Saturday, October 10, 2015

Bane by Amelia C. Gormley

CCC


You say you want a revolution...

Well, this is a more main stream post-apocalyptic story thanStrain was. It dialed back the intensity and "questionable" aspects of Darian and Rhy's relationship. I hate to say it, but the rawness is gone and white picket fences are looming. 

I haven't read Juggernaut and I'm wondering if that might have helped a little bit with some of the characters met in the Clean Zone. And yes, that name is suppose to sound as offensive as it is. 

While the controversial sexual aspects, dub con/ rape, have been eliminated and overall it is toned down, there are some notable exceptions: masochism, public activity, and bloodplay. Flashpoint words have been added to provide the edge and sometimes they are just launched and then not followed up on. 
"And traditionally, when white people decide that they’re afraid of brown people, it doesn’t go well for the brown people.”

Now I don't have a problem with opening issues for discussion, but just lobbing fire grenades like that and then letting them fizzle out is provocative for no reason. 

The plot of this story revolves around Rhys, and his offer to assist efforts to the counteract the Bane strain by undergoing testing. The Jugs have legitimate reasons for not trusting the powers that be and walking in with Rhys has everyone a bit cagey. Then, a surprising coincidence sets them on high alert.

We meet a new couple: Nico and Zach. There relationship is longstanding, but the issues surrounding Bane have kept them separated more than together. Again, the greatest weakness of the story are the villains. Villains more caricature than character as with Littlewood, and McClosky is a burnt husk of a person.

There's a interesting discussion of Rhy's masochism and the extremeness of it demonstrated via bloodplay. I liked this exploration a lot. The characters do more introspection. 
"That maybe one day the Alpha strain would just . . . take hold. Then I’d really be one of you. I wouldn’t just be your ‘pet civvie.’”

Also again, there's the grand decision which is convoluted and the solution simple, which they ignored in the first place to set up grand conflicts, so that didn't work for me. Essentially the characters make some decisions which are illogical, and it's not due to emotion overriding judgment. Either I'm missing something or there are issues with the characters' reactions to the virus and possible infection. The epidemiology is confusing,

In contrast to that there is a bizarre impotence regarding medical treatment, a fatalism espoused as we watch Nico and revisit Rhy's experience with exposure. In some ways telling one not to worry, what will be will be, and expounding that it is out of one's hands--you can't do anything. Disturbing undercurrent. Nonetheless, it was entertaining and a nice wrap up for the Delta Company.

Overall, a testosterone fun-filled dystopia.

Favorite passage: 
“You ever come to me and say you want my marks on you because it’s what you want, I’ll give you anything you ask for. But not if it’s to make a point to anyone else. We ever do that, it’s gonna mean something just between you and me.”

No comments:

Post a Comment