Rating: 
Summary: Blaylock Farce
Review: J.P. Blaylock's THE LAST COIN defies genre identity--best to call it Blaylock farce. It's not the sort of book I wanted to quit reading, hoping it might have a creative ending. Unfortunately there wasn't any actual ending beyond the disappearance of the villain and death of his murderous female partner. The search for the thirty pieces of silver Judas received for betraying Christ, the plot in its entirety, may still be in progress and someday some creature may collect them all and achieve immortality. The fable is struck in such a realistic setting with such a lineup of unbelievably stupid characters that it's life blood must surely have been drawn from an actual human vein. I'm surprised Hollywood hasn't snapped this one up, complete with the Hollywood ending.
Rating: 
Summary: Blaylock at his Best
Review: Like most of Blaylock's contemporary fantasies, this book left me with the odd but pleasurable sensation that the author was either a scant few inches from discovering the secrets of the Universe, or he was a complete idiot. Although I've met Mr. Blaylock on two or three occasions, I still can't make up my mind. In either case, this book is one of my very favorites. Only Blaylock would pit a delightfully quirky would-be Innkeeper like Andrew Vanbergen against the demonic Pennyman when the fate of the world hung in the balance. The plot, including its absurd references to the current street address of Judas Iscariot, is so wildly improbable that I have to suspect that it's true. This book is a must-read for anyone who's ever wondered if miracles and toaster ovens can co-exist in the same kitchen. Oh, and if you happen to run into Mr. Blaylock... ask him about the pig.
Rating:
Summary: Waiting For The End Of The World
Review: No one can accuse Blaylock of being formulamatic. The well rendered story line had me guessing where he was going with this apocalyptic fable. Andrew's bumbling passive-agressive personality rivals Inspector Clouseau for compentence acheived through ineptitude. Andrew battles arch-enemy Jules Pennyman with an hilarious alliance of turtles, pigs and house cats. There is no literary precedent for Blaylock's magical story telling gifts. This is the most fun you will have waiting for the end of the world.
Rating: 
Summary: The Last Blaylock Book I'll Read
Review: Once upon a time, James Blaylock wanted so desperately to be Tim Powers that he could taste it. He tried flavoring his novels with variations on the magical realism of Powers' books, but the best he was able to produce was dreck like "The Last Coin". "The Last Coin" is a novel jam-packed with unlikeable, flawed characters. The protagonist, Andrew Vanbergen, is a sniveling, lying coward who spends the entire book treating his wife, Rose, as though she were an idiot unworthy of being told the truth. The antagonist, Jules Pennyman, is a magically-preserved old coot who runs around murdering people for their coins (the 30 pieces of silver paid to Judas Iscariot) and living in an upstairs room of Andrew & Rose's inn when he isn't otherwise occupied. As a villain, he isn't very threatening, and when he does finally manage to gather the coins together, he doesn't get untold power, he turns into a goat-man. Maybe an eternal goat-man, but I think there are better ways to spend eternity and turning into an immortal goat really isn't enough of a draw to warrant the expense and effort put forth. Add to this an inexplicable plot about Andrew's attempts to open a cafe in his inn (and wheedling money out of his infirm old aunt to do so, like a petulant, pathetic child), and you have nothing more than a huge, boring mess. Normally, I read a book a day, but the effort of reading "The Last Coin" was like slogging through sewage - slow and unpleasant - and it took me nearly a week. The magic aspect was not particularly believable within the confines of the story and made no sense outside it. The writing is of the worst Creative Writing 101 "Tell Don't Show" blundering. I was also bored to death by Blaylock's tepid "Homonculus" and was unable even to finish the monstrously dull "The Digging Leviathan". I don't understand what people see in his work. This will probably be my last attempt.
Rating:
Summary: The Last Blaylock Book I'll Read
Review: Once upon a time, James Blaylock wanted so desperately to be Tim Powers that he could taste it. He tried flavoring his novels with variations on the magical realism of Powers' books, but the best he was able to produce was dreck like "The Last Coin". "The Last Coin" is a novel jam-packed with unlikeable, flawed characters. The protagonist, Andrew Vanbergen, is a sniveling, lying coward who spends the entire book treating his wife, Rose, as though she were an idiot unworthy of being told the truth. The antagonist, Jules Pennyman, is a magically-preserved old coot who runs around murdering people for their coins (the 30 pieces of silver paid to Judas Iscariot) and living in an upstairs room of Andrew & Rose's inn when he isn't otherwise occupied. As a villain, he isn't very threatening, and when he does finally manage to gather the coins together, he doesn't get untold power, he turns into a goat-man. Maybe an eternal goat-man, but I think there are better ways to spend eternity and turning into an immortal goat really isn't enough of a draw to warrant the expense and effort put forth. Add to this an inexplicable plot about Andrew's attempts to open a cafe in his inn (and wheedling money out of his infirm old aunt to do so, like a petulant, pathetic child), and you have nothing more than a huge, boring mess. Normally, I read a book a day, but the effort of reading "The Last Coin" was like slogging through sewage - slow and unpleasant - and it took me nearly a week. The magic aspect was not particularly believable within the confines of the story and made no sense outside it. The writing is of the worst Creative Writing 101 "Tell Don't Show" blundering. I was also bored to death by Blaylock's tepid "Homonculus" and was unable even to finish the monstrously dull "The Digging Leviathan". I don't understand what people see in his work. This will probably be my last attempt.
Rating:
Summary: Quirky, humorous--If it doesn't click right away, keep going
Review: Several years ago, I sat down and tried to read this book. At the time, it just didn't click for me (maybe it was my mood--who knows?). When I finally came back to it last week (after exposure to a couple of other Blaylock novels), I was immediately caught-up in the magic. Quirky, at times almost insane, characters band together to battle an evil man who is intent on hording the 30 pieces of silver paid to Judas to betray Christ. When the coins are all together in one place, the person who owns them will wield untold power. In the midst of trying to start a bed and breakfast inn, the hero, Andrew Vanbergen, realizes that he has come into ownership of the last coin of the title and engages in a battle of wits with the mysterious Pennyman, who owns the other 29. James P. Blaylock, along with his friend Tim Powers, is a master of this sort of thing, drawing together a wide array of seemingly-unconnected incidents and historical allusions into a conspiracy that makes a lot of sense. Coupled with quirky characters and humourous incidents, this is a marvelous, memorable novel.
Rating:
Summary: Foibles Foil the Apocalypse
Review: The evil Jules Pennyman is out to collect 30 ancient silver coins, each one a magical talisman, paid to Judas to betray his Master two millenia ago. The last coin lies somewhere in Southern California, and Andrew Bergen, a foolish, but likeable loser is its unwitting caretaker. In this unlikely setting, Blaylock unfolds a realist-fantasy of subtle humor and adventures that don't quite cross over the border into farce. Populated with such delightful obscurities of American culture as Wheetabix (used to be Ruskets, no sugar added, got mushy real fast) cereal and a Nash Metropolitan, the novel delights as much with trivial backdrops as with plot and character. The plot unfolds as a competition between the court jester (Bergen) and the evil magus (Pennyman). Thinking himself a great schemer, Bergen's innocence keeps getting him into misadventures that slowly advance and unfold the plot. Pennyman, meanwhile, acts directly, and with Knowledge. Although he sees through Bergen, cannot fathom his behavior, and therein lies the possibility of saving the world. Quirky. Adventurous. More fun than a barrel full of hobbits. A must read unless your fantasy just =HAS= to be populated with dragons, orcs, and the like. ...
Rating:
Summary: One of the best books I have ever read!!
Review: The Last Coin is hilarious and I couldn't put it down. I liked it so much I read it twice and I never read a book more than once. The characters are quirky and entertaining. James Blaylock has a great sense of humor and knows how to put it in writing. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Great fun
Review: This has to be some of the most fun I've had reading a fantasy novel in a long time. Like his peer Tim Powers, Blaylock is more concerned with taking bizarre events and contrasting them with his equally bizarre yet oddly lovable cast, with everything taking place against a backdrop of complete normality. He lacks some of the lyrical prowess of Powers (who is highly recommended for anyone who likes Blaylock) but easily makes up for it with memorable characters, Andrew had to be one of the more strikingly defined people to come out of fiction in the last ten years and he'll make you laugh at him and root for me all at the same time, perhaps because we can all identify with him just a little. And Pennyman is a totally ruthless villain, completely charming but with a black heart indeed. The book centers mostly around the bumbling dance between Pennyman and Andrew, who isn't quite sure until nearly the end just what he's going up against or what the stakes really are, but the supporting cast is equally brilliant and all loopy in a fun way. This is a great introduction to the nutty world of Blaylock and almost certain enjoyment for anyone tired of the fantasy worlds of elves and multi-volume world shattering quests.
Rating:
Summary: Great fun
Review: This has to be some of the most fun I've had reading a fantasy novel in a long time. Like his peer Tim Powers, Blaylock is more concerned with taking bizarre events and contrasting them with his equally bizarre yet oddly lovable cast, with everything taking place against a backdrop of complete normality. He lacks some of the lyrical prowess of Powers (who is highly recommended for anyone who likes Blaylock) but easily makes up for it with memorable characters, Andrew had to be one of the more strikingly defined people to come out of fiction in the last ten years and he'll make you laugh at him and root for me all at the same time, perhaps because we can all identify with him just a little. And Pennyman is a totally ruthless villain, completely charming but with a black heart indeed. The book centers mostly around the bumbling dance between Pennyman and Andrew, who isn't quite sure until nearly the end just what he's going up against or what the stakes really are, but the supporting cast is equally brilliant and all loopy in a fun way. This is a great introduction to the nutty world of Blaylock and almost certain enjoyment for anyone tired of the fantasy worlds of elves and multi-volume world shattering quests.
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