They were the beautiful dreamers. From a hidden city deep in the Ural mountains, they walked the world as the coldest of Cold Warriors, under the command of the Kremlin and under the power of their own expansive minds. They slipped into the minds of Russia's enemies with diabolical ease, and drove their human puppets to murder - and worse. They moved as Gods. And as Gods, they might have remade the world. But like the mad holy man Rasputin, who destroyed Russia through his own powerful influence, in the end, the psychic spies for the Motherland were only in it for themselves. It is the 1990s. The Cold War is long finished. From a suite in an unseen hotel in the heart of Manhattan, an old warrior named Kolyokov sets out with an open heart, to gather together the youngest members of his immense, and immensely talented, family. They are more beautiful - and more terrible - than any who came before them. They are Rasputin's bastards. And they will remake the world!
Rasputin's Bastards
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Most helpful customer reviews
Format:Paperback
There is no disputing David Nickle's ability as a strong story-teller with an aggressive style. If you're looking for subtle and lyrical, Rasputin's Bastard's is not it. If you're looking for a Clancy-ish SF, you've found your writer.
Set in the confusion of post-Cold War Era, Nickle's story unfolds around a large cast of characters, all working toward the same end, to either prevent, or create, world domination not through force of arms, but through aggression of a far more insidious and devastating means, that of mind control.
In the utopia of the villains of this story, humans would exist as vehicles for the consciousness of their overlords. In the utopia of the heroes, those with the ability to dream-walk others would simply be able to exist in harmony, without fear of persecution or harm.
The story itself, although not particularly new, is a good one, and Nickle tells it in a style very much mirroring the implacable reasoning of the Cold War mentality.
And this is where we get into personal taste in this review, something I'm always loathe to do, but usually succumb, because so much of the interpretation of art is subjective.
Although I understand Nickle's artistic paradigm, to mirror tone and word choice to the atmosphere one attempts to create in a story, in this case I think he fell just a tad short of what could have been a brilliant novel. The voice, or the tone if you will, is so married to the impersonal insouciance of the Cold War, that much of environmental detail, of the minutia that draws in a reader and invests them emotionally, was missing. In the end the reader, like the super-beings that inhabit this story, wander through a metaphor which is described, but never realized. It is a dream, and therefore without substance. And therefore without emotional impact. And so without reader investment.
The cast of characters in the novel is enormous, and while it's perfectly acceptable to have a huge cast (I am often guilty of this myself), of necessity for we plebian brains who are reading, many of those characters could have been relegated to walk-on roles only. I believe that part of my problem with being unable to connect to the narrative is that I'd entered a convention and couldn't get to know anyone.
Is Rasputin's Bastard's worth the investment of your time to read? Absolutely. But will it be one that leaves you transported and translated? Not likely. Still and all, a good novel to embrace on one of summer's dog days, or winter's solitudes.
Set in the confusion of post-Cold War Era, Nickle's story unfolds around a large cast of characters, all working toward the same end, to either prevent, or create, world domination not through force of arms, but through aggression of a far more insidious and devastating means, that of mind control.
In the utopia of the villains of this story, humans would exist as vehicles for the consciousness of their overlords. In the utopia of the heroes, those with the ability to dream-walk others would simply be able to exist in harmony, without fear of persecution or harm.
The story itself, although not particularly new, is a good one, and Nickle tells it in a style very much mirroring the implacable reasoning of the Cold War mentality.
And this is where we get into personal taste in this review, something I'm always loathe to do, but usually succumb, because so much of the interpretation of art is subjective.
Although I understand Nickle's artistic paradigm, to mirror tone and word choice to the atmosphere one attempts to create in a story, in this case I think he fell just a tad short of what could have been a brilliant novel. The voice, or the tone if you will, is so married to the impersonal insouciance of the Cold War, that much of environmental detail, of the minutia that draws in a reader and invests them emotionally, was missing. In the end the reader, like the super-beings that inhabit this story, wander through a metaphor which is described, but never realized. It is a dream, and therefore without substance. And therefore without emotional impact. And so without reader investment.
The cast of characters in the novel is enormous, and while it's perfectly acceptable to have a huge cast (I am often guilty of this myself), of necessity for we plebian brains who are reading, many of those characters could have been relegated to walk-on roles only. I believe that part of my problem with being unable to connect to the narrative is that I'd entered a convention and couldn't get to know anyone.
Is Rasputin's Bastard's worth the investment of your time to read? Absolutely. But will it be one that leaves you transported and translated? Not likely. Still and all, a good novel to embrace on one of summer's dog days, or winter's solitudes.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
3.5 out of 5 stars
4 reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Enjoy the journey
May 17 2013
By Tom Braun
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
I was initially hesitant to buy this book, intriguing as it sounds, because the author is a horror writer and I'm not really into horror. But this book is definitely not horror. WHAT it is is another question entirely; the only point of reference I can give a potential reader might be the kind of stuff China Mieville writes: gritty, sometimes disturbing stories that take reality and turn it on its head while packing in imaginative concepts from a dozen different genres.
In Rasputin's Bastards David Nickle gives us a Soviet cold war psychic program, giant squid, Russian folklore, a secret submarine base, sensory deprivation tanks, brainwashing programs and so much more. The mysteries of the plot pull you along. It's not really spoiling anything to say that almost no one in the book is who they think they are (this is strongly implied fairly early in the proceedings). The book follows an assortment of characters as they unravel their true identities (and abilities) while confronting a world-devouring entity.
I have to say that at the end of the book I had more questions than answers, which is kind of frustrating. I'm not sure if this is because I just wasn't reading carefully enough to put all the pieces of the puzzle together or if the ending is just sequel bait. Or maybe it's all supposed to be ambiguous. I wish the author had made the rules of the psychic abilities that are the core of the plot more explicit. I think that would have cleared up a lot of confusion on my part.
Regardless, the journey is enjoyable even if the destination is less than satisfying. If you're looking for something different and well-written I recommend it.
In Rasputin's Bastards David Nickle gives us a Soviet cold war psychic program, giant squid, Russian folklore, a secret submarine base, sensory deprivation tanks, brainwashing programs and so much more. The mysteries of the plot pull you along. It's not really spoiling anything to say that almost no one in the book is who they think they are (this is strongly implied fairly early in the proceedings). The book follows an assortment of characters as they unravel their true identities (and abilities) while confronting a world-devouring entity.
I have to say that at the end of the book I had more questions than answers, which is kind of frustrating. I'm not sure if this is because I just wasn't reading carefully enough to put all the pieces of the puzzle together or if the ending is just sequel bait. Or maybe it's all supposed to be ambiguous. I wish the author had made the rules of the psychic abilities that are the core of the plot more explicit. I think that would have cleared up a lot of confusion on my part.
Regardless, the journey is enjoyable even if the destination is less than satisfying. If you're looking for something different and well-written I recommend it.
5 of 8 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A gorgeous and eerie fantasy
Jun 29 2012
By MyBookishWays
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
Alexei Kilodovich, KGB agent, has been pulled out of the water by a ship full of criminals. Specifically, criminals specializing in the trafficking of children, and using them in various money making schemes. Holden Gibson, head honcho, is bad news, but he's nothing in comparison to the people that Kilodovich is used to dealing with. Kilodovich had been serving as a body guard to a supposed "business woman", but who is, in fact, involved in a much greater conspiracy. Meanwhile, his handler, Kolyokov, festers in a total immersion tank in New York, casting his psychic net, gathering together his "children" for motives beyond anything you can imagine. He's not the only one calling to these exceptional children, though, and a showdown is on the horizon. City 512 has been churning out psychic manipulators for quite some time, and now its most ambitious operatives yet are on the move, and no longer want to be under the thumb of a puppet master. They are the "beautiful dreamers."
I honestly had no idea what to expect from Rasputin's Bastards. ChiZine is known for its thought provoking fiction, and this is certainly no exception. It's the 90s, and the Cold War is over, but you wouldn't know it to read this. Putting in mind the diabolically evil human experimentations of Nazi Germany, Rasputin's Bastards gives us City 512, a breeding ground for psychic espionage (usually known as astral projection.) Children have been bred to be puppets and puppeteers, but this new batch of kids is just a bit different. No longer will they be used by a group bent on world domination, and they're ready to take their freedom, at any cost. But the mother of them all has sent out a call, and is gathering all of her sleepers and dreamers together for what has been dubbed The Rapture. Long of tooth and chock full of characters, there's lots to digest here, but it offers up lots of goodies for those willing to go the distance. The author has a talent for spinning a phrase to make it much more than the sum of its parts, and surprisingly, there's quite a lot of humor as well: clever and dry, popping up just when things start to get really serious, but never disrupting the flow. The author dives deep into his main characters and paints very complete pictures, weaving the stories together amidst a surrealistic landscape of dream walkers and mind control. This reminded me very much of Dan Simmons' Carrion Comfort (one of my all time favorites), and it's been quite a while since I've read a book with this much teeth. Lovely, rich writing only serves to make the creepy bits (of which there are plenty), well, even more creepy, and fans of subtle horror will find much to like in Rasputin's Bastards.
I honestly had no idea what to expect from Rasputin's Bastards. ChiZine is known for its thought provoking fiction, and this is certainly no exception. It's the 90s, and the Cold War is over, but you wouldn't know it to read this. Putting in mind the diabolically evil human experimentations of Nazi Germany, Rasputin's Bastards gives us City 512, a breeding ground for psychic espionage (usually known as astral projection.) Children have been bred to be puppets and puppeteers, but this new batch of kids is just a bit different. No longer will they be used by a group bent on world domination, and they're ready to take their freedom, at any cost. But the mother of them all has sent out a call, and is gathering all of her sleepers and dreamers together for what has been dubbed The Rapture. Long of tooth and chock full of characters, there's lots to digest here, but it offers up lots of goodies for those willing to go the distance. The author has a talent for spinning a phrase to make it much more than the sum of its parts, and surprisingly, there's quite a lot of humor as well: clever and dry, popping up just when things start to get really serious, but never disrupting the flow. The author dives deep into his main characters and paints very complete pictures, weaving the stories together amidst a surrealistic landscape of dream walkers and mind control. This reminded me very much of Dan Simmons' Carrion Comfort (one of my all time favorites), and it's been quite a while since I've read a book with this much teeth. Lovely, rich writing only serves to make the creepy bits (of which there are plenty), well, even more creepy, and fans of subtle horror will find much to like in Rasputin's Bastards.
3 of 5 people found the following review helpful
2.0 out of 5 stars
Interesting ideas, but excessively convoluted execution
Aug 9 2012
By S. Koterbay
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
I kept waiting to finally come to terms with what was going, with who is who and what is what, and then I got hit with kraken. Giant squids.
I don't know. Part of my brain says I understood the book and that it wasn't bad. Part of my brain says... do you remember anything of its plot in sufficient enough detail to tell the story to someone else? Not really.
There's a lot a memorable imagery, the giant squids being one, the acid in the bathtubs and the hidden submarine base being others, and there's moments of pure genius here, but just not enough. Reading the author's notes at the end, it's obvious that he understood this was a lot to chew on, and a lot of people helped make it more "chewable", but... I'm left with an emptiness as if I just read the shell of a great novel rather than the entirety of a great novel.
I don't know. Part of my brain says I understood the book and that it wasn't bad. Part of my brain says... do you remember anything of its plot in sufficient enough detail to tell the story to someone else? Not really.
There's a lot a memorable imagery, the giant squids being one, the acid in the bathtubs and the hidden submarine base being others, and there's moments of pure genius here, but just not enough. Reading the author's notes at the end, it's obvious that he understood this was a lot to chew on, and a lot of people helped make it more "chewable", but... I'm left with an emptiness as if I just read the shell of a great novel rather than the entirety of a great novel.
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3.5 out of 5 stars
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