Page One Review - Stephen Lawhead’s Scarlet

Stephen Lawhead may just have the perfect author’s name, and the Christian Science Fiction and Fantasy Blog Tour is featuring his new book, Scarlet, this week.

Since I was at an N. T. Wright retreat at Laity Lodge, I couldn’t post until today. (”Bishop Tom” is one of my heroes, and this weekend was about as wonderful as I could have dreamed. We talked about everything from theology to poetry to fantasy. After I dropped him and Mrs. Wright at the airport, I cried.)

Speaking of fantasy, I’m supposed to be reviewing page one of Lawhead’s fantasy of King Raven.

Those familiar with Celtic legend will recognize the recasting of Brennos, the Raven King. More recently, the Raven King was revived in Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, the best epic fantasy since Lord of the Rings. (Be sure to click on the adaptive blue smartlink next to the book title if you’ve never done so. It’s a cool tool.)

Lawhead’s Raven King reference is enough to cause me to consider this book. But as usual, I’m reviewing only the first page: the bit that either hooks an editor (or any reader) or fails to hook.

Here’s page one of Scarlet:

So, now. One day soon they hang me for a rogue. Fair enough. I have earned it a hundred times over, I reckon, and that’s leaving a lot of acreage unexplored. The jest of it is, the crime for which I swing is the one offence I never did do. The sheriff will have it that I raised rebellion against the king.

I didn’t.

Oh, there’s much I’ve done that some would as soon count treason. For a fact, I et more of the king’s venison than the king has et bread, and good men have lost their heads to royal pikes for far less; but in all my frolics I never breathed a disloyal word against the crown, nor tried to convince any man, boy, horse, or dog to match his deeds to mine. Ah, but dainties such as these are of no concern when princes have their tender feelings ruffled. It is a traitor they want to punish, not a thief. The eatin’ o’ Red William’s game is a matter too trifling—more insult than crime—and it’s a red-handed rebel they need. Too much has happened in the forests of the March and too much princely pride hangs in the balance to be mincing fair about a rascal poaching a few soft-eyed deer.

Before I can go any further, I have to rave about that GREAT first sentence. “So, now.” It is the most concise use of beginning a novel in medias res that I have seen in a while. It captures voice. It is a kind of sigh. It implies regret. All sorts of rich things going on under that sentence. It is like the tip of an iceberg poking above the ocean and hinting of the massive size of the mountain that floats beneath the surface.

Aside from plot, three specific things catch my attention here.

1) Implied metaphors build a sense of culture through this voice.
I used an explicit metaphor with the iceberg image. This sentence is like an iceberg. (Technically, that is a specific kind of metaphor called a simile for those who would like me to be precise about these things.)

Lawhead’s metaphors are more subtle. The character leaves “a lot of acreage unexplored,” implicitly comparing his poaching history to a large acreage of land. It is a metaphor that gives authenticity to the character’s world without delving into the specifics of feudalism and manors and land grants.

Similarly, the character refers to poaching as stealing “the king’s venison.” The author also fights against cliché with phrases like “red-handed rebel.” My expected the cliché “red-handed thief,” and the variation is enough to keep the image fresh–besides adding the wonderful alliteration.

2) Lawhead’s diction gives a sense of the character’s formality and decorum, and by implication the formality and decorum of the broader culture.
Diction is a fancy word for “word choice.” Lawhead uses slightly archaic and formal words like “jest,” “frolics,” and “dainties.”

He also includes a sprinkling of phonetic spellings: “et” for “eat”; “eatin’ o’ Red William’s game” for “eating of Red William’s game.” I’m not a fan of phonetic spellings, but at least the author is being judicious. And mixing the phonetic spellings with the more formal diction creates a fuller sense of this character’s voice. He’s savvy about manners. He’s cultured. But he’s also down-to-earth and approachable.

On a related note, Lawhead does the same thing with syntax–that’s a fancy word for sentence structure. Consider when the speaker talks about “the one offense I never did do.” That’s pretty formalized syntax, but it doesn’t come across as stilted because he balances the formal syntax with more conversational sentences like “So, now” and “Ah, but dainties…”

3) Finally, the character is honest, reasonable, bold, and likable.
We’re down to characterization and plot elements now. The characters response to specific plot conflicts tell us a lot about the character himself.

He is honest because he accepts his fate as deserved and “fair enough.” But he quibbles about the actual sentence because the alleged crime is shameful. Because he respects justice, he is bothered by the injustice of a shameful false charge–especially one that questions his honesty and loyalty.

He demonstrates that he is reasonable in the second paragraph. The entire paragraph is a logical apology for his crimes–and an argument that they are not really severe enough for a draconian sentence like hanging. Unless someone simply wants to be “mincing fair” about it. (Another great phrase.)

He is bold and courageous. He is not afraid of death. Nor does he not hide his feelings for the prince.

Finally, maybe most important of all, he is likable. Because he is reasonable and honest and particularly offended that he could be accused of disloyalty, I like this guy. When he implies that the prince is a fop and a dandy, I believe him. This is no self-deluded anti-hero like Holden Caulfield or Leopold Bloom. He is a real hero.

I like heroes, so I’ll likely keep reading.

And thanks to all of the participants in this months CSFF tour. You all rock.

Trish Anderson Brandon Barr Wayne Thomas Batson Jim Black Justin Boyer Grace Bridges Amy Browning Jackie Castle Valerie Comer CSFF Blog Tour D. G. D. Davidson Chris Deanne Jeff Draper April Erwin Linda Gilmore Beth Goddard Marcus Goodyear Andrea Graham Jill Hart Katie Hart Sherrie Hibbs Timothy Hicks Christopher Hopper Becca Johnson Jason Joyner Kait Karen Dawn King Tina Kulesa Mike Lynch Margaret Karen McSpadden Melissa Meeks Rebecca LuElla Miller Mirtika or Mir’s Here Eve Nielsen John W. Otte John Ottinger Lyn Perry Deena Peterson Rachelle Cheryl Russel Ashley Rutherford Hanna Sandvig Chawna Schroeder James Somers Rachelle Sperling Steve Trower Speculative Faith Robert Treskillard Jason Waguespac Daniel I. Weaver Laura Williams Timothy Wise