I was more than a little curious when I first read the blurb for Richard Morgan's newest, for it seemed to be quite unlike everything he had written up until this point. He actually talked about this in the acknowledgements, stating that he is grateful to everyone who encouraged him to write the book he wanted to write rather than the one he felt constrained to put out, and who gave him the freedom to take all the time he needed in order to come up with the former instead of the latter.
Still, even though it is a departure from his previous works,
No man's Land retains many of the signature facets that characterize every Richard Morgan novel. It's also somewhat of a milder approach for the author, at least as far as sex and violence are concerned. Looks like A Land Fit for Heroes may have taught him a thing or two in that regard.
Here's the blurb:
A compelling standalone dark fantasy set in a gritty post-WWI Britain that has been overrun by the fae, from the award-winning author of Altered Carbon
The Great War was supposed to be the war to end all wars—and maybe it would have been, had an even greater, otherworldly foe not risen to extinguish the conflict. Overnight, as guns blazed in France and Flanders, village after village in the quiet British countryside was swallowed by the Forest. And within the Forest lurk the Huldu—an ancient fae race, monstrous in their inhumanity, who have decided that mankind’s ascendency over the world can endure no longer.
Enter Duncan Silver. Scarred by the war, fueled by a rage deeper than the trenches in which he once fought, Duncan is determined to show the Huldu that the world is not theirs for the taking. Armed with a deadly iron knife and a cut-down trench gun filled with iron shot, Duncan will stop at nothing to return the children the Huldu have stolen to the arms of their families. No matter how many Huldu he may have to slaughter along the way.
But when he is hired by a mother to return her four-year-old daughter, Miriam—taken by the Huldu six months past and replaced with a changeling—all hell breaks loose. Miriam is a pawn in a much bigger game for dominance than Duncan ever expected, and several long-buried secrets from his past are about to be violently resurrected.
It takes some time for the plot to make sense because in order to understand Duncan's place in this new world order we must first go through a number of flashback scenes that are a bit slow in coming. For all of that,
No Man's Land is never dull and Morgan hooks you up basically from the first chapter. It's just a question of trusting him to deliver what's needed to keep you on your toes. And to be honest, the author seldom fails to deliver and once he gets the ball rolling this one is quite a ride!
The post-WWI setting is quite interesting and so different from what is normally the norm in the genre today. Duncan's harrowing memories of war in the trenches also add a layer of realism to his character. It felt as though there were lots of anachronisms, but it appears that a lot of research went into this one and that it's as historically accurate as can possibly be. I for one would never have thought that telephones and drugs were so readily available in Britain at that period. It's definitely this setting that gives
No Man's Land its unique flavor and that's what I enjoyed the most. The Huldu at first seemed too much like the fae from A Land Fit for Heroes, but Morgan quickly gives them their own vibe and place in our world's history. I would have liked to find out more about them, but there is more than enough to keep you absorbed throughout the novel.
As a matter of course, Duncan Silver takes center stage. He's a three-dimensional protagonist though, as mentioned, it takes some time for the truth about his past to come together and give him more substance. Some may consider him too badass, but any soldier who emerged from the trenches of WWI was indubitably scarred for life. Some more than others, it goes without saying. Duncan's relationship with Niamh and the scenes with Mimi humanize him somewhat, yet he is and remains a hard man throughout the novel, even if the flashback scenes show that this wasn't always the case. The rest of the supporting case don't necessarily shine, other than the witches, the Fae Queen Mebhuranon, Garner, Crammond, and Arthur, but in their own way they keep the plot moving forward. The author's use of British/Scottish/Irish brogues made a lot of these men and women come alive in unexpected ways.
Although
No Man's Land is by no means a page-turner, the rhythm is never an issue. It just takes some time for the various storylines to coalesce into an overall plot that makes sense. The whole thing meanders a bit in the middle when the government and the Holy Order of Sword and Orb become involved. But as soon as those plotlines are woven into the greater scheme of things, the novel truly gets moving and doesn't let up till the very end.
Richard Morgan has a thrilling endgame in store for his readers, which then brings us to a shocking finale. Some will say that it came out of left field, but it was foreshadowed enough earlier in the book to make sense. It's unclear whether or not
No Man's Land is a standalone novel or if it's the first installment in what will be another series. A part of me would like to discover more about the Huldu and their return across the globe following the Great War. Yet another part of me believes that this tale has run its course and that should be the end of it. Time will tell. . .
Another interesting, entertaining, and ass-kicking yarn by Richard Morgan!
The final verdict: 8/10
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