The Translated Man and Other Stories

I was a little leery of the book because self-published work tends to be short on the editing. Aside from random hyphen-ation, a problem common with all Kindle titles, it had no more grammatical or typographic errors than the usual book. Oh, and it was a ripping good read! And by that I mean besides all the good plot, good characterization, and good scenery, Mr. Braak also a solid wordsmith, delivering evocative and well-crafted sentences. So, if you were thinking about *not* buying this book, you should reconsider!

is a decaying city patrolled by press gangs and brutal police groups. Petty magicians and insane scientists engage in dangerous experiments. The disease afflicted MC charged with suppressing these abominations takes a drug that induces disturbingly regular hallucinations. I like the characterizations, especially that of the city.

This is a wonderful story / novel. Steam punk but more than that. It has a steam punk setting that is full and rich with texture but its the story line that make the novel!

Chris Braaks Translated Man is pretty good! His fictional world is a fresh and eclectic mixture. It has a dark 1800s feel, with a hint of a modern British gritty cop drama. Imagine if the discoveries in physics and chemistry for the last 200 odd years never happened. Now imagine the scientists of this world marched on anyway without the periodic table of elements, without quantum mechanics, etc. Take this world of dark stone streets, airships, and Aether, throw in a few non-human races, a few man-made abominations, and a good murder mystery, and youre just starting to get the picture. If you really want to get the picture, read book! There was a typo or two. And yes, Translated Man may not turn the highbrow heads at the Atlantic or the New Yorker. Very little science fiction or fantasy ever does. But Translated Man is a crisp, well-spun yarn, and a darned good read! Theres a lot of drivel in the world of sci-fi and fantasy, and the bottom line is: this isnt it.

As a big fan of Lovecraft, and a new Kindle owner, I was recommended this book and I enjoyed it very much. The mythology created is rich and interesting -- an entire alternate world of geopolitics, metaphysics, and some very strange diseases. It was no surprise to me to hear that the author is working on more stories set in this world -- there are so many concepts thrown about, almost offhand, that could function as entire fantasy cycles in their own right (I REALLY want to know more about the nature of Cross the Water and the City of Brass) that it can almost cause ones head to spin. The writing in itself is not particularly Lovecraftian; its descriptions of the world of Trowth, are extraordinary in their detail, whereas HPL would be more likely to just use lots of disturbing adjectives and let you sort it out yourself. But when horror strikes, and it does, the way Braak leaves just enough to the imagination to let you freak yourself out is deftly handled and worthy of the association. A fast, fascinating read, and a steal at only five bucks, if youre a fan of fantasy, thrillers, and/or horror, you dont have a good reason not to pick this up. My copy had some formatting problems, but apparently thats fixed and Ill be taking the author up on his offer to sort that out.

If that title makes any sense to you whatsoever, do yourself a favor and buy this book immediately--and then clear your schedule for however long it takes you to read it. The author has created a mischievous and dense world of his own, seemingly drawn from the aspects of the Cthulhu mythos, Edwardian-era boys adventure stories, and light-hearted fantasy a la Terry Pratchett. A first-rate debut, and I for one look forward to the next installments in the series. And for the record, no, I am not the author.

Super fun book. Great example of modern pulp. A little Lovecraft, steampunk, noir detective, and more all mixed up in a fun batch.

This book was interesting, dark, and extremely imaginative. Even with the fre-quent ran-dom hyphen-ations, I could hardly put it down! I wanted to transport myself there to look around--the visuals were just that incredible. Looking forward to reading the next book. Good work, Mr. Braak.

If theres such a thing as steampunk noir, these wonderfully gritty, mesmerizing and moving works perfectly embody the sub-genre. Think some junkie, near burned out Harry Potter as a dying yet noble master detective inhabiting some dark, dystopic alternate world rife with political intrigue, a permanent war economy and racism, and you have just a starting point. Make no mistake: Mr. Braak can write very, very well. This is stand-out dystopian, alternate universe noir fiction.

I am only writing this review cause im betting the author reads these. More please! Read this and stitch and am hankering for more