Review: _Lord of Castle Black_, Brust
Kate Nepveu
Steven Brust's _The Lord of Castle Black_ is, I can now say, the
second part of the longer work _The Viscount of Adrilankha_, rather
than the second book in a trilogy. Why can I now say this? Because in
the Preface, Paarfi (our historian narrator) informs us that "As for
the entire question of splitting the book into several volumes, the
author will not pretend to more knowledge than he has; if it is the
custom of those who publish such works to make such mutilations, for
whatever reason, then so be it. Nevertheless, it *is* a single work,
and the suggestions that there may be some who possess only a part of
it strikes the author as creating an intolerable situation for the
reader." [*] (The *reader*, note.)
[*] My current copy is an advance uncorrected proof; I will compare
quotes with the published version when I get it, just to make sure.
Paarfi, in his inimitable style, goes on to explain at length why he
abhors the idea of writing a summary of the previous volume; however,
since his publishers haven't listened to him, well, here it is.
I've missed Paarfi.
I've also missed our friends, the protagonists of this series (I've
spent enough time with them, over the four thick volumes to date, that
I do think of them this way). When we left them at the end of _Paths_,
Zerika had brought the Orb out of the Paths, but most of the
characters were scattered. The titles of the two books comprising this
volume summarize the general plot arc admirably: "In Which the Forces
Are Brought Together That Lead Up to the Ninth (or Tenth) Battle of
Dzur Mountain," and "In Which the Ninth (or Tenth) Battle of Dzur
Mountain Is Fought, With Some Discussion of Its Results."
Battles of Dzur Mountain or no, the characters don't get lost in the
shuffle. As the title of this volume suggests, we see a considerable
amount of Morrolan's development in this volume, which seems largely
consistent with what we know from the Vlad books (lest readers
unfamiliar with the series think I'm accusing Brust of being prone to
inconsistency--not in the least. It's *Paarfi* (and Vlad, for that
matter) whose accuracy is often open to question.). I shall
particularly treasure the chapter where he goes to Dzur Mountain
seeking tribute; that neither Morrolan nor Sethra would have told
Paarfi the details of this, makes it no less amusing.
Speaking of titular characters, unexpected developments are afoot for
Piro, the Viscount of Adrilankha, and his friends; I look forward to
seeing how these play out in the final volume, _Sethra Lavode_
(undergoing revisions as of July 17, 2003, according to the author's
no-permalinks web log <http://www.dreamcafe.com/weblog.cgi>). And
there appear a number of characters from Khaavren books prior to
_Paths_, or from the Vlad books, whose presences are certain to
provoke much speculation. The four characters who began the series,
Khaavren, Aerich, Tazendra, and Pel, are not neglected, as they all
meet again for the first time in hundreds of years, with results that
I shall leave it to you to read about. I must, however, note that I
remain very fond of Tazendra and am always pleased when she gets a
good moment; she has several in this volume.
[ Speaking of Khaavren, I am unable to resist quoting this bit of
dialogue, which made me laugh out loud:
"They spoke of us."
"Did they?" said Khaavren. "I am not startled. I ought to have
noticed the back of my neck itching. My mother always said that if
the back of your neck itches, someone is speaking ill of you."
"Yes? I had not heard this. What if the back of your neck, rather
than itching, hurts?"
"That means someone has stuck a knife into your neck."
(I've elided the name of the second speaker; it's probably not a
spoiler, but I hesitated to say even as much about the plot as I have,
so . . . ) ]
The story moves along smoothly, and even during the period where the
forces are being brought together, it's quite clear where everyone is
and what everyone is doing; for someone as spatially disoriented as I,
that's saying something. And while we know that eventually the Empire
is restored, we know so little *else* about Dragaeran history
immediately after the Interregnum, that there's plenty of suspense as
to how we're going to get there. There are hints dropped at the end of
this volume that very different kinds of struggles may be at hand in
volume three; I'm not sure what's in store, but I'm very eager to find
out.
One final note. I don't know if the description at Amazon
<http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0312855826/> is the actual
jacket copy, but I like the start of it enough to quote it:
Journeys! Intrigues! Sword fights! Young persons having adventures!
Beloved older characters having adventures, too! Quests! Battles!
Romance! Snappy dialogue! Extravagant food! And the missing heir to
the Imperial Throne!
Yay, Brust.
_The Lord of Castle Black_ will be published in August. Go buy it when
it comes out.
--
Kate Nepveu
E-mail: kne...@steelypips.org
Home: http://www.steelypips.org/
Book log: http://www.steelypips.org/weblog/
Mike Schilling
"Kate Nepveu" <kne...@steelypips.org> wrote in message
news:o3blhv0754l38homt...@news.verizon.net...
>
> One final note. I don't know if the description at Amazon
> <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0312855826/> is the actual
> jacket copy, but I like the start of it enough to quote it:
>
> Journeys! Intrigues! Sword fights! Young persons having adventures!
> Beloved older characters having adventures, too! Quests! Battles!
> Romance! Snappy dialogue! Extravagant food! And the missing heir to
> the Imperial Throne!
Which makes me wonder (I often wonder; I was once told it is a sign of
intelligence) what Brust thinks of _The Princess Bride_.
Thomas Yan
-snip-
> [*] My current copy is an advance uncorrected proof; I will compare
> quotes with the published version when I get it, just to make sure.
-snip-
I hate you. Of course, I still haven't gotten around to finishing the
first book....
David Kennedy
> Journeys! Intrigues! Sword fights! Young persons having adventures!
> Beloved older characters having adventures, too! Quests! Battles!
> Romance! Snappy dialogue! Extravagant food! And the missing heir to
> the Imperial Throne!
I'd buy any book with cover copy that good... anyone know
when in August? Please?
--
David Kennedy
www.dkennedy.org
Konrad Gaertner
Supposedly August 1.
--KG
Kate Nepveu
He occasionally sticks his head in here, maybe he'll tell us.
Kate Nepveu
Hey, at least I waited until close to the release date to post this,
instead of back in mid-June . . .
Now you have time to finish the first and then dive right into this
one . . .
Thomas Yan
> Thomas Yan <tk...@rcn.com> wrote:
>>Kate Nepveu <kne...@steelypips.org> writes:
>
>>> [*] My current copy is an advance uncorrected proof; I will compare
>>> quotes with the published version when I get it, just to make sure.
>
>>I hate you. Of course, I still haven't gotten around to finishing the
>>first book....
>
> Hey, at least I waited until close to the release date to post this,
> instead of back in mid-June . . .
:)
> Now you have time to finish the first and then dive right into this
> one . . .
Heh.
how...@brazee.net
On 20-Jul-2003, Kate Nepveu <kne...@steelypips.org> wrote:
> the Preface, Paarfi (our historian narrator) informs us that
Aghghgh! More Paarfi!?!?!?! Please tell me no. Please tell me that
Brust has stopped playing and has started writing stuff I can read again.
Dorothy J Heydt
More Paarfi. If you don't like him, don't read him. There will
be more Vlad eventually, I'm sure.
Dorothy J. Heydt
Albany, California
djh...@kithrup.com
http://www.kithrup.com/~djheydt
Kate Nepveu
I could, but I'd be lying.
If it helps, the third volume of the current three-volume work is in
revisions right now, and while I can't say for sure that there's no
Paarfi in the immediate future, I'd be surprised given the
Dumas-pastiche nature.
And he can't leave Vlad hanging like that forever . . .
Mike Schilling
> how...@brazee.net wrote:
> >On 20-Jul-2003, Kate Nepveu <kne...@steelypips.org> wrote:
>
> >> the Preface, Paarfi (our historian narrator) informs us that
>
> >Aghghgh! More Paarfi!?!?!?! Please tell me no. Please tell me that
> >Brust has stopped playing and has started writing stuff I can read again.
>
> I could, but I'd be lying.
>
> If it helps, the third volume of the current three-volume work is in
> revisions right now, and while I can't say for sure that there's no
> Paarfi in the immediate future, I'd be surprised given the
> Dumas-pastiche nature.
There's a *lot* of Dumas left. :-)
Kate Nepveu
>"Kate Nepveu" <kne...@steelypips.org> wrote in message
>> If it helps, the third volume of the current three-volume work is in
>> revisions right now, and while I can't say for sure that there's no
>> Paarfi in the immediate future, I'd be surprised given the
>> Dumas-pastiche nature.
>There's a *lot* of Dumas left. :-)
Of the D'Artagnan books?
David Silberstein
Kate Nepveu <kne...@steelypips.org> wrote:
>
>And he can't leave Vlad hanging like that forever . . .
>
Vlad? Vlad is hale and healthy. He's got the most powerful Great
Weapon there is, and he's about to eat a delicious meal at Valabars.
Vlad is fine.
On the other hand, we know that there's a lot of stuff that still
needs to be told. *We* have been left hanging...
Mike Schilling
> "Mike Schilling" <mscotts...@hotmail.com> wrote:
> >"Kate Nepveu" <kne...@steelypips.org> wrote in message
>
> >> If it helps, the third volume of the current three-volume work is in
> >> revisions right now, and while I can't say for sure that there's no
> >> Paarfi in the immediate future, I'd be surprised given the
> >> Dumas-pastiche nature.
>
> >There's a *lot* of Dumas left. :-)
>
> Of the D'Artagnan books?
No more of them (except the spurious ones like the recently mentioned _Son
of Porthos_.) And it would take great courage to write another SF version
of _The Count of Monte Critso_. But if the muse so moves him, Paarfi-ized
version of _Chicot the Jester_, _Margaret of Valois_, _The Black Tulip_,
etc. are entirely feasible.
Konrad Gaertner
According to his weblog, he's currently working a on mystery novel.
--KG
David Dyer-Bennet
But there's a third Paarfi already in the pipeline that'll most likely
be out first.
Sorry, I like Paarfi.
--
David Dyer-Bennet, <dd...@dd-b.net>, <www.dd-b.net/dd-b/>
RKBA: <noguns-nomoney.com> <www.dd-b.net/carry/>
Photos: <dd-b.lighthunters.net> Snapshots: <www.dd-b.net/dd-b/SnapshotAlbum/>
Dragaera mailing lists: <dragaera.info/>
Steve Smoot
> > Aghghgh! More Paarfi!?!?!?! Please tell me no. Please tell me that
> > Brust has stopped playing and has started writing stuff I can read again.
> According to his weblog, he's currently working a on mystery novel.
Paarfi is? I didnt think he'd be the blogging type, whats the URL?
'course the myster will be 6000 pages long, and will have its solution
revealed in a footnote...while the narative focuses on the sort of things
Paarfi is really interested in.
(-;
-s
David Dyer-Bennet
The weblog is at <http://www.dreamcafe.com/weblog.cgi>.
I doubt the mystery novel is a Paarfi production; he says he's writing
it with a friend. (It's mentioned in the Sunday 22 June entry).
how...@brazee.net
On 23-Jul-2003, "Mike Schilling" <mscotts...@hotmail.com> wrote:
> And it would take great courage to write another SF version
> of _The Count of Monte Critso_.
Well, Brust's style would be very different from Bester's here.
how...@brazee.net
On 23-Jul-2003, David Dyer-Bennet <dd...@dd-b.net> wrote:
> But there's a third Paarfi already in the pipeline that'll most likely
> be out first.
>
> Sorry, I like Paarfi.
I liked one book, but a third of the way through the 2nd book I got burned
out. Too much of a good thing, and when you get burned out with Paarfi,
his prose becomes interminable.
Bradford Holden
The third Paarfi book, _The Paths of the Dead_, had a different feel to
me. The prose seemed, over all, more economical. In spots, I found the
usual extravagant, entertaining blithering one would hope, well, some of us
would hope. As it appeared less often, I found the Paarfi-speak jarring
on occasion.
So, you might find the book more readable. I would borrow a copy,
though....
--
Bradford Holden
"If God had meant us to have techology, he would have made us better at
writing software." C.M.R.
GCarr
"Bradford Holden" <hol...@oddjob.uchicago.edu> wrote in message
news:ilisprb...@oddjob.uchicago.edu...
> The third Paarfi book, _The Paths of the Dead_, had a different feel to
> me. The prose seemed, over all, more economical. In spots, I found the
> usual extravagant, entertaining blithering one would hope, well, some of
us
> would hope. As it appeared less often, I found the Paarfi-speak jarring
> on occasion.
Parts of it read like _Brokedown Palace_ to me in fact. Especailly the
scenes with the Coachman. How much you want to bet he's the same guy in
_Brokedown Palace_ and _The Gypsy_?
Gloria
how...@brazee.net
On 24-Jul-2003, Bradford Holden <hol...@oddjob.uchicago.edu> wrote:
> > I liked one book, but a third of the way through the 2nd book I got
> > burned
> > out. Too much of a good thing, and when you get burned out with
> > Paarfi,
> > his prose becomes interminable.
>
> The third Paarfi book, _The Paths of the Dead_, had a different feel to
> me. The prose seemed, over all, more economical. In spots, I found the
> usual extravagant, entertaining blithering one would hope, well, some of
> us
> would hope. As it appeared less often, I found the Paarfi-speak jarring
> on occasion.
Oops. It was his 3rd book that I only got 1/3 through. I'm filled up and
can't take another bite of this meal.