All Aboard the Hype Train

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Murder on the Orient Express, its images and all other legal stuff belongs to Agatha Christie, 20th Century Fox, Kinberg Genre, Scott Free Productions and whoever else that I failed to mention.

So over a month ago Murder on the Orient Express released. I went to see it. I had always wanted to see it. The story is a little famous. Written by Agatha Christie if you didn’t know. Though it’s arguably her most famous story so I’d be surprised if you didn’t know. When I had expressed to my family that I wished to see it, most of them already said they had. Or knew the ending. I was a little surprised because some of them don’t even read mystery novels.

Now, my interest wasn’t based on the star power of the movie (though it does have the always entertaining Kenneth Branagh and a host of other really fantastic actors). It wasn’t even the buzz surrounding the picture. Largely because I was keeping myself divorced from the film having decided to watch it when I heard the title. I wanted to know as little about it as possible. That it was the seminal work of Agatha Christie was enough for me.

And I’m glad that I had.

If you’re like me and know nothing about Murder on the Orient Express, and you have an interest in watching it, then I’d suggest you stop reading now and go take a look. What I can tell you is that the performances are top notch and the filming of it is expertly crafted. As a cinematic piece, it is wholly worth the price of an evening ticket. So close this window now and go check it out! Scoot!

For the rest of us, either those not interest, those that have seen it or both, then I have many thoughts on the film. I suppose the first place to begin is the obvious question: did I like it?

Unfortunately, that question is possibly the hardest. So let’s talk about something else first.

I legitimately thought the acting was outstanding. There isn’t really a poor performance amongst the lot, though if I had to pick the weakest actor from the ensemble then it would go to Tom Bateman as the son of the Orient Express owner. He basically serves as Hercule Poirot’s (Kenneth Branagh) bumbling sidekick with little characterisation beyond degenerate womaniser and zero investment in the turmoil that overtakes his train. Outside of being a busy set of hands at the legendary detective’s side, he just doesn’t do anything interesting with his character or time on screen. Which is a stark contradiction to the rest of the cast who work overdrive in their brief moments before the audience to bring the colourful cast alive.

But Murder on the Orient Express is largely a Branagh affair. Bringing Hercule Poirot alive is a tall task especially since he’s been so defined by David Suchet’s portrayal. You can’t truly mimic other performer’s takes but Branagh never truly revitalises the detective or redefines him. I’m reminded of Heath Ledger’s Joker in Nolan’s movies. That was a transformational performance that changed the public’s perception of the comic book character for years to come. Branagh… isn’t doing the same. He does a fine job but it mostly left me wanting David Suchet to return.

Though I do have to give credit to Branagh for that fantastic moustache.

Of the standout performances, I’d have to give it to Johnny Depp to be honest. Depp has been pretty lacklustre in his years since doing Pirates of the Caribbean and it felt like he was pretty much going to ride out his career coasting on that character. However, though brief, he certainly adds punch and life to Samuel Ratchett. Otherwise, I really liked Olivia Colman as Hildegarde Schmidt – the assistant to regal Judi Dench’s Princess Dragomiroff.

Part of the issue, however, is that there’s such a large cast and so little time to spend with them. And each character has seemingly a lot to say towards the plot that, by the end, it feels like you’re just blasting through most of their connections and issues to come screeching to the end. Having not read the novel, I can see where much time would be spent weaving their various backgrounds and interactions together. In a film that can only cover an agonising portion, however, their time is too brief and the story focuses more on the plot. It feels like the movie would benefit from having a smaller cast just so you could focus on those characters more but one of the problems with Murder on the Orient Express is its devotion to sticking with its source material.

I’m not film buff, however I could really appreciate the technical work done. Trying to keep action high on the cramped quarters of a train can’t be easy, and there were some very clever uses of perspective and angle to both add variety and communicate emotion. I think the moment when I really noticed this technical work was with the discovery of Ratchett’s body. The camera follows Poirot from a top down perspective, curiously removing the audience from the initial facial reaction of the discovers of the grisly scene while also cutting out the grisly scene itself! You only see Branagh’s head as the initial panic over the dead body is addressed and the doctor is brought in to do a very brief examination of the body. It was an intriguing and unexpected use of camera work that brought my attention to an otherwise ignored aspect of film making. Whether that is a good thing or not, I suppose, is more up for debate.

But all this is perhaps extraneous. Given its authenticity, the real question about Murder on the Orient Express’s quality isn’t on its production or execution. Both of those are outstanding. Instead, the movie lives and dies by its story itself. And that’s where I feel things get a lot murkier.

As I mentioned earlier, my whole impetus for watching the movie was its pedigree. Agatha Christie is really the founder of the murder mystery genre. Murder on the Orient Express is one of her famous, if not most famous, stories. And I just simply can’t see why.

It does represent the distillation of her style, however. This is the point in my movie review wherein I recommend a wholly different movie. Have you heard of Murder by Death? Yes? Good. Go watch it. No? Too bad. Go watch it.

Murder by Death is a comedy that lampoons the mystery genre. It specifically targets some very famous but very old authors and works. I really enjoyed the movie on its comedy merits alone. Seeing Murder on the Orient Express has made me appreciate Murder by Death far, far more. Now I know exactly what it’s criticising. And I absolutely agree with the writers and Capone. What they did was bullshit.

But let’s be more concrete. Agatha Christie wrote her mysteries specifically in a manner meant for the reader to be impressed by the detective. The techniques used were not opaque. The detective often had additional information never presented to the reader. Say, like in the Murder on the Orient Express, the knowledge of an earlier incident involving the kidnapping and death of a little girl. Detectives will also often go into a scene and make note of objects or evidence never elucidated to the readership. That way, when the big reveal occurs, the audience is in awe of the deductive prowess and fantastic reasoning of the principle character.

It’s certainly a style that’s run its course. And, for me, it’s definitely a style that I don’t lament fading. There’s a certain dishonesty to it. Like the author doesn’t actually feel confident the detective will come across as observant or intellectual if they don’t purposefully keep their audience in the dark. It’s the idea that if, when presented with the same information, the audience will groan and decry “it’s obviously the butler!” But unlike the audience, the detective is enslaved to literary pacing and story development.

Which is a fair concern. Literary detectives don’t work under the same restraints as real life detectives. And genre savvy readership is plenty apt to be able to parse their favourite writer’s style and method to figure out the perpetrator before the climax of the story. And the last thing you want is your audience groaning over the obvious struggle of your detective to piece together obvious clues and finger the culprit.

Murder on the Orient Express is clearly written to subvert it. It’s hard to not see it less as a story about the characters but more a game between the author and readership. There’s far too many fake-outs and misdirections than I personally like. The story is secondary to the situation as you fight with Agatha Christie, trying to beat her at her own game. And, of course, she’s leaning into the old bag of tricks because her readership would know them by now.

In the end, I don’t like the story because it’s reliant on a history of Agatha Christie’s style and characters in order to achieve it’s amusement. If you’re not really familiar with her, like I am, it’s very easy for the piece to piece moments to make absolutely no sense. And, frankly, they don’t. The characters’ motivations and methods are insanely over-the-top. It’s a mess of over complicated nonsense with no rhyme or reason to occur. At best I can imagine that the whole thing was set up because the culprit was aware that Poirot was onboard and was worried about being discovered. Unfortunately for that hypothesis, Poirot only made it on the train at the very last minute so either the culprit is capable of making insanely detailed plans involving the movements of multiple actors or that this was originally planned in order to baffle… no one?

I mean, seriously, the culprit had the ability to murder the victim in some discreet alleyway in Istanbul then ride a luxury train to Europe where they would never be caught. The whole mystery is intentionally made convoluted solely so Poirot can dazzle and amaze when he reveals who was ultimately behind it. But it’s such a blatant example of showmanship that it lays bare the ugly reality that you’re not watching anything real. This whole exercise is just a mindless excuse to amuse and entertain with nothing else to stimulate your interest.

Sure, in a reductive way this could describe any entertainment but that’s where character arcs and themes step in to give you greater pause to consider the work and its larger relevance. There is no relevance to Murder on the Orient Express save for its fame. In a sense, it’s the Kim Kardashian of murder mysteries. Its meant to be ogled for an hour and a bit but ultimately discarded and forgotten.

Contrast that with Murder by Death which examines the actual underpinnings of a genre and the relationship between author and audience and it’s hard not to think one has more value than the other despite being a shameless spoof.

So did I enjoy Murder on the Orient Express? I enjoyed its production. I enjoyed the contextualization of other work that stemmed from it. But of the mystery itself I can’t honestly say that I did. I’m glad I saw it for its role in history but, more than anything, it makes me question why it played a role in the first place.

Where Goes the Snow Beneath the Lights of the Boreal

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Accessed from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aurora_Borealis_(painting)

Aurora Borealis by Frederic Edwin Church (1865).

So it’s been some time, hasn’t it? The astute amongst us will have noticed that it is December now. Which means we’ve just come through November. As such, I have finished the NaNoWriMo Challenge. For those unfamiliar with NaNo (short for National Novel Writing Month), it is an online self challenge to try and write a whole novel in a month. I participate in two of their events: the official NaNo challenge in November and Camp NaNo which is a practice month to work on just about anything.

It’s a great little experience and the official version is pretty serene. You have a set target of 50,000 words in one month which works out to 1,666 words a day. It’s reasonable even for those with busy schedules but still a feat so you feel accomplished at the end. Over my time doing the challenge, I’ve found that I’ve become quite adept at it and that the original 50,000 target isn’t particularly onerous to meet. This year I did a bonus 11,000 words or so. But more than that, I choose to make the April Camp NaNo more challenging by setting a word target of 90,000 which is still quite a sprint for me.

At any rate, as a celebration of my return to regular posting behaviour, I thought I would share a random snippet from my story: raw and unedited. I just plucked this from my word document without rhyme or reason since I’m still a little confounded by the work. Usually my feelings about a project immediately after completion is a dizzy mixture of relief, disappointment and confusion. I’m never quite certain how I ended up where I did or even whether I like what I’ve just done. That’s why I put a couple of months between drafts and editing so that I can let the project simmer on the back-burner and all my failed ideas that didn’t make it or work like I planned can fade from my thoughts so I can see the results for what they are.

And since my NaNo stories are typically more experimental since it’s only a modest 50,000 target, I rarely have much planning going into the venture so the results are usually very unexpected.

For this story, I wanted to write some general fiction about a woman going missing in the far Canadian north. The story doesn’t really focus on the woman herself but the three people affected the most about it. Their reactions to her disappearance are quite varied but they each have their own convoluted story to tell about her life. I wanted to give that sense of how it’s impossible to predict the impact we have on each other’s lives and, in the case of these three individuals, the impact a person can have even without meeting them.

So we’re going to take an early peek into the troubles the investigating officer faces when the story of the missing tourist Yuki Ogasawara first starts to break.

—

Charlie had never seen a press conference. Well, he’d never seen one in person. He’d seen a lot on tv. He’d even given a mock one at police academy. Course, the expectation was that the media correspondent would take care of them. Whiteriver wasn’t large enough to warrant a media correspondent. Janice seemed quite happy to take the position however.

One person who wasn’t happy with it, though, was Sergeant Sheppard.

“Didn’t I tell you that I thought there was no warrant for raising alarm!” Sheppard growled from his desk.

“Yes, sir.”

“But you went ahead and called for one anyway? This was supposed to be a simple case, Charlie. Now you’ve bunged it all up!”

“I’m sorry, sir. But I felt, given the information presented to me, that it needed escalating.”

“But you didn’t want to share that information with me?”

“I… tried!” Charlie gulped. He knew he was in hot water. He felt like he was in hot water. He wasn’t even certain why. Though he had more sympathy for the frog in the pot. He pulled on his collar aware that no amount of airflow would cool his neck.

“This will instill paranoia, Charlie. And for what? We don’t even know that the woman is missing. There’s been no contact with a relative. No confirmation that she isn’t home safe and sound. We don’t even know where her home is!”

“She’s from Japan, sir.”

“Japan! Not even a resident. You’re going to get people all worked up about a kidnapping over someone that probably just went back to her country!”

“I… never thought it was a kidnapping,” Charlie muttered.

“What’s that?”

“I don’t think the evidence points to a kidnapping.”

“Why is that?”

“Well there was no ransom…”

“And why would there be if she was a tourist?” Sergeant Sheppard asked. “Certainly if they were posting it to her address it would be all the way over in Japan, now wouldn’t it? And who would go so far to kidnap someone half a world away? And in Whiteriver no less? You know how many people live here-”

“Twenty-five thousand, sir.”

“-twenty-five thous- yes, that’s correct. There are deer herds out there larger than our community.”

“Is that true, sir?”

“What?”

“That there are larger deer herds?”

“I don’t know. I assume so. Probably out in the Maritimes. The point is, Charlie, we’re a quiet and civic little community. We like our tranquillity. It’s what draws people to come visit us. They want escape from the chaos of city living. And you’re disturbing their much deserved peace with these fanciful big city crime theories.”

“Well, it is a fact that Ms. Yuki has gone missing from her room where all her belongings were left,” Charlie said.

Sergeant Sheppard dismissed his point. “All we know is some foreigner skimped out on the bill. Could have forgotten to pay it. Maybe she swiped her phone at the door on the way out. Who knows with tourists sometimes. It’s possibly she thought she could pay online. How old did you say she was?”

“Forty, sir.”

“Forty? Hm…” Sergeant Sheppard chewed his graduation certificate on the wall with his eyes. “Regardless, the fact still remains that I’m chief officer here and I didn’t give you permission to assign Janice to-”

“Janice thought it was necessary too-”

“Janice isn’t lead on the investigation!” Sergeant Sheppard said. “And you trotting that poor girl before the press when she hasn’t had proper time to prepare-”

“I gave her all night to get ready.”

“One night? We haven’t set up a task force to deal with a missing person and you’re already assigning specific roles to people in the office?!”

Sheppard shook his head. He stopped Charlie short with a raised hand.

“More than anything I’m disappointed, Charlie. I had such high regard for you. You were such a promising officer with a lot of talent and much to offer-”

The soul burning moment was ended by a merciful knock at the door.

“Yes?”

“Sir, it’s about the Coast Fraser case.”

“Yes, we’re currently discussing that,” Sergeant Sheppard said, looking at Charlie. But Bradford didn’t leave.

“I think you might want to see this.”

He held up a paper. Charlie turned in his seat. In bold typeface was the name The Whiteriver Rapids. The leading story was quite an eye-grabber though the accompany picture of the Coast Fraser Hotel was hardly glamorous.

“What’s that?” Sergeant Sheppard asked.

“Today’s paper. The front story is about our investigation, I think. Titled Woman Missing from Whiteriver Hotel. I think it’s a little redundant. Why would the Whiteriver Rapids write about a woman missing from another town? Plus, you’ve got the Coast Fraser on the front but don’t mention it in the lead-in for the story. Seems like sloppy journalism.”

“How is this possible!” Sergeant Sheppard bellowed. “We haven’t even run our press conference!”

“Oh, they mention that,” Bradford says, pointing at font far too small for Charlie and Sheppard to read. “Said they reached out for comment from RCMP. Janice told them she would be making an announcement to the community shortly. The Rapids do really seem on top of things, don’t they?”

“Ok, ok,” Sergeant Sheppard waved Bradford from his office. He leaned back in his chair and let out a protracted sigh until the door closed. He looked at Charlie long and hard. Then he shook his head. “Well, guess it’s good that you went forward with this. Makes us look on top of things. So… good work, officer!”

“Thanks, staff sergeant.”

Sergeant Sheppard leaned forward in his chair. “But if we’re upgrading this to a missing persons, it’ll take high priority. I’m going to have to oversee your investigation, you understand. Run everything by me and I mean everything, understood? We can’t have wasted resources on fruitless searches. I need to sign off on it all.”

Charlie tried to keep his teeth from grinding.

“Yes, sergeant.”

Sergeant Sheppard thrummed his fingers on his desktop. “You’ve got a report of all developments so far?”

“It’s been one day.”

‘I’d like to see one by this afternoon.”

“Yes, sir.”

Sergeant Sheppard nodded to himself. “Alright. This can work.” He smiled. “I’m sure you’ll do great with this expanded responsibility.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“Well, what are you waiting here for? You have work to do, don’t you?”

Charlie stood. “I’ll get to it right away.”

Sergeant Sheppard led Charlie to the door then closed it behind him.

How to Write: Lesson 4

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Accessed from http://www.wga.hu/index1.html

Oriental Writer Cutting His Pen by Benjamin Gerritsz Cuyp (1640).

Well, we’ve covered a number of writing tips that don’t really have a lot to do with the craft of writing. It’s important to get in the right mindset and to prepare to create your work but time has come to actually how we go about doing the actual writing. While throwing words on pages is the essence of the art, there are obviously techniques and considerations that can assist with that end. Since, just any old words won’t work. We’ve read stories that weren’t good and others that simply blew us away. How do we make ours more the latter than the former.

So today we’re going to talk about the three main components of a story. They’re part ingredients and part spices. They inform and direct each other even if you only use a dash of one and a healthy helping of the third. But any story can be considered through these three elements and it’s best to think about them at the start than try and address them later when you’re neck deep in the minutia of your work.

These three cornerstones of writing are, of course, Character, Plot and Theme.

I’m sure that’s elicited a series of groans from just about anyone that had to take a high school English course. But it’s important to recognize that our teachers didn’t pull these aspects out for analysis with no justifications. Its these elements that get your readers hooked and it’s what will separate your writing from the rest.

But it’s also important to know that you don’t need all three. In fact, many of the best literary books will put their primary focus on one of these (though they’ll still have the others in a lesser degree). They are so ubiquitous that an explanation for them is pretty unnecessary but their importance may not be immediately evident.

Every story, for example, has characters. And those with primary attention to character are easy to highlight. They’re often the ones selected for book studies in school and include such famous works like Catcher in the Rye, To Kill a Mocking Bird or Memoirs of a Geisha. The draw for the reader is the personal journey and change they undergo. Oftentimes, if you really break down the moment to moment action, there isn’t really a lot happening in that person’s life. But the personal struggle, the internal turmoil brought on by the challenges the protagonist faces, are what draw the reader in. If writing a character driven story, it’s vitally important that you have a rich and fully developed character. Their hopes and weaknesses will be essentially what leads your plot and inform the themes.

On the flip-side, plot driven novels put far more focus on the action. The characters are important but you’re there for their exploits and whatever business they’re on, not necessarily the gritty peeling of their personality. These kinds of stories are often broadly popular. Star Wars, for example, has rather generic characters. They’re more archetypes than individuals. It’s the struggle between the Rebels and Empire that interests the fans. Spending too much time on the interpersonal conflict can actually detract from the narrative itself. But, of course, you can’t have empty names filling the sides of your gripping battles either. Characters are more defined by their relation to the driving conflict and the people that oppose them.

Of the three, thematic stories are perhaps the rarest. At least stories that put the theme at the forefront and drive most of the narration. Your Star Wars and Memoirs of a Geisha certainly have prominent themes but the theme isn’t at the fore. Lord of the Flies is really driven by its theme to the point of dictating character action and plot development. One reason for thematic driven pieces to be so rare is the modern perception of these stories coming across as too preachy. A Pilgrim’s Progress is hardly going to have the splash now as it did in 1678. As such, modern writing generally regulates theme to a secondary or tertiary consideration but it’s still an important one, nevertheless.

Thus, when preparing and writing your novel, it’s important to keep in mind where you want to set your focus. You can, of course, prepare these in broad strokes if that is your style. But it will save yourself a lot of headache and frustration in the editing phase if you’ve already got a focus from the start. When writing my first story, I had a kernel of an idea and set about trying to realize it into something more than a two line pitch. It took several drafts before I realized that the personal character elements were dragging away from the action I wanted to be the primary focus. My natural inclination for character dramas was detracting from the mystery that was meant to pull the reader along and really muddied the narrative.

Thus, for my second novel, I knew that I wanted my characters to take central stage. So the plot took a backseat and the locations and events that did explode onto the page were issues that sprang from personal histories or would allow the expression of my cast better than necessarily what would be the most exciting event. Furthermore, the specifics that I detailed in the world creation were meant to provide further insight into the characters and their motivations.

My latest novel, however, is far more thematic. The genesis for it was based on conceptions of humanity and its malleability due to technology. Considering how best to communicate my thoughts on the intersection of these two elements dictated the structure of the novel and who would ultimately be the principal characters. It determined their ages and occupations as well as the need to split the novel in two for both points of view.

Because, ultimately, determining on which element is going to be your focus will inform the techniques that you utilize. Certain tropes work better in plot heavy stories than they do in character pieces. And you’re not apt to use a stream of consciousness in order to narrate the big confrontation of your alternative history epic when your hero finally confronts the villain that has plunged the world into war.

So, when writing your story decide how much of your centre stage is going to be taken up by your characters, themes or plot and make sure that when pacing and developing the narrative you portion off the appropriate amount of time to each. With any luck, you can pinpoint when you’re spending too much time rushing from point to point and not listening to the inner struggle of your character or when theme starts dragging out the enjoyment of your plot. It should let you correct course before veering too far off-track and reduce the workload of your editing.

How to Write: Lesson 3

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Oriental Writer Cutting His Pen by Benjamin Gerritsz Cuyp (1640).

There is a personal element to writing. No two writers are exactly the same, otherwise we wouldn’t have such variation in our works. Truly, a homogeneous talent pool is the most dystopian ideal to create for creative fields. Sometimes good advice needs to be amorphous and vague so that each listener can take the important elements and adapt them to their own needs and situations.

So, I’d talked prior about the important of turning off your own internal filter and how to keep yourself on track through the use of (or lack thereof) plans. I’m going to do a last little lesson on writing “prep” and it’s a little insight into how I approach a work.

Personally, I don’t just do one project until completion. I’m a bit of a perfectionist and loathe finding errors in my own works. This doesn’t combine well with being an imperfect being and so I can get lost in a novel if it’s the only thing occupying my time. Setbacks can lead to hang ups and, invariably, I’ll grow tired of working on my project and long for greener pastures elsewhere. Thus, I tend to have several projects on the go at any given time. That way, should motivation be lacking in one department, I can refresh my mind by looking at something else. On average, I have somewhere between three and five things on the go.

It works for me but hopping around from wildly different stories can make for other challenges. How do I keep tone and language consistent within a Victorian steampunk murder mystery after I’ve just spent some time working through a multitude of speech patterns in a wild west adventure? There’s a real danger of losing sight of stylistic choices or forgetting important characteristics of my characters that are necessary for conveying the theme and atmosphere.

Thus, I’ve found being able to recreate the “head space” I was in while writing the first draft or conceiving the initial idea aids in refocusing my attention. It’s especially important since, while I do keep extensive notes on my projects, I also have a bad habit of carrying a lot of my work in my head and weighing ideas and options before committing them to the page.

But I have a shortcut to remind myself of how I wanted my stories to feel.

I use music.

It’s a little cheat. When doing a lot of my mental preparation for a story, I’ll seek out songs and create playlists that inspire me for the project. Often these revolve around hitting the right atmosphere in my head for what I want the piece to convey. Thus, style over substance takes precedence for me. For the Clockwork Caterpillar, I had a rather eclectic mix of folksongs, foreign metal and American rock. Derick Steals a Baby is largely jazz and orchestral. Part of what determines the shape of the playlist is determined by how the concept for the story germinated. If I imagined and refined the story idea while listening to music then I have an easy start to my list.

But if the inspiration struck elsewhere then it can sometimes be harder to think of a good list. Sometimes, I’ll think of a piece of creative work that is somewhat similar and search for music from or associated with it. Other times it can simply be what’s playing in the background while I’m musing about the ideas and trying to make a coherent story from them.

And having something work well in the background is key. I don’t make lists of my favourite songs or what’s popular currently. This isn’t a method of distraction and a discordant or “flavour of the month” song that’s apt to get overplayed and annoying quickly simply isn’t helpful. I don’t think any of my work lists have any of the bands I listen to for pleasure in them. Not to say the songs I pick aren’t pleasurable. But I need something with as few mental associations as possible so I can latch my story ideas to the melodies. Thus, hearing that song reminds me of my story and not anything else in my life.

And when I have a really great list together, it’s truly something special. But I’ve had some poor lists before that just simply didn’t do the work. This is hardly a necessary step to writing but similar elements to my playlist can be incorporated into other writing styles. Finding what motivates you is just as important as coming up with the greatest ideas. The best story isn’t one that exists solely in your imagination. Thus, it’s necessary that you take whatever shortcuts, cheats or tactics you can to make sure that you get your writing done. Whether this is specific food or drink, a cosy little corner or a collection of motivational pictures doesn’t matter. Perhaps even a simple ritual of sharpening a pen and cracking open a fresh, blank tome is all that’s necessary to start feeding those imaginative juices and getting the words to flow free.

Happy Turkey Day!

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I’ve been a bit quiet of late. Part of that is the national celebration for eating one of the world’s ugliest birds. I’m telling you, PETA, we’re doing our part to make the world a cuter place. The other part was due to me taking time to poke around some lovely canyons.

I was down south, checking out some famous locations. You may have heard of things like Zion National Park, Yosemite National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park or maybe even Grand Canyon National Park. Or maybe you haven’t. Either way, I’m going to tell you about them.

They’re pretty.

So in conclusion, if you have the chance, I’d recommend checking them out.

No? Not enough? Alright, I can give a few more details.

There’s actually quite a bit I can say about these places despite only spending a day at any of them. They’re remarkable areas of scenic beauty tucked away on the Colorado Plateau. You may not be aware of this, but Canada isn’t particularly swimming in deserts (well, at least not the hot, sandy kind) so puttering through the foreign landscape was a real treat. There’s quite a variation in the land and always being within eyesight of soaring red cliffs never got old. The lack of trees, however, would sap away my sanity had the change been more permanent.

But as a vacation spot, it was very lovely.

I’m only going to prattle about Zion National Park, though. Everyone knows the Grand Canyon. Most people I know already want to see the Grand Canyon. It’s a gosh-darn World UNESCO Site so it really doesn’t need me to tell you to check it out. But just in case it does, you should check it out if you get the chance.

However, the Grand Canyon is kind of what you’d expect from all its press floating out there. That just leaves Bryce and Zion and, of the two, I’m more smitten with Zion.

It’s not that Bryce is bad. It’s quite a surprise. But I think Bryce works best as a destination the less you know about it.

So Zion it is! But what is Zion? Well, it’s this:

They say a picture is worth a thousand words.

For me, I was looking forward to Zion because I’m a massive nerd. We have several words devoted to a little computer game called Fallout: New Vegas. It introduced me to the surrounding area of the Mojave Desert and one of its exotic locations in an expansion was a trip to Zion. Of course, it wasn’t an accurate reproduction of the area but it did include several prominent features while also capturing the feel of the park.

However, as I wasn’t wandering in on a post apocalyptic trading caravan (though I thoroughly wished I were), the approach to Zion is a bit more humble. I stayed out in St. George so had an hour drive past the grand tan Navajo Sandstone and to little Springdale. It’s certainly a touristy spot with little shops dotting its main street advertising native art or pretty rocks. There isn’t much parking save for the sides of the street, and a long line of cars heading to the park will encourage you to pull before the squat desert structures. Thankfully, the park runs a very convenient (and free!) shuttle service that covers most of the town and ends at the park entrance.

There you’ll meet some friendly park rangers who will cheerfully take your entrance fee before waving you across the rather timid and unassuming Virgin river towards the park proper. One wisely advised I grab the Park Pass which would grant access to all National Parks and Monuments throughout America for one year. This is a steal, especially if you’re going to three or more locations within a year.

But before entering, there’s one final comment to be made about the park. There’s a Zion Outfitter right at the door and you’ll probably want to check it out if you’re not a hardcore climbing enthusiast or a local. The reasons for that is the Narrows.

Zions most famous hike is through the Virgin River at the heart of the park. To take this challenge on, you’re going to really want the speciality gear that the Outfitters rents. Now, most of their offering is probably unnecessary. They have pants, water tight bags and warm jackets. Thankfully, their cheapest bundle focuses on the gear you’re least likely to own: water resistant socks and shoes. Plus you get a walking stick.

These babies were a godsend. The Virgin River carries so much silt from the canyon that it is almost always murky. So you won’t be seeing the mass of stones hiding beneath its surface. I know I would have had bruised and bloodied toes if it were not for the reinforced exterior of those hiking shoes. Plus, the grip offered by the socks and shoes are fantastic for keeping your balance while treading over the slick rocks. For me, I found the fact that the socks kept their grip even while the shoes filled with (refreshing and cooling) water also a blessing for the hike. The walking stick as well is invaluable for probing the waters as you wade across to judge the depth and avoid hidden sinkholes while also giving you an anchor for keeping yourself steady in the stream. This will run a total of $24 but it’s money very well spent if you’re looking to tackle Zion’s most desirable hike.

That said, the renters discourage taking the equipment on the other trails. And the Narrows hike is located at the end of the shuttle service (which is about forty minutes one way). So you better start early if you want to do it or try and spread your hikes out over several days instead of squeezing everything into one.

The first trail I tackled, however, was Angel’s Landing. Once you’ve set a plan and bought your pass, you are funnelled towards the bus stop which ferries the vast majority of visitors into the canyon. As I was there near the end of climbing season, I had about fifteen minutes until a bus picked me up. Though the signs for thirty and one hour wait times were still out. Once aboard, a lovely little prerecorded message gave some history of the park as I gaped at the canyon walls along the way.

Angels Landing begins at the Grotto stop. It’s easy to find since a lot of people head towards it. The trail ascends to the top of a rock formation nearly in the middle of the park. The canyon loops around it, giving a sense of being lost in the breathtaking scenery. The trail is considered difficult, though the first two miles are well paved and maintained that I’d imagine very few would struggle with it. There’s a series of switchbacks—well two, really—that oversee the five thousand and change feet to its summit. The first set are long and uncovered. When doing it in the morning, you’re going to be very exposed and warm. But the trail heads up a small ravine once you’ve climbed the first half dozen switchbacks and you get to have a bit of shelter and reprieve from the glaring sun. Trees fill the crevices in this cooler section and it’s fairly level until you get to the titular Walter’s Wiggles. These are a set of twenty-one small switchbacks that lead right to Scout’s Lookout.

For many, Scout’s Lookout is enough of Angel’s Landing to enjoy. From here you can look over either side of the rocky ridge and get the jaw-dropping views. There are washrooms and a few scattered trees to drink water and take a break. Many will call it a day here. Of course, I pushed on.

The final half-mile stretch is a nerve-wracking scramble over narrow rock with just the assistance of a metal chain from keeping you becoming another warning statistic about climbers who have fallen to their deaths at the start of this stretch. Personally, I found it was physically the hardest at the start of this stretch. There were the most people traffic jammed on the sheer rock and all the dust from their boots made to surface incredibly slick. If you get past that, things get better. At least, physically they do.

Mentally, I found this hike the hardest I’ve ever done. Most climbs were tiring but I wasn’t really afraid. Angel’s Landing, however, kept me moving slowly and purposefully. My camera bag added an unnecessary amount of shifting weight that, when combined with the high winds, kept playing images of a mortal fall for fifteen hundred feet. There is no surviving if you tumble here; the rock is sheer on either side.

It took some work but I was able to mentally ground myself and concentrate on the climb and experience itself which was the real turnaround for the hike. Once I reached the end, it was something special. The sense of accomplishment combined with the views were unparalleled. The climb down was far easier for me too. I’m not afraid of heights so I could take the time while waiting for those ascending to pass and really enjoy the canyon, watching birds drift listlessly through the air. I also found it less unnerving to pass people descending and didn’t feel like one wayward nudge would be the end.

Course, the descent from Scout’s Lookout carries the same warning towards one’s knees as any climb down from a high hike.

The real treasure of my time in Zion, though, was the Narrows. It was a hike truly unlike anything else. It takes some time to reach the trail, however. You ride out to the final stop—The Temple of Sinawava—then hike along the Riverside path for almost two miles. The Riverside is a pretty simple and relaxing hike which means it’s rather crowded since people of all ages and skill levels are heading out to at least see the Narrows. The views of Riverside are a little underwhelming since the canyon walls are closing in though you can really appreciate just how red they are.

At the trail head, however, is a small crowd of people gathered on the rocky shoreline looking up the wide Virgin towards the shadows of the Narrow’s mouth. Its beginning is a touch unassuming. I was eager to grab some pictures in the river itself for novelty reasons but the canyon is wide enough that you can walk on the opposite shoreline and wading across mostly serves to separate the river walkers from the narrow travellers.

But it’s not long until the magic happens.

The river is constantly changing, taking up the entire berth of the slot canyon or tracing out a thin ribbon amongst rocky, tree-covered shorelines. Rocks of all sizes dot the trail and there’s plenty of breaks for you to stop and grab a bite to eat or enjoy the cool atmosphere. The canyon walls soar above you and you’re in shade more often than not so you’re never warm from the hiking. Of course, there’s also no privacy so make sure you make use of those toilets back at the bus stop because there’s nothing else out here. Apparently you can pick up sani-bags in town for removing your duty should it come to that.

Course, the price is well worth the experience. It’s incredible the variety you can get in just canyon walls and the way the light plays off the stone when it does break past the corners of the earth are simply amazing. Every bend and turn was a new delight and I gleefully grabbed pictures along the way.

My journey ended at a little feature called Wall Street. This section of the hike is when the canyon is at its narrowest and you truly feel the weight and power of the sandstone around you. It’s a fantastic section that, unfortunately, was far too flooded further one. I had been warned by an exceedingly kind Australian woman that about twenty minutes past Wall Street you had to swim to continue. I checked out a side route from Wall Street which was pretty empty of travellers. Here the water gathered it large pools segmented by fallen trees and was a welcome breath of tranquility. I snapped more pictures of course before turning around and heading back.

There’s a bittersweetness to how quickly return trips always are. You’re glad it’s shorter and faster because you’re tired and sore but you’re still sad to see it come to an end. The forty minute return trip on the bus gave ample time to nap, however.

So if you happen to be out at Springdale for a day with nothing to do, may I recommend taking a peek into Zion? You can soak your feet and climb up to where angels fly.

Schooled in Magic – Book Review

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Image of the book cover, Schooled in Magic by Christopher Nuttall. Image from the internet.

Good news – I have gained more employment. Bad news – I will have even less time for reading and writing reviews. Thus I anticipate this is going to be my last post for a while.

Schooled in Magic is the first in a fantasy series by Christopher Nuttall. Our female protagonist, Emily, has a tragic sort of life when she is pulled into another world rife with necromancers, danger and magic. When it is discovered she also has sorceress potential, Emily is sent off to the prestigious Whitehall School.

The story is fine, the writing is sufficient and the characters are okay. This I realize is hardly a stellar review. Well, the book lacked that hook to engage my attention and perhaps I was not in the right mood for that style of book.

The plot was not the most interesting and is far from original. When we are introduced to Emily, we learn she leads the most sad of sad lives. She is a tragic high school student with nearly no friends. Teased and bullied by other students and verbally abused by her stepfather, Emily retreats into books. While I too love literature and libraries, I did not need my mother to fail as a parent for me to enjoy them. Emily’s mother not only married an abusive second husband (after the first one vanishes – I bet I can guess where he went!), but she remains in this abusive relationship. And while I recognize people do behave in this manner – it is becoming a bit of trope in the world of fantasy. At least it feels that way to me.

Image of the book cover, Schooled in Magic by Christopher Nuttall. Image from the internet.

Then suddenly, Emily is whisked away to another world where a necromancer plans on sacrificing her life because she is the Child of Destiny (her mother’s name is Destiny). While the book does try to play with this idea – even Emily recognizes she cannot be the person prophesized – the story also falls back to Emily being super special. You’re a Wizard Harry Emily! I suppose I should have known from the title of the book that much of it would revolve around Emily learning magic in a world reminiscent of Harry Potter – if more students died and the magic was a bit meaner. Harry Potter at high school I suppose. Even the teachers are meaner.

I appreciated the rather pragmatic view of the main character who is willing to sell the ideas of our world to this new land (with its more medieval structure). However, it was difficult for the American heroine to sell me on how there is no classism in the US. Yeah, for pointing out how the social structure of the past was bad. Sadly the presentation of such information was not interesting, and it was presented by a character whose home world is far from perfect.

Anyway, for a younger audience, I think this book would be more interesting. And perhaps the series picks up over time. For me it was mediocre, which was a bit sad as I actually paid for this book. But as I mentioned earlier, I may just not have been in the mood for the story. At this point I would give it 3 out of 5 stars. Nothing offensive but nothing noteworthy.

Star Nomad – Book Review

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Despite my personal bias I find myself reading a number of science fiction books of late. Before you get excited, these are not serious, heavy, intense science fiction books exploring quantum metaphysics the existential relationship between artificial intelligence and souls. These are light, space-opera type books packed with space pirates, laser battles and a hint of romance. Oh, and occasionally an alien – but not always.

Book cover for Star Nomad, book one in the Fallen Empire series. Image from the internet.

Star Nomad is the first of the novel in Lindsay Buroker’s Fallen Empire series. It doesn’t have any aliens. It does have space pirates!

Our daring protagonist is a survivor of the recent war between Empire and rebel Alliance. She is determined to return home and reclaim her daughter and the first step in accomplishing this goal will be acquiring a ship – a freighter, not a warship. In the wake of all great space adventures our heroine does not have a huge arsenal at her disposal. Rather the odds are stacked heavily against her. She is joined however by a colourful caste of crew and passengers which include the hated cyborg, loyal engineer, security office running from the mafia, passenger with a love of narcotics and a monk with some dubious morals.

This is a book heavy in the tradition of Star Wars and Firefly – two science fiction universes I love. From Star Wars we have the existence of space magic. This comes in the form of the mystic Starseers and probably my least favourite aspect of the work so far.

While the opening of Star Nomad struck me heavily with its familiarity to Firefly. My worries that I was destined to read a pale version of the TV cult classic disappeared as the author’s own strong voice came through. This is not a space-western. The similarities in the crew are superficial at best. There is depth to these characters that makes for great reading.

Book cover for Honor’s Flight, book 2 in the Fallen Empire series. Image from the internet.

However, one of the things that I am really starting to enjoy are the different perspectives of interstellar governance. The war between the Empire and the Alliance is over at the start of the first story. The characters are now dealing with the consequences of war and the emergence of a new ruling body. With characters coming from both sides of the conflict we are able to glimpse some of the problems inherent in rebuilding afterwards.

While I might be spoiling somethings, I really found the discussion over the oppression of the Empire being compared to the current lawlessness under Alliance leadership. Is it really repressive that civilians are denied access to weapons? Or was the order and safety provided by those rules a worthwhile trade off. The presentation of this debate has been interesting to follow – especially as it is packaged in this fun, futuristic setting!

So far, I am loving this series. Star Nomad achieves the 5 out of 5 star rating. It has a solid plot, a caste of interesting characters and successful use of banter. I like this book and recommend it to fans of the lighter aspects of science fiction.

We Can Stop Digging, Watson

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Awhile ago, I reviewed Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective. Well, if you hadn’t enough of my complaining about the original game, my family and I have finally gotten through the expansion Jack the Ripper and West End Adventures.

If you want a short, sweet summary of the experience: it’s worse than the first. Which is quite a feat considering how sour my family was towards the original game.

Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective: Jack the Ripper & West End Adventures is the product of Asmodee and a bunch of others that aren’t me.

But if you haven’t read my prior review and you want more than “it sucked” then buckle up because I have a lot of thoughts about the experience.

First, a quick rundown of what Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective is. The game is quite different from your normal tabletop games. This is an (ostensibly) detective game about solving a crime by listening to descriptions or testimonies at various places and by a revolving cast of characters. The idea is pretty neat and certainly something that would be up my mystery obsessed family’s alley. The conceit is that you’re a member of Holmes’ Baker Street Irregulars. These rapscallion street urchins are known for running tasks for Holmes but in the game you’re promoted to assistant consulting detectives and are given the same premise to the mystery as Holmes before being set loose into the streets of London to come up with your own explanation for how and why the crime took place.

And, more often than not, you’ll come to a better conclusion than Holmes. But more about that later.

The only tools you have available to solve the case is a map of London with various locations demarcated with a number, a directory, a list of Sherlock Holmes’ famous allies, the newspaper for the day and the case book which contains the meat of the adventure. After listening to the introduction of your case, you will look up locations on the map or by searching the directory for the address of potential suspects then consult the corresponding number in the case book. In this way you simulate the experience of crossing the busy streets of the Victorian Empire’s capital. And when you start running into some frustrating dead ends in your investigation, you can crack open the papers to get some additional clues to get you back on track.

Now, the game aspect of Consulting Detective is that you’re ostensibly in a competition with Holmes trying to solve the mystery before he does. And this aspect is what brings the whole experience crashing down on a fundamental level. But I’ll be addressing this portion of the game later since it’s an inherent problem in the original release that was only exacerbated with the expansion.

The expansion itself, however, is distinctly split into two experiences. The first four cases concern the infamous Jack the Ripper case and is the first instance of a crossover between Sir Conan Doyle’s fictitious character and a real world event. The latter section of the case is six additional cases set in the same style as the original game. It’s these adventures I’ll address first.

When comparing the West End Adventure to the original Consulting Detective collection, all three of us were grossly disappointed with the offerings. The writing is still the largest stumbling block but, more than anything, I found that these cases were simply far less inspiring than the original ten cases. We basically solved all of them within three locations in the book and they really didn’t feel as developed as the originals. Since I was the sole keeper of the case book, I also happened to notice that all of them were on the thinner end of the spectrum with all six approximately the same length as The Munitions Magnate and about as interesting. The Munitions Magnate I felt was a pretty good case solely because it worked as an excellent introduction to the game and its mechanics. The case itself is pretty dry and West End Adventures doesn’t really find any way to sprinkle some excitement into the mix.

In fact, outside of Dr. Goldfire and the Murder of Sherlock Holmes, I’m having a hard time remembering them despite having played them only last week. And of those two, I’d say only the Murder of Sherlock Holmes is interesting. I just remember Dr. Goldfire because it sounded like a James Bond villain.

Give me a sec as I look them up…

Jeez, even looking up their names I don’t even remember what A Simple Case of Murder was about. Oh, digging further I was confusing Savage Club with A Simple Case.

And that’s exactly the issue with this expansion. The only reason that The Murder of Sherlock Holmes stands out is because of its use of a theatre as a location for interviewing multiple witnesses/suspects. It felt like a missed opportunity since you’re given so much information concerning the theatre layout and suspect locations when all that information really isn’t relevant.

Contrasting these cases with the originals and there differences between their quality is quite stark. The Mystified Murderess (despite it being a written mess) at least had a rather unique concept. The Lionized Lions was my favourite simply for its cute setup. The Cryptic Corpse really hit a traditional Sherlock Holmes vibe and the details of The Pilfered Paintings were pretty amusing. Even with the annoyances of The Banker’s Quietus, The Mummy’s Curse and The Solicitous Solicitor, I’d say we found them at least okay. I’d say the only one we truly hated was the Thames Murders. And with those cases part of our frustration was trying to play the game “by design.”

West End Adventures, however, are all feel pretty much the same. There’s also the unfortunate issue that they’re pretty predictable too. Several start without an actual murder but you know you’re going to come across one pretty early on regardless. The lack of depth in these cases even reflects in Sherlock’s awful solutions. He resolves all of them within four or five clues because there’s really just not that much going on with them.

They’re bad and had the original release been on the level of West End Adventures, I can’t imagine the game ever being recommended.

The Jack the Ripper files, however, are a bit interesting. For one, there designers did some research into enacting some measure of authenticity so the nature of the cases is starkly different from the rest of the Consulting Detective cases. You’re going to be reading through gritty details and unreliable witnesses and testimonies. Here, the red herrings don’t feel like cheating because there’s a much stronger feeling of authenticity to its presentation. These four are certainly the strongest of the cases and I don’t think it’s a coincidence that this is due to the writers being constrained to actually following a real life case and thus don’t have some absolutely idiotic events occur.

Granted, Sherlock Holmes’ solution is completely asinine but that should be expected from anything carrying the Consulting Detective name.

But there’s some extra details that make the Ripper files stand head and shoulders above the rest. First, there’s a distinct change in the nature of playing the game. You’re provided far more visual aids in those four cases and are expected to pull out details and clues from those aids. It really helps to clear up some of the ambiguity which arose from the purely written accounts that can lead to contradictions in the rest of the cases. It also makes the newspapers a lot more interesting to read.

However, there’s a second element unique to the Ripper files that really needed to be expanded to the whole of Consulting Detective. You have the ability to follow up individuals about specific clues or questions!

Granted, due to the nature of the game, these follow up questions are pretty restricted but it’s a fantastic addition that really makes the game a better experience. Before the Ripper files, if you came across an important clue you had no ability to find further information about it. Say, after some detective work, you came across the name of a likely suspect there really wasn’t any way to ask the police about that suspect since the designers couldn’t know if you were visiting the police before or after learning of said suspect. With the Ripper files, however, there are many passages that come with some cryptic directions if you’re arriving at a location for a specific reason. Say, for example, you learn about a shady individual named Derek the Dirk who was seen in the area of one of the murdered women. When you go to speak to Inspector Lestrade, you will still get his generic chest puffing about how you ruffians shouldn’t be in his precinct. But at the bottom of the passage you might be rewarded with a little bold text reading, “If you are looking for information concerning Derek the Dirk then go to the location in this district corresponding with the number of the location you last heard about Derek the Dirk.”

Granted, if you’ve come to Lestrade before hearing about Derek, then you might be more vigilante about this missing Derek character from your investigation. However, after going through the casebook after the investigation, I found that there were some red herrings that you could investigate as well which adds that necessary element of ambiguity where you can’t know if following the lead on Derek the Dirk is a waste of time or not. And having a more responsive investigation is certainly worth the trade-off.

Course, none of this addressed Consulting Detectives true issue. It’s scoring system is a mess. The West End Adventures are even more of a mess than the originals. My mom kept saying that Sherlock cheats and it wasn’t until this set of cases that I finally came around to her point of view.

First, for Jack the Ripper and West End Adventures, we decided to play the game the way everyone recommends: ignore the scoring. But in doing so, I only came to see how incredibly arbitrary and awful the scoring really is.

Part of the problem is inconsistency. There were two cases where Sherlock admonished Wiggins for attempting to come up with a motive for the crimes. The very next case one of the primary questions asked at the end was about the culprit’s motive. Consulting Detective is constantly doing these contradictions. It sets up a sense of expectation in one case and in the very next it will break all the rules it had established. Sometimes the method a crime was committed is incredibly important. Sometimes, it doesn’t matter how an impenetrable safe is broken into with a dozen witnesses in the area and no explanation given at the end for how it was compromised by the guilty parties. Sherlock cheats in this manner by dictating what and when something will be important and, without providing the questions ahead of time, there’s simply no way for the player to know what incongruities are due to the game’s design or simply bad writing. In one case, we had followed Holmes’ steps exactly but kept hunting down clues because we erroneously assumed we had to unmask the location or true identity of the criminal because literally every other case until that point expected those answers. And this time Holmes considered it unimportant… simply because.

I’ve put a lot of thought into the game aspect of Consulting Detective because it is so bad that it detracts from the experience. And I’m not certain there’s a satisfactory answer beyond simply getting better designers and writers. What is clear is that Consulting Detective does a horrendous job of ultimately making clear what you’re supposed to actually do in the game. And this is inexcusable considering they’ve published twenty cases and have had plenty of time to figure out a good method of doing so.

But I’m going to share my idea for a better way.

First, during the introduction of a case, the writers should drop most of the extraneous fluff and spend more time actually making clear what exactly the players are tasked to do. To use an example of what not to do, the Savage Club case is too vague. You leave understanding that there’s some sort of Bohemian Scandal setup for the adventure. You’re contact by a princely individual who wants you to address some embarrassing situation before it can get out. But the Savage Club doesn’t make clear what you need to do to stop that embarrassment. Do you need to reclaim the necklace? Do you need to prove the necklace was stolen? Do you need to retrieve the letters? Do you need to prove the letters were stolen and not intended for their current owner?

Accessed from http://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/content/ve/sherlock-holmes/images/B2-Art_Spaget_1.jpg

Original Sherlock Holmes art by Sidney Paget

Since there’s no clear indication of what will solve this case, it will naturally lead to players meandering blindly all the while Sherlock knows immediately what needs to be done. Every player should finish the introduction to a case and know exactly what the first two questions in the back of the book are going to be. If this means Sherlock has to turn to the Baker Street Irregulars and literally spell out, “I’m leaving you, Wiggins, to find out who killed our victim and how” then so be it. Then players can properly go to scene and start deducing answers with this directed focus.

Second, if you’re going to have a competition with Sherlock Holmes over solving the case then Sherlock should spend a lot more time engaging with the damn case. That Sherlock solved most of his in four steps and the designers expect you to do the same is asinine. The designers are literally creating a game to not be played. There are so many locations to visit and sub plots to uncover that players are directly encouraged to ignore. It’s bad design. It’s also even worse that Sherlock will make broad proclamations about the case without actually having the evidence to make those claims. This goes contrary to the character and even contradicts a lot of his advice throughout the game. If the designers wanted a detective who made wild assumptions and didn’t bother to “eliminate the impossible” to find the truth. Holmes’ most famous quote is to basically hunt down leads and prove they’re wrong. Yet in the game he never, ever does that. He just magically finds a path that can make sense and doesn’t even examine whether there’s an “improbably but truthful” alternative.

So Sherlock should have some steps to corroborate witness testimony, to ensure his theories are sound and eliminate other possibilities. Sherlock should literally be used to demonstrate to players how to engage with the game and solve the case. No one is bedazzled when Sherlock pulls some nonsense solution especially when it’s trivially easy to go through the locations he did to come to his conclusions.

There should also be some consistency in his allies. It’s also asinine that only three allies are ever actually useful. Why are over half his allies “not in their office” for most of the cases. Why even bother putting them on a list to consult. Players shouldn’t have to guess when an ally is going to be important or not. Basically, what we learned is that Porky and Langdale Pike are the only really important allies to visit and basically you rotate between them for each case. And the fact that one in twenty cases requires you to visit the Carriage Court but there’s literally never anything to gleam from it otherwise is also stupid. Especially if there are no witnesses to at least suggest you should check out the movement of carriages by seeing a suspect climb into one.

Instead, all allies should be useful in some manner. Make most of them like Sherlock which give helpful hints pertaining to the case but aren’t necessary to visit. Make some of them consistently give direction to the sub plots that are bonus questions at the end. I like that Porky often asks you to look into elements pertaining to the case but from a wholly different direction and more of the allies should do that. That way, when you do get to the end, you aren’t completely baffled by some of those bonus questions which can seemingly come out of nowhere.

Finally, there should be far more consistency in how information is presented. It’s frustrating trying to find the right witness who will actually describe what a body looks like, especially when it’s a moment when Wiggins actually looks at the body himself! Anytime a new character is introduced, there should be some measure of important information provided so that witness testimonies for height, hair, accent and build can be easily determined. Also it’s bullshit that you can have someone interact with an individual to such an intimate degree like removing a bullet from them and they can’t even tell you their god damn hair colour!

There shouldn’t be one exact way to solve a case but many different angles that you can approach it. This does mean keeping track of all the minute details but that’s exactly what Sherlock Holmes is about.

The game ultimately should be designed in a fair, engaging and fun way that encourages people to think and analyse the information they’re given. There’s potential here that is absolutely squandered in the shoddy writing and it’s simply inexcusable for a game that requires consistency in information to have witnesses with incorrectly spelt names so you can’t even look them up in the directory until you stumble across the one individual that properly writes their name.

As it stands now, I’d hesitantly recommend the original Consulting Detective. But I would never tell anyone to play Jack the Ripper and West End Adventures. And any recommendation comes with ignoring the rules of the game which leaves me wondering why people would play it in the first place.

Truly, the best way to engage with Sherlock Holmes is to simply read the stories.

The Watchmaker’s Daughter – Book Review

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I read the Watchmaker’s Daughter last week and have been ruminating on a book review since then. I have been having problems as this was a book I neither loved nor hated. It is not dreadfully written nor brilliantly told. Having not sparked a strong reaction one way or the other, in the end all I can really say is that the book was Okay.

Book cover for the Watchmaker’s Daughter. Image from the internet.

The Watchmaker’s Daughter is the first book in the Glass and Steele series by C.J. Archer. It starts, unsurprisingly with the daughter of a recently deceased watchmaker struggling to survive after her fiance dumps her and takes over her father’s business. Set in Victorian England (or something like that), the all important element of magic is alluded to briefly then introduced at the end of the story.

And that, I believe is one of the key reasons I was so lukewarm towards this novel – it felt like an introduction. I understand that this is book one in a series. However, I still want the story to feel complete and the threads left dangling made the story feel far from that. While I understand that authors, particularly of series, need to leave some threads loose to work into the subsequent books, these were rather large concepts. Why does magic exist in this world? Why are so few aware of it? I suppose the staunch defenders will say the book covered these points in the two paragraphs dedicated to magic – it is scary so most magicians were killed and thus the few remaining are hiding. That is an extremely weak response to the problem. There is no feel of magic in a world that is designed to be a real representation of historical times. For this to work you need weave the idea (or fear or love for or …) of magic into the world.

The other aspect that felt completely unresolved was the extremely negative reactions of other watchmakers to our female protagonist. Even India Steele herself comments on how peculiar this behaviour is. The lack of detailed histories, the predictable nature of the plot and the lack of depth to the characters made for a somewhat bland story. The mystery of the characters never felt important. The writing was fine, but there was no spark in style to really capture the reader. Our lead female wavered uncertainly between being a strong independent female – though right no I am struggling to think of an instance when she showed true strength – and the love interest of a romance novel. There was some promise in the secondary characters who at least demonstrated a little diversity, though all were subservient to the alpha male.

To balance out the negatives, I will say I liked the blending of American and British cultures. There were some amusing moments, as half the important characters came from America.

Would I recommend this book? It is difficult to answer. I want to support new voices and writers. And I am sure there are people who would derive much enjoyment from the book. It was, for me, too flat and simplistic a read to put forth effort of recommendation. With that I would give it a 3 out of 5 (or maybe a 3.5 out of 5 – as this time I feel I might be unnecessarily harsh towards the book). It was okay, not great or stellar but not terrible either. You might like it.

Happy Labour Day Canada!

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It is the last long weekend of the Summer. Where summer is defined as the period of time when school is out. With Monday being a Holiday, you can expect a bit of a gap in the posts by our most prolific blogger.

Also, for those who have not read Kevin’s first book it is on sale. For a week, Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk will have Thyre: City of Smoke and Shadow at a reduced price. This is the ebook version (not the paperback). If you are interested you will see dramatic savings for those who have not yet bought a copy.

Available for Kindle and Print at Amazon.ca and Amazon.com!