Wednesday, March 13, 2013
GUEST POST: Writing Wuxia As Chinese Historical Fantasy by Albert A. Dalia
In A Genre Writer’s Notebook blog titled “Writing Historical Fiction: Traveling the Tang Dynasty” (3/31/2012), I wrote:
So my first journeys in writing were as a historian, a nonfiction writer. In those travels, medieval China looked like thousands of ancient Chinese characters, interpreted by thousands of Japanese characters, further interpreted by thousands of English words…my travels through historical texts were both exciting and imaginative. I’ve always loved history and its study has always been like travel for me. When I read history, especially historical documents or see objects created in some historical period, I become a time traveler. Perhaps, what I didn’t realize when I was reading as a historian was that imagination played a much larger role than I recognized...
When I added travel over the earth to my travels over the page and arrived in East Asia, my journeys through medieval China began to add the elements of sensual recognition. The sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and tactile sensations of China began to influence my travel perspective. With these additions, my historical travel became more exciting, more imaginative, and more adventurous. Researching the social and intellectual history of the medieval Chinese Buddhist clergy, I was now able to go out and meet them – or at least, their lineal descendants. A doorway, or, perhaps a rabbit hole, had opened. I could not only learn their point of view on their own history, but could also begin to see first hand their perspective on the world around us. As I became better at spoken Chinese, I learned more and more about these different perspectives. As a result of living in a Chinese Buddhist monastery for a year, I not only got to see how it functioned internally, within itself, but also how it functioned within its society.
Perhaps it was the accumulation of all these factors – sights, smells, tastes, sounds, tactile sensations, and new acquaintances – that moved me from traveling through medieval China as a historian, thinking I was seeing the “reality” of that time and place, to discovering a deeper form of travel – that of the fiction writer.
As I noted in my previous guest post, my travels as a fiction writer have been in a particular Chinese genre: wuxia shenguai. I loosely translate this genre title as “heroic fantasy.” But wuxia (武俠) commonly translated as “martial arts fiction,” has both a long history in China and, with anything that old, a number of specific attributes.
I sum these attributes up in an information article that I wrote for my students:
The wuxia genre is a traditional Chinese storytelling form defined by two basic elements: wu and xia. Wu pertains to all things martial such as weapons (especially the sword as a symbol of nobility and valor), fighting techniques, and martial culture. Xia is usually translated as “chivalric hero.” Xia refers to those men and women who acted in a subjective, heroic manner to right injustice. Their sense/code/ethic of chivalry involved the following values: altruism, justice/appropriateness, individual freedom, personal loyalty, honor & fame, generosity & contempt for wealth, and reciprocity.
This genre normally focuses on action (especially the action of the human form) and adventure and takes place in an imaginary world of these heroes known as the jiang-hu (literally, “rivers and lakes” also “cultural-imaginary world”) which has been defined as, “the self-contained and historically sanctioned world of martial arts.” It is a world that accepts the fantastic as normal at certain levels of skillful physical and mental attainment.
An important motif of this genre is a sense of nostalgia for a lost home in a mythical past that lacked any confusion about moral values – good and evil were simple and clear. This genre can further be developed as a subgenre of historical fiction. When treated as such, it should, “polish the past into a mirror of the present.”
From my perspective as a wuxia writer, the xia ideal is about friendship. It is perhaps the most profound sense of friendship – for the xia are willing to give their lives for strangers just recently befriended, for ideals that resonated within their hearts, and for a sense of higher attainment in whatever path they followed. The friendship ideal embodied by the xia represents one of the most profound and moving human ideals. Perhaps, it is at the core of what really makes us human.
If you find this interesting and would like to know more about the Chinese history of this genre, there is a long article on my Genre Writer’s Notebook blog, “A Brief Outline of the Xia (swordsman/women hero) in Chinese Literature up to the 9th Century C.E.” Further, a few more words about the idea of shenguai (神怪), mentioned in my previous guest post might be useful here. My sense of this term has evolved into an appreciation for the great Chinese short story writer, Pu Songling (1640-1715 C.E.) who composed the famous Liaozhaizhiyi (Strange Tales from the Liaozhai Studio) collection of tales of the fantastic or Strange. As Judith T. Zeitlin (Historian of the Strange: Pu Songling and the Chinese Classical Tale), one of the leading scholars on Pu Songling, explains:
It was clearly recognized in China that the strangeness of a thing depended not on the thing itself but on the subjective perception of its beholder or interpreter. The strange is thus a cultural construct created and constantly renewed through writing and reading; moreover, it is a psychological effect produced through literary or artistic means. In this sense, the concept of the strange differs from our notions of the supernatural, fantastic, or marvelous, all of which are to some extent predicated on the impossibility of a narrated event in the lived world outside the text. This opposition between the possible and the impossible has been the basis of most contemporary Western theories of the fantastic…”
Specifically referring to Pu Songling’s work, she continues:
But the rules are different in Liaozhai. Ghosts can be accepted as both psychologically induced and materially present, just as a sequence can be cast simultaneously as a dream and as a real event…the strange often results when things are paradoxically affirmed and denied at the same time. In other words, the boundary between the strange and the normal is never fixed but is constantly altered, blurred, erased, multiplied or redefined. In fact, the power of the strange is sustained only because such boundaries can be endlessly manipulated.
It is this sense of the Strange that I seek in my wuxiashenguai historical fantasy genre. But before I get too carried away by my lingering bad habit of academic exposition, let’s get back to my fiction.
My first novel-length medieval China historical fantasy was Dream of the Dragon Pool: A Daoist Quest. As is my writing pattern, I pick a historical character and develop a story around that character. In this case it was one of China’s greatest poet’s Li Bo (李白, also read as Li Bai, 701-762 C.E.). A poet as a swordsman? While we have a lot of his poetry, we only have a dim outline of Li Bo’s life. There are a lot of stories – one of which has him claiming that in his late teens he lived with a Daoist master who taught him swordsmanship and that he killed a couple of people in sword fights. That was enough for me! Combine that with the fact that he was charged with treason and exiled to distant Burma via the Yangtze River and I had a river trip as my plot. That’s where the shenguai aspect enters, as Li Bo discovers an ancient, powerful sword, the Dragon Pool Sword, which attracts a number of fantastic antagonists.
My story finds Li Bo near the end of his life, exiled from the Tang Court, suffering a form of writer’s block – he can no longer compose poetry, and an outsider on many levels. The historical Li Bo’s murky background also suggests that he was not an ethnic Chinese. What evidence that can be found seems to point to a far Western ethnic family origin – perhaps, Persian, as in Iran. So I used this to make him a stranger in his own land, a stranger who had mastered the native language so that he was one of the preeminent poets of his time. There were many at Court that resented this “foreigner” who so fluently and eloquently expressed the deepest human emotions in their mother tongue.
All travelers need partners, so I paired Li Bo with a fictitious Central Asian warrior, Ah Wu, who had fought in many of the Tang dynasty wars of conquest along the Silk Road. Their relationship was based on a poem spontaneously composed by a drunken Li Bo (he’s famous/infamous for his drinking) to the Emperor that saved Ah Wu’s life. The latter, in true wuxia style, pledged his life to Li Bo. The trip up the Yangtze River involves mystery, swordsmanship, ghostly enchantments, humor, and heartbreak. But this is a “Daoist Quest” so it is unlikely to end like some sort of Greek quest! Some readers have asked if there is a sequel. Yes (the outline exists). Someday...
My next novel, Listening to Rain, is the first in a trilogy. This time the historic figure is a 7th century Buddhist warrior monk, Tanzong (曇宗). We have a beiwen (stele) dating from that period that was discovered at the Shaolin Monastery. It commends and awards thirteen Shaolin monks for their contribution to Li Shihmin’s (599-649 C.E.; Emperor Taizong r. 626-649 C.E.) successful efforts to unite the Chinese empire and establish the Tang dynasty (618–907 C.E.). Their leader, Tanzong, was granted the military rank of “general-in-chief.” This is all we know of these warrior monks.
Since, historically, we don’t know anything about him beyond what’s on the stele, I set Tanzong’s tale in that historic quest to unify the Chinese empire. This time directly influenced by the twenty volumes of Patrick O’Brian’s great historical fiction Aubrey-Maturin Napoleonic sea warfare series, I give Tanzong a “Maturin-like” companion the Imperial Commissioner, Li Wei. While he is a fictional character, his master, the great Tang chief minister and advisor to the emperor, Wei Zheng (580-643 C.E.) was a major Tang historical figure. I also gave Li Wei the background of being the lead complier of the Tang imperial encyclopedia of “existing knowledge,” which allows him to know a lot of things. Yet, as a young man in his 20s, he doesn’t have the experience to “season” his knowledge. This gets him into a number of interesting situations as the pair travel through the dangerous far southern reaches of the shattered Chinese empire.
(Tang Emperor Taizong, r. 626-649 C.E.)
The antagonists of the trilogy, the Celestial Masters Daoist cult are still in existence in modern day China. They rose at the collapse of the Han dynasty in the third century C.E. and sought to unify China under their spiritual tutelage. Thus, in the overall scheme of things, the trilogy follows the broad outline of early Tang dynasty history.
The first volume, Listening to Rain, mostly takes place on contemporary Hainan Island, which is the map I’m standing next to in my author’s picture (see below). My finger is placed on the secret base of the female aborigine pirate, Byung Nhak.
The second volume, as yet without a confirmed title, takes place in Sichuan, mostly on Qingcheng Mountain outside of present day Chengdu. The mountain holds an important legendary significance for the development of religious Daoism in Chinese history.
While the third volume, also without a title so far, takes place on the Tibetan plateau in a little known region between the then Tang empire and that of the Tibetan kingdom, which was a potent medieval rival in the Central Asian region.
What happens after the trilogy could end up being the “secret scrolls” of Tanzong’s adventures, since the trilogy is supposedly written by Li Wei to record his public travels with Tanzong. The Silk Road to India beckons since at this very moment in Tang history the great Buddhist monk traveler, Xuanzang (602-664 C.E.) is moving through Sichuan heading out along the Silk Road to India; perhaps he needs a fellow-monk traveling companion or bodyguard! Further, I’m very much entranced with several of my female characters and would love to write spinoff novels about their adventures: the swordswoman White Rainbow and the pirate captain Byung Nhak.
Of course, time is always a problem in such endeavors since I do have a “day job.” Nonetheless, my intention is to develop my own style of this genre, as is natural for any writer in their chosen genre. I hope to do this by combining the various storytelling influences I’ve been exposed to as both a historian and as a student of various forms of storytelling: the written word, cinema, and audio. A few examples being: the wuxia movies I’ve been enjoying since the late 60s; the ideas about the Strange put forth in Pu Songling’s great collection of Strange stories (my short story collection, Strange Tales from the Dragon Gate Inn is dedicated to him); the great historical fiction of Patrick O’Brian; Latin American magic realism fiction; the various martial art masters I’ve studied under; and the several hundred biographies of Tang dynasty monks that I translated with their amazing shenguai sense all get mixed into the “inkpot” that serves my take on the wuxiashenguai genre.
This genre has survived so long because it's such a malleable storytelling form. One only needs to view its modern literary and cinematic history to understand this and appreciate the changes the genre has successfully gone through. I have no clue as to what will come out of all this, but then the fun of writing is in the discovery. I do hope you will all join me on this voyage of discovery!
Order the book HERE
Read The Reality Of Historical Fantasy (guest post) by Albert A. Dalia
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of Listening To Rain
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Albert A. Dalia was born and brought in New York state. Growing up the author loved fast cars and coincidentally discovered Chinese culture. The author graduated from State University of New York majoring in History and Political Science and later studied Classical Chinese and Classical Buddhist Chinese literary languages at the National Taiwan Normal University, Mandarin Training Center in Taipei. Since then he's gotten two Masters and a PhD as well. He has also held a variety of jobs like broadcast journalist, assignment editor; copywriter for an ad agency, editor-in-chief, Associate Professor, Editorial director, etc. He currently lives nearby Boston with his family.
NOTE: Author picture courtesy of the author himself. All other character pictures courtesy of Albert A. Dalia.
12:00 AM | 
Posted by
The Reader |
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
NEWS: Ilona Andrews' New Series, Michael J Sullivan's Hollow World and Joseph R. Lewis's Free Books
.JPG)
Read FBC’s Review of “Magic Bites” & “Magic Burns”
Read FBC’s Review of “Magic Strikes” & “Magic Mourns”
Read FBC’s Review of “Magic Bleeds” & “A Questionable Client”
Read FBC’s Review of “Magic Slays” & “Magic Dreams”
Read FBC's Review of "Retribution Clause" & "Magic Tests"
Read FBC's Review of "Gunmetal Magic" & "Magic Gifts"
Read FBC's Review of "Retribution Clause" & "Magic Tests"
Read FBC's Review of "Gunmetal Magic" & "Magic Gifts"
Read FBC’s Interview with Ilona Andrews
I came across this piece of news on the Publisher Weekly website yesterday and then Ilona Andrews also announced it on their blog. Here’s the actual announcement from the PW site:
“Ilona Andrews and Andrew Gordon have signed two deals, with different houses. In the first, Yost signed the pair up to continue their Kate Daniels series at Ace Books for mid six figures, with Anne Sowards acquiring world English rights. “
“In the second deal, also for mid six figures, Yost sold world rights for the first three books in a new series to Erika Tsang at Avon. Yost said the Avon series would be set in a world controlled by modern Medici-like dynasties with paranormally enhanced abilities.”
While the author had previously commented about the continuation of their Kate Daniels series, the second announcement is an absolutely new one. The authors have mentioned how they came up with the story and why they decided to give Avon Books a try. But here’s the exclusive part, which they revealed a bit about the series via email:
“Set in a world similar to our own but with a stark crucial difference, the emergence of magic by means of a scientific serum circa the late 19th century. The world develops with corporations forming around families of magical prowess. These corporations and families are like feudal holdings of the medieval times wherein competition and purity of bloodlines are encouraged. “
“The actual story begins in current times featuring Isabella Baylor, a small time PI who is carefully supporting her family the best way she can. Things however take a drastic turn as she is compelled into a herculean endeavor and that’s where the actual plot sets in. Featuring snarky dialogue, a strong female protagonist and an intriguing magic-ensconced world, join Ilona Andrews in their new series coming out from Avon books soon…”
So I’m sure all fans will be waiting with bated breath to get their hands on this new book and after reading what the book is going to be about. I can sincerely say Ilona Andrews’ fans are going to have another series besides the Kate Daniels one to rave about. Also be sure to read this small explanatory post by the authors in regards to the new series.
“Ilona Andrews and Andrew Gordon have signed two deals, with different houses. In the first, Yost signed the pair up to continue their Kate Daniels series at Ace Books for mid six figures, with Anne Sowards acquiring world English rights. “
“In the second deal, also for mid six figures, Yost sold world rights for the first three books in a new series to Erika Tsang at Avon. Yost said the Avon series would be set in a world controlled by modern Medici-like dynasties with paranormally enhanced abilities.”
While the author had previously commented about the continuation of their Kate Daniels series, the second announcement is an absolutely new one. The authors have mentioned how they came up with the story and why they decided to give Avon Books a try. But here’s the exclusive part, which they revealed a bit about the series via email:
“Set in a world similar to our own but with a stark crucial difference, the emergence of magic by means of a scientific serum circa the late 19th century. The world develops with corporations forming around families of magical prowess. These corporations and families are like feudal holdings of the medieval times wherein competition and purity of bloodlines are encouraged. “
“The actual story begins in current times featuring Isabella Baylor, a small time PI who is carefully supporting her family the best way she can. Things however take a drastic turn as she is compelled into a herculean endeavor and that’s where the actual plot sets in. Featuring snarky dialogue, a strong female protagonist and an intriguing magic-ensconced world, join Ilona Andrews in their new series coming out from Avon books soon…”
So I’m sure all fans will be waiting with bated breath to get their hands on this new book and after reading what the book is going to be about. I can sincerely say Ilona Andrews’ fans are going to have another series besides the Kate Daniels one to rave about. Also be sure to read this small explanatory post by the authors in regards to the new series.
Official Author Website
Read FBC's Review of The Crown Conspiracy
Read FBC's Review of Avempartha
Read FBC's Review of Nyphron Rising
Read FBC's Review of The Emerald Storm
Read FBC's Review of Wintertide
Read FBC's Review of The Viscount and the Witch
Michael J. Sullivan is an author that has ascended many heights over the last few years. After signing a new contract with Orbit books to write his Riyria prequels. He has decided to go the Kickstarter route in regards to his newest book which will be an SF one and is titled “Hollow World”. Here’s what it is about:
"Ellis Rogers is an ordinary guy who has always done the right things and played by the rules. But like many, his life didn't turn out as he had planned. Facing a terminal disease, he’s willing to gamble that a cure could exist in the future, and although it is insanely dangerous to try, he really has nothing to lose."
"There are many books that explore what life might be like many years from now, and they cover the spectrum from the idealized world of the original Star Trek, with its progressive stance on equality and civil rights, to Huxley’s dystopian Brave New World. For years I've been fascinated by the observation that perception can make people see the same thing in very different ways. So I created a future, which if I've done my job properly, will be seen by some as a utopia and by others as exactly the opposite."
The event is already funded and is now heading for some truly great stretch goals and still has 27 days to go. So head over to the official Kickstarter page and select the backer option that best floats your boat and look forward to an intriguing SF story if not anything else.
Read FBC's Review of The Crown Conspiracy
Read FBC's Review of Avempartha
Read FBC's Review of Nyphron Rising
Read FBC's Review of The Emerald Storm
Read FBC's Review of Wintertide
Read FBC's Review of The Viscount and the Witch
Michael J. Sullivan is an author that has ascended many heights over the last few years. After signing a new contract with Orbit books to write his Riyria prequels. He has decided to go the Kickstarter route in regards to his newest book which will be an SF one and is titled “Hollow World”. Here’s what it is about:
"Ellis Rogers is an ordinary guy who has always done the right things and played by the rules. But like many, his life didn't turn out as he had planned. Facing a terminal disease, he’s willing to gamble that a cure could exist in the future, and although it is insanely dangerous to try, he really has nothing to lose."
"There are many books that explore what life might be like many years from now, and they cover the spectrum from the idealized world of the original Star Trek, with its progressive stance on equality and civil rights, to Huxley’s dystopian Brave New World. For years I've been fascinated by the observation that perception can make people see the same thing in very different ways. So I created a future, which if I've done my job properly, will be seen by some as a utopia and by others as exactly the opposite."
The event is already funded and is now heading for some truly great stretch goals and still has 27 days to go. So head over to the official Kickstarter page and select the backer option that best floats your boat and look forward to an intriguing SF story if not anything else.
Official Author Website
Read FBC's Review of Omar The Immortal
Read FBC’s Review of Zelda Pryce: The Razor’s Edge
Read FBC’s Review of Zelda Pryce: The Clockwork Girl
Read FBC’s Interview with Joseph Robert Lewis
Joseph Robert Lewis is a writer whom I admire for taking the less-trodden path with his books. His previous bibliography has straddled various genres and his Other Earth series is one that mixed alternate history, swashbuckling adventure, epic fantasy, global mythology and a few other things to make an exciting eight volume series. Previously I’ve reviewed a few books of his and I’m an ardent fan of his Zelda Pryce trilogy.
Last week Joe announced big news on his blog, basically he’s decided to offer all of his books for FREE to download from his website in a variety of formats (DRM free). So what are you waiting for, hop over to his website and download the various titles (if not all) that strike your fancy. Also if it helps, here's the paypal button if you wish to give back to Joe as a "Thank You" for his efforts.
Read FBC's Review of Omar The Immortal
Read FBC’s Review of Zelda Pryce: The Razor’s Edge
Read FBC’s Review of Zelda Pryce: The Clockwork Girl
Read FBC’s Interview with Joseph Robert Lewis
Joseph Robert Lewis is a writer whom I admire for taking the less-trodden path with his books. His previous bibliography has straddled various genres and his Other Earth series is one that mixed alternate history, swashbuckling adventure, epic fantasy, global mythology and a few other things to make an exciting eight volume series. Previously I’ve reviewed a few books of his and I’m an ardent fan of his Zelda Pryce trilogy.
Last week Joe announced big news on his blog, basically he’s decided to offer all of his books for FREE to download from his website in a variety of formats (DRM free). So what are you waiting for, hop over to his website and download the various titles (if not all) that strike your fancy. Also if it helps, here's the paypal button if you wish to give back to Joe as a "Thank You" for his efforts.
NOTE: Michael J. Sullivan and Joseph R. Lewis author pictures courtesy of the authors themselves.
Sunday, March 10, 2013
"Where Tigers Are at Home" by Jean-Marie Blas de Robles (Reviewed by Liviu Suciu)
"Winner of the Prix Médicis, this multifaceted literary novel follows the
Jesuit scholar Athanasius Kircher across 17th century Europe and
Eleazard von Wogau, a retired French correspondent, through modern
Brazil.
When Eleazard begins editing a strange, unpublished biography of Kircher, the rest of his life seems to begin unraveling—his ex-wife goes on a dangerous geological expedition to Mato Grosso; his daughter abandons school to travel with her young professor and her lesbian lover to an indigenous beach town, where the trio use drugs and form interdependent sexual relationships; and Eleazard himself starts losing his sanity, escalated by loneliness, and his work on the biography. Patterns begin to emerge from these interwoven narratives, which develop toward a mesmerizing climax.
Shortlisted for the Goncourt Prize and the European Book Award, and already translated into 14 languages, Where Tigers Are At Home is large-scale epic, at once literary and entertaining, that belongs in the company of Umberto Eco and Haruki Murakami."
When Eleazard begins editing a strange, unpublished biography of Kircher, the rest of his life seems to begin unraveling—his ex-wife goes on a dangerous geological expedition to Mato Grosso; his daughter abandons school to travel with her young professor and her lesbian lover to an indigenous beach town, where the trio use drugs and form interdependent sexual relationships; and Eleazard himself starts losing his sanity, escalated by loneliness, and his work on the biography. Patterns begin to emerge from these interwoven narratives, which develop toward a mesmerizing climax.
Shortlisted for the Goncourt Prize and the European Book Award, and already translated into 14 languages, Where Tigers Are At Home is large-scale epic, at once literary and entertaining, that belongs in the company of Umberto Eco and Haruki Murakami."
Where Tigers Are
at Home by Jean Marie Blas de Robles is a "big book" in both page count and themes, book that just cannot be put down after the first 50-100 pages where we get acquainted with what is what.
The narration has 6 strands - 5 that take place in contemporary Brazil
and follow the fates of an intertwined group of people - the "middle
class" von Wogau family and various people connected with them, the
rich Moreira and retainers, the poor and disabled Nelson and his "uncle"
Ze - and the 6th that follows Father Athanasius Kircher's life and deeds
as told by faithful secretary Caspar Schott in the turbulent 17th
century where what we know today as the modern scientific worldview has started to appear and compete with the traditional religious mindset; this last thread is almost as big as the other 5 in page count and contains both a snapshot of those turbulent times and an assortment of oddities.
French news correspondent and independent scholar Eleazard von Wogau is going through a painful divorce with archaeologist Brazilian wife Elaine and has moved to Alcantara, a decrepit provincial town where he is sent by his editors an incredible recent discovery, namely an original manuscript from the 17th century purporting to tell the life of Father Kirchner. Eleazard starts preparing the manuscript for publication and annotating it heavily, while getting involved with a mysterious Italian lady of many secrets.
French news correspondent and independent scholar Eleazard von Wogau is going through a painful divorce with archaeologist Brazilian wife Elaine and has moved to Alcantara, a decrepit provincial town where he is sent by his editors an incredible recent discovery, namely an original manuscript from the 17th century purporting to tell the life of Father Kirchner. Eleazard starts preparing the manuscript for publication and annotating it heavily, while getting involved with a mysterious Italian lady of many secrets.
His daughter Moema chooses to stay away from both parents and start college in Fortaleza at quite a distance from them, while indulging in drugs, a same sex relationship with roommate Thais and flings with various men, most notable being French lecturer Roetgen whom she takes on a trip to an isolated beach village.
Elaine - a professor at the University of Brazilia - is going on the jungle archaeology trip of a lifetime with a few colleagues, including star paleo-zoologist Dietlev who is her current on and off lover and the just minted geology PhD Mauro, son of rich Maranhao governor Moreira who is corrupt and involved in very shady stuff as most of his money actually comes from his Countess wife Carlotta while he only administers it in her name.
In the Fortaleza Favela de Pirambu, 15 year old "reduced" Nelson is scrapping a begging and occasional thievery life and dreaming of famed outlaw Lampiao and of better things, while squirreling money to buy his dream wheelchair - Nelson has no legs from birth. Nelson is being helped/tutored by truck driver, "uncle" Ze, as his real father has died long ago in an work accident in one of Moreira's factories.
All
these tales intertwine and get associated with the life and times of
Father Kircher who was in some ways the last polymath of the
pre-scientific world and who wrote tons of books on everything and more,
collecting all the oddities known at the time. However as he insisted on
filtering everything through his Jesuit teachings, he was also generally wrong about everything scientifically speaking.
Where Tigers Are
at Home is a novel that deserves all the
accolades and prizes it got as it succeeds in everything - narrative energy that keeps one turning pages and wanting to know what happens next, interesting characters from the distant genius Kircher as seen by his adoring pupil, to the earnest Eleazard and the oddly compelling Moema and Nelson, superb atmosphere that moves from the quiet town, to the wild jungle, the college life and the beach party, all in seamless transitions which intertwine to the literally half-world away in space of and time that was Europe of the 17th century.
The clear number one novel of the year for me so far (going by the US translation just published in March 2013, while the UK edition appeared in 2011) and a novel that I believe will be hard to top the rest of the year.
The clear number one novel of the year for me so far (going by the US translation just published in March 2013, while the UK edition appeared in 2011) and a novel that I believe will be hard to top the rest of the year.
Order “Impulse” HERE
Read An Excerpt HERE
Steven Gould is a science fiction author
of a number of novels and short stories. For those who follow SFWA happenings, he's also running for SFWA president at the moment, and you can check
out his platform here: http://eatourbrains.com/steve/.
Gould is most famous for his YA
series that began with Jumper. Even
if you haven't read the book, you may recognize the
title, since it was adapted into a movie in 2008. I'm told that the movie's
story deviated from the book quite a bit, and that the book is better, but I
can't really weigh in on that: to be honest, I haven't actually read the first
book yet, or even the second.
I
started with Impulse, the third book
in the series, which was released on January
8, 2013 by Tor. So, I
can assure you that coming into the series late won't adversely affect your
enjoyment in the slightest. I'm now curious to read the earlier adventures in
the series, but Impulse gave me all
the background I needed to understand what was going on, and without any
troublesome info-dumps, no less.
“Jumping”
is the in-world term for teleportation, and there are exactly three people
capable of it: protagonist Cent
(short for Millicent) and her parents, the protagonists of the previous books,
who are still POV characters in this one. The story never explains why they can jump, but it does get
pretty deep into the physics of how jumping works, and Cent uses her understanding of science to explore the skill in ways
her parents have never thought of.
While I
understand previous books dealt more with murky political machinations, this
book deviates from that, focusing more on the ethics of parenting: how much
freedom is unsafe, how much control is stifling, and how to balance those.
Given that she was essentially raised in isolation, Cent adapts suspiciously easily to social environments, but that's
a minor complaint at best, and I still loved her and her story.
My favorite thing about
this book is that it made me want to go learn about new things, or relearn
things I've forgotten: everything from Boyle's Law to international relief
efforts to Jane Austen's publishing
history. I love learning things from books, and a book that inspires me to go
learn more about such a variety of subjects is an even rarer find. This book's
characters are competent and intelligent, and it expects its readers to be,
too.
I love that Cent doesn't choose between loving
reading, physics, manga, or snowboarding; I love that she is both devious and
responsible; I love that there are plot-relevant gay characters; I love that
this book makes being smart cool. I could list all the things I loved in this
book for pages, because it was an absolute joy to read. Happily, it looks like
there will be a sequel, Exo, so I can
look forward to more Cent stories in
the future.
Read An Excerpt HERE
Read FBC’s
Review of “Cinder”
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Marissa
Meyer lives in Tacoma, Washington. Scarlet is her second novel, following on the success of her
debut, Cinder. Author information can also be found at marissameyer.com.
OFFICIAL SYNOPSIS: Cinder, the
cyborg mechanic, returns in the second thrilling installment of the bestselling
Lunar Chronicles. She's trying to
break out of prison—even though if she succeeds, she'll be the Commonwealth's
most wanted fugitive.
Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit's grandmother is missing. It turns out there are
many things Scarlet doesn't know
about her grandmother or the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When
Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have
information as to her grandmother's whereabouts, she is loath to
trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her.
As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they
encounter another when they meet Cinder.
Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana, who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her
king, her prisoner…
FORMAT/INFO: Scarlet is 322 pages
in NOOK format (and is listed as 464 pages in hardcover) and has forty-seven
chapters. The narration is third-person and provides the perspective of
several characters, including Cinder, Prince Kai, Scarlet, and Wolf. Scarlet is the second volume in The
Lunar Chronicles quartet, following the book, Cinder.
Scarlet
was published in
hardcover by Feiwel & Friends
on February 3, 2013. The UK version was published on February 7, 2013 via Puffin Books.
ANALYSIS: Scarlet Benoit is a young
woman with a lot going on in her life. Her grandmother, Michelle
Benoit, is missing; the police have dismissed the case, and she is left to
maintain their farm and produce delivery business. From the start of the
book, we are shown that Scarlet has a fiery personality to match her
vivid hair. While making a delivery to the bar of one of her regular
clients, Scarlet overhears patrons
heckling in response to a news bulletin showing what is being called Cinder’s
attempted assassination of either Emporer Kai or the Lunar Queen Levana. The comments are certainly in poor taste
given that Cinder, a mere teenager, is going to be executed without any
type of trial, and Scarlet reacts without thinking, climbing onto the
bar and disconnecting the cable, knocking over glasses as she does so. From
the reaction she gets, we learn that her missing grandmother has long been
rumored to be crazy, and people wonder if Scarlet might not also be
herself.
Wolf, a young street fighter, is also
introduced in the bar scene. He is shy and awkward, but handsome, and Scarlet
is drawn to him even before he intervenes when she gets into a skirmish with
one of the bar patrons. Later, he tries to get work at Scarlet’s
farm. Though that doesn’t work out, she does allow him to accompany her
when she decides to go to rescue her grandmother after finding out that she has
indeed been kidnapped.
Interspersed
through the chapters involving Scarlet and Wolf are those that
further Cinder’s story. She uses the tools given to her at the end
of Cinder by Dr. Erland to
mount an escape that takes her through the jail cell of ex-Air Force cadet Carswell
Thorne. Thorne is a rogue and a thief, but he is quite charming
about it all. Since he has a ship, Cinder partners up with him, and
they escape together.
These
two “couples” are on somewhat of a crash course moving toward one
another. Instead of going directly to Africa, though, to help Dr. Erlander with his plan to defeat
the evil Queen Levana, Cinder and Thorne head to Europe to
find former military pilot Michelle Benoit—a woman with connections to Cinder’s
past. While the four try in various ways to find Scarlet’s grandmother,
we are given glimpses of Kai and his tense struggle to lead the Eastern
Comm0nwealth as well as his recently deceased father did, particularly by
avoiding war with the Lunars.
CONCLUSION: This book has a lot going for it.
I enjoyed Scarlet’s feistiness and the wounded hero potential of Wolf.
Cinder’s flirty and candid android friend, Iko, makes a return
when Cinder finds an unexpected use for Iko’s personality
chip. Despite what it seems like at first, Thorne is not really
introduced to create a romantic diversion for Cinder, who really has
enough on her plate, not to mention unresolved feelings for Kai. Kai,
for his part, seems to be trying to figure out what really happened during the
supposed assassination attempt instead of simply dismissing what he felt for Cinder. Also,
the book introduces interesting elements of the world that Meyer has created, as well as giving nods to the classic tale, “Little
Red Riding Hood.”
Unfortunately,
there are components that did not leave me feeling satisfied with this
installment of the series. As an English teacher, I read with a critical
eye that I sometimes have a very hard time ignoring. The repetitious word
use in the book may not bother others, but I found myself zeroing in on the 38 versions
of the word “gulp” and 23 versions of “gasp.” (Because I was reading
the book on my computer, it was easy to search and find to count the
transgressions.) Also, as the book continued, Scarlet’s behavior
became less believable; she seemed less gutsy in her impetuous behavior and
more ridiculous.
I
will probably wait to read the third book in the quartet, Cress—which is
based on Rapunzel and will be set in
Northern Africa—until after I have read various reviews instead of rushing out
to buy it like I did Scarlet.
Order
“The Indigo Spell” HERE
Read
An Excerpt HERE
Richelle Mead is the author of
several urban fantasy series: the Georgina
Kincaid and Dark Swan series for
adults, and more famously the YA Vampire
Academy series and its spinoff series Bloodlines.
The Indigo Spell, published on February 12th, 2013 by Razorbill, is the third Bloodlines book.
I've
become much pickier about starting vampire-centric series since the shelves
exploded with them, but since I liked a lot of what Richelle Mead did with Dark
Swan, I thought I should give this one a shot. If you're new to the Vampire Academy/Bloodlines world: no worries, so am I! This is the first I've read
in either series, and I had absolutely no trouble jumping in so late. Mead gives you all the background you
need to know for this book to make sense on its own, which is no mean feat
given that I've missed about eight books of backstory. It might seem a little
repetitive to a long-time reader, but the author doesn't dwell on any past
events that aren't relevant to the story at hand.
In
the spirit of honesty, I have to say that while there were a number of things
that annoyed me in The Indigo Spell, I
was also physically unable to put the book down before I finished it at 3AM.
Let's start with the things that irritated me:
First,
I hate love triangles. Yes, I know that's a matter of personal taste, but I
will let you know if I ever read a love triangle that doesn't immediately piss
me off. It doesn't matter how much I like the characters. Love triangles are a
trope that almost always (there may be exceptions to this, but I can't think of
any) read to me as overly blatant plot devices, and I think I should have to
work harder to figure out how the book is playing with me. Happily, in this
instance, the love triangle is relegated to supporting characters, and mostly
serves to make the protagonist's social life more dramatic.
Back
to the point: mostly the protagonist, Sydney,
was sensible about all the high school drama around her, except for her
mind-boggling powers of denial in her own romantic interest. Seriously,
mind-boggling to the point of unbelievable for an otherwise intelligent
character. She does seem to accept life-changing conspiracies with scanty
evidence, but in fairness she does question and take risks to acquire evidence
at all, so I can let that slide. There are also a lot of instances of “you
don't need to know this yet/all in good time” which Sydney accepts mostly without complaint that annoyed me; in terms
of pacing, exposition and plot, I understand what Mead is doing, but I wish she'd used a different method. I also
quibble that there is no humanly way possible that Sydney could get everything she does done in the time allotted to
her.
She does, however, deal with a lot of different problems with
high personal stakes, and the tension and challenges were high and believable.
Also, Sydney approaches them
logically yet with emotional motivation, which is a winning combination: a
character who is passionate and really
smart, with that intelligence being central to her personal identity. I always
love to see that.
Again, I'm new to the series, but overall while the takes on
vampires and magic weren't particularly innovative, everything worked together
really well. There were a couple of twists on familiar tropes, but mostly the
magic systems and world-building are just plain well-executed.
As for the romance, I absolutely love how it was handled. These
are two characters who do not just lust after each other; they care about each
other deeply as friends. They are intelligent enough to recognize the problems
their relationship faces socially, and to prioritize when it's appropriate to
pursue romance and when other things are far more important. (Seriously, it
drives me crazy when the world is ending and characters decide to heck with it,
go off and do their thing, and the plot just waits for them.) The biggest
reason I love the romance is that the characters respect each other, and while
there is some seduction and tempting that goes on, ultimately they respect each
other's boundaries. This is one of those worlds where some vampires have
coercive power, and I appreciate how Mead
kept that from being a factor between them. They each had different strengths
and areas of expertise, and neither overshadowed the other. These interactions
are so well-written that this aspect was probably my favorite in the whole
book.
In short, while I'm not sure I want to go back and read all the
books that came before, I definitely had a great time reading this one.
Hello
to my friends at FBC and beyond. I
hope 2013 is treating everyone as good as it is treating me. I have some new Vanx Malic cover art from the amazing Anton Kokarev to show you, some great news on
the audiobook front, a paperback release date for The Legend of Vanx Malic – Through the Wildwood, and a Three
Chapter Wattpad peek of The Emerald Rider
– Dragoneer Saga Book IV, which will
be sponsoring this summer’s “Indie Kindy” contest.
I just
got back from an awesome research trip to Destin, Fla. Where else but the
Emerald Coast would I seek inspiration for the next great monster the Dragoneers will face? Most of my Facebook
(https://www.facebook.com/Author.M.R.Mathias)
followers know that while I was there I managed to sneak in a few days of
fishing, but few know that I had the privilege of meeting in person, for the
first time, D. P. Prior, author of The Nameless Dwarf: The Complete Chronicles. Derek has edited books by David Dalglish, Sibel Hodge, Moses Siregar III, and
myself, just to name a few. We tried not to talk shop, but we both love fantasy
so much it was impossible. We discussed new authors, both indie and
traditionally published, and where we thought things are going. It
was a great time.
A lot
of people know that I wrote The
Wardstone Trilogy while I was in prison in Texas, but did you know that I
wrote all four of The Legend of Vanx
Malic novels there too? The next two Vanx
Malic novels are sitting in my safe deposit box, in longhand, awaiting my
attention. I will start entering them into word for editing once my secret
project is complete. More on the secret stuff in a later guest post.
Here below
is Anton Kokarev’s cover for The Legend of Vanx Malic Book III – Saint
Elm’s Deep. At this time I am guessing an early November release, but that
isn’t written in stone:
I
excitedly announced at Christmas that both The
Sword and the Dragon and The Royal
Dragoneers would be released in audio format by the first of the year.
While The Sword and the Dragon made
the date, The Royal Dragoneers missed
that target by a few months. The good news is the book is now available Amazon,
iTunes,
and Audible.
Even better news is Christine Padovan’s
audio for Cold Hearted Son of a Witch –
The Dragoneer Saga Book II is now complete and just waiting on the Audible retail process. The Confliction – The Dragoneer Saga Book
III is already in production. With The
Emerald Rider releasing this summer I think I am going to have my hands
full. Speaking of which, the first three chapters of The Emerald Rider are up on Wattpad
HERE.
Anton has already started sketches of his Emerald Rider cover art, and he has also
agreed to do the cover for the untitled fifth book in the Crimzon and Clover short story series. I can honestly say that I am
as eager as I have ever been to see Anton’s
rendition of mighty Clover and her
wyrm. I will make sure to share when it is done.
I have also
revamped my webpage (www.mrmathias.com)
again. By no means am I a webmaster. Ha ha! This last bit of info is for
paperback readers. Through the Wildwood -
TheLlegend of Vanx Malic Book I will be available in paperback April 3rd, 2013.
That is
all I have. Keep reading and I will see you guys this summer…
MR
Official Author Website
Order the book HERE
Enter to win a fantastic art piece by Larry Rostant based on the book (see image below)
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Luke Scull was born in Bristol and has lived most of his life in the British Isles. Luke also designs computer roleplaying games and has worked on several acclaimed titles for Ossian Studios and Bioware. Luke began his career, as a hobbyist game designer, who was selected by Bioware as one of his modifications to Neverwinter Nights, became a hit. Since then he has worked as designer on the Neverwinter expansion, Mysteries of Westgate, and an unreleased expansion for The Witcher role-playing game. He currently lives in Warminster with his wife and this is debut.
OFFICIAL BOOK BLURB: The grey granite walls of Dorminia rise to three times the height of a man, surrounding the city on all sides save for the south, where the Broken Sea begins. The stone is three-foot thick at its weakest point and can withstand all but the heaviest assault. The Crimson Watch patrol the streets even as Salazar's Mindhawks patrol the skies.
The Grey City was not always so. But something has changed. Something has broken at its heart. Perhaps the wild magic of the dead Gods has corrupted Dorminia's Magelord, as it has the earth itself. Or perhaps this iron-fisted tyranny is the consequence of a lifetime of dark deeds...
Still, pockets of resistance remain. When two formidable Highlanders save the life of a young rebel, it proves the foundation for an unlikely fellowship. A fellowship united against tyranny, but composed of self-righteous outlaws, crippled turncoats and amoral mercenaries. A grim company. But with the world entering an Age of Ruin, this is not a time of heroes...
FORMAT/INFO: The Grim Company is 464 pages long, divided over forty-one titled chapters. Narration is in the third-person primarily via Davarus Cole, Brodar Kayne, Yllandris, Sasha and Tarn. This book is the first volume of the The Grim Company Trilogy. UK cover art is provided by Larry Rostant.
March 1, 2013 marked the publication of the UK Hardback edition of The Grim Company by Head Of Zeus and the e-book was previously released on February 1, 2013. The book will be published in the US in September 2013 by Ace-Roc books.
CLASSIFICATION: The Grim Company series is a dark epic fantasy series that can be best summed up as Joe Abercrombie's grim wit & gritty characterization meets James Clemens' Godslayer Chronicles!
Order the book HERE
Enter to win a fantastic art piece by Larry Rostant based on the book (see image below)
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Luke Scull was born in Bristol and has lived most of his life in the British Isles. Luke also designs computer roleplaying games and has worked on several acclaimed titles for Ossian Studios and Bioware. Luke began his career, as a hobbyist game designer, who was selected by Bioware as one of his modifications to Neverwinter Nights, became a hit. Since then he has worked as designer on the Neverwinter expansion, Mysteries of Westgate, and an unreleased expansion for The Witcher role-playing game. He currently lives in Warminster with his wife and this is debut.
OFFICIAL BOOK BLURB: The grey granite walls of Dorminia rise to three times the height of a man, surrounding the city on all sides save for the south, where the Broken Sea begins. The stone is three-foot thick at its weakest point and can withstand all but the heaviest assault. The Crimson Watch patrol the streets even as Salazar's Mindhawks patrol the skies.
The Grey City was not always so. But something has changed. Something has broken at its heart. Perhaps the wild magic of the dead Gods has corrupted Dorminia's Magelord, as it has the earth itself. Or perhaps this iron-fisted tyranny is the consequence of a lifetime of dark deeds...
Still, pockets of resistance remain. When two formidable Highlanders save the life of a young rebel, it proves the foundation for an unlikely fellowship. A fellowship united against tyranny, but composed of self-righteous outlaws, crippled turncoats and amoral mercenaries. A grim company. But with the world entering an Age of Ruin, this is not a time of heroes...
FORMAT/INFO: The Grim Company is 464 pages long, divided over forty-one titled chapters. Narration is in the third-person primarily via Davarus Cole, Brodar Kayne, Yllandris, Sasha and Tarn. This book is the first volume of the The Grim Company Trilogy. UK cover art is provided by Larry Rostant.
March 1, 2013 marked the publication of the UK Hardback edition of The Grim Company by Head Of Zeus and the e-book was previously released on February 1, 2013. The book will be published in the US in September 2013 by Ace-Roc books.
CLASSIFICATION: The Grim Company series is a dark epic fantasy series that can be best summed up as Joe Abercrombie's grim wit & gritty characterization meets James Clemens' Godslayer Chronicles!
ANALYSIS: The Grim Company is Luke Scull’s debut title and Head Of Zeus secured it for a six-figure sum. Stefan alerted me to the book’s existence over at Civilian Reader. With an ever-intriguing blurb and terrific Spartan cover art, I contacted HOZ for a review copy to which they gladly obliged. I read it on a weekend while stuck at Minneapolis airport and those 7-8 hours were spent reading this book cover to cover. I was thoroughly entranced by it and I think Luke is going to be another British phenomenon like a certain editor-turned fantasy writer nearly seven years ago.
The story begins with a prologue event that is mentioned in the story rather scarcely but plays a very important role in the eventual build-up of the story and its main plot points. We are introduced to Davarus Cole, self-thought hero, fledgling revolutionary and a narcissistic fool all rolled into one. Davarus believes himself to be a hero destined for greatness as was his father Ilarius Cole and he has a special dagger to fulfill his destiny as well. Brodar Kayne is a barbarian from the High Fangs in the North fleeing his homeland for reasons revealed later in the story. He’s a formidable swordsman that is accompanied by a surly twin-axed warrior who goes by Jerek the Wolf. Both these Northmen are reputed warriors and will soon be caught up in destiny’s claws. Yllandris is a sorceress and concubine to Magnar, king of the High Fangs whose hunger for power will see her scale all opposition both mental and magical.
Then there’s Eremul the legless wizard who’s cruelly but rather aptly titled Half-mage. He resides in Dorminia trying to live as decent a life possible given his circumstances. Few know of the hatred that powers him and fewer still know his true intentions. Then there’s Barandas, Supreme Augmentor and Salazar’s most trusted warrior who lives as honorable a life possible among scum and is the lone lotus in a pool of mud. Lastly there is Sasha who is from the same group that Davarus belongs to but is more devious than Davarus will ever be. There are a few other characters that are given the spotlight in minor amounts but this is the main character cast. Lastly there’s the world itself, which bears explanation, as its also equally vital as one the POV characters.
Here’s the gist of the magic system and the world history. Precisely five hundred years ago, a score of wizards invaded the realm of the Gods and tried to defeat them. Amid this brazen attempt only thirty-odd returned and were heralded as MageLords who supplanted the godly pantheon they themselves had killed. This Deicide shifted the power onto the humans elevating them to a completely different evolutionary level however the world fell apart in the process and the divine magic is also slowly being depleted. These MageLords fight among themselves to hoard more power and therefore the known world is constantly in a state of flux. Chief to the story are Salazar the ruler of Dorminia, The White Lady of the City Of Spires and Mithradates the Shaman of the High Fangs, there are others who merit a brief mention but do not come into play in this volume. The main reason for the war between these mages is over the hoarding of crystals that serve as repositories of wild magic.
This is the primary setting of the story and was the biggest draw of the storyline for me. This crumbling world wherein Deicide (I don’t know why but I like that word a lot) occurred and now the Age of Ruin is ascendant, is like manna for world-building geeks. It partly reminded me of the world showcased in the Godslayer Chronicles by James Clemens and like Clemens; Luke Scull gives his own slant to a world wherein the Gods are dead at the hands of their creations. Secondly the characterization is pretty top notch, even though the author uses fantasy stereotypical characters such as aging barbarian, disgruntled low-level mage, handsome fool, and devoted warrior fighting for the wrong cause. He makes these characters their own and while we might find their facsimiles in previous books by fantasy legends such as David Gemmell, Glen Cook & Joe Abercrombie, these characters aren’t diminished in any way by such comparisons. With a rather large character cast, the author competently handles all his characters and gives different viewpoints in the various happening of the story.
The characters are what make this story irresistible as we are given access to characters across the moral spectrum, most of them are grey to begin with but it is even more fun to read about character conflict and moral underpinnings with characters such as Barandas, Eremul, Yllandrius and Brodar Kayne. The author gives us tremendous insight into their thoughts and not to mention several large doses of snarky humor and witty dialogue. This will be the point that will remind a lot of readers of Joe Abercrombie and to a lesser extent even Scott Lynch. Not to repeat comparisons from previous reviews but it’s very easy to say if you like J. Abercrombie's or S. Lynch’s work then this title is a shoo-in for you. That’s no knock on Luke’s writing and plotting skills but a genuine compliment that his debut is refreshing enough to offer his own twists on things while adhering to regular fantasy tropes. Lastly the pace of the book and plot twists definitely aid in the read as the reader is constantly switched from POV characters as well location to give us a panoramic feel to the story. The climax while being as complete as the first volume of a trilogy can be offers enough crumbs to entice the reader for the next volumes.
I didn’t think that there were any negatives to this debut however on an objective note, people tired of gritty storylines and morally grey characters will not find anything to alter their opinions here. Secondly while the author goes for a very grim outlook in his dialogue, some of it just comes across as awkward at a few instances. While this point is certainly subjective for readers, I felt that this could be overlooked as a minor debutante foible. Lastly this debut is very characteristic of “grimdark fantasy” so be forewarned before picking up this debut. However for those thinking on giving this one a pass, know that you would be missing out on one of the best debuts of this year for sure.
CONCLUSION: Luke Scull delivers a fantastic story that is ripe with action, strong characterization and a tight plot. This debut novel will have most readers turning pages as quickly as possible and leave them eager for the sequels. The Grim Company is truly an EPIC fantasy debut that shows all the characteristic strengths of the genre whilst managing to avoid almost all its pitfalls. This is one debut not to be missed and marks Luke Scull as one of epic fantasy’s talented debutants.
The story begins with a prologue event that is mentioned in the story rather scarcely but plays a very important role in the eventual build-up of the story and its main plot points. We are introduced to Davarus Cole, self-thought hero, fledgling revolutionary and a narcissistic fool all rolled into one. Davarus believes himself to be a hero destined for greatness as was his father Ilarius Cole and he has a special dagger to fulfill his destiny as well. Brodar Kayne is a barbarian from the High Fangs in the North fleeing his homeland for reasons revealed later in the story. He’s a formidable swordsman that is accompanied by a surly twin-axed warrior who goes by Jerek the Wolf. Both these Northmen are reputed warriors and will soon be caught up in destiny’s claws. Yllandris is a sorceress and concubine to Magnar, king of the High Fangs whose hunger for power will see her scale all opposition both mental and magical.
Then there’s Eremul the legless wizard who’s cruelly but rather aptly titled Half-mage. He resides in Dorminia trying to live as decent a life possible given his circumstances. Few know of the hatred that powers him and fewer still know his true intentions. Then there’s Barandas, Supreme Augmentor and Salazar’s most trusted warrior who lives as honorable a life possible among scum and is the lone lotus in a pool of mud. Lastly there is Sasha who is from the same group that Davarus belongs to but is more devious than Davarus will ever be. There are a few other characters that are given the spotlight in minor amounts but this is the main character cast. Lastly there’s the world itself, which bears explanation, as its also equally vital as one the POV characters.
Here’s the gist of the magic system and the world history. Precisely five hundred years ago, a score of wizards invaded the realm of the Gods and tried to defeat them. Amid this brazen attempt only thirty-odd returned and were heralded as MageLords who supplanted the godly pantheon they themselves had killed. This Deicide shifted the power onto the humans elevating them to a completely different evolutionary level however the world fell apart in the process and the divine magic is also slowly being depleted. These MageLords fight among themselves to hoard more power and therefore the known world is constantly in a state of flux. Chief to the story are Salazar the ruler of Dorminia, The White Lady of the City Of Spires and Mithradates the Shaman of the High Fangs, there are others who merit a brief mention but do not come into play in this volume. The main reason for the war between these mages is over the hoarding of crystals that serve as repositories of wild magic.
This is the primary setting of the story and was the biggest draw of the storyline for me. This crumbling world wherein Deicide (I don’t know why but I like that word a lot) occurred and now the Age of Ruin is ascendant, is like manna for world-building geeks. It partly reminded me of the world showcased in the Godslayer Chronicles by James Clemens and like Clemens; Luke Scull gives his own slant to a world wherein the Gods are dead at the hands of their creations. Secondly the characterization is pretty top notch, even though the author uses fantasy stereotypical characters such as aging barbarian, disgruntled low-level mage, handsome fool, and devoted warrior fighting for the wrong cause. He makes these characters their own and while we might find their facsimiles in previous books by fantasy legends such as David Gemmell, Glen Cook & Joe Abercrombie, these characters aren’t diminished in any way by such comparisons. With a rather large character cast, the author competently handles all his characters and gives different viewpoints in the various happening of the story.
The characters are what make this story irresistible as we are given access to characters across the moral spectrum, most of them are grey to begin with but it is even more fun to read about character conflict and moral underpinnings with characters such as Barandas, Eremul, Yllandrius and Brodar Kayne. The author gives us tremendous insight into their thoughts and not to mention several large doses of snarky humor and witty dialogue. This will be the point that will remind a lot of readers of Joe Abercrombie and to a lesser extent even Scott Lynch. Not to repeat comparisons from previous reviews but it’s very easy to say if you like J. Abercrombie's or S. Lynch’s work then this title is a shoo-in for you. That’s no knock on Luke’s writing and plotting skills but a genuine compliment that his debut is refreshing enough to offer his own twists on things while adhering to regular fantasy tropes. Lastly the pace of the book and plot twists definitely aid in the read as the reader is constantly switched from POV characters as well location to give us a panoramic feel to the story. The climax while being as complete as the first volume of a trilogy can be offers enough crumbs to entice the reader for the next volumes.
I didn’t think that there were any negatives to this debut however on an objective note, people tired of gritty storylines and morally grey characters will not find anything to alter their opinions here. Secondly while the author goes for a very grim outlook in his dialogue, some of it just comes across as awkward at a few instances. While this point is certainly subjective for readers, I felt that this could be overlooked as a minor debutante foible. Lastly this debut is very characteristic of “grimdark fantasy” so be forewarned before picking up this debut. However for those thinking on giving this one a pass, know that you would be missing out on one of the best debuts of this year for sure.
CONCLUSION: Luke Scull delivers a fantastic story that is ripe with action, strong characterization and a tight plot. This debut novel will have most readers turning pages as quickly as possible and leave them eager for the sequels. The Grim Company is truly an EPIC fantasy debut that shows all the characteristic strengths of the genre whilst managing to avoid almost all its pitfalls. This is one debut not to be missed and marks Luke Scull as one of epic fantasy’s talented debutants.
NOTE: The Trine art piece done by Larry Rostant and image courtesy of Parmenion Books.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
