Review by Sara Kay -- Rasputin's Nephew by Marc J. Seifer
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Sara Kay
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Review by Sara Kay -- Rasputin's Nephew by Marc J. Seifer
[Following is a volunteer review of "Rasputin's Nephew" by Marc J. Seifer.]
2 out of 4 stars
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A mad concoction of science and new age philosophy, Rasputin’s Nephew rips through the fabric of the reality that you’re familiar with. Its primary instrument of reconstruction is a reporter who begins probing into the topic of parapsychology, against the wishes of his superior and his own better judgement. This leads him on a book hunt to scientifically substantiate, or forever disprove, the claims of telepathy, telekinesis and other parapsychological powers. However, he isn’t the only one searching. His questions suck him into a tangle of other wondering wanderers - mad scientists, murderers, magicians, mechanical assassins and mystics - all on separate paths, all linked, all one.
Despite the unique thoughts presented in this book, it was punctured with gruesome descriptions of animal and human cruelty. Peering into the most base and twisted realms of the human mind, the author used this darkness to contrast the path of “Enlightenment”. Although the disgusting descriptions were an important part of the storyline, they greatly lessened my enjoyment of the book and I almost didn’t complete it for this reason. I would not recommend it to anyone who is squeamish or sensitive to this type of content.
Even though the author uses his descriptive powers to horrify, he does also apply them to the kaleidoscope of countries, people and cultures that the book explores. His words whisk you to places you’ve never been, before fascinating faces that you’ve never met and into realms of thought you’ve never experienced. Despite the frequent flaws in grammar, spelling and sentence structure, the author displays a surprising skill in blending scientific theories, myths, religions, legends and history. The result is a very compelling and controversial story.
The dialogue in the story was peppered with a few swear words. The narrative also occasionally crept out of its momentum to vividly describe sexual thoughts or snippets of sexual scenes. Because of this, I would suggest that this book is only suitable for adults. I definitely wouldn’t recommend it for young or impressionable readers, especially considering the repulsive cruelty I mentioned.
The uniqueness of the story’s angle and trajectory was very intriguing and I salute the author’s ambition in writing it. However, the negative features noted previously prevented me from fully enjoying the book. The numerous errors present also suggest that the book wasn’t professionally edited. They, unfortunately, did contribute to a certain amount of confusion in some sections. I would give Rasputin’s Nephew 2 out of 4 stars based on the above observations. This is the first in a quadrilogy by this author and I hope that the other books improve in these aspects.
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Rasputin's Nephew
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2 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
A mad concoction of science and new age philosophy, Rasputin’s Nephew rips through the fabric of the reality that you’re familiar with. Its primary instrument of reconstruction is a reporter who begins probing into the topic of parapsychology, against the wishes of his superior and his own better judgement. This leads him on a book hunt to scientifically substantiate, or forever disprove, the claims of telepathy, telekinesis and other parapsychological powers. However, he isn’t the only one searching. His questions suck him into a tangle of other wondering wanderers - mad scientists, murderers, magicians, mechanical assassins and mystics - all on separate paths, all linked, all one.
Despite the unique thoughts presented in this book, it was punctured with gruesome descriptions of animal and human cruelty. Peering into the most base and twisted realms of the human mind, the author used this darkness to contrast the path of “Enlightenment”. Although the disgusting descriptions were an important part of the storyline, they greatly lessened my enjoyment of the book and I almost didn’t complete it for this reason. I would not recommend it to anyone who is squeamish or sensitive to this type of content.
Even though the author uses his descriptive powers to horrify, he does also apply them to the kaleidoscope of countries, people and cultures that the book explores. His words whisk you to places you’ve never been, before fascinating faces that you’ve never met and into realms of thought you’ve never experienced. Despite the frequent flaws in grammar, spelling and sentence structure, the author displays a surprising skill in blending scientific theories, myths, religions, legends and history. The result is a very compelling and controversial story.
The dialogue in the story was peppered with a few swear words. The narrative also occasionally crept out of its momentum to vividly describe sexual thoughts or snippets of sexual scenes. Because of this, I would suggest that this book is only suitable for adults. I definitely wouldn’t recommend it for young or impressionable readers, especially considering the repulsive cruelty I mentioned.
The uniqueness of the story’s angle and trajectory was very intriguing and I salute the author’s ambition in writing it. However, the negative features noted previously prevented me from fully enjoying the book. The numerous errors present also suggest that the book wasn’t professionally edited. They, unfortunately, did contribute to a certain amount of confusion in some sections. I would give Rasputin’s Nephew 2 out of 4 stars based on the above observations. This is the first in a quadrilogy by this author and I hope that the other books improve in these aspects.
******
Rasputin's Nephew
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Like Sara Kay's review? Post a comment saying so!
Latest Review: The Warramunga's War by Greg Kater
