Usually if I like a book I give it 5 stars, or 4 if it came close to ticking all the boxes for me but wasn't quite there, but I haven't been in the habit of writing out a review. The stars help other potential readers, but not to the degree that a more detailed explanation of one's thoughts do. In that spirit I thought I would write up my first book review, for the Crooked God Machine by author Autumn Christian @snowmachine. It was after seeing her account here and being mesmerised by her writing style that I followed up with a purchase of this novel. And I'm glad that I did. Needless to say I give this 5 stars. These are my thoughts about this novel.
[BOOK REVIEW] CROOKED GOD MACHINE
A dark and surreal tale about the Black Planet, the Crooked God Machine tells the story of Charles who is born into an insane world run by a God who communicates to people via television. It is a world populated by plague machines, prophets and hell shuttles. A planet where life makes no sense and people willingly undergo lobotomy type procedures in order to cope with that fact. And yet there is Charles who just wants to understand life, and to find someone to love and to love him in return.
The author Autumn Christian has one of the most unique voices I have ever encountered. To me it is all parts poetic, surreal, bleak, and beautiful. She has told a nightmarish story here, one that mirrors the old testament of the Bible in many ways. One that translates it into a modern vision. That repurposes, reimagines, rewords, and yet still has at its core the central confusion of the Bible, and of life itself. Why is God so full of anger? Why is life so confusing? What is love and why is it so fleeting? And why do humans destroy themselves?
Charles is a rebel at heart. A boy that grows into a man who has watched all those he loves give up, or run off in desperation and fear. The people around him all seem to be under the spell of this angry and jealous God. But he senses that there must be something more to life, that things are just not right. This story is really his search, his attempt to find the scattered pieces of reality and attempt to put them back together.
Sometimes I read something so powerful and so original that it shifts something within me, within my thinking and how I view the world. Philip K Dick was one who did this time and again for me. Now I can add Autumn Christian to that list.
Image sourced from Google images.
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@naquoya
Short Fiction:
Bang Bang You're Dead
I Have No Name and I Must Scream
The Last Book Store
The Judge
The Man In The Mirror
The End of the World [Part 1] [Part 2]
The Locked Room
The Gods of Love and War [Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3]
Notes From an Amateur Writer blog series:
Notes From an Amateur Writer #1 - The Search For Inspiration
Notes From an Amateur Writer #2 - A Call to Action: Interacting With the World Outside of Me
Notes From an Amateur Writer #3 - Facing the Challenge
Notes From an Amateur Writer #4 - The Soundtrack to Grief and Loss
Notes From an Amateur Writer #5 - Music as a Catalyst for Imagination: Jimi Hendrix's Little Wing
Notes From an Amateur Writer #6 - The Stories All Around Us
Notes From an Amateur Writer #7 - Introducing Nomad [A Cyberpunk Mystery in the Making]
Notes From an Amateur Writer #8 - The House at the Edge of the World
Notes From an Amateur Writer #9 - Making Peace With My Kindle
Notes From an Amateur Writer #10 - Learning the Craft of Story Structure
Notes From an Amateur Writer #11 - Adults Sit at the Big Table, Children Sit at the Small Table
Notes From an Amateur Writer #12 - The Time I Won a Lego Competition
Notes From an Amateur Writer #13 - Learning to Fly
Notes From an Amateur Writer #14 - The Tucker 48: Face to Face With a Million Dollar Vehicle
Notes From an Amateur Writer #15 - When the Levee Breaks: A Story in Song and Words
Notes From an Amateur Writer #16 - Monty Python, Keanu Reeves, and My Case of Invisibility
Notes From an Amateur Writer #17 - Dancing With My Muse
Notes From an Amateur Writer #18 - Facing the Challenge Part 2
Notes From an Amateur Writer #19 - Telling Stories
Notes From an Amateur Writer #20 - Life Is Like a Box of Crazy
Notes From an Amateur Writer #21 - Writing Myself Out of Existence
Notes From an Amateur Writer #22 - The Finish Line Becomes the Next Starting Line
Notes #23 - It Is Sometimes An Appropriate Response To Reality To Go Insane
Notes #24 - The Happy Smiley People Ad Agency
Notes #25 - Some Days Are Full of Blah
Notes #26 - Stop and Smell the Future