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Stay Corpse! Good Corpse
Nov. 8th, 2011 09:12 pmGraveminder (2011)
Written by: Melissa Marr
Genre: Paranormal
Pages: 324 (Hardcover)
Let me say this at the beginning. You should read this book. I would certainly not, as I did, get from Amazon. And if you are prone to library fines I would pass on that. Perhaps a friend, sort of, will lend you a copy. But you should read it. At some point,assuming there are people buying this one, I am sure there will be more volumes. I am told Ms Marr is generally a good writer so perhaps it shall get better.
Ok, so what am I talking about. Well there is a town in the mideast (judging from speech patterns and when the mysterious 'contract' was signed) who have established a pact with something or someone. Except they call it a contract and not a pact. Nor is there any virgin sacrificing. We are never told if the alcohol is really good, but that is something else.
What is this contract? To be honest, I think Ms Marr had come up with the concept, which is a good one but had not really decided on the particulars. So nobody actually reads the Contract. There is a supernatural sort of Neverwhere community, which is apparently one of many. There is a semi-trickster sort of character who is called Charlie, or Chuck or Mr D. Who is not Death but at the same time..yeah, another one of those perhpas it has not been decided yet.
And if this contract is not upheld on the town's end, well then we have not exactly zombies but sort of quasi-zombies. nomming the living after making them talk quasi-zombies. What happens of Charlie or the dead do not keep up their end of the bargain we are not told.
There are two people who are responsible for keeping up the Town's end of the contract. The Undertaker and the Graveminder. I sort of like the conceit but, well I shall get to that in a moment. The Undertaker of course is male, because that is what Undertakers are of course. And the Graveminder is female because the role is a nurturing one and thus of course has to be female. And they fall in love, because this is a book whee that will happen. There is even almost sex.
Ok, my biggest issue with the concept is that it really hampers the whole concept of free will to an almost terminal degree. The Graveminder and the Undertaker are 'meant' for each other. And they cannot leave. And the townspeople cannot think of the Contract. Literally but I shall leave that.
On the plus side. If there is a sequel, and who does not have them anymore, I hope the town and the Undertaker and the Graveminder and the whole plethora of not needed characters that the author brings in are, if not eliminated, at least made minimal. For Ms Marr has told us there are many lands of the Dead under us. And I would like to see if she can create interactions between them and give us what could be a fascinating new universe. Could being the operative word here.
Written by: Melissa Marr
Genre: Paranormal
Pages: 324 (Hardcover)
Let me say this at the beginning. You should read this book. I would certainly not, as I did, get from Amazon. And if you are prone to library fines I would pass on that. Perhaps a friend, sort of, will lend you a copy. But you should read it. At some point,assuming there are people buying this one, I am sure there will be more volumes. I am told Ms Marr is generally a good writer so perhaps it shall get better.
Ok, so what am I talking about. Well there is a town in the mideast (judging from speech patterns and when the mysterious 'contract' was signed) who have established a pact with something or someone. Except they call it a contract and not a pact. Nor is there any virgin sacrificing. We are never told if the alcohol is really good, but that is something else.
What is this contract? To be honest, I think Ms Marr had come up with the concept, which is a good one but had not really decided on the particulars. So nobody actually reads the Contract. There is a supernatural sort of Neverwhere community, which is apparently one of many. There is a semi-trickster sort of character who is called Charlie, or Chuck or Mr D. Who is not Death but at the same time..yeah, another one of those perhpas it has not been decided yet.
And if this contract is not upheld on the town's end, well then we have not exactly zombies but sort of quasi-zombies. nomming the living after making them talk quasi-zombies. What happens of Charlie or the dead do not keep up their end of the bargain we are not told.
There are two people who are responsible for keeping up the Town's end of the contract. The Undertaker and the Graveminder. I sort of like the conceit but, well I shall get to that in a moment. The Undertaker of course is male, because that is what Undertakers are of course. And the Graveminder is female because the role is a nurturing one and thus of course has to be female. And they fall in love, because this is a book whee that will happen. There is even almost sex.
Ok, my biggest issue with the concept is that it really hampers the whole concept of free will to an almost terminal degree. The Graveminder and the Undertaker are 'meant' for each other. And they cannot leave. And the townspeople cannot think of the Contract. Literally but I shall leave that.
On the plus side. If there is a sequel, and who does not have them anymore, I hope the town and the Undertaker and the Graveminder and the whole plethora of not needed characters that the author brings in are, if not eliminated, at least made minimal. For Ms Marr has told us there are many lands of the Dead under us. And I would like to see if she can create interactions between them and give us what could be a fascinating new universe. Could being the operative word here.
