Skirting the Volcano
Brian from Irish Imbas
Well … shite!Unfortunately, I’ll have to start this month’s newsletter with an apology. The last four or five months have seen elements of my newsletter list fail at a time when I was too preoccupied to notice. As a result, many people who subscribed never actually ended up on the list. Hopefully, that should provide some context if you’re reading this, wondering who the hell I am, and why I’m assaulting your inbox. Needless to say, there’s an ‘unsubscribe’ button at the bottom of this newsletter for anyone with second thoughts. Otherwise, fáilte romhat! And welcome to Vóg. On the Home FrontWe’re just back from a few days up on the family farm in Taranaki. We took a plane back (probably the last one we’ll take for a very long time) but it was only as we were skirting the volcano and I was sitting back in my seat, that I realised how truly exhausted I was. During those four days, I’d spent much of my time weeding and maintaining the saplings of koromiko, hibi, kōwhai, and kōhūhū we’d planted on the hills around pond on an isolated section of the land. I guess the extended effort had taken its toll.
We originally planted about 1200 saplings two years back, the aim being to increase the number of native plants on the land and, from that, to increase the local biodiversity. Before K’s family bought the land, it’d been a dairy farm where huge swathes of forest and woodland were cleared and replaced by monocultural pasture for the cows. Over-intensively worked, the land had become almost sterile and most of the native plants and wildlife had disappeared. I’ve since been back twice to clear the saplings of some savagely competing weeds and set stakes to support those that need them until they’re big enough to survive on their own. Because of the terrain and the growth, its slow, hard work. I only managed to clear about 200 this time around, although I did stake another fifty or so. Instead of thinking about the ones we’ve lost (about 5-8%) or the ones I didn’t manage to get to, I try to focus on the potential of the survivors. This time next year, they’ll have had three years in the ground and more experienced people tell me this is when they’re finally big enough to draw native birdlife for food and shelter. Needless to say, I’m looking forward to that. At the same time, it amuses me to think that, even though my bones aren’t buried in this land (K’s are, of course), these aren’t the trees I grew up with and whose cultural stories I’m familiar with, they’ll probably still be in the ground long after I end up under it.
In ProductionLiath Luachra: The Quiet One I lost three weeks this month to other priorities so Liath Luachra: The Quiet One hasn’t advanced as much as planned. That said, the first three chapters were dispatched to Madame Blackwing for editing and the resulting changes have already been implemented. I’m also working my way through Chapters 4 and 5 at present. Hopefully they’ll have been dispatched for editing as well by the end of April. Given, the book isn’t as advanced as I want, I’m still a bit reluctant to give too much away as yet, but here’s a brief update. I think I’ve already mentioned that it’s the sequel to Liath Luachra: The Great Wild (the first book in The Warrior Path Series). In terms of timeline, it starts about fifty-seven days after the events in the first book with Liath Luachra leaving the cave and the valley which had served as her sanctuary for much of the first novel. Driven to travel more by instinct than intent, she starts to suffer from delayed trauma but is obliged to put that to one side when she encounters and saves a group of women in the wilderness. From there, she gets railroaded into helping deliver a young boy to his betrothed in a distant territory and becomes caught up in the violence of an inter-tribal blood feud. Unlike the first book, where Liath Luachra lives a very ‘Robinson Crusoe-like’ existence, in this book she’s surrounded by people - something she’s never particularly comfortable with. That does mean far more dialogue than in the first book, but there is a reason it’s called ‘The Quiet One’. As with the later Liath Luachra books, there’s plenty of tension-filled travel, action and mystery in The Great Wild - the wilderness that’s ancient Ireland. What you may not have seen for a while however, is that this Liath Luachra is younger, more vulnerable and less experienced than in the later stories. As a result, she’s far less confident and even more standoffish. I’ve been playing around with some video representations of the character that I’m hoping - time permitting - to release around the same time as the book. Here’s what Liath Luachra looks like in those.  Obviously, a very different look to the character in the ‘FIONN mac Cumhaill Series’, or even the ‘Irish Woman Warrior Series’. I cover the development of Liath Luachra’s character for this book some more in the paid section of the newsletter (under the article ‘Black Phoenix’). Beara: Cry of the Banshee - Part OneFamily events last year, meant the Beara manuscript had to be dropped into the ‘stalled projects’ drawer for safekeeping, but it will emerge again later this month. At this stage, the first draft is about 75% complete. My hope is to finish it over the next few months so that it’s ready for release within two months of whenever the Liath Luachra book drops. Here’s the visual model I’m currently using for Mos, the key protagonist in the Beara Series.
I can’t really say much about Mos as I don’t want to give anything away for those who haven’t read the first books but I will delve into the story behind this project in next month’s newsletter. Blackwing -A Review Ed McDonald is a UK-based fantasy author who first came to prominence back in 2017 with ‘Blackwing’ (no relation to Madame Blackwing) – his first novel and the first in a trilogy of books known as ‘The Raven’s Mark Trilogy’.
I think McDonald was a newcomer on the scene back when I first hung out with fantasy writers online (this was following FIONN: Defence of Rath Bládhma’s success in the 2016 SPFBO competition). As there were no actual Irish writers in that group (there were a few ‘Celtic fantasy’ writers but I stayed clear of them) and my own interest no longer really lay in that direction, I dropped out of contact with most of them. As a result, I never really heard about the 2019 ruckus when two fantasy wackjobs tried to destroy McDonald online until late last year. Still, that did prompt me to finally get onto his book. Anyway, the back cover blurb reads as follows:
So, let’s face it. It’s pretty clear from the get-go which genre you’re in. The world in which Blackwing takes place is a bleak and turbulent one. After years of a long-standing magical war between the Deep Kings and the Nameless Ones (they’re not really explained, just run with it), a large segment of the land is scarred as a result of by one particular conflict; The Misery. The story jumpstarts excitingly enough with Galharrow – a ‘Blackwing’ responsible for patrolling the Misery - leading a company through that warped wasteland to capture two fugitives. After several days of pursuit in that terrifying piece of ground, Galharrow and his men are understandably stretched and nervous. Once the pursuit is completed, albeit not in the manner they’d have preferred, Galharrow is contacted by Crowfoot – one of the previously mentioned Nameless Ones – and ordered to proceed to Station 12. Galharrow, bound to Crowfoot for reasons never really explained, must obey him, even when his orders are unclear or dangerous. At frontier outpost Station 12, which holds one of the Engines – mystical/scientific machines used as a defence against the Misery and its inhabitants – Galharrow encounters noblewoman (and mysterious old flame) Lady Ezabeth Tanza. Before he really has a chance to get to talk to her, the fort is attacked by a group of drudge (think orc-like creatures who use to be human but who now inhabit the Misery) and its only thanks to Tanza that they survive. From there, Galharrow is drawn into a mission that quickly escalates into something far more complex and dangerous. As he investigates, he encounters monstrous creatures, political intrigue, and remnants of ancient magic that defy understanding. The deeper he goes, the more he uncovers about the fragile balance holding the world together—and how easily it could collapse. So, Is it any Good? The city also has its fair share of creatures sent in from the Misery. These include ‘Brides’, creatures in female form who draw humans in through seduction and sex and gradually convert them to the Deep Kings’ cause. These are particularly horrific as they then encourage their victims to bring their family, children, and friends so that they, too, can be converted. The more people the ‘Bride seduces and converts, the more obese they become. As a result, their size is a good indicator of how successful they’ve been. Overall, I felt the novel was an effective grimdark fantasy with just enough horror elements to give the story a unique resonance. The stakes feel high, not just on a personal level for Galharrow, but on a world-altering scale, which keeps the interest up. McDonald also inserts a number of very effective, well-created ‘twists’ that raise the quality of the narrative above most of the genre. The Not-So Good Parts For me, Blackwing’s main weakness, is its protagonist. Ryhalt Galharrow feels very much like it came from a tick-list of the boilerplate grimdark flawed hero template; cynical, often drunk, burdened by guilt, emotionally scarred etc, etc. but also a hero when the need requires. At times, Galharrow’s cursing, pejorative-filled narration feels forced and unrealistic. Occasionally, while reading it, it would bring to mind the image of a child trying out new curse words for the first time. As a result, some of the crucial emotional moments never landed as strongly as they should have. That said, these are pretty minor details. In Conclusion: Overall, Blackwing is an entertaining and atmospheric novel that ticks all the boxes for lovers of grimdark fantasy. If you’re into high fantasy or romantic fantasy however, this probably won’t appeal to you. The plot rattles along at a fair clip. There’s action, mystery, and enough twists to make you mutter “ah, right” under your breath more than once. It’s grim without being miserable, has the occasional dash of gallows humour, and it’s packed with enough intrigue to keep you hooked. If you like your fantasy with a bit of grit, then this is recommended. The EndThat’s March 2026 done for me. This month’s paid section includes:
Next month in the paid section, I’ll be doing a video/image tour of the Beara Peninsula and running you through the areas and mythological elements that form part of the next Beara book. Until then … Slán go fóill! Brian
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