The Capital of Latecomers

by Nina Nenova, Vladimir Poleganov (Translator)

Local folklore tells the story of an ancient people wandering through the desert, discovering an oasis-like paradise. But they stayed for too long, and when they returned home all their loved ones were dead. These people are forever known as the “latecomers.” Now an exclusive compound providing residents with complete and utter privacy stands on the site where their village once was. Rhein, a thirty-year-old former darling of the art world, has lost his confidence and chosen the life of a recluse. When a body turns up in Rhein’s studio, he has no choice but to come out of his yearlong seclusion to prove his innocence. More deaths occur, and the evidence incriminating Rhein is so convincing he honestly doesn’t know what to believe. Working with his eccentric neighbors, all of whom are also hiding from their pasts, he finds that the path to the truth careens through tribal folklore and quantum physics, and nothing is as it seems.

Genres: Fiction, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Mystery, Ebooks, Unfinished, Magical Realism

325 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2013

Reviews

[Zoeytron · Rating 3 out of 5]

The oasis. Is it a living entity, a high-end mental institution, or simply a place where one can pay to luxuriate and forget? Some say it is cursed, that it is the fatal delay. Collective secrets, faceless shadows, a place where reading another's diary can be a peek into madness. No one there is exactly who he thinks he is. No one. Strange reflectives, real ghosts, eyes that are stolen. It can be quite 'comfortable to live in lies.'

This was a Kindle First selection for the month of September. Fresh material, not bad at all.

[Suz · Rating 1 out of 5]

I got this book as part of the KindleFirst thing, so basically - it was free, and it will be released in October (2015).

This book was a solid, hot mess, and I spent more time thinking about why than I probably should have. The author is a Bulgarian science fiction writer and this book is translated, and I honestly believe that the majority of the problem is a god-awful translation. I might be willing to say that there could be some cultural differences as well (just not getting some ideas), but the writing. OMG, the awful writing.

I struggled to just read a paragraph at a time, nevermind keeping the ideas all together in here. I feel like it could have been a much better book, but I also feel like this would have never been a 5star, even with decent writing.

I did not (could not?) care about the characters, and most of their actions were utterly senseless. Just stay away.

[Mandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The art of quantum physics

Reminiscent of Murakami, David Mitchell, and Vonnegut, Nenova takes a leap into the subterranean subconscious. Quantum theory meets surrealism and at breakneck pacing make it impossible to step outside the story once you start.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great (and also somewhat strange) read

I got this book through kindle first, which can be pretty hit or miss. I actually really liked this book, though it took me a little bit to really get into it. Once I did though, it was interesting and had plenty going on. It really made me pay attention and think.

[Susie Kuilan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Awful. Don't bother. So very glad it was free. Only finished because I did want to know who the killer was.

[Robyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

You know when you have a really weird dream and you try to describe it but nothing makes sense in the real world? That's kind of what it's like to read this book. It's weird. I don't know how else to describe it. I never reached a point where I couldn't put it down or anxiously awaited time to read it. But it gave me just enough that I wanted to see what happened, so I kept forcing my way through it. It involves a desert oasis that has been turned into a high-tech but isolated compound for a few wealthy tenants. One of them is an artist with multiple personalities. As bodies start to pile up, he questions his sanity even more. Is it his other personality committing these crimes? I wish it were that simple of a story line, but the book also incorporates an ancient tribe, time warps, magic spells that bring people back to life and crazed madmen. I felt some of the weird things that happened were never explained. Most of the characters felt underdeveloped and the random, inexplicable weirdness was too much. Mostly, it didn't make much sense.

[Ellen Gail · Rating 2 out of 5]

Left unfinished at 18%.

It's somehow simultaneously better and worse than I expected. It's not dreadful, I've read far worse, but I suppose that's faint praise.

Ultimately I just don't care. I have no fucking clue what is happening. It's like Darren Aronofsky and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas had a baby on an acid trip. I could not give you an accurate plot summary if you paid me. I think there were some interesting ideas about isolation being explored, but it never fully clicked with me.

I also have to wonder how much was lost in translation (Twas originally written in Bulgarian.)

Maybe it's kind of like trying to teach French to Joey Tribbiani. I'm never going to get it.

[Todd Kinsey · Rating 1 out of 5]

Life's too short...

Life's too short, don't waste your time and read something else.

I'm shocked Amazon put something like this out. I've read far better self-published books than this.

[David Richardson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked this book in the beginning, but the farther along I went it got stranger and stranger until I really couldn't understand it at all. Here is what I suggest:

1 Read the book
2 Drop a couple hits of acid
3 Think about the book
4 Read the book again
5 Drop more acid
6 Buy a new book

[Angela · Rating 2 out of 5]

After letting this book sit for several weeks, I finally read another 10 or 15 pages. I was right to leave it alone. Calling it quits at page 119.

[Phjodie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rich story, poor characters

The Capital of Latecomers is creative and genuinely interesting, and contains an intriguing perspective about who we are and who we choose to become. I found the storyline to be a little reminiscent of Vonnegut in terms of its content and the way certain events are revealed to us. Nenova is clearly a unique and creative author, and isn't afraid to shy away from complicated tales.

Unfortunately I didn't find the main vehicles for this complex story, namely the characters, to be strong enough to carry it. I found them to be insufficiently developed and, more often than not, unconvincing in their decisions, their actions and at times even their dialogue. I'm not sure if this is exacerbated by the translation which I found somewhat clunky, but the end result was a group of individuals who weren't up for the demands of Nenova's story.

Having said that, I would still recommend this book. The thought-provoking storyline was quite enjoyable, and its unique perspective will stay with me for a long time to come.

[Jeanne · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is a strange mix of science fiction, mystery, thriller, and Einsteinian physics, with a wee bit of Buddhism thrown into the pot. It's short on character development, but longer in its explorations of multiple possible realities. From the Epilogue (this gives nothing away):

We travel endlessly down our winding paths through time, and they are always before us: Our possible versions--dark shapes woven into dark matter, carrying no life or spirit, or perception. Yet all amazingly different, with different human potential. Designed so as to be able to change us if only we illuminate them with our souls, if only we put our hearts into their silent chests. If only we choose them. And those we pass by? Nothing. They remain eternal and immutable in the memory of time.

This is one of the more coherent and beautiful passages. Expect to be as confused as the narrator. Luckily, I was no more confused than the narrator.

[Mark Wilkerson · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don't know if it was the poor translation that slowed the book to a snail's crawl and made it practically unreadable at times, or if the pacing and poor characterization were originally this...off...but this book was tougher to get through than any I have visited in recent memory. The author seems to have such a horrible concept of schizophrenia, which the protagonist suffers from, as well as a baffling Joseph Conrad-ian feel for the natives of the land where the story takes place. By time the twists and turns came in intervals, I just didn't care about anyone in this story anymore. Please, don't waste your time.

[Leslie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Translated from Bulgarian, this novel is an uneasy blend of literary fiction and murder mystery. Bizarre happenings in an upscale desert oasis retreat -- is it due to supernatural beings or is someone manipulating events? Or do the laws of physics for some reason behave differently at this specific location, allowing dark matter to interact with 'light' matter (regular everyday things)? Then murders start occurring... The mystery aspect of this is muddled by the sci fi/literary style which is a bit reminiscent of Umberto Eco but nowhere nearly as well done. Still, the end was satisfactory and though I was confused a lot, I was never bored (though the epilogue was a tad pretentious).

[Leslie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I finished this, but i wish i could get the time back. While the author explores some interesting ideas about what happens when we make a choice - is there another reality where we chose differently - is a great premise and idea to explore the bottom line was that the ideas were not well formed and explored. I'm also sick to death of science fiction/ dystopian books that string you along with little or no information a la maze runner. Stop authors, it makes me feel cheated when i hang on for at best a mediocre book, like this one.

[Nicole · Rating 2 out of 5]

The concept is very promising and the stuff involving time and other selves is intriguing but I couldn't help but think that this would have been better served and could have been something truly transcendent with a better translation. Some passages are indeed beautifully written, unfortunately the dialogue is sticky and their flow unnatural. The downfalls are not all attributed to the translation however, as the characters fall short compared to the core concept of the story, making the final confrontation neither surprising nor made me care much.

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very strange but compelling story about the power of each individual to choose the path of their life. It kept me completely off balance, and I really did not know where the story was going until the very end. I did find it a little difficult to keep track of ALL of the characters, but the twists and turns of what was real and what wasn't real were intriguing!

[Chelette · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book made no sense.

The story didn't make any sense - the characters came and went. It was hard to keep up with who was who. I can't believe I actually finished it.

[Sue Kozlowski · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read this book as part of my quest to read a book written by an author from every country in the world. The author of this book is from Bulgaria.

I did not like this book one bit! It is science fiction, which I'm not a big fan of. The writer is from Bulgaria but this book could take place anywhere.

Rhein is a former artist who has paid a great deal of money to live as a recluse in a "compound". He is visited by a friend's daughter who wants to see his paintings that have been put away in a room. From there it just gets totally confusing. The compound was built over a colony of 'Remorites' - they are people in a folk tale who return after a long time away and find that years have passed. They are thus the 'latecomers'.

The story describes their journeys into underground caves, looking for the 'Remorites'. Mulitple people are murdered and have second chances?? - it did not mean anything to me!

[Nicole C. · Rating 2 out of 5]

What the hell did I just read?

This book was a freebie from Amazon, during their annual World Book day or what have you, and this author seems to be known in her home country of Bulgaria for science-fiction stories.

There are some science-fiction concepts here, but also a murder mystery (with a multiple body count), some physics jargon, a native folk tale, abnormal psychology, and some other stuff. Dear book, what would you like to be? Because right now, you're just a hot mess.

As I do every time I read a book originally published in another language, I have to wonder, how much can be laid at the feet of the translator? I have no knowledge of Bulgarian, so I do not know how easy it is to translate to English, and if perhaps, some cultural differences or idioms do not come across well.

I wouldn't waste time with this one.

[Erin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm chalking my inability to connect with this novel up to the fact that it was written in Bulgarian, and is from a completely different culture. It was an okay story, but I felt lost most of the time. I appreciated the bluntness of the narrative, especially the way the protagonist allowed his to show his thought process. Like how he would state that he stopped paying attention to the conversation. It was a weird read and I didn't enjoy it, but was curious enough to finish it. I don't encourage people to read this expecting an American or British storytelling experience.

[Nina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Do not read this book unless you already spend your time thinking some kind of quantum theory in which everyone’s possible selves exist simultaneously at all times. Even then you might not find it makes much sense. Other readers have pointed out that it’s possible the translation is what’s wrong with this book. I posit the plot is a mess too. I finished it so that’s the second star. Free through Kindle First and worth everything I paid for it.

[LadyHawk Freeman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Convoluted. A reasonable read ... Especially if you were into advanced physics. I found the entertaining; how. .ever, I suspect many will choose not to wade through it. All, in all, not comfortable recommending this tome . by


(It's a shame someone somewhere has required a minimum length for a review)

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[Fe · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is weird. Like a really convoluted dream you had that you cannot articulate to your friends when you woke up. It started out really promising but lost a little taste of it somewhere halfway. I had put it down but my curiosity to know how it was going to be tied up in the end compelled me to pick it up again and finish it.

[Degenerate Chemist · Rating 1 out of 5]

I got this as a Kindle first download and just got around to reading it.

I don't know if it was the translation, but this book was fairly unreadable. I knew it was going to be bad the first time one of the characters used a mirror to describe themselves to the audience. I should have stopped reading right then and there.

[Inkdeathinbloom · Rating 4 out of 5]

As ever, this is a bit of a mixed review. There were some things this book did really well, and there were some elements and twists that were fantastic and delightful- even the ambiguous ending kind of worked for the story, given its premise. The problem is, despite all the good things the book was doing, I was frequently... dissatisfied. I kept waiting to be in the world rather than just reading the book, and to become invested in what was happening- instead, I just watched it unfold.

So first off: this book is in mental illness. Not about mental illness; it exists completely within having mental illness, as a fact about our character's existence; and aside from it existing and being there, and therefor being a factor in day-to-day life, it's never dealt with, "discussed" (in that, let's talk about your issues/give you medication/fix you way) or overcome. This works in multiple ways.

One: the detached, sliding view of the world, with limited details or phantoms or straight-out having no clue but just accepting that and moving on with just a nod of the head- it works as a form of delivery in part because the main character is experiencing the world in this semi-detached, confused, surreal state. Loss of time? Ok. Nothing to worry too much over. I may have done what? Yikes, that's not good; don't think I did it, but I suppose, may have done... If the book weren't established in this context for the narrative character, I'd hate it; you don't ever really feel a firm connection to the character's self, the world he's in, or the other people he meets- but then, the character himself doesn't feel this connection either- even to himself. So it kind of brilliantly worked out- but I think if you haven't experienced this type of disconnect for yourself, it's just going to seem distancing and annoying.

Two: Holy Moses, my favorite thing about the whole book: when Rhein realizes that he is the "impostor", and his alter, the Artist, was the "original". This fantastic inversion was a huge twist in the book (at least for me) and I loved it so very much. It wasn't explored in a lot of detail, and it didn't get into a deep character exploration like you might hope- but that's almost keeping in line with the character. He's disturbed by it, but is still kind of disconnected and prepared to just keep going, nodding along.

Three: Superposition! Oh quantum theory, how I love you. I was promised theoretical physics, and eventually, I got it: albeit, in details for about 5 pages of the book, three quarters of the way through, and then super vaguely through the rest of it. But it was a fantastic addition (if slightly underutilized), and it enriched/was enriched by the aspect of myth and mental illness it was working with. It arranged itself in such a melange that you were never really sure if parts of what were going on were elements of mental illness, magical/mythical surrealism, or quantum physics; so again, you had no idea what was real and furthermore, how it was real.

Four: This was my first experience, I believe, with an unreliable narrator. The thing is, the book is also about a murder spree. And a good portion of the book is you and the narrator not knowing whether or not it's actually the narrator (more specifically, his alter) doing the killing. This worked for me.

Five: The book had a light touch in such a way that rather than presenting an idea and then forcing the character through introspection, it would touch and idea, and you'd be left with it. But you wouldn't know it until randomly later in the day, or the following week, when you found yourself idly thinking about it. Really, the book does so much with regret, fear, freezing up, possibility- it sneaks up on you.

Finally: the thing that drives me nuts most about this book is that we never got any answers. For example, the main character, Rhein, is at the villa for a reason- he even alludes to something having happened (presumably tragic) which led him to "run away" to the villa. This also seems to be a factor in his suicide attempt (not a spoiler- it's mentioned in the first few chapters). So... what happened? Ugh, see, the problem is, the fact that you never find out why he was there, or what happened, or if any of them were alive or dead in the first place, and if he lives or died, and what the deal with the Remorites actually was, and what was the end result exactly of the ballerina/Ludo thing, and what were the natives really actually also works in this mental illness framework, because sometimes something bad happens and you put a block up and never touch it; and sometimes you never know all the answers, and sometimes you're just so used to dealing with right then that you don't bother chasing questions that may not even have answers. So it works... but it's a little annoying when you're the type of reader who likes things explained and tied up neatly!

So the book is a bit of a strange, detached, trip; but I think it's going to stick with me in interesting ways. I would recommend, but only if you think you can handle the kind of hazy and unsure storytelling described.

[Ndemeye · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quite interesting

One of those books with a mystery that keeps you turning pages. Would recommend
definitely recommend this. I am glad I got to the end as it is extremely rewarding to uncover the whole mystery.

[Doug · Rating 1 out of 5]

Psycho babble

Worst book I've ever read. Author tried to put too many things together and couldn't make sense of her own ideas.

[Rosemary · Rating 2 out of 5]

I still don't understand why I read the whole thing. What an awful book.

[Stacey Grayson · Rating 2 out of 5]

WTH did I just read? 2.5 stars as I kind of enjoyed it.