Customer Reviews

Where the Evil Dwells

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Are you kidding? I think some reviewers here were in a bad mood, or are just SF lovers who care nothing about fantasy. The book is great. It's well-written and creative, albeit the plot can be a bit obscure. Here it goes: Charles Harcourt is a guy whose childhood girlfriend was taken by evil creatures. His uncle returns from the Empty Lands, where evil fantastic creatures abide, claiming he heard about her. Alongside with Charles, travel a friend whose race is unkown, a cleric interested in finding an important relic and a misterious woman. The adventure is fast-moving. The only thing some may not like is that the author mixes fantasy with a historical background (Rome and the Church).
I am a fantasy fan and I consider this book to be great for fantasy lovers.
Forgive me for writing badly, english is not my natural language...

I've always found this to be one of Simak's most satisfying later efforts. It works on every level. First of all, the premise of a world where the Eastern and Western Roman Empire never split (because of a common, supernatural enemy) is fascinating. For that is what happened when the East and West were on the brink of schism in the 4th century- the Evil suddenly appeared and turned a former north eastern province into the Empty Lands. For centuries the legions fought a wavering battle with the hoards of the non human (ogres, trolls, goblins, harpies, dragons, banshees, fairies, gnomes, etc.) For over 1600 years the conflict endured between Empire and Evil with no clear victor. And while the Empty Lands lay occupied neither the barbarians of north or east could threaten Rome....

That is the world of the hero of the tale, Charles Harcourt, scion of a great house that has stood on the marches of the empty lands for centuries. One day Charles's long lost uncle staggers in from the Empty lands with news of a sacred relic- and of Charles's long lost love. From this point starts a classic tale of the hero's quest into a supernatural realm to win a boon for humankind against the Darkness, and to rescue a maiden from the heart of hell itself.

What makes this tale particularly enjoyable is Simak's nod to H.P. Lovecraft and the Cthulhu mythos with his incorporation of the Elder Ones.

Where Evil Dwells is an interesting, magical winding story for the imagination. It leads you down many paths of mystery and magic. Those who are true fantasy lovers will love this incorporation of many legends and myths.

Simak was known for his enjoyable `simple' rural characters and settings, which gave many of his stories a level of charm and believability regardless of how odd or unusual the situation was. Unfortunately, this work has none of this trademark.

The initial premise of the story is interesting: during the fourth century, when in our world the barbarian hordes were massing on Rome's borders, in this world the area north of Rome was infested by the Evil, basically all the creatures of fantasy legend, harpies, dragons, even unicorns (who are not so nice in this book). The Evil effectively formed a buffer between Rome and the barbarians, allowing Rome to continue to exist to the present day. As a consequence, the world apparently never had a Renaissance, and is still stuck in a feudal social organization.

With this as background, the story details the adventures of a small band of beings, Harcourt, the Knurly Man (who is not quite human), an abbot, and an orphan girl with a talent for wood carving, as they attempt to retrieve a prism said to have the soul of a great saint captured inside and find Harcourt's lady love, Eloise. This has possibilities, but I found many problems with the actual execution of this work.

First is the characterization. The abbot never comes across as more than a set piece to allow Simak to detail some religious viewpoints, rather bluntly satirizing the sometimes rather harsh dictums of the Catholic church. His constant whining and bickering with the Knurly Man (who apparently is more than a thousand years old, and does not follow any religious dictate) quickly becomes irritating. Harcourt is better developed, but his obsession with Eloise, whom he thinks is probably dead and hasn't seen in seven years, is not made very believable. The most interesting character is the orphan girl, who has a very mysterious past and pops up with odd abilities at crucial junctures, but we never get to really see her as a person.

Second is the various encounters the band has with the Evil. As I read through this, I kept feeling that each incident was a stop meant to display another of the various denizens of the Evil - unicorn, harpy, ogre, troll - but there didn't seem to be any unified cohesion to the incidents. The best section, and the only one that really seemed in evoke a sense of magic, was a dreamlike call to and struggle with the `Elder Ones', clearly a small homage to Lovecraft. Overall, the Evil pretty much remains faceless, without a true element of magical danger that it should have evoked.

Third was the resolution to the mystery of why the Evil was so carefully guarding the prism. The provided answer just didn't seem to be enough reason for the Evil's continuing effort. In fact, the entire ending seemed weak and not fully satisfying

This book is just not on the same level as City or Way Station.

--- Reviewed by Patrick Shepherd (hyperpat)

Several characters go on a joint quest for individual reasons in a world where "the Evil" (legendary creatures of northern Europe mythology, such as dragons, harpies, ogres, et al) did not fade away with the coming of Christianity, but instead occupy a broad expanse of land between the Roman Empire and "the barbarians." I'm mostly an SF fan and have not read much fantasy, but was lured to this by Simak's name and a mildly favorable review in an SF magazine. I found it disappointing. The characters are not particularly well developed, the plot is predictable, the battle sequences are vague and rather repetitive, and one never really gets to find out much about where the characters come from or why. It's still readable, but falls far short of what I've read of Simak's SF work. It left me wondering if it was something he wrote early on that was shelved and then published later after he had achieved stardom. For fantasy enthusiasts (make that addicts) only, I'd say.

Any time a technological advance is about to occur an evil horde totally decimates the area, This goes on for centuries. The main character is asked to take a letter, believed to have been written by Christ, and get it authenticated. The evil horde tries to stop the journey. You will have to read the book to find out how it ends.