Amy Goldschlager Reviews Audiobooks: Terciel & Elinor and Fan Fiction: A Mem-Noir: Inspired by True Events
Terciel & Elinor, Garth Nix; narrated by Billie Fulford-Brown (Listening Library 978-0-59355528-6, $27.50, digital download, 11.5 hr., unabridged) November 2021.
This direct prequel to the first published volume in The Old Kingdom series explores how the Abhorsen Sabriel’s parents met and encountered the powerful evil undead creature Kerrigor and his lieutenant, the necromancer Hedge, both of whom play important roles later in the series timeline.
The orphaned Terciel was plucked from a workhouse at an early age by his Great-Aunt Tizaniel and trained to be the next Abhorsen, a mage who must guard Life from intrusions from Death. As a young man, his work takes him to the neighboring land of Ancelstierre, which has no magic itself, except for what spills over the Wall dividing it from the Old Kingdom. As he confronts the dangerous consequences of a dying woman’s ignorant bargain with a Free Magic creature, he encounter’s the woman’s daughter, Elinor, who’s been raised in virtual social seclusion as well as ignorance of her own link to the Old Kingdom. Of course, danger, magic, and romance ensue.
Narrator Billie Fulford-Brown offers some fantastic voice shadings, including credibly deep voices for male characters and a creepy screech for Maugrim/Mogget, the dangerous shape-shifting Free Magic creature who has a long-running role in the series. I must say my conception of him never quite sounded like that, but I appreciate the fresh perspective on this multi-faceted character, whose behavior tends to alter depending on with whom he’s interacting.
I have never really liked prequels; it’s hard for me to commit to the story when I already know the (usually sad) fate of the characters before I even start reading or listening. So I began this with mixed feelings. If you’ve read Sabriel, you know that her parents do not live into a happy old age. Nix’s previous Old Kingdom prequel, Clariel, which chronicles how an unhappy, socially trapped young woman would eventually become an undead sorcerer, was probably my least favorite of the series; however, perhaps that was because while I was incredibly sympathetic toward her, I just couldn’t bring myself to like her. In contrast, I enjoyed this look at Sabriel’s father as a young man, and I immediately adored her mother Elinor, who was previously a cipher in the series. Despite her difficult circumstances, Elinor is a kind, friendly, and resilient person with many colorful skills, including dramatic performance, circus tricks, and sword fighting. She saved this book for me, with its foregone conclusion for anyone familiar with the other installments in the series.
Fan Fiction: A Mem-Noir: Inspired by True Events, Brent Spiner; Brent Spiner and a full cast, including LeVar Burton, Michael Dorn, Jonathan Frakes, Genie Francis, Gates McFadden, Marina Sirtis, Patrick Stewart, et al., narrators (Macmillan Audio 978-1-25082139-3, $19.99, digital download, 7 hr., unabridged) October 2021.
The awesome editorial staff at Locus place very few restrictions on what I should write for this column. I have been asked to avoid covering media tie-ins, and they didn’t have to mention that I shouldn’t cover fan fiction. And yet, how can I resist Brent Spiner’s Fan Fiction, in which Spiner imagines himself at the center of a campy, pulpy noir thriller set in 1991 during the filming of the Star Trek: The Next Generation series, voiced by Spiner himself and featuring expert use of music, sound effects, and a full voice cast in which several of the ST:TNG cast members play themselves?
Of course, as per the title, the paper-thin plot involves fans: in particular, someone calling themselves ‘‘Lal,’’ the android daughter that Data built and who tragically died in the classic episode, ‘‘The Offspring’’. But this Lal shows their love by sending Spiner a pig’s penis and blood-soaked, threatening letters. With the help of a LAPD detective/wannabe scriptwriter and a gorgeous set of twins – one an FBI agent on the case, the other a bodyguard Spiner hires (and later sleeps with) – Spiner tries to discover Lal’s identity, stay safe, deflect the attention of less dangerous but still annoying other fans (while still enjoying the ego boost of having fans), and work through a number of complicated emotional issues.
The plot is silly and obvious, but it’s more of a vehicle for the message that fans can’t know an actor based on the role he plays on TV, as much as they would like that to be true. It also seems to work as a personal journey for Spiner, although it’s difficult to know just how true that is. I have also learned (as anyone in publishing must) that readers/listeners can’t know an author based on the fiction they write, either. Spiner eschews the typical fan fiction trope of making the protagonist a Mary Sue/Gary Stu type, a burnished, overly competent individual. His fictional self is understandably cowardly in the face of danger, slightly broken psychologically, socially awkward, extremely self-involved, and a bit creepy towards women.
The fictional Brent Spiner borrows some of the author’s history and experiences, including the uncomfortable process of wearing the Data makeup and contact lenses, the deaths of a close friend and of Gene Rodenberry, and (I believe) the trauma inflicted by his abusive stepfather. Of course, having Spiner and his fellow ST:TNG colleagues speak their own dialogue make these characters seem even realer, but is this a more real Brent Spiner than the one he played on The Big Bang Theory?
Incredible production values (one of the best soundscapes I’ve ever heard, honestly) and some interesting insights from Spiner help to prop up the weak story. But if you’re interested in learning more about the actual lives of several participants in the Star Trek universe, I highly recommend Gates McFadden’s excellent podcast, Investi-Gates: Who Do You Think You Are?, in which McFadden, a skilled, sensitive, and somewhat quirky interviewer (and obviously, the actor who portrayed Dr. Beverly Crusher on ST:TNG), speaks with a variety of her Star Trek colleagues who worked both in front of and behind the cameras.
Amy Goldschlager, Contributing Editor, is an editor, proofreader, and book/audiobook reviewer who has worked for several major publishers. She is a former curator of the New York Review of Science Fiction Reading Series. In addition to her Locus column, she has contributed to the Los Angeles Review of Books, Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, AudioFile magazine, and ComicMix. She lives in Brooklyn and exists virtually at www.amygoldschlager.com.
This review and more like it in the January 2022 issue of Locus.
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