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ALBEDO ONE REVIEWS |
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Albedo One's issue 38 |
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As shown on the back cover, this story is “a slam-bang action fantasy”. This description is only partly correct – it is slam-bang action but the fantasy was rather weak and vague. This book is only for readers who like simplistic war stories. Most fantasy readers will go away distinctly unsatisfied. The story is set in the semi-imaginary world of Zoorland, the capital of which is Byzantium. The land is dominated by a religious theocracy which combines the worst features of the Inquisition and the Nazis with a military priesthood that encourages insane and useless self sacrifice from a particularly stupid population. The main character is Simon Rosencreutz, an intellectual and a conscripted soldier who has many difficult relationships with his other officers, mostly because they are mad, manipulative, brutal or all three. He is quickly shown to be just as ruthless and brutal by his summary execution of a fellow soldier in front of an uninterested superior without any penalty or consequences. Rosencreutz soon finds himself in Byzantium and, sensibly, wishes to escape from the entire society. He finds a number of attractive women who are interested in him, particularly Euzenie. He also befriends an artist, Kokoshka, who espouses the Brutalist style of art which always destroys any signs of beauty. Together Rosencreutz and Kokoshka adopt a cynical and hypocritical louche lifestyle. The story follows predictable lines as Rosencreutz’s situation becomes steadily more dire, due to the intrigues of his boss and the theocracy. At what must be the worst possible moment he prepares to escape but it is not easy, as you would expect of a slam-bang action fantasy. Due to the violence and sex, it is definitely not a story for children or teenagers. All the characters are simplistic, one-dimensional and obvious in their motivation. The few women are described as very beautiful, with virtually no other purpose than to be a foil for Rosencreutz. The men are based on a random selection of stereotypes taken from the Russian and English military and religious extremists. This mix of stock character types is quite odd due to the juxtaposition of Russian and English stereotypes. Rosencreutz’s background is described in some detail to justify his desire to escape, but, there really is no need for such justification – any sane person would want to escape this strange society. However, there is no believable explanation for his extremes of violence other than a difficult childhood. In any event, none of this background encourages any sympathy for his extreme violence. The storyline could as easily be seen as a pre World War I adventure set in Russia with a peculiar religion thrown in. There was no real attempt at fantasy, either as an immersive world or as the basis for a complex and interesting story line. One of the good features of the story is the accuracy of the descriptions of the weapons and explosives with detailed description of the destruction caused by them. It would appear that the author has either personal experience or has extensively studied the subject. The plot is based on “Overcoming the Monster” (see The Seven Basic Plots by Christopher Booker for more details) in that the world of Byzantium is the monster and the hero overcomes it only metaphorically by escaping it. I give it the following Awards, all out of five:
To summarise, a great book if you like action and violence but not a book for fantasy readers, nor for anyone seeking depth or development of the characters. Escape from Byzantium (2009) Review by Wayne J. Harris |
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