Review: Woken Furies, by R. K. Morgan

     Woken Furies (2005) is the third installment in the action packed Takeshi Kovacs series by Richard Morgan, and is a clear step up over its predecessors. 

The Setup

     While Woken Furies can easily be read as a standalone, you need to read both Altered Carbon and Broken Angels to truly appreciate the depth of the revelations presented. That said, Woken Furies remains a great read in which Mr. Morgan maturing style and skillful character construction will leave you begging for the next installment. 

     Takeshi Kovacs is back on Harlan's World, his onetime home, waging a campaign of indiscriminate slaughter against the priests who killed his one time love. As per usual, a fairly innocuous fight in a restaurant ends up pushing Kovacs straight into the arms of a woman who is none other than a mythical rebellion leader. This time around, other Envoys are involved and the situation promises to get gory, and Mr Morgan promptly delivers.

     Not only is Kovacs set to collide with other Envoys on his moralistic journey, but a re-sleeved, younger copy of himself is out to get him as well. If that isn't enough, well, wait till you see how the Martian technology Kovacs discovered in Broken Angels is put to use. Cunningly orchestrated, Woken Furies is a battle ground for both seething historic forces and morality. If you enjoyed Altered Carbon or Broken Angel's, I'll bet you a book that you will like Woken Furies even more. 

My Take in Brief

     Woken Furies is a definite improvement over its predecessors, both in terms of style, plot, and philosophy. More than at any other point in the series, Takeshi Kovacs comes off as complex and likable. Previously, Mr. Morgan painted himself into a stylistic corner where he was forced to constantly up the suspense and violence to keep the plot ball rolling. I attribute this to the way the author's characters are constructed; they are the embodiment of an inherent contradiction, of competing interests and themes. Somewhat ironically, these inner conflicts are always resolved through outward acts of violence. In Worken Furies Mr. Morgan discovers, to good effect, that its okay to resolve these conflicts internally.

     Beyond the usual acts of gratuitous violence and suspense driven plot, Woken Furies presents the reader with two substantial developments in the context of the series. These are first a refinement of the overarching Quellist philosophy, and second the promise of future interaction with the mythic lost Martian civilization. In my opinion, Woken Furies sets the foundation for a move from the tight focus of military science fiction towards a more complex and compelling space opera. If Mr. Morgan ever decides to shift away from the tight focus on Takeshi Kovacs, he has surely set up what promises to be an epic continuation to the series.

Highlights

• Takeshi Kovacs facing off against none other than... himself.
• A refinement of the socio-political dynamic.
• Boom, squish, whack, crunch, and kerrrplunk.

Lowlights

• Falling back on a few of the same literary tricks. 
• An open ending that promises so much in the next installment.

Your Take

     I am honestly curious to see what people think about the Takeshi Kovacs series as a whole at this point. In my estimation Morgan has really developed as a writer, and I am inclined to wonder if you guys and girls see it that way. I haven't picked up The Steel Remains yet, but I am excited to see what his transition to fantasy looks like.

Ratings and Links

Amazon: 4/5

B&N: 3.75/5

My Rating: 4.25/5

A neat review of Woken Furies over at the Wertzone.

Piqued Your Interest?

Woken Furies, the third installment in the Takeshi Kovacs series, is not to be missed. If you enjoyed Altered Carbon and Broken Angels, then this book is not to book is a must read.

Giveaway

Want this book for free? Done. Just follow these simple giveaway instructions for your chance to win (giveaway runs for five days from the date of posting):

1) E-mail me your name and address with the title of the book as the subject. Snarky comments increase your chances of winning.
2) Sign up for site updates either in RSS or with Friend Connect on the side. This will also let you know about future giveaways; typically 2-3 per week.
3) Think happy thoughts.
4) (OPTIONAL) Share or link to any post on my blog--this earns you brownie points as well as increasing your (if you have made it this far) already significant odds.

Review: Broken Angels, by R. K. Morgan

     Broken Angels (2003) is the second book by Richard K. Morgan in the Takeshi Kovacs series, a hard bitting military science fiction adventure that, once again, is sure to leave you breathless.

The Setup

     Broken Angles follows on the action packed Altered Carbon, and it can easily be read as a standalone book. In Broken Angels, we once again find Takeshi Kovacs hard at work trying not to get killed. This time around, the action centers on the discovery of an ancient Martian door that may very well lead to the greatest technological and archeological find in human history. The only problem is that Sanction IV is embroiled in a full out war, and both sides want a piece of the find. Cutthroat corporate executive, re-sleeved black ops operatives, and nano-tech gone rogue make the second installment in the Takeshi Kovacs series one not to be missed. If you enjoyed Altered Carbon, then you are going to love Broken Angels.

My Take in Brief

     Takeshi Kovacs is a brilliantly constructed character. I am hooked to the tension created by his Envoy training and his individuality. That said, Broken Angles is definitely more formulaic than Altered Carbon, and seems to lack some of the grit and realism present in its predecessor. That doesn't make it a poor read, quite the contrary in fact. I attribute that mostly to this book not being set on Old Earth, a setting to which the plot and action were central last time, as opposed to this installment where the setting on Sanction IV appears secondary. The fact that most of the action takes place on a beachhead doesn't help matters much.
     That said, I really enjoyed this book, with its earthy realism and extended cast of secondary characters. Mr. Morgan is quite the expert at brining to life new characters in as few words as possible. Sadly, he is also quite the expert at getting them killed in fairly gruesome ways as well. As usual, nothing is quite what it seems in the world of Takeshi Kovacs, so be ready for the plot to kick into overdrive and leave you gasping for breath as you are pressed down into your reading chair.
     Here is a blurb from Mr. Morgan himself:

"A deeper and darker excursion into the Kovacs universe, more detail on the politics of the Protectorate, the Martians and the Archaeologue Guild. A planetary war, a paradigm-shattering discovery and a journey into the inner reaches of Takeshi's trauma-ridden consciousness.

"If there was ultimately something clean at the end of Altered Carbon, Broken Angels offers no such comfort. You're just lucky if you get out alive. Focus called it 'nasty', and they were right."

Highlights

• Boom, squish, splash, crunch.
  
• Awesome pace and tempo.
  
• I mean come on, its Takeshi Kovacs!
  
• The "paradigm-shattering" discovery. It is really cool, no joke.
  
• Angry, and self-evolving nano technology.
  

Lowlights

• A certain lack of detail in the setting.
  
• Slightly formulaic.
  
• Again, slightly deus ex, but much cleaner than last time.
  

Your Take

     I am really curious to see that people though about Broken Angels. I loved the first book, even though it left me feeling like I just avoided a car accident on the highway, and sincerely enjoyed this one as well. Sadly I bought Market Forces thinking it would be another Takeshi Kovacs novel, only to find out it wasn't---its still pretty decent so far though. So, which did you like better: Broken Angels or Altered Carbon?

Ratings and Links

Amazon: 4/5
B&N: 3.5/5
My Rating: 3.8/5

A great review of Broken Angels by MentatJack.
A spot on interview with Richard Morgan by Clarkesworld Magazine.

Piqued Your Interest?

     I love the Takeshi Kovacs series so far and most definitely plan to pick up the third installment soon, so expect a review of that. In the meantime make sure to pick up Altered Carbon if you haven't already, because you are going to love Broken Angels.

Giveaway

Want this book for free? Done. Just follow these simple giveaway instructions for your chance to win (giveaway runs for five days from the date of posting):

1) E-mail me your name and address with the title of the book as the subject. Snarky comments increase your chances of winning.

2) Sign up for site updates either in RSS or with Friend Connect on the side. This will also let you know about future giveaways; typically 2-3 per week. 

3) Think happy thoughts. 

4) (OPTIONAL) Share or link to any post on my blog--this earns you brownie points as well as increasing your (if you have made it this far) already significant odds. 

Congratulations Jake L. on your free copy of Broken Angels. Let us know what you thought when your done reading.