Recently read: "Fool's Errant" by Matthew Hughes

A friend of mine (james_nicoll) characterized Matthew Hughes as (if my memory is accurate), "Like reading Vance but without the sociopathic characters." There is something to that, but I wouldn't be so harsh on Vance, or so complementary to Hughes after just reading this book. It is, I believe, his first novel. It is a bildungsroman about a young wastrel who happens to be the nephew of the 'Archonate' (for all intents and purposes the supreme ruler of a distant future, balkanized Earth). Although he doesn't know it, the wastrel has a destiny to fulfill and gets taken in hand by an irascible, but wise, dwarf who traipses him across a variety of nations on the planet to prepare him for his eventual doom.

As one might expect, the book is highly episodic and reads a bit like a travelogue. Hughes does a fairly decent job with the characterization; slowly, the youth's mentor comes to appreciate the progress the youth is making, and slowly the youth does make progress.

The ending might seem abrupt, but I would rather characterize it as not out-lasting it's welcome. There is a bit of false crisis thrown into the ending as a few last minute plot devices appear to act as tense, but otherwise pointless, barriers to the protagonists' eventual goal.

There is enough promise in this first book of Hughes' to prompt me to read the second "Fool Me Twice". And from having read some short stories by Hughes from later on in his career, I can tell that either (a) he's better at writing short stories, or (b) he just develops as a writer in general. I'm hoping the latter, because I already have three other novels by him, plus the book of short stories, bought on james_nicoll's recommendation (when he pointed out that Nightshade press was publishing Hughes).

If you like tales of adventure in the mode of Dumas or Vance (especially the latter), then Matthew Hughes is, if not a worthy successor, at least an enjoyable one and a welcome change from the raft of imitators of other styles of great fantasy.

Sadly, both "Fool's Errant" and "Fool Me Twice" are out of print; however, I was able to find them collected in an SFBC omnibus version for very little money, and that also made the purchase even more worthwhile.

Recently read: "Fool's Errant" by Matthew Hughes

A friend of mine (james_nicoll) characterized Matthew Hughes as (if my memory is accurate), "Like reading Vance but without the sociopathic characters." There is something to that, but I wouldn't be so harsh on Vance, or so complementary to Hughes after just reading this book. It is, I believe, his first novel. It is a bildungsroman about a young wastrel who happens to be the nephew of the 'Archonate' (for all intents and purposes the supreme ruler of a distant future, balkanized Earth). Although he doesn't know it, the wastrel has a destiny to fulfill and gets taken in hand by an irascible, but wise, dwarf who traipses him across a variety of nations on the planet to prepare him for his eventual doom.

As one might expect, the book is highly episodic and reads a bit like a travelogue. Hughes does a fairly decent job with the characterization; slowly, the youth's mentor comes to appreciate the progress the youth is making, and slowly the youth does make progress.

The ending might seem abrupt, but I would rather characterize it as not out-lasting it's welcome. There is a bit of false crisis thrown into the ending as a few last minute plot devices appear to act as tense, but otherwise pointless, barriers to the protagonists' eventual goal.

There is enough promise in this first book of Hughes' to prompt me to read the second "Fool Me Twice". And from having read some short stories by Hughes from later on in his career, I can tell that either (a) he's better at writing short stories, or (b) he just develops as a writer in general. I'm hoping the latter, because I already have three other novels by him, plus the book of short stories, bought on james_nicoll's recommendation (when he pointed out that Nightshade press was publishing Hughes).

If you like tales of adventure in the mode of Dumas or Vance (especially the latter), then Matthew Hughes is, if not a worthy successor, at least an enjoyable one and a welcome change from the raft of imitators of other styles of great fantasy.

Sadly, both "Fool's Errant" and "Fool Me Twice" are out of print; however, I was able to find them collected in an SFBC omnibus version for very little money, and that also made the purchase even more worthwhile.