Heather’s Bookshelf: Masks
Author: Conrad Bishop & Elizabeth Fuller
Released: 02/01/21
Genre: Historical Fantasy
“My story may be true or the droppings of a donkey. A story takes root in the heart, stretches up to embrace the sun and come to seed. The hero dies or finds his way home or marries the princess, kills the wolf, wins the war. Whatever is planted presses through hard-packed clay to come to flower.”
“Masks” introduces Bragi as he recalls the story of his early years to an inquirer. The story he tells occurs when he is six years old and on tour with his family as part of a traveling play.
Bragi travels during the 8th century and acts with his family consisting of his mother, father, Gramma, and a stowaway-turned-helper, Ludd. Along the way, they encounter several dangers and perils including some terrible situations with dire consequences. They carry with them and find it necessary to utilize curse bearing masks, also with their own consequences.
Bragi and his family plan and prepare shows amongst the chaos around them. At the same time, he begins to see things including images of the Norse gods and memories of the past- those of his and others.
Trigger Warning: rape, sexual assault, adult language, murder (including child)
Overall, I was a little torn by this tale. This story takes place in a time period which lends itself to some terrible occurrences and behaviors and the authors seem to include all of them and rather early on in the story. The darkness of these portions of the story highlight the lighter parts including some of the humor and teaching moments between Bragi and his Gramma (who was absolutely my favorite character). It also works to highlight the necessity of the relief plays could provide in such uncertain times. I learned a lot about the “behind the scenes” of putting on a show but ultimately was thrown off by the structure of the writing. I found it a hard story to read in the way the tale was put together and in the sentence structure itself. By the end, I understood why this part of Bragi’s life meant so much to him, but had a hard time getting to that point and wish there had been a more clear way of relating what was happening to him. I also thought the narration aspect was not necessarily needed throughout the story and would have served it’s purpose without as much confusion if placed just at the start and end of the story.
I received a copy of this story in exchange of a fair and honest review.
OVERALL REVIEW:
A dark story delving behind the scenes of a family of traveling performers in a dangerous time as told through the eyes of a six-year-old. Structural challenges further complicate an already complex tale.
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Check out my interview with Conrad Bishop
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