Books Read June 2026

 

 I only read one book per month now from my Avon/Equinox SF Rediscovery series, alternating between Kenneth Bulmer and E. C. Tubb, though a few other related authors may still trickle in now and again.  In addition I read four books from my Delphi Classics collection and then one more not related.  I finished up with two essays by Stephen Jay Gould.  So, six books and two essays.

Scorpio Ablaze is #41 in the Dray Prescott series of fantasy novels by Kenneth Bulmer, who writes as Alan Burk Akers.  This is one of the poorer entries in the series, as Dray attempts to unify the rest of Paz against the evil fish heads. The fish heads are the Daleks of this world, mostly one-dimensional mass murderers.  This reader is growing quite sick of them.  Once again there are epic battles, including a pretty decent air ship versus airship one.  The highlight of the book is the reunification of Dray with Delia and the rest of his main buddies, an invincible group of allies if ever there was one.  But Bulmer once again relies on yet another evil wizard to thwart Dray's plans, as if the fish heads weren't enough.  How many times has Dray had to defeat an evil sorcerer or sorceress in this series, one who is backing the bad guys?  It grows thin after six or seven times.  And, unashamedly, there is no ending to this book.  Dray is once again captured by the Star Lords and whirled out of his most recent crisis--Delia has been captured by the fish heads and he was giving chase.  Really?  Yawn. ** stars. 

Next up came another ten stories by Edgar Allen Poe, one of them a novella.  Many of these stories from the 1830s aren't that famous, though a few are and a few more should be.  Several of them show Poe's predilection for humour at the time, though a few are very serious from beginning to end.  Lionizing was a quite funny account of a man born with a unique nose, which he puts to his advantage during his life.

  

Henry Clarke's illustration for Lionizing.  

 

There follows a SF adventure novella in what would inspire Jules Verne.  Using junk science of his day Poe writes The Unparalled Adventures of One Hans Pfall, a humourous account from 1835 of a man's journey to the moon via balloon.  Filled with some very funny parts, the more serious science bits often resembles Verne's later writing.  I enjoyed this story a lot!

The finest story of the ten came next.  King Pest is a macabre tale of two sailors, one extremely tall and thin and the other very short and stout.  They stumble into a meeting of a very unique society, barely escaping with their lives.  Part horror and part fantasy, we again see a direct connection between Poe and a future writer: this story could be called the origin of Fritz Leiber's Faffrd and Gray Mouser tales, among the best fantasy every written.

The Shadow is a very short story about the shadow of death visiting a group of carousing friends.  Yet again we can see from this tale Poe's influence on yet another future writer: Lord Dunsany.

Four Beasts In One is a very funny tale of a time and place long ago (Antioch), in which the king in full giraffe costume parades for his people.  Elsewhere, the tame lions and panthers stroll among the people without causing alarm or harming anyone.  Until they spot that prancing giraffe...

Mystification is classic Poe showing his wit and humour to great effect.  The writing is high level.  When a certain Baron Ritner is insulted by a fool of a guest, he gets back at him in a most unique and refined way.  Rich reading.

Silence is the tale told by a Demon to the narrator about a dreary region in Libya where he watched a man amidst the solitude.  The description of what occurs there stirs the narrator greatly, but he incurs the anger of the Demon by not laughing at the tale.  Strange but very atmospheric.

 

 

 From Poe's Silence, by Henry Clarke. 

 

Ligeia is from 1838 and is one of Poe's most famous tales.  It is a true horror story, and as I read it I could clearly hear the voice of Vincent Price.  This helped rather than hindered the reading. The final few pages are still among the best horror events ever written.

 

  

  Original Ligeia illustration by Harry Clarke, included in my Delphi Classics Kindle edition. 

 

Finally come two linked stories, both very funny.  How To Write A Blackwood Article is followed by the article itself, called A Predicament. An enterprising young woman, very well dressed and highly educated, talks with Mr. Blackwood about getting an article published in his magazine of strange events and occurrences.  He is very specific about how this should be handled, and the woman dutifully takes hasty notes, not always accurate.  This meeting is very funny in itself, as the things that Mr. Blackwood indicates would make for a successful article include the writer having to die some strange and original horrible death.  In the follow up story the woman does indeed die (in her article, at least) in a most strange way.  This is very original writing, however, it is also very racist as there is a black servant involved in the woman's escapade.

 

Swallowdale is from 1931 and is the second book in the Swallows and Amazons series by Arthur Ransome.  John, Susan, Titty (Titania) and Roger are back for another summer vacation at the lake.  They waste no time returning to their beloved island to camp out and rough it in the wild.  Roughing it in England is a bit different than in Canada.  These kids would likely be eaten by a bear on their first night camping in Ontario, but on an island in England's Lake District they are free to store their food near their tents, and even travel each day a short distance across the water for fresh eggs and milk.  Roughing it indeed.  Nancy and Peggy, the two pirate girl friends of the children, are back, too.  What is amazing about this story, which is over 400 pages long and would likely take a child the entire summer to read (unless it rained a lot) is that there are no robbers or criminals of any kind.  Just six kids having fun and small adventures during their summer holiday.  While parts of the story might seem quite dull to older readers, the book does teach children all about camping, cleaning up after yourself and leaving your campsite as if no one had ever been there, responsibility towards one's siblings, and even quite a bit about sailing a small boat.  My favourite parts of the book had to do with the foggy day adventures the children had, including Roger's foot injury.  The injury is turned into pure gold for Roger, and he has his own adventure.  The children discover a cave, climb a mountain, have a sailing boat race and eat a lot of food.  It sounds like the perfect summer holiday.  Remember those?  *** stars.

 

 

I read the Kindle edition, which included all of the author's original art.

In the bottom right corner Roger (the youngest) is not being spanked.  He is having his

pants sewn from wearing them out sliding down a rock. 

 

I haven't had the best of luck with the novels of Vita Sackville-West.  Her Grey Wethers, from 1923, is a romantic novel in the tradition of Wuthering Heights, though far less effective.  Clare and Nicholas Lovel are the two main characters.  She is above his class.  He is a gypsy and has the reputation of being a bit of a rogue.  They have always got along, though they realize that their class difference stands in the way of their being together and living happily ever after.  She is 19 and he is in his late twenties.  He is a shepherd, among other things, and they spend days and days together on the Downs.  We are led to believe that they have a platonic relationship, sharing a love of nature and the openness of the country around their village, which lies within a prehistoric stone circle (the grey wethers).  Nicholas has a brother, Olver, who is simple-minded and devoted to him.  Clare lives in the manor house with her father, a doddering scholar who seldom ventures outdoors.  A nearby gentleman, Calladine, is at least 50 and has eyes only for young Clare.

The novel is divided into two books, the first one being quite long and mostly expository.  Book Two contains the main events, including life after marriage for Clare to Calladine, a meek indoors type who prefers reading by the fire to wandering the Downs, and also the marriage of Nicholas to village girl Daisy.  She is madly in love with him and gets him to marry her under a false pretence.  Neither marriage works in any way, shape or form, and eventually the two true lovers abscond to live a rustic life on the Downs, as they were meant to do all along.

Likely written for an audience of young ladies, hopefully it steered a few of them away from unhappy marriages.  Though readable, the book is hardly great romantic literature.  ** 1/2 stars.

 

Next came a Shaw play, Arms and the Man from 1894, first published in 1898.  It is a dated play, attempting to teach audiences at the time that war was not a glorious event, and that bravery in battle was something entirely different than what was thought then.  And yet, though we learned the truth about war the hard way two decades later, we still treat soldiers as heroes and believe that they don't really feel fear the same way as we normal human beings.  I feel at least as admiring of inner city school teachers, police and firefighters.  That is not to say that I have no respect for all the war veterans who saw action and suffered greatly, mentally and physically, but their profession is not the only one to be thankful for.  Anyway, Shaw's play remains a gem, and the fact that he can get such a serious message across through humour makes him one of my favourite writers.  **** stars.

 

Paul Aster's The Locked Room from 1986 is the third novel of his New York Trilogy.  While I liked the first one of the series, I did not like the 2nd one at all.  The third one is readable but I did not find any of it enjoyable.  The writing and story is very claustrophobic, like an annoying dream from which one cannot awaken.  It is also humourless.  Someone who is much better at this kind of thing (losing a grip on oneself) is Barry Malzberg, who, like Shaw, can have us rolling with laughter while digging deep into human psyche and psychosis.  Malzberg never achieved the recognition he so deserves.  I was also reminded in this novel of the superb writing and stories of Patricia Highsmith, especially the Ripley novels.  Now there is some great storytelling, again about losing one's personality by taking over someone else's.  Auster's way of telling a story seems to dull my mind as I read, whereas the other two authors mentioned above make me want to keep reading.  At this point I doubt I will pick up any more of Paul Aster's novels.  There is so much better to be found.  ** 1/2 stars.

 

I finished the month with two more essays by Stephen J. Gould's book of essays on evolution.  Pick up any one of his ten books of essays and read any essay and one will instantly be more aware of the reasons that evolution is important for us to know about.  I read the final essay in his section on biographies, about Vladamir Kovelevsky (and about his more famous wife, Sophia, a mathematician).  Vladamir contributed good science towards solving the problem of the evolution of the horse, a thorny issue back in the day.  As it turns out the horses of Europe were simply a branch of horse development, with the main activity going on in the New World.  It makes fascinating reading.  

Next came the first chapter in a section Gould calls Human Prehistory.  The first essay was about prehistoric cave paintings in France and Spain, and how early interpreters of the art, while agreeing on the extremely high quality of the wall art, tried to organize a chronology based on more primitive drawing becoming more and more realistic as time went on.  Gould points out the flawed thinking in presenting such a theory, especially when even earlier cave art was discovered later and proved to be the best art of the bunch.  This was a really good chapter!  The book I am reading the essays from is Gould's 1998 essay collection called Leonardo's Mountain of Clams and The Diet of Worms.

Mapman Mike

 

  

 

Living in Amherstburg

We have lived just north of the central part of Amherstburg since about 1990.  It is a riverside community that has good parks and a National Historic Park/Fort (Malden) that was built and manned during the war of 1812.  The town also used to give ferry access to Boblo Island, a giant amusement park now an exclusive residential community instead.  Lately downtown has become a tourist magnet, offering pedestrian-only streets downtown during the summer with some type of festival at least every other week.  The downtown area is a fun place to spend a half day, with views of the river from well cared for parks, several decent restaurants and more cafes per square mile than Vienna.  There is a good bookstore, and my old fashioned barber shop is right downtown, staffed by two excellent female barbers.  The ice cream store draws people like moths to a flame.  There are three major grocery stores and a smaller one.  Our family doctor is there.  It is a safe town, currently policed by a branch of Windsor Police.  We could live in a worse community, to be sure.

 

However, the main reason we live in this area, being the most southwesterly community in Ontario, is the easy access to a big American city (Detroit) and all that it offers.  Amherstburg is not Detroit.  And though Detroit isn't London (UK) it seems to get closer to it every month.  Covid took a bite out of our Detroit visits, and then the 2024 elected President took an even bigger bite out of it.  Since Trump was elected we have not crossed the order.  We used to cross almost every single week.  Art museums, symphony concerts, restaurants, breweries, cafes, strolling downtown and admiring the fabulous architecture were all favourite pastimes.  All gone.  Even visits to our beloved New Mexico have come to a halt.  We are far from alone.  Enough Canadians disliked America even before Trump.  But now there is a strong movement not to visit.  This is so sad for me and Deb, since we don't have a lot of running around years left in us.  We can see Michigan every day from our house.  By the time Trump is out the door (could someone nearly as bad step into his shoes?) we will be getting on in years.

 

The good side to all this is that we are rediscovering overseas destinations.  Our recent visit to London, with a possible upcoming visit to either Vienna or Berlin, has come about largely because of the policies of the sitting president.  The only downside is how much I hate flying, even when the flight goes smoothly and is on time.  Why not visit Canada you might ask?  We explore our local area quite thoroughly, to be sure.  We even make it to Toronto once in a blue moon.  But Ottawa is untouched, and Montreal has been off the radar for decades now.  These days, more Canadians are touring Canada instead of you know where, so roads are busier, cities more crowded and attractions more expensive.  We would rather remain at home working on our various projects than put up with heavy tourist crowds.  Day tripping is more our style these days, with one coming up soon, if the heat goes away.  Here is a recent temperature forecast for our area next week.

 

Not pretty.  We will be staying home a lot next week.  Anything above 75 F is too hot for us. 

 

Extreme heatwaves with high humidity are familiar to us here.  Back in our teaching days our school only had air conditioning in the central area, but none in the classrooms.  When June and September were brutally hot everyone suffered and little to no education took place.  We usually hibernate in the depth of winter these days, but also in the height of summer.  We are happy and very busy folk here at the Homestead.  But we would really like to get back to Detroit.

 

We've been gaming a lot lately, mostly PC games but every Sunday we play board games.  Today was the Traders and Builders expansion of Carcassonne, one of many fun add-ons to the main game.  With 24 extra tiles it makes the game significantly larger and longer.  Next Sunday we will try for a MECCG session (Middle Earth Collectible Card Game).  In PC gaming news we are finishing up the original 3-chapter game called Agon: The Mysterious Codex.  I continue to run Train Sim World, a different route each day.  

 

And I have restarted the original Tomb Raider games, with new and remastered versions of the first six games now out and quite inexpensive.  I have completed the training program for TR 1 though my skills are still weak.  I am currently in Level 1, exploring my way through the Andes in search of Inca secrets and treasures.  I finished part 1 with no difficulty and so far am mostly surviving part 2.  These are huge games with lots of shooting and killing, but in a weird way it's also fun to just explore after the dangers have been eliminated.  My weakness is swimming and also sudden attacks.  I tend to panic in both situations.  I am going to share a few images comparing the old original version of TR 1 with the new remake.  While the photos here are too small to really show up the differences, while playing it is like night and day.

 

Screenshot from the original 1996 version.  Note the pixels; they are everywhere.

 

The 2024 remake.  Lara moves much more smoothly, the lighting is superior and the game looks gorgeous.

  

1996. 

 

2024.

  

1996.

 

2024. 

 

In film news there is one to report.  Trade Winds is from 1938, a comedy murder mystery directed by Tay Garnett.  Frederic March is a womanizing detective sent to track murderess Joan Bennett as she flees San Francisco for various Asian ports.  Ralph Bellamy plays a rare comedy angle as a bumbling cop sent to keep an eye on March.  Bennett looks cute as a button and there is enough witty dialogue and exotic (backdrop) locations to keep viewer amused for the short running time.  So many old films worth watching that we have never heard of, this being one.

 

Leaving Criterion June 30th. 

 

I may report during the heatwave, or I may just sit in one spot in front of a fan until it is over.  Until then, I will publish my monthly book reviews very soon.

 

Mapman Mike 

 

 

 


 

 

Summer Solstice Day

It began sunny and cool and ended rainy and cool.  So no visible sunset, though we marked it yesterday.  We were never able to see the summer solstice sunset from our house before, but we can now thanks to a new home being built across the street.  We knew it would rain, so we watched it set on the 20th.  And we can also see the winter solstice sunset and sunrise from home, too.  Trees block our summer sunrise.  Not that we'd be up for it at that time anyway.

We took a summer day trip to Leamington, a nearby community swimming in Mexicans and Mexican culture.  This is due to the many migrant workers who live and work in that area.  We smacked into a downtown Mexican festival today, too.  It was loud and very busy.  We began at Seacliff Park, a sprawling park that slopes down to Lake Erie, our ocean substitute around here.  We had a picnic lunch under a large maple tree.  We also went wandering down to the beach for a stroll.

 

It was sunny on our arrival at the park.

 

Clouds were moving in from the south, however, and it would rain by evening. 

 

Our summer has been cool so far with daytime highs only in the 70s.  I think we have switched climates with London, UK, which is beginning to swelter. Our AC hardly comes on and we've had windows open a lot.  No complaints here, but Europe is baking during the onslaught of tourist season.  Good luck with that.

 

After lunch we went downtown where the Mexican Festival was in full swing, right outside the pub/brewery where we wanted to spend an hour.  Despite a very loud Mexican band playing right outside we managed to find a somewhat quiet table indoors.  We have re-instituted Sunday board game day.  Last Sunday I had won a decisive victory in Tokaido Road.  Today Deb scored a victory with our game of Trails.  We ordered a pint each of local beer and got down to business.  Afterwards we strolled past the wailing band and made our way to a favourite cafe downtown.

 

Inside Cured Brewpub looking out onto the street festival.

 

They had a very good stout on tap, as well as a French something which was also tip top.

 

Two hikers battled it out with a game of Trails.  I lost.  I'll never hike again.

 

Leamington street festival featured a Mexican band. 

 

Jessica R. is a former student of ours from APS, and was and is one of the sweetest of sweethearts.  When her dad died she received an inheritance and decided to open a cafe/bakery/restaurant in downtown Leamington.  This was only our second visit.  She makes world class baklavas and is a first rate barista.  We had a wonderful visit with her and came home with some tasty pastries.

 

Our all-day celebration continued when we got home, with a bit more ale, some gummies and even some Pernod.  We watched Eno, a 2024 documentary about Brian Eno, one of our favourite musicians.  It began showing on Criterion this week and is directed by Gary Hustwit.  To fans the film isn't that revelatory, and it only briefly explores a small portion of his output.  While it was fun to watch, I would rather listen to 80 minutes of his music than watch it again.

 

Now showing on Criterion. 

 

We finished up by listening to Max Richter's brilliant and captivating recomposition of Vivaldi's Summer Concerto.  Somewhere in there we also pulled out the new Tarot cards for this cross-quarter season, which will last us until August 2nd when the next one begins.  We choose our cards for the year on Samhain, then take them out at the appropriate time.  We had interesting results today.  We hadn't seen the cards since last October and didn't know which ones were coming out today.  I have a perfect summer card to think about now, whilst Deb pulled a winter solstice one.  Quite fascinating in their opposite attraction.  This is the time of year when northern hemisphere winter begins to approach once again.  But in the meantime let's enjoy a bit of summer.

 

Our card choices are not meant to be predictions of what may happen.  Rather they are used as something to focus on and think about during the six weeks they are out and showing.  Lots of Freudian stuff here, too.  Great fun!  We use the Arthurian Tarot deck, which we really love, but I also relate our choices to the Rider deck, which we also own.  

 

Deb's card on the left and mine on the right.  Plenty to think about here. 

 

Earlier in the week we watched another film, as well as completed Season One of Professor T. The Belgian TV series ended with a bang (literally) as one of the main characters was shot and will be paralyzed from the waist down, while the Prof himself checked into a mental hospital.  Each and every episode (13) of the season ends with an emotional volcano, something to consider if you get upset easily during tough situations.  It has proved to be a fascinating series and we look forward to two more seasons.

 

The film was Remote Control, a SF film directed by Jeff Lieberman from 1988.  It spoofs 1950s b & w SF films, taking one of them (created by the director to look like such) as a means for aliens to get inside our heads and make us kill each other.  It is more action/adventure film than SF, but it is well done and quite funny in places.  I would definitely recommend it to fans of classic SF movies.

 

A fun SF film now showing on Criterion. 

 

That is all for now.  Happy Summer!

 

Mapman Mike 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

Movie Catch Up

There are three recent films we watched, all of them on Criterion.  For now we gave up our MUBI subscription since we are so far behind on Criterion films.  It truly is the very best channel in the world today for lovers of film. It's the kind of channel that even in one's wildest dreams could never have been conceived not so many years ago.  And yet here it is, with the world's finest films (and some lousy ones, too), for less than $150.00 Can. per year.  Wow!

 

Most recently we watched another Martin Scorcese rescue called Kamatty (Bogeyman).  It is from India in 1979 and was directed by G. Aravindan.  It is a low budget children's fantasy film from the very south of India.  The film is quite slow moving and at times quite hypnotic.  Chanting is used throughout the film, with landscape photography enhancing the timeless effect.  It seems that the film could be taking place almost anytime, except for a few later touches of more modern times.  When Kummatty arrives in a village the children are immediately attracted to him, following him on his local travels and singing and dancing along with him.  Kummatty carries bells which he jingles while he sings and dances, but he also carries several folk art animal masks.  Once the children know him and are used to him they wish to see him do some magic.  The children put on the masks and are briefly turned into various animals.  They frolic or panic according to their nature, but are soon turned back into themselves again.  However, one boy, who was turned into a cute little dog, gets chased from the scene by another dog and misses his chance to be a boy again.  The film is quite charming, with a happy ending for all, even a caged parrot that we have felt very sorry for during the film.  I don't think kids today would enjoy the film, as it is very slow moving.  It isn't a long film, though, and is definitely worth a sit through.

 

Restored by the World Cinema Project's Film Foundation, the film is 

showing on Criterion.  As usual, Scorcese gives a short intro to the film, 

and there is a 'making of' short to go along with the package.  

 

Before that came an epic film once again rediscovered and restored by Martin Scorcese and his World Cinema Project.  The Fall Of Otrar is an historical film from Kazakhstan released in 1991.  It tells the story of how Genghis Khan was able to conquer a highly fortified and strongly defended Moslem city on the steppes of Central Asia.  There is much brutality, some of it over the top, as the story is told in often breath-stopping detail.  Essentially, a scout from Otrar is sent out to investigate Genghis, and returns seven years later with some grim news.  Though he lays out before his leader exactly how the attacks will come, and who within the walls of the city is aiding the conqueror, he is not believed and is tortured for lying.  Alas, what was foretold comes to be and the great city is left abandoned and in ruins.  Based on historical documents this is like the Kazakhstan version of Russia's Alexander Nevsky.  Otrar is even more captivating with its stronger use realism and remarkable use of sepia for much of the film, with sudden leaps into full colour, usually at night in a scene by firelight.  A major film and well worth seeking out.  Introduced by Scorcese there is also an excellent 'making of' film.

 

Now showing on Criterion. 

 

Four Nights of a Dreamer is a Robert Bresson film from 1971.  Adapted from Dostoevsky's "White Nights", the film is about a young man who prevents a young girl's suicide on a bridge at night.  They meet again the next night and become friends.  On successive nights they each tell their life story, and we learn why she was about to jump.  They become better friends and then lovers.  The story is very cynical but well worth watching.  Hailed by Criterion as Bresson's great forgotten masterpiece, this restored version is engrossing and much better than many French films from the time.

 

Now showing on Criterion. 

 

In local news, we both had phone call check ups with our physician, Dr. Alex Shen.  Deb needs some more vitamin D, but other than that we seem to be doing well if recent blood work is any indication.  We are just awaiting Deb's latest iron test results to be certain that she is still on a steady course.  We are both exercising daily, eating better than ever and getting enough sleep.  Other than our recent jaunt to London our alcohol consumption is low.  So all seems well....

 

I enjoyed one clear night recently, the first and likely only one of the June session.  It was a late night as I can only begin observing at 10:45 pm.  But I made it to bed by 3:35 am.  Summer Solstice is just around the corner (Sunday morning for us).  No definite plans have been made, though we might do a day excursion out to some small towns nearby, and to Lake Erie.

 

In piano news it has now been about six months on the new pieces.  Progress was stalled by just over three weeks of travels recently, but I am trying to continue memorization of most of my pieces.  Now that daily practice has resumed I hope to have pieces memorized by sometime in August. 

 

Mapman Mike 

 

 

 

Zork Nemesis: A Replay Review

I first played Zork Nemesis, a PC game from 1996, in June and July of 2000.  I finished it, with hints, in just under 26 hours of total game play.  It instantly became one of my favourite games, scoring 86%.  This put it ahead of the original Myst for me, but behind Riven and Obsidian. Thus it became my third favourite game back in the day.  How does it stand up today?  Deb and I played it as a team, and we took just under 17 hours, using my notes from 2000 to help us out.  There are spoilers, so beware.

We played it on Steam, beginning in April and concluding in June of 2026.  The original CDs (three of them) sometimes got stuck during game play, though I also found some problems with the Steam version.  At the very beginning I was unable to use the cursor to guide us through the game.  It would spin or move far too quickly.  Luckily a previous gamer had posted a solution on Steam, and for the most part it worked like a charm.  Each time the game was started (including after any save) players have to hold down the Ctrl key and then strike the F11 key 18 times!  That seemed to slow down the cursor just enough to allow the game to progress normally.  If that is too many and the cursor gets stuck, use the F12 key to back off a bit.

 

The second problem with the Steam version is that it gave me such a large window that the movies were quite pixelated and the backgrounds were not as sharp as I remember.  Screenshots were also a pain, as the Win and PS keys need to be used, meaning that only a single screenshot at a time can be taken.  But I quibble.  Let's get to the game itself.

 

Use headphones.  The music and sounds are just fantastic, and hold up as well today as ever.  The game grabs the player from the very moment of arrival.  The courtyard of a great Cathedral sets the tone for the whole game--dark, gloomy, mysterious and enveloped in faded decadence.  There is very little sunlight, and many gradations of shadow.  This is an enhanced slideshow game, with 360 degree motion, so that looking all around is essential.  Sometimes up and down options are also available, but not always.  Gothic effects intensify once inside the vast interior.  The building turns out to be a kind of Myst Island, in that there is much to see, do and solve before access to four other worlds can be gained.  Most puzzles are based around alchemical procedures, some hard and some easy.

 

A lot of playtime will be spent in the main building, until one solves the mystery of using the orrery, a device which will enable the player to visit four other worlds.  But before that happens there are four main puzzles to solve within the main temple.  Some of these puzzles are quite hard, while others can be solved in time with patience and some careful thinking.  Note-taking is essential.  My favourite initial puzzle was in the room with the paintings, and though far from logical I found it to be quite an ingenious and highly original addition to game puzzles.

 

A map came with the original guide showing the location of all the travel areas.  

 

A fun door puzzle.

 

The cathedral library.

 

The library again.

A map of the entire cathedral/temple can be helpful and will be found in the library. 

 

The room of paintings puzzle, mentioned above.  Great fun!

 

There are four allies to awaken near the beginning.  Solving an early puzzle will awaken one each.  But are they allies? 

 

Sophia's (Venus is her planet) awakening requires solving a water puzzle.  This remains one of my favourite puzzles of all time.  Ice must be melted into water, using the paintings in the room and the chair provided.  Good luck!  Sartorious (Jupiter) requires his upstairs air puzzle to be solved.  Kaine (Mars) involves a terrifying ride in a mine car, which will lead to many deaths before a solution is found.  Save before riding!  Malveaux (Saturn) involves sliding screens in the library, and finding a sun to place in the orrery.  Once these preliminary puzzles are solved, a pretty big task, it's off to other worlds.

 

Solving the orrery puzzles allows travel to four other worlds. 

 

There is an in-game hint system in the game before accessing the other worlds.  Look for the painting of Venus and Cupid for some assistance, which will likely be required from time to time.  Once in the four new worlds, the object is to find a secret lab in each and manufacture a unique symbol, one for each imprisoned mage.  The story is quite good, at its heart a love story thwarted by the mages.  It is up to the player to set things right for the young couple, who have been grossly wronged.  It is highly probable that players will die during the game, so save often.

 

Once the orrery is mastered, the four worlds can be visited in any order.  If players get stuck they may leave the world to visit another, thus working on several levels in shifts, if desired.  However, each world is a closed unit and the puzzles within can all be solved without traveling elsewhere.  I much prefer this kind of game to ones where a player must travel far outside the main puzzle area.  Once a new world is solved, the game brings the player back to the cathedral for a cut scene, and to place the newly acquired metal symbol in its proper place on the the central altar.  Then it's back to the orrery for the next adventure.  Once all four worlds all solved, a final major puzzle must be solved, and the four nitwits outwitted.  Hint: do not drink their offering when it comes.

 

The first world we chose was Saturn, the realm of Malveaux's great monastery. This is a vast place with much exploring to do.  Although the four worlds always begin outside, all of the main events are indoors.  There are maze-like hallways that lead to a library, and from there through to a museum, which holds the key to solving this world.  There are upper and lower levels everywhere, but one of them, the bedroom, is particularly difficult to reach.  Players have to grab a bell rope that moves much too quickly.  It can be done, but patience is required.  Overall this is a fun segment with good puzzles and plenty of areas to explore.  The music is a highlight of the game overall, and we hear it a lot in this world.

 

Saturn is the world of fire.

 

An important book from the library on Saturn.

 

The library on Saturn.  The museum can be reached through here.

 

Part of the fire puzzle.

 

Malveaux's cozy bedroom, if you can reach it. 

 

Opposite side of the bedroom, with an important bookcase.

 

Two items from the museum are needed to defeat a fire monster.  But the museum has an alarm system.

 

The final puzzle on Saturn. 

 

Next we traveled to Mars, the world of Kaine and his on-going war.  Again there is much to explore in Irondune Castle.  We were able to get into all areas without aid, but we needed help towards the end.  To open a gold chest we searched everywhere for a key.  Nope.  You have to blow it open with a stick of TNT. Okay, not so great a puzzle.  If you get far enough you get to drive a tank, though getting it to work is very tricky.  An air freshener and fuzzy dice hand from the windshield, and a girlie calendar decorates one wall.  The tank leads to the final puzzle, again a 2-storey event involving a secret lab.  Overall the puzzles are good, though the radio code is pretty hard to figure out.  There is a very gruesome dungeon in which I don't recommend spending much time.  In fact, despite many light touches and funny moments, the game is pretty intense and dark, culminating in the asylum sequence (see below).

 

Upon first entering Irondune Castle.

 

Stained glass panels related to war and battle.

 

The central hall is decorated with war paintings and weapons.

 

The staircase leads to two bedrooms, father and son, and a game room and weapons museum.

 

The game room has a pool table with an important puzzle solution hidden in its game. 

 

Kaine's bedroom, with that damnable chest. 

 

Venus (Sophia's realm) is the music academy, with a very fun series of puzzles involving Zorkian musical instruments of the orchestra.  Records can be found in the music library room (with a grand piano), and when played on the gramophone will help players solve the auditorium puzzle.  Upstairs is the dormitory, where a poster is to be found, as is Sophia's exquisite bedroom.  A lot of design work went into this game.  While the dormitory and Sophia's bedroom exude nouveau charm, the piano room is distinctly Victorian.  Once in the auditorium, the fanfare must be conducted by the player.  Good luck!  Then the backstage area can be accessed, leading to the basement and the secret lab.  This is probably the least violent among the four worlds, and quite fun to visit.  Puzzles are hard, though.  

The music room and library contain minor but important puzzles.

 

The first music puzzle awaits. Remember to return the instruments afterwards, or you will carry them needlessly for the rest of the game.

  

Girls Dormitory at the music academy.

 

Sophia's bedroom balcony door.

 

Sophia's bedroom with art.

 

Sophia's bedroom, third view.

 

Near the entrance to the academy, at the famous Zork dam.  No explanation is given for the damage.

 

Lastly comes Jupiter, Sartorius' domain, with a final air puzzle to solve at the end of this grim scenario.  The asylum is designed like a 21-storey syringe, and it is not a nice place to visit.  Institutional gray colours dominate, and evidence of horrible experiments on inmates abounds.  The touches of humour seem out of place here.  We must use a guillotine to gain a severed head, which will then give us a puzzle clue and tell some jokes.  To avoid electrocution later we must use a cut off hand to unlock a door.  And players must sit in an electric shock chair and endure a disorienting jolt, which is needed to gain access to the final secret lab.

A small model of the museum building is found in the museum room.

Players will eventually have to get to the penthouse from the basement. 

 

Inside the asylum.

 

The bed of Sartorius, the only "cheerful" place in the asylum.

 

The secret lab is in the penthouse, with a doable but tricky puzzle.  I found it a bit Rivenesque.

 

Once the four worlds are complete the player will be whisked back to the original cathedral again, this time to face the four mages.  A ring will eventually be acquired and the final puzzle will commence soon afterwards.  It isn't a difficult puzzle, but will take some time.  The puzzle won't accept wrong answers, so it's just trial and error, putting the rings (there are two now) in various containers and pushing buttons to see what works.  The good ending sees the two lovers reunited and freed, the cathedral blows up, thus forever sealing the doom of the four worlds it held.  So there is no Myst-like ending, where we can roam around afterwards.  Once we click on the Venus and Cupid painting outside the gate the credits roll.

 

The setting for the final puzzle, which is followed by the end game movie. 

 

Zork Nemesis is a humdinger of a game, and should not be missed by adventure game enthusiasts.  The story, based on love and alchemy, is first rate.  The music is excellent, and the orrery as a means of inter-world transport is original and a brilliant touch.  Puzzles are mostly fair and doable, though impatient players like myself will want hints and a walkthrough at times.  This is a game badly in need of a complete update and freshening up.  The actual game will never be dated as the story is timeless and involving, but in its current state it hampers the immersive experience.  So much work went into this game.  At least it's available in it's current condition on Steam.

 

One quibble (spoiler alert).  Like in Myst, when trying to decide which brother is evil, this game sets up the player for defeat.  There is no hint that the character with the voice of Satan is actually the good guy.  This is done simply to misdirect the player into making wrong choices at the end.  Boo, hiss.  After solving so many hard puzzles and dying so many times, players deserve a break at the end, not more punishment for their "wrong" choices.

 

A great game, and I now raise it's mark to 88%, higher than when I first played it.  Happy gaming!!

 

Mapman Mike