Escape Artists
PodCastle => Episode Comments => Topic started by: Ocicat on November 30, 2010, 07:45:48 PM
-
PodCastle 133: And The Blood Of Dead Gods Shall Mark The Score (http://podcastle.org/2010/11/30/podcastle-133-and-the-blood-of-dead-gods-shall-mark-the-score/)
by Gary Kloster (http://www.garykloster.com/).
Read by Christiana Ellis.
Originally published in Fantasy Magazine.
Huck smiled, and his smile stretched the pink rift of scar tissue that ran up from the corner of his jaw, across the twisted pit of his ruined right eye and onto his broad forehead. Before Nikolai’s betrayal, Huck’s face had been sternly handsome and the blood tatted into his dark skin had shone like lightning. That tat’s magic had made him beautiful and terrifying, like a storm rolling, and with a look he could make all the world his bitch. Now, left with just the scar and the spark of rage that still burned in the depths of his remaining eye, he had to be content with just scaring people shitless.
“Tribals are crap, redneck poser ink. Do yourself a favor and piss off.”
Two minutes after Huck banged in and my only customer that whole damn day was sulking out, a black dot of ink no bigger than a pimple hidden beneath his shirt. “Follow him out, Huck,” I said as the door rattled shut and I trashed the ink that I’d laid out for the job. “We’re done, remember?”
Rated R for: violence, language and adult themes.
This week’s episode is sponsored by METAtropolis: Cascadia (http://www.audible.com/microsite/the_project?source_code=AUDFP90IIPD110810)
-
I'm not really sure how i feel about this one. For large parts of the story it felt very childish and seemed to deal with interesting issues in a rather ham-handed and unsophisticated way. But then I found myself really getting into it and actually finding the concept slightly more interesting and well thought-out than I first assumed. The story seemed to flirt between a quite interesting study of identity and a really twisted tough guy/gal testosterone off.
The plot was pretty weak. It was fairly obvious that the antagonist would arrive at just the wrong moment and that the protagonist would go with the other guy, not him. The way in which he got out of the seemingly impossible situation was slightly interesting, but I think the fact that those blood things were there and had so much power made it inevitable. It seems odd that the antagonist didn't think that he might just do that and plan for it.
The characters were also slightly flat and bland, apart from the protagonist, whom I actually found quite interesting. The antagonist was a pretty generic deceitful backstabber - I don't think the Russian accent helped to be honest. Huck was also pretty unlikable - why did the protagonist ever love him again? he just seemed like a very dominant and overbearing guy. I'd have liked to have seen the protagonist cut his losses with him as well, because there seemed little reason to stay with him apart from his dependence issues.
The setting was probably this story's strong point. I was initially really dubious about the idea of killing old gods and having their blood stick around, especially being an Ancient Historian - I can get a little snobbish about mythology and gods and the like - but eventually I bought it. I thought the idea of tattooing into one's skin was kinda silly to start with, but again I warmed to the idea as I got over my slightly snobbish attitude to tattoos, especially the kind of crap that the drunk guy was getting at the start - but for completely different reasons from Huck I might add.
The writing was also a highlight. I thought this was really well written. I was slightly dubious about saying things like 'making me his bitch', which seemed to be a really jarring colloquialism against a much more ordinary style, and a slightly childish one at that. Apart from the odd little bit that I didn't like, the writing was, on the whole, pretty solid, with a nice mix of exposition, description and plot. I liked how you didn't fall into the trap of not showing, but telling with the first person perspective. It's always tempting to let the narrator tell too much.
In terms of tattoos, I'm not really much of a fan. That being said I've seen some people with really awesome tattoos. I'm just not sure how they'll look when I get older. I'm also not sure what to get. I'd probably get a phrase, rather than a motif, mostly because words have always meant much more to me than pictures.
-
First things first: Christiana's reading was truly excellent. I always enjoy listening to one of her readings/podcasts. I love it when she does different voices for the characters, and she did a great job on this one.
The story:
Well... I kinda liked it. The whole killing the pagan gods thing for personal gain (or Truth) sort of irked me, but it's to be expected of an "enlightened" civilization. (Holy Roman Empire persecution of the Druids, anybody?).
I've said this before and I'm going to say it again, I like it when the fantasy is part of modern day life. Electronic alarms alongside wards, strong thick glass strengthened by charms, and hearing the words "data lines", "wards", and "cell towers" in the same sentence is fun.
The story was a little dark, and I was listening to it in broad daylight without a cloud in the sky, so it was a little weird, but a lot of fun.
Oh, spoiler alert, in case somebody didn't hear the end yet. If you haven't, do bother reading the rest of the post.
The character development was a little weak in my opinion. I spent far too much time trying to figure out exactly what the narrator is. (She's a girl, oh no wait, stubble. A dude then, and gay. That's fine. "Baby girl"??? A man in denial? Oh, sex change...) it was fun trying to work it out, and I do like it when the author doesn't come right out and tell you what's going on, but makes you work for it, a la O'Henry. But there was too much going on that I was trying to figure out at the same time. (Scar? Tattoos? Blood of gods? Why jail? And what exactly does the blood of the gods do? And how come it doesn't affect Woody?) All the questions were answered in the end, but I spent a lot of the story trying to work it out, and think in parallel across many lines of thought.
That isn't necessarily a bad thing, it was just.... strange.
I think the one thing I truly didn't like was the ending. My sense of justice is wronged. Huck is a manipulative bastard and needs to be punished so he knows he's been punished. (Having his tattoo burned out (how and when and why did that happen??) wasn't a punishment for him. It just fueled his hate and anger. He needed something a little more... dreadful, perhaps. Maybe losing his mind?) Also, having Woody work with him again implies either that he (Woody) hasn't learned his lesson, while it certainly sounds like he has. Or that he's falling prey to the same old "This time I will be in charge, and things will be different" mantra which never works.
I don't need every story too have a happy ending, nor do I require the opposite. But this case just seemed off. The whole story was dark, and we get a happy ending, full of promise for the future? I don't think so. That makes the whole thing unbelievable. I had no problem with my suspension of disbelief until now, welcomed it in fact, but the ending won't carry. I'm sorry, but it just doesn't hold water.
Other than that, a very good story, especially (or because) it was written in a sleep-deprived 24 hour marathon.
-
Hmmm... I liked and disliked it. I like GaryK's writing style, and he certainly does come up with some great ideas.
-The beginning, for the longest time, was just two guys at an ink shop haggling over their crimes. The god blood didn't really become an element until 20 minutes in with the flashback of her seeing a god bleed out. That's where it really god interesting to me, so it would've been nice if that'd been a little closer up front.
-iamafish has a good point that it's a little surprising that Nicolai didn't have a contingency plan for this outcome. Considering her high resistance to the blood, that ought to be one of his first plans.
-I really really wanted to see the blood at work. There were hints that it was magical even early on with Huck complaining about her using "ordinary" ink for tattoos and whatnot, and then later Woody explained that he could become a shapeshifter. But they stated time and time again that they've never seen this amount of blood, so how do they know what the effect will be? What has the blood been used for in the past? For all I know it's just a hallucinogenic that makes you think you've done something fantastic, since we never actually see it used.
On the question in the outro: I don't know what I would choose for a tattoo. When I was younger I pictured a dragon, but I'm not sure about that anymore. Most of my interests are media-related and it seems a little too corny to me to have an image from a book, movie, or video game.
Regarding Max's name, if I were pressed to pronounce that handle, I would say "Max E to the I Pi", but I'm probably completely wrong. :P
-
On the question in the outro: I don't know what I would choose for a tattoo. When I was younger I pictured a dragon, but I'm not sure about that anymore. Most of my interests are media-related and it seems a little too corny to me to have an image from a book, movie, or video game.
I like tattoos, but on other people. I wouldn't be able to see one on myself properly to get the full affect. So, I wouldn't chose any tattoo for myself, but I can appreciate nice ones on other people.
Regarding Max's name, if I were pressed to pronounce that handle, I would say "Max E to the I Pi", but I'm probably completely wrong. :P
That's exactly right, it's a math joke. When you pick a username that has already been chosen, sometimes sites prompt you to add some numbers to your name. Well, I added a number to my name.
Cheat sheet. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euler%27s_identity)
On topic: I agree with Unblinking that the god blood aspect was introduced far too late into the story, but it wasn't a deal breaker for me.
-
That's exactly right, it's a math joke. When you pick a username that has already been chosen, sometimes sites prompt you to add some numbers to your name. Well, I added a number to my name.
Cheat sheet. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euler%27s_identity)
Ah, I wasn't aware of that formula. Apparently you have been voted the most beautiful theorem in mathematics. What an honor! And, yeah, you know your magazine demographic is geeky if you have a poll for "most beautiful theorem". ;D
On the subject of tattoos, this one still makes me laugh, which I saw posted by Ocicat in the picture association thread.
(http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4103/5014793890_e2a7c64f3d_m.jpg)
Edit: Ocicat's a moderator? I don't remember that being the case. Well, yay Ocicat!
-
[Ocicat's a moderator? I don't remember that being the case. Well, yay Ocicat!
It's a relatively recent development (http://forum.escapeartists.net/index.php?topic=4566.0) :D
-
I enjoyed this story, though like Max e^{i pi} I was preoccupied with the nature of the POV character... specifically, I was wondering why a female reader was doing a story with an apparently male character narrating in first-person. Once I figured out that he was a transgender, physically female but identifying as male, it made perfect sense (we've got one where I work).
I've sometimes thought about getting a tattoo. The fact that it's permanent, and I can't think of anything I'd want to wear for life, is the primary reason I don't have one. Maybe the Ohtori Academy rose crest?
-
Hi there. This is my first time posting! I've been slowly listening to back issues and catching up to the present--don't know what I'll do now that I can only listen to one new issue of PodCastle a week!
I quite liked this story. I'm surprised you all weren't crazy about the character development because that was the real highlight for me. Tattooing the blood of dead gods on your body for power is a fantastic image, but it was really the character of Woody that drew me in, and the slow reveal of who he was. I often get annoyed by stories in the just-one-more-heist genre because I'm never convinced by the character's reasons for going back to a life of crime. In this case though, how could Woody do anything else with the carrot of his deepest desire dangling in front of him? (Yes, I'm calling him him, since that's what I think he'd prefer.) I also found the imperfect reconciliation at the end of the story quite real and touching.
(Yes, I do have a tattoo.)
-
Hi there. This is my first time posting! I've been slowly listening to back issues and catching up to the present--don't know what I'll do now that I can only listen to one new issue of PodCastle a week!
Ah, I know that feeling. The withdrawals set in next, and the need for your weekly fix to finally get here seems to take FOREVER :)
Seriously, though - welcome to the forum, and thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts!
-
From the title of the story, I wasn't sure if I'd like it or not - blood isn't really my thing, but music (which is what "mark the score" made me think of) is. But then both of those aspects turned out differently than I expected, which was a pleasant surprise.
I liked the world of this story, but despite Dave telling us it was urban fantasy in the intro, something about the writing style kept making me feel like it wasn't contemporary and for the first little while, whenever I heard reference to modern civilization - Huck's Ford Tahoe, or cellphones, for example - it was a little disorienting. It was like the setting was modern but the language wasn't so much so. Then I made the mental adjustment and it was okay.
I had a similar problem in choosing a tattoo as Dave did: I couldn't find one that adequately expressed who I was and my view of the world. Then I read a book about Fuzzy Logic (http://www.amazon.com/Fuzzy-Logic-Revolutionary-Computer-Technology/dp/0671875353/) and it suddenly became clear. It may be simple, it may even be a cliché, but I decided that the Yin-Yang (http://sunshineofthesoul.com/images/_Yin_Yang.jpg) symbol captured it perfectly. And that's what I got tattooed on my chest, just to the left (my left) of my breastbone.
Hi there. This is my first time posting! I've been slowly listening to back issues and catching up to the present--don't know what I'll do now that I can only listen to one new issue of PodCastle a week!
Well, if you're already caught up on Escape Pod and (if horror doesn't deter you as much as it does me) Pseudopod, many of us quite like Decoder Ring Theatre (http://www.decoderringtheatre.com/). New full-cast adventures in the style of radio serials of the 40s and 50s. There are 11 seasons (6-episodes each) of The Red Panda superhero adventures and 6 1/6 :) seasons of Black Jack Justice, a hardboiled detective series. It only comes out twice a month, but those 103 episodes (plus the Summer Showcase episodes featuring various other kinds of stories, including Westerns, sci-fi and a superhero almost entirely unlike the Red Panda) should keep you catching up for quite some time. :)
-
having listen to this a second time, my reaction is much more positive. I think I've got over my previous hangups about the subject matter , which initially seemed childish. I still have the same issues with the characters, the plot and the ending, but I enjoyed it a lot more second time round.
-
This story was awesome. I love a slow build, personally, and I liked the opening banter as a good way to establish the dynamics without infodumping. The plot wasn't a scintillating and unique piece of brilliance, but it was a good traditional heist story to hang an interesting world concept on. Personally, I found the character of the protagonist to be well-drawn and fascinating, with the other two providing the right sparks and gravitic forces to shape a solid arc. Nicolai was the thinnest, no question, but I'm okay with antagonists sometimes just being antagonistic.
@Why wouldn't Nicolai plan for it?
I'm fairly sure Nicolai could not imagine anyone just destroying that much money and power, nor could he understand the depth of the anger Woody felt. Nicolai is someone who works with enemies. He's pragmatic. He does the smart thing. He thinks he understands Woody, but he doesn't really grok how much his identity means to him. Sure, we in the audience see it coming from a mile away, but we have a bit of a privileged position in terms of understanding Woody's thoughts and motivations.
-
Man, I loved this story. I had a few nitpicks - little things I'd do differently if I were the author - but I generally thought it was awesome. Great setting, great characters, and a wonderful backstory. Really, this is one of those stories that's so good I have nothing to say except this: I want to hear more stories in this setting, and I want this setting for an RPG. And, of course, Christiana did a brilliant job reading.
Except...
I really think having a woman read this story was a mistake. The main character's essential maleness - and need to change his body to match it - was incredibly important to the story. If a man had read the story, the disconnect beneath the narrator and the backstory would have been more poignant.
-
I have a confession. First time I listened to the story I though it was a guy with a quite high pitched voice reading...
-
It was a pleasant surprise to hear a story told from the viewpoint of an FTM protagonist. Given where we are in transgender history, it's probably inevitable that Woody would have a storyline about Who I Am and Who I'm Striving To Become, but that aspect felt a bit clunky to me. Woody's abusive relationship with Huck was vivid enough to be frustrating. Thanks to the author (whose description of the story's development did not treat the transman as an oddity), and to the narrator, and to PodCastle.
-
I have a confession. First time I listened to the story I though it was a guy with a quite high pitched voice reading...
But but but
That's how Christiana sounds! That's what makes her the best choice (IMO) for this story!
-
I have a confession. First time I listened to the story I though it was a guy with a quite high pitched voice reading...
But but but
That's how Christiana sounds! That's what makes her the best choice (IMO) for this story!
Huh. I feel that Christiana Ellis has a really feminine voice. Kinda husky, but feminine.
-
@Why wouldn't Nicolai plan for it?
I'm fairly sure Nicolai could not imagine anyone just destroying that much money and power, nor could he understand the depth of the anger Woody felt. Nicolai is someone who works with enemies. He's pragmatic. He does the smart thing. He thinks he understands Woody, but he doesn't really grok how much his identity means to him. Sure, we in the audience see it coming from a mile away, but we have a bit of a privileged position in terms of understanding Woody's thoughts and motivations.
Nicolai does understand what Woody's identity means to him or he wouldn't have offered the blood of that particular god as the incentive. And in the end, Woody got to walk away with that blood, so clearly Nicolai was right about what motivated Woody.
I really think having a woman read this story was a mistake. The main character's essential maleness - and need to change his body to match it - was incredibly important to the story. If a man had read the story, the disconnect beneath the narrator and the backstory would have been more poignant.
It made sense to me. Woody's need to have a body to match his self-image was punctuated by the fact that his body was still essentially female. Having him insist on male identifiers while his voice clashes with these identifiers made sense to me, gave me a hint about his transgender nature, and helped add to the tension.
-
Thanks for the welcome!
Well, if you're already caught up on Escape Pod and (if horror doesn't deter you as much as it does me) Pseudopod, many of us quite like Decoder Ring Theatre (http://www.decoderringtheatre.com/). New full-cast adventures in the style of radio serials of the 40s and 50s. There are 11 seasons (6-episodes each) of The Red Panda superhero adventures and 6 1/6 :) seasons of Black Jack Justice, a hardboiled detective series. It only comes out twice a month, but those 103 episodes (plus the Summer Showcase episodes featuring various other kinds of stories, including Westerns, sci-fi and a superhero almost entirely unlike the Red Panda) should keep you catching up for quite some time. :)
And thanks for the tips!
@Why wouldn't Nicolai plan for it?
I'm fairly sure Nicolai could not imagine anyone just destroying that much money and power, nor could he understand the depth of the anger Woody felt. Nicolai is someone who works with enemies. He's pragmatic. He does the smart thing. He thinks he understands Woody, but he doesn't really grok how much his identity means to him. Sure, we in the audience see it coming from a mile away, but we have a bit of a privileged position in terms of understanding Woody's thoughts and motivations.
Yes, I agree with that. Also, it seemed that what Woody did was so dangerous it was almost suicidal, and Nicolai wouldn't have been expecting that.
-
@Why wouldn't Nicolai plan for it?
I'm fairly sure Nicolai could not imagine anyone just destroying that much money and power, nor could he understand the depth of the anger Woody felt. Nicolai is someone who works with enemies. He's pragmatic. He does the smart thing. He thinks he understands Woody, but he doesn't really grok how much his identity means to him. Sure, we in the audience see it coming from a mile away, but we have a bit of a privileged position in terms of understanding Woody's thoughts and motivations.
Nicolai does understand what Woody's identity means to him or he wouldn't have offered the blood of that particular god as the incentive. And in the end, Woody got to walk away with that blood, so clearly Nicolai was right about what motivated Woody.
Not Woody's male/female identity. The rest of Woody's identity, being his own person. Nicolai thought of Woody as still fundamentally passive, as someone who takes what he can get and runs. Woody doesn't want to be that anymore, and that's what Nicolai fails to understand: Woody wants to claim his identity for himself, not as a debt or a favor or a gift.
-
I'm not a huge fan of this story. I spent more time wondering about how sustainable the god-blood business was, and less time thinking about the characters.
mind you, I fell asleep halfway through, so I may have missed something.
-
I'm not a huge fan of this story. I spent more time wondering about how sustainable the god-blood business was, and less time thinking about the characters.
I thought about that briefly, and I wondered if at some point all gods are dead, and then what? But then I realized that gods are created from belief, and people always want to believe in something. So new gods are being created all the time. The majority are probably very small and not powerful at all, but if they gain believers they gain strength, and eventually if you play the numbers game enough you'll get a new powerful god to provide a new source of blood.
Plus, you could always import gods from a foreign country where they have too many. I hear that the Far East is simply overcrowded with gods these days...
-
Anyone else have a mental image of Adam Baldwin as Huck? :)
-
Nicolai does understand what Woody's identity means to him or he wouldn't have offered the blood of that particular god as the incentive. And in the end, Woody got to walk away with that blood, so clearly Nicolai was right about what motivated Woody.
Not Woody's male/female identity. The rest of Woody's identity, being his own person. Nicolai thought of Woody as still fundamentally passive, as someone who takes what he can get and runs. Woody doesn't want to be that anymore, and that's what Nicolai fails to understand: Woody wants to claim his identity for himself, not as a debt or a favor or a gift.
[/quote]
I see what you're saying now. I'd thought you were talking specifically of his male/female identity. Thanks for clarifying.
-
Anyone else have a mental image of Adam Baldwin as Huck? :)
No, I imagined Huck as being bigger and fleshier. Not fat, but a little more bulky and jowly than Adam Baldwin. But then again, I didn't know what Adam Baldwin looked like until I read your post and google image searched for him.
-
I guess you haven't seen 'Firefly' then (!!??!?!?!!). Anyway, I think it was mostly that Huck made me think of Baldwin's FF character Jayne. Kind of sinister with a suggestion of violence about him.
-
I guess you haven't seen 'Firefly' then (!!??!?!?!!).
Oh, that James Baldwin.
Actually, I can never remember actors by their real names.
Anyway, I stand by Huck's fleshiness.
-
I thought this was a really good story. Loved the world and background of magic tattoos and gods being tortured by secret cults. The heist plot held up well enough, and the character relationships were very well drawn.
I was also kind of thrown off by the narrator's gender at first, though it did give you the view of the narrator that the other two characters had - always viewing him as the woman he used to be.
-
I was also kind of thrown off by the narrator's gender at first, though it did give you the view of the narrator that the other two characters had - always viewing him as the woman he used to be.
It probably wouldn't have thrown me so much if I'd been simply reading the story, with no female voice in my ears to confuse the issue. I most likely would have accepted the character as male, been somewhat puzzled by Huck calling him "baby girl" and the reveal of their history... but then when Woody is revealed as transgendered, I'd have still ended up in the same place that the audio brought me to.
So whatever... I'm not really sure where I was going with this. So I'll just say... Cool story, bro!
-
I believe this is the second time in a row (or at least 2 of the last 3) that Ellis has narrated a story with a nontraditionally-gendered character. Just an observation.
I didn't love the story. God blood in tattoos as a way to gain power? Very cool idea, and I have the feeling it draws on some sort of old-culture myth. I want to say Native American but I don't know and my lunch break is almost over.
Otherwise, it had all the elements of urban fantasy, as if the author had to check stuff off a list: tortured artist, old partner comes back for one last job, something goes wrong during the job, and in the end the MC is really no better than before except that s/he now has the Maltese Falcon. To my mind, that cheapened the story, as if risks could've been taken... but weren't. That's probably the main reason I didn't like it.
-
Otherwise, it had all the elements of urban fantasy, as if the author had to check stuff off a list: tortured artist, old partner comes back for one last job, something goes wrong during the job, and in the end the MC is really no better than before except that s/he now has the Maltese Falcon.
I must be reading atypical urban fantasy then, because I don't think I've come across anything else in the genre that fits this description.
[edit]
That's a pretty standard crime-fic plot though, except that for "tortured artist" I would substitute "ex-criminal trying to go legit, and barely scratching out a living".
-
Yeah, urban fantasy tends to have more "werewolf hunter" and "vampire boyfriend" these days as the things to check off the list. Also "protagonist has dark inner self that threatens to break free."
-
Yeah, urban fantasy tends to have more "werewolf hunter" and "vampire boyfriend" these days as the things to check off the list. Also "protagonist has dark inner self that threatens to break free."
I seem to have missed those as well. Most of my UF reading's been Charles DeLint. And I consider a great deal of Stephen King's work to fit the genre also.
-
First, I would like to add my voice to the chorus of approval for Madame Ellis's reading. I would say that I think this one sounded the best of any of her readings that I've heard, and this is not meant as a slight on any previous outing; new mic? Different recording environ?
(Btw, can voice actors/readers get 'type' cast? This is her second reading in a row as a gender-morphed character; for as good a job as she did with both, I hope this doesn't become an inescapable trend)
As for the story:
Interesting concept world, but there seemed little actual fruition of the concept. At no point is anyone shown under the effects of the blood. As such the concept of the piece, which could have borne great fruit, instead became a run-of-the-mill Macguffin.
Like many other posters, I found Nicolai's character a little too pat. Why would someone so powerful need to create this elaborate scheme to draw in someone who has a named and established business in the same city? Two tatted-up kneecappers could have hauled the protagonist in at any time, had Nicolai wished to 'catch up'.
Furthermore, if Nicolai was so very very powerful, why didn't he have any tats? A little essence of Hermes and he could have been out of the house before the globes hit the floor, or caught the globes before they landed. Plus, anyone stupid enough to store what essentially amounts to eleven red-mercury bombs together on a velvet drape in an easily unlocked case deserves to be melted in a puddle of eldritch goo.
All of these issues can be resolved with explanatory sentences sprinkled in the work. Maybe Nicolai was bluffing about the whole 'I set this up' bit, maybe he has no tats or at least no obvious powers because he's a 'I don't sample the merch' type of dealer. A little extra touch would have shored the story up well.
-
Yeah, urban fantasy tends to have more "werewolf hunter" and "vampire boyfriend" these days as the things to check off the list. Also "protagonist has dark inner self that threatens to break free."
It sure does, and I am so SICK OF IT. it feels like some readers and some editors are forever in their early teens. Enough with tragic, dark, mysterious boyfriends that our TRUE LOVE can save. It feels like nothing more than bubble gum porn.
When you really grow-up, you move past the, "I can fix him," and "He's OH SO dangerous." Really, is that someone you want to grow old with? Is that someone you want to be tied to forever because you had kids?
I just want a hero who has taken their tragedies and made something more of it than feeling sorry for themselves and using as an excuse why they can't be with the one they REALLY love. How about it giving you strength, wisdom, and character?
I know... it's escapism, but a good story is more than that.
And besides, a real man dose dishes, even if he is a werewolf.
-
So, just finished this and I'm gonna jump right in without reading the other posts first.
This one was flat-out awesome, loved it! A great concept and well put together, especially considering it was done in 24 hours. Whilst I don't think I quite caught the implications of Woody's para-androgyny, it was a great listen. I liked the characters, the conflicts between them and the whole blood of dead gods idea. Wow. Wonderful.
Now, I'm gonna read back over the other posts to see how wrong my opinion is ;-)
-
Anyone else have a mental image of Adam Baldwin as Huck? :)
Wasn't Huck black? I thought he was black. Like, Ving Rhames or Forest Whitaker's awesome lead in Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai.
And was the character's name Huck or Hawk? What with your strange American accents, I couldn't tell ;-)
-
Yeah, urban fantasy tends to have more "werewolf hunter" and "vampire boyfriend" these days as the things to check off the list. Also "protagonist has dark inner self that threatens to break free."
Don't forget loose-cannon wizard who's actually really powerful and the only one who can solve world-ending situations despite a globe full of other, older, more powerful wizards. (Too specific?)
And come to think of it he sorta has/had/will have again a "vampire girlfriend".
-
Anyone else have a mental image of Adam Baldwin as Huck? :)
Wasn't Huck black? I thought he was black. Like, Ving Rhames or Forest Whitaker's awesome lead in Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai.
And was the character's name Huck or Hawk? What with your strange American accents, I couldn't tell ;-)
Was he? If so I didn't pick up on it. Or maybe my mental image of Adam Baldwin overrode that part so I forgot. :p
Although this line from the part quoted on the boards suggests you're correct - "the blood tatted into his dark skin.."
And yep was Huck. :)
-
Just finished listening to this too. Hey, I'm catching up!!! Yes, Kibitzer, I too was under the impression Huck was black.
Other than that, I feel this story had so much potential. I could see where the story was going immediately. The only scene that stood out to me was the scene with the old granny god getting killed. I wanted to learn more about the blood. I wanted to see the blood in action. This story felt more like a prologue.
But I will cut the writer some slack. Dude, if he wrote this in 24 hours...then dang. And as always Christiana's narration rocked!
-
Yeah, urban fantasy tends to have more "werewolf hunter" and "vampire boyfriend" these days as the things to check off the list. Also "protagonist has dark inner self that threatens to break free."
It sure does, and I am so SICK OF IT. it feels like some readers and some editors are forever in their early teens. Enough with tragic, dark, mysterious boyfriends that our TRUE LOVE can save. It feels like nothing more than bubble gum porn.
I think it's not that the editors are like that, it's that they know what sells.
But I will cut the writer some slack. Dude, if he wrote this in 24 hours...then dang.
Just because he wrote it in 24 hours doesn't mean this is that version. I'm sure he edited it and subbed it to several places.
-
For once I was apparently paying attention, because I suspected very early that Woody was trans: at the early "wooden pecker" line, in fact. The question of what voice to use for such narration is an interesting one; my take is that it should vary on a story-by-story basis, depending on the character's precise situation (hormones, op, etc), and that a female reader with a low voice was a good choice for this one. If a man had read the story, I think it would have undermined one of the key points of the narrative, which is that the blood could make Woody be more fully what (and who) he wanted to be.
On the topic of voices, though, the tone for Huck *really* didn't work for me. (Which is apparently a motif with the stories I've been listening to the last couple of days, as I catch up.) There's another early line about there being threat or something in his "smooth voice," and it totally didn't match with the reading; Huck sounded nasal and whiny to me the whole way through. This probably contributed to one of my other big problems with the story, which is that the entire situation between him and Woody fell flat for me. There was just nothing remotely appealing or redeeming about him, and that reflected badly on Woody, too.
Add me to the chorus of those who would have liked to see the blood thing developed more. As it was, it felt too much like a macguffin, providing the reason for the plot but not much beyond that.
(Which makes it sound like I hated the story. I didn't; it was fine. But not as memorable as it could have been.)
-
Just because he wrote it in 24 hours doesn't mean this is that version. I'm sure he edited it and subbed it to several places.
At least one other sub that we know of, because like the vast majority of our stories, this was a reprint, which appeared originally in Fantasy Magazine, here (http://www.fantasy-magazine.com/2010/08/and-the-blood-of-dead-gods-will-mark-the-score/).
Since I've opted to post in this thread, I'll also reiterate that there's no EA cross cast coordination with narrators. Coincidences in similar narration choice are just that, coincidences, and should not be interpreted as concerted efforts on anyone's part to typecast. I don't know the types of conversations people have at the sister 'casts about who should read what, but at PodCastle, the suggestions are almost always about who we think can make the story really shine, as well as who we think would really enjoy reading the story. We miss on both counts sometimes - sadly fallible beings that we are - but we believe that the narrators do their best work on stories they themselves are engaged with. Nothing makes us happier than when we send a reader request and the narrator tells us "Yes! I love that story!" So do we, reader, so do we.
-
I struggled with this story. It seemed either a framework to hang a Transgender journey onto, or a heist story with a bunch of extra fluff. Loved the blood/magic concept, but that was one of the least developed aspects. I don't regret listening to it, but probably won't again.
-
I loved this story so much, I have referred several people to it. I would love to see another story in this world.