What do you think?
Rate this book
Vickery and Castine #2
Forced Perspectives
A BATTLE FOR THE SOUL OF HAUNTED LOS ANGELES
Why did Cecil B. DeMille really bury the Pharaoh’s Palace set after he filmed The Ten Commandments in 1923?
Fugitives Sebastian Vickery and Ingrid Castine find themselves plunged into the supernatural secrets of Los Angeles—from Satanic indie movies of the ‘60s, to the unqiet La Brea Tar Pits at midnight, to the haunted Sunken City off the coast of San Pedro . . . pursued by a Silicon Valley guru who is determined to incorporate their souls into the creation of a new and predatory World God.
Why did Cecil B. DeMille really bury the Pharaoh’s Palace set after he filmed The Ten Commandments in 1923?
Fugitives Sebastian Vickery and Ingrid Castine find themselves plunged into the supernatural secrets of Los Angeles—from Satanic indie movies of the ‘60s, to the unqiet La Brea Tar Pits at midnight, to the haunted Sunken City off the coast of San Pedro . . . pursued by a Silicon Valley guru who is determined to incorporate their souls into the creation of a new and predatory World God.
458 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 3, 2020
71 people are currently reading
382 people want to read
About the author
Tim Powers
167 books1,748 followersTimothy Thomas Powers is an American science fiction and fantasy author. Powers has won the World Fantasy Award twice for his critically acclaimed novels Last Call and Declare.
Most of Powers's novels are "secret histories": he uses actual, documented historical events featuring famous people, but shows another view of them in which occult or supernatural factors heavily influence the motivations and actions of the characters.
Powers was born in Buffalo, New York, and grew up in California, where his Roman Catholic family moved in 1959.
He studied English Literature at Cal State Fullerton, where he first met James Blaylock and K.W. Jeter, both of whom remained close friends and occasional collaborators; the trio have half-seriously referred to themselves as "steampunks" in contrast to the prevailing cyberpunk genre of the 1980s. Powers and Blaylock invented the poet William Ashbless while they were at Cal State Fullerton.
Another friend Powers first met during this period was noted science fiction writer Philip K. Dick; the character named "David" in Dick's novel VALIS is based on Powers and Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (Blade Runner) is dedicated to him.
Powers's first major novel was The Drawing of the Dark (1979), but the novel that earned him wide praise was The Anubis Gates, which won the Philip K. Dick Award, and has since been published in many other languages.
Powers also teaches part-time in his role as Writer in Residence for the Orange County High School of the Arts where his friend, Blaylock, is Director of the Creative Writing Department. Powers and his wife, Serena, currently live in Muscoy, California. He has frequently served as a mentor author as part of the Clarion science fiction/fantasy writer's workshop.
He also taught part time at the University of Redlands.
Excerpted from Wikipedia.
Most of Powers's novels are "secret histories": he uses actual, documented historical events featuring famous people, but shows another view of them in which occult or supernatural factors heavily influence the motivations and actions of the characters.
Powers was born in Buffalo, New York, and grew up in California, where his Roman Catholic family moved in 1959.
He studied English Literature at Cal State Fullerton, where he first met James Blaylock and K.W. Jeter, both of whom remained close friends and occasional collaborators; the trio have half-seriously referred to themselves as "steampunks" in contrast to the prevailing cyberpunk genre of the 1980s. Powers and Blaylock invented the poet William Ashbless while they were at Cal State Fullerton.
Another friend Powers first met during this period was noted science fiction writer Philip K. Dick; the character named "David" in Dick's novel VALIS is based on Powers and Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (Blade Runner) is dedicated to him.
Powers's first major novel was The Drawing of the Dark (1979), but the novel that earned him wide praise was The Anubis Gates, which won the Philip K. Dick Award, and has since been published in many other languages.
Powers also teaches part-time in his role as Writer in Residence for the Orange County High School of the Arts where his friend, Blaylock, is Director of the Creative Writing Department. Powers and his wife, Serena, currently live in Muscoy, California. He has frequently served as a mentor author as part of the Clarion science fiction/fantasy writer's workshop.
He also taught part time at the University of Redlands.
Excerpted from Wikipedia.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews
November 19, 2023
I’ve read all of Tim Powers’ books since 1979’s The Drawing of the Dark. Every novel, all the short story collections, each novella — I’ve read them all. I’ve been rereading volume (like this one) that I didn’t review the first time around. I guess I qualify as a super fan. The Vickery and Castine trilogy (of which Forced Perspectives is the middle volume) ranks near the bottom of my rankings of Powers’ work. But Forced Perspectives is the best of the three, and there’s no such thing as a bad Powers’ book.
Powers continues to refine his weird ghost logic in Forced Perspectives. If you were intrigued by the unique workings of his uncanny ghosts in his earlier novels and stories (On Stranger Tides, Last Call, Expiration Date, etc.) then reading this book and trilogy are a must. Powers presents a masters class in his eldritch ghostology here. Along the way he also continues to flesh out his very own dark and creepy version of LA Noir, which also has its charms.
Powers plots are usually complex, but at his best he is able to engage your attention in all the details of that complexity, making every moving part vital and fascinating. Here, his complexity often bogs down the story, adding length without adding interest. It also contributed to a muddled and confusing climax that lacked the payoff of his sharper novels. And his paired protagonists, Vickery and Castine, never seem to fully click. Bringing them together a second time feels contrived, Vickery seems to far overmatch Castine in skills, and I never fully buy into their partnership in weirdness.
If you’re a Powers fan, you’ll want to read this. It will add to your appreciation of his expanding universe. But none of these Vickery and Castine books are likely to be anyone’s favorites. And if you haven’t read Tim Powers yet, don’t start here.
Powers continues to refine his weird ghost logic in Forced Perspectives. If you were intrigued by the unique workings of his uncanny ghosts in his earlier novels and stories (On Stranger Tides, Last Call, Expiration Date, etc.) then reading this book and trilogy are a must. Powers presents a masters class in his eldritch ghostology here. Along the way he also continues to flesh out his very own dark and creepy version of LA Noir, which also has its charms.
Powers plots are usually complex, but at his best he is able to engage your attention in all the details of that complexity, making every moving part vital and fascinating. Here, his complexity often bogs down the story, adding length without adding interest. It also contributed to a muddled and confusing climax that lacked the payoff of his sharper novels. And his paired protagonists, Vickery and Castine, never seem to fully click. Bringing them together a second time feels contrived, Vickery seems to far overmatch Castine in skills, and I never fully buy into their partnership in weirdness.
If you’re a Powers fan, you’ll want to read this. It will add to your appreciation of his expanding universe. But none of these Vickery and Castine books are likely to be anyone’s favorites. And if you haven’t read Tim Powers yet, don’t start here.
August 4, 2024
I don’t write reviews.
I was slightly excited to return to Powers’ haunted LA. Unfortunately, he didn’t really have a tale to tell. This was a lot of info-dumping, reinforced by dialogue regarding said info, followed (and preceded) by car chases. The cool, deranged, spooky ghosts were sadly kept to a minimum. I fear it’s another case of “would’ve worked better as a short story” syndrome.
I was slightly excited to return to Powers’ haunted LA. Unfortunately, he didn’t really have a tale to tell. This was a lot of info-dumping, reinforced by dialogue regarding said info, followed (and preceded) by car chases. The cool, deranged, spooky ghosts were sadly kept to a minimum. I fear it’s another case of “would’ve worked better as a short story” syndrome.
June 28, 2020
And so on to the latest if Tim Powers secret histories and the second following the adventures of Vickery and Castine. The write up on the cover certainly makes for an interesting and intriguing read although to be honest it may help set the scene it does not give anything away to what is about to happen.
Now I have been following the works of Tim Powers for some time now and although it feels so different from the world of the Anubis Gates and the Drawing of the Dark Mr Powers has create a style and feel all of his own - one which has flown through a number of books (come on you know what they are) to the point where its almost a world of its own.
Now I have to say that I am not familiar with American city geography (hell I struggle with my own country) and as such often get lost - no pun intended - which at times slows me down but in general the story is fast paced and intriguing and I am starting to really enjoy the two main heroes.
The question is where will the imagine of Mr Powers take us next - will to be something totally different or are there more tales of Vickery and Castine to be told.
Now I have been following the works of Tim Powers for some time now and although it feels so different from the world of the Anubis Gates and the Drawing of the Dark Mr Powers has create a style and feel all of his own - one which has flown through a number of books (come on you know what they are) to the point where its almost a world of its own.
Now I have to say that I am not familiar with American city geography (hell I struggle with my own country) and as such often get lost - no pun intended - which at times slows me down but in general the story is fast paced and intriguing and I am starting to really enjoy the two main heroes.
The question is where will the imagine of Mr Powers take us next - will to be something totally different or are there more tales of Vickery and Castine to be told.
November 11, 2021
"Where's the sane world?" Castine asked as she followed him around to the front of the Saturn. "I used to live there. I think I still have pictures."
—p.230
Tim Powers has a groove, one that has not (yet, anyway) turned into a rut: his stories all seem to delve into the deep conspiratarian magic underlying the fragile surface of our mundane world, and to feature people who are, by and large, quite comfortable navigating those depths. Magic, in this worldview, is both hidden from onlookers (occult, in the original sense) and practical—a dark talent that can be honed, an arcane skill that can be developed with practice, like the ability to play music. Any novice can pick up an instrument, after all, but the results are usually... disharmonious, to say the least—and lots of people think they play a lot better than they do.
And, also... a lot of Powers' magic looks like inspired improvisation—like jazz.
"I've got his toothbrush, it was back at the Sepulveda office. We can summon him with that. His spit, his DNA will be all over it. I think one of us should lick it to catch his attention—"Powers himself acknowledges, later on, that
"Yuck! That's you, that does that."
—p.170
Dignity was clearly a casualty in this insane undertaking.
—p.313
*
I took awhile to twig to this, but Forced Perspectives is actually a sequel, to 2018's Alternate Routes—which I haven't read. Sometimes my random shelf-surfing leads me into error, I'll admit. It's okay, though—by the time I figured this out I was already deeply involved with Vickery and Castine, Powers' unwilling protagonists, who have front-row seats for what threatens to be the complete dissolution of humanity as we know it.
The stakes, as they usually are in Powers' fiction, are at least global, if not cosmic—and every tiny detail is important, or could be.
*
But it's all grounded in the very, very mundane. Forced Perspectives contains a lot of detail about Los Angeles, and it all matches my memories of the place—such as the mention on p.33 of gang graffiti in MacArthur Park; the Eighteens used "XVIII" on buildings in our neighborhood (what was then known as Koreatown, just a few blocks west) too.
Also accurate are the frequent driving directions. So much driving! Roads—and especially freeways—have their own special magic, and Los Angeles is unsurprisingly a powerful... interchange, as it were... for that magic.
"I think I'll stay on freeways here. 10 to the 110 to the 101."
"Very binary sort of freeways," Castine observed.
—p.159
I think this one may be Powers' lament:
...he was reminded again that the Los Angeles he knew was rapidly becoming a city that didn't exist anymore.
—p.327
Another tiny, telling detail that rang true for me: the intolerable buffeting that you get in the front seat from some cars' rear windows being open at speed. That's an issue with my old Toyota as well.
Is Fogwillow a real band, though? Nope... Powers appears to have made that one up.
*
I guess when you turn off the main road, you have to be prepared to see some funny houses.
—from the novella "Rage," by Stephen King, writing as Richard Bachman
I don't want to tell you too much about Forced Perspectives—after all, you might not have read Alternate Routes either—so let's just say that Powers does show us some pretty funny houses along the way.
December 20, 2020
Notes:
Not as strong as the first book but still a weird in the way that I associate with TP's work. =)
Bronson Pinchot's narration was great.
Not as strong as the first book but still a weird in the way that I associate with TP's work. =)
Bronson Pinchot's narration was great.
March 15, 2020
Five stars because this goes into my reread list. Not that it is in the highest rank of his novels, but still very enjoyable and so inventive.
March 13, 2020
PRIOR TO READING: Impossible to describe how excited I was to find that Powers had a new book coming out TODAY. It has some of the characters from past stories, and even just a few pages in I can tell it’s going to be stellar. Cat wait for it all to unfold, and to see what new sorts of weirdness and cross-world travel and communications will come into play.
POST-READ: I don’t know if it’s because of the very strange state we all find ourselves in with the COVID-19 situation, and all the “social distancing” I’ve been practicing this week, or just that this follow-up to Alternate Routes may not be as exciting as its predecessor, but I finished it today and just sort of went, “Meh.” It was a fun ride, with some of the same likable characters and situations that I enjoyed so much in the first one, and which appear in virtually all of his previous work, but throughout the story I kept thinking everyone was just sort of riding around, staying one step ahead of (or behind) whoever they were interacting with. That being said, I still feel like there is more to be mined from the relationship between our two protagonists, so hopefully this isn’t their last chapter, and that the next one will live up to my (maybe too high?) expectations.
POST-READ: I don’t know if it’s because of the very strange state we all find ourselves in with the COVID-19 situation, and all the “social distancing” I’ve been practicing this week, or just that this follow-up to Alternate Routes may not be as exciting as its predecessor, but I finished it today and just sort of went, “Meh.” It was a fun ride, with some of the same likable characters and situations that I enjoyed so much in the first one, and which appear in virtually all of his previous work, but throughout the story I kept thinking everyone was just sort of riding around, staying one step ahead of (or behind) whoever they were interacting with. That being said, I still feel like there is more to be mined from the relationship between our two protagonists, so hopefully this isn’t their last chapter, and that the next one will live up to my (maybe too high?) expectations.
June 7, 2020
Forced Perspectives is the first of Tim Powers' novels where, in my opinion, the sequel is stronger than the original. The story takes place five years after the events of Alternate Routes, and, while it is still set in ghost-haunted Los Angeles, the plot is, for the most part, unrelated to the original story - although Vickery and Castine's visit to (and return from) hell lead to in their involvement in it. The central story involves the latest in a series of attempts at creating a mass-mind/godhead and features many more players than in Alternate Routes. In addition to the ghosts (and ghost-adjacent groups) from the original novel, Forced Perspectives adds Egyptian mythology (and an Egyptian intelligence operative), a local biker gang (most of whose members are ghosts), Cecil B. DeMille's The Ten Commandments, various Southern California cults (past and present), the La Brea Tar Pits, low-budget movies of the Sixties, and (of course) poetry. As a change from the original story, none of the "bad guys" seem to have any idea about Vickery and Castine's pasts ("some bum and a woman who works in an office for some transportation agency') - which results in some serious underestimations of their skill sets. As if frequently the case with Tim Powers’ sequels he ends up summarizing the the complicated plot and magical system from the previous book – which feels kind of dumb (cutting a ¾ book-length reveal to a page of two just doesn’t have the same impact as gradually discovering it does), but honestly, this is my only complaint. 4 solid stars. Many cars are harmed in this story.
April 11, 2023
Forced Perspectives, Tim Powers’ sequel to Alternate Routes, reunites former law enforcement agents and fugitives Sebastian Vickery and Ingrid Castine in his usual combination of fantasy and light supernatural horror. Because of their trip to and from the afterlife in the first book, the duo is targeted by a doomsday cult who wish them to spark a mass takeover of individual souls with the goal of oblivion. Vickery and Castine encounter an assortment of weird LA personae: a couple of megalomanic gurus who travel with muscle as well as groupies; ghosts friendly and hostile; an aging Hollywood star; a confidential informant who dresses as a superhero; biker gangs; an Egyptian diplomat; and 13-year-old freeway gypsy Santiago. Characters immerse themselves not only in the Pacific Ocean but in the La Brea tar pits.
This book, which like its predecessor largely takes place in vehicles and on roads and freeways, underlines the centrality of cars to the culture of Southern California. Powers uses his superior literary craftsmanship to concoct a tale of restless, desperate Angelenos, a worthy successor to Nathaniel West’s Day of the Locust.
July 22, 2020
If I hadn't read the first book and you handed me, say, a five or ten page sequence at random to read from this book, I could have told you within two or three pages that it was a Tim Powers novel. Ghosts, Catholicism, secret knowledge, and our everyday lives overlaid with an undercurrent of the supernatural. For me, the most obvious difference from a lot of his other books is the grounding in historical events gets mentioned at the start and sort of dropped rather than being continually interwoven into the narrative.
August 1, 2021
More Tim Powers weirdness. I'm not sure he works well in the series format. We see some of the same characters back here, particularly Vickery and Castine, with appearances by the kid Santiago and the taco mogul Galvan; the bad guys are of course all new. The bad guys all want to erase their personalities, and everyone else's, in a subsumption into multi-ego/god, because they cannot face their pasts. V&C are out to stop them. Still set in Los Angeles, there is a strong sense of place here, I pulled out a map of the area a couple times. Point of view is mostly Vickery and the bad guys; it seemed Castine didn't have as much of a role here, although she did get a few pivotal realizations.
June 18, 2022
Dear Mr. Powers, I love your imagination and the places it takes me to. Occultism, old Hollywood, Los Angeles landmarks, Catholicism: I vibrate to this combination. However, your publishing house does not respect you and assigns shoddy proofreaders to your works. Because of the Guy Kibbee eggs recipe I am giving this a four. If you want someone to do more than spell-check your manuscripts, if they are like this, Three Days to Never, and Medusa's Web, please consider me.
February 20, 2025
I have read a lot of books set in LA lately, especially with ghosts. That said, this is Powers. It’s always a completely coherent universe despite its weird features. I felt like I was there.
July 22, 2021
This was another weird and fun romp. I loved the touches of old Hollywood and the 1960s hippie scene. There were a lot of great chase scenes and some really tense moments to keep things going, too. I would definitely read more of these adventures if they come along.
August 26, 2021
My new favorite word is egregore.
July 1, 2020
Tim Powers makes ghosts spooky again. I presume I'd be even more invested in this if I knew the Los Angeles highway system, though. As it was, pfft - but then comes that scene at La Brea!
April 22, 2020
the 2nd volume in the Vickery and Castine series.
as opposed to the first volume where I thought it was an Urban Fantasy written by Powers, Forced IS a Tim Powers novel that just so happens to be an Urban Fantasy.
Powers bring all of his delightful weirdness-es and quirks. The characters are fuller, the plot crisp.
This is more like what Powers fans hoped for in the first installment. Perhaps that book was him dipping his toe in a subgenre and now he's dived in and owned it.
More please and soon.
as opposed to the first volume where I thought it was an Urban Fantasy written by Powers, Forced IS a Tim Powers novel that just so happens to be an Urban Fantasy.
Powers bring all of his delightful weirdness-es and quirks. The characters are fuller, the plot crisp.
This is more like what Powers fans hoped for in the first installment. Perhaps that book was him dipping his toe in a subgenre and now he's dived in and owned it.
More please and soon.
August 18, 2024
While "Forced Perspectives" definitely starts off much stronger than the first book in this trilogy, it is largely an equivalent mixed experience of a story. I wasn't anticipated for this trilogy to be structured a bit more akin to an episodic tale than a true "trilogy". I like this in certain sense - such as many story threads being wrapped up and explored in a very satisfying degree. The downside is that the book is also far more independent than I wanted it to be.
I'm sure this seems weird...and it kind of is. Normally, that would be great! It would be great to avoid a middle book syndrome kind of thing. Unfortunately, this book is a bit too long, and wears out its welcome in just the right way to let middle book syndrome set in.
"Forced Perspectives" is by no means a bad book - there are plenty of moments that are better than anything in the first book, and the climax is a whole lot smoother and easier to digest (also a lot less weird) - but this second book in the Vickery and Castine trilogy also doesn't fully satisfy...and for whatever reason, I feel like I'm having a hard time articulating exactly why. I know 1 personal gripe I have with it that formed a sort of cognitive-dissonance in my relationship with the book, but I do ultimately think that despite some great moments and some fantastic plot-thread payoffs...I don't think this trilogy specifically is for me.
Ultimately, too many of the magical/supernatural aspects of this world and storytelling feel like they'd fit too well in, say, a traditional/epic fantasy setting. Sure a lot of the "mechanics" would have to adjusted accordingly, but I couldn't get over this fact while reading for some reason. I know I felt an inkling of it with the first book, but it seemed to be a major and recurring thought for me while listening to this one. I'm open to the idea that maybe it's just because I really like fantasy and am simply trying to force my tastes on what Tim Powers is doing with this story...and you'd certainly be at least in part correct to assert as much. I probably agree. Either way, I feel like I should be actively enjoying these books more than I am.
I largely connected with the introductions made in book 1 (meeting characters, introductions to the fantastical side of things, etc.); I enjoyed how this one set-off and especially many of the ways things closed, but much of the middle dragged a bit too much for me, leaving me in a conflicted spot. I want to be able to rate "Forced Perspectives" 4 stars, but it doesn't really reach that level for me.
Once I do "Stolen Skies" soon, I'll be done with the trilogy and on to newer, greener pastures with Tim Powers, trying more of his work that is generally more popular/highly praised and also broadly more interesting.
Though I'm only 2/3's through this trilogy, I cannot say at this point that I recommend "Vickery and Castine".
I'm sure this seems weird...and it kind of is. Normally, that would be great! It would be great to avoid a middle book syndrome kind of thing. Unfortunately, this book is a bit too long, and wears out its welcome in just the right way to let middle book syndrome set in.
"Forced Perspectives" is by no means a bad book - there are plenty of moments that are better than anything in the first book, and the climax is a whole lot smoother and easier to digest (also a lot less weird) - but this second book in the Vickery and Castine trilogy also doesn't fully satisfy...and for whatever reason, I feel like I'm having a hard time articulating exactly why. I know 1 personal gripe I have with it that formed a sort of cognitive-dissonance in my relationship with the book, but I do ultimately think that despite some great moments and some fantastic plot-thread payoffs...I don't think this trilogy specifically is for me.
Ultimately, too many of the magical/supernatural aspects of this world and storytelling feel like they'd fit too well in, say, a traditional/epic fantasy setting. Sure a lot of the "mechanics" would have to adjusted accordingly, but I couldn't get over this fact while reading for some reason. I know I felt an inkling of it with the first book, but it seemed to be a major and recurring thought for me while listening to this one. I'm open to the idea that maybe it's just because I really like fantasy and am simply trying to force my tastes on what Tim Powers is doing with this story...and you'd certainly be at least in part correct to assert as much. I probably agree. Either way, I feel like I should be actively enjoying these books more than I am.
I largely connected with the introductions made in book 1 (meeting characters, introductions to the fantastical side of things, etc.); I enjoyed how this one set-off and especially many of the ways things closed, but much of the middle dragged a bit too much for me, leaving me in a conflicted spot. I want to be able to rate "Forced Perspectives" 4 stars, but it doesn't really reach that level for me.
Once I do "Stolen Skies" soon, I'll be done with the trilogy and on to newer, greener pastures with Tim Powers, trying more of his work that is generally more popular/highly praised and also broadly more interesting.
Though I'm only 2/3's through this trilogy, I cannot say at this point that I recommend "Vickery and Castine".
April 5, 2020
Similar to the first in the series (Alternate Routes), and the ghostly side of Powers’ unique mythology is still at the forefront. I enjoyed the historical aspects in this one, even if it departs a bit from the exclusive use of real historical figures.
I was less impressed with the continuing emphasis on car chases and gun battles, but this is set in modern LA after all.
A note to the editors at Baen: I saw at least a dozen typos in this edition - seems excessive to me for a professionally published book.
I continue to recommend Powers highly to all readers, and this book is no exception, but I still prefer his earlier books, and I’d suggest those new to his work start with the classics. For contemporary fantasy, go with Last Call and its “sequels”; for historical: The Anubis Gates, The Drawing of the Dark, On Stranger Tides, or The Stress of Her Regard.
I was less impressed with the continuing emphasis on car chases and gun battles, but this is set in modern LA after all.
A note to the editors at Baen: I saw at least a dozen typos in this edition - seems excessive to me for a professionally published book.
I continue to recommend Powers highly to all readers, and this book is no exception, but I still prefer his earlier books, and I’d suggest those new to his work start with the classics. For contemporary fantasy, go with Last Call and its “sequels”; for historical: The Anubis Gates, The Drawing of the Dark, On Stranger Tides, or The Stress of Her Regard.
March 24, 2020
Things I Liked:
* It was a Tim Powers book, and the fertility of his imagination just amazes me. I had never heard of an egregore and thought it was a great concept.
* The characters were fun and their dialog was done well.
* I am very partial to Los Angeles and California settings.
Things I Did Not Like:
* The detailed exposition of driving around got a bit wearing after a while, and actually slowed the pacing down.
* It was a Tim Powers book, and the fertility of his imagination just amazes me. I had never heard of an egregore and thought it was a great concept.
* The characters were fun and their dialog was done well.
* I am very partial to Los Angeles and California settings.
Things I Did Not Like:
* The detailed exposition of driving around got a bit wearing after a while, and actually slowed the pacing down.
October 18, 2021
This book is much better than Alternate Routes, the first book in the series. It was much closer to a classic Tim Powers novel, with secret histories woven in and the action staying grounded in our reality. In many ways, it feels like this is the book he WANTED to write, but Alternate Routes had to come first.
It is rare that a sequel can incorporate so many elements of the first book, while still having a life of its own, but this is where Forced Perspectives really shines. None of the plot is related to the first novel, but without the first novel, none of it would have happened. That sounds like a contradiction, but it isn't. There are characters or items that show up from the first book that are central to the plot of the second. In many ways, it makes this novel feel lived in. For the villains, their story didn't start on page 1, and now, it's the same for the heroes. Everyone is meeting each other at the midway point. It feels like a world that is really lived in.
The only thing that really bugs me is that, because this is a ghost story, some of the side characters need to die and BECOME ghosts. One character in particular waltzes onto the scene practially holding a flashing sign saying "It's gonna be me, guys!" The character even, at one point, begs for Vickery's help, because he knows he'll die otherwise, and Vickery just kind of blows him off. Sure enough, he shows up as a ghost a few chapters later. The character in question is following the same arc that Castine had in the first novel, and could have easily turned Vickery and Castine's duo into a trio, but the plot demanded a sacrifice, so he died. It made Vickery seem a lot less sympathetic. If Vickery had tried to protect him but failed, it would have served the story a lot better, both in making Vickery more likeable, but also showing that he doesn't always win. That character isn't the only one who suffers. There are way too many characters killed off-page so that they can serve the plot as ghosts later on, including a character from the previous novel. It may seem like a nitpick, but it dropped this book from a 4.5 star to a 3.5 star for me.
It is rare that a sequel can incorporate so many elements of the first book, while still having a life of its own, but this is where Forced Perspectives really shines. None of the plot is related to the first novel, but without the first novel, none of it would have happened. That sounds like a contradiction, but it isn't. There are characters or items that show up from the first book that are central to the plot of the second. In many ways, it makes this novel feel lived in. For the villains, their story didn't start on page 1, and now, it's the same for the heroes. Everyone is meeting each other at the midway point. It feels like a world that is really lived in.
The only thing that really bugs me is that, because this is a ghost story, some of the side characters need to die and BECOME ghosts. One character in particular waltzes onto the scene practially holding a flashing sign saying "It's gonna be me, guys!" The character even, at one point, begs for Vickery's help, because he knows he'll die otherwise, and Vickery just kind of blows him off. Sure enough, he shows up as a ghost a few chapters later. The character in question is following the same arc that Castine had in the first novel, and could have easily turned Vickery and Castine's duo into a trio, but the plot demanded a sacrifice, so he died. It made Vickery seem a lot less sympathetic. If Vickery had tried to protect him but failed, it would have served the story a lot better, both in making Vickery more likeable, but also showing that he doesn't always win. That character isn't the only one who suffers. There are way too many characters killed off-page so that they can serve the plot as ghosts later on, including a character from the previous novel. It may seem like a nitpick, but it dropped this book from a 4.5 star to a 3.5 star for me.
August 22, 2021
This is a sequel to Powers's novel Alternate Routes, but no reading of that novel is necessary to enjoy this book. But, having picked up this book without knowing it was a sequel, I will seek out this first novel that features protagonists Sebastian Vickery and Ingrid Castine.
The Prelude opens in 1928 with a man and four others (to go into specifics would ruin things) on a beach looking to discover the remains of the silent version of The Ten Commandments' set buried on a beach. It seems that someone wrote a glyph onto one of the sets and this marking has the potential to summon something that could consume the world.
The remainder of the novel is set in 2018, where former allies in chaos Sebastian Vickery and Ingrid Castine have a rendezvous at Canter's famous deli in Los Angeles. Inside the pair are accosted by unknown antagonists and the two are then on the run for 58 hours.
To say anything more specific would spoil this ride of a novel that is adventure, supernatural, historical, and cosmic, all set in and around Los Angeles.
The pace was non-stop as the clock is ticking to an awakening that has been in the works for hundreds of years. The afterworld is a key component to the novel, with spirits causing otherworldly terrors. There's also quite a bit of gunplay and several car chases.
Living in Southern California, I was impressed with the detail Powers gave to his settings--I knew the majority of his locations and they were authentic. The second to last location is a world famous spot and I loved what Powers had happen.
NOTE: one really needs to be prepared to be out of the loop for several pages, as conversations occur that the reader will be unable to make head or tails of until about the 100 page mark--I read the paperback that was 517 pages long. I had a friend start this book and put it down by that page, but I continued on and loved what I read, though I understand why he had difficulty continuing.
This is the second book in a trilogy and I eagerly await the concluding volume in this series.
The Prelude opens in 1928 with a man and four others (to go into specifics would ruin things) on a beach looking to discover the remains of the silent version of The Ten Commandments' set buried on a beach. It seems that someone wrote a glyph onto one of the sets and this marking has the potential to summon something that could consume the world.
The remainder of the novel is set in 2018, where former allies in chaos Sebastian Vickery and Ingrid Castine have a rendezvous at Canter's famous deli in Los Angeles. Inside the pair are accosted by unknown antagonists and the two are then on the run for 58 hours.
To say anything more specific would spoil this ride of a novel that is adventure, supernatural, historical, and cosmic, all set in and around Los Angeles.
The pace was non-stop as the clock is ticking to an awakening that has been in the works for hundreds of years. The afterworld is a key component to the novel, with spirits causing otherworldly terrors. There's also quite a bit of gunplay and several car chases.
Living in Southern California, I was impressed with the detail Powers gave to his settings--I knew the majority of his locations and they were authentic. The second to last location is a world famous spot and I loved what Powers had happen.
NOTE: one really needs to be prepared to be out of the loop for several pages, as conversations occur that the reader will be unable to make head or tails of until about the 100 page mark--I read the paperback that was 517 pages long. I had a friend start this book and put it down by that page, but I continued on and loved what I read, though I understand why he had difficulty continuing.
This is the second book in a trilogy and I eagerly await the concluding volume in this series.
July 6, 2022
Sebastian Vickery and Ingrid Castine, the main characters of Alternate Routes, are back in Los Angeles to deal with another supernatural threat. Harlowe, brutal cult leader is convinced that he can succeed where a cult fifty years earlier had failed in merging into an egregore, a merged consciousness where guilt, regret, and even personality are left behind. The problem is that it's not just the cult members who would be absorbed into this God-like consciousness but thousands of unwitting people (and maybe even more), including Vickery and Castine. In fact, Harlowe is alternately trying to capture Vickery and Castine (who, due to what they had done in the previous book, he feels can be critical receivers in his apotheosis) or kill them (when he feels his backups will work instead and Vickery and Castine could disrupt his plans).
The novel is full of the usual strange supernatural bits we'd expect of Powers, including ancient Egypiptian mysticism, ghosts, people who can sometimes step into and see past actions, and so on. And also as usual with Powers its the details of how these things work that makes even the most bizarre concepts feel real as we read.
This was an enjoyable book. It's not Powers's best, but that's a high bar given that I feel that his Declare is one of the two or three best fantasy novels of the last 25 years, and The Anubis Gates, The Stress of Her Regard, On Stranger Tides, Last Call and others are all great novels. In fact, my only complaint about Forced Perspectives is that I thought the first quarter or so of the book was a tad padded. It took a bit to get going, but once it did it was hard to put down.
Recommended.
The novel is full of the usual strange supernatural bits we'd expect of Powers, including ancient Egypiptian mysticism, ghosts, people who can sometimes step into and see past actions, and so on. And also as usual with Powers its the details of how these things work that makes even the most bizarre concepts feel real as we read.
This was an enjoyable book. It's not Powers's best, but that's a high bar given that I feel that his Declare is one of the two or three best fantasy novels of the last 25 years, and The Anubis Gates, The Stress of Her Regard, On Stranger Tides, Last Call and others are all great novels. In fact, my only complaint about Forced Perspectives is that I thought the first quarter or so of the book was a tad padded. It took a bit to get going, but once it did it was hard to put down.
Recommended.
August 14, 2024
Well, that was a lot of fun. Another paranormal, parahistorical take on LA myths (though it feels like he could have done more with the actual history of mythmaking in and around LA and the movies), with a series of cultists trying to summon an overmind via an ancient Egyptian glyph--we get DeMille, and a 60s occult movie, plus some occult bikers, and then a current attempt to pull it off, this time via an ex-Silicon Valley type using people as a kind of early-Internet wetware. And of course our heroes, Castine and Vickery, get dragged into it and again have semi-chemistry as partners, but no hint of romance, which I appreciate as an attempt to avoid overused tropes.
On reflection, there are definitely larger specifically-Hollywood contexts and metaphors here that feel possibly alluded to, or assumed as background you'll bring to the story, that I wish someone as historically literate as Powers had played up--the notion that something like Day of the Locust, say, foretold this, or the history of Biblical apocalypses going back to silent film. He does tie in dancing manias of the Middle Ages, which is a fun tidbit, but it feels to me like part of the point here is the idea that all of these manias are sharpened in this one location, with all of the "dreams" and "fantasies" that have been central tropes in American reception of stardom since Florence Lawrence.
But also, a lot of literate, exciting fun, and I raced through 517 pages in a day and a half. On to the third, which embraces the X-Files resonances in theme (UFOs) and even loglines on the cover.
On reflection, there are definitely larger specifically-Hollywood contexts and metaphors here that feel possibly alluded to, or assumed as background you'll bring to the story, that I wish someone as historically literate as Powers had played up--the notion that something like Day of the Locust, say, foretold this, or the history of Biblical apocalypses going back to silent film. He does tie in dancing manias of the Middle Ages, which is a fun tidbit, but it feels to me like part of the point here is the idea that all of these manias are sharpened in this one location, with all of the "dreams" and "fantasies" that have been central tropes in American reception of stardom since Florence Lawrence.
But also, a lot of literate, exciting fun, and I raced through 517 pages in a day and a half. On to the third, which embraces the X-Files resonances in theme (UFOs) and even loglines on the cover.
April 28, 2021
One of the best 5 stars I've read recently.
You can call this book a battle between a group that wants to open a gate to a God/Demon and various people who want to stop them. You could call this just a fantasy. Its much richer than that and the story is an almost nonstop roller coaster ride and fun house experience thanks to Powers' writing and knowledge of the L.A. area and its weird characters. The opening is to an ancient Egyptian "force" or field. But there is also an opposing force. There is a lot about the energy generated by mindless human activity and remnant- ghosts- of people feeding off this- this is the part of the story that continues the previous book(s.) There are various new peculiar characters such as the entrepreneur and cult leader wanna be who is embedding a powerful banned Egyptian hieroglyphic in coloring books; we have the 60's musician Chronic (pain in the rear,) and the keeper of the flame of a sixties biker gang. The story gets weirder and weirder as the fiftieth anniversary of the last attempt, Halloween, 1968, approaches.
You can call this book a battle between a group that wants to open a gate to a God/Demon and various people who want to stop them. You could call this just a fantasy. Its much richer than that and the story is an almost nonstop roller coaster ride and fun house experience thanks to Powers' writing and knowledge of the L.A. area and its weird characters. The opening is to an ancient Egyptian "force" or field. But there is also an opposing force. There is a lot about the energy generated by mindless human activity and remnant- ghosts- of people feeding off this- this is the part of the story that continues the previous book(s.) There are various new peculiar characters such as the entrepreneur and cult leader wanna be who is embedding a powerful banned Egyptian hieroglyphic in coloring books; we have the 60's musician Chronic (pain in the rear,) and the keeper of the flame of a sixties biker gang. The story gets weirder and weirder as the fiftieth anniversary of the last attempt, Halloween, 1968, approaches.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 2, 2022
Vickery and Castile, one in hiding, one safe doing paperwork, reunite when someone somewhere starts taking a less then friendly interest in them. Their trip to the afterworld and back has left them with a slightly unusual relationship to time, which makes them an ideal component for a cultish group led by an eccentric tech rich-guy out to use an ancient Egyptian hieroglyph to generate a group mind that will subsume their identities along with their guilts and give them a form of immortality that will allow them to escape any possibility of judgement after death. A furious game of cat and mouse ensues as the group try to capture the doughty pair, understimating Vickery in particular because of his Secret Service training, in a series of chases, shootouts, captures, escapes and evasions set against the ticking clock of the coming egregore. There's also an Egyptian intelligence officer out to recover or nullify the hieroglyph, twin girls wiith one mind in two bodies, visions of a mysterious house, site of previous group mind effort, and , of course, lots and lots of ghosts.
April 13, 2020
After literally going to hell and back, Ingred Castine returns to L.A. and meets up with Sebastian Vickery to deal with dreams of an old house. This time it’s a case of Forced Perspectives (hard from Baen) as someone wants them to join humanity into a single consciousness in a ceremony on Halloween 2018. The old house was the scene of a previous attempt in 1968. Soon a millionaire and his henchmen are chasing him, while an Egyptologist is trying to remove the magic from a stolen hieroglyph that someone had painted on the walls of Cecil Demille’s Egyptian palace built for the 1928 version of The Ten Commandments. Tim Powers has lots of fun and action in this sequel. And plenty of ghosts too.Review printed by Philadelphia Free Press
December 31, 2020
"Why did Cecil B. DeMille really bury the Pharaoh’s Palace set after he filmed The Ten Commandments in 1923?"
That's a great hook for a story that the book fails to live up to. I figured it was a bad sign when in the first chapter a background plot point is described and then the protagonist communicates essentially the same information in conversation to another character.
The book has some interesting modern day occult ideas, but they're mixed in with poor plotting and unbelievable characters. On the minor end of complaints, I found it really funny how every time the characters walked or drove to a new location the directions were explained turn-by-turn, as if read off of Google Maps.
That's a great hook for a story that the book fails to live up to. I figured it was a bad sign when in the first chapter a background plot point is described and then the protagonist communicates essentially the same information in conversation to another character.
The book has some interesting modern day occult ideas, but they're mixed in with poor plotting and unbelievable characters. On the minor end of complaints, I found it really funny how every time the characters walked or drove to a new location the directions were explained turn-by-turn, as if read off of Google Maps.
November 2, 2020
Vickery and Castine are both back in L.A. due to shared visions of a dilapidated house. As soon as they are both at their agreed upon location, a man tries to poison Castine. And other men tried to kidnap them both. Once again the duo is on the run, trying to solve an uncanny riddle while staying alive. But rather than having to die and comeback, all they need to do is stop a madman or two from completing the creation of a mass mind to take over the world. Nothing too outrageous, right? Powers manages to once again mine the history of Los Angeles weirdness for a story that likely only he could concoct. So if you read the first go-around, hop on again and enjoy this one as well!
April 23, 2023
The second book of a (for now) three part series. My feelings on this one were pretty similar to the first. I liked the Egyptian story but I was still confused by the rules of this world and the “ghosts” that frequent it. I didn’t really love the way the female main character was written. At times it seemed she was more just along for the ride than really a partner and equal to the male main character. But I’m still intrigued enough with both of them that I’ll probably read the third in the series before too long.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews