In a story full of lust, madness, and ecstasy, we meet twelve distinctive characters that lived in the same region of central England over the span of six thousand years. Their narratives are woven together in patterns of recurring events, strange traditions, and uncanny visions. First, a cave-boy loses his mother, falls in love, and learns a deadly lesson. He is followed by an extraordinary cast of characters: a murderess who impersonates her victim, a fisherman who believes he has become a different species, a Roman emissary who realizes the bitter truth about the Empire, a crippled nun who is healed miraculously by a disturbing apparition, an old crusader whose faith is destroyed by witnessing the ultimate relic, two witches, lovers, who burn at the stake. Each interconnected tale traces a path in a journey of discovery of the secrets of the land. In the tradition of Kipling's Puck of Pook's Hill, Schwob's Imaginary Lives, and Borges' A Universal History of Infamy, Alan Moore (Watchmen, From Hell, Lost Girls) travels through history blending truth and conjecture, in a novel that is dazzling, moving, sometimes tragic, but always mesmerizing. Now available in paperback for the first time in America! With an Introduction by Neil Gaiman, a signature of full-color plates by Jose Villarrubia, and a cover design by Chip Kidd.
Voice of the Fire
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First Sentence
A-hind of hill, ways off to sun-set-down, is sky come like as fire, and walk I up in way of this, all hard of breath, where is grass colding on l's feet and wetting they. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
A-hind of hill, ways off to sun-set-down, is sky come like as fire, and walk I up in way of this, all hard of breath, where is grass colding on l's feet and wetting they. Read the first page
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
Stateside: I read this bk a year ago after going to byzantine, preInternet, non-amazonuk lenghts to aquire a copy and it was well worth the long, tortuous wait. Moore is best known as the writer of several "graphic novels" ie long form comic books, including the recently concluded FROM HELL, an amazingly atmospheric tale about Whitechapel, London's occult and mythic psycho-architecture (with a nod to Ackroyd's HAWKSMOOR), and Jack the Ripper. FROM HELL joins MAUS as the "recent" twin pinacle achevements of what the comic book medium can accomplish when unfettered from its plascental spandex origins. This is Moore's first novel, and it has the same complexity and interconnectedness that his previous (and current) comics work displays. He's a great storyteller in any medium, it seems. VOICE OF THE FIRE is a "songline" of ten or so chapters, all set in the author's hometown of Northhampton from the stone age to the present day. It's a wildly impressive "shamanic" evocation of history - it really takes you away to other times, places, and most strikingly, other voices. The first chapter, "spoken" by a stone age half wit in a hypnotically inverted invented grammar, is worth the price of the admission on its own. Alluring, absorbing and at times, alarming...
11 of 12 people found the following review helpful
By alex kovzhun
Format:Paperback
I have to admit - Alan Moore is one of my favorite writers. In Voice of the Fire, it seems to me that he's off to prove, that he is as a "serious" writer.
Well, after "From Hell" even the most hard-nosed square intellectuals won't object to his status! Anyway, the Voice of the Fire is a truly masterful piece of work, but as a third novel it'll work much better. As a first, it's far too warped an introduction to Moore's prose.
Voice of the Fire begins in language that is devilishly clever - maybe even too clever. As it progresses, and we move through time a bit, the writing becomes clearer and the reader can appreciate some of Moore's great poetic language.
The story's great, but one has to dig a bit to find it in a fine, sometimes too fine prose.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
Having long been an admirer of Alan Moore's graphic novel work I read Voice of the Fire with anticipation. Anyone familiar with his early work will find this book very rewarding as he uses the same style and structure of his other writing but for some reason it seems richer for being in a novel form. The language used in the book begins in a basic form of English and is as close as you can imagine to real language being used through the various periods of time.A great book and a thought provoking read.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars
Horrible
I love Alan Moores Graphic Novels but it's a very, very long time since I haven't been able to finish a book. Read more
Published 21 days ago by Emma Brown
3.0 out of 5 stars
A bit heavy
Some quite engaging sections on top of some rambling that felt like I was ploughing through it rather than enjoying it.
Published 1 month ago by Wych
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fascinating blend of fact and fantasy
Having enjoyed Alan Moore's writing from the glory days of 2000AD onward, I was intrigued to discover he had actually written a complete novel. Read more
Published 14 months ago by JasonS
2.0 out of 5 stars
Really weird
This is just weird stuff. It's well written, but coupled with the fact that Alan is a bona-fide Shaman it really puts a spin on the stories. Read more
Published on 29 Nov 2010 by Chris Morse
4.0 out of 5 stars
Very original and worth persevering with after the first chapter
The first chapter was hard going but after that I found it to very well written and engrossing.
The " Roman" story and the "Spiv" stories were particularly good.
The " Roman" story and the "Spiv" stories were particularly good.
Published on 30 Oct 2010 by The Emperor
5.0 out of 5 stars
Zarjaz
I've been reading Alan's writing since the early 80's, through his 2000AD work, and through his 'graphic novels' such as From Hell. Read more
Published on 15 Sep 2010 by Orpheus73
5.0 out of 5 stars
More Moore.
I've been a fan of Alan Moore's 'comic book' writing since before I knew or cared someone was writing them, so I have been loath to try his first novel and (possibly) discover that... Read more
Published on 26 Aug 2010 by Chandito
1.0 out of 5 stars
Dreadful
The first story to page 60 is written in an odd caveman dialect (I think that is what it is) that reminded me of Jamaican. I found it really hard to read and gave up. Read more
Published on 26 July 2009 by Robert
4.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic, not his best.
I'm a Northampton resident and Alan Moore is, in fact, an old friend of my dad's, so I speak from knowledge when I say that only Alan could have dmade Northampton this interesting. Read more
Published on 13 Jan 2008 by Liam W. Smith
5.0 out of 5 stars
"First" novel of a great master
I have to admit - Alan Moore is one of my favorite writers. In Voice of the Fire, it seems to me that he's off to prove, that he is as a "serious" writer. Read more
Published on 2 July 2002 by alex kovzhun
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