Thrust, parry and move
Feb. 11th, 2007 05:24 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
threemonkeysI liked what I read as I began A Dark Winter by Dave Luckett. I liked the earthy, no nonsense tone of the first person narrative. Then there was a very detailed description of the armour the main character was wearing. Then a detailed description of the armour of another character. Then another such description. Then there was a fight scene where every sword stroke and every evasive manoeuvre was detailed. It was like that right through the novel - a real focus on the detail of the armour and the sword fighting.
It is great to have a passion for a pastime. It is great to bring that passion to your writing. But there is a need for some restraint. Even better than restraint is to integrate your passion into the story so tightly that one is integral to the other. That should be achievable when you are considering armour and swords in a medieval fantasy. In this case it just seems tacked on which is a pity because otherwise it is solid work and the narrative I liked at the beginning proves to work well right through the book. Suffice to say that I will only be happy to recommend this book to any member of a medieval re-enactment guild.
It is great to have a passion for a pastime. It is great to bring that passion to your writing. But there is a need for some restraint. Even better than restraint is to integrate your passion into the story so tightly that one is integral to the other. That should be achievable when you are considering armour and swords in a medieval fantasy. In this case it just seems tacked on which is a pity because otherwise it is solid work and the narrative I liked at the beginning proves to work well right through the book. Suffice to say that I will only be happy to recommend this book to any member of a medieval re-enactment guild.