The Shadow Of The Lion

Rating:
Summary: Solid if unoriginal.
Review: Set in Renaissance Venice in a somewhat alternate world (one where, for instance, magic works), this book chronicles two or three years of political upheaval, primarily from the point of view of two nobly-born brothers in hiding.

The plot is complicated, but given that it's about Italian politics in a particularly volatile period, not excessively so. It's engaging and flows well; there aren't any particularly noticeable slow spots, and you don't want to put it down. Despite its size and weight (it's 800 pages in hardcover) I brought it with me on a cross-country plane trip because I'd started it and didn't want to leave it behind. And unlike many multi-author works, the various plot threads all integrate properly.

The downside is that many elements of the plot -- and several of the characters too -- are rather heavily borrowed from C.J. Cherryh's Merovingen Nights shared-world anthology, to which Lackey was a contributor. This should not be construed to mean that this book is a rehash/clone of Merovingen Nights; it's not, and even the borrowed elements are not necessarily assembled the same way.

There are also certain points of resemblance to Diana Wynne Jones's book _The Magicians of Caprona_, but this probably just reflects common thematic material.

To the extent that the setting is historical, it appears, to a non-historian, fairly well researched; to the extent that it's made up, it's done well, and it's not always easy to tell which is which (usually a good sign).

The characterization is competently done, if not in general terribly deep; several of the characters are quite engaging. (Details would probably be spoilers.)

Lackey's writing sometimes suffers regarding style; whether due to collaboration or more/better editing, there's none of that this time; the book is solidly and competently written, though not brilliant.

Overall: **** (Ok, even pretty good, but not extraordinary.)

Rating:
Summary: Don't let rabid Merovingian Nights fans scare you off this
Review: Shadow of the Lion is a wonderful collaboration that brings the strengths of three great writers, Lackey, Flint, and Freer, together to create a rich and engrossing read. It's sad that Ms. Lackey's fans are so inflexible as to downgrade the work for not being 'all Lackey' or derivative, especially since the book works so well! Success can, apparently, have a serious downside.

Admittedly, the first few chapters where all the characters are being introduced are a little tough to climb over. However, once you get into the meat of the story, it becomes an alternative history adventure in high style with a little magic fantasy thrown in for seasoning!

What I particularly enjoy are the rich characters that don't require pages and pages of development. The writing, for the most part, is crisp and to the point without excessive infodumps or characters whinging about their inner demons or conundrums. Much better than the typical romance-novel-disguised-as-a-fantasy that seems to dominate the bookshelves nowadays.

The two niggles that stick out to me (other than the climb through the first several chapters) is that the ending is a little predictable and the final battle in Venice lacks enough detail to be compelling, although the twist at the end between Benito and Maria is heartwrenching and unexpected.

I very much enjoyed reading this novel, and I recommend it to my friends. Actual score would be 4.5 if I could.

Rating:
Summary: Don't let rabid Merovingian Nights fans scare you off this
Review: Shadow of the Lion is a wonderful collaboration that brings the strengths of three great writers, Lackey, Flint, and Freer, together to create a rich and engrossing read. It's sad that Ms. Lackey's fans are so inflexible as to downgrade the work for not being 'all Lackey' or derivative, especially since the book works so well! Success can, apparently, have a serious downside.

Admittedly, the first few chapters where all the characters are being introduced are a little tough to climb over. However, once you get into the meat of the story, it becomes an alternative history adventure in high style with a little magic fantasy thrown in for seasoning!

What I particularly enjoy are the rich characters that don't require pages and pages of development. The writing, for the most part, is crisp and to the point without excessive infodumps or characters whinging about their inner demons or conundrums. Much better than the typical romance-novel-disguised-as-a-fantasy that seems to dominate the bookshelves nowadays.

The two niggles that stick out to me (other than the climb through the first several chapters) is that the ending is a little predictable and the final battle in Venice lacks enough detail to be compelling, although the twist at the end between Benito and Maria is heartwrenching and unexpected.

I very much enjoyed reading this novel, and I recommend it to my friends. Actual score would be 4.5 if I could.

Rating:
Summary: No Shadow, only shine
Review: SHADOW OF THE LION is an excellent, wide-ranging fantasy novel that makes best use out of three fine authors: Mercedes Lackey, Eric Flint, and Dave Freer. It's a historical epic fantasy with many settings, many characters, and many interwoven plots, but it never, ever falters.

SHADOW OF THE LION is mostly the story of Marco and Benito, two brothers who go from rags to riches amidst war, intrigue, magic, and more war in 16th century Venice. In this alternate history, because magic works, the alliances among countries and kings aren't always what you'd expect.

At any rate, Marco and Benito are engaging characters, and I enjoyed reading about their adventures. I don't want to go into too much detail about these adventures, either; suffice it to say that who they meet, what they find out, and what they do along the way with that information is too much fun for me to spoil.

Go read this impressive book for yourself already!

Five stars plus, highly recommended.

Barb Caffrey

Rating:
Summary: No Shadow, only shine
Review: SHADOW OF THE LION is an excellent, wide-ranging fantasy novel that makes best use out of three fine authors: Mercedes Lackey, Eric Flint, and Dave Freer. It's a historical epic fantasy with many settings, many characters, and many interwoven plots, but it never, ever falters.

SHADOW OF THE LION is mostly the story of Marco and Benito, two brothers who go from rags to riches amidst war, intrigue, magic, and more war in 16th century Venice. In this alternate history, because magic works, the alliances among countries and kings aren't always what you'd expect.

At any rate, Marco and Benito are engaging characters, and I enjoyed reading about their adventures. I don't want to go into too much detail about these adventures, either; suffice it to say that who they meet, what they find out, and what they do along the way with that information is too much fun for me to spoil.

Go read this impressive book for yourself already!

Five stars plus, highly recommended.

Barb Caffrey

Rating:
Summary: JUST GREAT
Review: So it was long, and it was a slow read, big DEAL. Ms Lackey and cohorts have spun a gripping, involved tale of GREAT characters, involved PLOTTING and lots of FUN. I read for pleasure and this was a pleasure. I was always looking back to keep things straight, but it was FUN. I lost most of two nights sleep because I couldn't put it down. This team should write lots of sequels, and I WILL BUY THEM ALL.
Be warned, if you pick up this book and start reading you will suffer. Yours friends and family will think you have run away, and you have, To Venice, where you can spend a ripping vacation in you mind. The lady has won me back.

Rating:
Summary: Too many cooks
Review: The book had a plot line that meandered like a dog in a fire hydrant warehouse. The characters were as flat as the paper they were writen on. The authors collaboration worked as well as a mixture of a heavy smoker in a fireworks factory. It is very obvious it is a collaboration and it needs the hand of a better editor. If I had bought the book instead getting it at the library I would be demanding my money back for getting such a good example of why popular fiction is looked down upon. 1 star is being generous. I enjoyed other works by the authors and am severly disapointed in this collaboration.

Rating:
Summary: Not Mercedes Lackey's usual offering
Review: The first thing to say is that I like almost everything that Mercedes Lackey has written and so I am predisposed to like this. I have to say, however, that I suspect that Ms Lackey did not write the lions's share of this book (or perhaps she did write that part because the book gets much more 'Lackey-like' when touching on the supernatural). (The Lion of St Mark features in the book)
The book is really an alternative history and will, I think be enjoyed by people who like relatively lightweight alternative history. It creates a world where the Library at Alexandria was not burned and the wisdom and knowledge contained there was saved by Hypatia, the courageous librarian who was unable to protect the library in our world . (Hypatia is obviously a favorite of Ms Lackey's .since she 'featured' in The Ship Who Searched'). The theory is that the Library contained much arcane knowledge and that as the result of saving it Hypatia was beatified and set up a tolerant and liberal Christian denomination with St John Chrystomenes (sp?) (who in real life was, I believe, dismissed as a crazy fanatic). In addition the knowledge of and practice of magic is very much a part of this world. Furthermore there is a substantial pagan presence. Some of these pagans are Mages. There is a group called the Strega (again , not well explained, they seem to be the equivalent of gypsies), whom the Church - or certain factions in it - are oppressing. Many of the Strega work magic in some form.
In this sixteenth century Venice the Church has factions who follow St Peter (the Petrines) and those who follow St Paul (the Paulines) and some Hypatians. The exact beliefs of these factions are never explained - which probably doesn't really matter since the book is complicated enough without that - except that, by not going into that kind of detail the book may lose alternative history fans. The Church is a powerful and complex force in this world's politics as it was in the real world - but I missed just where each faction stood. Certainly the politics of Europe, woven through with magic and a powerful Lithuanian demon ARE pretty detailed - and complicated- as are the political factions within Venice herself. I found that reading the book took some effort because of the very rather labyrinth like plot but, having made the effort I finally got caught up in it ...only to find it had finished!
The reason that I don't think Ms Lackey wrote much of the book is that one of her strengths is her ability to make the reader care about a character, or small group of characters. In this book the two principal characters are orphaned brothers Marco and Benito. They are pawns of shadowy puppet masters - who, again, the reader never knows much about. However, apart from the fact that Marco is fairly saint like and Benito is a street rat,and they are important in a 'great scheme', I never really felt I knew much about ' how they ticked'. We spend a lot of time with Ceasare, a shady character who is a spy, assassin and mercenary . . .but his character is deliberately unreadable.. . Only one character comes across clearly; an ambitious courtesan called Francesca. We understand her, she is highly intelligent, beautiful and a survivor. She also seems as if she is the only person who has control over her life! Perhaps the book should have been about her!

I do not feel that regular Mercedes Lackey fans will necessarily enjoy this book. In fact, I would recommend this book only if you like dense, alternative universe stuff (though it isn't good enough for an alternative history purist) with less characterization that we have come to expect from Ms Lackey and (not enough) rather erudite magic.

Rating:
Summary: Massive and fascinating alternate history
Review: The Grand Duke of Lithuania, under the control of a demon, is thwarted in his expansion attempts by the Holy Roman Empire. But the Empire has many demands on its resources and the Duke realizes that the focal point is Venice. If the Empire can be persuaded to divert its efforts into the quagmire of Italy, evil has a good chance to run over the weakened borders. Renaisance Venice is a city of feuds, rich merchants, magic, and mystery. The Emperor sends his nephew and possible heir into the Italian stew, accompanied by a Norse/Vinlander bodyguard and a group of Teutonic-style knights. Two young brothers, Marco and Benito struggle for their place in the city, abandoned by their family but still hunted by vendetta enemies. And Maria and Kat work Venice's famous canals in their gondolas. But the forces of evil are strong and Venice's ancient protector sleeps deeply.

Authors Mercedes, Eric Flint, and Dave Freer combine to create an intriguing alternate history. In this world, magic exists, Hypatia of Egypt converted to Christianity and became a Saint, the Greeks still control Constantinople, Germany is united in a useful empire that doesn't quite squander all of its resources in Italy, and Lithuania and Hungary rather than the Ottoman Empire threaten the west. The Christian Church is split between Petrian and Pauline branches with the more rigid Pauline being especially strong in Germany closer to the battle against the demons themselves.

THE SHADOW OF THE LION is a massive work--and only the first in a multivolume series. Its focus is almost wholly on Venice--the richest city in the world and a major link between east and west. Somehow, Marco and Benito must not only keep themselves alive, but also grow to the point where they can save the city. Because when the day comes, all of the Empire's forces, even his nephew Manfred, will be able to do little unless Venice can shake off its lethargy.

Alternate history buffs will enjoy the way SHADOW twists history--making it interesting to people who enjoy history but without beating the reader over the head with it.

Be warned, though. SHADOW is a major commitment. It takes time and energy to get through. This isn't the kind of book you can sit down with and get lost in. You'll work at it--but it'll be worth it.

Rating:
Summary: A Well Woven Story with an Abundance of Vivid Details
Review: The Shadow of the Lion in the first novel in the Heirs of Alexandria series. In 415 AD, the librarian Hypatia faced down a mob attempting to burn the Library of Alexandria. Her efforts saved many obscure works of the ancients, including a number of very powerful magical works. Although originally a neo-platonic philosopher, Hypatia was converted to Christianity and became the founder of an order dedicated to Christian magery, opposing the anti-magic biases of the Pauline Orders.

In 1537 AD, within this alternate timeline, all of Europe is threatened by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Poland, whose Grand Duke Jagiellon is a puppet of the demon-lord Chernobog. Emperor Charles Frederik of the Holy Roman Empire is the principal European leader of the opposition to Chernobog. The Knights of the Holy Trinity are supposedly his main agents in the Baltic regions, but they have their own agenda and have developed ties with the militant and unpredictable priestly order of the Servants of the Holy Trinity.

The Venetian Republic is the Queen of the Mediterranean, a bastion of independence and tolerance. Now forces are gathering in and around Venice. From Chernobog comes a shapechanged shaman to lurk in the lagoon and canals. From the Knights of the Holy Trinity comes a force of Knots and a few Sots; included among these knights are Manfred of Brittany, nephew of Charles Frederik, and his mentor Erik. And from the Grand Metropolitan of Rome come the Basque priest Eneko Lopez and his companions.

In this novel, Marco and Benito Valdosta are grandsons of Enrico Dell'este, the Old Fox, Lord of Ferrara, Modena, Este, and Reggio nell'Emilia. Moreover, Benito is the illegitimate son of Carlo Sforza, the Wolf of the North, military leader of the Milanese forces. Although both brothers were thought dead after their mother was assassinated, they have been hiding within the Venetian environs, Marco among the marsh-dwellers and Benito among the street people. After an assassin attacks Marco in the harbor, the brothers seek the protection of Caesare Aldanto, an adventurer and former Montagnard assassin.

When Caesare becomes sick, Marco and Benito help Maria Garavelli, his lover, take Caesare home and treat his fever. Maria is a canaler who was born and raised on her gondola; after her mother died of a fever, Maria assumed her mother's customers and route. Maria is related to many of the Arsenalotti, the families who traditionally work at the municipal shipyard.

Benito has lately done work for Katherine Montescue, the last scion of an old Venetian family who has fallen on hard times. Kat has established a gray business smuggling magical artifacts and other magical goods with her gondola. Recently she has become friends with Franscesca De Chevreuse, a courtesan who becomes the mistress of Manfred.

In this story, the Doge has reduced his opposition to religious persecution by the Sots and other Christian fanatics and the Sots have taken advantage of his recent slackness, stepping up their persecution of the Stegas and other non-Christian mages. In fact, they are very much opposed to even Christian mages such as the Siblings of St. Hypatia. The Sots have recently brought a powerful pagan artifact to the Imperial Embassy (unknowingly under the fearful eyes of Kat and Benito) and have performed questionable magical rites therein.

The Montagnards are also becoming more active in Venice and have recently tried to terminate Caesare with extreme prejudice. The magical population of Venice have noticed that some of the Sots (as well as a few Knots) are tainted and thus the undines and other pagan entities have been staying away from the embassy. The Stegas have become more disorganized, but also more militant, and have been searching for one of their leaders, Dottore Luciano Marina, who disappeared several years past under dark circumstances; Eneko is also trying to discover the status of Dottore Marina. Meanwhile, Marco is being pressured from all sides to accept his mage talents.

The story is a major alternative history of Venice. The rich details of the historical Venice are intermixed with a fantastic extrapolation of the existence of real magic in this timeline. For the most part, the magic is part of the background, but it also pervades every aspect of Venetian life. An amazing tour de force!

The story is multi-threaded, with a fairly large set of characters (it does include a list of characters and other information in the appendices). This may cause some confusion about the minor characters during the frequent scene changes, but the main characters are memorable and fairly well fleshed out. However, there is plenty of room for character development in the sequel, This Rough Magic.

Highly recommended for Lackey, Flint and Freer fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of high magic, political intrigue, and Renaissance society with a touch of romance.

-Arthur W. Jordin