Kinki Lullaby by Isaac Adamson

The further adventures of Tokyo-noir detective Billy Chaka. Chaka, a reporter for "Youth in Asia" magazine, is in Osaka to accept an award for an article he wrote years ago. it's all part of a crazy rotary club scheme to bring tourist attention to the city. Leave it to Billy to get involved in a murder mystery involving puppet theater, adultery, real estate deals gone sour, the yakuza, and British curry-lovers.

There's a lot to learn here about the art of Bunraku puppetry, and the world Adamson creates keeps the pages turning. While the story isn't anything too brand new, the characters are all likable enough. The entire resolution hinges on whether you're willing to accept the premise of the story (some kind of pervasive consciousness) or whether you'll think there are too many coincidences piling atop one another. Personally, I bought the concept, but felt the execution at the end could have been played out a little better. Adamson delivers an Coda to the story that is reminiscent of the best pulp fiction of the 40s and 50s.

Adamson hasn't written a new Chaka story since 2004, and I'm anxious to see if he'll be continuing the tale or stretching into new territory. The Hollywood rumor mill has Toby Maguire inked to play Chaka in the adaptation of the first boo, Tokyo Suckerpunch. (I believe this was all pre-Spider-Man, so chances are probably slim now. That's showbiz for ya...)

The Pirates! in an Adventure with Communists by Gideon DeFoe

Oh, that rascally Pirate Captain. He's back with his whole pirate crew, this time caught in a web of intrigue involving a battle of 19th century philosophers. In an effort to fulfill his endorsement deal with a beard pomade company, the captain travels to London, where by virtue of his luxuriant beard he is mistaken for philosopher Karl Marx, who is currently causing quite the uproar in society. Upon finally meeting his doppelganger, the Pirate Captain is angered. Marx is far hairier. The Captain describes him as having a beard that "looked like he had sellotaped a bunch of cats to his face and then frightened them".

It turns out that Marx is being framed by a mysterious rogue philosopher bent on conquering the world. Or at least impressing girls. The Pirate Crew, having newly discovered the ability to compare people to font types and always eager for an adventure involving disguises, embarks on a mad chase across Europe, culminating in a battle onstage with a Wagner Opera, a Volcano, and some angry bears.

DeFoe is back in rare form with this book, a diverting and hilarious read. May the Pirate Captain sail forever! Arr.

The Waste Lands: The Dark Tower III by Stephen King

Roland of Gilead continues his quest across Mid-World. His mind divided, he must work with his ka-tet of Eddie Dean and Susanna Dean to restore his sanity. The cause: Jake, the boy Roland abandoned in the first book of the Dark Tower, is experiencing his own mental split. The only way to make both whole is to rescue Jake and pull him into Mid-World.

Once Jake is secure in Mid-World, the quest truly begins. The ka-tet travels to a city on the edge of the waste lands. On the way, they find Oy, a raccoon-like animal known as a billy-bumbler. Oy bonds with Jake, and ultimately becomes an integral part of the ka-tet. They reach the dessicated remains of a city, and struggle against the mutated remnants of a world long gone. In the end, they must confront Blaine the Mono, a sphinx-like supercomputer that is bent on destroying the city and committing suicide.

There were sections of this story that kept me reading way past my bedtime on work nights. King crafts amazingly good suspense in this tale, layering in enough character development to keep the overall story arc interesting. Fans of the show Lost would easily find themselves drawn into this labyrinthine story. King apologetically leaves this tale at a cliffhanger ending, making me happy I decided to start the series after he'd finished the final book. The original readers waited five years to find out the fate of the travellers.