Joel Lane's Scar City was published by Eibonvale Press in October 2015.
Information about Joel Lane:
Joel Lane was a British author, poet, critic and anthology editor from Birmingham, a place that can be felt in a substantial part of his writing. His work has been published in numerous collections and he has received several awards throughout his career, including the British Fantasy Award in 1994 and 2008, the Shirley Jackson Award in 2008 and the World Fantasy Award in 2013. He was also increasingly active in socialism and political activism, and his anthology projects included the anti-fascist Never Again in collaboration with Allyson Bird. Joel Lane died on 25th November 2013.
Information about Scar City:
A new collection from one of the most powerful voices in slipstream and horror writing is a significant event. This collection of twenty two stories was one of the last that Joel Lane put together before his death in 2013. Frequently taking the form of dark urban fantasy, with his home city of Birmingham as their nucleus, these are intense and often painful stories that linger in the mind for a long time.
"These stories are populated by troubled people living troubled lives in troubled places. A pervasive melancholia overhangs the tales, and seeps its way into their fabric (in tandem with the copious amounts of alcohol imbibed by their complicated characters trying to make sense of and otherwise cope with their circumstances). These tales, then, wear their scars plainly, and it's this fragile, fractured quality which imbues them with their beauty. They are difficult stories, but then they have to be, considering their subject matter.
As a reader and as a writer, I've always been drawn to the dichotomy of living in a world made of equal parts beauty and tragedy, and how this kind of living affects us. This effect is on display everywhere in these pages. It's a bittersweet vision to be sure, and an important one that we should not look away from, not ever."
- From the foreword by Alexander Zelenyj.
This book also contains a substantial essay by Nina Allan examining Joel Lane's 'Blue' trilogy of novels.
A REVIEW OF JOEL LANE'S SCAR CITY
Joel Lane (1963-2013) was one of the best and most talented authors of horror fiction and weird fiction. It's sad that he died, because he wrote excellent and memorable stories that were praised by critics and readers alike. Nobody can deny how much his stories influenced and impressed those who read them, because they were exceptionally good. He will be missed.
Scar City is an intriguing glimpse into Joel Lane's short fiction. All of the stories in this collection demonstrate the versatile nature of the author's dark imagination and writing skills. They're perfect stories for those who love uncanny fiction, because they contain intense storytelling, good characterisation and roughness. There's plenty of depth and style in them.
If you're not familiar with Joel Lane and his stories, Scar City is an excellent starting point. It features all of the author's trademarks and gives readers an opportunity to get themselves acquainted with his writing style. If you're a fan of throught-provoking and beautifully written speculative fiction, Scar City will impress you. It hooks you from the start and draws you into a world that it at once familiar yet utterly strange and threatening in certain ways.
Scar City contains the following stories:
- Those Who Remember
- In This Blue Shade
- A Faraway City
- The Willow Pattern
- Echoland
- This Night Last Woman
- Birds of Prey
- The Last Gallery
- Making Babies
- Keep the Night
- My Voice Is Dead
- A Hairline Cut
- The Long Shift
- Internal Colonies
- Among the Leaves
- The Grief of Seagulls
- By Night He Could Not See
- Feels Like Underground (with Chris Morgan)
- Upon a Granite Wind
- Winter Song
- Rituals
- Behind the Curtain
This short story collection also contains a foreword by Alexander Zelenyj ("Echoes from the Place We Met") and an essay by Nina Allan ("Socialism or Barbarism: Joel Lane's Blue Trilogy and the Poetry of the Lost").
Many of these stories have been published in various anthologies and periodicals, but three of them are presumably previously unpublished and appear here for the first time (the editor hasn't been able to find information about their previous appearances). I had personally read a couple of the stories prior to reading this collection.
These stories echo the melancholia, loneliness and suffering of our fellow human beings. They reflect the state of our modern society and give a disturbing glimpse into urban decay from a slightly different perspective. There's something deeply intimate and sharp about them that will touch many readers.
All of these stories are excellent and demonstrate different kinds of brutalities that have - both mentally and physically - scarred the characters. The brutalies have had an impact on the characters' lives and many of them struggle to cope with themselves and their feelings.
Here's a bit more information about the stories and my thoughts about them:
Those Who Remember:
- In this story, Gary comes home and searches for his old acquaintace, Dean. He asks Dean to kill two men who beat him senseless.
- An excellent and stunningly brutal story with an amazing ending.
In This Blue Shade:
- An intriguing story about Lee who's dealing with his lover's death.
- A well written story with excellent characterisation.
A Faraway City:
- A fascinatingly disturbing story about Kathy who sees bad and weird dreams. She finds out something about the man she lives with and begins to investigate things.
- This story is a fine example of intriguing storytelling.
- This story was previously published in "Where Are We Going?" (edited by Allen Ashley).
The Willow Pattern:
- A story about a gay man who hears that his ex-lover, Richard, has died. He reminisces about Richard and wonders about his death.
- A beautifully written story that will impress readers.
Echoland:
- A beautifully written story in which the characters are intrigued by Echoland, a world behind our world.
- It was fascinating for me to read about what the author wrote about Echoland, because the descriptions were fascinatingly unsettling.
- This is one of the best and most memorable stories in this collection. I can guarantee that you'll be thinking about the contents of this story for a long time when you've finished reading it.
This Night Last Woman:
- In this story, a man meets a woman in a pub and takes her home with him. Later, the man finds out something disturbing about her.
- An interesting story with a good ending.
Birds of Prey:
- A beautifully written story about Paul who meets a man who plays fiddle in a band.
- This is one of the most intriguing stories in this collection.
The Last Gallery:
- A story about Sean, Carol and self-harm.
- An excellent story with a good and approriately weird ending.
Making Babies:
- In this story, Wendy and Mike stay together because of their baby.
- An excellent and brutal story about an open relationship.
Keep the Night:
- A story about a man who's attended a wedding. He boards a train and finds himself in Milton Keynes.
- A fascinating and well written story with an intriguingly weird feel to it.
- This is an amazing story with an excellent ending.
My Voice Is Dead:
- A fascinating story about Stephen who has terminal cancer. He finds an internet website, Yellow Sign, and becomes fascinated by Carcosa. He wants to find Carcosa, because he has only a little time left to live.
- This story has been inspired by Robert W. Chambers' 'The King in Yellow'.
- This is one of the best stories in this collection, because it has seducing weirdness and otherworldliness that sets it apart from other stories.
A Hairline Cut:
- A story about Gary and Alan who are on their way to meet Gary's parents. Gary isn't pleased with Alan, but tries to put up with him.
- A short, but very effective and wonderfully weird story.
The Long Shift:
- In this story, Jim plans on killing his boss who made him and other people redundant.
- A sharp and interesting glimpse into work life and what may happen when people are pushed too far.
- The ending is amazing.
Internal Colonies:
- A story about two brothers who are left alone for the weekend. The older brother and his friends decide to do dog training at night and invite the younger brother with them.
- A memorable story with brilliantly disturbing scenes.
Among the Leaves:
- Kay visits an old friend of hers, Janet. Janet tells Kay about her brother's death and her decision to move elsewhere.
- This beautifully written and unsettling story has a deep emotional impact on the reader.
The Grief of Seagulls:
- A beautifully written story about Callum who misses his lover, Andrew, who died in the fire on the Piper Alpha rig. Callum meets an old man who has something to tell him.
- This heartbreaking story is one of the best stories in this collection. I was very impressed by this story.
By Night He Could Not See:
- A story about Jason who reads about a death of a woman. He thinks that he may know the dead woman.
- An interesting and well written story.
Feels Like Underground (with Chris Morgan):
- A story about Mark and Kathy who attend a conference. They're both married, but they're having an affair with each other.
- An interesting and gripping story about adultery and conference life.
- I loved the ending of this story.
Upon a Granite Wind:
- This story is dedicated to Robert E. Howard.
- I think that the best way to describe this story is to say that if Robert E. Howard were alive today and wrote modern weird fiction, he would probably come up with something like this.
Winter Song:
- An interesting story about winter and a protagonist that is brutally honest in his opinions.
- This story has a fascinating feel of darkness and dark fantasy.
Rituals:
- In this story, the protagonist experiences something that shakes his life.
- This story is not an easy story, because it's filled with different elements connected to death and sex, but it's a powerful and thought-provoking story.
- This is one of the most memorable stories I've read this year.
Behind the Curtain:
- A brilliant story about a man who has a yearning to satisfy his need. He goes out in search of what he needs.
- This is a refreshingly different kind of a vampire story.
- This is an excellent final story.
Here are a few extra words about some of the stories:
"Those Who Remember" is a brilliant short story about Gary and his devious plans to avenge what was done to him. When you reach the end of this story, you'll be shocked and surprised by what the author reveals about Gary. This brutal story is simply amazing, because it's something different and the ending is excellent.
"In This Blue Shade" is an excellent story about Lee, who's dealing with his lover's death. The author writes well about Lee's private life and loneliness. It was interesting to read how Lee tried to find comfort to his loneliness by having sexual encounters with rent boys.
"The Willow Pattern" is one of the best stories about relationships I've read to date, because the protagonist thinks about his ex-lover and what kind of a relationship they had with each other. The author writes fluently about the relationship between the protagonist and his boyfriend. This story has an excellent and memorable ending.
"Keep the Night" is a fascinating story about a man who attended a wedding and boarded a train. The man ends up in Milton Keynes and tries to find a way to spend the night before the morning train arrives. This story features a nightmarishly effective scene in which the man watches - or rather witnesses - a brutal performance being acted in a caravan by a couple. It's difficult to forget this scene, because it's an intense and brutal scene.
In "Internal Colonies", the author writes fascinatingly about two brothers who are left alone for the weekend. This story contains scenes which are difficult to forget, because the author combines brutality with adolescence and innocence in a thought-provoking way.
"Among the Leaves" is one of the best and most memorable stories in this collection, because it's a beautifully written story about a traumatised woman whose brother has died. The author writes about Janet's life and her emotional state in a heartbreakingly unsettling way.
"The Grief of Seagulls" is an excellent example of how to try write beautifully and touchingly about love, sorrow and loneliness. In this beautifully written story, Callum gets an opportunity to meet his dead lover, Andrew, for one night of passion. The author's way of writing about sorrow is touching, because he writes well about how much Callum misses Andrew.
"Behind the Curtain" is one of the most original and twisted vampire stories I've read to date, because it has an intriguingly disturbing feel of urban decay to it that I found compelling. The protagonist, who seems to be into cruising, searches for a vampire to satisfy his sexual needs. This story features excellent prose and sharp dialogue.
Nina Allan's informative essay "Socialism or Barbarism: Joel Lane's Blue Trilogy and the Poetry of the Lost" deserves a special mention, because it gives insight into the author's works. It's an excellent essay that deserves to be read.
I was impressed by the characterisation, because it was excellent and realistic. It was a pleasure to read these stories, because all of the characters were portrayed as real people who had to deal with their own problems, tragedies and sorrows. There was nothing artificial about them, their lives or feelings. All of them could easily be real people.
Joel Lane's prose is striking, beautiful, poetic and observant. When you read these stories, you'll be amazed by his writing skills, because some of his descriptions are stunningly beautiful and atmospheric. He easily lures readers into his strange stories by writing about different and difficult things.
One of the things why I love this collection is the author's ability to combine beauty, sadness, melancholy and brutality in an effective way. He's one of the few authors whose stories encompass a broad range of human emotions. He writes stories in which brutality and human emotions co-exist and in which bad things may happen to people.
The author reveals all the hurt and pain of the characters to his readers. He lets readers see how much the characters are hurting and what they do to ease the pain and how they face tragedies. He packs a lot of raw emotion into his short stories. His characters have been through a lot and some of them have experienced strange and threatening things. Disturbing things happen to many of his characters and they also do certain things that are not pretty or normal. They're all vulnerable in their own way.
When you read these stories you'll notice that the author's characters are fascinatingly realistic and have depth. They're human beings who have experienced something that has shocked them or changed their lives. Whether that something is homophobia, a lover's death or something else, the characters have to deal with what they've experienced or they may lose their way. Some of them bear scars on their skin as marks of what happened to them while others have hidden inner scars that deeply affect them.
Joel Lane has a keen eye for details and he dares to explore bleak and unhappy happenings in a fresh and exciting way. His stories are marked by realism, intelligence, freshness, sadness, brutality and originality.
One of the best things about this collection is that Joel Lane doesn't shy away from sex and sexuality. He writes boldly and unflinchingly about different forms of sexuality and especially about homosexuality. He explores infatuation, love and lust in an excellent way and writes realistically about the characters' feelings towards each other. It's great that he hasn't held anything back, but has written what really goes on between people.
In my opinion, speculative fiction is an excellent tool to address difficult themes and issues, because speculative fiction gives authors plenty of freedom to explore people's lives and personal relationships in a deep way. In this collection, Joel Lane writes fluently and realistically about gay men, their lives and their relationships.
Speculative fiction and especially weird fiction is very effective when it's based on what happens or may happen in our everyday life. When you add a bit of slipstream, dark fantasy and weirdness to everyday events, the result is often amazing, as it is in this collection. Reading this kind of fiction is not easy, but it's very rewarding.
There's something in these stories that reminds me a bit of Alexander Zelenyj's stories. Joel Lane and Alexander Zelenyj have a few things in common as authors, because both of them write beautifully and touchingly about loss and sadness. In my opinion, these stories are also slightly reminiscent of certain stories by Nina Allan and Christopher Barzak.
Joel Lane's Scar City is a stunning and impressive tour-de-force of dark imagination, weirdness and harsh realism that cuts deeply into the reader's mind. Scar City may well be the best and finest short story collection of the year, because it's boldly different from other collections and contains excellent stories. I highly recommend it to readers who are fascinated by dark stories, good prose and realistic characterisation. If you want quality from your speculative fiction, you won't be disappointed by this collection.
Highly recommended!