Tuesday, July 14, 2015

California Bones (Daniel Blackland #1) by Greg Van Eekhout






Which leads me to yet another significant problem - characterisation.  I don't feel as though I got to know any of the characters in the book and thus, I couldn't really invest in them. They all seemed empty and were largely defined by what magical powers or skill set they have attained.  The only one to step outside of that narrow parameter is Moth, who plays the role of the enforcer.  Unfortunately, the only characterisation Moth get is his size.  In practically every scene that Moth is in, Van Eekhout includes some reference to how large he is. 

Though his role is really small the next character which really stood out to me is Wilson Bryant.
If the piano downstairs was an island, then the bed in the center of the vast bedroom was a continent. It rose on a mound of beach sand. The headboard was a cabinet towering to the ceiling, the shelves cluttered with more trophies and memorabilia, including photos of Bryant with Hollywood luminaries and members of the Council of Six, and more guitars, and even a surfboard. And propped up on pillows sat Wilson Bryant himself, bearded, huge, and barely contained by a white silk kimono. Yellow legal pads and In-N-Out burger wrappers lay scattered on his lap. Beside him was an acoustic guitar, half covered by a sheet like a sleeping lover. 
He squinted at Daniel with red-rimmed eyes. “Oh, wow,” he said. “You are made of love.”

Odd reaction to three strangers in ski masks bursting into his room.
Note the description of Bryant along with his name.  To me, Van Eekhout is clearly writing about The Beach Boy's Brian Wilson.  The circumstances are the same as Wilson suffered during his recluse period, including the food abuse.  The only way to read about Van Eekhout's Bryant and not think of Brian Wilson, is if you've never heard of the Wilson and his struggles.  I really want to give Van Eekhout a break on this one because mocking what Wilson has gone through to create a throw away character in a book is horrendous at best, particularly because Wilson has been struggling with mental illness for much of his life and has hallucinations.

Though California Bones is obviously set in California, there aren't a ton of POC.  Daniel, the protagonist, along with his mother are Latino.  There are no cultural markers attached to either one and the sole identifier is the brown skin.  I appreciate having a character of colour for a protagonist but at the same time, don't understand why some writers (in this case I am including Van Eekhout) refuse to do the work to write a character who is well rounded and at least marginally steeped in their culture.  Daniel might as well have been a White character painted brown for all of the cultural and ethnic markers Van Eekhout decided to include.

California Bones is filled with more action than characterization.  While Van Eekhout does create a great magical world, what he has his characters do is really one note.  It's a plot line I've seen in several movies and several books.  There's no doubt how this book is going to end from the moment Daniel decides to go after the  Hierarch's store of magical bones.  For all of the action, I should have been on the edge of my seat but because California Bones is so very predictable, I never even reached close to that point.  California Bones is definitely a case of your mileage may vary.  If world setting and good descriptions are your thing this might be the book for you.  If however, you like solid characters and a plot which isn't predictable, you'll want to skip this one.