A fantastic book that’s thought provoking and draws you in farther with every chapter. The beginning will fool you into believing it’s almost a murder mystery; continuing on will show you it’s much deeper than that. Couldn’t put it down!
First page turner I've read in a long time. A thought prevoking, engaging escape into another world.
The end of the college semester is not a good time for me to start a novel, but once I started Passe-Partout, I had to finish. The journeys of Paul, Jamey, and Cype (my favorite), that surly Machine, the mysterious Isla, beleaguered Amos, and poor Albert slowly but inevitably sucked me in. Paul and Cype are two flawed but decent men, ordinary, relatable, the “good guys.” The reader can’t help but cheer their tentative but always noble efforts to make their worlds better.
Sanders is a talented writer: his dense, evocative language creates not just two worlds but ranges far beyond to tackle metaphysical questions of faith and existence. Writing and the creative, sometimes destructive, power it wields is a central theme of this novel. Passe-Partout examines the process, pain, and products of authorship, both good and evil. The novel’s structure is complex and ambitious—two parallel “books” developed simultaneously and interrupted occasionally by an “interlude” or “reverie.” The plot twists are numerous and the author’s spiritual and philosophical interludes are curious, but it works. I enjoyed the striking contrast between the two books’ modern and primitive settings and characters. They highlight those ideals that make us human and transcend time, what ultimately matters: identity, purpose, work, sacrifice, forgiveness, grace, and most of all, love.
The power of the written word is undeniable. What if the very act of writing could bring a world to life, crush it or merely taint it so that living in it becomes unbearable? Two lives from two different worlds feel the effects of a special ‘writing’—each stroke, each character, making indelible marks on their lives until the script merges and spirals out of control. In one world, Paul’s life becomes a series of unrelated yet regrettable tragedies. In the other, Cyprus stumbles upon his mentor’s strange business that began with a stylus and parchment, and became an omniscient production line. Yet, as with all creation, corruption stalks. Passe-Partout is a brave excursion into writing two different worlds as they collide. It delves into ideas worthy of exploration, including parallel universes, creation myths, the fine line between good and evil, and the delusion of writing as an innocent and innocuous activity. As Stephen M Sanders’ first foray into novel writing, having formerly published poetry, Passe-Partout tries valiantly to combine elements of fantasy, science fiction and horror along the lines of weird fiction. This blend in the novel sees too many themes and genre tropes tied into a tale that could have thrived by focusing on a single genre. In the end, the story falls off a precipice and plunges toward craggy rocks instead of resolving itself. But Passe-Partout draws some striking connections to the act of writing fiction and the inherent feeling of breathing life into a creation, only to have it froth, rot and mutate into something dark and seething—writing as perversely all-consuming.
Debut author Sanders offers a dark novel about a bizarre adventure through space and time.
It’s 5 o’clock in the morning, and Paul Fischer has quite a headache. Fortunately, his job at a store in an area called Monument Place tends to be easy; indeed, he rarely sees a customer, but Paul’s boss, Albert, is usually pleasant enough. On this particular day, however, Albert appears to have attempted suicide by ingesting rat poison, so Paul must call an ambulance. The narrative then shifts focus to a reclusive man in the countryside named Amos who lives at an undefined time in the past, many years before Paul was born. He makes his living by shaping metal items with a forge and bartering for essentials, and he likes to spend his spare time heating a pin and using it to write small words on parchment. As the book alternates between Paul’s and Amos’ eras, things get worse for everyone involved; for example, it’s not long before Paul witnesses his father’s suicide and a hooded figure assaults Amos. It becomes apparent that the two timelines will collide when a woman named Isla appears in Amos’ reality and in one of Paul’s dreams. Overall, Sanders’ narrative is an intricate and ambitious affair. However, some of the details can be taxing. Readers are told without a hint of irony, for instance, that Amos’ forge “believed that God made it to swallow fire and burn the souls of the living and it hated that the man tamed it.” The extremely earnest tone can be distracting, and some lines of dialogue feel rather silly, as when one character, while attempting to take over Amos’ strange parchment task, whispers aloud, “Do I let the pen move me?” Nevertheless, extremes are the name of the game in this story, which is authentically harrowing; at one point, for example, Paul watches his father’s violent end, which only hints at the trouble to come. Readers will also find themselves uncertain about where these events are leading. The final destination seems unlikely to be pleasant, but it remains mysterious throughout.
An unpredictable, if occasionally over-the-top, fantasy tale.
Passe-Partout is a dark fantasy written about two men with two storylines. Paul Fischer works at a store where his boss gets poisoned and dies. Everyone thinks that he has committed suicide.
Amos, on the other hand, is a character from the past before Paul was even born. He is a metal shaper. The story swaps between the two narratives to a point where their timelines meet when a woman names Isla appears in Amos’s life and in Paul’s dream.
The storyline interludes to a point where it really becomes apparent that attention is needed not to get confused over the overlaps of the storyline.
The literature is written with fantasy description and details. I particularly enjoyed the intensity and double narrative of the story. I believe the nature of the work was well thought through and everything came together in a well-formatted matter.
Paul’s character was the most thought-provoking and stimulating of them all. His personality was great for the storyline and I had no trouble bonding with the character.
I recommend this book to people who like fantasy and dark genres.
Stephen M. Sanders' Passe-Partout is an intriguing debut novel. It combines element of fantasy, urban fantasy and literary fiction in an effective way and captivates the reader with its gradually unfolding story. It's a tale about creation, destruction, life, death, love, fate and faith with a touch of horror and weirdness to it.
I was positively surprised by this novel, because Stephen M. Sanders has come up with a story that is dark, ambitious and unpredictable. The author takes risks with his story and it pays off for him, because the story is something different and original.
I think it's possible that Passe-Partout won't appeal to everybody, because it's more demanding (and more intricate) than other new fantasy novels, but it will appeal to those who enjoy original stories. This novel is not your typical fantasy fiction, but something altogether different, which I consider to be a good thing, because I love novels and stories that differ from the norm.
Describing the story with a few words is a bit difficult due to its complex nature, but basically Passe-Partout is a novel about two lives - two narratives - centuries apart, because it tells of Paul Fischer and Cyprus who live at different times. Paul lives in the modern day world and Cyprus lives at an undefined time in the past when the world was different.
The story begins with Paul Fischer. Paul is a man who lives with father. His life takes a turn for the worse when he finds out that his employer has tried to kill himself. He also witnesses how his father kills himself without any kind of reason. He is left wondering why his father killed himself, because it doesn't make sense to him. A woman called Jamey begins to help Paul and looks after him... The author also tells about Amos who lives in the past many years before Paul. Amos has a forge, the great Machine, which allows him to live by trading its creations for food and wood. A bit later, Cyprus is introduced to the reader. He is a man who arrives at the cabin of his mentor, Amos, and finds two graves there. Amos lies in one of the graves and an unknown woman lies in the other grave...
The unfolding story is dark and detailed and has a strong sense of mystery to it, because Paul and Cyprus discover something terrifying that binds their fates together. The author doesn't reveal everything at once, but gradually tells of what is going on and how everything is connected to each other. Although everything may seem a bit strange at first and things don't seem to make much sense, the author rewards the careful and patient reader with fascinating and unsettling revelations.
The interludes are fascinatingly philosophical, spiritual and thought-provoking. They disrupt the story for a while, but they work well and add an interesting flavour to the novel.
One of the most compelling things about the story is that the author writes about two different worlds. There are clear differences between the modern day world and the ancient world, because the ancient world feels primitive and a bit raw while the modern day world is much more familar to us. What happens in both worlds is handled in a gripping way, because the events emphasise the story's values and reflect its themes.
I was pleasantly surprised by the author's writing style. The two narratives intertwine in a mesmerising and mysterious way and the events are intriguingly shadowed by darkness and evil. There are a few moments in the story where a more precise and strict form of writing would've been beneficial to the storytelling and the overall flow of the story, but it's easy to overlook these minor things.
It's nice that the author writes effortlessly about human emotions and feelings, because it adds depth and thought-provoking moments to the story. I was fascinated by how Amos, Cyprus, Paul and Jamey felt about other people and how their lives were connected. The author explores their lives and feelings in an interesting way.
One of the most intriguing things about this novel is that the author writes about the "Writing", which is a mysterious form of magic that allows its user to unlock the door between realities. This magic is not safe, because its practice brings corruption to all who live. The author manages to keep this magic sufficiently mysterious, which adds to the atmosphere and lures the reader deeper into the story.
The author has infused the story with bleak and subtly terrifying elements. I found these horror elements fascinating and unsettling, because they are difficult to forget. For example, the scene in which Paul's father kills himself is bleak and harrowing and will stay with the reader.
This novel has a few LGBT elements, which are handled surprisingly well by the author. They're not the main focus of the story, but they are an important part of it. It was nice to see LGBT characters, because not many authors include them in their stories.
I give this novel four out of five stars, because it's captivatingly different, but has a few rough spots in which the story could've flown a bit better and without hindrance. Despite these rough spots, the story is immersive and I found myself enjoying it.
Stephen M. Sanders' Passe-Partout is a debut speculative fiction novel that will captivate and surprise the reader with its dual narrative and harrowing atmosphere. If you want to read something different and extraordinary, you should consider taking a look at this novel, because it's not your normal kind of fantasy fiction. It's not an easy or light read, but it is rewarding and captivating.
I found it a little difficult to get into this one, mainly because of the protagonist, Paul Fischer, whom I really didn't like that much.... in the beginning!!
But then the story picked up and I met Cyprus.... and I was hooked!!
A strange magic called "Writing" that unlocks the door between realities... two fates entwined through time... creatures from a multitude of Hells conjured to silence the men whose fates are bound together for an unknown purpose...
Did I catch your interest by now?! I
I sure hope so because this book is really good!!
Faith and writing as power of creation and destruction alike are the main ideas this talented writer plays with here. And he does it in such a compelling manner that you'll suddenly find yourself lost within the pages of his tale! But that's not all you'll get to think about here.
Stephen M. Sanders will tell you about all those little things that make us human, about all those things that "really matter". About human emotions, feelings and ideals, all entwined on the background of a gripping tale shadowed by pure evil.
If you're in search of something different and original, pick this one up! You may get lost into it's pages the same way I did!
Happy reading! :)
