NB although first novel by Octavia E Butler it was strongly recommended that I read Wild Seed first and yes that is really the best thing to do

I’m reading a lot these days and I think especially when reviewing you can spt signs that this is a first novel. They’re often ambitious and reaching for it all (which I love about them) but not always hitting all marks. That became really clear when reading the second/first novel in the Patternmaster series.

So this comes from 1978 I have no memory of this year as I am two years old (it was a time with little reading) but while I was learning to function as a human it was the year of the first IVF baby, Christopher Reeve as Superman, Kate Bush arrived with Wuthering Heights and Spain became a democracy again.

Publisher – Grand Central Publishing

For 4,000 years, an immortal has spread the seeds of a master race, using the downtrodden as his private breeding stock. But now a young ghetto telepath has found a way to awaken – and rule – her superhuman kind, igniting a psychic battle as she challenges her creator for her right to free her people.

If this has been the first novel in the sequence, I’d read I’d be very very puzzled and disturbed by what I read. It’s modern America and in a part of California the bodyswapping psychic vampire Karo has continued his breeding programme of using people with some form of telepathic ability. His attention has focused on Mary a young troubled teen (one he has happily made fall in love with him) and he expects great things as her powers come to fruition (or she will die horribly; or he will have to kill her). Instead Mary reaches a new level of power and can link/even control other psychics. A rival group emerges and Karo is NOT happy. But how exactly can an immortal be stopped?

Reading this cold it feels like Karo would be best seen now as a cult leader. Everyone does what he says, and he uses and abuses at will. Knowing the story of Wild Seed we can still see him as a slaveowner treating people as property and playthings. It’s very disturbing how he is grooming Mary to fall in love with him. Added to this is the eugenics angle people are being bred for better stock in Karo’s eyes. He is very much one of the evillest characters I’ve read in ages. The only saving grace is his reign may be ending.

Interestingly though Mary is not that sympathetic a character. She acts not out of a desire for the greater good initially but for herself. She’s angry and can be as addictive to power as Karo is. There are a lot of unpleasant characters in the story – one feeds on human energy to survive and heal; another controls a small town; a white racist can control other people…is this their choice or proof that Karo’s uncaring stewardship has led to their corruption. I think there may be an argument for the story saying that slavery leads to people being abandoned, worthless and prone to scrambling for some form of power no matter what. But I don’t feel this book quite gets that across – often it feels like it revels in the cool nasty things telepaths can do. But there are some great moments where we feel the psychic energy and bonds between the characters and the group that gets created by Mary is very focused on saving people but only those it too thinks are worthy and the rest of modern society does not. Most shocking is that Emma who in the first book felt an antagonist to Karo is now a confident and accomplice which I was not expecting but she hardly appears here which is a shame as her character is Wild Seed is much more interesting.

It’s a very short unique tale and I really like Butler’s streamlined plotting here. Its intricate and the pieces flow together smartly I am just not quite sure its fully explaining the points that Butler ants to explore. But its compelling even if uncomfortable with in particular the way psychics control and groom others and that really is unusual why I’m finding the read so fascinating. I’m now very intrigued exactly what shape the series will take next and how her work evolves further.

Next month - Clay’s Ark