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Le Seigneur des glaces et de la solitude
Le docteur Robert Frederickson est un criminologue et détective réputé. Dans une autre vie, il était connu sous le nom de Mongo le Magnifique et se produisait dans un cirque, en tant que nain acrobate. L'érosion d'un glacier en Alaska vient de faire apparaître une immense grotte inconnue jusqu'ici. Plusieurs personnes sont déjà mortes pour avoir voulu l'explorer. Parti à la recherche de Marc Coletis, un jeune homme déséquilibré qui s'est aventuré dans ce labyrinthe souterrain, Mongo découvre, au milieu de créatures mutantes, les vestiges d'une civilisation très ancienne. George Chesbro est l'un des grands représentants américains du roman d'aventure et tous ses thèmes de prédilection sont ici réunis : son goût pour les ambiances surnaturelles et le fantastique, contrebalancé par une défense de la rationalité et de la liberté, incarnée par son héros Mongo.
368 pages, Paperback
Published May 16, 2007
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About the author
George C. Chesbro
53 books62 followersGeorge C. Chesbro was an American author of detective fiction. His most notable works feature Dr. Robert "Mongo the Magnificent" Fredrickson, a private detective with dwarfism. He also wrote the novelization of The Golden Child, a movie of the same name starring Eddie Murphy.
Chesbro was born in Washington, D.C. He worked as a special education teacher at Pearl River and later at rockland Psychiatric Center, where he worked with trouble teens. Chebro was married and had one daughter and two step-daughters.
Chesbro was born in Washington, D.C. He worked as a special education teacher at Pearl River and later at rockland Psychiatric Center, where he worked with trouble teens. Chebro was married and had one daughter and two step-daughters.
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January 18, 2020
Be warned-this is going to be a long, and perhaps personal, review. I promise to avoid spoilers.
When I started to read mysteries I did so intentionally. I had been reading science fiction and fantasy almost exclusively for many moons and decided I needed to broaden my horizons. One of the first authors I tried was George C Chesbro-I found a slightly battered copy of Second Horseman Out of Eden at my public library. I was hooked. Robert Frederickson: a dwarf private detective, with a PhD in criminology who parleyed the acrobatic skills he honed as a circus headliner under the stage name "Mongo the Magnificent" into a black belt. It seems ridiculous but George made it work. And I say George because Mr. Chesbro was one of the first authors I was ever bold enough to contact-thank you internet! We did not become blood brothers or anything but he was always nice to this particular fan, and when I eventually asked if he would sign my books (by that time I had merrily accumulated everything I could that George had written) he readily assented. (I had to mail them to him-I still have those books.)
Which brings us to Lord of Ice and Loneliness. Fourteen Mongo mysteries were published in the States. The fifteenth never found a home with a US publisher, though it was released in France in 2003. I have been trying to get my hands on an English copy of this book for almost seventeen years! Finally thanks to what is essentially a French Connection (I know you saw what I did there) I received a copy as a gift. This was something I had honestly given up on ever seeing, so it means so much to me to have finally read it.
Sadly George died in 2008. It seems likely Lord is the last Mongo mystery, unless there is something undiscovered sitting in a drawer somewhere. No one has emerged to write more Mongo and I assuredly am not capable of it. It's obvious in reading the book that this was the beginning of something epic. Onward:
Fellow fans: the gang's all here. Several years seem to have passed since the events of Dream of a Falling Eagle. We get to catch up with Mongo and Harper plus Garth, Mary Tree, and the other members of Mongo's cluster of friends. (I am intentionally glossing over the details to preserve the reading experience for anyone who comes after me.) The always verbose Dr Frederickson makes a startling discovery-the kind of once in a lifetime find that can shake humanity's perception of the universe. I won't share the details but it is more explosive than the discovery of DNA. Then things really hit the fan.
I am going to speculate here: I think the reason this book was not published in the States involves the severe roasting given to organized religion (among other entities.) What was interesting to me was observing how thoroughly George hit the nail on the head with some of his social commentary, which still rings true almost two decades later.
In Lord we are faced with an older, though not necessarily wiser, Mongo. He is a little more vulnerable then we are used to. But he is still the hero we remember, and it was great to visit with him one last time. This novel ends in a massive cliffhanger-sadly never to be resolved. Still a privilege to have read it.
When I started to read mysteries I did so intentionally. I had been reading science fiction and fantasy almost exclusively for many moons and decided I needed to broaden my horizons. One of the first authors I tried was George C Chesbro-I found a slightly battered copy of Second Horseman Out of Eden at my public library. I was hooked. Robert Frederickson: a dwarf private detective, with a PhD in criminology who parleyed the acrobatic skills he honed as a circus headliner under the stage name "Mongo the Magnificent" into a black belt. It seems ridiculous but George made it work. And I say George because Mr. Chesbro was one of the first authors I was ever bold enough to contact-thank you internet! We did not become blood brothers or anything but he was always nice to this particular fan, and when I eventually asked if he would sign my books (by that time I had merrily accumulated everything I could that George had written) he readily assented. (I had to mail them to him-I still have those books.)
Which brings us to Lord of Ice and Loneliness. Fourteen Mongo mysteries were published in the States. The fifteenth never found a home with a US publisher, though it was released in France in 2003. I have been trying to get my hands on an English copy of this book for almost seventeen years! Finally thanks to what is essentially a French Connection (I know you saw what I did there) I received a copy as a gift. This was something I had honestly given up on ever seeing, so it means so much to me to have finally read it.
Sadly George died in 2008. It seems likely Lord is the last Mongo mystery, unless there is something undiscovered sitting in a drawer somewhere. No one has emerged to write more Mongo and I assuredly am not capable of it. It's obvious in reading the book that this was the beginning of something epic. Onward:
Fellow fans: the gang's all here. Several years seem to have passed since the events of Dream of a Falling Eagle. We get to catch up with Mongo and Harper plus Garth, Mary Tree, and the other members of Mongo's cluster of friends. (I am intentionally glossing over the details to preserve the reading experience for anyone who comes after me.) The always verbose Dr Frederickson makes a startling discovery-the kind of once in a lifetime find that can shake humanity's perception of the universe. I won't share the details but it is more explosive than the discovery of DNA. Then things really hit the fan.
I am going to speculate here: I think the reason this book was not published in the States involves the severe roasting given to organized religion (among other entities.) What was interesting to me was observing how thoroughly George hit the nail on the head with some of his social commentary, which still rings true almost two decades later.
In Lord we are faced with an older, though not necessarily wiser, Mongo. He is a little more vulnerable then we are used to. But he is still the hero we remember, and it was great to visit with him one last time. This novel ends in a massive cliffhanger-sadly never to be resolved. Still a privilege to have read it.
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