Song of Kali by Dan Simmons Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Song of Kali
Book Review: A Better Travelogue than a Whodunit?
Summary: 3 Stars
While the author's intense prose descriptions of Calcutta were horrifying enough to keep me away forever, and his story riveting enough to keep me glued for several days, he couldn't seem to figure out how to solve (and thus end) his own mystery. The last 75 pages were a huge let-down. No answers -- simply the "cult of evil" spreading throughout the world, with no understanding of the identity of the mysterious woman who kidnapped the protagonists' baby, the real motivation of the master poet, the cult, etc. etc. A worthwhile read but an ultimate disappointment.
Book Review: A Great First Novel From A Future Hugo Winner
Summary: 4 Stars
In Jones & Newman's "Horror: 100 Best Books," Edward Bryant, writing of his choice for inclusion in that overview volume, Dan Simmons' "Song of Kali," mentions that Simmons had spent precisely 2 1/2 days in Calcutta before writing his first book, in which that city plays so central and memorable a role. Despite Simmons' short stay, Bryant reveals that the author filled "voluminous notebooks" with impressions and sketches of the city, and any reader who enters the grim but remarkably detailed horror novel that is "Song of Kali" will be amazed that its author spent such a short time there. The city is superbly well depicted in this book, and indeed is its most fully fleshed-out "character": a vile, overcrowded, steaming cesspool of a city that breathes iniquity, mystery and corruption. It is a stunning backdrop for a grisly tale of terror that deservingly won 1985's World Fantasy Award, as well as a spot in Jones & Newman's volume.
In the novel, we are introduced to Robert Luczak, an American poet who travels to Calcutta, with his Indian wife and 6-month-old daughter, to do a magazine article on M. Das, an Indian poet who was believed long dead but who has now seemingly, uh, resurfaced and wants his new epic poem to see publication. Luczak and his family undergo a particularly horrendous time during their 10 days in the city, in a story that conflates Kali, the living goddess of death, her maniacal followers, reincarnation, kidnapping, leprosy, rats, morgue scenes, oodles of decomposing bodies, stabbings, drugs, smuggling, festering slums and other assorted nastiness. Simmons treats the reader to two especially horrific sequences: the first, a Kali initiation ceremony, as described by an Indian student; the second, Luczak's remarkable experiences in the Kali temple and his subsequent escape. Those readers with a squeamish temperament should be forewarned; as Bryant has written elsewhere, "Where Stephen King flinches, Simmons doesn't." First-time novelist Simmons shows remarkable control throughout, carefully keeping the suspense high, the shocks strategically placed, the detail convincing and the Luczak family likable and well drawn. Despite the downbeat proceedings, the author even manages to work in a hopeful ending of sorts; a plea for sanity and reason in a world seemingly more and more dominated by violence and death...the song of Kali. Today, Simmons is something of a big deal, a Hugo winner (for his 1990 "Hyperion") and one of the brightest lights in the fields of fantasy, horror and sci-fi. How remarkable it is to see such a sure hand, the master's touch, in his very first outing. This really is some kind of bravura work.
That said, I must add that Simmons' grasp is not 100% full in this, his first novel. A close reading will reveal, for example, some confusion as regards dates. When the story opens, it is June 1977, and Luczak mentions that his daughter is 7 months old; but several pages later, he says that she had been born on January 22, 1977. Wouldn't that make her 5 months old in mid-June? In another scene, in Calcutta in July, one of the characters mentions that Vladimir Nabokov had just passed away (Nabokov died on July 2 of that year). A few Calcutta days later, and another character mentions that New York City had just experienced an historic blackout. But that blackout didn't occur until July 13! Something funny there! There are a few other inconsistencies that a careful reading will reveal, such as Luczak telling us that his Exeter, New Hampshire home contains nine original oil paintings; some 300 pages later, that number is said to be eight. But these are mere quibbles, really, that only the pettiest of nitpickers (yeah, that's me!) would notice. The fact is, "Song of Kali" is a terrific horror novel that really does deliver the goods. It leaves many outstanding questions unanswered, which may indeed frustrate some, but for this reader, that only added to its air of evil and mystery. I wouldn't go within 500 miles of Calcutta now if you paid me...a sure sign of the power and effectiveness of Simmons' first book!
Book Review: A Great Read, a small caveat
Summary: 4 Stars
Magnificent wordsmithing by a top young writer. Simmons' lush descriptions and vivid characterizations are up to the challenge of his strong topic. Perhaps the only mild letdown is the principal character's sporadic density---he brings his wife to her native India to assist in translation, but never actually bringing her to any functions where translation might be required. I find it hard to believe that Simmons meant only to use the presence of the wife and child to advance his theme on evil in the world towards the tail end of the tome while ignoring their existence for most of the novel, but that's what he did. A great read, really. I read this on an airplane and had to ask myself a few questions about air rage---especially since I'd been bumped off a full flight and was getting home six hours late on my wife's birthday. There was a point where during that evening when I could relate to Simmons' naive protagonist (psssst...read the book to see what that meant).
Book Review: A Gruesome First Novel
Summary: 4 Stars
Championed by Harlan Ellison and winner of the 1986 World Fantasy Award, Song of Kali is the debut novel by prolific author, Dan Simmons. The book follows Robert Luzak through the thick heat and urban chaos of Calcutta, as he pursues rumored new work by a poet named M. Das, who has been assumed dead for several years. As Luzak grows closer to unearthing the alleged manuscript, he finds himself entangled with the Kapalikas, a dangerous secret society who worship the goddess Kali and might be involved in the poet's disappearance.
With its vivid depiction of the Calcutta's hot and crowded squalor, Song of Kali is drenched in the palpable anxiety created by a first world protagonist thrown into a third world local, escalating with a sweaty, violent propulsion into one of horror's most memorably gruesome scenes.
The fact that the supernatural elements of Song of Kali are amongst its least scary aspects doesn't speak poorly of their development or delivery, but rather to Simmons's eclipsing strengths at stifling atmosphere and asphyxiating real world terror.
This is horror done so well it feels unimaginable reading it on the beach, and unconscionable to recommend to just anyone.
Book Review: A PARENT'S WORST NIGHTMARE....
Summary: 5 Stars
Dan Simmons has crafted a chilling novel that will leave the hair on your body standing on end!! He has written a novel that transcends any genre; he has written a novel every parent should read. This is a novel of heartbreak and the ability to go on.Simmons is more well known for his fantasy and sci-fi fiction than horror, but he has a knack for horror. He can do so many wonderful things with his storytelling in horror. He already has and I hope he continues.
I absolutely loved this novel and read the last 20-30 pages 5 or 6 times! The ending is heartbreaking, but I won't divulge too much here. It is just amazing what Simmons can do!!