Review: Cursor’s Fury: Codex Alera 3, by Jim Butcher

Set three years after the previous book (and without the blank lines between paragraphs that book 2 had), Tavi has been working on ancient ruins with Magnus (a teacher referred to in book 2) when he gets called to join a new legion. Unlike most legions its men are from across the whole country rather than from a area, and it’s meant to be more of a symbol of unity than an immediate fighting force.

Until, of course, the civil war that had been quietly brewing suddenly explodes and the legion gets thrust into action.

There’s more excitement and rapid development earlier on in the book, which I enjoyed very much, with a number of twists and turns. To a certain extent the latter half runs along more predictable lines and, generally, the plot slows a little.

Mr. Butcher does very well to square the slight circle of a legion-style military unit in a world that’s probably halfway between feudal and republican (in the Ancient Roman sense of the word). Tribunes are now appointed rather than elected, and each has specific duties (logistics, for example) and a number of deputies. Tavi’s a logistical subtribune, whose typical day is spent inspecting latrines. The only minor gripe I have is that whilst almost all names are Roman or Romanesque ‘Schultz’ seems a bit out of place.

The ongoing character development of Tavi is a plus point of the series, and it’s also nice that each book genuinely moves along the unstable political situation and edges closer to an all-out power struggle.

A few more major deaths would have gone down well. Not necessarily on a George RR Martin level of mass slaughter, but it adds dramatic tension when there’s a real chance a protagonist or main character might get killed.

The major villain of the piece is less subtle and three-dimensional than the Aquitaines, but his prime job is to be universally loathed, which he achieves pretty well.

Overall, I liked Cursor’s Fury, particularly the cunning revelation at the end (and I’m not referring to frisky time with Kitai). The major characters continue to be developed in complex and interesting ways, and it was nice to see one or two Canim make a return.

That’s three in a row I’ve read fairly rapidly, and there are a few more books to read in the Codex Alera. I think I’ll read the first Mistborn book and give myself a break so that book 4’s a bit fresher.

Thaddeus

Review: The Greek and Roman Myths: A Guide to the Classical Stories by Philip Matyszak

This book is a concise introduction to and overview of the myths of classical Greece and Rome. It begins right at the start of the universe’s (or cosmos’) creation and proceeds until the Odyssey and Aeneid which tell the tale of two heroes after the Trojan War ended.

Although far from dry it is more strait-laced than the other books (the Legionary and Gladiator Unofficial Manuals, which I highly recommend) I’ve read by the author. Having read a few works of classical literature it’s easy to appreciate the difficulty of sorting the entangled and various accounts of myths into anything approaching a coherent narrative, and Dr. Matyszak does a good job.

It should be stressed that whilst there are summarised accounts of a few major myths (the likes of Perseus, Aeneas and so forth featuring particularly prominently) this is not so much a collection of abridged stories as an over-arching guide to the entire canon of Greek and Roman myths.

There are multiple references to the later impact of classical myths upon the world, such as where words derived from the myths, works of art inspired by various divine shenanigans and so on. In addition, there are a number of photographs and illustrations of the gods and heroes.

The parts I found most interesting were actually the earliest bits and pieces, as the Trojan War and its aftermath for Odysseus and Aeneas are pretty well-known. I didn’t, for example, realise that Aphrodite was actually the oldest of the Olympians.

Another aspect of the book that was new to me and helpful as well as interesting was the concise explanation of how Greeks and Romans viewed their gods. This is my own example, but to an extent they might praise Zeus for rain in the same way a modern person might say “Thank God for that” (ie not necessarily a literal thanking, just an expression of relief at a handy change in the weather). The Olympians and heroes as forces of civilising order arrayed against the monsters and wilderness of chaos was another perspective I hadn’t considered before.

It is somewhat tangled, with multiple references throughout to characters who are involved in multiple myths, however, this is the nature of classical mythology. Everything’s interwoven and there are often multiple accounts of single events.

If you’re after an overview of classical mythology, this is nice and concise, clearly written and covers the major stories (although Dr. Matyszak was a bit rude about Telamonian Aias, my favourite hero of The Iliad).

There’s a slightly short section at the end on further reading, and I was surprised to see that I’d read many of the suggestions. The Iliad (apparently Lattimore’s version is excellent, but I’ve got the Rieu translation recommended in the back) and Odyssey are obvious starting points, and the Aeneid, though later, is also worth reading. To be honest, I found West’s translation of Hesiod’s Theogony and Work & Days to be the most easy to read of classical literature, but it is quite brief.

The author also refers to a number of other books, including Graves’ Greek Myths, which I’ve been intending to buy for about four years now.

Thaddeus

Mythical monsters

The Ancient Greeks did many great things, not least of which was their storytelling. The Trojan War has echoed down the ages, as has the plethora of Greek gods, titans and monsters.

One of the most evocative of twisted creatures is the gorgon Medusa. She has the lower portions of a giant snake, her head and torso are those of a human woman and her hair is a forest of writhing snakes. Worst (or best) of all, her very gaze turns a man to stone. Medusa’s best known for her appearance in the popular and oft-repeated 1980s film Clash of the Titans. I think I recall reading that she had two sisters, both of whom were invincible. If true, that would make her the wimpy runt monster.

The minotaur is a nameless brute that dwelt within the labyrinth of King Minos. After Minos cheated a god of his rightful sacrifice the god got his own back (rather dramatically) by bending the mind of Minos’ wife and persuading her and a bull to copulate. The resultant abomination was the minotaur: a man of great strength with the head and horns of a bull. He was eventually slain by the heroic Theseus.

The Twelve Labours of Heracles (NB not Hercules, unless you’re deliberately going for a Latinised version) include a number of fantastic beasts, but the most interesting of these was the Lernaean Hydra. The Hydra had many heads (accounts vary somewhat) and vile, poisonous breath. Whenever a head was severed two more grew in its place. However, Heracles was helped by his nephew (and Argonaut) Iolaus, who sealed the stumps with fire. When the creature was finally slain Heracles dipped his arrowheads in its blood, which was potent venom (this would later have rather serious implications for the centaur Chiron and the titan Prometheus).

The Chimaera was a sort of special offer, three-for-the-price-of-one beast. It had a snake for a tail, a goat’s middle and a lion’s front, with three heads (the snakey tail, goat in the middle and a fire-breathing lion’s head). Some reckon that it’s an allegory for a mountain which had snakes at the base, goats in the middle and a volcano at the top. Not content with having three species, the Chimaera also manages to be both male and female, as it’s referred to as a female but has a mane. It’s very much an equal opportunities monster. Bellerophon slew it, although from a distance and Pegasus did most of the hard work.

Last but not least, my favourite: Typhon. Not a household name, unlike Medusa, but undoubtedly the toughest and most horrific of monsters. Descriptions vary a bit, but (if memory serves) his head brushed the stars, his lower portions were the coils of a snake and from his shoulders a hundred dragon heads sprouted, each breathing flame. When he attacked Olympus the gods ran off to Ethiopia, leaving Zeus to fight. Unfortunately for Zeus, Typhon kicked his arse, cut off all his sinews and put them in a jar, put the jar in a cave and set a guardian to protect it. The gods, meanwhile, decided that Zeus was a better ruler of the Universe than Typhon and stole back his sinews. Zeus, restored, fought a second bout with Typhon and finished the duel by dropping Mount Etna upon him.

In a fitting coincidence, volcanic eruptions sometime feature quite spectacular lightning, as explained here [which is also where the picture’s from]:

http://scienceblogs.com/startswithabang/2010/04/volcanic_lightning_eyjafjallaj.php

Thaddeus

Review: Academ’s Fury (Codex Alera 2), by Jim Butcher

First of all, a quick word on the Mistborn Trilogy business. Apparently there were some errors with the e-book version, so it was withdrawn and now that corrections have been made it’s available again. That said, I checked yesterday and the trilogy (as a single purchase) wasn’t up, so maybe it will be in a few days.

http://www.brandonsanderson.com/blog/1027/Mistborn-UK-ebooks-Bulgarian-ALLOY-release-Mistborn-metal-music

I liked the first Codex Alera book so much I bought the second immediately afterward (and I’m presently sorely tempted to get the third). In Academ’s Fury the main scene of action is Alera Imperia, the capital city. Tavi is two years older, has made a few friends and perhaps even more enemies, and has barely time to sleep or eat due to his studies and other work.

A being from the first book plays a highly significant role in this one (I don’t want to give much away) and poses a grave threat both to Calderon and Alera Imperia. In Calderon Bernard and Amara are reunited with Doroga to face an enemy of the Marat which is encroaching upon the valley. The First Lord continues to face his High Lords in subtle conflict, and a new chap, Kalare, is added as a potential rebel.

The pace in the first half of the book is somewhat slower than in Furies of Calderon, which was almost ferociously fast throughout. This works pretty well, allowing the new characters to be defined, the political subplots to be fleshed out and Tavi’s own story/character to be painted. In the latter half it picks up speed and resembles (in terms of pace) the fantastic finale of the previous book.

We also get a new species introduced: the Canim (singular: Cane). They’re basically 9’ bipedal hounds. The author doesn’t overuse them and does a good job with the main Cane, Ambassador Varg. The Iceman (another Aleran foe, apparently held in checked by the northern provinces) are also referred to, but do not appear directly.

There’s a bit more romance that Furies of Calderon, but it’s a side-order rather than a main course. The meat of the story is the subtle political machinations of Lord and Lady Aquitane, Lord Kalare and the First Lord’s loyal followers, combined with the grave threat I mentioned earlier.

One negative is that for some reason the formatting is slightly off. There are spaces between every paragraph which is an unfortunate annoyance. It doesn't bother me too much, but if that kind of thing irritates you then the physical version may be preferred.

In short, Academ’s Fury builds upon an excellent first book, fleshes out the political conflict, expands the interesting world Mr. Butcher has created and is well worth buying.

Although the Codex Alera is set in a fictional world, he has written some other works which are set in the [mostly] real world. For those who like that subgenre of fantasy, they’re reviewed in a friendly corner of the internet:

http://croftfantasyreads.blogspot.com/search/label/Jim%20Butcher

Thaddeus