perhaps a little derivative (Minority Report meets Strange Days) but there are some great, inventive twists and sequences, and his prose is so very readable. But these points don’t save the book, or disguise its ugliness.

I’d like to think that he wrote this book in order to spark debate about the role of religion in society, or to make a comment on technology vs. religion but I fear this is just a bit of Islamaphobia disguised as a novel, which is hard to ignore and impossible to forgive when you’re trying to enjoy what is supposed to be a thrilling story.

After reviewing this book, I found the following article on Dan Simmons’ blog which has made me think my review was too kind:

http://www.dansimmons.com/news/message/2006_04.htm

In the first 5 minutes of Attack The Block, you realise that this film isn’t Independence Day meets Shaun of the Dead. It’s a totally different beast. You can compare it to Super 8 or Stand By Me if you like, but that would be the kind of lazy marketing spiel that you’d probably see on the poster and it wouldn’t do this film justice as a great bit of sci-fi fun.

Joe Cornish, the comedian and one half of The Adam and Joe Show, as well as one of the screenwriters of the new Tin Tin film, has made a superior Brit sci-fi film that manages to be an all out actioner with laughs, rather than an all-out comedy with action (i.e. Shaun of the Dead). It’s directed with energy and style, and the council estate is portrayed as a brilliantly labyrinthine and atmospheric place. It’s full of great characters and  funny dialogue, all spoken with the authenticity of someone who has done their research in to how these kids talk. (Joe Cornish spent a long time researching the dialogue to make it sound accurate, and pulls it off without it sounding cliché.)

The story concerns Moses and his gang of friends who live on a Wembley council estate. It’s Halloween and they’re looking to exploit the police’s stretched resources by mugging some innocent people. Now, that doesn’t sound like your average bunch of kids in a sci-fi movie. And  that’s part of the charm and interest- and how it takes what is a fairly traditional storyline and make it original. These kids aren’t do-gooders or wholesome Americans looking to make a zombie film (Super 8 comparison over) but real kids who struggle to survive and want to make more of themselves.

Moses and his gang rob a nurse, but are distracted when the car they are standing next to explodes after being hit by a firework.  It turns out this isn’t a firework at all, but a nasty little alien. They give chase and once they’ve caught up with it, they kick the crap out of it. Little do they know, that is the beginning of their problems, as soon after, big, fast and fluorescent aliens begin to drop down on the block, putting Moses and his gang in the middle of an alien invasion.

Along the way, the encounter drug dealers, stoners, police, that nurse again (played by Jodie Whitakker) and the action cranks up to a satisfying and fast paced finale. There is real peril here and each  character gets his moment to shine.

There might be a few times when you want to know more about these aliens, or to see them in more detail, but you can imagine that the budget just didn’t allow it. That is a very minor quibble. Because when you combine the great acting from an unknown cast; brilliant cinematography; great direction and a foot tapping soundtrack, you’ve got a cult classic on your hands.

And it’s better than Shaun of the Dead. There. I said it.

Have a look at this blog from pagelady, who has studied the linguistics of the film to help Americans understand the dialogue. Of course, Americans wil never understand it, but it goes to show the effort Cornish put in to making it sounds authentic.

 http://pagelady.wordpress.com/2011/09/06/helping-americans-understand-attack-the-block/

My review in a nutshell:

It’s got that guy from Fantastic Four in it.

He’s really weedy, then get a jab that hulks him out so he can go and ‘kick nazi butt.’

He has a silly haircut.

He has a silly outfit.

It’s a piece of nauseous American gung-ho patriotism.

It’s really long.

Its got that guy from Vicar of Dibley in it.

The bad guy looks like a pizza.

It’s got a stealth bomber in it, even though it is set in World War II.

It’s not as good as this one:

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

To sit through two hours of this highly detailed, intelligent and rewarding thriller only serves to highlight the dumbing down of 95% of the films out there. You won’t find any simple exposition monologues to get you through the narrative, but if you are watching carefully, you’ll find it’s not nearly as complicated as people have made out. It simply asks you to pay attention, which is a refreshing change from Ten-Things-That-Will-Make-You-Lose-A-Guy- If-He’s-Not-That- In-To-You.

You won’t get a Bourne car chase or any romantic trysts (though some may be implied) but you’ll get a leather briefcase full of intense drama and the complicated machinations of a host of fascinating characters, which leads you inexorably to an ending you might know is coming, but will keep you on the edge of your seat regardless. It’s one of the best films I’ve seen in a very long time. It’s without doubt the best le Carre adaptation to date and in terms of directorial skill, Tomas Alfredson has even surpassed his incredible work on Let The Right One In.

Tinker is the story of 1970’s spymasters- all paranoid, all uncertain; all convinced there is a mole within their tight-knit group of Oxbridge educated paunches. John Hurt, who plays Control, the head of this group of spies, is convinced there is a mole in his ranks, and so sets in motion a series of events that lead to increased paranoia, double crossing, doubt, violence, and, ultimately, revelation. And while this is an ensemble cast, it’s success rests on the shoulders of our national treasure, Gary Oldman, who plays George Smiley, Control’s right hand man. It is his quiet intelligence which draws you in to the film. With a movement of his eyes or a touch of his glasses, he suggests so much that he almost needn’t talk at all. But when he does, you know it will be authoritative and insightful and will spur the plot forward. Smiley, with his right hand man, Guillam (an excellent Benedict Cumberbatch) sets out to get to the bottom of the rumours and determine if there really is a mole in ‘The Circus.’

Tomas Alfredson was the perfect choice of director for this film. His cool and fluid camera work fits perfectly with the gritty, beige 1970’s look, with delicate use of close up, intelligent cut-aways and some genius touches that keep some important figures faceless and enigmatic as the film progresses. One speech to camera by Oldman is Oscar worthy, as he recounts his meeting with his nemesis, Karla, (his Russian counterpart) by re-enacting the conversation as though Karla were seated opposite him. It’s an acting masterclass. But it’s a performance you only realise is genius once the film has finished – there are no Christian Bale histrionics scenery chewing here. This is an actor at the very top of his game. The cast of supporting spies is uniformly excellent, each bringing their own shifting eyes and hidden agendas to the roles (Colin Firth, Mark Strong, Toby Jones, Tom Hardy, Ciaran Hinds).  But Oldman still steals the show. His portrayal of a man beleaguered, tired and lonely, yet with a razor sharp intellect and gentle demeanour is one of the year’s best. It is impossible to tear your eyes from him when he is on screen, as you find yourself looking for a flick of the eyebrow or a twitch that might give away what he is thinking.

It’s riveting, it’s thrilling, its hypnotic. It’s brilliant. You might not get a car chase; you’ll find much of the action comes from a group of middle aged men talking to each other, but your adrenaline levels will be high as any blockbuster.

This film is the story of a caving expedition that went to explore uncharted underground caves and, as you might expect, falls foul of the elements. It’s presented by James Cameron, so  expectation was high that this could have been The Abyss 2. But alas, it is more shoddy TV dramatisation than effective film.

If you like your films wet and panicky, then this is for you. For me, it was the film equivalent of being stuck in a big black bin liner and having it filled with water. You can see very little, you care very little, and when you do, it is only in the hope that you will glimpse something other than darkness.

Much like any standard slasher film, you know who’s going to die and in what order.  But the problem is, you really don’t care. And the script is so bad it was probably written in the dark. The effects (the water) are impressive in places, but mostly it just feels like a bad set, which is ironic considering a lot of it was shot on location. But it isn’t a slasher film, more’s the pity. It’s a true story (groan), which is rarely as exciting as fiction.

I’ve got a lot of time for Richard Roxburgh. He’s a great actor, and he does what he can with the meagre character he is given, but everyone else, including Ioan Grufford, is bland, bland, bland.

It’s exhausting, frustrating viewing. Maybe James Cameron was riding such a high after Avatar he felt he could take a weird risk and put his name to this one (executive producer credit only) but it’s not worthy of his name. Have a bath, then watch The Abyss if you want a proper underwater film. Or maybe Big Blue. Or Waterworld, even. Just not this.

Here’s the trailer:

For a film about increased intelligence, it’s ironic that Limitless does nothing to help yours while you watch it. However, you don’t always (or if you’re me, very rarely) go to the cinema to be made cleverer-er, so why don’t you just sit back and enjoy Limitless for what it is – a fast, fun, dream fulfilment that whips you along, get faster still, dips in to some fun ‘what if’s’ (though not all are explored as well as they could have been)  and cements Bradley Cooper as a great leading man.

The plot follows a lowly, down on his luck writer who is struggling to string a sentence together, struggling to succeed in life. In a roundabout way, he is offered the chance to take a drug which allows every single one of his faltering synapses to trigger, allowing him full use of his brain. And yup, you’ve guessed it, he become a frickin’ genius.

The palette of the film changes, he becomes smarter dressed, he climbs the ladder of the corporate banking world, he sees equations everywhere. He remembers everything he ever did….Then he starts to have black outs, begins  to rely on the drug to do anything.  as you’d expect, with great power comes great comeuppance. He gets embroiled with some particularly dodgy people and the film tracks his rise, panic and realisation that all is not as it seems with visual flair and a good dose of fun and tension.

With such a canvas to play with, he doesn’t do quite as much as I’d like. There are some very satisfying moments though.  he writes a novel  in a night, talks or remembers people in to the sack, but if he can remember everything he ever did, where’s his flashback to childbirth? And would that suddenly destroy his libido? I jest, but more detail of his mental state would have been interesting.

But, as I said earlier:  don’t think, just watch. This is great fun. Yes, there may be some major plot holes (murders are simply forgotten.) Yes, Abbie Cornish does nothing in this film. Yes, De Niro is totally under used and doesn’t have much of an arc. And yes, it is loopy escapist fun. But it’s a great ride.

And if you’re not convinced, watch this clip of the excellent effects in the film that brilliantly represents his drug addled brain: