Sam Wilson (2)

Sam Wilson's debut novel Zodiac should be a smash hit: set in an alternate universe in San Celeste, a generic American city, the book features a society governed by an absolute belief in astrology, where an individual's future is predetermined by the date of his birth.

Like most cops, Detective Jerome Burton is a Taurean and when he starts investigating a series of particularly nasty murders, he looks for the killer among the Arians, the city's underclass, responsible for most brutal crimes that occur.

Wilson [a dodgy Aries himself] is not a believer but concedes “I read about a study that found that your zodiac sign really does match your personality, but only if you already believe in astrology and know what it says you should be, otherwise it’s no better than chance”

With the help of profiler Lindi Childs [a Leo] Burton discovers - certainly in his own case - the Sign System is flawed but reason cannot beat belief. “I made a world in which it doesn’t matter if it’s true or not. If enough people believe, then it becomes an unavoidable part of life.”

The victims are different signs and butchered in different ways – a Chief of Police [Taurus] who was gutted then buried in the earth, the Taurean element, the host of a TV popular show [Leo] was shot then burned alive [Fire is the Leonine element] – the killer is very specific in his targets and his methods.

Sam Wilson accepts that “beliefs and society shape who we are.“ but had fun turning his hero Burton into someone who firsts doubts then has personal reasons for rejecting the status quo.

Zodiac is a socio-astrological thriller-cum police procedural and ‘Signism’ can be seen as a form of Racism or Anti-Semitism: however, the author had no overt political agenda – “I thought that the Zodiac world would be interesting and fun to write, and I came up with a story that wouldn’t work anywhere else.”

This is a world that includes elements such as The True Signs Academy, a school where problem children are taught [painfully] to ‘embrace’ their true element, where different signs live in different areas, and where there is a designated “Ram Squad” to deal specifically with criminally-inclined Arians.

Sam Wilson makes it clear that ‘Signism’ is a bad thing but whatever parallels you may be tempted to draw between the Zodiac World and other oppressive regimes, he does not consider himself a political writer.

In fact, his influences are readable, accessible, popular and fundamentally excellent examples of how South African writers can take on the best of the rest and beat them at their own game.

” I was inspired by Lauren Beukes and Sarah Lotz for their high-concept thrillers, although I can’t compare my work to theirs. And I loved … some of the great writing on TV shows like Black Mirror and The Wire.”

Wilson is researching another thriller set in the same universe, but with a different situation characters. However, his message to those who loved Zodiac is that Burton and Childs may get a cameo. Fingers crossed!… (mais)

What star sign you are born under determines much about your life, so astrology enthusiasts say - but what if the whole of society were determined by birth sigh? In this world Capricorns are successful professionals, Taureans form the police force and Arians are the violent underclass. When a police chief is murdered and a girl goes missing Detective Burton looks for help from an astrologist. What is the link between a set of murders, a strange school that was quickly closed down and the crack police squad determined to control the Arian section of the city?

I'm not normally a fan of novels set in a dystopian alternative modern day scenario and there were aspects of this book I found really annoying because of that. However by mentally thinking in terms of race or caste I could place this book in the here and now and it had huge resonance. At its heart Zodiac is a police procedural and a strong one at that.… (mais)