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3.0étoiles sur 5
Kalimantan, Oct. 3 2002
The edition in question actually features the lengthy tale called Kalimantan, plus two stories, Solitario's Eyes and The Arcevoalo.Kalimantan could be treated as some kind of supernatural retooling of Conrad's Heart Of Darkness. One man finds profound experience foraging into the jungles of Borneo while supposedly just going in there to clear up some unfinished business. If there's a problem, it's that the three main characters--one a spirit-form--may not get up to anything that really affects the reader. It's all very lush and green, you can almost see the fronds being pushed aside with each crucial step, and listen to the exotic birds cawing, but this tale of transcendant betrayal is pretty enclosed. The mix of horror, fantasy, and sf in Kalimantan does not really cause an implosion, but ghosts and spaceships, as well as magical(?) daggers that appear to be powered up by alien electronic circuitry, may leave a reader's head spinning, trying to sort it all out. But if you're going to tear apart Kalimantan based on its odd mix of multi-genre trappings, then you better be prepared to slag some of A. Merritt's best tricks, because once I took this as a descendant of stuff like The Moon Pool, I was comfortable with it. Try and enjoy this as "Merritt jazzes up Heart Of Darkness". The above just addresses the main extravanza. I should go on to mention that the brevity of the two follow-up stories gave them more focus, and better pace. I especially liked The Arcevoalo, with its circular little fable about a nameless man coming back from death, somewhat transformed by strange visions and a divine purpose, only to be distracted by love, and a newfound empathy for those he is supposed to punish. If wilderness phantasmagoria is your bag, then you may appreciate Shepard's jungle nightmares. Or, to put a more dubious spin on it, be aware that even though this book features more than one tale, you wouldn't buy it to experience different aspects of this writer's talents. It's all one big trip into the jungle.
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