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Fantasy. Fiction. HTML: One of Elizabeth Hand's most critically acclaimed novels, Black Light reveals a vision of ancient cults, gods, and fetishes�??and a world where everyone loves an apocalyptic party Lit Moylan lives what she thinks is an ordinary life. Sure, her town has a few eccentric theater types, but that's all. That is until her Warholian godfather, Axel Kern, moves into the big house on the hill. He throws infamously depraved parties, full of drinks, drugs, and sex. But they also have a much more sinister purpose. At one of these parties, Lit touches a statue, and learns she has much more of a role to play in this world than she ever thought possible. Ornate and decadent, Black Light visits an irresistible world of ancient gods and secret societies as enthralling as it is dangerous. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Elizabeth Hand including rare images and never-before-seen documents from the author's personal collection.… (more)
User reviews
When certain events and scenes from a book remain with me up to 6 months or more after I've read it, like the dark scenes from this one did, I know that, in my mind at least, that was a book I enjoyed reading and will remember for a time to come. I wish I could recall the proper adjectives to describe this story though, dark is the only one that comes to mind, and I know that can have a wide range. I think you could also call it a sleeper too, or "a mind fk", which is a term I've used more for movies, like psychological thrillers, but I think applies very nicely to this book as well.
I guess this is categorized as horror, although I've never really been able to decide what category
Just as in Waking the Moon, the idea here is that there is an ongoing struggle between the followers of order & those of chaos. In both books the main character is asked to choose between the two &, quite simply, refuses to do so.
Black Light throws the world of the '70s into clear relief as it explores the world of these sheltered & maybe not so privileged teenagers. Privilege is in a very sense a limiting (& sometimes deadly) box for all them. In this sense Hand's characters recognize that hewing to a single path is full of pitfalls & she allows them to pick their way through the forest in unique & different ways.
I've always related to her themes of difference, of lost & renewed love, of refusal to give in - that she is so interested in music & mythology is a huge bonus. I very much enjoyed this book & recommend it to anyone who spent their time as a teenager with Anais Nin, Rimbaud, & Iggy Pop in their heads. It's pretty fun for everybody else, too.