Dan Simmons has done it again.
With The Fifth Heart he has created another of his striking
blends of fact, fiction, and magical realism that keep readers turning the
pages of his long novels. This one comes
in at 617 pages and will especially appeal to readers who enjoy speculative
historical fiction that places literary figures in real life situations that
demand they show a part of their character we can barely imagine they might
have as we begin to read. This time
around, it is the author Henry James who surprises himself (and us) by matching
the skills and bravery of the great fictional detective Sherlock Holmes. (I say "fictional" but a central
part of The Fifth Heart's plot sees Holmes and James trying to figure
out if Holmes is real...or fictional.)
Throw in other real life characters like Mark Twain, Teddy Roosevelt,
John Hay, Clarence King, and Henry Adams and you have the makings for quite a
make-believe romp. And Simmons delivers
admirably.
It is 1893. Eight years
earlier, Clovis Adams, wife of the highly regarded historian Henry Adams, is
said to have taken her own life by ingesting an arsenic-based photographic
developing fluid. But not everyone is
convinced that the woman killed herself, and one of the skeptics has hired
Sherlock Holmes to investigate her death.
Now Holmes has coerced Henry James into coming to America with him so
that the facts of Clover Adams's death can finally be revealed.
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| Author Dan Simmons |
But not so fast, Sherlock.
First we have to figure out who is trying to kill you...and
why. Then we have to somehow stop the
plot to throw the world into chaos by the simultaneous assassination of most of
the world's top political leaders. And
we have to get all of that done before President Grover Cleveland comes to
Chicago to throw the switch that will complete the electrification of that
city's great "White City" exposition (which came to be known as
"Chicago's World Fair). The clock
is ticking, Mr. Holmes.
I am a Dan Simmons fan, but I would be the first to admit that
his long novels require a bit of patience on the part of his readers. Be patient, pay attention to all the twists
and turns of the main plot as a couple of side plots begin to intersect with
it, and you will thoroughly enjoy The Fifth Heart. Just don't quit on it - and you won't want to
if you pay full attention from the beginning.
Post #2,558
Post #2,558
OOh, I didn't know there was a new Dan Simmons! Sounds like a good one too!
ReplyDeleteStefanie, this new one and "Drood" are my favorites of his many novels. I inadvertently spilled a glass of tea on my library copy of "The Fifth Heart," so I am now the proud owner of a slightly damaged library copy of it. That turned out to be a $28 glass of tea.
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