I certainly hope that I’m not the only person here who’s heard of this guy. But in case you haven’t: who is Philip Reeve? An excellent new British author of science fiction and fantasy who burst on the scene about five years ago. All of his books are nominally children’s book, but the writing is much better than most genre fiction supposedly written for adults. His first series is the Mortal Engines quartet:
Mortal Engines
Predator’s Gold
Infernal Devices
A Darkling Plain
I would say these are among the best adventure science fiction novels ever written. Despite being a first-time author, Reeve managed to manage every element of story-telling exactly right. The characters are there, the plot, the setting, and the sci-fi ideas. The premise of the story is that several millennia after a worldwide apocalypse, humanity lives on enormous mobile cities that roll across the lifeless landscape. Larger cities are constantly hunting and eating smaller ones, using the parts for fuel and construction. In addition, there are other science fiction standbys including robots with human brains, flying machines, and energy weapons. However, the book remains centered around the two main characters, both teenagers coming to terms with the Victorian-era society of mobile London.
His second series was the Larklight series:
Larklight
Starcross
Mothstorm
The very cute and clever premise here is that in the 18th century Isaac Newton’s discoveries paved the way for space exploration and by the 19th, Britain has colonized most of the solar system. Moreover, old ideas about the nature of the universe turned out to be true. In particular, space is filled with aether, so people can breath and sail across the solar system on wooden sailing ships. Needless to say, every planet and moon is inhabited. Once again, Reeve packs the book with endless creativity and a strong plot centered around strong characters. This series is much more light-hearted than the first one and even funnier; it also has great illustrations.
Reeve has written several other books which I haven’t read, but you can bet I soon will. But in any case I promised you movie news, so here it is. Word is that both his series have attracted the attention of top directors. Tomas Alfredson will be directing Larklight, while Mortal Engines is in the hands of none other than Peter Jackson. Both are obviously just in the starting stages and they may never actually make it to theaters, but nonetheless we can hope and dream.