The Circle Of...

by Vardan Partamyan

Librarian note: alternate-cover edition of B00RERDP1S.

What if you were given a chance to leave behind your everyday routine? Your underpaid job cleaning up the nuclear wastelands from an assortment of merry mutants (including centipede pandas and cave dwelling members of conservative parties)... your shipwrecked personal life complete with two emotionally and financially debilitating divorces and an unbroken string of inspiringly ill-advised relationships... your cut-rate room in a cut-rate hotel with a cut-rate pillow under your (cut-rate) head... your Monday and your Wednesday and your Friday that looks and feels and tastes uncomfortably like your yesteryear’s Thursday...

What if you were given a chance to be the first human to reach for the stars? What if you were given a chance to find a brave new world for all mankind? What if it was a chance that you absolutely, resolutely, definitely, categorically did not want?

Join the reluctant space pioneer Adam Samsarian and his mildly insane (and only occasionally homicidal) on-board computer on a mind (and logic and ethics and traffic rules and rodent rights) bending trip through cosmos unexplored and the ever labyrinthine Armenian brain!

And so (whether you want it or not) your Odyssey of discovery, self-discovery and (awkward pun intended) universal love begins...

Genres: Science Fiction

120 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 24, 2014

About the author

Telling stories has been my lifelong passion, a thread woven through my life from early childhood. The merging and molding of tales, drawing inspiration from various sources to create something fresh and unexpected, has been a constant source of fascination for me.

This enduring intrigue with crafting new worlds and breathing life into characters has evolved but remains unaltered at its core. In my writing, I am drawn to the creation of strange new landscapes, guiding flawed yet, hopefully, relatable characters through transformative journeys wherever the road may lead or end.

To date, I have authored thirteen novels and numerous short stories, each self-published on Amazon. My explorations span across genres including science fiction, adventure, detective mysteries, dark comedy, and satire. Often, my works emerge as a fusion of these genres, mirroring the intricate blend that characterizes our lives.

I extend an invitation to you, urging you to accompany me in exploring uncharted territories through my words. Together, we will navigate unfamiliar worlds, uncover concealed truths, and savor the journey along the way. The literary footsteps of Alfred Bester, Raymond Chandler, Harry Harrison, Arthur C. Clarke, and Ian Fleming have influenced my path and continue to resonate in my creative journey.

As a reader, I invite you to join me on a shared Odyssey, as we delve into the depths of the unknown. And so, our Odyssey begins!

Reviews

[Vardan Partamyan · Rating 5 out of 5]

And so, on Christmas Eve 2014, my twelfth work came into this little, polluted, overpopulated, over-self-published, war ravaged but also beautiful and irreplaceable and unique world. I look at my (dirty, slightly radioactive) dozen novels and short stories and think of the many journeys you, my readers and I, your ever struggling author have taken together. It has been quite a sabbatical with visits to underground shelters, radioactive wastelands, totalitarian planets not nearly far, far away as well as dreams and desires and nightmares of the characters who populated (and, if lucky, still populate)these worlds (at least until the unnecessary sequels kill them off).

The twelfth voyage I invite you to is, by far, the strangest (strongest) of them all. Interweaving reality, unreality and everything in between, it is the story I have wanted to tell for quite some time now. Why? Well, mainly because it is a story that holds some sensitive blackmail-worthy data on yours truly and has threatened to unleash it upon the world wide web if I did not write it down. So I did.

It is also the first story where my main character Adam Samsarian is an Armenian... making sure that there is (a surplus)no lack of our trademark world weary sarcasm. It (the sarcasm)is available in souvenir form in Yerevan flea markets.

Above and beyond the satire and the space travel and the femmes fatale and the conflicted hero and the (red, red, red) aliens, The Circle Of... is (hopefully) a fun piece of irreverent escapism. I hope you enjoy the ride!

*Richard remembered the roar of the river... sleep.

[James Field · Rating 4 out of 5]

The setting is some time in a post apocalyptic future. Mr Samsarian finds himself aboard an intergalactic exploration vessel. He can't remember how he got there, and he definitely doesn’t want to be there either. His unsought mission: to find a compatible, colonisable planet. Against his will, the spaceship blasts off and he investigates many bizarre worlds. Between each planet hop, he sleeps. As he sleeps, his memory returns in flashback dreams. A crazy onboard computer makes his life hell, both in his woken state and dream state.

Told in first person, the start of this relatively short novel made me think of Alice in Wonderland. Then I was reminded of Hitchhiker's guide to the Universe. However, the humour in this novel is supercharged with steroids. Practically every line is funny, something I found arduous after a while. There is a neat little plot, perfect pacing, smooth prose, and a satisfying end. Ten pages before the end, I correctly guessed the outcome, which in no way detracted from my pleasure.

I received a free copy of this novel in exchange for an honest, none reciprocal review, and thank Verdan Partamyan for an enjoyable read.

[Brigitta Moon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a free copy of The Circle Of… in exchange for a non-reciprocal review. This is the first book I have read in the Science Fiction Genre and surprisingly, I found it quite entertaining. The events are very interestingly relayed in first person. The author, Partamyan has done a wonderful job of giving a different type of voice to the main character, Adam Samsarian, than I am accustomed to reading. It was as if I was on the journey with Samsarian, but also hearing his thoughts, mostly sarcastic. Those sarcastic thoughts pretty much added character to Samsarian. There are two other main characters in the story, the on ship computer and Eve Delavine. During this journey through space to find a new home where humans could safely live, the banter between the computer and Samsarian was sometimes laugh out loud. Between stops for exploration Samsarian would sleep and dream; dreams that the reader re-lived with him. Dreams that had events and scene descriptions that will leave you shaking your head and chuckling. I enjoyed the descriptions of the other characters of the book,human and humanoid. You would think Samsarian was in charge since he was human but I got the impression the computer was the one running the show. If you can control the oxygen, you run the show. Then there is somewhat of a back seat love affair going on between Samsarian and Eve Delavine, a hero and heroine like affair. The ending of the book is very unexpected and thought provoking. I would never have guessed that ending. I’m glad I agreed to review this work of Science Fiction.

[Marc Secchia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gonzo, laugh-out-loud humour from the prolific imagination of sci-fi entertainer Vardan Partamyan, this zany, mixed up tour de cosmos bubbles with invention and zany dialogue, all in an easy-to-digest package that delivers enough punch to leave the reader well satisfied. And a little sore from laughing so much.

How would we describe the plot? Adam is trying his utmost to sabotage his tyrannical employer's undertakings when he is kidnapped and sent on an interplanetary exploration mission which involves a sadistic and manipulative AI controlling his hibernation dreams to cudgel Adam's unwilling and alcohol-pickled brain into cooperating with their mission. What could possibly go wrong? Well, anything and everything! Including a surprising number of Armenians marooned in space. Somebody needs to shoot the AI, right?

On the positive side there's great character development, a see-sawing storyline and a fast-paced delivery that races all the way to the surprising conclusion. I suppose I'd be remiss not to point out a little parental advisory - not suitable for the younger or for the squeamish set, unless you want their minds to end up permanently twisted into a pretzel, and the editing has a few rough edges, but I rate stories on entertainment value and this one definitely hits the spot.

I thank the author for a complimentary review copy in exchange for an honest, non-reciprocal review.

[Sose · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Circle Of... is my favorite book from Vardan Partamyan. It is totally in his style. The hero has a very sarcastic, dark but at the same time very funny sense of humor that I think everyone will enjoy and laugh ! Besides being funny the story is very attractive and has unexpected twists and turns. I was very touched by the part when the hero discovers a planet populated by Armenians ancestors of which were escaped from Armenian massacres real events! This is my favorite section and I am glad that he could reflect this in his story, maybe this could also raise awareness about Armenian genocide real events for readers. Overall I enjoyed the book and will recommend to science fiction fans.

[Terry Sprouse · Rating 5 out of 5]

“The Circle Of... “ is a humorous and exhilarating story that propels us into a daunting and dangerous future. The hero is on a mission to find an inhabitable earth-like planet fit for colonization by the survivors of a decimated earth.

In his quest, unenthusiastic space explorer Adam Samsarian not only visits many strange planets but he must also cross intellectual swords with his smugly opinionated on-board computer (which reminds me of a caffeinated version of HAL from “2001: A Space Odyssey”).

Between planet stops, Adam falls into a fascinating dream-like state and we get to experience the added adventure of a trip through the intriguingly twisted cosmos of the Armenian pilot’s mind!

This is a compelling, fast-paced, and funny book.

[Arevik Ashkharoyan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun and a strange novel.
Knowing the writer's style I didn't expect him to put down a plot structured in a complicated way. Once you realize what it is about the mix of reality and dreaming it becomes more interesting to read.
The sarcasm in a apocalyptic novel makes the reading so much more fun!
Very unexpected and amusing was the part with the Armenians inhabited in a planet far from the Earth. I wish this could be true! Or not?!
Anyway, Mr Samsarian, oh sorry Partamian, with every book you are a new discovery to me. G.O.D. will be keeping an eye on you.

[Julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well-written and engaging story, with strong characters, exciting plot turns, and excellent dialogue. The main character is unique, and that’s one of the reasons the story is so compelling. He’s socially antagonistic, smart, and sarcastic. The book is filled with dark-ish humor, irony, and sarcasm. A really good book!

[Nila · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is the ultimate post-apocalyptic sci-fi read!
Adam Samsarian is a Romanian suddenly stuck on a multi planetarium exploration vessel but no idea how he got there. Along with a very opinionated computer he must find a new world.
Told in the very humorous, unique voice of the author Varden! If you love post-apocalyptic or sci-fi you will enjoy this very quick read!

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun! Fun! Fun! Looking forward to more adventures in this crazy cosmos, Mr. Partamyan!

[Frau Blücher · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ein Buch der Marke "Witz komm raus, du bist umzingelt". Mir unerklärlich, was andere Goodreader daran so toll finden.

[Pearson Moore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Title: The Circle Of
Author: Vardan Partamyan
Genre: Literary Fiction
Length: 35,000 words
Rating: 4 stars

Thoughtful, Amusing, but Lacking Nuance

Vardan Partamyan's The Circle Of takes the reader on a postmodern intellectual journey of discovery into the nature of human bondage. In many ways a pastiche to Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, The Circle Of reaches for more but comes up a little short, relying too much on expository narrative rather than immersive experience. Nevertheless, The Circle Of should prove at least mildly engaging to well-read fans of literary fiction, and especially to students and those in academe.

The story centers around Adam Samsarian who floats, falls, dreams, or drinks himself from one manufactured vignette to another. While there are oblique references to Franz Kafka's Die Verwandlung and William Golding's Lord of the Flies, the strongest parallel seems to be with The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, perhaps with influences from Yevgeny Yevtushenko. Adam's name, of course, is a reference to the hero of Die Verwandlung, Gregor Samsa, but with a special twist that is the hallmark of many such nuances of The Circle Of. Samsarian is not only a reference to Kafka, but the first indicator of the true theme of the novel. Samsarian derives from the Sanskrit word Saṃsāra ( संसार ) , which means the unending cycle of birth, life, death, and rebirth. Thus Adam, moving illogically from one extreme situation to another, is living out the reality that his name implies. His partner in most adventures is a woman he meets in a bar: Eve Delavine (a name I invariably misspell as Eve Delavigne). She drinks wine, of course (as her name implies), but there is no coincidence in the pairing of this Eve with her Adam. Adam will continue through most of the story to fight the powers that control his endless movement through birth-death-rebirth, but Eve will always bring essential words to bear on his problem and it is in their union that readers might come to understand the thesis of this story.

Besides a plethora of postmodernist structures, pop culture references to Shel Silverstein, James Bond, computer games, and oblique references to literature and especially science fiction, The Circle Of employs brief macaronic constructions that appealed to the linguist in me. Unlike Salvatore's jumbles in Eco's The Name of the Rose or Merton's mixed-language musings in My Argument With the Gestapo, Partamyan's macaronic is Slavic-based, not with Romance language roots, so readers unacquainted with Russian or other Slavic languages will be at a loss in these paragraphs, though there are a couple of sentences with a Germanic/Romance macaronic base.

I was disappointed in the expository style. There was no real room for thought, other than piecing together the meaning of various references, and I felt much of the story simplistic, despite reliance on quite obscure (for most people) references. I think the effort could have benefited from becoming more of a story and less of a quick expository exercise. The solution to Adam's problem, the end of his quest, is sudden and will be unexpected by many readers. But I found the solution less than inspiring, and not well connected to the third thread of the plotline (Biblical Adam and Eve, and situationally-tortured Adam Samsarian and Eve Delavine being the first two threads), which considers--a bit too seriously in this otherwise amusing piece--an early 20th century genocide as parallel to Adam and his wine-guzzling sidekick. The connection was not well placed, I thought, in spite of the over-the-top acronyms used for the antagonist and its organization. The Circle Of wishes to make an argument regarding the value of religion in human cultures, but brings no evidence in support of its position other than the fact of the genocide. Without causal connection, no case can be made, and The Circle Of, embracing illogical postmodernist forms, knocks away any rational constructs that might support the argument.

This is a thoughtful though yet raw and tentative exploration of ideas of slavery, submission, the imposition of power, and the value of free thought and action, wrapped in a somewhat amusing series of vignettes. This short story will be beyond the capacities of most readers, but widely-read, highly educated individuals who can tolerate a mostly expository development of ideas in fictional format may find the exercise worth their time.

I received a free copy of The Circle Of in exchange for an honest review.

4 stars.

[Lilit Gevorgyan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cherish "The Circle of"... your dream that has turned into reality, that doesn't exist, that still begs to remain a dream, since in a dream it lives, in a dream it breathes, in a dream you live (do you?).