SFF

Chasing the Phoenix

by Michael Swanwick
Tor. (Darger & Surplus, Bk. 2). Aug. 2015. 304p. ISBN 9780765380906. $26.99; ebk. ISBN 9781466876064. SF
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Two con artists roam a far-flung future China, where most technology has regressed to pre-Industrial Age levels. Darger is a master strategist (or so he has everyone believing) and Surplus is a genetically engineered dog with human speech and intellect. They meet an ambitious local warlord styling himself the Hidden King and try to help him conquer his neighbors. Keeping track of their alliances and lies is a full-time proposition for the pair, but things get deadly serious when the king decides to use a centuries-old nuclear weapon.
VERDICT Darger and Surplus, stars of Dancing with Bears and a handful of short stories, are sure to appeal to fans of classic Fritz Leiber and movies such as The Man Who Would Be King. The exotic locale adds interest, and readers will laugh as they watch the protagonists dig themselves into and out of endless sticky situations.
Reviewed by Megan M. McArdle , Jul 01, 2015
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