Imminent supernova spawns tales of coping with death (5/5)
From June 4, 2010
Having read three more Brown books since first reading The Fall of Tartarus, I've become familiar with the author's humanistic characterizations, particularly in Engineman (1994). But Brown can also built up a world from nothingness, as he's done here in The Fall of Tartarus and in Guardians of the Phoenix (2010). I'd urge the reader to seek out Brown's humanistic science fiction, but don't go looking for it in his pulpier novels like his recent Weirdspace: Devil's Nebula (2012).
That said, The Fall of Tartarus is a collection of eight stories taking place on
the planet of the same name, which is under the punishment of its
near-nova solar body. Much like the levels of Dante's hell, the
progressive stories only grow more and more insidious as the last. The
running theme of personal death is each story reflects the terrestrial
and solar death of the system; I don't know which line of mortality is more
gripping, harrowing or enlightening... all in one. If you think
experiencing death through the eyes of another human could be called
monotonous, then perhaps this saga isn't for you. The further you dig
into this collection, the deeper the sentiment and the richer the pay dirt
of the greater plot.
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Destiny of
Tartarus (2000, novella) - 5/5 - A young man returns to Tartarus in search of his
father, who is rumored to have been last seen competing in Charybdis
boat races. On the onus led train ride, the man befriends an influential
man and a cherubic Messenger. The three agree to partake in the races
together while the young man is eager to unravel the mystery surrounding
his father's history thereafter. 68 pages
A Prayer for the Dead (1995, novelette) -
5/5 - A man revisits his homeland and reflects upon the tragedy which
occurred the many years ago when he was to wed his lover in an ersatz
wedding hosted by an alien hermit- the summer of love which turned into a
lifelong summer of longing. 41 pages
The Eschatarium at Lyssia (1997, novelette) -
4/5 - Sculptor/drug addict/widower abandons sculptures dedicated to his
wife's death throes to revisit the alien amphitheater in which he and
his wife spent many a-years. The Messenger tells him of his wife's ghost
and her will to set his mind at ease. 26 pages
The Ultimate
Sacrifice (2000, novelette) - 5/5 - Videographer/journalist begins an emotional
documentary of her search for her brother, officially deceased but
rumored to still be alive in a monastery of The Church of Ultimate
Sacrifice, whose belief revolves around personal suffering for the
benefit of delaying the sun's supernova. 42 pages
The People of
the Nova (1999, novelette) - 4/5 - Widowed Director of Evacuation and his
savage-cum-daughter are confronted by a tribal man who knows the
whereabouts of the two missing scouts. 25 pages
Vulpheous (1998, novelette) - 4/5 -
Xenobiologist and hunter tracks the last remaining Vulpheous to a
volcanic caldera where he hopes to capture the animal for the sake of
mankind. However, there is also a young tribal woman around the lake to
await the same animal for healing purposes. 28 pages
Hunting the
Slarque (1999, novelette) - 5/5 - Reincarnated man remembers being ripped to shreds and
dying on Tartarus, but why is he on Million and his wife back on
Tartarus again? To reimburse the expense of the reincarnation, the man
must travel back to the sight of his death to capture the very thing
which killed him before. 49 pages
Dark Calvary (1999, novelette) - 5/5 - Cramer
shot his wife in the back but the Church of Ultimate Sacrifice has proof
of her undeath, so he returns to Tartarus to find his wife and help the
abbot find the fabled secret alien temple... all before the sun goes
nova within the month. Cramer must confront his hatred of the church and
his odd longing to see his reanimated wife but under such circumstances
he cannot comprehend. 33 pages
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