Dark Lord of Derkholm (Hardcover)

by Diana Wynne Jones (Author) "WILL YOU ALL BE QUIET!" snapped High Chancellor Querida..." (more)
Key Phrases: magic reins, daylight owls, elf prince, Dark Lord, King Luther, Old George (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
If, next door to our ordinary world, there existed a world full of magic, wouldn't you want to visit it? That's the situation that Diana Wynne Jones explores in Dark Lord of Derkholm, and she makes an effective and comical tale of it.

Groups of tourists, called Pilgrim Parties and organized by the cold-hearted profiteer Mr. Chesney, take a portal to the magical realm, where they are shepherded about the countryside by a wizard guide. Mr. Chesney sets the rules, such as that all wizard guides must have long white beards--even 14-year-old Blade--and every Party gets to "slay" the Dark Lord. No wizard wants to be chosen as the year's Dark Lord, because Mr. Chesney demands large battles that cause great devastation in the local villages and farms, and he doesn't pay very well, but he does have a captive demon to enforce his will. This year, things are going especially badly for the chosen Dark Lord, Derk. He can't seem to keep his evil forces on the right track, despite help from his son Blade, his daughter Shona the bard, and his griffin sons and daughters. His chief aide, Barnabas, is drinking heavily and muddling his spells. And the dwarfs are taking their baskets of gold as tribute to the one they say is the real Dark Lord--Mr. Chesney.

Jones spoofs many of the trappings of fantasy epics, while at the same time portraying a family, with its surface squabbles and underlying love, through a rollicking and somewhat unwieldy story. Her messages about exploitation and responsibility come through clearly. Although not as tightly focused as some of her earlier novels, the galloping pace makes Dark Lord of Derkholm a quick, fun read for her numerous fans. --Blaise Selby

From Publishers Weekly
On a par with Jones's best (Charmed Life; Fire and Hemlock), this expansive novel manages to be both an affectionate send-up of the sword-and-sorcery genre and a thrilling fantasy adventure in its own right. Something is decidedly rotten in the enchantment-laden world in which teenage fledgling wizard Blade has grown up. Each year, the country's magical agrarian economy is disrupted by the Pilgrim Parties?tourists from a world much like ours, come in search of Tolkienesque adventure. Organized by the sinister and implacably bureaucratic Mr. Chesney ("A Dark Lord's citadel must always be a black castle with a labyrinthine interior lit by baleful fire?you will find our specifications in the guide Mr. Addis will give you"), the Pilgrim Parties are in fact highly choreographed package tours. The local population is bullied, cajoled and paid hard cash to participate, all because of a deal struck with a demon some 40 years ago. This year's appointee to the onerous post of Dark Lord (who must act as chief villain and tour-coordinator) is Blade's mild-mannered father, Derk, who would far rather spend his time creating marvelous new animals (he already has flying pigs, talking horses and clever geese). When an encounter with a dragon puts Derk out of commission, Blade's entire family?including his five griffin siblings?must help. As elaborate charades are staged for the tours, a deeper magic also emerges which (in combination with some hilariously banal legalities) offers the hope of release from Mr. Chesney's domination. Thought-provoking and utterly engaging, this tour-de-force succeeds on numerous levels. The marvelously characterized griffins are a particularly noteworthy pleasure. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Greenwillow; 1st edition (October 29, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688160042
• ISBN-13: 978-0688160043
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (58 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #521,278 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a wide range of reactions, October 16, 2000

By	Helena Jole (Washington state) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I just finished this book last night (stayed up past my bedtime again), and I had to look and see what other people thought about it. I was surprised by the different reactions. If you like Diana Wynne Jones, you'll probably enjoy this one (my husband, while reading it, said, "She's brilliant!") but if you don't like involved, complicated (at times confusing) plots, then you might want to stay away from it. I did enjoy it a lot, but not so much that I'm going to give it a blanket recommendation. It's not for everyone.

I was especially intrigued by the idea of a human family with griffin children. I think that was my favorite thing about the book. I also enjoyed the sarcastic geese and the Friendly Cows, and all the other animals.

The whole exploitation thing was well done. When I was reading about how everyone had to change their lives around and knock down towns and things for the tours, I said to my husband, "This reminds me of the Olympics!" (We just drove through Salt Lake City recently and didn't enjoy the experience).

I didn't think the gang rape scene was too bad--you get that idea, but it doesn't actually SAY that Shona was raped (Shona, not Sukey). The whole business with the soldiers was all very creepy and unpleasant.

I gave this book 4 stars because it is a bit disjointed and hard to follow at times, and ends with a pretty serious deus-ex-machina. Jones has a tendency to end her books (from what I've read so far) with great earth-shattering changes that happen all at once. At least the demons and the gods had been established earlier in the story, so they didn't just come out of nowhere.

14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sometimes it's best to start with book two . . ., January 24, 2001

By	ATP "santamonicaballetmom" (Santa Monica, CA United States) - See all my reviews

My daughter got this book for her birthday, and I immediately borrowed it. Truly wonderful - a very funny and affectionate send-up of D&D. But my daughter had a hard time getting into the story. Probable cause: after a rousing start there's a fair amount of set-up time for the complicated plot, and lots of characters to keep track of. For Christmas, the same friends gave my daughter "Year of the Griffin." This time it was love at first sight. "Year of the Griffin" begins with a group of new students arriving at school, so the introduction of the characters is very simple and straightforward. After finishing "Griffin," my daughter returned to "Dark Lord" and read it straight through. While that's the wrong order chronologically, it might be the right order for some readers. (I know this book has nothing to do with ballet. But it's only natural for ballerinas to enjoy fantasy, right?)

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hail the Dark Lord!, April 9, 2001

By	E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Immensely enjoyable book, written by the mistress of alt-universe fantasy. (...)Pilgrim Parties (read: Fantasy tourists) are taken through a magical portal to the magical land where they can battle and triumph over the Dark Lord, who is elected periodically. Everyone is sick of the Dark Lord tours, such as kings and magicians, who have to take sides with Good or Evil; however, the tour guide Chesney isn't about to lose any money there. The newest Dark Lord is Derk, a wizard who mainly wants to create bizarre critters. But apparently, like jury duty, you have to be Dark Lord..

The problem is, Derk isn't very GOOD at it. He and his odd family manage to rearrange things and make him Dark Lord, but unfortunately being the Force of Evil is not as easy as it looks. Add that to possible stealing from Chesney and you have a bizarre fantasy/fantasy-spoof that is difficult to put down.

Jones's spoofing of fantasy started in her delightful "Tough Guide to Fantasyland," and many of the elements involved appear here, as if she has novelized the pseudo-encyclopedia. This fact occasionally makes the book a bit more "drifty" than her Chrestomanci tales, but it's still a darn sight better than most books.

And funny indeed this book is (well, where it isn't creepy). The scramble to create the perfect "Dark Lord's stronghold"-type building is hilarious, as is the side-splitting idea of tourists engaging in specialized tours in which they get to be High Fantasy heroes. Derk's kids aren't as well defined as is usual for Ms. Jones, but Derk the Reluctant Dark Lord makes up for that.

Her writing style is its usual chipper, brisk style, full of fun descriptions. The blue demon was an especial treat, as were those terrific griffins...

A small warning: You may want to have a copy of "Tough Guide" alongside you while reading this book, to get the full effect of it's kookiness. And can't wait to see the sequel, "Year of the Griffin..."