Peter V. Brett, HarperCollins Voyager, September 2008
A great man once stated that 99% of everything is crud, and this is as true of dark fantasy as anything else. I know, because I seem to have been unfortunate enough to have read most of that crud during my teens, which in turn put me off reading fantasy altogether for a good fifteen years, until someone (to whom I will be forever grateful) suggested that I read China MÃeville’s magnificent Perdido Street Station. So I began reading fantasy again, finding still a great deal of crud out there, but also the occasional gem (such as Alan Campbell’s Scar Night) to buoy my faith in the genre.
Well, you may now consider my faith in dark fantasy completely restored. The Painted Man, the much-hyped forthcoming release from HarperCollins’ Voyager imprint, is an absolute masterpiece.
Three centuries prior to the beginning of this tale, a plague of demons rose from the earth to smite mankind, and now the survivors exist in increasingly-depopulated hamlets and cities, keeping in touch with other communities via messengers who brave the demon haunted wastes between. Only the wards – ancient symbols of power – keep the demons at bay as they rise each and every night from the Core, seeking human prey. Eleven-year-old Arlen lives with his parents on their farm near the hamlet of Tibbet’s Brook, hiding behind the wards as he has done his whole life. However, when Arlen’s world suddenly falls to a demon attack, he realises it is fear rather than the demons which cripples humanity. He knows there is more to the world than he has been told – but can he risk leaving the safety of the wards to find it?
The Painted Man invokes a distinctly post-apocalyptic atmosphere more often found in science-fiction or survival horror than dark fantasy. The story appears to take place in our own future (although this is never stated implicitly) where science has fallen in the wake of the demon plague, and surviving humans live a semi-feudal existence, protected (barely) by pseudoscientific magic. The fairly non-traditional setting was a big plus for me (again, too many bad Tolkien pastiches read as a teenager), as was the fact that – far from allowing the reader time to settle into the world of the novel - the author kicks off the action from the first page, leaving the reader to catch up. The plot is rich and detailed, with sufficient twists and turns to keep things interesting; the themes tackled – religion vs science, sexual inequality, the abuse of power, etc – while familiar, are largely approached from fresh perspectives; the characters are well fleshed-out and intriguingly flawed; the world-building is fresh and exciting, with sufficient detail both revealed and hidden to make for a satisfying read; and while the conclusion of at least one of the subplots becomes clear well before the end, the conclusion to the novel itself sets up a host of new questions and subplots guaranteed to draw the reader into the second book of the trilogy.
For me, the novel was literally ‘unputdownable’, and certainly deserves to be the next Big Thing in dark fantasy. I can only hope my patience holds out until the second book of the trilogy becomes available.
A great man once stated that 99% of everything is crud, and this is as true of dark fantasy as anything else. I know, because I seem to have been unfortunate enough to have read most of that crud during my teens, which in turn put me off reading fantasy altogether for a good fifteen years, until someone (to whom I will be forever grateful) suggested that I read China MÃeville’s magnificent Perdido Street Station. So I began reading fantasy again, finding still a great deal of crud out there, but also the occasional gem (such as Alan Campbell’s Scar Night) to buoy my faith in the genre.
Well, you may now consider my faith in dark fantasy completely restored. The Painted Man, the much-hyped forthcoming release from HarperCollins’ Voyager imprint, is an absolute masterpiece.
Three centuries prior to the beginning of this tale, a plague of demons rose from the earth to smite mankind, and now the survivors exist in increasingly-depopulated hamlets and cities, keeping in touch with other communities via messengers who brave the demon haunted wastes between. Only the wards – ancient symbols of power – keep the demons at bay as they rise each and every night from the Core, seeking human prey. Eleven-year-old Arlen lives with his parents on their farm near the hamlet of Tibbet’s Brook, hiding behind the wards as he has done his whole life. However, when Arlen’s world suddenly falls to a demon attack, he realises it is fear rather than the demons which cripples humanity. He knows there is more to the world than he has been told – but can he risk leaving the safety of the wards to find it?
The Painted Man invokes a distinctly post-apocalyptic atmosphere more often found in science-fiction or survival horror than dark fantasy. The story appears to take place in our own future (although this is never stated implicitly) where science has fallen in the wake of the demon plague, and surviving humans live a semi-feudal existence, protected (barely) by pseudoscientific magic. The fairly non-traditional setting was a big plus for me (again, too many bad Tolkien pastiches read as a teenager), as was the fact that – far from allowing the reader time to settle into the world of the novel - the author kicks off the action from the first page, leaving the reader to catch up. The plot is rich and detailed, with sufficient twists and turns to keep things interesting; the themes tackled – religion vs science, sexual inequality, the abuse of power, etc – while familiar, are largely approached from fresh perspectives; the characters are well fleshed-out and intriguingly flawed; the world-building is fresh and exciting, with sufficient detail both revealed and hidden to make for a satisfying read; and while the conclusion of at least one of the subplots becomes clear well before the end, the conclusion to the novel itself sets up a host of new questions and subplots guaranteed to draw the reader into the second book of the trilogy.
For me, the novel was literally ‘unputdownable’, and certainly deserves to be the next Big Thing in dark fantasy. I can only hope my patience holds out until the second book of the trilogy becomes available.
One final word: with so many genre titles pitched simultaneously to both adult and young adult markets these days (Harry Potter, Twilight, etc), it’s worth noting that The Painted Man is definitely not for youngsters. Aside from the atmosphere of horror that dominates the novel from beginning to end, there are extremely strong adult themes throughout – sex, rape and incest, to name a few – not to mention some fairly graphic descriptions of violence and gore. I loved it. Kiddies may not. So buy a copy now to give them when they turn eighteen.
1 comments:
I couldn't agree with you more, the book was incredible! I finished it in three days and I've been reading Erikson, Jordan and Bakker again just to pass the time until The Desert Spear. It's great to see that the book is getting the attention it deserves. I also posted my own review @ davebrendon.wordpress.com.
Cheers
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