Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Factotum (Partial Analysis)

You would think that an orphan who aspired to be a sailor on the vinegar seas, spend several months lighting lamps on the Imperial Highroad, then joined up with a woman possessing specialized organs to cast lightning could not possibly be in a boring situation.  That's only half true.

Don't get me wrong, Factotum is a great book, it's just not up to my par at the moment.  The pacing seems to have slowed from the previous two books (Factotum is the third book in the Foundling's Tale series).  I'm about one-third of the way through and nothing gut-wrenchingly amazing has happened yet.  That's a problem.  D.M. Cornish's style is very archaic.  His books read almost like Shakespeare, albiet they're prose not poetry.  I've gotten mini headaches reading his works in the past.

The setting in Factotum is good enough for tastes.  It's world-built wonderfully and feels real.  The variation in settings from scene to scene is great for the most part, although some places have felt a little overused.

Few well-developed characters have been added so far, which is a disappointment.  Mr. Cornish is great with characters.  The existing characters have suited the story well, accompanied by temporary additions duely.

Overall, I'd be wrong not to recommend Factotum to anyone who loves fantasy.  It's on the epic side, mind you, yet I doubt it would be a problem for most.  Even young adults can enjoy it (as I do), for it's technically a YA book.  Happy reading.

No comments:

Post a Comment