My goodness! I can't believe it has taken so long for me to have the time to truly enjoy this beautiful book!
"The Android's Astrological Companion" arrived back in April, during the busiest time of the spring semester for me. (I teach chemistry at one of the local universities.) Then I had my summer travels eating into my time. (I even brought the book with me, just in case I found a reading pause or two to slip it into. Didn't happen, sadly.)
Situation remedied!
That isn't the book in the photo. It's the very lovely bookplate which is mine, all mine! Cody Vrosh added his artistic talents to create this piece for we kickstarter backers. Elle est belle, n'est-ce pas?
She's a simple black and white creation, though.
You should see the book.
Seriously.
The cover is richly textured, in addition to being richly colored, making it seem as if the synthetic girls could step right off of it and into this world. I wish they could! And the pages have a weight that feels good in the hands, making the book immediately seem like a classic art book.
Seriously!
Go ahead and get your own copy here. It's a mere $20 for 60 pages of beauty and myth - the best deal ever!
Seriously.
Did I say myth?
Why, yes, I did.
There are twelve myths for the twelve misses, written by six authors. I don't know if it was intentional, but two authors wrote one tale each, two authors contributed two stories each, and three authors each have three creations. Nice symmetry there!
(Maybe that's just the analytical chemist in me... but I liked that pattern!)
The question then arose: in what order to present the myths?
Good question!
Unlike any other astrology-based books I've ever seen, this one did not allow the zodiac to dictate the sequence. Why did this begin with Libra and end with Virgo? I have no idea! But I believe that illogical sequence allowed me the freedom to start wherever I wanted and jump around from there.
Thanks, Cody!
I opted to start with tales from the bottom half of the cover.
Specifically, I chose the girl I have been seeing for the last few months, the girl gracing the Kickstarter Wall in my house. How could I resist reading her tale first?
(smile)
Bravo! Such an excellent first choice! Kelly Thompson, in her only offering here, had crafted a bio for my girl, Cancer the Crab! As a dancer cum fighter, this girl certainly was the perfect selection for my Ocean Room after all!
And to think, I had chosen this artwork based on the sealife depicted... coincidence?
Ha! There are no coincidences! That's the Universe in action, y'all!
Which tale would be next? Capricorn to the right of Cancer or Taurus to her left?
Well... neither!
I bounced on up to the upper half of the cover. To the left, to the left!
As it so happens, "bounce" was the right term, too! The Aries tale took place on a crumbling mountain, with a goatbot-enhanced Delphi-9 android pitted against time and Dave the ram. My favorite phrase from Joseph Hewitt's only tale was "Gravity-cognizant rocks crashed down..." Hahaha haha!
Next star system? Gemini, personal favorite! (c)Astor and (pol)Lux are synth bodyguards for a devious politician, and all three are working the crowd at a gala. What happens there? You'll have to read Megan O'Keefe's story for yourself!
Her second tale in this book of myths concerns Pisces, here imagined as interstellar fish composed of nanobots. The avatar for Cypris is dying and she has hightailed it to the great Koi-mother for aide...if that's what you want to call it. Great story!
Brendan Cahill's two tales merge comic elements with an exploration theme. Leo presents an android named Rhessi interacting with a smelly book and a Zen Lion. I just loved it when the Zen Lion, perplexed, gave a shrug! Scorpio was a love story, in truth, all wrapped up as a search for water by an unnamed 'droid and her two companions, critter and Junior, whilst fleeing an angry warlord. (I swear I am not making up those names!) With both stories, I found myself laughing out loud!
Also, one more note about these two stories. The two androids featured in them are diagonally located from each other on the cover. See the pink haired lass in the lower half and the purple and gray dreads of the miss in the upper half? Those are the ones! Cahill is the only author to have this positioning of his heroines.
Just so you know.
Maybe it's a simple coincidence...
that only an analytical chemist would notice.
(smile)
Three myths are created by Sheatiel Sarao. Hers is the first story featured in the book, a tale of a thief of terra-forming things, such as the Scales of Librae. You see, the Consortium Of Revenant Planets had confiscated the gravity-controlling Scales as an Impious Object and placed it into a storage area maintained by these cute little curator bots...and CORPs had to be stopped!
(Hey, I admit it. I like acronyms, too!)
Sagittarius takes place in a post-post-apocalyptic world inhabited by humans, Melters, Clunkers, and scared synths. Believe me, that second "post" is there on purpose. Why? Well, if you read the book, you'll not only find the answer to that query but also a world with Fleshrides and Behemoth Class Detritivores. Rawwwrrrr!
The third tale, Taurus, is of love lost through a foolish dare, love jeopardized on a Night of the Graveyard Moon. Sad and hopeful, with regret and a longing for a second chance, this poignant tale tugs at the mind and the heart.
Last, but not least, are the myths penned by her husband, the creator of the kickstarter project which led to this artbook existing.
As I have noted elsewhere, the artist who created all of these lovely synth-misses is also talented with the crafting of tales. Here, he offers three cheeky causes for contemplation, concerning Capricorn, Aquarius, and Virgo, the remaining three zodiac constellations for these astrology-minded androids.
The first in this trio from Vrosh is a love story...of sorts. The sea-goat, when rescued from its watery tomb, agrees to grant one wish. Fortune? Fame? No, the love-struck android has a yen for something the Little Mermaid should have considered. Very nice!
The second tale was a bit darker, but still with comedic touches. There, the mild-mannered menial, Minali, finds a "sparkly puddle dragon" whilst cleaning the water supply for the humans. Together, they set up a Trojan Squid surprise for the dinner party. Want the recipe? Buy the book!
Hahaha! Haha!
The very last tale, both here and in the book, featured Spica, the laser light unicorn. Imagine a community of sentient beings whose sole purpose was to wonder. If composed only by androids, such a community truly could exist, as they would have no need for food or water or money. Right? Free to wonder about anything, everything eventually would get tasted on their thought palate... everything.
This is definitely the right note on which to end the anthology.
Always leave them wanting more... mission accomplished!
