The story grips, the writing is masterful, and the main character, Mike Donnelly, is oh-so-real. In fact, everything about the book is so spot on I can’t fault it.
Work’s descriptions in places make you pause, go back, and re-read them, the second time to savour the wording and muse on how perfectly the phrases are constructed.
And I dare you not to smile at the reasoning of why a man, any man, is incapable of resisting a beautiful woman; it’s priceless.
I wondered at the title before beginning to read but it was quickly explained and I have to say how absolutely perfect and poetic it is for the story.
A final comment is about Work’s usual habit of anchoring his stories with facts; it’s one of the reasons why his stories are so good.
I’m not going to give anything away about the storyline except to say that FADOESQUE doesn’t disappoint.
I’ve read other works by Nougat and know that among her many talents she’s an artist. Believe me when I say she’s an artist with words as well as paints and brushes. LUNA RISING proves it.
New York computer whizz-kid, Tony Luna, is burnt out at the tender age of 19. Working since his mid-teens as a video games developer he makes the sudden decision—against his mother’s wishes—to quit and investigate his late father’s Sicilian aristocratic ancestry.
So far, nothing unusual. As far as the story goes, anyway. The writing is a different matter. It’s lovely. The language embraced me and took me into the story, away from my own setting and into Tony’s.
This book is not a quick read. Originally three novellas the author has rolled them into one very-satisfyingly long read. I love a big book and much to my regret these are now hard to find.
Mind you, to keep you reading big books need to be good.
And this one is good. I found the phrase ‘tour de force’ playing around in my mind and I don’t think I’m wrong.
It has so many elements in its exploration of the present entwined with the past that presents lessons that Tony needs to learn for the future that I find it hard to put it into any genre. I notice that in Amazon’s best-selling lists it’s categorised under Visionary, Metaphysical, Horror, and Occult. One could add Fantasy, Computing, Crime—and probably more than I can conjure up.
This is a story that defies easy labelling and that’s part of its beauty and appeal. There is so much going on it totally occupies the mind.
I love new things, don’t you? I actually love fab old things too, but this one is new and I’m really pleased with it. Proud, too, of the accomplishment.
The prompt was a problem with the blog sharing capabilities of my old website. That raised it’s very annoying head just two weeks before I was due to renew my website registration for another year or two.
It was obviously a sign from above to move on. So I did. To WordPress. Boy, was that ever a steep learning curve!
Incredibly annoyingly—at least in the short term—was the fact that I was unable to transfer my existing data. I therefore had to start from scratch.
That turned out to be a good thing because it made me analyse what my old site had offered and whether I wanted to replicate it.
I decided I didn’t.
I thought about what I, as a reader, like to see on author pages.
Information about their books, yes, but also information about them. I like to know something about the lives of the authors I read. Not nosy stuff, definitely not. But where they live, what interests them and what they occasionally get up to.
And here’s the result.
I’ve completely overhauled my book pages to include the story behind the story and location pics. I’ve also gone the extra mile and chosen the Australian actors I’d love to play my lead characters if the books were to be made into movies. Come check them out. Here are a few. imbroglio stars | automaton stars
Melissa George is the actor I would like to play Elisabeth Sharman if a film were to be made of AUTOMATON. She has that classy, fragile but inner strength look I want for Elisabeth. Photo from IMDb.com.
Elisabeth, it’s lovely to finally meet you. I’ve been wanting to talk to you ever since the revelations that came out during Russell Montgomery’s trial. I thought we could tackle it by starting at the beginning and working our way from there.
Elisabeth: Sounds good to me.
What prompted you to move from Sydney to Canberra?
Elisabeth: I love Sydney but not to put too fine a point on it I felt I had to leave. Work and life there were no longer tenable.
You were with Legal Aid and you moved to the Canberra Legal Aid office. So it wasn’t Legal Aid as such that you wanted to move away from?
Elisabeth: No. It was more that I kept running into someone I wanted nothing to do with.
Would that be Thierry Richards QC?
Elisabeth: Look … regardless of how I feel about that person I don’t want to … would you mind if we moved on.
Okay, let’s talk about when you arrived in Canberra. You jumped in at the deep end with the Russell Montgomery case.
Elisabeth: I’m really sorry… but do you mind if we don’t talk about that either. It’s still very raw.
Not a problem. I understand. Let’s take a step back. Describe yourself to me. How do you see yourself?
Elisabeth: Okay. Let me attempt a bit of objectivity. Short spiky red hair. I used to be able to sit on it but had it cut before coming to Canberra. Typical redhead’s colouring … white, no freckles because I’ve never been a sunlover, size 10, 5’7” in bare feet, and I’m 34. How’s that? Oh, and shall I tell you what Robert said about my eyes? Green as deep ocean on a sunbright day. I was speechless when he said it. No-one’s ever described them quite like that before. So now you’d know me in a crowd, yes?
Yes, I believe I would. Next question: What do you hope to achieve in life?
Elisabeth: That a big question. Many things I suppose, but happiness has to be at the top. Nothing’s worth it if you’re not happy.
And are you? Happy, that is.
Elisabeth: I’m working on it.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
Elisabeth: I’m a walker. For the exercise but also because I love it. Getting out and exploring and letting my mind wander. Never fails to refresh and re-invigorate.
Your friend Honey Milton was often a walking companion I believe. What is she to you?
Elisabeth: My best friend. Always will be. She’s gorgeous. I adore her. I miss her like crazy now that I’m in Canberra. We used to see each other all the time because her man travels a lot. He’s an actor and tours with his company. And as you say, we both liked walking. Not so often together nowadays, given we now live in different cities.
What about Robert Murphy?
Elisabeth: Robert? I liked him the moment I met him. He’s straightforward, sincere, good at his job. What’s not to like? The fact that he’s very attractive is a plus … . He stuck with me from the start despite the fact I couldn’t have been very likeable. I had my reasons, but he didn’t know that. But I count him among my good friends now. I hope he feels the same way about me.
As much as I’d like to explore that further I know you don’t want to, so let’s turn to the trial. What was it about the Stavros family that irked you so much?
Elisabeth: Every single one of them was lying and I knew it. But proving it was almost impossible because of Russell’s amnesia. Thank God for Robert and Joe Gaudry. In spite of me being no help they kept pushing. It was entirely because of them we got to the truth.
Let’s finish with what’s made you the woman you are today?
Elisabeth: Mmm. That may be a question better put to others. But I’ll have a go at it. On a personal level I was very young when I made the decision that altered my life. At the time I felt it was the only choice I could make, I believed I was too young to do anything else. I still believe that. But I feel the weight of condemnation from some people. I try not to let it bother me. On a professional level, law was something that always interested me. When I started university I began a Bachelor of Arts, but the law components really gripped me so I changed and ended up doing a combined Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Economics. I still like law. But that’s not to say I wouldn’t be happy doing something else … if something else came along.
Elisabeth, thanks, I know you weren’t looking forward to this and what I might have been planning to ask you. How about we go for a drink. My shout.
Elisabeth: It’s Friday night so why not. Great idea. Just so you know though. Anything I say under the influence is not for public consumption.
Fair enough. Grab your bag then. There’s a new bar opened up in Garema Place. I thought we could see if it’s any good.
You can find Elisabeth and get to know her story in AUTOMATON
. He stuck with me from the start despite the fact I couldn’t have been very likeable. I had my reasons, but he didn’t know that. But I count him among my good friends now. I hope he feels the same way about me.
