The Way of All Flesh by Tim Waggoner

David wakes up to find his town has become a nightmare. He doesn’t remember what happened – but everything is falling apart, his friends and neighbours are now brutal cannibals and terrible demons stalk them. Only a strange teenager who follows him around seems to have answers

Kate knew her brother was dead – nearly everyone is dead in this zombie infested wasteland – but she never expected to come across his zombified body staggering around. She knows she should grant her twin mercy – but he doesn’t seem to be acting the same way most zombies do

I… have no idea how to write this review. I’ve tried to start it several times and I am completely lost.

The Way of All Flesh is… weird. It is unlike everything I’ve ever read before. It kept me reading because I had no idea what was happening, what was real or what the result would be, I kept going because it was mysterious and raised lots of questions and conundrums and had a constant shifting viewpoint that made it so very hard to figure out which character was seeing reality, what was really happening and what the end result would be.

The ending broke through every single guess I made – I didn’t see it coming and I’m still not entirely sure I understand it

That’s not a bad thing. Usually when I say I don’t understand the ending of a book or the plot of the book, it’s an indication of a plot hole or bad characterisation or general shaky writing. This isn’t – the confusion, ambiguity and surreal nature of the book is clearly intentional. It’s a book that demands you pay attention and think, that requires close analysis and a lot of careful re-reading.

On the face of it, we have a zombie apocalypse – a plague (Blacktide) wiped out a huge swathe of humanity and leaving most of the rest as zombies; with only a few non-infected survivors left. Our protagonist is David – a zombie. He desperately tries to figure out what is happening while driven by impossible hunger – guided by a mysterious teenager who seems to have all the answers and a lot of crypticness. David’s vision constantly shifts back and forth between reality – zombies, run down ruin of a town – and an odd zombie vision where humans are monsters and his zombie neighbours seem to be coherent human beings. Coherent cannibals… but coherent still. Because of the way it’s written I do keep doubting which one is the actual truth – or whether either are true or both are true. He staggers through the world, trying to find his family even as he learns more and more about what has happened.

Lost Girl, Season 5, Episode 8: End of Faes

Tamsin is still very unhappy and is throwing all kinds of snarling at Bo for not loving her (the woman who fell in love with Rainer lot loving you must sting Tamsin). Bo tries to get her to stay and fails - and is then distracted by a letter sealed by a triskele; probably from the Ancients.

It’s an invitation and she, Lauren, Dyson and Trick have all been invited. They decide to go for research since even mythological beings have a weakness – and Dyson decides to take Mark because we need to push Miniwolf into the story somehow. Vex is worried about mimiwolf in danger and offers to act as back up if needed.

To the party – and it’s a surprise party with a huge crowd. And it’s a party for Bo – why am I not shocked? Not being entirely foolish (no, really) they realise this probably has something to do with Bo’s dad. All of them follow their own missions – and Bo decides this is the best time to tell Lauren that after their sex during the blackout she wants to reboot their relationship. Tamsin is also there because we need more tension.

Elsewhere Hera (who got better after being stabbed) and Iris have a very disturbing relationship – with Hera having way too much power over Iris and is willing to use it to control her. Iris looks disturbed.

Bo ends up alone with Iris who is desperate for company (and asks to touch Bo’s hair – is this some kind of weird racial trope reversal?) Bo tries to succubus information out of her – and Zeus appears. She happily explains that she’s basically the head god of every pantheon (including Odin, that sound you heard was the remaining attempts of continuity with the previous season finally gasping and dying) and the Greeks depicted her as male because a) she has many forms and b) patriarchal societies depict their head god as a guy, no shocker. Also Zeus is totally on Bo’s side and wants to grant her her heart’s desire (freedom from her father) and to stop him ending the world using Bo. Ok, that would be bad

Dyson, meanwhile, injects Hera with bug spray (which Hera kinds of shrugs off not even treating it as a faux pas, I’m sure Ms Manners has something to say about injecting one’s host) and when he calls Alesha “his bitch” Dyson smacks him. I approve. Do it again. As an added bonus it also gets Lauren a blood sample to experiment on.

Bo decides that Zeus is being a big meany exploiting her heart’s desire and storms off, telling Trick they’re leaving. Trick takes a moment to exposition a powerful magic shield which will, no doubt, be important later before Trick, Zeus and Bo all drink a cocktail of oracle eyes to see what a big bad guy Hades is. Just in case “Hades, god of the underworld” wasn’t a sufficient clue. The vision is, predictably, awful and dramatic with everything all dead and gone.

Bo is connected to Hades so feeding him power – and Zeus wants to break the bond and separate them to keep hades locked up. Let the ritual begins! Of course it’s super dangerous but there’s no way Bo is going to die so let’s not even try to play the tension game. She has to choose one of many mythological weapons to remove Hade’s mark

The Leftovers, Season 1, Episode 8: Cairo

Someone let the art school student out of his cage and he’s let loose on the opening scene – a musical montage of Kevin preparing a dinner and, elsewhere, Patti doing one of the typically very random Guilty Remnant things – laying out a huge number of outfits on the floor (I’m assuming each ensemble represents one of the Departed).

After which, Patti hands Laurie a huge wadge of cash and a note that says “Ready?” Laurie nods.

Kevin was setting the table for a dinner with Jill, Aimee and Nora (who still has the GR stalking her, we also see the GR don’t just follow people but actually track their movements – and Kevin still has his enraged barking dog). You can cut the awkwardness with a knife which gets more awkward when Aimee asks about her job and Jill asks about her gun, many many questions which just get worse and more invasive and generally reminds us all that Jill is not a pleasant person. Kevin objects but Nora is much more ready – and hands her purse to Jill and tells her to search it. Obviously there’s no gun. After the unnecessary bag searching over the entrees they go back to dinner.

When Nora leaves she seems quite blasé about the whole thing and further advises Kevin not to go back in and argue with Jill because that’s what she’s looking for. Kevin starts to protest that Jill started it and Nora makes an arch comment on the maturity of that statement. They say goodnight with a kiss and Nora being all positive.

Kevin goes to bed and and is woken up in his truck in the middle of the woods by dean the dog-shooter who takes him to a cabin – inside which is Patti, unconscious and tied to a chair.

Meanwhile, Megan loses her temper and starts screaming and attacking Matt who is handing out fliers with her name on it telling her to “go home.” Definitely a breach of GR protocols of silent emotionlessness. Laurie drags her home while Megan rages about Matt writing about her mother and how they should stop him. Laurie tries to signal her to be quiet and to sit down. Megan does but insists on seeing what Patti says

While waiting, Megan watches television and continues to talk to Laurie’s visible fury. She sends the messages “no violent” and “it’s weak”. When Megan protests (in writing) that she isn’t weak, Laurie takes her to see Rev. Matt and his church (Nora is there). We learn that Megan’s mother died 1 day before the Departure and Matt accuses the GR of “hijacking” her grief. Megan writes an apology which Matt accepts even while Nora is openly scornful. Matt declares he isn’t giving up on Megan. Nora hasn’t finished though – she suggests if Laurie’s going door to door handing out apologies she should visit Jill. Bullseye Nora.

Fangs for the Fantasy Podcast 2015, Episode 3

It's time for episode 3 of the Fangs for the Fantasy podcast! We continue our critical analysis of the genre in all it's many forms, all through our social justice lens

You can join us here and you can listen live on our youtube channel, here, or in our sidebar. All will also carry a recording after the show is finished. As ever all our previous podcasts can be found in the archive

This week we look at the season finale of Lost Girl, American Horror Story, The Librarians (on which Renee is totally wrong), Resurrection. We also discuss The Returned (US) and the terrible appropriation in Grimm, Sleepy Hollow and the terribleness of Katrina.

We also discuss lack of LGBT characters in our current shows and the cancellation of In the Flesh

The podcast begins at 7:00pm EST (technology willing)






Like all  the Fangs for the Fantasy podcasts (archives here) we read a book and discuss it on the show. 

19th January - 26th January: Unbound by Jim C Hines

26th January - 2nd February: A Lady Integrity by Shelly Adina

2nd February - 9th February: The Diabolical Miss Hyde by Viola Carr

9th February - 16th February: Fury’s Kiss by Karen Chance

16th February - 23rd February: Vision in Silver by Anne Bishop
23rd February - 2nd March: Dark Debt by Chloe Neil

12 Monkeys, Season One, Episode Two: Mentally Divergent

This episode begins in 2043, with Jones listening to a recording of Cassandra's, in which she talks about the plague starting with Leeland and when she gets to the part about the true architects, Cassandra brings up the army of the 12 Monkeys.  Jones finds the image Jennifer drew in a mental institution back in 2015  of a monkey and decides to send Cole and Ramse to investigate.

In 2043, Ramse and Cole make their way through a parking lot at night.  Cole heads in against Ramse's warning about a potential ambush.  The two men make their way through a building by flashlight and enter room 249 to find a drawing on the room.  Ramse feels that this doesn't make any sense because the recording says that Leeland is responsible. Ramse questions if Leeland is in fact dead. Cole confirms Leeland's death and adds that the recording said that the plague started with Leeland. Ramse questions if Cole wants to return to the past because Jones originally said that "this is one and done," but Cole now believes that Jones was wrong.  After going through files, Cole notes that the file on 248 is missing and that it's the only one that's gone. ( it's worth noting that the director made a mistake here, unless there is some meaning here I am missing. The men entered room 249 but are talking about room 248.) Suddenly, Ramse and Cole are attacked but manage to get the upperhand on their opponents quickly. 

Cole and Ramse enter return to the science lab and Ramse tells Cole that he is not the same man since he got back. Cole denies that this is the case but Ramse responds that he understands that Cole is sad since he's been back, adding that anyone would be.  Ramse brings up that Cole had access to food, sights and yes, the girl but Cole assures him that it's not like that. Ramse reminds Cole that he's not from there but here. They then discuss whether or not Cole is going to see Cassandra again.

It's now 2015 in Washington D.C., and Cassandra calls Aaron for help.  When Aaron arrives, Cassandra thanks him for coming and admits that she didn't have anyone else to call, as he drives through the city.  Cassandra directs Aaron to take her to her grandparents old store because she wants to lay low for a little while.  It's not long before a disagreement happens between them about Cole.  When Aaron says that he wants to help, Cassandra suggests that he question why there were no charges laid against her, why she  was released to the security firm to begin with, and particularly why they never made it the police station.

In the future, Jones says that the symbol (read: 12 monkey symbol) appeared in all of the major cities, adding that there was a design to ensure that the virus hit with maximum impact.  Cole questions if the guiding hand was the army of the 12 monkeys.  Jones says it's not clear yet who the 12 monkeys were and that they could have been a terrorist organization, or even religious fanatics. Cole wonders if he should go to 1987 to see Leeland but Jones says that they don't yet have enough power to send him that far back. Instead, pointing to a picture of Jennifer, Jones says that they are sending him back to 2015 to track her down because she is somehow connected to the 12 monkeys.  Cole suggests that Cassandra would be great at helping him get inside the institution but Jones does not want Cassandra to become Cole's accomplice.  Cole reminds Jones that she wasn't there and Jones points out that Cole could have corrupted Cassandra's timeline and prevented her from leaving the message which would have stopped their entire investigation. Jones suggests that Cole is risking everything by playing with time, adding that she has learned enough about time to fear it.

Cole is given an injection and Ramse tells Cole that he wants him to do a shot, get laid and find some vintage. Cole jokes about sleeping with Ramse's mother.  Cole lies down in the travel machine and is told that he is being sent to Philadelphia in 2015.  Cole questions if Jones has the right time and location because she was off the last time by weeks but Jones assures him that she has it all handled.

In the past, Cole finds himself next a tank. Cole is suddenly surrounded by soldiers because instead of Philadelphia in 2015, Jones has sent him to North Korea in 2006.  Talk about a bad landing spot. Cole is led away by the soldiers and taken to an interrogation room, screaming that he cannot understand the soldiers.

In the 2043 the alarms go off and Jones realises that Cole is in the wrong place.  The scientists work hard to track the signal with the intention to sling shot Cole to where he needs to be.  In 2006, a General takes a note from Cole's pocket and says that Cole is American, which is good for him.  In 2043, Ramse is starting to freak out and Jones reminds Ramse that he is only there because Cole wants him to be.  Jones believes that it is Cole's destiny to stop the plague from ever happening. Jones iniaties the sling shot, just as the North Koreans start to beat on Cole.

Cole is then shifted to J.D. Peoples Mental Hospital in 2015. Cole finds himself being escorted into the hospital after assaulting. Dr. Sandman tries to get some basic information from Cole and tells him that he is likely suffering from PTSD.  Cole is then told he is going to be hospitalized for 24 hours.

Cassandra is still frantically trying to find information on the army of the 12 monkeys from Jeremy.  Cassandra turns to the television, when it is reported that Goines has died of a massive heart attack.  This of course is not how Goines died. Frustrated, Cassandra grabs her things and leaves.

At the hospital, as a patient Cole has freedom of movement. Jennifer passes by him to take her medicine and though she approaches him, Cole has yet no idea that Jennifer is the person he is looking for. Cole, a little bit entranced, follows Jennifer until he connects her last name with Leeland.  Steps away from the nurses station, Jennifer coughs up her medicine and talks to Cole about her love of primary numbers. Cole asks about the number 12 and Jennifer says that 12 in not a primary and that Cole is not as smart as her.  Cole as Jennifer to teach him and she readily agrees, asking him what he wants to learn. Cole asks about the army of the 12 monkeys and what she knows.  When Jennifer laughs, Cole pushes her into her room and ironically against the wall on which she drew a monkey.  Jennifer says that she cannot talk about the monkeys because it's against doctors orders.  When Cole gets insistent, Jennifer explains that there are a dozen agents in her father's kingdom who have eyes like Cole's.  Jennifer claims that she set these agents free and got them all shot.  Jennifer gets over excited, causing Cole to have to cover her mouth and warn that he will hurt her if he has to.  Jennifer then calmly says that the 12 monkeys are her cover band.  Jennifer pushes the panic button and when the orderlies burst in, Jennifer tells them that Cole tried to kill her.

Unbound (Magic Ex Libris #3) by Jim C Hines

Isaac is in a difficult place – his magic bound by Gutenberg, he has suffered a terrible loss. Without his magic he is helpless but he is determined to try and find Jeneta, especially as the Porters are far more distracted by the Followers of Bi Sheng who have exposed them – and magic – to the world.

Meridiana, an ancient threat that has been long imprisoned, is using Jeneta to her own ends – the conquest and domination of the whole world with the aid of her Ghost Army. It’s a terrible threat to face with not even a scrap of power left to him

I have always loved this world on many levels. Of course, there’s the sheer imagination of it – the concept of magic drawn from books, the many creatures of mythology that both exist in the world and have also been drawn from books to create a near infinite pantheon from which to draw. I love the concept. I also really love the geeky shout outs – this series is a great big revel in genre fiction, full of references to books that so many readers will know and love. It’s an homage, it’s a celebration and in the middle of it is Isaac who is every bit as geeky and adoring of literature as we are. I love it.

I also like how the world has developed. In part we have the Ghost Army as antagonists – but their depiction is also woven into the world in general, suggesting old magical practices have had to alter and die because of the effect of the ghosts. It’s a personal taste thing but I love it when elements of a story have clearly shaped the world and we don’t have a plot that sits clumsily on top of the world.

There’s also a major change in this book – magic is being exposed, step by step. It’s not done in a major way and the main characters are definitely more distracted by other things happening – but its growling and we get blog posts, articles and news reports covering so many different ramifications of magic being revealed. We have laws being pushed to try and limit and restrict magic. We have author’s organisations suddenly realising they are responsible for producing devastating weapons and monsters with their works of fiction – what onus rests on an author who creates a weapon that can be pulled out of that book and used? And then there’s the realisation among many people that magic can perform miracles, cure devastating illnesses – which is definitely something to celebrate but also turns into the horrible question “well, why haven’t they?” If magicians could cure cancer but instead kept their magic secret, well that’s a terrible thing to absorb. Especially when magicians may be your closest family who let your loved ones suffer rather than use their magic to help. I think this is going to be a major element of the next book.

The nature of the big bad was also an interesting twist I liked.

On top of the world we have Isaac who I really like – and not just because of him being an avatar of all things geeky. He spends a large amount of the book completely powerless and spending most of it in the presence of Gutenberg and Juan De Ponce de Leon and even Lena who are all immensely powerful people. But Isaac’s true strength shows through – he’s intelligent, very imaginative and has a brilliant but easily distracted mind and he is very very well read. He is a librarian and that is his power. Towards the end of the book, that imagination is what powers him back to magic – and throws in a nice level of epic in the final confrontations which I always appreciate.

We also have a lot of diversity in the book – and most of them are interestingly written to bring out some nuance to the characters. I loved the constant presence of Nidhi, a South Asian bisexual or lesbian woman in the book. As a non-magical human she seems to be the one with the least impact in the story – but as a therapist the other characters are constantly turning to her for both support but also advice. They rely on her a lot to hear about the condition of those around them – because all of them have been through such extreme stress and loss and are facing such a huge threat that many of them are hurting and close to breaking. Nidhi is an expert and everyone treats her as such. There’s none of the fictional trope of contempt for the therapist or disregarding the psychiatrist’s opinions – her input is welcome, needed and valued. I also like the growing dynamic between her and Isaac.

Book of the Week

It's another Monday and time for another episode of the Fangs for the Fantasy Podcast!

You will be able to listen to us on our youtube channel, or by the link in the sidebar or by the post here that will be posted. We hope to see you there

Like all  the Fangs for the Fantasy podcasts (archives here) we read a book and discuss it on the show.  For those wanting to read with us, our next books of the week are

19th January - 26th January: Unbound by Jim C Hines

26th January - 2nd February: A Lady Integrity by Shelly Adina

2nd February - 9th February: The Diabolical Miss Hyde by Viola Carr

9th February - 16th February: Fury’s Kiss by Karen Chance

16th February - 23rd February: Vision in Silver by Anne Bishop
23rd February - 2nd March: Dark Debt by Chloe Neil

The Leftovers, Season 1, Episode 7: Solace for Tired Feet

Someone has posted lots and lots of posters with Gladys’s face on them and the words “save them” underneath – Laurie and other members of the Guilty Remnant aren’t happy about this and rip the posters down. While she’s doing so, she sees Jill passing and they have an angst moment before Aimee pulls Jill away.

Jill and friends go to the woods to play a fascinating game of “who can stay locked in a fridge the longest”. Because these are the most bored teenagers in the world. Jill wins, of course, and the handle breaks so they can’t get her out. She starts suffocating when an old man – her grandfather (who was in a mental institution) lets her out. He tells her not to tell Kevin she saw him then leaves.

Over to Nora and Kevin who are both awkward in their flirting and surprisingly cute. But when they go to Nora’s the GR are there smoking at them – Kevin argues, Nora is more pro-active and gets the hose. Nora invites Kevin in and amusingly mocks the GR and their tactics of stealing photos, though she realises it may be a faux pas given Laurie’s membership. Unfortunately, the GR have broken the mood and the awkward causes them to raincheck

Kevin goes home to Jill and Aimee (has Aimee moved in?) and Jill asks about her grandfather – asking specifically if he hurt anyone. Kevin says yes – and Jill tells her dad that her grandfather is out of the mental hospital.

Kevin calls the police together where we learn his dad (the ex-police chief) burned down the library before checking himself into the mental hospital. He sets the police looking for him while he goes and visits Mayor Lucy. They’re both worried about someone getting hurt – but when he suggests searching her house she succinctly replies “fuck you, Kevin I haven’t spoken to your father in a month.” Apparently his mental illness grew too much for her to deal with. She also believes he’s going to see Kevin not her.

Which leads to Kevin going home and making sure there’s a gun by his chair as he listens to the police radio. He falls asleep and has odd dreams about dogs, Dean, dead GR, guns and his son. He wakes up, in bed, with his hand bandaged and a dog tied up outside. His hand has been bitten. When Jill and Aimee wake up (does she live with them?) Aimee says that Kevin brought the dog home and apparently she helped him doctor his hand.

He goes out when he gets a call from Dennis, one of his officers. Dennis approached Kevin’s father (they always got on before) and the old man brutally beat Dennis. He then ripped the library apart. Interviewing a man there, Kevin learns that his dad used a computer, broke it and tried to borrow $200 to get something for his son.

While Kevin’s at the library his dad goes to his house – and Jill finds him wrestling over his shirt with the new angry dog. She takes him in and gets him something to eat, talk about his voices (who call her Snow White) and he asks to borrow $200 and when she says no, he asks for tranquilisers. Which they do have – because Kevin takes a lot of pills. He wants to drug the dog then starts arguing with the voices in his head. Which is when Kevin comes home – Jill called him before she let her granddad in and he praises her for it.