NOTE: Dirty words will
be used.
THE BARROW is a novel published by Pyr, an imprint of
Prometheus Books, which focuses on science fiction and fantasy tales. It is the
first prose novel by writer Mark Smylie and is set in what he calls the Known
World, a backdrop recognizable to those that know of the writer’s other published
creation, ARTESIA. Mark saw ARTESIA come to fruition in comic book form, first
from Sirius Publications, in 1999. Subsequently, it was self-published through
Mark’s own company, Archaia Studios Press, now a wholly-owned imprint of BOOM!
Studios. An ardent endeavor, as Mark is both writer and artist of this
incredibly detailed story.
THE BARROW is an offset “prequel” of sorts, with the
spotlight on Stjepan Black-Heart, a character that appears in the ARTESIA
comics and graphic novels. It is set prior to the time of the ARTESIA stories,
so knowledge of the Known World or Artesia is unnecessary. Stjepan and his
cohorts are on the hunt for a legendary item that could change the face of the
political structure, or so they believe. That’s generally all you need to know
going into the book; the basic premise is fairly standard. Fortunately, the
book isn’t.
Before further observations, I shall preface this with a
number of things. Firstly, I am an avowed, vocal fan of Artesia and her Known
World, of which I have been since the initial issue of the first comic book
series landed in my grubby, manly hands, back at the end of the Millennium.
Secondly, I know the writer personally. I will do my best to be frank, but know
I am predisposed to be biased. Thirdly, I have never cared for the main
character. That said, onward.
THE BARROW is good. I read it in one sitting, even though I
wouldn’t call it “edge of your seat” exciting. It opens well, with a “Dungeons
and Dragons” adventure flair. The characters are well developed, with enough
room for continued growth away from the already published ARTESIA series. As
the book progresses, it swings wildly in directions atypical of the modern
fantasy novel, while being firmly planted within a circle of what I, in my
critical eye, see as extremely typical of the modern fantasy novel. Let me
explain:
Stjepan is the “hero” of the book. He’s not what I’d term as
“anti-hero”, as his motivations are way beyond his own goals. He’s a murky
every-man, a persona with a hard shell and a drive not completely explored,
likely on purpose. When I was first introduced to him in the ARTESIA series, I
basically felt the same way – he’s the rogue, the mystery man, the probable
assassin with a heart. And, if not that, he’s the guy that the writer thinks is
the coolest character ever. It oozes off the page, that. That, coupled with the
characters of low moral compass, is where the modern fantasy novel tends to set
itself now. No longer do you have tales of the proud knight defending the honor
of flag and country, of overall good against overall evil. Now, it’s the guys
that do filthy things that are much more interesting; good, innocent people being
crushed along the way makes it all the better. Stjepan isn’t evil, he’s got issues. Issues draw readers, I guess.
Another thing typical of the modern fantasy novel is the
need to name each and every character that appears in the book. I’m not sure
when it started, exactly. Robert Jordan did this to a degree no one else has,
that I’m aware of. I do know that when it started, I was not unhappy with it. I
liked knowing the name of that basic soldier that did something special to save
the main character in a bad situation, and that he (or she) was recognized,
particularly by the main character. It certainly gave the more modern stories a
more human aspect that a lot of the old Sword and Sorcery tales didn’t. Still,
back then, it was likely a consideration of space for publication than anything
else. Maybe. In any event, the reader learns the name of a secondary (or even
tertiary) character, only to have that character killed off a short time later.
Am I the only person to feel shortchanged by this? All right, it’s a nitpick.
Moving on…
Where THE BARROW moves into atypical of the genre is in two
very big areas, at least within its own covers. Within six pages, the first
curse word, “fuck”, is uttered. By the time you get to the last page, it comes
close to rivaling an episode of DEADWOOD in how often swears of the sort are
uttered. The language of the Known World is a curiously modern one, which does
make it for an interesting mix of verbiage. Compounding that is the intense
sexuality within the book, inherit to the characters and, in some cases, their
entire background. In fact, the pansexuality of many of the characters may put
off less worldly readers, which is too bad. Sex in the Known World is quite
descriptive, as readers of ARTESIA are aware – this ain’t no kids’ book! Still,
the written word does quite a bit more than the drawing can do. An excerpt: “…the
winking lips of her vulva puckering in invitation.” Yes, there is a reason for
that description, though I’ll leave it to you if you think it necessary or not.
THE BARROW also spends lengths of pages in detailing history
of the Known World, of which I have not seen the like in a single volume story.
I would tend to decry boredom when reading the amount that was laid out within
the book, except in how it was brought forth. While it is not unusual to get characters
to explain the machinations of countries and sovereigns, the battles that
shaped the world, the heroes and villains and belief systems, it is written
extremely well. The only problem with the sheer amount of world history
presented is it occasionally feels like padding to the overall story of Stjepan
and his party.
As stated earlier, I found the book good. It’s not new or
eye-opening entertainment, which could be due to my being a fan of the Known
World. The overt sexuality and modern curse words make it titillating in some
ways, amusing in others and likeable overall by pushing past the staid, single-sexed
(or even asexual) characters standardized by editorial design. Mark has a flair
for detail that differs from other fantasy writers, likely assisted by his
artist’s mind. That, and a fully fleshed out world setting obviously begs for
more books, whether prose or graphic.
If nothing else, THE BARROW has thoroughly gotten my blood
up to reread my ARTESIA series. If there is a new reader of the Known World, I
hope they, too, get interested beyond Stjepan and inundate Mark with desperate
pleas that he finishes ARTESIA: BESEIGED! Because, if readers like THE BARROW,
they’re in for an even more chaotic ride when it comes to Artesia herself.
So no, Mark, I didn’t hate it.
THE BARROW is available now at better retailers everywhere.
Head over to http://www.pyrsf.com/ for more
information, or to Mark’s own page, http://swordandbarrow.com/wp/
for all sorts of Known World goodness.
