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The Amadeus Net
Book by Mark A. Rayner
238 pages, Trade Paperback
First published January 1, 2005
167 people want to read
About the author
Mark A. Rayner
13 books169 followersDon’t panic, it’s only Mark A. Rayner, award-winning author of satirical books, absurd fiction and the occasional screed on the problems with time travel novels. When he’s not writing about the infinite universe theory and manic pixie aliens, Mark teaches at Western University in Canada, which definitely doesn’t have a beaver problem.
Connect with him on Mastodon at @markarayner@mas.to.
Even better, if you want early reads, beta reads and other goodies, then slip into the Raynerverse by subscribing to his newsletter. You can get a free book if you do!
Connect with him on Mastodon at @markarayner@mas.to.
Even better, if you want early reads, beta reads and other goodies, then slip into the Raynerverse by subscribing to his newsletter. You can get a free book if you do!
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
May 6, 2009
A recent review (not mine):
“Strange? Yes. Implausible? No, because Rayner successfully crafts an inherent logic into his surreal story with a collage of plausible first-person narratives, which includes the first-person ‘thinking machine’ narrative of the actual setting of the story—the post-apocalyptic, utopian city-state of Ipolis, located in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.
“Furthermore, Rayner’s flair for sustained humor, and compelling story telling enhances the preposterous premises, characterizations, and worthy themes of art, love, and the search for self-identity and sex in the day-to-day existence of an eclectic cast of characters making their way through the end of the world.”
— Janet Paszkowski, Flash Me Magazine (April 2009)
“Strange? Yes. Implausible? No, because Rayner successfully crafts an inherent logic into his surreal story with a collage of plausible first-person narratives, which includes the first-person ‘thinking machine’ narrative of the actual setting of the story—the post-apocalyptic, utopian city-state of Ipolis, located in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.
“Furthermore, Rayner’s flair for sustained humor, and compelling story telling enhances the preposterous premises, characterizations, and worthy themes of art, love, and the search for self-identity and sex in the day-to-day existence of an eclectic cast of characters making their way through the end of the world.”
— Janet Paszkowski, Flash Me Magazine (April 2009)
January 18, 2010
I read this book because it was published by ENC press, which published my own book. It confirmed what I had already suspected: our publisher has very good taste.
It's been a few years since I read this, and some of the details have grown a bit fuzzy. But I do recall the beauty of the writing very clearly. If the comparison is not too cliched or obvious, given the protagonist--I suspect it is, but I don't care--the words flowed melodiously, like music.
It made me reflect on the position taken by one friend of mine, which is that she "doesn't like science fiction." She is, sadly, missing out on a lot. Because if you read the synopsis, you'd be hard pressed not to categorize it as science fiction, but I imagine that just about anyone who likes well-developed characters, a good story and smooth, crisp writing would enjoy it.
Such is the tragedy of the publishing world, desperately seeking to pigeon-hole everything. Is that literary or genre fiction? Is that magic realism or neo-surrealism? Modern or post-modern? Kafkaesque or Kerouacian?
As soon as you try to tell someone about it and start off with "the book opens in a post-apocalyptic world run by a sentient computer and there's a 250-year old--"
"Nah, I don't want to reads that. It's science fiction."
"But-"
"I'm just going to read John Grisham instead. There are no computers there."
Well, they are denying themselves some great art. Like Battlestar Galactica. And this, too.
It's been a few years since I read this, and some of the details have grown a bit fuzzy. But I do recall the beauty of the writing very clearly. If the comparison is not too cliched or obvious, given the protagonist--I suspect it is, but I don't care--the words flowed melodiously, like music.
It made me reflect on the position taken by one friend of mine, which is that she "doesn't like science fiction." She is, sadly, missing out on a lot. Because if you read the synopsis, you'd be hard pressed not to categorize it as science fiction, but I imagine that just about anyone who likes well-developed characters, a good story and smooth, crisp writing would enjoy it.
Such is the tragedy of the publishing world, desperately seeking to pigeon-hole everything. Is that literary or genre fiction? Is that magic realism or neo-surrealism? Modern or post-modern? Kafkaesque or Kerouacian?
As soon as you try to tell someone about it and start off with "the book opens in a post-apocalyptic world run by a sentient computer and there's a 250-year old--"
"Nah, I don't want to reads that. It's science fiction."
"But-"
"I'm just going to read John Grisham instead. There are no computers there."
Well, they are denying themselves some great art. Like Battlestar Galactica. And this, too.
September 22, 2009
Set in the year 2028, shortly after the destruction of half of the world’s population due to an asteroid-Earth collision (known as The Shudder), The Amadeus Net, by Mark Rayner, tells the story of love and survival in Ipolis, the man-made utopia dedicated to the preservation of art and to scientific exploration. While Ipolis itself may appear to be paradise, the world around it is certainly not. Divided still by wealth, the world is put in danger of destruction by the religious fanatics of the poverty-stricken South, who give the North an ultimatum: Distribute wealth and resources fairly, or suffer global annihilation.
Living among this global turmoil, in Ipolis, are: Bella, the sadistic artist struggling with her past as a warrior-like survivor of The Shudder; Les, the Canadian consulate desperately and obsessively in love with Helen Printo, a world famous reporter; Alex Burton, the power-driven egoist determined to rule Mars; and the beautiful Katerina, who is set on chasing after unattainable women, and yet is loved by a man.
Run by One, the mind of the Ipolis machine, the inhabitants of this futuristic civilization are under constant surveillance and surrounded by technology: their multifunctional data-pads, 3Vs (the future’s TV equivalent), robotic bartenders, etc. However, one citizen of Ipolis is monitored by One more closely than the rest: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, believed to have died in 1791. The 272-year-old composer, in love with Katerina, now goes by the name of Will Armstrong, yet continues to compose the music of Mozart. This does not become a problem until dedicated news reporter Helen Printo is set on discovering the truth, and One becomes intent on keeping the man safe.
The Amadeus Net is a compelling read from start to finish, containing engaging characters, an intricate plot, and powerful insight into what it means to be human in post, and possibly pre, apocalyptic Ipolis.
Most poignant to me was its examination of the nature of art, love, and sex: What drives an individual to love and to create? How important is the existence of art? It delves also into the mind of the computer as it controls its “children,” the people of Ipolis, and reworks their fates. I wonder too: How do the members of a technologically advanced society still maintain freedom, privacy, and a unique identity?
Living among this global turmoil, in Ipolis, are: Bella, the sadistic artist struggling with her past as a warrior-like survivor of The Shudder; Les, the Canadian consulate desperately and obsessively in love with Helen Printo, a world famous reporter; Alex Burton, the power-driven egoist determined to rule Mars; and the beautiful Katerina, who is set on chasing after unattainable women, and yet is loved by a man.
Run by One, the mind of the Ipolis machine, the inhabitants of this futuristic civilization are under constant surveillance and surrounded by technology: their multifunctional data-pads, 3Vs (the future’s TV equivalent), robotic bartenders, etc. However, one citizen of Ipolis is monitored by One more closely than the rest: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, believed to have died in 1791. The 272-year-old composer, in love with Katerina, now goes by the name of Will Armstrong, yet continues to compose the music of Mozart. This does not become a problem until dedicated news reporter Helen Printo is set on discovering the truth, and One becomes intent on keeping the man safe.
The Amadeus Net is a compelling read from start to finish, containing engaging characters, an intricate plot, and powerful insight into what it means to be human in post, and possibly pre, apocalyptic Ipolis.
Most poignant to me was its examination of the nature of art, love, and sex: What drives an individual to love and to create? How important is the existence of art? It delves also into the mind of the computer as it controls its “children,” the people of Ipolis, and reworks their fates. I wonder too: How do the members of a technologically advanced society still maintain freedom, privacy, and a unique identity?
January 18, 2010
Amadeus Rocked Me
I sensed there was something of The Odyssey lying beneath the surface of The Amadeus Net . Or maybe The Iliad – I’m not well versed in Homer, but the background of at least one or two characters seemed to suggest it. Regardless of whether I imagined that influence, Amadeus is a fantastic story, very well told. The time and labour Rayner put into creating the characters within the pages becomes apparent quickly, and their eclectic richness pays off handsomely as the reader becomes deeply concerned with their individual and collective fates.
The story is simultaneously light, deep, silly and poignant. In the hands of a lesser author, an attempt like this could very well become a dispassionate dog’s breakfast. But in Rayner’s deft hands and mind, it leads the reader deep into the city in which the story takes place (and the city itself is actually a character in its own right!), and into the minds, hearts and souls of the characters. It seems a great many novels I read aren’t able to focus on creating more than a couple of full, rich characters, surrounded by a somewhat superficial group of cardboard plot devices. Not so with Amadeus and there within, I believe, lies it’s greatest strength.
If a parallel can be drawn with the other Rayner book I read, Marvellous Hairy , I think it would be that beneath the exterior is a solemn message about man’s inhumanity to man and the horrific results that can occur when callous (or zealously misguided) beings are left to run rampant and hold the rest of us at their twisted mercy.
But Amadeus is a thoroughly different book than Hairy (though no less compelling) and this illustrates Rayner’s ability to create completely different, yet believable worlds from one novel to the next. Some may take comfort with there being a certain similarity or feel to an author’s collective works – I tend to admire an author more when he can show me radically different places, persons, and depths. Not that his style doesn't remain consistent - it does.
The story itself concerns Mozart (yes, that Mozart) and his peculiar habit of not dying. As a result, he’s alive and well in the not-too-distant future, living on an isolated (though thriving) South Pacific island. His identity is, as you would expect, a long kept secret and he would prefer it to remain so. However, some view his case as a grand opportunity for self-enrichment, and there the troubles commence.
A myriad of well constructed characters fill out the ensemble with each becoming integral to the ultimate grand climax amid a backdrop of nothing less somber than potential global destruction. Personally, I found myself concerned with the fates of his characters more than the actual planet, and for that I blame Rayner for making me care about them so deeply.
As mentioned above, the city itself is in the mix as one of the main characters, observing and occasionally manipulating events, using subtle and not-so-subtle methods to help create a harmonious outcome. There are greater things in Ipolis than are dreamt of in the characters' collective philosophy. The city comes across like a Shakespearian muse or benevolent god, though not a fully omnipotent one that could assure its own wishes will come to fruition. It’s very nearly mortal in this regard, thus allowing the reader to sympathize with its plight and feel concern for its frustrations and even its “being”.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to anyone seeking a fresh and talented author who frequently veers unapologetically from traditional storytelling, and does so to the delight and satisfaction of his audience. Congratulations, Mr. Rayner – besides creating another very enjoyable novel, you’ve created a genuine fan in me.
I sensed there was something of The Odyssey lying beneath the surface of The Amadeus Net . Or maybe The Iliad – I’m not well versed in Homer, but the background of at least one or two characters seemed to suggest it. Regardless of whether I imagined that influence, Amadeus is a fantastic story, very well told. The time and labour Rayner put into creating the characters within the pages becomes apparent quickly, and their eclectic richness pays off handsomely as the reader becomes deeply concerned with their individual and collective fates.
The story is simultaneously light, deep, silly and poignant. In the hands of a lesser author, an attempt like this could very well become a dispassionate dog’s breakfast. But in Rayner’s deft hands and mind, it leads the reader deep into the city in which the story takes place (and the city itself is actually a character in its own right!), and into the minds, hearts and souls of the characters. It seems a great many novels I read aren’t able to focus on creating more than a couple of full, rich characters, surrounded by a somewhat superficial group of cardboard plot devices. Not so with Amadeus and there within, I believe, lies it’s greatest strength.
If a parallel can be drawn with the other Rayner book I read, Marvellous Hairy , I think it would be that beneath the exterior is a solemn message about man’s inhumanity to man and the horrific results that can occur when callous (or zealously misguided) beings are left to run rampant and hold the rest of us at their twisted mercy.
But Amadeus is a thoroughly different book than Hairy (though no less compelling) and this illustrates Rayner’s ability to create completely different, yet believable worlds from one novel to the next. Some may take comfort with there being a certain similarity or feel to an author’s collective works – I tend to admire an author more when he can show me radically different places, persons, and depths. Not that his style doesn't remain consistent - it does.
The story itself concerns Mozart (yes, that Mozart) and his peculiar habit of not dying. As a result, he’s alive and well in the not-too-distant future, living on an isolated (though thriving) South Pacific island. His identity is, as you would expect, a long kept secret and he would prefer it to remain so. However, some view his case as a grand opportunity for self-enrichment, and there the troubles commence.
A myriad of well constructed characters fill out the ensemble with each becoming integral to the ultimate grand climax amid a backdrop of nothing less somber than potential global destruction. Personally, I found myself concerned with the fates of his characters more than the actual planet, and for that I blame Rayner for making me care about them so deeply.
As mentioned above, the city itself is in the mix as one of the main characters, observing and occasionally manipulating events, using subtle and not-so-subtle methods to help create a harmonious outcome. There are greater things in Ipolis than are dreamt of in the characters' collective philosophy. The city comes across like a Shakespearian muse or benevolent god, though not a fully omnipotent one that could assure its own wishes will come to fruition. It’s very nearly mortal in this regard, thus allowing the reader to sympathize with its plight and feel concern for its frustrations and even its “being”.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to anyone seeking a fresh and talented author who frequently veers unapologetically from traditional storytelling, and does so to the delight and satisfaction of his audience. Congratulations, Mr. Rayner – besides creating another very enjoyable novel, you’ve created a genuine fan in me.
December 18, 2010
The year is 2028 and what develops out of this novel is like a melody Mozart himself would compose.
Set in a post-apocalyptic world, The Amadeus Net is a story about one man’s struggle for survival after the Shudder hits, leaving him to gather his wits in Ipolis, a utopian city-state in the South Pacific.
What became the most apparent while reading this novel was its brilliant sense of characterization. Instead of focusing specifically on Mozart and his struggles, Rayner weaves compelling stories from multiple characters, including Les, a diplomat who is obsessed with Helen Printo, a investigative reporter; Bella, a somewhat crazy yet devoted artist; Alex Burton, a black-ops soldier who attempts to exploit Mozart for personal gain; and Katerina, a Czech woman who Mozart falls in love with.
Unfortunately for Mozart, Katerina is a lesbian who likes not one, but two women: Helen and Bella.
By bringing in these different characters, Rayner is establishing an intricate plot that prevents the reader from becoming bored or tired with the piece. As the story progresses, you start to feel these characters develop and you start to feel as if they could reach out and touch you – the emotions are that real.
The novel also provokes a bit of thought for the reader – what if a world like this existed today? What if we had no semblance of self-identity? What if we had no meaning of what love is or how to create a relationship outside of ourselves?
But then again, how far off is this from the world we DO live in?
Set in a post-apocalyptic world, The Amadeus Net is a story about one man’s struggle for survival after the Shudder hits, leaving him to gather his wits in Ipolis, a utopian city-state in the South Pacific.
What became the most apparent while reading this novel was its brilliant sense of characterization. Instead of focusing specifically on Mozart and his struggles, Rayner weaves compelling stories from multiple characters, including Les, a diplomat who is obsessed with Helen Printo, a investigative reporter; Bella, a somewhat crazy yet devoted artist; Alex Burton, a black-ops soldier who attempts to exploit Mozart for personal gain; and Katerina, a Czech woman who Mozart falls in love with.
Unfortunately for Mozart, Katerina is a lesbian who likes not one, but two women: Helen and Bella.
By bringing in these different characters, Rayner is establishing an intricate plot that prevents the reader from becoming bored or tired with the piece. As the story progresses, you start to feel these characters develop and you start to feel as if they could reach out and touch you – the emotions are that real.
The novel also provokes a bit of thought for the reader – what if a world like this existed today? What if we had no semblance of self-identity? What if we had no meaning of what love is or how to create a relationship outside of ourselves?
But then again, how far off is this from the world we DO live in?
October 20, 2011
Bizarre but intriguing, violent but titillating, crude but eloquent—Mark Rayner’s Amadeus Net is a novel of contradictions, which manages to both please and bewilder its reader. The premise is simple and at the same time convoluted (yet another paradox): Mozart is still alive and composing in secret, in a post-apocalyptic utopian society run entirely by a sentient computer. Aside from this, little else is different. The world continues to be fraught with conflict, wars are fought, Armageddon is threatened (for a second time), and beauty is discovered, destroyed, and recreated. This cycle of death and rebirth, of destruction and creation, parallels ancient religions as well as the style of Rayner’s novel itself. The reader is left with a sense of being content with discontentment, of being happy to live an impermanent life, with limitations, conflicts, and disappointments—as well as moments of sublime beauty.
In fact, the bizarre nature of the novel’s style and content perfectly serves this purpose: it puts the sublime on display, as best as that can be done, and illustrates the impermanence of beauty, love, and life. Told over the course of a few days, Amadeus Net shifts from third-person omniscient to first-person memoir format, with each major character breaking the fourth wall to improve his or her reputation in the eyes of the reader. Even the city itself—known as Ipolis—has a number of monologues, waxing philosophic on the essence and failings of humanity. Rayner’s often schizophrenic style follows a certain logic, pursuing a linear chronology and managing to instill in the reader an appreciation for how fleeting and amorphous each person’s life is. Every character perceives him or herself differently, projecting a certain sense of the world and of life; even Ipolis, the sentient city, holds onto illusions of objectivity while favoring particular citizens over others, secretly disregarding some lives while elevating a chosen few.
The plot itself is reflective of this: a world torn by natural disaster and war, a city benevolently and silently dictating the directions of each individual citizen, and a composer suffering in quiet agony, over his immortality, his art, and his love for a woman who can never (he believes) reciprocate. Mozart’s inability to die cripples him, blinding him from the beauty which others, much closer to death, are free to see. We have Bella Gunn, an 18-year-old survivalist from North America with burgeoning artistic talents and a compulsive tendency toward rabid sadism in bed; Helen Printo, an egotistical and cold reporter recklessly pursuing any and every lead, regardless of consequences, even if she may set off the second apocalypse; and Alexander Burton, a psychotic with dictatorial ambitions and an appetite for violence, willing to sacrifice the world for his own greed. These characters, and their Nietzschean passions, are unfathomable to the inhuman and totally logical Ipolis, and enviable to the lost and bereft Mozart, whose only purpose for centuries has been to survive and hide. With the world close to ending all over again, Mozart finally rediscovers his passion, his raison d’être—and, perhaps, the peace of death.
Mark Rayner has created a world which will enthrall any reader with an imagination. His characters are vivid and beautiful, if often grotesque and horrifying in both action and thought, and his style, while sometimes verging on the didactic in expressing certain political opinions, still avoids intrusion from the author itself. The novel progresses as if by power of fate, with characters coming together through inexplicable chance, world events transpiring with shocking and explosive spontaneity, and love, beauty, life, all ebbing and flowing in the heart of the story. It is written as if not by Rayner’s own will, but by an impersonal third party, a third hand, and it is all the more engrossing for this fact. Readers of any political stripe, any religion, any class, gender, race, or sexuality, will find this an electrifying and compelling novel—the only requirement is an imagination, and an appreciation for the fragility of life.
In fact, the bizarre nature of the novel’s style and content perfectly serves this purpose: it puts the sublime on display, as best as that can be done, and illustrates the impermanence of beauty, love, and life. Told over the course of a few days, Amadeus Net shifts from third-person omniscient to first-person memoir format, with each major character breaking the fourth wall to improve his or her reputation in the eyes of the reader. Even the city itself—known as Ipolis—has a number of monologues, waxing philosophic on the essence and failings of humanity. Rayner’s often schizophrenic style follows a certain logic, pursuing a linear chronology and managing to instill in the reader an appreciation for how fleeting and amorphous each person’s life is. Every character perceives him or herself differently, projecting a certain sense of the world and of life; even Ipolis, the sentient city, holds onto illusions of objectivity while favoring particular citizens over others, secretly disregarding some lives while elevating a chosen few.
The plot itself is reflective of this: a world torn by natural disaster and war, a city benevolently and silently dictating the directions of each individual citizen, and a composer suffering in quiet agony, over his immortality, his art, and his love for a woman who can never (he believes) reciprocate. Mozart’s inability to die cripples him, blinding him from the beauty which others, much closer to death, are free to see. We have Bella Gunn, an 18-year-old survivalist from North America with burgeoning artistic talents and a compulsive tendency toward rabid sadism in bed; Helen Printo, an egotistical and cold reporter recklessly pursuing any and every lead, regardless of consequences, even if she may set off the second apocalypse; and Alexander Burton, a psychotic with dictatorial ambitions and an appetite for violence, willing to sacrifice the world for his own greed. These characters, and their Nietzschean passions, are unfathomable to the inhuman and totally logical Ipolis, and enviable to the lost and bereft Mozart, whose only purpose for centuries has been to survive and hide. With the world close to ending all over again, Mozart finally rediscovers his passion, his raison d’être—and, perhaps, the peace of death.
Mark Rayner has created a world which will enthrall any reader with an imagination. His characters are vivid and beautiful, if often grotesque and horrifying in both action and thought, and his style, while sometimes verging on the didactic in expressing certain political opinions, still avoids intrusion from the author itself. The novel progresses as if by power of fate, with characters coming together through inexplicable chance, world events transpiring with shocking and explosive spontaneity, and love, beauty, life, all ebbing and flowing in the heart of the story. It is written as if not by Rayner’s own will, but by an impersonal third party, a third hand, and it is all the more engrossing for this fact. Readers of any political stripe, any religion, any class, gender, race, or sexuality, will find this an electrifying and compelling novel—the only requirement is an imagination, and an appreciation for the fragility of life.
October 15, 2010
It took me a long time to read this, but it is no reflection on the quality. (Things in my life have been complicated and children take up a lot of time.) It was another great read from the mind of Mark A. Rayner.
Here is a description from the author's web site:
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart walks into the sex change clinic, determined to have his “sprouter” snipped off. So begins The Amadeus Net, a satirical novel that explores art, love, and identity at the end of the world.
The year is 2028. For more than two centuries, the one-time wunderkind has kept his existence secret while he tried to understand his immortality. Living in style through funds raised by selling “lost” Mozart works, he has also helped to create Ipolis, a utopian city-state, after the cataclysmic Shudder, a global disaster caused by an asteroid strike in 2015.
But a few complications mar Mozart’s perfect world. The woman he loves is a lesbian, which, paradoxically, makes him forget about his sex-change plans. The world’s greatest reporter knows he’s still alive and will stop at nothing to expose him. The stakes are higher than he knows, because if the reporter finds him, so will the spy planning to sell Mozart’s DNA to the highest bidder. Oh, and, by the way, the world might end in seven days.
Mozart's only allies are a psychotic American artist, a bland Canadian diplomat, and the city itself: a sapient, thinking machine that is screwing up as only a sapient, thinking machine can.
One thing that I thought would get in the way of reading this book was the famed movie, "Amadeus", because of Tom Hulce's performance. But Rayner gave him a new voice. It was a smooth transition and a very enjoyable character. He's confused and hurting from the years of living, and not living, and it made for probably one of the most interesting historical characters in fiction.
This book, in my mind, is different from the author's other novel ("Marvellous Hairy"). Though still satire, I found it had a more serious tone about it. The characters didn't make me laugh out loud, but were not less interesting. They made me cringe at times, which is good. They were driven by different issues. There was a nature of the book that had a very mature, experienced writing about it. Sometimes it's tough for me to read a book by an author, and then go back and read a book written earlier in their career. You can see the difference in the writing and at times seems like a step back. Other then one item, I didn't get that feeling with this book.
That item was how the reader was let into the minds of it's characters. Every few chapters we would get one that was in first person, changing between the different characters. It was a great idea to expand the depth of the characters, but it was done almost like they were asked to talk about themselves without an explanation why. The story, and writing, though carried it so that it didn't seem awkward. It made me scratch my head at first, but the delivery added much to the story.
Now having read both of Mr. Rayner's books, and enjoying both, he has become a must read for me. I just hope we don't have to wait long for his next novel.
Here is a description from the author's web site:
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart walks into the sex change clinic, determined to have his “sprouter” snipped off. So begins The Amadeus Net, a satirical novel that explores art, love, and identity at the end of the world.
The year is 2028. For more than two centuries, the one-time wunderkind has kept his existence secret while he tried to understand his immortality. Living in style through funds raised by selling “lost” Mozart works, he has also helped to create Ipolis, a utopian city-state, after the cataclysmic Shudder, a global disaster caused by an asteroid strike in 2015.
But a few complications mar Mozart’s perfect world. The woman he loves is a lesbian, which, paradoxically, makes him forget about his sex-change plans. The world’s greatest reporter knows he’s still alive and will stop at nothing to expose him. The stakes are higher than he knows, because if the reporter finds him, so will the spy planning to sell Mozart’s DNA to the highest bidder. Oh, and, by the way, the world might end in seven days.
Mozart's only allies are a psychotic American artist, a bland Canadian diplomat, and the city itself: a sapient, thinking machine that is screwing up as only a sapient, thinking machine can.
One thing that I thought would get in the way of reading this book was the famed movie, "Amadeus", because of Tom Hulce's performance. But Rayner gave him a new voice. It was a smooth transition and a very enjoyable character. He's confused and hurting from the years of living, and not living, and it made for probably one of the most interesting historical characters in fiction.
This book, in my mind, is different from the author's other novel ("Marvellous Hairy"). Though still satire, I found it had a more serious tone about it. The characters didn't make me laugh out loud, but were not less interesting. They made me cringe at times, which is good. They were driven by different issues. There was a nature of the book that had a very mature, experienced writing about it. Sometimes it's tough for me to read a book by an author, and then go back and read a book written earlier in their career. You can see the difference in the writing and at times seems like a step back. Other then one item, I didn't get that feeling with this book.
That item was how the reader was let into the minds of it's characters. Every few chapters we would get one that was in first person, changing between the different characters. It was a great idea to expand the depth of the characters, but it was done almost like they were asked to talk about themselves without an explanation why. The story, and writing, though carried it so that it didn't seem awkward. It made me scratch my head at first, but the delivery added much to the story.
Now having read both of Mr. Rayner's books, and enjoying both, he has become a must read for me. I just hope we don't have to wait long for his next novel.
June 16, 2011
What if Mozart wasn't in that mass paupers' grave? What if he had managed to live not only to the current age but centuries beyond, even after the world had been hit by a huge meteor. That is the main plot. But there are many subplots. A sentient city, Amadeus and the sex-change, Amadeus and the lesbian nurse, wars and rumors of all kinds. The story was very good. But I think the copy I got for my Kindle wasn't cleaned up enough. For one the author repeats himself, then the Title or Author's name was there to interrupt the flow. (I read and listened to text to speech). Hopefully future editions will be much better.
December 31, 2023
This was a really amazing read! Something different to really engage the imagination, a mix of fantasy with a dystopian world! An immortal Mozart & the slightly unbalanced characters that are trying to find & expose him mixed in with a incredibly unfair future world. Great ideas, really well written some parts are a little slower, but good pace overall! A really interesting read!
May 12, 2012
This is my first experience with Rayner, but I'm definitely on board. How could you not love a book that starts with the line: "Mozart walked into the sex-change clinic on a cold, snowy July morning, intending to have his sprouter snipped off." I mean, Mozart contemplates a sex-change operation in order to hide his immortality (literal and musical) in a dystopian-utopia (or utoptian-dystopia), and things get messy from there. The book is strange, imaginative, and suspenseful. It really pulled me into the story, which, wild as it was, holds some interesting reflections on the world of today. I have to say, I really got into this book. I'll have to check out more of Rayner.
January 16, 2012
Mark Rayner did a great job on this book but I have to ask you this.
Have you ever wondered what happened to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart?
Well he is alive and well sitting in a sex change clinic getting ready to change his life for ever some time in the year 2028.
But while sitting there his life changes but not in the way his is planning.
I found this a real page turner and I was pleased as to the way it flowed together
please keep on writing more books
Have you ever wondered what happened to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart?
Well he is alive and well sitting in a sex change clinic getting ready to change his life for ever some time in the year 2028.
But while sitting there his life changes but not in the way his is planning.
I found this a real page turner and I was pleased as to the way it flowed together
please keep on writing more books
October 12, 2015
This story is a gem! I really loved it! Under the humor and the satire is a very well thought plot of human evolution, existentialism, utopia and whatnot. I felt surprised at the ending because I expected it to go on and on but then again, it makes this story even more precious.
Thank you to the author for a great read and please, keep'em coming!
Thank you to the author for a great read and please, keep'em coming!
December 24, 2023
a bunch of creative ideas
There is much that I liked about this novel and the format is unusual. Not sure the format entirely works and there is a lot of telling via showing. More problematic for me is that a lot of the novel would have been resolved if the world of the novel (and the author) acknowledged that many things are a binary. So glad I read it but it was a. It if a slog and it has elements that feel dated (also some instances of misgendering and seems to depict at least characters who don’t seem comfortable with the possibility of bisexuality - which would have resolved elements of the plot)
There is much that I liked about this novel and the format is unusual. Not sure the format entirely works and there is a lot of telling via showing. More problematic for me is that a lot of the novel would have been resolved if the world of the novel (and the author) acknowledged that many things are a binary. So glad I read it but it was a. It if a slog and it has elements that feel dated (also some instances of misgendering and seems to depict at least characters who don’t seem comfortable with the possibility of bisexuality - which would have resolved elements of the plot)
March 29, 2018
Seriously what the hell was that?
I have too many issues with this book to put here but holy geeze!
I have too many issues with this book to put here but holy geeze!
October 21, 2012
How on earth do I begin to describe this book. Hmm, let me see, have you ever had a really weird dream, one that just keeps going on and on, without making any sense? Imagine dreaming, with your mind flipping from strange scene to scene, random place to place, with things getting weirder and stranger by the minute, with random sex scenes thrown in, then random murder and violence thrown in, and strange thinking speaking computers, and when you wake up you go "wow, what in the heck was that all about?". That pretty much describes this book for me.
This book is told it varying first person and third person perspectives. It is set in a strange, futuristic, post apocalyptic world which is on the verge of another apocalypse. One of the main characters is Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, who has never died and is now 272 years old.
For some reason I think the message of this book went right over my head. What was the purpose? What was the meaning? If this was satire, I didn't get it. Or maybe it was just a really weird dream.
This book is told it varying first person and third person perspectives. It is set in a strange, futuristic, post apocalyptic world which is on the verge of another apocalypse. One of the main characters is Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, who has never died and is now 272 years old.
For some reason I think the message of this book went right over my head. What was the purpose? What was the meaning? If this was satire, I didn't get it. Or maybe it was just a really weird dream.
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