The Curse of Chalion

I have had the urge for some 'proper' fantasy for a while but everytime I pick up a 'proper' fantasy novel I read the blurb about chosen ones, assassins, strong-minded young women, ignorant farmboys, thieves, elves, dwarves, vampires, fairies, sorcerors etc, roll my eyes and put it back where I found it.

Maybe I only think I like fantasy.

Then I came across this book and it renewed my faith. It isn't the best fantasy novel I have ever read but it is good, readable, interesting and doesn't have any of the elements listed above (well, there are several strong-minded women but they aren't all young.)

Ignore the cover. I really wish fantasy books came in sober covers. It isn't that I'm embarrassed reading a book with a cover like this. I just feel sorry for the books (the good ones, anyway). They deserve to be taken seriously.

Anyway, the blurb:
"Cazaril, betrayed by his enemies into a crippling two years in the galleys, returns to court a physical and emotional wreck: appointed secretary-tutor to the young princess Iselle, he finds himself in direct opposition to his powerful betrayers. His preparedness to make the ultimate sacrifice and save Iselle from an unwanted marriage to one of them by a death spell that will kill him also has unforeseen results; he learns the hard way that the gods have plans for him, ingenious and mischievous plans."

This is pretty accurate but doesn't tell you much. It rather depends on whether Cazaril is going to be good company, doesn't it?

The main problems of fantasy novels (apart from those common to all novels, such as bad writing, underdeveloped characters, unbelievable plots) are:

• world-building - presenting enough information about a world the reader has never visited before (including history, geography, language, architecture etc) without resorting to 'info-dump', which is where all this information is laid out straight or presented awkwardly through unlikely dialogue.
• avoiding cliche - and there are a heck of a lot of cliches to avoid. You can think of ten right now.
  
• making sure readers are invested enough in the story to buy the many inevitable sequels.

All of these are handled well here.

• The world-building is detailed but plausible, and deftly done. The world is introduced at the same pace and at naturally as the characters are. In this respect it felt to me just like any (non-fantasy) novel setting the scene. In fact it was taking its time so nicely it seemed to me it might become a story about one small incident in a castle of no great importance in a vast fantasy world. Which made me ask myself, Does everything always have to be huge scale, end of the world in fantasy? What is the point of a fantasy setting? Can it form the background for something small or would it then simply be window-dressing?
• Cliches are pretty well steered round. What there are, are cliches because life is cliche. (Apologies for the lack of acute accents.) Princesses, for example, do (or did) have marriages arranged for them to suit/manipulate the political climate. There is a prophecy in Chalion, it's true, but it's low key and only really relevant after the event. Come to think of it, there are a few stock characters: evil chancellor, good friend, loyal lady-in-waiting. But they are pretty well drawn.
• Best of all, the ending wraps everything up. I have ordered the sequel from the library on the strength of the writing, rather than because Bujold is holding a cliffhanger to my throat.

So what was so good about it?

• The structure is excellent. Bujold (again, deftly) considers where a story 'begins'. Obviously, this is something that obviously exercises authors a great deal - where exactly should you jump into the narrative? It's also something that exercises the reflective mind seeking the 'first moment' when a decision (mundane or, here often a spiritual one) sets a character on his or her journey. These 'beginnings' are not apparent at the time. In Chalion many such moments are mentioned in passing, and are returned to later, proving to be of great importance.
  
• The pacing is always excellent.
  
• It feels like this is the story left in the wake of a more conventional war-based fantasy novel, one I would have been less interested in reading.
  
• A believable and charming lead who has been battered in body, mind and soul. He is perhaps a little better at arms than he ought to be in his condition but I'm willing to let that pass. He is rather vulnerable, both physically and to malicious gossip.
  
• Interesting characters. Cazaril by far the most developed. Orico, the fat, apparently indolent and pathetic king, interested me. It was interesting to have a weak character's hidden strengths and struggles acknowledged. There is also some subtlety to the villain Martou Jirondel, if not to his even more villainous brother Dondo.
  
• There is no real magic as such, but miracles and saints and gods. This works and gives the story and the characters a spiritual depth I found compelling. Kindness is key, and faith, discipline and commitment are valued.
• Good strong female characters, none of whom fight with swords, although some do have what could be considered 'male' roles. Some good roles for older women too, which is refreshing.
  
• Illness, physical and mental play a prominent role, as symptoms of the spiritual malaise affecting the kingdom. They are fairly sympathetically handled, I think.
  

Minor criticisms:

• I didn't entirely buy the relationship between Cazaril and Betriz. For some reason she never became three-dimensional to me. She is so strongly identified with royesse Iselle's concerns that she feels a little like a double for her - one that Cazaril can legitimately be rewarded with for his efforts.
  
• Not enough. How long is long enough? As I mentioned above, the world and the protagonist are introduced quite slowly and richly. Once the 'action' kicks off, the pace necessarily curtails the wealth of detail. I found it desperately exciting, but also mourned the sudden narrowness of focus.
  

Buy a copy of The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold for your very own, here.