The e-book edition of Steven R. Boyett’s Ariel is now available for download from Fictionwise. Over the next few weeks it will also show up in Kindle, Sony, and other e-book formats. Keep checking.

The story of Ariel and its sequel Elegy Beach is every bit as amazing, as magical and fantastic, as the novel itself. But first, the novel itself…

It happened five years ago: the lights went out all over the world, cars stopped in the streets, machines stopped working and magical creatures, out of myth and legend, appeared. Pete Garey survived the Change, living by his wits and trusting no one but himself. Then, one day he met Ariel, a unicorn who became his friend, supporter and ally and who helped him come to terms with the upheaval and find the new purpose of his life.

Steven R. Boyett’s twenty-five-year-old novel is a legitimate lost classic, out of print for many years and finally brought back with restored scenes plus a new afterword and notes. It fuses elements of post-apocalyptic science fiction (the disappearance of electricity and the worldwide collapse of technological civilization) with those of fantasy (mythical and magical creatures roaming the depopulated Earth).

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I promised you a story and here it is. Published in 1983 by Ace Books, whose then editor-in-chief was Susan Allison, Ariel immediately seized the imagination of countless readers. It became a cult favorite and remained so long after the book ultimately went out of print. One young person whose imagination it seized was named Anne Sowards.

Flash forward to 2008 when the author informed me that he had finally yielded to the countless fans imploring him to write a sequel to Ariel. The sequel, Elegy Beach, absolutely stunned me. It was set about 30 years after Ariel (making it a post-post-apocalyptic novel) and its hero was the son of Pete Garey, the hero of Ariel. Trembling with the excitement of discovery, I phoned Susan Allison, who was still at Ace, but now with the title of publisher of the division. Susan responded after the weekend with an offer for Elegy Beach that included an offer to reissue Ariel. The editor she gave the books to? Anne Sowards, who had been so inspired by Ariel as a young girl.

Still don’t believe in magic? Well then, how about this:

Another young person gripped by Ariel was named Cory Doctorow. He grew up to become the Cory Doctorow. Twenty-six years later the grownup Cory Doctorow was invited to write something about the book. His review is the stuff that most authors don’t dare think might happen to them. Here’s an excerpt:

I’ve read Ariel a good 20 times since 1983, and it’s one of the few books I brought with me across the ocean when I moved from Toronto to London — even though my copy was broken-spined and stained, I couldn’t bear to part with it. For one thing, I wanted to read it to my daughter in eight or nine years.

Today, an expanded reissue of Ariel hits stores, and this is some goddamned great news. Boyett (who’s been more focused on being a DJ and a podcaster of late) has added in some new material and (mirabile dictu) has written a sequel, Elegy Beach, which will be released in November.

Ace Books is publishing the print editions of both novels (Ariel in September ’09, Elegy Beach in November ’09) plus the e-book edition of Elegy Beach. E-Reads is privileged to release the e-book edition of Ariel, a magical book by a magical author, and one that seems to make magical things happen.

You want one more fun fact? In an Afterword to Ariel written in 2000, Boyett stated in no uncertain terms, “I Will Never Write a Sequel to Ariel.”

It ends, get it? Finis. Show’s over, nothing more to see here, folks, move along, move along. A sequel would be a gimmick to part you from your lunch money and contribute to the Steven R. Boyett Retirement Fund. To continue that story would be cheat, a smug literary trick that cheapens what has gone before. The notion feels dishonest and exploitative.

Luckily, Boyett realized you never say never. Subsequent to this statement Boyett found the key to a sequel that is stunning and unforgettable, the very opposite of “dishonest” and “exploitative”. When Elegy Beach is published later this year I urge you to take your lunch money and buy a copy. You’ll be so glad Boyett’s “never” was of shorter duration that what we usually mean when we refer to eternity.

RC

Here are a few of the 40 five-star Amazon reviews of Ariel:

I ran into “Ariel” shortly after its publishing in 1986 or thereabouts. I was 16, a gangly adolescent who read too much. When I went to college, the book was lost. I’m 32 now and just found my copy in a box of things my mom sent from her attic — I almost cried, I was so happy to see it again.

Why? Because “Ariel” is special. It’s about a young man in modern-day America trying to navigate his world after a traumatic Change that has rendered machines inoperative, guns impotent, and electricity defunct. Nothing more complicated than a Coleman lantern works in his world now — cars stopped in their tracks, elevators fell instantly, and in general society fell apart. In exchange for these staggering losses, magic now works — and magical beasts once found only in fantasy novels now wander the earth. One of these beasts, a young unicorn, joins up with the hero, and they go wandering. Eventually they find a quest to go on and meet lots of interesting people, including a bunch of Society for Creative Anachronism members who have found adjustment to the new world remarkably easy.

The writing is easy to read and fluid; characterizations are excellent. I found the plotting very realistic as well, considering what the Change involves. The ending is not a bubbly, happy ending, but it’s realistic and something I could live with. The deft humorous touches are enough of a presence to leaven the very serious tone of the book. (Let’s face it, if unicorns did exist today, they probably WOULD like peppermint candies.) The unicorn, in particular, is a fascinating blend of the vulgar and the divine.

In short, it’s easy for me to understand why this work has such a cult following. It’s what fantasy wonks have always dreamed of happening.
By Cas (the Idaho mountains)

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I usually like to study a book when I first pick it up off of the book store shelf. I read the back first, ponder the cover art, then open to Page 1 and skim a few pages. In 1984, I found “Ariel” in my favorite bookstore, began my ritual, and ended up sitting on the floor for 1 hour, completely and utterly entranced. I was captivated by the very first sentence: “I was bathing in a lake when I saw the unicorn.”

Mr. Boyett’s imagination hits stratospheric heights in his storytelling. His words paint a portrait so vivid that I feel like I’m right there beside Pete, traipsing all the way up I-95 and swimming with the dolphins on the way to New York. My teenage bedroom became a fantasy haven in its honor, and a huge stuffed unicorn (named Ariel, of course) dominated my bed.

The stuffed unicorn is long gone, but I still have that copy of “Ariel,” and it’s now as dilapidated as Pete’s backpack – taped, wrinkled, tattered, and laminated. And I wouldn’t trade it or get rid of it for anything. I get it out every now and then and re-immerse myself in it, just for old time’s sake.

If you are lucky enough to get a copy of this book, count it amongst your finest treasures – for a treasure it certainly is. I’ll never understand why it’s out of print. This is one story that should be back on the shelves for other readers to sit with on the bookstore floors of the world.
By Julie (Maryland USA)

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I bought this book originally back in 1983-1986, I’m not sure which printing. It quickly came to be my favorite and I was heartsick a few years ago when it was lost during a move. Recently, I was able to get another copy. The fact it had such an impact on me as a teenager only adds to the enjoyment now. I don’t think books read when you are younger should be given less acclaim than books read as an adult. I still like reading my old copy of A Wrinkle In Time, which I first read in grade school. Find a copy of this book, paperback or e-book and read it. Maybe you won’t care for it, but it just might carry you to a fantasy world of a boy, his unicorn, and their spectacular adventures. It well could become your favorite, too.
Susan B. Ferko (North East, PA USA)