Title: Map if the Sky
Review: When
I book arrived had no idea how large Map of the Sky would be its almost 600
pages in small print. The small print
and the length of the book had me taking my time to read and savor each page of
this imaginary tale of H.G. Wells.
The book opens to
England with H.G. Wells enjoying the success of his book, World of the World,
but is angered when an American author creates his own work of fan faction that
has become popular. The American take
Wells on an adventure he will never forget.
Felix Palma takes some of H.G.Wells most famous books and creates his
own beautiful work of fiction around those original stories.
Map of the Sky
switches to many different stories within the book giving the reader a
overabundance of characters and at times questioning if this character is worth
investing in or will this person be another number of the many dead the author
has strung throughout this book.
The beginning of
the book H.G. Wells meets with the American over dinner only to tell the
American where he can go, but soon the American take H.G.Well on an adventure
he will soon never forget. The book starts to become a can't put down as
H.G.Wells and the American go into the belly of London History Museum. Where they come across a journal lost to
time. The story switch to the Journal of a crewman and a ship 60 years earlier
who were looking for the center of the earth, but instead came in contact with
an alien ship that crashed into earth. The crew of the ship investigates the
strange wreckage and soon discovers they are not alone.
The plot switches
again to a man, Gilmore, who time travels to the future and falls in love but
she will only marry Gilmore if he will find the center of the earth. Than the
story moves again back to H.G. Wells and the possible invasion of London by the
Martians that Wells remembers seeing in the belly of the London History of
Museum. Each of the separate stories is
brought together towards the end of the book leaving no loose ends.
I can't quite put my finger on why I gave this
book 4 out of 5, because it is wonderfully written and full of colorful
descriptions. The author impresses me how he is able to switch story to story
without getting the reader ever lost and questioning is it worth reading to the
end? The plot is slow moving and I will admit
I am used to must faster paced books and that might be the 4 out of 5. I do feel at certain times the author could
have cut out little details that didn't enhance the story and for me was more
of a distraction because I become easily lost.
The cover of the book is beautiful and is almost hard not to look at
many times while reading though the book.
Map of The Sky takes twist and turns that are enjoyable that science
fiction and fantasy readers will love.
Map of the Sky is a
beautifully written Fantasy novel with colorful imaginary that will transport
the reader though time and space.
The different
murder scenes are very descriptive and I personally could have done with less
intestines being strung around the room.
Thanks Heidi for
this review.
Publisher: Published September 4th 2012 by Atria Books
(first published 2012)
Copyright: 2012
Pages: 680
ISBN: 9781451660319
Quick Review: 4 out of 5 stars
Synopsis: The New York Times bestselling
author of The Map of Time returns with a mesmerizing novel casting H.G. Wells
in a leading role, as the extraterrestrial invasion featured in The War of the
Worlds is turned into a bizarre reality.A love story serves as backdrop for The
Map of the Sky when New York socialite Emma Harlow agrees to marry millionaire
Montgomery Gilmore, but only if he accepts her audacious challenge: to
reproduce the extraterrestrial invasion featured in Wells’s War of the Worlds.
What follows are three brilliantly interconnected plots to create a
breathtaking tale of time travel and mystery, replete with cameos by a young
Edgar Allan Poe, and Captain Shackleton and Charles Winslow from The Map of
Time.
Author Biography: Félix J. Palma was born in Sanlúcar de Barrameda, Spain on
June 16, 1968. He attended Francisco Pacheco High School and studied Publicity
at the University at Sevilla.
His first volume of stories, El
Vigilante de la Salamandra (The Lizard's Keeper) showed his ability to
introduce fantasy into the every day. He is also author of the storybooks:
Métodos de Supervivencia (Methods of Survival), Las Interioridades (Interiors),
Los Arácnidos (The Arachnid), and El Menor Espectáculo del Mundo (The World’s
Smallest Show).
Palma has also published La Hormiga que
Quiso ser Astronauta (The Ant that Wanted to Become an Astronaut), Las
Corrientes Oceánicas (The Ocean Currents), and El Mapa del Tiempo (The Map of
Time). The Map of Time was the first novel to be published in the United
States.
His book have garned many awards. His
Los Arácnidos won the Cádiz Latin American Story Award, Las Corrientes
Oceánicas won the 2005 Luis Berenguer Award for Novel and El Mapa del Tiempo
was awarded the Ateneo de Sevilla XL Prize in 2008.
His work has been translated into more
than 25 languages and published in over 30 countries. Palma has also worked as
a columnist, literary critic and has given creative writing workshops.
Other Reviews: Yahoo, Jonesey the Word Slinger, Book Critics
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