Symphony

By Charles Grant
Tor Books

Charles Grant has made his mark as a writer, editor, and anthologist, but it seems unfair that the huge success he deserves has thus far eluded him. This Grand Master's suspense novels, all of which always carry more than a hint of traditional horror elements, never fail to grab my attention with their intensely atmospheric backgrounds, meticulously developed characters, and precise, poetic prose. I refer you to such outstanding novels as JACKALS, RAVEN, and SOMETHING STIRS, and collections such as IN THE FOG (Chronicles of Greystone Bay), and MIDNIGHT, to name only a few. (Also see my reviews of the BLACK OAK series.)

With the Millennium Quartet, of which this novel was the first installment, Grant explored the role of the four horsemen of the apocalypse, but with his unique vision. Following his past tendency to involve extremely average people in decidedly unaverage circumstances, Grant turns in a typically strong performance in dealing with a meeting that's about to occur. Here, Death takes a cross country trip and Death, in this incarnation, is a mysterious woman named Susan who drives an equally mysterious car. In a nice stroke, somewhat akin to Stephen King's THE STAND, she picks up several murderous or soon-to-become murderous passengers and proceeds to wreak havoc at highway truck stops and other locations, all while en route to drought-ridden Maple Landing, where the Reverend Casey Chisholm is desperately trying to hang on to his faith amidst a varied group of small-town friends and acquaintances, all of whom are beginning to react not only to the heat, but to the strange behavior of animals.

As the deadly travelers approach from the west, Casey is forced into a traumatic realization -- he may have supernatural or religious powers. He may have some form of power over nature, which seems to have gone crazy. And he may have the power to save his friends from what is coming to claim them. If only he would acknowledge that he has the responsibility to help avert the horror, that he has been chosen. Instead, he battles his demons and plays right into Susan's hands. By the time Death comes to Maple Landing, Millennium has started and sides are in the process of being picked. Casey has no choice but to examine his faith and make his own decision -- to turn his back, or stand and fight.

Grant's characteristically spare, razor-sharp prose flows with poetic ease, wrapping itself around imagery that seems to come into focus in your peripheral vision -- before socking you in the face with its coiled stinger. I'm not ashamed to say I'm a hardcore Charles Grant fan. His recent, currently discontinued and much-missed series -- Black Oak -- was yet another example of how atmosphere and innuendo can generate suspense (something Hitchcock knew) and scare the pants off a reader who has surrendered to the spell of the prose. (Here's a BLACK OAK aside: Why a publisher isn't falling over itself to allow him to finish the series as he intended, I can't imagine. Anyone out there paying attention?) SYMPHONY is as effective a novel as he has ever written, forming a superb prelude to his four-act Millennium play. That civilization did not end during the switchover doesn't invalidate the novels, because we all know They just might have got the dates wrong!