Revenge of the Mongols

Next up is Victor Milan's _A Rending of Falcons_. This book is another genre book, this time in the Mechwarrior (Battletech) setting. Genre fiction being what it is (soap opera for young men, though I like to think at a higher level of sophistication than pro-wrestling), this book was merely OK.

Victor continues with the Jade Falcon's storyline. Malvina, generator of the so-called "Mongol" doctrine (i.e. using utter brutality, far beyond the pale, to keep subject people in-line) returns to the Jade Falcon Occupation Zone. This time she has her sights set at usurping the Khanship of the Falcons.

The development of the character of Malvina is starting to get a bit unrealistic. In a genre where caricatures is pretty much expected, this character is going a bit beyond the pale. The utter brutality and lack of regard for other human life makes her worse than any of the Clans, and perhaps worse than the Smoke Jaguars (known for their brutality before their...comeuppance). She furthermore comes off as being totally self-centered, a despot and (worse) a demagogue. What's more, throughout the book I kept hoping someone would stick a bullet or some other sharp object in this turkey, but alas not to be.

Speaking of caricatures, the Hell's Horses makes an appearance in this novel, with plenty of stereotypes of their own. The Horses have appeared to have totally gone the way of the Mongol (historical peoples, not the above-mentioned doctrine), top knots, sabres, and all. Battletech/Mechwarrior has been going down this route for some time (just look at the Draconis Combine, a bunch of Samurai wanna-be's, including katana swords and dueling), but I find it dissappointing nonetheless. It would be nice to see a return to the setting as it was during the "Golden Age" (IMHO) of the House books (approx 1987-88). There was definitely a multi-cultural feel here, and despite attempts to bring it back (a memoral picture for me is in the Handbook: House Steiner, where a ethnic Pakistani or Sikh from Bolan is arguing with a merchant, turban and all), has been crushed under the iron-heeled boots of Stackpole and others...

Ysabel time...

It's been a while since I last posted (around a month or so!), but during that period I haven't been lax.

I started reading _Hammer's Slammers_ and got...bored. I may not be ready for it (yet). I sometimes find if I put a book on the shelf for a while, I can come back with a fresh perspective and enjoy it. For example, when I first started reading _God Emperor of Dune_ I couldn't get into it. Later when I came back to it I enjoyed it. I'm sure _Hammer's Slammers_ will be the same...

In the meantime I read instead Guy Gavriel Kay's _Ysabel_. I'll not try not to deny it: Kay is one of my favorite authors. After reading the superlative _Tigana_ I always look for his books eagerly.

_Ysabel_ is along the lines of his other fantasy books, in that it freely mixes history with fantasy. Unlike Kay's other books (a historical pastiche with fantasy elements...you can almost read the books and guess what historical personalities he's writing about), this book is very much set in the modern world with a barely-glimpsed at fantasy world behind the scenes.

The action starts out in Provence, France. A young boy...so on and so forth. What is interesting about this book is that the main character is a witness to the drama, rather than a true participant. It involves an age-old rivalry between a Celtic warrior and a Greek merchant -- and the clash of cultures that come with it. What is maddening though, is that he sets up a number of mysteries and doesn't follow through with a resolution. Does this mean there will be a sequel (maybe, probably not)? Only time will tell...

While this book was not one of Kay's best (there have been others), its interesting enough, and I think it is a book that might have a more popular appeal to those who generally don't read SF/Fantasy. In that sense, it was almost a fantasy version of a Chrighton book...