Recently Read: 2009

Sunday, November 8, 2009

Lord of the Silent Kingdom

Well, the Black Company it ain't. Glen Cook gained wide praise for his Black Company series of novels, largely because they were seen as something new in the fantasy genre because of their focus on common soldiers and not heroic warriors chosen by destiny. I'm not entirely convinced that such a focus was entirely novel, but nonetheless that focus is what Cook has become known for. The Tyranny of the Night, and Lord of the Silent Kingdom depart from that formula, and do so with-- at least as far as I'm concerned-- disastrous results. The setting is a thinly veiled (very very very thinly veiled) representation of late-Medieval Europe. The plot, as it affects the characters, is lost in a morass of complicated political and religious machinations that are hard to follow and truly test the patience of the reader. Ultimately, I lost patience. I slogged my way through both books and was glad to finish. If there is a third book in the series I don't know if I will have the willpower to read it. (Though I am somewhat curious to see what happens to the characters...). Too much exposition. Too many minor characters introduced in great detail for no apparent reason. Just TOO MUCH. And don't get me started on the Deus Ex Machina that is casually thrown in halfway through Book 2. All in all, I do not recommend.