The Dervish House (Gollancz)
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"Ian McDonald writes science fiction like no one else; not just today, but ever before. After reading his latest novel, I think he might be best compared to a futuristic Charles Dickens. Diverse plot strands come together, past and future reflecting each other in an amazing book that easily matches McDonald's award winning Brasyl in ambition, scope and achievement." (Lisa Tuttle THE TIMES )
"This is a brilliant, jewelled machine of a novel in which lives triggers events in other lives, in a sequence that skirts chaos and disaster, but ends with gorgeous order." (Roz Kaveney THE INDEPENDENT )
McDonald creates a convincing portrait of an Istanbul teeming with dolmuses, meyhanes and apple tea, and his writing reflects his in-depth research about the country; if Orhan Pahmuk suddenly decided to bring nano-technology into his stories, it might read a little like this. Another epic, complex and intelligent offering from McDonald. Fans of realistic, character-driven SF will love it, and anyone with a familiarity of Istanbul will get an extra kick out of the novel." (TOTAL SCI FI )
"This is a brilliant, jewelled machine of a novel in which lives triggers events in other lives, in a sequence that skirts chaos and disaster, but ends with gorgeous order." (Roz Kaveney THE INDEPENDENT )
McDonald creates a convincing portrait of an Istanbul teeming with dolmuses, meyhanes and apple tea, and his writing reflects his in-depth research about the country; if Orhan Pahmuk suddenly decided to bring nano-technology into his stories, it might read a little like this. Another epic, complex and intelligent offering from McDonald. Fans of realistic, character-driven SF will love it, and anyone with a familiarity of Istanbul will get an extra kick out of the novel." (TOTAL SCI FI )
Product Description
In the CHAGA novels Ian McDonald brought an Africa in the grip of a bizarre alien invasion to life, in RIVER OF GODS he painted a rich portrait of India in 2047, in BRASYL he looked at different Brazils, past present and future. Ian McDonald has found renown at the cutting edge of a movement to take SF away from its British and American white roots and out into the rich cultures of the world. THE DERVISH HOUSE continues that journey and centres on Istanbul in 2025. Turkey is part of Europe but sited on the edge, it is an Islamic country that looks to the West. THE DERVISH HOUSE is the story of the families that live in and around its titular house, it is at once a rich mosaic of Islamic life in the new century and a telling novel of future possibilities.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Intelligent and very readable,
By
This review is from: The Dervish House (Gollancz) (Paperback)
In line with other reviews so far, I thought this was an excellent book. Set in Istanbul in 2027 5 years after Turkey joins the EU, it covers multiple, linked story-strands covering subjects such as religion, politics, nano-tech, economics, terrorists and legends including the Mellified Man (don't bother looking it up, just enjoy it in the book).There are numerous characters who are faily well sketched - the ousted academic, the child detective with a heart complaint, the stock market swindler and his religious-artefact selling wife, the disturbed fanatic and the nano-tech entrepeneurs. McDonald weaves their stories very skillfully and vividly paints a picture of near-future Istanbul and the integration of new technology into an ancient city. I really enjoyed "River of Gods" but couldn't finish "Brasyl" for some reason. But this is by some way the best book I have read this year. McDonald successfully merges good story-lines with believable future-technology and writes it well. Any author who can come up with a line such as "Smell is the djinni of memory, all times are one to it" has my admiration. If you want intelligent, well-written near-future science-fiction, you can't go wrong with this book. Highly recommended.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A wonderful book,
By
This review is from: The Dervish House (Gollancz) (Paperback)
McDonald has set pretty high expectations with his last two books, but this one doesn't disappoint.The Dervish House unfolds in a compelling near future Istanbul, a heady mix of history, cultures and ubiquitous nanotechnology. It tells the intertwined stories of six characters, spanning five days of an Istanbul heat wave: a gas options trader with a get rich quick plan, an antiquarian commissioned to find a fabulous mythical artefact; a retired Professor of Economics wounded by ethnic persecution and a love lost, a troubled mystic who sees djinn and talks with saints, a "Marketing Consultant" called in to save the family nanotechnology start-up, and a boy detective with the coolest nanotech toy ever. With treasure hunts, terrorist plots, wheeling and dealing, and a high tech shoot out, the Dervish House is fast paced and a real page turner. True to style however, McDonald's characters are well rendered and believable, his ideas first class and his writing is complex and mature. A wonderful book!
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another in a long line of masterpieces....,
By
This review is from: The Dervish House (Gollancz) (Paperback)
The novel is set in the Istanbul of 2027. Turkey is now part of the EU. It starts with a bang.Necdet, who was disowned by his family, bar his brother, is on a tram to work when a smiling woman blows her own head off. Shocked by the event, he doesn't realize how badly he was affected until he starts seeing ghosts (djinn) everywhere. The traffic-jam aftermath makes Leyla miss her best chance of a job. She has to fall back on family connections to represent her cousins who want to get financing for a wacky nano-tech start-up. Ayse, an art dealer is offered a lot of money to find a legend, a "Mellified Man", an ancient corpse preserved in honey, and decides to take up the challenge, despite misgivings about her client because of his aftershave. Her husband is cooking up a massive deal of his own, using his skills as a gas market-trader and his special knowledge of a disused gas pipeline going back into embargoed Iran. Can Durukan, a young deaf boy, sends his shape-changing spy bots to the site of the bombing and tracks a mysterious bot that was recording the event. As a wannabe detective he never lets up his search for the truth.Finally, Georgios Ferentinou, an ex-University economics lecturer and erstwhile radical, gets an offer of a job with a think tank doing blue-sky research into possible terrorist attacks. He confronts an old enemy and seeks a lost love. All the characters are residents of the Dervish House at Adem Dede Square. The Dervishes were a now-vanished sect. The house is a relic of Istanbul's past. The novel subtly weaves together historical and mythical views of the city and its peoples, while at the same time investigating the possible futures offered by nano-tech and EU membership. All the various characters and their story arcs converge by the end of the six days in which the action takes place. River of Gods and Brasyl are tough acts to follow, but this one is better than both, which is no mean feat. The writing, the creative vision and the near-future science fiction are flawless. It ought to win every award going. I wonder what can possibly come next?
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