A Scattering of Jades | 
| Author: Alexander C. Irvine
Category: Book
List Price: $25.95
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Avg. Customer Rating:  13 reviews
Sales Rank: 3027960
Format: Bargain Price
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 1st
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 448
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.2
Dimensions (in): 8.2 x 5.6 x 1.3
ASIN: B000FA4TU2
Publication Date: July 5, 2002
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Amazon.com
Alexander C. Irvine makes a strong debut with A Scattering of Jades, a novel that can be read with equal validity as fantasy, alternate history, or secret history. In 1835, an attempted human sacrifice goes awry, sparking a fire that consumes much of Manhattan and destroys journalist Archie Prescott's home and family. Stephen Bishop, a slave exploring a Kentucky cave system, discovers a peculiar Aztec mummy that seems, sometimes, to move. A complex conspiracy involving Aaron Burr, P.T. Barnum, Tammany Hall, Irish gangsters, and a traveling medicine man will bring together Archie, Stephen, an accursed girl who may be Archie's daughter, and ferocious Aztec deities in the underworld of Mammoth Cave, in an epic struggle that will determine the fate of the earth. --Cynthia Ward
Product Description
The great fire of 1835 burned most of New York City’s wooden downtown and, like many others, Archie Prescott thinks he’s lost all that’s dear to him. His home is a smoldering ruin and his wife is dead--and next to her body is a child’s corpse he assumes was his daughter. It seems as though it’s the end of everything...
But it is only the beginning. In the midst of ancient magic, murderous conspiracies, and a crafty Mesoamerican demon-god who is plotting the end of humanity, Archie finds himself with the power to save the world—or drown it in sacrificial blood.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 8 more reviews...
 Three gems from 2002 May 19, 2007
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Each year brings a new crop of first novels, many of which are, quite predictably, substandard in terms of quality. Every so often, however, a first novel appears that sets itself apart from the pack; as readers, we experience that special thrill of recognition that announces, "Here is something special." 2002 was unique in that it saw the publication of several novels that provoked such a reaction, among them Alexander Irvine's A Scattering of Jades, Dale Bailey's Fallen Angels, and Glenn Hirshberg's The Snowman's Children.
The best of the three is Irvine's gripping secret history of the United States, which opens with the great New York fire of 1835 and ends in Mammoth Cave circa 1843. In between, it relates the story of newspaperman Archie Prescott who seemingly stumbles on the story of the century, one that centers on the mad ambitions of con man Riley Steen. Believing that great power and influence will accrue to him as a result of his schemes, Steen implements a plan to resurrect the Aztec god Tlaloc. This plan's first step is to animate Tlaloc's avatar, a Mesoamerican mummy known as the chacmool. Once revived, however, the chacmool proves to have a mind of his own, embarking on a journey of death and destruction. Having witnessed the chacmool's bizarre rebirth, Prescott follows the deadly creature across America, eventually coming to realize that their destinies are intertwined.
Masterfully weaving period detail, historical fact, and compelling characters both fictional and real (Edgar Allen Poe, Aaron Burr and P. T. Barnum all make cameos), Irvine creates an absorbing tale whose historical elements are as intriguing as its more fantastic elements. Irvine's imaginative energy brings the period to life in all its gaudy, dirty splendor, detailing a 19th century America whose glorious promise is diminished by the petty schemes and ambitions of the mere mortals who inhabit it. His greatest accomplishment, however, is to have made this tale of the fantastic a very human one, focusing on the passions, ambitions, strengths and failings of his expansive and variegated cast.
Dale Bailey's Fallen is another winner. Set in the isolated mining town of Saul's Run, Pennsylvania, it tells the story of Henry Sleep, a young man who returns to his hometown to bury his father, whom the local police believe took his own life. Not willing to accept this conclusion, Henry begins poking around in his father's affairs. Suspense builds as Bailey artfully raises the stakes, plunging Henry into an investigation that uncovers unwelcome childhood memories and the fantastic secret of a town whose inhabitants almost uniformly live long, untroubled lives.
Although Bailey trods familiar ground in his debut (there are smatterings of works as diverse as IT, Ghost Story, and The Killer Inside Me), he does so with such confidence and bravado that similarities to other books are easily overlooked. At heart a mystery, the book's satisfying payoff is decidedly supernatural, calling to mind William Hjortesberg's Fallen Angel, although not for the reasons you might assume. The build up is slow, slow, slow, but it pays off grandly in the end. Bailey creates a palpable sense of menace and dread, made all the more unbearable due to the readers' increasing involvement with the book's winning cast.
Like Henry Sleep, Mattie Rhodes, the point of view character of Glen Hirshberg's The Snowman's Children, returns to suburban Detroit seeking answers to questions that have plagued him since childhood. Mattie is hoping to reconnect with old friend, Spencer Franklin, who, he hopes, will lead him to yet another friend, Theresa Daughrety. The trio share common backgrounds and, sadly, common traumas. In the late 1970's, they lived through a reign of terror created by the deplorable acts of "The Snowman," a serial killer who, over the course of several winters, abducted and killed several children. The killer's presence had a profound impact on their childhood, and influenced some unfortunate decisions on their part which they still struggle to deal with as adults.
For a first time novelist, Hirshberg displays an extremely deft touch, a sharp eye for detail, and a firm grasp of the delicacy and complexity of human relationships, especially those between youthful friends and between parent and child. It's depressing serial killer subplot aside, The Snowman's Children is at its core a novel about growing up, about either conquering or assimilating the events of childhood so that you can get on with your life. No matter how significant, letting your life be defined by a single event is the ultimate tragedy.
These are the kind of books that keep you reading well into the night; you're actually disappointed to discover you're reaching the end. Yet you can accept this disappointment, cherishing the promise that each author has shown and what that promise augers for the future. The novel is alive and well because writers like Irvine, Bailey and Hirshberg care enough to craft books like these, books with the power to renew our faith in written word.
A true reader's , great read! April 29, 2006
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The characters , story , and writing ; all are superbly
composed! Quite simply one of the best books I've read
in some time! A work very well done by this author,who if
he sticks to this formula, he can't lose!!!
 Scattered Narrative January 25, 2006
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Let me tell you where I'm coming from.
I bought Alexander Irvine's "A Scattering of Jades" because of the many reviewers suggesting a story reminiscent of Tim Powers, but I should have known better. That's like buying Klaatu because they sound a little like The Beatles. What you're hoping for is that pure, cherry high you felt the first time you loaded "Revolver" onto your turntable, but what you get is, well, Klaatu. Not that it's bad, it's just not what you wanted.
So I'm giving you permission to disregard this review; as a fan of Tim Powers (Fan? No. Admirer. Devotee. Stalker.) I was hoping for a fully-conceived universe, a true secret history of the world in which we live, an organized and internally consistent system of magic. What I got was "A Scattering of Jades".
This novel really has nothing to do with history, other than taking place in the nineteenth century. Some obvious historical figures pop in from time to time, like Edgar Poe, PT Barnum and Aaron Burr, but their presences are perfunctory, slickly professional rather than enlightening or surprising. The author makes repeated references to Burr's desire to rule the United States, but this idea is merely a jumping off point for the story rather than pivotal information.
The main character, Archie Prescott, is a typesetter for a New York paper who dreams of being a journalist, but the sudden death of his wife and daughter send him spiraling into depression. Sadly, most of this book follows Archie around as he stumbles into trouble again and again, never really rising to the challenges facing him.
The plot, which concerns an evil snakeoil salesman named Riley Steen, is confusing and, ultimately, not very interesting, even though it contains long-dead Aztec gods, killer jaguar mummies and a hilarious zombie named John Diamond who insists on calling Archie "Presto".
The long and short of it: Aaron Burr discovered an ancient text predicting the end of the world and it's rebirth and attempted to use the knowledge in this document in order to make himself King of this new world. The plan failed, but years later Riley Steen, who was one of Burr's co-conspirators but is now a minor traveling magician and purveyor of tonics and potions takes up the call and attempts to re-enact the plan. It is Steen who causes the death of Archie's wife, though he kidnaps Archie's daughter and puts a decoy body in her place. Prescott eventually tumbles to the plan and attempts to rescue his daughter, getting sucked into saving the world as an afterthought.
A likeable character, slave Stephen Bishop, also seems to be an afterthought. He is an expert on the Mammoth Cave, where the jaguar mummy lives, and gets peripherally drawn into the plot, but never takes on a role that justifies the amount of space devoted to him.
This is a book that intends to handle large, majestic and monumental events, but in the end it feels cramped and small, as though Irvine could not settle comfortably into the world he created.
Quirky And Compelling May 24, 2005
Mix equal parts of history and myth and you can get a compelling brew.
That's what Alexander C. Irvine did for his debut novel, "A Scattering of Jades," which is an intriguing, imaginative and absorbing piece of work.
Irvine, a descendant of P.T. Barnum, even manages to work his ancestor in as a bit player in the cast of quirky and memorable characters who are engaged in a conspiracy with world-changing consequences.
The story opens with the great fire of 1835 which has left a great swath of New York City in ruins. Archie Prescott, an aspiring journalist, assumes he has lost everything. His home is destroyed, his wife is dead and next to her is the corpse of a child he believes to be his daughter.
But, all is not as it seems.
Riley Steen, a minor participant in Aaron Burr's earlier attempt at empire-building, intends to do what Burr hesitated to attempt - use occult powers to create a new world under his dominion. Steen has kidnapped Prescott's young daughter, a fact not discovered by the latter until it's almost too late. With the help of an ancient book translated by Burr, Steen has resurrected a chacmool. This Aztec avatar demands the blood of Prescott's daughter in return for the promise of a new world. As Steen, Archie and other characters will learn, the gods are not to be trusted.
Prescott is the only one who can stop the plot and save his daughter. He faces a wild ride as he follows Steen and the chacmool across Pennsylvania and down the Ohio River to Kentucky and the Mammoth Cave where a slave guide becomes a pivotal character in the tale.
I'm not a big fan of horror novels but this one whet my appetite for more by Irvine.
Interesting and well-plotted. Good debut novel. December 31, 2004
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Alexander Irvine's, _A Scattering of Jades_ is an interesting work of historical occult fiction set in 1840's America.
The novel is well-plotted, and full of those interesting factoids that are required to create an interesting "parallel history". The reader learns interesting tidbits on topics ranging from "The Burr Conspiracy" (an actual historical event I had never heard of) to the origins of New York's Tammany Hall.
Have you ever heard of Harman Blennerhasset? St. Tammany? Me neither. Mix these elements with Aztec mysticism, throw in Mammoth Cave for good measure, and you've got yourself a story!
If the novel has a shortcoming, it is the character development, which I felt could have been stronger. The characters always felt distant to me, giving the whole affair a rather clinical, cold, feeling.
Overall, I recommend this novel, especially to those of us who are in to this genre.
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