Denver Science Fiction & Fantasy Book Club |
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The Subtle Knife (1997) |
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From the back cover of UK paperback: Will is twelve years old and he's just killed a man. Now he's on his own, on the run, determined to discover the truth about his father's disappearance. Then Will steps through a window in the air into another world, and finds himself with a companion -- a strange, savage little girl called Lyra. Like Will, she has a mission which she intends to carry out at all costs. But the world of Cittągazze is a strange and unsettling place. Deadly, soul-eating Spectres stalk its streets, while high above, the wingbeats of distant angels sound against the sky. And in the mysterious Torre degli Angeli lurks Cittągazze's most important secret -- an object which people from many worlds would kill to possess... Point paperback edition - 341 pages (right) |
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Characters: Will Parry - defensive runaway boy, from Oxford in our world Lyra Silvertongue - a feisty, aristocrat born girl from another world Pantalaimon (Pan) - Lyra's shape shifting daemon Lee Scoresby - Texan aeronaut or balloonist (daemon Hester, a hare) Serafina Pekkala - Lapland witch, queen of a witch clan (daemon Kaisa, a snow goose) Ruta Skadi - witch queen of Latvia, a lover of Lord Asriel (daemon Sergi, a bluethroat) Mrs. Coulter (Marisa) - Lyra's feared mother (golden monkey daemon) Dr. Mary Malone - head of Dark Matter Research unit, Dust Researcher John Parry - Will's father, professional explorer, lost on Archaeological expedition Dr. Stanislaus Grumman - of the Berlin Academy, Tartar shaman (daemon Sayan Kötör, osprey) Juta Kamainen - witch scorned by Stanislaus Grumman (daemon robin) Sir Charles Latrom - old man who steals the Lyra's alethiometer Angelica - red headed girl from Cittągazze Paolo - boy from Cittągazze, Angelica's little brother Tullio - young man with curly red hair, Angelica's older brother Giacomo Paradisi - old man, bearer of the subtle knife on behalf of guild Lord Boreal (Carlo) - an associate of Mrs. Coulter (snake daemon) Lena Feldt - a witch (daemon snow bunting) Lord Asriel - at war against the Authority, Lyra's father (snow leopard daemon) Lizzie - false name Lyra uses Mark - false name Will uses a tabby cat Places, things, and other beings: alethiometer - symbol reader, Lyra has one, tells you the truth The subtle knife - one edge cuts through anything, other edge cuts between worlds Cittągazze - abandoned semi-tropical city, the city of magpies Specters of indifference - attack only grownups, afraid of subtle knife Torre degli Angeli - Tower of the Angels of the Philosopher's Guild in Cittągazze Angels - call themselves bene elim, watchers Dust - elementary particle, attracted especially to adults, Rusakov particles Green leather case - Will's mother's possession, contains letters from Will's dad Nova Zembla - where Lee asks about Grumman, and gets ring from Skraeling |
| Dan | 8 | Amy | 9 |
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10 Wow! Don't miss it 8-9 Highly recommended 7 Recommended 5-6 Mild recommendation 3-4 Take your chances 1-2 Below average; skip it 0 Get out the flamethrower! U Unfinishable or unreadable - Skipped or no rating given |
| Cheri | 8 | Barb | 8 | ||
| Aaron | 6 | Cynthia | 8 | ||
| Lindsey | - | Jackie | 9 | ||
| Kerry | - |
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Aaron's Commentary
Philip Pullman - The Subtle Knife His Dark Materials is a superb fantasy adventure series, but The Subtle Knife is to me the weakest of the three volumes. It has far less of the amazing imagery that makes the other books so remarkable. Many of Pullman's memorable creations from The Golden Compass are either conspicuously absent (including Iorek Byrnison and the armored polar bears) or play a much smaller role in the story (particularly the daemons). The people and places introduced in this book, such as Cittągazze and its inhabitants, are rather bland in comparison. The Subtle Knife also suffers from being the middle book in a trilogy. Pullman busies existing characters like Lee Scoresby with long, pointless errands. Meanwhile, new characters are introduced for reasons that will not become apparent until the next book. Pullman also dangles a host of interesting scientific and theological speculations about the nature of "dust," but leaves them all to be tied up later. Still, there are some exciting moments, especially the scene when Will and Lyra attempt to steal back the alethiometer. And while I didn't much care for how Pullman resolved Will's search for his father, I did appreciate the depth of Will's character. He is certainly a more worthy companion for Lyra than was Roger in The Golden Compass. What do you think? Your comments are welcome. Please send them to vanaaron@excite.com |
The Golden Compass (1995) |
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Cover art for both hardback editions by Eric Rohmann |
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