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A review by nataliya_x
Tower of Mud and Straw by Yaroslav Barsukov
3.0
Rarely do I complain about too much plot and too snappy of a pace, but this novella needed more room to breathe. Because I really feel that I just read an abridged version of a full novel — and did it at twice the speed.
As I repeat ad nauseam — novellas *are* tricky. A proper amount of plot for the length is not easy to get right. Many writers seem to underpack; Barsukov brings enough plot for a novella, a few short stories and a novel and then some — all in a very compact space.
Good things first, why not? The tone is done right — that poignant and wistful and at times dreamlike tone that sets perfect stage for a bittersweet story full of regrets and emotional scars and decisions between rights and wrongs. And I’m not just throwing the writer a bone here — tone is important and actually not easy to do right. The plot never lags even for a second (how can it, with everything that is crammed in!). The language flowed easily and quite a few descriptions made me nod appreciatively. And it’s simply interesting, let’s not forget that.
But... of course there’s always a “but”. I really think this is the case of too much crammed into a tight novella length. It has enough material for a novel, and most things would have benefited from being fleshed out more. First, the worldbuilding — too perfunctory, too vague, making it hard to envision what this place is and how it can work. Second, the characters — even by the end I felt that I had little sense of who Shea Ashcroft is as a person, his character and beliefs and motivations, not to mention important side characters Lena (both of them) and Aidan and Brielle. With little space to develop them, they seemed thin sketches, lacking depth and layers. And as a result the relationships - love, friendship, rivalry - felt a bit abrupt.
Due to rapid pace it feels that we are flying through events of the story without taking a breath to stop and smell theroses tulips. We dash between all these: from political fallout - to journey to the tower and its construction - to assassination attempts - to a hint of international tensions - to another human(-oid?) culture with apocalyptic beliefs and remnants of developed technology - to xenophobia - to love story - to more politics - to eldritch monstrosities - to traumatic flashbacks and tragic backstory — and none of it is developed enough to the potential it could have had. Too much plot, too little space. Either the page count needed to be twice as long or the focus should have been narrower.
(And one thing that bugged me from the beginning: this tower would not work as defense against airships. All those ships would have had to do would be taking a detour by a few dozen miles. Now as an immense vanity project I get it, and will assume that that’s it, the actual reason, with defense as a secondary excuse. Queen’s equivalent of red sports car for middle-age crisis.)
3.5 stars.
—————
Can be read online free in 4 parts on Metaphoros Magazine site:
Part I: The Duchy
Part II: The Adversary
Part III: The Tulips
Part IV: The Tower
——————
My Hugo and Nebula Awards Reading Project 2021: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3701332299
As I repeat ad nauseam — novellas *are* tricky. A proper amount of plot for the length is not easy to get right. Many writers seem to underpack; Barsukov brings enough plot for a novella, a few short stories and a novel and then some — all in a very compact space.
Good things first, why not? The tone is done right — that poignant and wistful and at times dreamlike tone that sets perfect stage for a bittersweet story full of regrets and emotional scars and decisions between rights and wrongs. And I’m not just throwing the writer a bone here — tone is important and actually not easy to do right. The plot never lags even for a second (how can it, with everything that is crammed in!). The language flowed easily and quite a few descriptions made me nod appreciatively. And it’s simply interesting, let’s not forget that.
But... of course there’s always a “but”. I really think this is the case of too much crammed into a tight novella length. It has enough material for a novel, and most things would have benefited from being fleshed out more. First, the worldbuilding — too perfunctory, too vague, making it hard to envision what this place is and how it can work. Second, the characters — even by the end I felt that I had little sense of who Shea Ashcroft is as a person, his character and beliefs and motivations, not to mention important side characters Lena (both of them) and Aidan and Brielle. With little space to develop them, they seemed thin sketches, lacking depth and layers. And as a result the relationships - love, friendship, rivalry - felt a bit abrupt.
Due to rapid pace it feels that we are flying through events of the story without taking a breath to stop and smell the
I can’t help but think of more focused novellas dealing with colossal structures: Kij Johnson’s A Man Who Bridged the Mist and Tower of Babylon by Ted Chiang. Those are absolutely wonderful — and I am pretty certain that Barsukov has all that potential as well and will get there soon. I’m curious to see what he writes next.
(And one thing that bugged me from the beginning: this tower would not work as defense against airships. All those ships would have had to do would be taking a detour by a few dozen miles. Now as an immense vanity project I get it, and will assume that that’s it, the actual reason, with defense as a secondary excuse. Queen’s equivalent of red sports car for middle-age crisis.)
3.5 stars.
—————
Can be read online free in 4 parts on Metaphoros Magazine site:
Part I: The Duchy
Part II: The Adversary
Part III: The Tulips
Part IV: The Tower
——————
My Hugo and Nebula Awards Reading Project 2021: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3701332299