[Book review] The Fallen Blade by Jon Courtnay Grimwood

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Ever since I picked up Robin Hobb’s Assassin’s Apprentice, I’ve been hooked on good meaty fantasy with a healthy dose of intrigue.  Ever since I picked up my first Philippa Gregory book, I’ve been hooked on historic fiction, especially as it concerns the dealings of royals.  So put both of those elements together to make a fantasy set in an alternate historical time and toss in some intrigue and I’m a happy reviewer.  Such is The Fallen Blade, which has supernatural characters and their doings in a version of 1500s Italy.

Tycho has no memories of his life from before his captivity.  He awakens naked and chained in the hull of a ship, a stranger breaking his bonds.  He escapes and finds himself in a strange country.  Barely surviving and unsure of how to quench the odd hunger within him, he becomes obsessed with a girl whom he saves from suicide.  With this act, he embroils himself in the machinations of those in power.

Giulietta is being sent away into a political marriage, much against her will.  On the eve of her departure, she’s kidnapped and spirited away to parts unknown.  The Duke’s chief assassin, Atilo, sets out to find her, but can’t find her.  His meeting with Tycho leads him to take the boy as his apprentice and potential successor.  But Tycho is more unusual than anybody can imagine, and though taming him may save Giulietta, it may damn the boy to a fate worse than death.

This novel contains two distinct storylines: in the first, readers follow Tycho as he learns something about whom and what he is, and he also learns what the price of that knowledge may be; in the second, readers follow the political machinations of this alternate Venice.  While I enjoyed both storylines, I found myself more interested in the political aspects.  It seemed as if the larger events in Venice were the bulk of the novel, and although Tycho takes part in those events, it’s mostly peripheral until the novel’s end.  Furthermore, Tycho’s delving into his past don’t fit with the pattern of events in Venice, and so his backstory doesn’t quite feel like it meshes with the rest of the book. 

I almost wish the novel had been structured so as to separate the two storylines a little bit more.  I noticed that there were occasions when the narrative jumped abruptly between events, and I had to go back a page or two and re-read in order to figure out where and when I was supposed to be reading about.  It didn’t happen too often, and it happened less as the novel went on, but it did happen.  I think that might be a side effect of the various plotlines being just a bit off kilter from each other.

I do want to emphasize that I did enjoy the novel as a whole and each storyline in and of itself.  Tycho is obviously a kind of vampire, but he’s not exactly like the vampires you read about commonly nowadays.  The author paints him as something very like one, though.  As the novel unfolds, readers learn more about this strange character and what he can and can’t do.  The political storyline has some satisfying twists and a lot of engrossing detail.  The fact that the ruler is simple-minded (but not all of the time) and the city is ruled through his Machiavellian uncle Alonzo throws in the element of the unexpected, as you’re never quite sure what’s going to happen.

In fact, I found myself the most intrigued by Alonzo.  His character is written as someone who wants to play a long game politics-wise, but his nature leads him to commit rash actions that endanger his agenda.  The other character that I was interested in was Atilo, the assassin.  His relationships with other people have an element of uncertainty to them, as his profession leads him to keep secrets and hide his thoughts from others.  His interactions with his fiancée are particularly fraught with tension.

Tycho is difficult to warm up to.  I think some of that may stem from the fact that author has worked hard—and successfully—to make Tycho “alien”, in that he doesn’t think or react like a human.  He does get involved in one friendship that gives readers something to relate to, but it happens late in the book.  Regardless, I look forward to seeing how Tycho evolves in future novels.

Although this novel has a few rough spots, it’s a good read overall.  The vivd backdrop, the scheming characters, and the sweeping action combine to create a rich tapestry.  This is a rewarding read for those who appreciate a story of depth and grand design.

This book was provided by the publisher as an e-galley.