Friday, August 18, 2017

The City Beyond the Sands (Michael K. Rose)

The City Beyond the Sands
(The Strange Lands Saga, Book 1)
Michael K. Rose
CreateSpace
Fiction, Adventure/Sci-Fi
*** (Okay)


DESCRIPTION: Will doesn't know what happened. One moment, he was watering his tomato plants, and the next he was in the middle of a vast forest, facing down a strange beast the size of a rhinoceros. Finding his way to civilization, such as it is, he learns that he's in a world known as Dushara, a rough approximation of Earth with some key differences... such as prehistoric animals, strange plants, and humans pulled seemingly at random from time. Daniel, his first friend and ersatz guide, came from the 1970's himself; he tells Will that he'd do well to forget his home on Earth and build a new life here. But Will has a son, and will do anything to get back home - even it it means crossing wilderness that even the wide-ranging Arab traders haven't dared enter, in search of a legendary city that may not even exist.

REVIEW: It was discounted, and it looked like a fairly quick adventure tale. In its favor, that's about what it is. The story is clearly inspired by old-school pulp novels, the sort of yarns H. Rider Haggard, Edgar Rice Burroughs, and others wrote. Indeed, Daniel makes his living as a writer, his adventure tales (inspired as much by a youthful love of pulp novels as the peculiar wonders of Dushara) making him a minor celebrity in a world with minimal widespread literary traditions. The world itself has potential, a mish-mash of misplaced cultures founded by temporal refugees, facing dangers from ancient Earth (and possibly elsewhere, as some things seem to have followed a different evolutionary path.) Unfortunately, it also was apparently inspired by the flaws in those old pulp novels, the ones that sometimes make them feel dated. Will and Daniel are the Great White American Hopes of Dushara; one character even explicitly tells them that their unique mindsets are crucial to preserving the "soul" of the people of the land, who too often lapse into barbarism and savagery. (Because, of course, no other culture could rise above superstition or rudimentary scientific principles...) Despite coming from a modern world and having no real training in self defense, Will quickly proves himself a fighting prodigy, and his convenient lifelong fascination with history marks him as equal (and often superior) to local intellectuals. Sidekick natives exist mostly to further Will's quest to find a way back home - even the one black character in the book, a spear-wielding native of 1902 Africa. (There is also one, and only one, woman character - naturally gorgeous, naturally talented, and naturally existing for one of the characters to fall in love with... because that's about the only reason women appear in these stories.) The cultures encountered are quick-sketch caricatures, with little sense of depth; the Arabs are the caravan traders, the Greeks live in fishing villages, the Mongols raid on horseback... all resembling popular culture impressions, which don't tend to hold up when one does deeper research. As for the journey, it's mostly setups for attacks, followed by the expected attacks, the expected survival of key characters, and then wandering on to the next plot point destination. For instance, shortly after Will turns up, signs are found of local barbarian raiders - preceding an attack on the town where he takes refuge. Later, they're warned of "ape men" in the mountains. They travel into the mountains - and the ape-men can't wait to attack. Another leg warns of Mongols... You probably get the pattern by now. At some point, it started feeling like a game, a map loaded with beasts and beings whose sole purpose for existing is attacking the heroes - but never in overwhelming enough numbers to do more than allow them to gain experience points and level up in combat. As for the titular "city beyond the sands"... well, without spoilers, I can only say I was rather underwhelmed by it, especially given the hype. Then the ending offers little conclusion, setting up the next novel in the series.
If you're a fan of old-school adventure novels, and don't mind the formula of such tales, I expect you'll enjoy this story. As for me, I'm afraid it's just not my cup of cocoa. Despite the promise and some moments of imagination, I just never felt it lived up to its potential, or pushed itself beyond its pulp roots.

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King Solomon's Mines (H. Rider Haggard) - My Review
Island in the Sea of Time (S. M. Stirling) - My Review

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