Shadowmarch: Volume I (Shadowmarch Trilogy) | Tad Williams | Solid Effort, Somewhat Familiar Story

Shadowmarch: Volume I (Shadowmarch Trilogy) | Tad Williams | Great High Fantasy for the right kind of reader

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Shadowmarch: Volum...

	Shadowmarch: Volume I (Shadowmarch Trilogy) Tad Williams DAW, 2006 - 816 pages average customer review:based on 101 reviews view larger image
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Now in mass market paperback-Tad Williams' triumphant return to high fantasy!

Solid Effort, Somewhat Familiar Story

Author Tad Williams returns after a three year hiatus with his Shadowmarch series. In Shadowmarch, the first book of the series, we're introduced to twin prince Barrick and princess Briony, second and third in line to the throne of the kingdom of Eion, the two main protagonists in this tale. Barrick is moody and inclined to fits of madness, while Briony yearns to be more than her station and sex afford her. Their father, King Olin, is being held for ransom by a renegade nobleman, leaving Kendrick, their older brother, attempting to fill the king's shoes. Chert, a lowly member of the Funderlings, a dwarf like people enamored of stone, labors in honest obscurity until he discovers two things: the infamous Shadowline, the barrier between the world of men and the fairies, has begun to move; and a young, apparently human child has been deposited by said fairies on the human side of the line. Vansen, newly appointed captain of the guard, pines away with unrequited love for princess Briony. Far to the south, Quinntan, a plain, unremarkable girl formerly a member of the all female priesthood devoted to the bee goddess, has been added to the ranks of the wives of the mad self-appointed God-emperor called the Autarch, and sequestered in his harem where her unusual purpose there is only hinted at.

As usual with Williams, he manages to create a cadre of fascinating characters. However, he again falls prey to similar habits as in "Memory, Sorrow and Thorn", ones which an author of his tenure should have outgrown. First, there is very little moral ambiguity in his characterizations - good guys are blatantly heroic, and the villains are blatantly diabolical and near maniacal. Even the bad guys masquerading as the good ones, and vice versa, tend to be pretty easy to spot - hence a major revelation at the end of the book was more a confirmation than the small surprise it could have been. Second, by choosing fairies as the antagonists (at least initially), even renaming them to the "Qar", much of the potential threat and danger posed is trivialized. Note to author: unlike our ancestors, people today don't think of "fairies in the forest" as the pinnacle of threat conducive to effective storytelling (though the stick figure critter who chased Vansen and his dwindling crew did give me a shiver). Finally, the sheer potential for an original story here was tremendous! However, whereas "Memory, Sorrow and Thorn" was a new retelling of a old story, the plot of which more or less lost momentum before the story's end, "Shadowmarch" reads not so much like Williams' first series (as complained by another reviewer), but like MOST other "epics" currently popular today. Trying to write a George RR Martin story without his range of characterization, or a Greg Keyes tale without his facility for imagery, Tad's story, despite all it had going for it in the beginning, starts to fade, and appear the much poorer step sister of the aforementioned authors.

Regardless of its flaws, I am engaged with the story, so I cannot bear to bring myself to offer it less than four stars. Like the Funderling caste system, while the story may not be a true gemstone, it is a semi-precious one, and shouldn't be disposed of out of hand. As I found "Memory, Sorrow and Thorn" to lose much of its plot momentum and ability to hold interest by the end of "The Stone of Farewell", I'm currently reading "Shadowplay" with some trepidation.

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Great High Fantasy for the right kind of reader

Shadowmarch: Volume I (Shadowmarch Trilogy)
People who have read Tad's other books are likely to find many similarities and this might bother them, but this book really does deliver what Tad does best. This is high fantasy and it is excellent. This book kept me guessing and the description was so vivid and powerful, I could really sink into it.

The plot builds slowly but there are many hints and leads that keep you guessing. Some readers may or may not like this, but I really enjoyed it. The worlds he creates in this book are great and many of his characters are deep, realistic, and well made, though some immature readers may dislike them for whatever reason. The is very straightforward, but not in a bad way since you really won't be thinking about much if you read this like it is meant to be read, slowly and like a delicious dessert.

Readers who don't like plots that are too vague or things that may seem overly descriptive will probably not like this book, but if you like to be kept guessing and like to enjoy the experiences of the many varied characters, you will love this. This book took me and I could not stop thinking about it till I was done. All in all, a great read for certain readers, though it is slow, even for fantasy.

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Derivative...

Ancient nations spanning a fantastic world. An elder race who has retreated behind an impenetrable barrier. A menacing empire full of decadence and conquering lust. The trials of a youthful noble thrust into the lead of a struggling kingdom wracked by intrigue and treachery. The forefront of the new war.

The synopsis could fufill the works of George R. R. Martin's Song of Ice and Fire series but it is Tad William's latest offering. The tome is well written, typical of William's clean style. However, in the new genre of tragi-fantasy, the heroic characters are subjected to unrelenting misfortune and setbacks. The forces of "evil" are seemingly unstoppable and monolithic.

I found the work to be descriptively engaging but redundant in its plot devices. At times I found myself returning to the cover to make sure I wasn't reading any number of recent fantasy works by other authors. Williams' prowess as an author remains forefront, but other works of his (Green Angle Tower, Tailchaser's Song) are better examples.

The book is a quick read and appears to conclude in one more installment (something his contemporaries should attend to - Martin and Robert "enough with the books please" Jordan)

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