'Seoul Survivors' by Naomi Foyle

Naomi Foyle did surprise me with twists and turns  and the way she captures the bustle of Seoul.

I enjoyed the first three quarters of this book. It was a prize Miriam won in a competition on twitter from @JoFletcherBooks; a specialist science fiction, fantasy and horror imprint of Quercus Publishing, publisher of 'Seoul Survivors'. This first novel by Naomi Foyle is a near-future Sci-fi story set in Korea - which sadly is still divided in North and South Korea - with high tech fashion, sex, underground clubs, robotics, bio-engineering and interesting yet strange and sometimes twisted characters.

Mostly with science fiction, I find myself either liking or hating the book. This was different. I enjoyed the way in which the main characters developed and how all their stories started to weave into one another as the book progressed. The Canadian model, the British fugitive, the American-Korean scientist, Mr. Sandman the psycho and the North Korean idealist are all in unfamiliar territory trying to survive in different ways. And with a huge meteor threatening to seriously impact life on earth ... what would you do?

I did not particularly like the ending though - for me it left some key questions unanswered and seemed to end rather suddenly.  Then again the impact of a meteor is probably not much different. It is a shame because this is not a bad debut. Naomi Foyle did surprise me with other twists and turns.  She captures the bustle of a futuristic Seoul and I can imagine how it would feel. What really bothered me about the last part of the book is that the synopsis on the back cover gives too much away.  I wonder if authors write their own back-cover summaries. It should entice you and spark your interest, but when I was two thirds through the book, there were still specific parts of the story which were 'unknown' while they were already revealed on the back cover. It is very difficult to stay interested in the build-up and suspense of a story line if you know the outcome. Call me strange, but I like to be surprised.  Part of the attraction of sci-fi is that anything can happen.

Maybe I am a special case.  I don't even like to look at trailers of movies, because I like the surprise elements, the wow-factor. If I know I want to see a movie because it is a sequel to a film I've liked before or I have read a review and the story seems interesting or I like the cast, then I avoid watching the trailer and go watch the movie. It makes the experience so much more enjoyable. A while after I have seen a film I tend to forget how it ends, which means I get to be surprised again. Aging isn't that bad. I guess I have to rip the back cover off 'Seoul Survivors' and read it again once I can no longer remember how story ends.

 If you are interested in reading this book avoid the back cover and read the abstract on the publisher's website instead.


Guest blog by BPR

@naomifoyle

Naomi Foyle 
ISBN: 9781780875989 

'The Devil Wears Prada' by Lauren Weisberger

Fashion fun; A great read for so called "chic-lit"

Like many other women, I have watched the film (several times thanks to the dvd).  It is a fun girl's evening-in movie that my daughter and I enjoy.  So I didn't bother to read the book for a long time.  A couple of weeks ago, though, I read that Laura Weisberger is writing a sequel.  I like the movie so I thought, "give the book a try and then you'll be able to enjoy the sequel."  Naturally, the book is fashion fun,  All the fat/thin conversations (obsessions), boss from hell situations and general thoughts of the protagonist are there in even greater detail.

The book gives me a more subtle approach to the fashion conversion of Andy.  I also saw a clearer picture of why her  romantic relationship broke down.  The film presented the problems as issues of time, availability and priorities, which are of course important in a relationship.  But, he seemed to do more sulking than thinking.  It is not the challenges that destroy a couple but how you approach those challenges as a couple.  In the book it felt to me that the reason he broke up with Andy was not that she made good or bad decisions but that they were different from what he would have done.  He did not sulk, but he did judge.  Andy finally "does the right thing", as he defines it, but under her own hilarious terms; independent of all those people trying to pressure her.

In the book I read a good look inside Andy's head.  The new relationships she builds and the people she meets both "high" and "low" teach her to think... not just react.  This is an important point because her mother and father can be overbearing and so can the angelic boyfriend.  She does the right thing for different reasons than her boyfriend or parents.  Andy did indeed learn by working at 'Runway'.  She grew up.  So, yes, she changed perhaps she out grew her parents and boyfriend.  The fact that the trauma of working for Miranda Priestly gave her inspiration for writing was an added bonus.  What I mean is, that I know people who travel to foreign places or work amazing jobs without introspection, curiosity or intelligence.  Andy grows because she brings all three together.  She faces her own nasty parts (not necessarily Miranda's) and decides for herself what to keep and what to throw out.  And yes, just in passing, there are also people in my acquaintance that can bring all three together, though none, I think, had a boss like Miranda Priestly.  All in all, a great read for so called "chic-lit"  I can't wait for the sequel.

 @LWeisberger

Lauren Weisberger 
ISBN: 9780007156108