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    The Underworld Rhapsody
    The Underworld Rhapsody
    The Underworld Rhapsody
    Ebook111 pages2 hours

    The Underworld Rhapsody

    By Louise Blackwick

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    About this ebook

    Under the influence of the powerful new psychedelic drug "Rhapsody", Mario Fantoccio discovers the existence of an invisible reality overlaying our own.

    The rhapsody-altered state of consciousness brings Mario to close encounters with "the Masters of Strings", a coven of hyperdimensional beings who appear to control the destiny of every human in existence.

    Desperate to sever the strings tying him to the will of his Masters, Mario overdoses on Rhapsody and escapes into hell, hoping to regain control of his life and free will.

    Based on a modern interpretation of Jungian psychology, The Underworld Rhapsody is heavily themed on "subjective reality", "altered states of consciousness", and "individuation" as it follows one man's struggle to escape the chaos of his life and regain his free will.

    DISCLAIMER: The story, all names, characters, and incidents portrayed in this book are fictitious. No identification with actual persons (living or deceased), places, buildings, and products is intended or should be inferred. Although the story features various psychedelic substances, it should not be read as an endorsement of drug use.

    GENRE: surreal psychedelic voyage, psychological thriller;
    CATEGORY: Jungian psychology, visionary and metaphysical;
    SETTING: urban Leicester, alternate reality, beyond the fabric of reality;
    SUBJECTS: altered state of consciousness, psychedelic drug abuse, the price of pure creation, the torture of being;
    THEMES: collective unconscious, free will vs. determinism, order and chaos;

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherCreascriptum
    Release dateJan 26, 2019
    ISBN9789492064134
    The Underworld Rhapsody
    Author

    Louise Blackwick

    Louise Blackwick is a next-generation fiction writer, author of science fiction/fantasy novels, surreal short-stories and narrative poems. Blackwick is particularly known as the writer of the international bestseller "Vivian Amberville", which follows the epic adventures of a girl whose imagination can reshape reality. She is also recognized as the creator of a new niche subgenre of science-fiction: NEON SCIENCE-FICTION. "Vivian Amberville - The Weaver of Odds", the first novel in a series of five books was released November 2016 on eBook and March, 2017 on paperback. It sold an estimate of 3.3 million copies worldwide and was popularly acclaimed by a score of metacritics, most of whom have compared her narrative style with C. Paolini, J.K. Rowling and E.R. Eddison. For short fiction, Blackwick main influences were the father of surrealism André Breton, the twisted storyteller Edgar A.Poe and the existentialist Kafka. At times, she unweaves the general conventions of space and of time, bending them at odd angles into a mesmerizing and surreal dream construct. Blackwick primarily considers herself a "fantasy novelist", though the erudite complexity of her work has been appraised to exceed the genre of fantasy. For epic large-scale fiction, Blackwick greatly looks up to the legendary Tolkien and C. S. Lewis. Upcoming books from the author include: the humorous science fiction novel "God is a Robot", the sci-fi thriller "29 Seconds" and the much-awaited sequel "Vivian Amberville - The Book of Chaos".

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    Reviews for The Underworld Rhapsody

    5/5

    3 ratings3 reviews

    What our readers think

    Readers find this title to be a masterpiece that delves deep into the subconscious and fills them with wonder. The story is described as surreal, psychedelic, and deeply Jungian, exploring concepts like individuation, synchronicity, and the collective unconscious. The author, Louise Blackwick, is praised for her versatility in creating epic fantasy worlds and her insightful contemplation of the human condition. While overshadowed by the author's more popular Vivian Amberville series, The Underworld Rhapsody is considered one of Blackwick's most underrated gems, dealing with complex issues in a humorous and accessible way.

    What did you think?

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    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 5/5
      This has to be one the most "blackwickian" story in the author's arsenal. Blackwick is a long-term pupil of the psychoanalyst Carl Jung, her writing digging deep roots into jungian concepts like "individuation", "synchronicity", "archetypes", "shadow-work" and "the collective unconscious", and it really shows in this novella.

      You are introduced to a world perceived through altered consciousness, where reality is not what it seems, and people's free will cannot be taken for granted. The Underworld Rhapsody is one of Blackwick's best but most underrated gems, dealing with complex issues such as Shadow-possession and Free Will vs. Determinism in a humourous and accessible way.

      Overshadowed by its more popular title, the Vivian Amberville fantasy series which has enjoyed critical acclaim and commercial success across the world, The Underworld Rhapsody remains one of Louise Blackwick's most layered pieces. For those of you fascinated with archetypal storytelling, I recommend you pick this novella up. It is really a study on the human condition, as well as a fantastical and psychedelic fun read!
    • 5/5
      Since author Louise Blackwick is now on my watch list as she keeps putting out one masterpiece after another, I decided to pre-order this novella. It was released today and I must admit I devoured it in under 3 hours, and boy, does this story deliver!

      I'm not sure how to tackle this story. I feel like any review might not do it enough justice. This is NOT for the casual reader, but for the one trained to look beyond meaning. Like most Blackwick stories, it doesn't deliver only on the level of plot, theme and character, but drills deeply into your subconscious and fills you with wonder. Just as advertized, it is the most "jungian" story I've read in a long, long time. Ok, here goes:

      "The Underworld Rhapsody" is another blackwickian masterpiece, as deep and structurally meaningful as it is surreal and psychedelic. It uses humour and a light-hearted approach to tackle deep themes such as the purpose (or lack of purpose) in life, the human's strive for individuation, free will and determinism and the importance of "acting your real self".

      Mario Fantoccio (a derivation of "marionette" and it. Fantoccio which means "puppet" ) is the main character of the novella, and a wimpy, spineless, stuttering, 38-something man-child who is still under the thumb of his tyrannical father "Maestro" and his over-protective mother, Divoranda. He struggles to navigate his somewhat glum and meaningless existence by playing the good boy on one hand and sedating himself with heavy drugs on the other.

      Everything changes when his dealer introduces him to a new psychedelic drug called Rhapsody, very similar in effect to ayahuasca, psilocybin or DMT, which tranforms and metamorphosized Mario's life not just within but without too. Rhapsody supplies Mario with a chemical gateway into the "realm of the Gods", whose entire universe is "beyond human perception unless one has had their consciousnes altered".

      The realm of the Gods is where Mario enters a strange game of controlled-or-be-controlled, during which he struggles with the idea that everyone he knows, himself included, is under the control of "The Masters of Strings", the hyperdimensional beings who live beyond the fabric of reality. For fans of the Vivian Amberville book series, there is a subtle and friendly nod in this direction.

      Amanita, a mysterious woman he had been obssessing over since times immemorial, is an important chess-piece in the Metagame of Choice and Consequence. I personally found her character one of the most stupefyingly conflicted ones in a long, long while.

      Mario eventually finds a way of releasing himself from the strings of his masters, whether that be his toxic parents, his dead-end job or even the burden of societal expectations, and embarks on a psychical and metaphysical journey into the Underworld, which is hilarious, tragic and uplifting, all under one hat. In trying to escape the hell of his life, Mario slowly transforms from marionette to autonomous individual, in ways that would keep readers on their toes until the very end.

      In short: get it, read it and become transformed by it. Not only will it make you laugh, think and cheer but it will make you question "reality" as we all come to know it.
    • 5/5
      Psychedelic, trippy and deeply Jungian

      Louise Blackwick is the author who keeps on giving. She has climed from the muds of complete anonimity and raised herself to the international providence, and let me just say, since the great authors of old, never has an author deserved it more. I know everyone if going to think I refer to the Vivian Amberville series, the fantasy phenomenon that has taken the world by storm, but this isn't about that. This is about stories that transcend countries and nationalities. This is about stories born from the collective soul of human creation. At the mere 32 years of age, Blackwick is a genius of the written word. She is evrsatile enough to create epic fantasy worlds the likes of Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings, and she is insightful enough to contemplate the human conditions in ways never before explored in fiction. Her stories are deeply archetypal, without feeling clicheic or bothersome. They seem to birth from the Jungian Shadow, and The Underworld Rhapsody is perhaps the most ardent example of what the human mind can achieve when it is not afraid to face controversy head-on. The Underworld Rhapsody is deeply layered and highly polarized, on account of bringing together several cotnroversial subjects: raw consciousness and drug-induced consciousness, the nature of reality, psychological hell, the process of becoming a personalized individual, thrown together in a deliciously surreal and often funny partiche of human endeavours. The main character, Mario Fantoccio (Italian: mario for marionette and Fantoccio means puppet) is a man suffering from iinfantilism due to his pathological upbringing via devouring mother Divo (Divoranda Fantoccio) and his tyrannical and highly selfish father, only refered to in the story as "Maestro". After experimenting with the experimental psycoactive drug, Rhapsody, Mario meets interdimensional beings called Masters of Strings who tell him he is merely a thethered puppet in the game of life, and that his own existence is predetermined and devoid of free will. When he wakes up, Mario is able to see the strings tying everyone to their individual pre-engineered fate. This story is something else entirely. Bizarre, enlightening, archetypal, trippy/psychadelic, deeply layered, dark and fascinating and very much "Blackwickian", which should really, really become a word at this point. Absolute masterpiece. Words are not enough to describe this author's deeply resonant work, so I created a shelf entirely for her produce. PS: Mario Fantoccio's symbolical climbing out of hell on a ladder made out of discarded puppets/mannequins and slain demons is one of the most bizarre and incredible scene I've read.

    Book preview

    The Underworld Rhapsody - Louise Blackwick

    The Underworld Rhapsody, published by Creascriptum, January 23, 2019. The Netherlands.

    Text copyright © 2019 by Louise Blackwick. All rights reserved.

    Cover designed by Louise Blackwick, copyright © 2019 by Creascriptum.

    The story, all names, characters, and incidents portrayed in this book are fictitious. No identification with actual persons (living or deceased), places, buildings, and products is intended or should be inferred. Although the story features various psychedelic substances, it should not be read as an endorsement of drug use.

    ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. This book contains material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronically or physically, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author or publisher.

    ISBN: 978-94-92064-13-4

    Synopsis

    From the bestselling author of the Vivian Amberville series, comes the surreal novella that will have you question the very foundation of your reality.

    Under the influence of the powerful new psychedelic drug Rhapsody, Mario Fantoccio discovers the existence of an invisible reality overlaying our own.

    The Rhapsody-altered state of consciousness brings Mario to close encounters with the Masters of Strings, a coven of hyperdimensional beings who appear to control the destiny of every human in existence.

    Desperate to sever the strings tying him to the will of his Masters, Mario overdoses on Rhapsody and escapes into hell, hoping to regain control of his life and free will.

    Based on a modern interpretation of Jungian psychology, The Underworld Rhapsody is heavily themed on subjective reality, altered states of consciousness, and individuation as it follows one man's struggle to escape the chaos of his life and regain his free will.

    THE FIRST RHAPSODY

    Anagnorisis

    "Work on a bloody Saturday. Ha, the nerve! the man thought to himself, watching the soft-closing door click into place. Put me in Mr Peg’s shoes and I’d cut my employees some goddamn slack. Will give him a sore piece of mind next time around and make no mistake!"

    It hadn’t been a good work week.

    His Italian blood was boiling, yet for all his anger he neither moved nor breathed until the sound of heavy footsteps grew fainter outside his office. His ear still pressed against the cold wooden door, he waited for the distant thud of banging hinges. Somewhere down a long corridor, a door slammed shut.

    Mario Fantoccio needed the work – that much was certain – but that didn’t mean he had to like it. With steam still pouring out of his ears, he reached for his cell-phone and hard-pressed the first button on his dial-up screen. After a drawn-out tone, the voice of an elderly woman emerged from the receiver.

    ‘Hey ma. No, still at-at-at work. What d’you mean "so late in the day"? How many times do-do-do I have to tell you: Fridays we work extra! Yes, yes. Which one? No, I-I-I haven’t done that yet.’

    On the other side of the telephone line, the woman continued to jabber away in fast Italian.

    ‘Yes ma, I am wearing it,’ Mario lied, taking a guilty glimpse at the neatly folded-up red sweater atop his briefcase. ‘Mhm, it’s indeed a bit scratchy. Rather tight in-in-in the armpits. No, the one you bought from Willies was-was-was alright, but—yes ma.’

    Something his mother said drove Mario’s head to bob from side to side. He sat behind the computer screen and absent-mindedly opened a card game.

    ‘Nah, ma, didn’t get the-the-the promotion... as such. There was a... sort of mix-up at work today and I-I-I drew the short straw. No, no, but, well... Mr Peg mentioned some-some-some probation period— what? Rather disconcerting that he-he-he treats his most hard-working employee like garbage,’ he added in what he hoped to be an indignated tone of voice, dumping a four of spades over a five of hearts with his mouse cursor.

    ‘Taking himself too seriously, is-is-is all. Thinks too highly of-of-of himself, and— no ma, Mr Peg forgets he’s a-a-a simple toy manufacturer, not some— yes ma, I had your cheese-ham sandwich for-for-for lunch. No, the toast wasn’t too dry, but leave out the-the-the pickles next time, okay?’

    From the receiver came another string of Italian sentences, to which Mario replied, "yes ma," before hanging up in a rush. His mother, Divo, was the kind of person who enjoyed burying herself into the deepest corners of one’s mind-palace, only to meticulously rearrange the furniture every few weeks.

    No, it had not been a good work week – not in the slightest – but at least he had Porta’s hits to look forward to. He had tried other dealers, no doubt there, yet Porta’s powders were arguably the only merch in Leicester that hadn’t given him nosebleeds.

    Mario pushed a finger between his eyebrows. "Probation AND unpaid overtime," he thought. What would Maestro say?

    He lazily opened the list of orders he had been tasked to process and resumed to staring at the document with the mad concentration of a spoon-bender. Maybe if he focused really, really hard, the work would do itself? A full quarter of an hour later, it began to dawn on him reality didn’t work that way, so he sat up on his chair and cracked his knuckles.

    ‘Let’s do some-some-some work.’

    With his pen between his teeth, he reopened his work file and hastily typed the current date and place in the upper-right corner of the document. Done! And now, to enter the data—but oh, he had forgotten his coffee—so he returned ten minutes later with a steaming cup of moccacino latte. Mario took a sip, yawned, ruffled his hair and stared at the blinking cursor.

    ‘Alright there, little elf,’ he said to himself, fingering the mouse wheel with his index finger, ‘let’s-let’s-lets’ make Santa happy!’

    It also occurred to him reality preferred Mr Peg unhappy. No matter how much Mario tried to pull himself together and get on with the task at hand, the work wouldn’t come out. He rapped his fingers on the edge of the desk and checked the time. He sighed.

    It was seven minutes to—well, who was he kidding? It was practically 16:00— which was dangerously close to 16:45, the hour at which he would normally begin packing his suitcase so that he could be ready to set off at 17:00. Still, seeing it was Friday, he would, of course, allow himself the liberty of leaving 5 minutes earlier, which generally meant he would start packing at half past four and take his damn time doing it. There was virtually no space today to get himself into a proper workflow, he concluded, so with a feeling of deep relief, he closed the document and opened his internet browser.

    Mario Fantoccio spent the rest of his afternoon looming over Amanita’s social media account and making painstaking lists of every person of masculine persuasion to have left appreciative comments under her photos.

    ‘Bloody admirers. How many sympathetic comments can-can-can one make? Maybe I’ll have her over for-for-for coffee sometime,’ he whispered to himself as he gathered his things.

    The thought alone seemed to choke him. On his way down the corridor, he steadied himself against the vending machine.

    It was rather windy outside. Mario gathered the scarf more closely around his neck as he floated over the broad, marble staircase leading away from his office. The early onset of autumn had painted Leicester in bright shades of red, their texture disturbed only by occasional specks of gold.

    Mario cast his brown eyes at the sorry display of dying trees and thought to himself: "it ain’t autumn enough!" As he did, the evening sun popped from behind a cloud, almost as if it begged to differ, and with a final verve of summerly defiance, descended its rays upon the striding stranger, who winced.

    The sudden display of bright colours appeared to have insulted his monochromatic existence. Mario stopped to get his sun-spectacles out and resumed his galloping pace, undisturbed.

    He turned left at the traffic

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