Radiance

Locations
Call Number: Science Fiction / Valente, Catherynne, Adult Book / Fiction / Science Fiction / General / Valente, Catherynne M.
On Shelf At: Downtown Library, Malletts Creek Branch, Westgate Branch

Location & Checkout Length	Call Number	Checkout Length	Item Status
Downtown 2nd Floor 4-week checkout	Science Fiction / Valente, Catherynne	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Malletts Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / Science Fiction / General / Valente, Catherynne M.	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Westgate Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / Science Fiction / General / Valente, Catherynne M.	4-week checkout	On Shelf

"Severin Unck's father is a famous director of Gothic romances in an alternate 1986 in which talking movies are still a daring innovation due to the patent-hoarding Edison family. Rebelling against her father's films of passion, intrigue, and spirits from beyond, Severin starts making documentaries, traveling through space and investigating the levitator cults of Neptune and the lawless saloons of Mars. For this is not our solar system, but one drawn from classic science fiction in which all the planets are inhabited and we travel through space on beautiful rockets. Severin is a realist in a fantastic universe. But her latest film, which investigates the disappearance of a diving colony on a watery Venus populated by island-sized alien creatures, will be her last. Though her crew limps home to earth and her story is preserved by the colony's last survivor, Severin will never return" -- provided by publisher.

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COMMUNITY REVIEWS

Radiance submitted by Fevvers - STAR473 on July 2, 2016, 6:26am Like its subject matter, Radiance is a strange and beautiful book. The relatively ornate way in which events are related challenge the reader to pay attention and also to simply accept the visions presented - much like watching the multiple films described in the novel. Take note of the section headers and dates, but don't worry about it too much. The ending is not a secret, though the whys and hows are the mysteries which unfold, the questions which characters ask themselves.

The setting is a strange and marvelous alternate history, a retro-futuristic version of our world and timeline. What is the stuff of pulp science fiction to us is the reality in Radiance (along with some other differences): rocket ships travel between the planets, moons, and asteroids. Alien life exists in various forms. Space explorers and colonists find survivable conditions on places such as Venus and the Earth's moon.

Most amusing is the thread about this alternate reality's version of Hollywood and the studio systems. Actual battles are fought between rival studios - on the moon, which is a preferred filming location.

Highly recommended for the curious and adventuresome and theatrically inclined.