Totally surreal (in a good way)
922896
This book is a sequel to White Apples, which I did not know before I started reading. Apparently it doesnt much matter; the gist of it is that Vincent and Isabelle fell in love, Vincent died, and Isabell did the whole Orpheus thing and went to the land of the dead and brought him back to life. Glass Soup takes place very shortly after that. Isabelle is pregnant, and her child is a very important one: the fate of the universe hinges on whether he is born in the land of the living or of the dead. This novel is Order fighting against Chaos, with Isabelles child representing Order.

The story actually starts when Simon Haden wakes up into a world where he is a tour guide (it takes place in Vienna). The bus is driven by an octopus; one passenger is made of butter; another is a really bored bag of caramels. A 6 tall man named Broximon hangs out with him. It turns out that AC/DC was right: there is literally a multilane highway to Hell. Simon, as he finally figures out, is dead. The afterlife is made of every single dream and nightmare a person has had in their life. Ugh.

The plot has various beings- one of them a shape-shifting, womanizing, serial killer- trying to get Isabelle on one side of life or death or the other. I really liked it, and Im not even sure why. I disliked pretty much all the characters. But overall the book as fascinating. Its a love story, and a story of friendships, despite God being a polar bear. Four stars out of five.
989336
I've always loved this surreal story in all it's incarnations, book - movies - animation. It's so full of imagination and strange and interesting characters.
4362357
If I could sum up this novel with one single word, it would have to be "weird." In a good sort of way, mind you, but weird nonetheless. Big, ambitious, and multilayered the way all Ian McDonald books are, Ares Express also possesses a healthy dose of fun, wit, and absurdity which make this work quite different from what McDonald has accustomed us to in recent years. If Jack Vance, Terry Pratchett, and Hal Duncan had ever teamed up to write a book, they would have come up with something akin to Ares Express.

Hence, those readers who found novels such as River of Gods and Brasyl a bit too cerebral may enjoy Ares Express on a very different level. Just buckle up and get ready for quite a ride! Things don't always make sense, and at times one wonders what the heck is going on and where McDonald is going with this story, but stick with it to the end. Ares Express is a satisfying and rewarding read.

Here's the blurb:

A Mars of the imagination, like no other, in a colorful, witty SF novel, taking place in the kaleidoscopic future of Ian McDonald's Desolation Road, Ares Express is set on a terraformed Mars where fusion-powered locomotives run along the network of rails that is the planet's circulatory system and artificial intelligences reconfigure reality billions of times each second. One young woman, Sweetness Octave Glorious-Honeybun Asiim 12th, becomes the person upon whom the future--or futures--of Mars depends. Big, picaresque, funny; taking the Mars of Ray Bradbury and the more recent, terraformed Marses of authors such as Kim Stanley Robinson and Greg Bear, Ares Express is a wild and woolly magic-realist SF novel, featuring lots of bizarre philosophies, strange, mind-stretching ideas, and trains as big as city blocks.

As far as the worldbuilding goes, since the book is set in the future of McDonald's Desolation Road, I was afraid that not having read that novel would mean that I might miss nuances and certain plot points. Yet Ares Express takes place sor far in the future that you can read and enjoy it without having read Desolation Road. As is always his wont, Ian McDonald's narrative makes the setting come alive. This is a semi-terraformed Mars whose imagery is nothing short of arresting.

Although Ares Express is doubtless Sweetness Octave's book, it's the supporting cast which gives the novel its depth and flavor. Grandmother Taal, Devastation Harx, the United Artists, and many more characters add more layers and help make this an unforgettable tale.

The pace is uneven throughout, and trying to make sense of what exactly is happening can be mind-boggling at times. There are POV shifts from one paragraph to another in certain portions of the novel, which takes some getting used to. But once you grow comfortable with the fact that McDonald is willingly pushing this story all over the place, everything settles down and it gets easier.

Though Ares Express possesses some of the qualities which made books like River of Gods, Brasyl, Cyberabad Days, and The Dervish House such fantastic reads, this book is a world away from the others. Wild, strange, picaresque, and funny, Ares Express will surprise you on several levels.
1147005
This book made me feel as if I were being transported through time and space while being tenderly cradled in the arms of an average sized mail delivery person of an unknown gender. With the turn of every page, my senses became more and more entangled with the plot of the book, so much so that at one point- somewhere between page 36 and 238598, I believe- I looked up from the book to find myself straddling the edge of my bathtub, weeping and clapping furiously. I don't even know how I was able to hold the book and clap at the same time; I can only assume it was a minor miracle, or by some supernatural power that had been transferred to me through the book. I have never, ever heard of the author, but I feel a deep sense of certainty that he must be a magician, some kind of WIZARD! If it hasn't occurred to him, I would highly recommend that he start a YouTube channel, or maybe even 2 or 3 YouTube channels.

This book is guaranteed to require you to use your eyes to read words on a page. GUARENTEED. NOT A JOKE.
2499714
S.M. Saumarez's The Akashic Record is so refreshingly strange and wonderful that it's hard to know where to begin in describing it. The best I can do is to ask you to imagine a post-warming, flooded London ("the Big Smoke") whose landscape and language wade somewhere between J.G. Ballard's Drowned World and Russell Hoban's Riddley Walker, with fastidious world-building and kaleidoscopic characterization akin to John Crowley's Little, Big. In short, I found this novel a remarkable mingling of weirdness and enchantment. Far from being  "yet another post-apocalyptic young adult novel," it offers something special.
4377813
Everyman is a wild, bizarre story, written by an author who seems to me uniquely L.A. The novel starts with a typical 'everyman' of L.A., trying to break in to the movie business, walking home to his typical L.A. courtyard apartments. Then everything gets bizarre, the reader notices flesh growing like a tumor over their kindle, and they're in for a unique ride. Like the characters in the novel, you slowly start to realize what is happening. By the time you do, something physically has changed.

This book is very physical. Flesh and body and organs fill the pages. It is both horrific and at the same time `so cool.'  You won't be able to read this without thinking of the movie version. I won't spoil it and choose the director.

But besides the terror of the flesh, the overriding emotion you will feel is isolation. Characters are lost without the object they have trusted with not only their love, but their entire self-worth. Losing this person to an imposter is the biggest fear of all. Ironically, this same isolation is felt by the 'monster' himself. If you can be an `everyman,'  you are really 'no-man' and it is not you that others love, but that which you are pretending to be.

The implications in this novel are deep, the writing demands you pay attention, and the scenarios are a lot of fun.
1728311
I was told by friends that I had to read this book.  Now I know why.  It's a mix of razor sharp, clever satire and a surreal adventure fable that is both bizarre and also strangely moving.  I haven't been as amused, puzzled or inspired by a novel in a long time.  I think this could develop a real cult following.
2484146
Interesting,  strange, mysterious,  weird and funny as hell.
4329938
I must admit that I was a bit skeptical upon first seeing this book. The title was certainly strange (as my dad later put it "It sounds like a bad sixties horror movie!") and it seemed more like horror-fantasy than just straight-up fantasy. Even when I read the summary inside the book jacket, the book looked like it might be shallow and violent. Then I started to read...and was hooked. D.M. Cornish has created on of the most incredibly detailed fantasy worlds that I have ever seen. The 18th-century vibe and the mix of German and Latin-seeming words and names is fresh and unique. Cornish's illustrations are very well done and add extra depth to the story. And the massive "explicarium"...well, I've never seen such a comprehensive glossary in any book before. MBT (my abbreviated name for the book) shows that the fantasy genre always has room to grow and change, which it does fantastically. I am eagerly awaiting the next book in the series.
508062
This book is just so freaking compellingly fantastic. If you know me well, you'll know that I don't read fiction. Poetry and philosophy, yes; non-fiction, voraciously; art, everything and anything, as much as I can get my hands on; but fiction - I abhor. I'm a snobby pretentious pseudo-intellectual that thinks fiction is a waste of time.. a very few exceptions, yes, but mostly a waste... until I picked up this book one Saturday morning. This is so ($&?'ing) good that from the moment I picked it up I was sucked into a story that I could not put down. Literally read it end to end in one sitting. At the end my shoulders and neck were so tight from the emotional roller coaster it took me on that all I could do was sit there with tears running down my face. It wasn't like reading, the visuals were so intense it wasn't even like watching a movie, more like living and feeling every moment throughout the story. It is so intense that I am still totally blown away and can remember every scene as though I lived this myself.
3422704
Wow, this volume was even more striking that the first volume. It is even more surreal and gets scary. The illustrations are disconcerting and express lots of motion--it sets a great atmosphere, and once again I read it all in 2 sittings.
1772358
4 Crazy Frakking Stars.

Oh My Gosh. What did I just read? I haven't the faintest idea! Crazy with a side of Tabasco thrown in? Something like that.

And now for my review? I don't even know what to say. First, this book is bat-sh&t cray cray. Second, you must believe the hype people, it's real.

So whats the story? Louise, a single mother, is out one night having a drink  there she meets a man (David), whom she is immediately drawn to. The night is mostly innocent, though there is an instant connection. You know how it is. The next day Louise goes into the medical office where she works as a secretary and discovers that David is her new boss. And hes married. Talk about uncomfortable. Later, while out and about, Louise meets his wife, Adele, and finds that Adele is absolutely amazing. Over time the two somehow become besties, all the while Louise carries on an affair with David and Louise just cant choose between the two. AS IF. Thereafter, things become a little strange (RIGHT?!) and Louise gets drawn deeper and deeper into David and Adeles crazy as heck marriage.

As you might be able to tell, this is one crazy, compelling and totally compulsive read. I admit that towards the end, I snuck in time to read this whenever I could (at times when I should have been well, say - doing more productive things). Sarah Pinboroughs writing is suspenseful, gripping and full of life. Her writing cant be confined, nor can it be perfectly presented in a pretty little package. Its crazy, wild and totally out there. The characters are all consuming, I got so wrapped up in them - especially the character of Adele, that I felt like I couldn't escape. And perhaps that was the point. At the end, my eyes flew open, I re-read the last few pages several times and thought I might have gone nuts, but alas, Im only a little crazy (I think). It might have been one of the craziest, strangest endings I have ever read. But I think you all know that by now. Youve read enough reviews. It is a WT-Frak ending. Nothing you have read will prepare you for it.

And if you think for a second that you are going to figure this out, I just have one thing to say: Youre never going to get it - so just quit while you're ahead! Then again.. my GR sister Norma apparently figured it out (based on her splendid review), so maybe, just maybe you will actually be able to figure it out after all. Regardless, it is one insane ride and is well worth it. Recommended for anyone looking to be entertained.

Published on Goodreads and Amazon on 8.18.17.
121703
It's unlike any show I've ever seen. But strange in a really good way!
2103783
This entire series is the most stunningly weird, chaotic jumble of beauty and imagination that I have ever come across. Half the time I don't even understand it, but I have a sincere appreciation for it. These characters, man.
243520
This is a surreal romp of a story that reminded me of various authors; Philip Roth for the long running monologue with constant asides and liberal use of Yiddish, Jasper Fforde and Terry Pratchett for the surrealism, amongst others. Using an animal as a narrator dates back to Anna Sewell and Black Beauty, but Elsie Bovary is very much her own character. Thankfully the book doesn't use the plot of Madame Bovary beyond this.
For all the surreal touches, the story is a relatively simple one -Elsie B., a dairy cow on a small American farm learns about factory farming and what her ultimate fate will be. She also discovers that in India, cows are sacred. A pig, Jerry, equally unaccepting of his fate, learns that Jewish people do not eat pork. He renames himself Shalom and decides that Israel is the place for him. Tom the turkey decides that Turkey has to be the best place to be.

Cow, pig and turkey join forces and combine their skills to escape the farm, using a stolen iPhone and the farmer's memorised credit card numbers to book air tickets although Tom runs the phone battery down by becoming hooked on Angry Birds. There's an amusing scene when Shalom discovers he must undergo a certain medical procedure to become Jewish.

Elsie's narrative throughout is full of asides to the editor, the reader, with many weak puns and up to date cultural references. Fortunately divided as it is into 48 very short chapters the scenes shift quickly and the book can be read before any of this becomes too irritating, if you're not a fan of weak puns.

It's probably best suited to children over 14 or so as well as adults, although younger children will appreciate the concept, the political points made along the way - particularly in Israel and the West Bank - will be lost on them. There are no great insights here, but at least the real world isn't ignored.
This is a low four stars, I did like it, but it isn't a book I will re-read. I have to say I  liked the ending when the author airily explained away the inconsistencies of the plot, such as a cow yet to give birth being milked. Amusing, perhaps not laugh out loud funny, a pleasant way to pass a few hours.
I received a free preview copy of the book under the Vine Voices Amazon co.uk scheme but these are my honest and considered opinions.
2379095
There is a short author's note at the end of "The Divinity Student" where Michael Cisco describes his notion that the act of reading induces a trance-like state, and how his ambition was to produce a work that made one feel as if the words were being dreamt rather than read.
He succeeded. Brilliantly.
This work stands as a bizarre exploration of the surreal and macabre. The story, set in a time and place which are indeterminate, revolves around a divinity student who has been reanimated from death. He is given a mission to move to an old city and take up work as a "wordfinder". That is to say, one who finds and records words which exist but are not official components of language. They are unconsciously written and spoken but never recognized or defined. This develops into a deeper quest to recover the contents of the Book of Words, which had contained the diction of a powerful, pure, and divine language but has since been destroyed. To do this, he must employ strange, mystical techniques on the decomposing corpses of the book's original compilers and thus retrieve this knowledge. As more information is acquired, the divinity student drifts farther and farther from our world into supernaturalism, black magic, and ghoulish power.
The narrative proceeds with an entirely unique cadence as there is a disquietingly smooth flow from one bizarre event to another. The pace and candor, which are sleepy and strangely matter-of-fact, sharply contrast the content, which is immensely dark and bloated with odd, frightening events and with starkly hallucinatory sequences. The reader feels as if they are drifting effortlessly and naturally from one deranged moment to the next, much as they would in a dream. Imagine a lake with a floor made from a giant kaleidoscope that is backlit with powerful lamps and has a black octopus living in the center; or perhaps a priest with eyes painted over his closed eyelids who can induce visions by blowing formaldehyde onto your face.
The details are blurry and vague at best, and much of the plot must extrapolated from the weird collection of information presented. The characters are strange and mostly two dimensional, but this level of depiction, I believe, is necessary to support the foggy, half-real atmosphere of the writing. The prose is, at times, absolutely gorgeous.
I do not recommend this book to anyone interested in a gripping narrative full of strong, memorable characters. I do not recommend this book to anyone who seeks explanation and closure from a story. I do not recommend this book to anyone with a weak stomach.
I do recommend this to someone who is willing to experiment with this odd form of escapism and experience the unique sensation of dreaming through the pages. The images that Cisco evokes are bizarre, but also fascinating in their frightening and psychedelic un-wordliness.
And then, at some point, the book ends and you simply wake up.
1107385
What an incredible imagination some people have