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36 reviews for:
The Master's Apprentice: A Retelling of the Faust Legend
Oliver Pötzsch, Lisa Reinhardt
4.09 AVERAGE
36 reviews for:
The Master's Apprentice: A Retelling of the Faust Legend
Oliver Pötzsch, Lisa Reinhardt
4.09 AVERAGE
My review of this book appears in Historical Novels Review issue 93 (August 2020):
Pötzsch’s popular Hangman’s Daughter series of historical mysteries has reached eight volumes, but the prolific author switches gears in this novel to tackle his childhood obsession, the legend of Johann Georg Faustus. The sorcerer/scholar/con artist is the German equivalent of Robin Hood, figuring in countless songs, legends, and Faustbücher (medieval superhero comics). He apparently lived from about 1480-1540, although there is little historical evidence of his actual life. His most famous literary appearances are in Christopher Marlowe’s 1593 play, The Tragicall History of Dr. Faustus, and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s 19th-century drama, Faust
Pötzsch recounts in an afterword his youthful first encounter with the Goethe play and his lifelong fascination with the mysterious man who received amazing powers from the devil in exchange for his soul. However, successful writers who choose childhood heroes as subjects often create projects that are clearly labors of love, but not necessarily compelling novels. The Master’s Apprentice is a very long, often repetitive meander through the details of life in 15-century Germany in the company of an unpleasant, narcissistic genius who, for all his brilliance, is not able to see the coming crises that are obvious from the start even to readers who don’t know the two plays. Setting the fantastical tale of Faust in the realistic world of the dawn of European humanism is a potentially brilliant idea that bogs down in too-detailed descriptions of Faustus’ crisscrossing wanders around middle Europe, pursued by a cartoonish villain. The breezy translation that renders the dialogue into colloquial modern English also lessens the emotional impact of what should be a psychologically gripping tale. The research is faultless, however, and readers finish the novel (which is apparently the first of a series) feeling fully immersed in the sights and particularly the smells of real life in medieval Germany.
Pötzsch’s popular Hangman’s Daughter series of historical mysteries has reached eight volumes, but the prolific author switches gears in this novel to tackle his childhood obsession, the legend of Johann Georg Faustus. The sorcerer/scholar/con artist is the German equivalent of Robin Hood, figuring in countless songs, legends, and Faustbücher (medieval superhero comics). He apparently lived from about 1480-1540, although there is little historical evidence of his actual life. His most famous literary appearances are in Christopher Marlowe’s 1593 play, The Tragicall History of Dr. Faustus, and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s 19th-century drama, Faust
Pötzsch recounts in an afterword his youthful first encounter with the Goethe play and his lifelong fascination with the mysterious man who received amazing powers from the devil in exchange for his soul. However, successful writers who choose childhood heroes as subjects often create projects that are clearly labors of love, but not necessarily compelling novels. The Master’s Apprentice is a very long, often repetitive meander through the details of life in 15-century Germany in the company of an unpleasant, narcissistic genius who, for all his brilliance, is not able to see the coming crises that are obvious from the start even to readers who don’t know the two plays. Setting the fantastical tale of Faust in the realistic world of the dawn of European humanism is a potentially brilliant idea that bogs down in too-detailed descriptions of Faustus’ crisscrossing wanders around middle Europe, pursued by a cartoonish villain. The breezy translation that renders the dialogue into colloquial modern English also lessens the emotional impact of what should be a psychologically gripping tale. The research is faultless, however, and readers finish the novel (which is apparently the first of a series) feeling fully immersed in the sights and particularly the smells of real life in medieval Germany.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It was a good read, some parts dragged a bit and what should have been exciting action packed scenes were skipped over to the aftermath so that was a bit of a let down but a very good writer who does paint the picture well. I like to google info as I read and many authors don't spur that curiosity very well. Oliver certainly does so he will go in my 'like' list.
dark
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
I will be revisiting this book again soon. What a beautiful work. The narration was also top notch.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
I won a copy of this book through Goodreads Giveaways.
Though I’m familiar with the Faust legend, I’ve never actually read any translations or versions, so I know the basic premise. This retelling was atmospheric and dark, and gave me a feeling of dread in the pit of my stomach that lasted from beginning to end. The descriptions of places and people are rich and evocative, and the plot moves pretty quickly. There are some out of tune notes—mainly, for how clever Johann is supposed to be he sure takes a long time to catch on to fairly obvious stuff, and some things come out a little too coincidentally—but overall this is an excellent spooky story to tell in the dark.
Though I’m familiar with the Faust legend, I’ve never actually read any translations or versions, so I know the basic premise. This retelling was atmospheric and dark, and gave me a feeling of dread in the pit of my stomach that lasted from beginning to end. The descriptions of places and people are rich and evocative, and the plot moves pretty quickly. There are some out of tune notes—mainly, for how clever Johann is supposed to be he sure takes a long time to catch on to fairly obvious stuff, and some things come out a little too coincidentally—but overall this is an excellent spooky story to tell in the dark.
dark
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced