Trouble in the Forest, by Trystam Kith
Book Review by Lynn Nicole Louis
Have you read this book?
Werewolves and vampires are horror staples, the bread and butter meal of the macabre. Despite the plethora of books and stories written about them, they continue to remain popular, so much so one might even be able to consider them genres unto themselves.
How can an author infuse new life into such a threadbare trope? The same way a skilled author infuses life into any story; by creating compelling situations and characters. Good authors don't write the idea, the write the characters; it is the characters that give us the story. Whether those characters are vampires or werewolves or evil clones, if they and their foes (there always has to be a foe) distinguish themselves in the readers imagination, then, although the idea might not be new, the story is.
Trouble in the Forest, by Trystam Kith, borrows more than just the vampire trope. The story is a retelling of the Robin Hood myth, with Robin Hood and his merry men being a band of vampires preying on Sherwood travelers, and The Sherrif of Nottingham (Hugh deSteny, a former Crusader) the vampire hunter bent on tracking them down.
Kith infuses the story with a complexity and richness of language that does an excellent job of evoking the time period. It's obvious Kith did his (her? There's no clue as to the author's gender) research. The unfortunate side affect of such 'thick' writing is the sometimes lagging pace of the story itself. I like stories that have a lot of energy, that grab hold and pull. Occasionally, I felt as though I were pushing my way through this book, sort of slogging through a morass of atmosphere and description.
Those readers who like a meticulous and lovingly written dark fantasy-infused alternate history book will be in word heaven. Those who don't, who prefer more of a balance between energy and atmosphere, will find themselves scanning the pages for a bit of action more than once.
How can an author infuse new life into such a threadbare trope? The same way a skilled author infuses life into any story; by creating compelling situations and characters. Good authors don't write the idea, the write the characters; it is the characters that give us the story. Whether those characters are vampires or werewolves or evil clones, if they and their foes (there always has to be a foe) distinguish themselves in the readers imagination, then, although the idea might not be new, the story is.
Trouble in the Forest, by Trystam Kith, borrows more than just the vampire trope. The story is a retelling of the Robin Hood myth, with Robin Hood and his merry men being a band of vampires preying on Sherwood travelers, and The Sherrif of Nottingham (Hugh deSteny, a former Crusader) the vampire hunter bent on tracking them down.
Kith infuses the story with a complexity and richness of language that does an excellent job of evoking the time period. It's obvious Kith did his (her? There's no clue as to the author's gender) research. The unfortunate side affect of such 'thick' writing is the sometimes lagging pace of the story itself. I like stories that have a lot of energy, that grab hold and pull. Occasionally, I felt as though I were pushing my way through this book, sort of slogging through a morass of atmosphere and description.
Those readers who like a meticulous and lovingly written dark fantasy-infused alternate history book will be in word heaven. Those who don't, who prefer more of a balance between energy and atmosphere, will find themselves scanning the pages for a bit of action more than once.
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