Magic in Macedonia

Judith Tarr, Bring Down the Sun

Judith Tarr writes wonderful historical fantasy. She takes real characters, places and times, and tells a story that builds on is known about them, imbuing the tale with the mystery of gods and magic.

In Bring Down the Sun, Tarr tells a story about Olympias (also known as Polyxena and Myrtale), the mother of Alexander the Great, following the outlines of her life as recorded by Plutarch, several centuries after her death. The magic enters the tale from the beginning, with the young Polyxena being raised to be a priestess in a Triple Goddess cult and the hints we gather from the elder Priestesses that Polyxena carries within her some powerful but unexplained gifts. Polyxena later is initiated into the Dionysian mysteries (taking the name Myrtale at this point) where she meets and forms a bond – part sexual, part magical – with the young Philip of Macedonia, who seeks her for his (fourth) wife. The story continues up to the birth of the young Alexander, with Myrtale facing intrigue from Philip’s other wives and from various magical sources, including the cult she served as a young girl and a cult of “Thessalonian witches” – priestesses of yet another ancient mystical tradition who are aware of Myrtale’s hidden power and seek to bring make her one of their own.

What I found frustrating about this book, despite my enjoyment of the story, the magic, and the strong women characters, is that it seems unfinished. I had hoped it was the first in a series, but it has been three years and there’s no sign of a sequel on the horizon. There is still so much of the past that Tarr has imagined for Myrtale that remains hidden, and so much more that is known of Olympias’ life past the birth of Alexander, that the book does not address. I will just have to keep looking to see if Tarr returns to this story.

Aliens in Hollywood

John Scalzi, Agent to the Stars

OK, this is just plain hilarious. It's high concept to the core - What if the first aliens to visit our planet are so unpalatable that they need to high a high-powered agent to "sell" them to Earthfolk? And where it goes from there is pretty much non-stop funny of all shades from some simple farce and slapstick to some profound satire on the entertainment business and on human nature.

Note that I said "pretty much non-stop" - because there are also some moments of tragedy and some very important ethical considerations that ground the novel and make it much more than what it at first appears to be.

Worth reading, and also at times worth thinking about. I have some quibbles with the ultimate unveiling strategy - there's something about it that doesn't sit quite right with me, and I think it has to do with - how do I say this without spoiling the scene? - stealing focus from a legitimate celebration of exemplary work and thus robbing other people of well-deserved recognition. Even if the reason is an important one. Just didn't quite seem fair.

But it's a small quibble, and one I can live with.