Customer Reviews

Age of Misrule (GollanczF.)

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After relocating to the UK for university, the first thing I did in the first free moment I had was to have a wander into Waterstones where I was fortunate enough to discover this trilogy. On a whim, as it looked interesting, I bought it, and I will say with pride and a bit of novel-obsessed geekiness, that this set of novels has changed my entire outlook on fantasy, as did Perdido Street Station (another wickedly amazing novel) years ago. I am not going to describe the plot, for fear that even the slightest spoiler might take away from the fantasia the reader is pulled into from the very start of these books, but I will say that it is an entrancing ride.

What pulled me in was the serpantine interlocking of myth, traditional fantasy, romance and modern day society. While Chadbourn does focus on Celtic mythology and mythology derived subjects, his command of everyday society and the dimensions of modern characters suddenly thrust into a world where everything, at first, is beyond their comprehension, is commendable to say the least. There is none of that epic awkwardness, no misplaced dialogue, or interactions between characters that is superfluous or underdeveloped. At the same time, his characters do not get lost in the plot of the trilogy- their own emotions and thoughts are not overshadowed by the storyline, yet work to shape it and evolve from start to finish. They are characters that you grow close to, in a story that you cannot help but find yourself absorbed in.

I absolutely reccommend this set of novels to anyone who enjoys fiction of a more trancendental nature- one that encompasses various time periods, myth, legend, contemporary and well developed characters, beautiful imagery, or, put simply very well written and satisfying fantasy.

Many thanks to Mark Chadbourn for writing one of the best sets of books I have read in ages.

Age Of Misrule was a big disappointment for me. I picked it up because it looked like something different and I knew it was set in the UK, and partly in my hometown too, so I was really curious. Sadly, it's just not very well written. The characters are under-developed and two-dimensional, they all speak the same way...the author's attempt to make one character different from the others is to make him say 'bleedin'' every second word. It's tedious.

I really, really wanted to love this book because it has some amazing ideas and it's a really ambitious concept...a little along the lines of American Gods. However, for me, Chadbourn fails where Gaiman succeeded. The plot is repetitive, lots of being unconscious then conscious oh, then unconscious again...lots of running in the rain, hiding, then some more running in the rain.

The author uses character dialogue to inform us of his wealth of knowledge regarding mythology in such a dry way that I felt I was being given a lesson not reading a novel on several occasions. It seems to read like a video game...the characters go from A to B collecting clues from minor characters along the way (it's all so easy), at one point they luckily find a gun and some ammunition just left around for them to take....

The author uses the same descriptive phrases over and over again and the text is loaded with exposition. How many times do you need to hear that a character feels 'strangely uneasy...' it really grated on me.

The novel just doesn't work for me. I was suprised that it wasn't his first novel as it reads like a first novel, it feels more amateur than professional...or maybe his editor just needs to be fired. I don't know. It's a shame.

I might give some of his other work a go but I can't recommend this one to anyone. I suggest you just read American Gods instead.