Wednesday, January 21, 2004
Moonheart - Charles de Lint
I have been meaning to read a Charles de Lint book for some time. I am conscious of the fact that I should read more outside of the high/quest fantasy genre. de Lint was an author I knew wrote urban fantasy? magic realism? (have actually found a reference calling it elfpunk) whatever you wish to call it, so I thought I would give him a try.
My initial feeling in finishing the book was one of disappointment; there was not one character that left the page to become real. The depth of character that makes me fall in love with a book was missing.
The book is a mixture of Celtic and American Indian myth set in Canada (as an aside what are the indigenous Canadians called?), and well as the magical Otherworld. The main character, Sara, is born into a wealthy family, but doesn't care about money (she has no need to) and works in an antique shop while trying to write a novel. Her life changes when she finds a dusty pouch containing what seem to be ordinary items. Of course they are not and she is led into the Otherworld where magic and mystical beings still survive, drawing parallels between the Celtic elves and American Indian manitous. These mythical beings are losing power and dying off as belief in them fades. The story ends up straddling both worlds, with police from our world investigating the increasingly bizarre phenomenon that surounds the characters and the house they inhabit. There is the obligatory struggle between good and evil, and for quite a while you are left to guess the true nature of the evil they face. The climax was actually the most satisfying part of the book, the tension does build well and I think that if I had been able to identify with even one character I might be raving about Moonheart.
It was written in early 80s, so some of the time references were off-putting, not something I am used to in fantasy.
The writing was also nothing special, which was disappointing. High fantasy gets quite a lot of criticism about the standard of writing involved and the cliches used (some more deserved than others), but this book was at best average in comparison. I am not saying that the writing was bad, it was indeed adequate, but nothing to write home about. There were some flaws - man lighting another cigarette when he has just lit one. Nothing major, but it grates. There was also some confusing switches of viewpoint. I often had to backtrack to see who was talking. The clues were always there, but not at all obvious, and when I am reading I often miss small details. I think that viewpoint changes should be broken with chapters or at least * * * *, and the POV character quickly identified.
I will definitely have to try one of his newer novels before I decide that I don?t like him though.
Also to be taken into consideration is my bias towards fantasy worlds based loosely on medieval Europe. Bows and arrows, swords and sorcery are definitely my thing.
I am currently reading 'A Harpy's Flight' by Megan Lindholm (aka Robin Hobb) and debating whether the F&SF stories I read deserve reviewing. I am also too tired to be bothered making sure this post reads well, so if there are some blatant errors you can blame a day at the cricket and a Metallica concert.
My initial feeling in finishing the book was one of disappointment; there was not one character that left the page to become real. The depth of character that makes me fall in love with a book was missing.
The book is a mixture of Celtic and American Indian myth set in Canada (as an aside what are the indigenous Canadians called?), and well as the magical Otherworld. The main character, Sara, is born into a wealthy family, but doesn't care about money (she has no need to) and works in an antique shop while trying to write a novel. Her life changes when she finds a dusty pouch containing what seem to be ordinary items. Of course they are not and she is led into the Otherworld where magic and mystical beings still survive, drawing parallels between the Celtic elves and American Indian manitous. These mythical beings are losing power and dying off as belief in them fades. The story ends up straddling both worlds, with police from our world investigating the increasingly bizarre phenomenon that surounds the characters and the house they inhabit. There is the obligatory struggle between good and evil, and for quite a while you are left to guess the true nature of the evil they face. The climax was actually the most satisfying part of the book, the tension does build well and I think that if I had been able to identify with even one character I might be raving about Moonheart.
It was written in early 80s, so some of the time references were off-putting, not something I am used to in fantasy.
The writing was also nothing special, which was disappointing. High fantasy gets quite a lot of criticism about the standard of writing involved and the cliches used (some more deserved than others), but this book was at best average in comparison. I am not saying that the writing was bad, it was indeed adequate, but nothing to write home about. There were some flaws - man lighting another cigarette when he has just lit one. Nothing major, but it grates. There was also some confusing switches of viewpoint. I often had to backtrack to see who was talking. The clues were always there, but not at all obvious, and when I am reading I often miss small details. I think that viewpoint changes should be broken with chapters or at least * * * *, and the POV character quickly identified.
I will definitely have to try one of his newer novels before I decide that I don?t like him though.
Also to be taken into consideration is my bias towards fantasy worlds based loosely on medieval Europe. Bows and arrows, swords and sorcery are definitely my thing.
I am currently reading 'A Harpy's Flight' by Megan Lindholm (aka Robin Hobb) and debating whether the F&SF stories I read deserve reviewing. I am also too tired to be bothered making sure this post reads well, so if there are some blatant errors you can blame a day at the cricket and a Metallica concert.
