Here’s one from the past.
Long thought lost, here is my review, recently found in the vaults, of one of my favourite books of all time. (Long-time Forum members will know of my ravings about this book over the last fifteen years.) The text of the review has remained unedited. Whilst I personally wince at this early attempt of a review, I accept that others may wish to see ‘wot I wrote’ back in 2001. For those who wish to read further, ASH A Secret History is now available as an ebook.
Mark
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OK – I will admit, the omens were not good.
Imagine the scene – postman staggers up the drive, mumbles something to me about “Another large parcel”, and skips away (metaphorically) looking much more relieved back down the drive. In my hand he leaves a large parcel containing one book. It weighs uncomfortably in my hand, being a hardback copy of a novel over 1100 pages long. Umm.
This was the arrival of Ash – A Secret History (notice the connection?) by Mary Gentle, an author I’d frankly heard little of since her first book, (Golden Witchbreed) which I read about 15 years ago. I’d liked it, but not got around to reading any more of her work. In the USA, the book has been published as 4 separate novels, though meant to be a complete novel. This was the first genuine hardback edition.
OK, I thought – it’s the weight of a fantasy novel, the cover looks like a fantasy novel, and the dustjacket blurb reads like a fantasy novel. Why do I want to try and read such a tome that sounds so much like many other books? But it’s not. No, ASH is clearly much more than that.
A very brief summary of the story is this. Ash is a young blonde mercenary soldier who quickly grows up to lead a band of soldiers across Europe around 1400 A.D. She is clever, crude and doted on by her fellow warriors. The group fight and do all the usual things across Europe, ultimately taking part in defending the state of Burgundy.
There is also a subplot that at first appears to be an amusing take on academia. The context of the story is that this book is a translation of documents by Pierce Ratcliffe PhD on the Lost History of Burgundy, rewritten into modern narrative, of which Ash plays a part. Later this becomes much more than an amusing setting.
As the book progresses, things do become odder. Ash’s success on the battlefield appears in part to be due to a voice in her head, which guides her actions. Clues are subtly placed to make the reader realise that things are not what we expect. Stone Golems are not what we expect. The subplot becomes more important. The book ultimately takes all of the reader’s preconceptions and turns them upside down.
I found myself totally immersed in this book. Despite its length, the complex nature of plot and subplot kept the pages turning. Gentle’s writing is crisp and detailed. Battle scenes are chaotic, confusing and vivid in their depiction. Weapons of warfare are used and explained as you go along by someone who seems to have a detailed understanding of how they work. However the book does this at the same time as allowing Gentle to develop characters – Ash and the supporting cast are all fairly rounded. They read as people who have feelings, contradictions and emotions. Ash falls ‘in lust’ to a character who she hates and who returns the feelings admirably. The people in this novel are not perfect, yet as you read you care about them and the changes that they must go through in the book.
By the end of the book I was amazed. The book had held my attention for the whole of its length, with shocks,surprises and an ending which was somehow fitting (but I couldn’t mention here – it’ll spoil the book!)
A word of warning however – I said I’d mention this earlier. This is not a book for those brought up on cosy fantasy novels with cuddly elves!
The first few pages are shocking and set the tone for the rest of the book. There is cruelty and violence in the first few pages, which is throughout the book. As an example of the harsh life of medieval times, Ash is raped at an early age. Gentle is clearly aware of this. In the novel subplot Pierce Ratcliffe apologises to his editor about the language, explaining it as an attempt to update the narrative into a contemporary setting – “medieval soldiers were notoriously foul mouthed”, he writes.
Ash has clearly been a labour of love for Gentle. It has taken many years to write, but it has been worth the wait. Well done also to the publishers, Victor Gollancz, who had the nerve to wait until it was all finished before publishing the book. (Actually, there was an earlier hardback of this when it was going to be a much shorter novel).
This is one which is going to pay dividends on repeated readings.
Trust me on this one – if you read this like I did, you will lose sleep, forget meals, lose contact with family until the job is done. And then feel sorry that it is over. This is one to keep and recommend to all your friends – even those who normally don’t read ‘fantasy stuff’.
Ash won the BSFA Award for Best Novel 2001 against some pretty stiff opposition. It was, in my opinion, well deserved.
Title: ASH: A Secret History
Date: 2001 10 01
Author: Mary Gentle
Publisher: Gollancz
Format: Hardback
ISBN: 0 575 06900 7 (Hardback)
Review By Mark Yon
Another book I’ll never finish. Some readers will, of course, find the minutiae of medieval munitions and armour (rash or no rash?) fascinating; I did not. Some readers will dote on the sameness of everyday with the protagonist; I was bored. Glad you liked the book Mr. Yon; I was asleep.
Sorry it didn’t work for you, Gerry. If it helps, there are many books out there that don’t work for me that others love: and many recently. But this one, for reasons I’m still not sure of, works for me. And whilst there’s lots of reasons why it shouldn’t, I still enjoy it fifteen years or so later.