Here at the fantasy-hive the SPFBO team have been reading through the nine other finalists that have been put forward by the other blogs alongside our own selection of THE HALLOWS and we are now ready to start posting our reviews, on an intended fortnightly schedule between now and December.

We do have to give scores at this stage and we’re also aware that the scores can tend to average out and congregate around the middle so we’ve tried to make a conscious effort to distinguish between each book in the scores we give and the implicit order that we are placing on them – which may mean some scores veer towards the upper and lower ends of the range.

However, we have been impressed by the professionalism and quality of this year’s finalists field and also how so many of them have done something different with their story ideas and maybe trodden into spaces where traditional publishers might fear to go.

Hopefully there will be enough in our reviews to give you a flavour of each book and a sense of whether it would appeal to you or not which – after all – is what reviews should be about. 

So on to our first finalist review of JESTER by Tim Carter where the judges will comment (as always) under the headings of worldbuilding, Prose, Character and Plot, before giving their pithy one line conclusions and scratching their heads to come up with a numerical score for this fortnight’s finalist.

Worldbuilding

Theo: It’s always nice to see a story that inverts the usual tropes of evil goblins, orcs etc, and Shelly – as a goblin slave suffering prejudice and endless scatalogical indignities makes a fun cypher. He gives us very much a view from the bottom up at the various arseholes who comprise the high and mighty of the humano-centric patriarchal Duchy of Halfsock. It is the perspective, rather than the world itself which gives Jester its originality. This is not a world of noble Aragorns or even misguided Denethors and slumbering Theodens. These are flawed human beings filled with venal self-interest or stubborn pride amongst the nobility. It takes the more pragmatic people amongst the satellites of the ducal court to navigate a path to communal survival in the face of the rampaging Demon Queen and her army of undead.

In the context of fantastical beasts and people, Carter delivers a world with a contemporary feel of political compromises, alliances and imperfect people just trying to do their best. I particularly enjoyed the gritty battle scenes with Shelly as much a spectator as Bilbo was at the battle of the five armies. The strategy and tactics felt more real than many fantasy battles and – as someone who has taken inspiration from real world historic battles in my writing – I got a bit of a feel of Agincourt or Crecy in the desperate defence against a far more numerous foe. Carter drew the reader into the same anxiety as Shelly – simply not seeing where salvation was coming from.

Cat: While we’re essentially stuck in a castle for the majority of the book (and the bog outside), this book really crafted a world in which everyone is flawed and the ‘lesser creatures’ are the among the few who realize it – because they see it from the bottom, literally! Humans are over-confident but stupid, while goblins are wily, gnomes have short-person syndrome, that sort of thing. Also as I found the audiobook of this, every race has its own British regional accent, which was hilarious (especially as one notable character is clearly modelled on Boromir/Sean Bean!). I’d very much like to see the events of this book from the POV of the Skeleton Queen and her armies – surely they can’t be as awful as the humans?! This isn’t just fantasy focused on the fighting, and I enjoyed that ‘everyday’ perspective very much.

Vinay: The worldbuilding is kind of limited to a castle and its immediate surroundings in a literal sense but the worldbuilding from a societal angle is impressively built up. This is a world of fantastical creatures with a goblin at the lowest strata of the hierarchy. While this world is still run by humans, there are elves, necromancers, orcs and zombies among others in this world. It is a feudal world that has noblemen and kings in it but with a degree of autonomy and independence to it. The caste system also extends to the secondary role of women in this world as well as towards the scheming and self-serving nature of noblemen serving the lord and the messy question of succession. 

There is a gritty, squelchy and murky sense of atmosphere that permeates this book as befitting a castle likely to be under attack by an army of undead – Tim Carter uses this general sense of this lack of upkeep to good effect on a couple of occasions for our lead, Shelly. The final battle sequences are also quite in keeping with the atmosphere of the world and is quite suitably desperate and dirty and this works very well in the context of this book

Prose

Theo: Carter does follow the exhortation to writers to bring readers into a scene by engaging all their senses – including smell. However, given Shelly’s role as a latrine slave that sensory engagement can be a bit pungent! Shelly’s first-person perspective gives scope for some nicely sardonic asides and those are the lines that most caught my eye, rather than sweeping purple prose capturing the magnificence of scene and setting 

Nothing fuels the white hot furnace of shame like being conquered by complete fuckwits.

I was used to shameless exaggeration, the generally recognised currency in Halfsock. Concealment of genuine power and status was a novel concept. 

Cat: The prose in this book absolutely shines, and I honestly was reminded of the gentle but cutting humour of Terry Pratchett at several points.

‘The duke needed a diplomat. This was a problem because the duke’s court was packed with selfish idiots who acted only in their self-interest. None knew the first thing about trust or respect.’

Shelly’s voice is fantastic and adds wit and actual humanity to everything he does:

‘Some depressives drink. I scrubbed cauldrons. It wasn’t that I overcame my insecurities. As I worked and my mind wandered, the negative voice simply dimmed in volume while my curiosity remained at its baseline volume.’

‘He put a hand on my shoulder, and it felt good. We stood for a moment in the gathering darkness as I reveled in the mysteries of friendship.’

Vinay: This is a pretty well written book with no dull moment. The initial parts of the book bring a sort of sly fatalistic humor but it increasingly trades the humor for a lot of heart. There is a good and strong sense of style to the writing and musings that take on observational themes. Given that Shelly is a latrine slave, a bunch of commentary goes through an excretion take but the author takes great care to not overdo it. In fact, through the book there are sequences where something or the other is the target of Shelly’s observation and the author just gives it enough attention to make you chuckle and then move on. 

“If holy symbols deter vampires, Twee had prayed to the wrong god”

“Death to the undead queen” – As I mentioned, necromancy plays havoc with grammar

It also has some fabulous lines of growth and purpose and as I mentioned above, its a book that has a surprising amount of heart to it. 

“I was entitled to my insecurities. I felt somehow that your friends ought to be the ones bucking you up, taking the position that you could, in fact, achieve the impossible. Or at least that you could find a path through the world that wasn’t endlessly bleak and frustrating”

Characters

Theo: Shelly holds the stage very well as the used and abused underdog who nonetheless has a moral code and modest but significant ambitions. However, the supporting characters deliver nicely nuanced depictions of people trapped by their own circumstance. Betticia – the second son’s mistress – escaping the constraints of gender and social status to exert a Madame de Pompadour-like guiding hand over her lover Alastair. Alastair himself is revealed to be more than just a stereotypical heroic warrior, often trying to deliver a pre-prepared script – but crucially understanding his need to take advice. Buckingham the gifted itinerant mage is another charming addition to the cast and the reveal of his secrets and his weaknesses is quite poignant. And finally there is Munch, the inquisitor who – despite being a clear antagonist to Shelly and all he holds dear – delivers a style of Columbo-esque interrogation on the “just one more thing, sir” kind of lines. So all in all a fun cast with plenty of people to root for.    

Cat: There’s not a weak character in this book. Even the brief (Twee) and the usually-offscreen (Alastair) are perfectly drawn, and seeing Shelly’s connections blossom with those he previously discounted as stupid is a joy. Racism and the idea of The Other/Lesser is a very strong throughline, and it’s fascinating to see the perspectives change (or not) as the story progresses – how one can use being underestimated to win through in the end, and those with the big shiny title are often the least equipped to handle it. The traditional role of the Fool being the only one who can see the truth is played to perfection, and Shelly is a true Hero in his grubby motley.

Vinay: Characterization is where the book absolutely shines. Through the eyes of an oppressed, poorly treated goblin latrine slave of Shelly we see this world and Shelly is quite the plucky underdog to root through. He wants to rise above his station and do more and in a way, is different from his peers. Owing to his standing and status, however, he is pretty much ripe with insecurities, fear and anxiety. He maybe knows what he has to do & he really wants to do it but he holds himself back and is also held back by others. He shows braveness when no one expects it of him and a masterful cunning still tempered by his fear. 

The friendships and alliances that he makes through the course of the book showcase another facet of the character development. His supporting cast are in some ways outsiders, even if they are way above him in standing. This results in a shared bond that drives a lot of Shelly’s own character growth and discovering facets of him which he didn’t realize he had possessed. Friendship is a major theme of this book and Shelly, grown up in a very hard world, has a tough time believing in this

Plot

Theo: The plot evolves quite nicely with Shelly the invisible inconsequential latrine slave, through a series of accidents, alliances and his own ingenuity, floating to the top of the tide of world changing times like a… like a… Well let’s just say he ends up punching well above his weight. Like the Hobbit, Carter’s narrative starts with the small scale challenges of working with and around handfuls of awkward people as a conveyer belt of events carry the characters towards a cataclysmic denouement. As with Bilbo there is even a moment where Shelly has to pick his loyalties and consider how far to engage with the sworn enemies of his friends (aka the people who enslaved him). In the context of our own political times, I found this line particularly resonant.

Maybe this was how politics worked. One adopted whatever version of the truth one needed at the moment.

Cat: I was caught from the start with the deeply unusual premise of this one. Yes, there’ve been books from the perspectives of various fantasy creatures, but this is a goblin who is Smart, so we’re on board cheering for him right away. Getting broken bones or having to plot alone in a dusty broom cupboard is par for the course, and the world Shelly inhabits is the one usually ‘offscreen’ in most tales. But if we’re following the most interesting day in a character’s life, Shelly’s is 100% the most interesting in this story. Despite all, he maintains that Main Character Energy throughout, and everyone ends up orbiting him as he manages to win through and become far more important than he could’ve imagined. Very much like Bilbo, just with more sass. 

Vinay: Extremely satisfying, the plot chugs along from minor challenges to the potential thread of saving the castle, even where Shelly himself is a slave. Shelly starts off trying to influence a small event so that the right person can be in charge but as we go through the plot and Shelly’s own growth, his role also evolves. From just a cog in the wheel to a catalyst to the action to an active protagonist driving big events, this is one heck of a journey and the story flows through these points effectively mirroring Shelly’s growth as well 

Conclusion

Theo: All in all a very satisfying twisting tale of an underdog makes good and finds some true friends along the way.

Cat: Goblin 1: Humans 0.

Vinay: An underdog story that involves an in-the-”dumps” protagonist, it emphasizes the trope of crawling through the shitter is sometimes key to breaking a resistance