Review:  Coming from R. M. Rhodes, this is actually a pretty straight forward story, essentially showcasing the ways in which two completely separate paths can converge (at least to my already twisted mind).

I was intrigued by the way in which Rhodes took the Lars Vegas character.  The reader is essentially walked through the cultural evolution of a demi-god who attempts to remain relevant as the times change.  I suspect the man has taken more than a few classes on structuralist views of mythology (the stuff always hurt my head, frankly - but I remember enough of it that this seems vaguely familiar). 

In essence, he manages to boil something down not into what it looks like or what it is, but how it functions in its surroundings.  It's one of those clever tricks where, once you see it, you can't help but grin and shake your head that someone rolled out of bed and came up with it.

For the uninitiated, I suspect this may be the most accessible piece of writing he's offered publicly.  Stand forewarned, you'll be staring at an awful lot of still shots of a nude (and anatomically correct) demi-god throughout this book.  The visuals render it a pretty solid 18+ title, but the writing is such that it never sinks and becomes base for it.

An odd, but very interesting read.

Overall: 4 stars.

Alex Haas