Some time back My Krodie recommended "The Drawing of the Dark" by Tim Powers. It went in the stack and just got read. Apparently it's something of a classic fantasy that didn't catch on as well as some people think it deserved.
It is a fantasy novel. Instead of creating a new Middle Earth type world that doesn't have much of anything to do with reality, this book takes 1529 Europe and overlays a fantasy world on top of an invasion by Muslims into Vienna.
Our hero is busy going about his life when he's jumped by a band of ruffians in Venice. After fighting them off a strange man offers him a job as a bouncer in Vienna with a handsome salary. He takes the job and finds himself escorted there by a legion of supernatural beings. Eventually his patron makes it to Vienna and starts dropping hints about what's happening.
The Fisher King is sick and dying. He needs beer that has been aged for 700 years over the grave of Finn MacCool to restore him to health. The health of the Fisher King and the lands of the west are linked. As one fails so does the other. So the Muslims of the east want Vienna and the beer destroyed before the beer matures.
Our hero and his patron have lived this cycle over and over in various lives but only the patron is aware of our hero's true identity.
I'm not much of one for fantasy, except humor/fantasy, but it was a good book. If you are a fantasy reader then I recommend adding this to your collection.
2 comments:
I recommended that to you? And you read it? Good for you. I still like it immensely.
I think it was at the China Mieville signing you told me to get it.
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