Historical Novels Review - May 2010

UNDER HEAVEN
Guy Gavriel Kay, Roc, 2010, $25.95, 559pp, 978-0-451-46330-2

This review was an Editor's Choice in the May 2010 issue.

Under Heaven is a "variation upon themes of the Tang", a sweeping look at China during the 8th century, seen through the fictional world of Kitai. Kay alerts readers up front that his stories are inspired by real people, places, and events, which gives him freedom – "if I base a book on a slightly altered past, the reader who knows what happened in that time and place does not know with any certainty what will happen in my story."

And though the world of Kitai itself is not real per se, the combination of inspiration and imagination is absolutely convincing. This is the story of Shen Tai, second son of a famous general, whose selfless act of respect and mourning unwittingly attracts the attention of a foreign court – and earns him a mighty gift that will change the course of his life, and the fate of the empire. "The world could bring you poison in a jeweled cup, or surprising gifts," he muses. "Sometimes you didn’t know which of them it was."

The world of the Ninth Dynasty is delicate, ornate, elegant, and complex, but also full-blooded and sweeping, and the breadth and depth of the story reflect this sensibility. The writing style can sometimes difficult to get past, as it can be rather jagged; that said, the pace picks up significantly halfway through, and by the end you don't want to put the book down. The story is well plotted, with a broad mix of interesting characters that you grow to care about, along with outstanding world-building.

Richly imagined, this is an epic story of a complex and advanced civilization, an intimate look at the life of one man, and a fascinating meditation on free will, destiny and fate, coincidence and consequence. Highly recommended.


THE KINGDOM OF OHIO
Matthew Flaming, Amy Einhorn Books/Putnam, $24.95/$31.00, 322pp, 978-0-399-15560-4

Peter Force abruptly leaves his home in Idaho, where he and his father made a living in the silver mines, arriving penniless and disoriented in New York City. He quickly finds work with the crews digging out the deep tunnels under Manhattan for the nascent subway system. Cheri-Ann Toledo arrives, penniless and disoriented, in New York City, wandering exhausted and famished in Battery Park. When Peter's philanthropic urge brings them together, he learns Cheri-Ann's improbable story: she has traveled through time.

The narrator, whose story is surprisingly intertwined with that of Peter and Cheri-Ann, tells the tale from his place in 21st century Los Angeles, looking back across a century. We learn that Cheri-Ann is a princess, the last of the line of monarchs of the Kingdom of Ohio. Originally a land grant to French settlers during their revolution, the area around Toledo – Cheri-Ann claims – was an independent principality.

Peter agrees to help Cheri-Ann find her way home, struggling with his warring feelings – is she mad, or is she telling the truth? Either option is equally disturbing for him, and their journey takes a dangerous turn when the most powerful man of the age and the most brilliant minds of the time learn of their predicament.

The inclusion of Nicolas Tesla, Thomas Edison, and J.P. Morgan were interesting, but felt somewhat forced. The philosophical questions and drama at the center of Peter and Cheri-Ann's struggle did not necessarily require the inclusion of these Gilded Age giants. Flaming's rendering of turn-of-the-century Idaho and New York City is believable, almost seamless, the details interesting and never shoe-horned in.

The mix of tenses and points of view is a bit disorienting at first, but the story picks up as the mystery deepens. This is not only a mystery, however. It's a rumination on memory, history, love, and Self. Overall, this is a very well written, thoughtful, and interesting book. Recommended.