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	<title>Violin in a Void</title>
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		<title>Violin in a Void</title>
		<link>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com</link>
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		<item>
		<title>Review of The Rook by Daniel O&#8217;Malley</title>
		<link>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/23/review-of-the-rook-by-daniel-omalley/</link>
		<comments>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/23/review-of-the-rook-by-daniel-omalley/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 23 Feb 2012 11:48:45 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Lauren</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Book reviews]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[conspiracy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fantasy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[humour]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[little brown]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[memory loss]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[science fantasy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[secret organisation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[supernatural]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/?p=1262</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I was unsure about this at first, but it turned out to be exactly what I wanted :)

The Rook is one of those lovely books that has everything a novel needs to be both classy and loads of fun to read. It has great characters. It’s got a tense investigation to uncover a large-scale conspiracy. It’s got loads of action involving people with awesome supernatural powers. To top it all off, it’s full of wonderfully quirky humour. You’ll laugh, you’ll gasp, you’ll gnaw your fingernails. <a href="http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/23/review-of-the-rook-by-daniel-omalley/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">&#8594;</span></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=violininavoid.wordpress.com&amp;blog=14245931&amp;post=1262&amp;subd=violininavoid&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">The Rook by Daniel OMalley</media:title>
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			<media:title type="html">The Rook by Daniel OMalley</media:title>
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	</item>
		<item>
		<title>Review of Carpathia by Matt Forbeck</title>
		<link>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/22/review-of-carpathia-by-matt-forbeck/</link>
		<comments>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/22/review-of-carpathia-by-matt-forbeck/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 22 Feb 2012 11:17:48 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Lauren</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Book reviews]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Angry Robot]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fantasy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[horror]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[love triangle]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[titanic]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[vampires]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/?p=1258</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The first thing I need to tell you is that the official Angry Robot blurb for this book is misleading. This is what it says:

"When the desperate survivors of the Titanic were rescued from the icy waters of the North Atlantic by the passenger steamship Carpathia, they thought their problems were over.
But something was sleeping in the darkest recesses of the rescue ship. Something old. Something hungry.
The lucky ones wished they’d gone down with the ship."

Based on that blurb, I assumed the plot went something like this: Titanic sinks. Survivors are rescued by the Carpathia. Unknown monsters start preying on the passengers of the Carpathia. Survivors must find out what the monsters are and kill them or be eaten. Reader gets to enjoy a combination of mystery and horror.

Lies! <a href="http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/22/review-of-carpathia-by-matt-forbeck/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">&#8594;</span></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=violininavoid.wordpress.com&amp;blog=14245931&amp;post=1258&amp;subd=violininavoid&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/22/review-of-carpathia-by-matt-forbeck/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">Carpathia by Matt Forbeck</media:title>
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	</item>
		<item>
		<title>Review of The Troupe by Robert Jackson Bennett</title>
		<link>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/21/review-of-the-troupe-by-robert-jackson-bennett/</link>
		<comments>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/21/review-of-the-troupe-by-robert-jackson-bennett/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 21 Feb 2012 08:51:36 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Lauren</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Book reviews]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fantasy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[horror]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mythology]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[myth]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[creation story]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[orbit books]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[vaudeville]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[save the world]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/?p=1247</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[At 16, George Carole ran away from home to join the vaudeville circuit. His remarkable talents with the piano meant he quickly made money and a name for himself, but then he gives it all up to chase after the mysterious Silenus Troupe. They are the very reason George went into vaudeville – he’s learnt that the Troupe’s leader, Hieronomo (Harry) Silenus is his father, and the circuit gave him the best way of tracking the man down.

But when George finally meets Harry and gets involved with his troupe, he finds nothing is as he expected. Harry is not warm or loving and doesn’t welcome his long-lost son with open arms. He’s a gruff and grumpy man with many burdens who reacts to the discovery of a son with dread rather than happiness. George had dreamed of joining his father’s troupe and touring the country as a famed pianist, but the Troupe has no space for an extra feature, and as it turns out, their purpose was never even entertainment at all. <a href="http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/21/review-of-the-troupe-by-robert-jackson-bennett/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">&#8594;</span></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=violininavoid.wordpress.com&amp;blog=14245931&amp;post=1247&amp;subd=violininavoid&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/21/review-of-the-troupe-by-robert-jackson-bennett/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
	
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	</item>
		<item>
		<title>Lauren &amp; Lu review A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L&#8217;Engle</title>
		<link>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/16/lauren-lu-review-a-wrinkle-in-time-by-madeleine-lengle/</link>
		<comments>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/16/lauren-lu-review-a-wrinkle-in-time-by-madeleine-lengle/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 16 Feb 2012 08:33:50 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Lauren</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Book reviews]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Lauren and Lu's Reviews]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[religion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[science fiction]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[time travel]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[YA]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[young adult]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/?p=1225</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Fourteen-year old Meg Murry’s father disappeared while doing some experimental research on time travel. No one seems to know how to find him, until Meg’s younger brother, Charles Wallace - a bizarrely intelligent, articulate 5-year old - meets three enchanting, witch-like women known as Mrs Whatsit, Mrs Who and Mrs Which. Mrs Whatsit visits the Murry family one dark and stormy night, and seems to know something about the work Mr Murry was doing when he disappeared. On their way to visit the three strange women the next day, Meg and Charles Wallace meet Calvin O’Keefe, a friendly neighbourhood boy who has also caught the attention of the Mrs W’s. The women know what has happened to Mr Murry and they take Meg, Charles Wallace and Calvin on a a rescue journey through space and time, to new worlds both beautiful and evil. But the Mrs W’s can only guide the children - it’s up to them to find the courage to go forth alone, save Mr Murry and return home. <a href="http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/16/lauren-lu-review-a-wrinkle-in-time-by-madeleine-lengle/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">&#8594;</span></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=violininavoid.wordpress.com&amp;blog=14245931&amp;post=1225&amp;subd=violininavoid&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine LEngle</media:title>
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		<media:content url="http://violininavoid.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/a-wrinkle-in-time-by-madeleine-lengle.jpg?w=202" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine LEngle</media:title>
		</media:content>

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			<media:title type="html">La4 Lu1</media:title>
		</media:content>

		<media:content url="http://violininavoid.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/feature-header1.jpg" medium="image">
			<media:title type="html">Lauren and Lu&#039;s Reviews</media:title>
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	</item>
		<item>
		<title>Review of This Devil&#8217;s Dice by Jackson Spence</title>
		<link>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/15/review-of-this-devils-dice-by-jackson-spence/</link>
		<comments>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/15/review-of-this-devils-dice-by-jackson-spence/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 15 Feb 2012 07:17:45 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Lauren</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Book reviews]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[crime and mystery]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[indie]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[psychology]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[purple prose]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[south african]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thriller]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/?p=1213</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[This was torture. Never have I slogged through so much purple prose or received so little in comparison to the effort and patience I put in.

Ethan is a 27-year old genius working on revolutionary research for his Master’s degree. He’s offered a lucrative proposition by the Baron, a ridiculously wealthy and very shady Russian who owns half the city (we’re not told which city, but it’s clearly first-world). Ethan takes the Baron up on his offer in order to escape the confines of university and the frugal lifestyle he’s been living. He also plans to dump his gorgeous girlfriend Olivia, an “imposter” who he’s only been dating because she looks like his ex-girlfriend, the woman he wants to track down and win back. <a href="http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/15/review-of-this-devils-dice-by-jackson-spence/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">&#8594;</span></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=violininavoid.wordpress.com&amp;blog=14245931&amp;post=1213&amp;subd=violininavoid&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>5</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">This Devils Dice by Jackson Spence</media:title>
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			<media:title type="html">This Devils Dice by Jackson Spence</media:title>
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		<item>
		<title>January Round-Up</title>
		<link>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/14/january-round-up/</link>
		<comments>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/14/january-round-up/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 14 Feb 2012 07:17:09 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Lauren</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[News and Muse]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[crime and mystery]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fantasy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[indie]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[january 2012]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[monthly round-up]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mythology]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[science fiction]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thriller]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/?p=1202</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[This post is quite ridiculously late, but for a good reason. An old friend from South Africa came to stay with us in Addis Ababa for a week and we did a lot of sight-seeing, so I haven’t had much time for reading or writing. However, my friend Niecole from the book blog Fantasmagoriese started doing a monthly round-up of the books she’d read, and she inspired me to do the same.

January proved to be an enthusiastic start to the year, and a wonderful reading month in general. I read nine books and finished a tenth in the first hour of February. I also managed to stick to a regular schedule for the blog, posting two articles a week. It’s a schedule I immediately failed to stick to this month, but I’ll try and do a few extra posts to make up for it :) NetGalley was particularly good to me, and I requested and received some lovely eARCs, some of which you can check out in my most recent Up For Review post. <a href="http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/14/january-round-up/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">&#8594;</span></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=violininavoid.wordpress.com&amp;blog=14245931&amp;post=1202&amp;subd=violininavoid&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>4</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">January Round Up</media:title>
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			<media:title type="html">January Round Up</media:title>
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		<item>
		<title>Review of Thieves at Heart by Tristan J. Tarwater</title>
		<link>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/07/review-of-thieves-at-heart-by-tristan-j-tarwater/</link>
		<comments>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/07/review-of-thieves-at-heart-by-tristan-j-tarwater/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 07 Feb 2012 07:19:39 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Lauren</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Book reviews]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[coming of age]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[elves]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fantasy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[indie]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[series]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thieves]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thieves guild]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[young adult]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/?p=1195</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Title: Thieves at Heart Series: The Valley of Ten Crescents #1 Author: Tristan J. Tarwater Published: 9 March 2011 Publisher: Independent Genre: YA, fantasy Source: review copy from author My Rating: 4/10 Tavera, affectionately known as Tavi, is a young half-elf with &#8230; <a href="http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/02/07/review-of-thieves-at-heart-by-tristan-j-tarwater/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">&#8594;</span></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=violininavoid.wordpress.com&amp;blog=14245931&amp;post=1195&amp;subd=violininavoid&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">Thieves at Heart by Tristan J Tarwater</media:title>
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			<media:title type="html">Thieves at Heart by Tristan J Tarwater</media:title>
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		<title>Review of Erebos by Ursula Poznanski</title>
		<link>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/01/31/review-of-erebos-by-ursula-poznanski/</link>
		<comments>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/01/31/review-of-erebos-by-ursula-poznanski/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 31 Jan 2012 12:28:52 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Lauren</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Book reviews]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fantasy role playing game]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[gaming]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mystery]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[online role-playing game]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[thriller]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[translated]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[young adult]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/?p=1190</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Nick Dunmore’s classmates are acting strangely. His basketball teammates keep missing practice and a lot of students are staying home sick or look like they’ve been up all night. They’re all being very secretive about their behaviour, including Nick’s friend Colin who shuns Nick but is seen sucking up to two boys who are so uncool Nick calls them “The Freaks”. It’s all got something to do with a DVD that’s being passed among the students. Those who have it refuse to talk about it, and Nick – a popular jock – can’t understand why he’s being left out. When he finally gets his hands on a copy he finds that it’s an amazingly realistic multi-player online fantasy role-playing game called Erebos.

The game has weird rules. Always play alone. “Never mention your real name in the game. Never mention the name of your character outside the game.” Never speak about the content of the game to other players or post information on the internet. Don’t copy the DVD unless instructed. The strangest rule of all, is that players only have one chance to play – if they die or break any of the rules, it’s over and they cannot play again. <a href="http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/01/31/review-of-erebos-by-ursula-poznanski/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">&#8594;</span></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=violininavoid.wordpress.com&amp;blog=14245931&amp;post=1190&amp;subd=violininavoid&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">Erebos by Ursula Poznanski</media:title>
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		<media:content url="http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/a65940d1900f7f4f82a78dde8e7379e9?s=96&#38;d=identicon&#38;r=G" medium="image">
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			<media:title type="html">Erebos by Ursula Poznanski</media:title>
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		<title>Review of Ragnarok by A.S. Byatt</title>
		<link>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/01/26/review-of-ragnarok-by-a-s-byatt/</link>
		<comments>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/01/26/review-of-ragnarok-by-a-s-byatt/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 26 Jan 2012 17:43:37 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Lauren</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Book reviews]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[apocalypse]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[canongate myths]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[loki]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[midgard serpent]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mythology]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[norse mythology]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[odin]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ragnarok]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[retelling]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[war]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/?p=1179</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Title: Ragnarok Author: A.S. Byatt Series: Canongate Myths Published: First published 6 September 2011 by Canongate. This edition published 1 February Publisher: Grove Press, an imprint of Grove/Atlantic Genre: mythology My Rating: 9/10 Ragnarok is not quite the story that &#8230; <a href="http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/01/26/review-of-ragnarok-by-a-s-byatt/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">&#8594;</span></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=violininavoid.wordpress.com&amp;blog=14245931&amp;post=1179&amp;subd=violininavoid&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">Ragnarok by AS Byatt Grove Press</media:title>
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			<media:title type="html">Ragnarok by AS Byatt Grove Press</media:title>
		</media:content>

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			<media:title type="html">Ragnarok by AS Byatt Canongate</media:title>
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		<title>Review of Enormity by W.G. Marshall</title>
		<link>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/01/24/review-of-enormity-by-wg-marshall/</link>
		<comments>http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/01/24/review-of-enormity-by-wg-marshall/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 24 Jan 2012 09:45:16 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Lauren</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Book reviews]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[giants]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[korea]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[quantum physics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[racism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[science fiction]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/?p=1159</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Many Lopes is a lonely, miserable American working a government job in Korea. He hasn’t seen his wife in two years, and she finally gives up on their long-distance relationship and leaves him. Manny chose to work in Korea partly to experience another culture, but as a dark-skinned American he tends to be treated as either a celebrity of a freak by the locals, who are fascinated (and sometimes disgusted) by black people. To add to the list of things that make Manny feel like crap, he’s a puny 5 feet 3 inches tall – a “creole shrimp” as he suggests. But that’s about to change...

Also in Korea is Fred Isaacson, a particularly loopy religious fanatic who believes it is his personal mandate to pave the way for Yahweh’s return. Apparently the Lord has chosen the Korean people as the instruments of Armageddon, so Isaacson tries to sell them some experimental quantum technology – a “Little Big Bang” contained in a metal egg. But the deal goes wrong and results in several accidental quantum explosions – one of which turns poor diminutive Manny into a 6000-foot tall colossus. Manny is so massive he doesn’t even realise what’s happened. At his size (he’s far, far bigger than the figure on the cover), humans are microscopic and the landscape looks alien. For the people on the ground however, every one of Manny’s steps causes catastrophic damage. The army does everything they can, first to stop him, but then to use him as a weapon of mass destruction. Manny isn’t really susceptible to that kind of manipulation, but the Americans gain leverage over him when a second giant is discovered – a North Korean assassin. <a href="http://violininavoid.wordpress.com/2012/01/24/review-of-enormity-by-wg-marshall/">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">&#8594;</span></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=violininavoid.wordpress.com&amp;blog=14245931&amp;post=1159&amp;subd=violininavoid&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>6</slash:comments>
	
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