The Dark River by John Twelve Hawks Review
by Writers Write
The Dark River by John Twelve Hawks by John Twelve Hawks
Doubleday, July, 2007Hardcover, 400 pages
Ordering information:
Amazon.com
John Twelve Hawks made headlines with the first book in the
Fourth Realm trilogy, The Traveler, not only for his wonderfully paranoid
techno-thriller, but for the fact that no one knows who he is. He lives off the grid,
pays cash for everything and has never met his editor in person. The Traveler
introduced readers to a world like ours but in which a shadowy group
called The Brethren control all of society by constant surveillance
of the population. The Vast Machine is the name for the
computer system in which all credit card information,
financial transactions, political donations and medical information
is tracked for each citizen. The story follows the two brothers,
Michael and Gabriel Corrigan who are both Travelers, rare humans
who can travel to other dimensions and return with powerful
insights to change human society. Travelers are guarded by
Harlequins, emotionless, deadly and loyal samurai who will do anything to protect
their assigned Traveler. Gabriel is protected by the Harlequin Maya and together
they must stop Michael who has joined force with the Brethren. In this second
book in the trilogy, Gabriel and Maya fall in love, which greatly
complicates their situation: Harlequins are not allowed
to fall for their charges. As they work to stop the plans of the Brethren,
both Gabriel and Maya barely stay one step ahead of their pursuers.
And when Gabriel slips into a very unpleasant parallel dimension from which there does not appear to be any clear
method of escape, the mission is in grave danger of failing.
The most chilling aspect of The Fourth Realm series is how closely the Vast Machine emulates the spying programs of the post-9/11 world. Ubiquitous spy cameras, the Carnivore program, the consolidation of consumer databases - all of that is happening today. The series works best when the Harlequin Maya is front and center. Her story is actually more compelling - at least so far - than that of the two Corrigan brothers. However, as Gabriel becomes more experienced as a Traveler, no doubt his adventures in the other Realms will prove quite compelling.
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