Chapter eighteen continues the narrative form experimentation of the previous two chapters; but Sleeping Beauty ups the stakes by taking place entirely in the imagination of the protagonist (NB to access the chapter, hover over the drop down menu ‘Read the book’ and scroll down!).
We are not immediately aware of this however, as the chapter opens with best friends Marta and Priya apparently on yet another routine mission Out! The action shifts by degrees from realism, until it’s clear we’re not in the ‘actual world’ of Alpha 5; but we’re not made aware of the true state of affairs until right at the end of part one (although the title is a giveaway!). So essentially a narrative mislead…
William Blake makes another appearance in the text of part one, and (although I say so myself), I think that the passage that leads up to the Blakean reference is the best piece of writing I had managed up to that point. But it’s not just an exercise in poetics, or lyricism for its own sake; the appearance of the ‘serpent’ advances the story, but to misquote Bryan Ferry, ‘…what’s real and make believe?”
Sleeping Beauty is divided into three sections; each following the same pattern, apparently beginning in the real world, before we dive into the fantastic…
Somewhere I remember describing the series as ‘realistic SF with fantastic elements’, which describes this section of the novel as well as anything. I think the description was in the blurb accompanying one of my unsuccessful attempts to interest a literary agent in the series! I’m aware that trying to market SF in today’s literary scene is (to a large extent) swimming against the tide, and you could see the inclusion of fantastic elements as a nod to the zeitgeist, but bear in mind my literary influences!
In section two, Marta (or at least her unconscious self) begins to realise the truth, and again I’m very proud of of the end of this section, although I acknowledge Philip K. Dick as an influence…
In section three we’re moving into the territory of intertextuality… But how are we to regard the information that is imparted during the episode set in the estate? What is the status of the Marta of the estate, and who exactly is her host?
Again, I’m extremely proud of the end of the chapter where I believe I achieve the lyricism I strive for… The narrative in Sleeping Beauty is deliberately cyclical (obeying the logic of dreams), but there is also a crucial revelation right at the the end of the chapter…
Taken together, the three chapters Around my heart in eighty hours, Disobedient Child, and Sleeping Beauty represent a high point in the trilogy (not that you should stop reading!), where I start to achieve some of the literary goals I set for myself when I started the project…
I hope that you are enjoying reading it…