Asterion

by Paul Majkut

Asterion, the book of suspicion, resentment, confusion, regret, poor memory, and conversation.The narrator, inexplicably lost in the Labyrinth, is confronted by Asterion, the Minotaur. At the same time, the narrator and his wife are vacationing on a Greek island when hotel guests begin to disappear. A discredited police inspector arrives to unravel the mystery, but his reliance on phrenology may be a greater hindrance than help. The opening riddle is resolved in the ending.

Genres: Fantasy

220 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1992

About the author

Paul Majkut, born in East St. Louis, Illinois, now lives in San Diego, California.

Reviews

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful book, filled with twists and turns for the reader to enjoy. I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway, and was delighted I did. It held my interest to the last page. Would definitely recommend it to others, for an enjoyable read. I gave it five stars.

[Paul Majkut · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ambiguity and identity underpin the story told in ANTIQUE. Characters assume identities that haunt their daily experiences and desires to the degree that supernatural rival natural explanations of what happens. What appears to be supernatural may be natural, but what is natural is haunted by supernatural appearances.

[Paul Majkut · Rating 5 out of 5]

Writing a novel about a friend's dream was my idea. My friend didn’t object.

His dream was a single scene. A man lost in a maze. Caution should be taken by the reader not to interpret ASTERION, THE MINOTAUR as an analysis of my friend. Nor should the reader believe they have discovered me in its lines. The lines of this novel are not prison bars. It is the reader who is imprisoned in its lines.

I praise the striking art contributed to Asterion by Blair Chalpin. Blair is an extraordinary artist. When I asked Blair to draw art for the novel, he told me he would like to experiment with one-line illustration, a method he was playing with at the time. The idea is that the pen never leaves the paper. Each illustration is one continuous line. If anything is true of Asterion, it is these drawings that make the novel memorable.

[Amanda NEVER MANDY · Rating 2 out of 5]

**I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.**

Liked the plot but hated the character development.

The plot had potential to be something quite interesting but the characters left me wanting.

POSSIBLE SPOILER:

To be honest, the biggest issue I had from the beginning was determining the gender of the main character. It took me until the last few pages to finally find closure to this puzzling situation. My hope is that this was a planned point in the story and I'm just not seeing the big picture.

I did enjoy the karma like feel of certain aspects of the story and how a majority of the characters had a circle back at some point.

[Auro · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story revolves around a protagonist who becomes deeply fascinated with an antique item—an object that serves as a catalyst for reflection on their past and the lives intertwined with it. As the protagonist delves into the history of this antique, they uncover layers of personal and collective memory, prompting a journey through time that reveals how objects can hold emotional weight and significance.

Throughout the narrative, Majkut employs vivid imagery and descriptive language to bring the antique to life, illustrating its journey through different hands and eras. The object becomes a symbol of continuity amidst change, representing the enduring nature of human experiences even as individual lives fade away.

Majkut's prose is characterized by its lyrical quality and rich descriptions. The use of sensory details invites readers to engage with the narrative on an emotional level, making the experiences feel tangible. The structure may employ non-linear storytelling, reflecting the fragmented nature of memory itself.

Antique by Paul Majkut is a poignant exploration of how objects can encapsulate memories and influence identity. Through its rich thematic content and evocative prose, the novel invites readers to reflect on their own relationships with objects from their past, emphasizing the enduring impact of memory on human experience. Majkut’s work serves as a reminder that even as time moves forward, our connections to history remain vital in shaping who we are today.

[Piper Gee · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received this book from First Reads on Goodreads.com. As always this is my completely honest review.

I thought it had an interesting premise. I've always enjoyed the motif of creepy mirrors. It has elements of scifi, romance, paranormal and historical fiction, all great genres. Even though it is described in a way that you might expect horror, I don't think it fits.

As I said the premise I was up for, but the execution left a lot to be desired for me. The biggest problem I had was all the characters seem to be just negative and unlikable. All of them. A lot of racist, homophobic and mysoginist thoughts come from these characters. I didn't like or relate to any of them and they were very one dimensional. There wasn't much character development across the board. Not interesting to me at all. The love built between the two main characters wasn't really shown. They are suddenly life or death in love with each other and I didn't feel it or care. There needed to be more development in these areas. I also thought the Salem witch trials were treated a bit silly.

There were also a lot of typos. I thought it was a review copy, so I wasn't really worried about them until I came on to write this review and saw it was published last year. Like many people, I wasn't sure about the gender of the main character Quinn Channing. I like the idea of that being a mystery and not the most important thing, but again the execution didn't come through. I'm not convinced that the character was referred to as he as well as she on purpose. The way it is handled I think it may have just been more typos.

To wrap it up, I think it was a great idea and premise that could be successful with rewrites and editing, but I can't recommend it as is.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book from Goodreads and was a little confused while reading it. It took a while to determine if the main character Quinn Channing was male or female.

The history revolving around the Salem Witch trials was interesting and you wonder if Quinn really did see another image in the antique mirror or just saw what her imagination caused her to see.

She had a major issue with anger and was put on medical leave by the university. While in New Hampshire, she was attracted to the mirror which she purchased and had shipped to her home in San Diego. While staring into the mirror, she saw the image of a Puritan woman. They conversed and the woman told her a curse had been put on her and she had spend 300 years in the mirror.

Two of Quinn's fellow professors were attracted to her and each wanted a relationship with her. She wanted no relationship as she could not leave the mirror.

Each of the various characters sees only what they want to see in the mirror and does not see what others see. In conversations with others, they say what they think the other person wants to hear and not what they really think.

While wondering if Quinn really did see another image in the mirror, the psychiatrist treating Quinn saw a smudged handprint on the mirror and wondered about it.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting premise and the author has used his very active imagination. A fast read. The only problem I had with the story was that almost all of the characters were very unsympathetic - full of anger, self doubt and hate that I really didn't care what happened to any of them.