Have you ever had the most awful week? There must be a big, black rain cloud over my and my family member’s heads right now. So, when in doubt, read something really wacky. I have talked about my local indie publisher, Two Dollar Radio, on here before. They publish some really off-the-wall sci-fi/fantasy as well as some hard hitting family dramas and political novels. Basically, they publish a mixed bag of really unique authors and their work. Nobody is paying me to sing their praises; I just genuinely like the company and what they put out. Enter The Vine That Ate the South, one of those off-the-wall sci-fi novels I mentioned.
As the title suggests, there is a vine that is eating the southern United States (there really is too– look up the kudzu vine). Specifically, the novel takes place somewhere in western Kentucky. Our unnamed protagonist sets out to find the rumored heart of the vine, also known as “The Deadening.” Since the protagonist is a bit unsure of how to proceed by himself, he enlists the help of Carver Canute, a rather strange local with a thick southern accent and a pig-greased pompadour who has been to The Deadening before. Together, the narrator/protagonist and Carver venture through the Kentucky wilderness, finding everything from vampires to albino panthers to some just plain crazy hillbillies.
I have read some bizarre books before, but in my opinion, all of the craziness must have a point or else it will not be as enjoyable to me. Is there a point then? Kind of. There’s an adventure with a destination, but along the way Wilkes throws many Southern U.S. folktales and philosophical passages our way. If you aren’t familiar with the folktales, you might be confused. Even if you are familiar with them (or are happy to go along for the ride if you don’t), you might wonder what the point of encountering some of them are because the encounters do not always directly or obviously connect to the overall plot/journey. I enjoyed the nods to references I knew, but I also questioned the point of some encounters in the whole scope of the novel. Maybe there wasn’t a point sometimes, at least compared to a more traditional adventure story plot, but it could have been the author simply wanting to have fun and push some of the folklore of the south into the hands of readers unfamiliar with it. As someone from a state that is also considered very rural, agricultural, backward, and a bit hillbilly, I can appreciate wanting to share the things unique to my area with a wider audience.
Writing-wise, I enjoyed the book. The author is good at describing the weird and wild scenes. There are also some really beautiful lines that talk about nature and more philosophical topics. The novel is in first-person perspective, and the narrator has a very casual, conversational tone. I have to commend the writer’s ability to translate the local dialect into the text. As someone who has lived in Kentucky, I can say that I know a few people who sound just like Carver Canute. The characters are also well written. Carver is weird but entertaining, has great lines, and is very memorable. The narrator never shares his name, but he references his past here and there throughout the novel. You can get a good sense of the kind of person he is without needing a name. I could relate to him a bit because of these references, so I found that even as a female reader, it was easy to insert myself into the book.
The final verdict is four out five stars from me. It was a wild, fun ride that gave me equal amounts escapism and stuff to think about it. I would recommend this to anyone who has a taste for bizarre science fiction, folklore, or fans of Jeff Vandermeer’s work. Vandermeer actually has praise for this novel on its cover, so I think it will hit the mark for his fans who are in the mood for something more indie in style.
Are you happy with your life? Jason Dessen’s life has turned out well. He believes he is happy with his wife and son. They live a comfortable life. Jason and his wife sometimes wonder how their lives could have been different if they made different choices, but we all wonder about what-ifs, right? Jason goes out to celebrate his college friend’s scientific achievement (an award Jason himself could have won… perhaps), but he never makes it home. He is abducted and when he regains consciousness he is in a world not unlike his own.
I received this as an Advance Reader Copy (releasing September 16th 2016) from a Goodreads giveaway so take all my opinions and observations with a larger grain of salt than usual.
I have been wanting this book since I heard about it. The blurb describes is as “a decopunk pulp SF alt-history space opera mystery set in a Hollywood—and solar system.” Yes, yes, yes. Director Severin Unck, daughter of the famous director Percival Unck, never returns from shooting her last documentary about a colony on Venus that mysteriously vanished. Severin is a realist while her father enjoys making movies about the fantastic. Her search for the truth might have led to her death… but is she truly dead?
In a matter of days the world has ended. A pandemic, a disease that kills a victim within 48 hours, has left 99% of the world’s population dead. The survivors spend the rest of their lives scraping by, forever changed by the tragedy. In this post-apocalyptic world there is a troupe of traveling actors and musicians who call themselves The Traveling Symphony. When they aren’t protecting themselves from bandits they perform Shakespeare and play music for townspeople they come across.