Ombria in Shadow is written by Patricia McKillip, who has also written The Riddle Master trilogy. I enjoyed the The Riddle Master trilogy, so I thought, “Why not another?”. I borrowed this book from the Rochester Public Library from their several shelves devoted to books of the fantasy genre. It has a very detailed cover that promises good things…castles, sailing, and at least one character that is a woman.
Here is the plot in as few words as I can manage: The prince of Ombria dies, probably as a result of poison administered in small doses. He leaves behind his legal heir, a boy of approximately 7 years. He also leaves behind a mistress who is cast out in the streets and and an illegitimate nephew. The nephew is an odd silver-haired man in his twenties who spends his time in the taverns of Ombria and makes prophetic sketches with charcoal. The great aunt of all the royalty involved in this book, Domina Pearl, is the regent and happens to be evil and very into the dark arts.
This book reminds me a bit of Magician by Raymond Feist without the fantastic character development. It’s not that Patricia doesn’t develop her characters. She does, but I feel that some quality is lacking. I’m probably being vague, but I can’t come up with any supporting arguments. It’s just the feeling I get reading this book.
After reading the entire book, I wonder why is Ombria so special…is it just because the characters in the book live there? In my interpretation, it’s a city state with a monarchy. I don’t really have any idea what is outside of Ombria. Maybe its just a suburb of Amber.
One other detail about this book is that it has no glossary. Sometimes glossaries tell me a lot…like that the author had a vivid imagination and had to make up so much that he or she couldn’t find subtle ways to introduce his fantasy concepts. And that’s ok with me. There is no glossary in this book. There isn’t a lot that needs explaining.
So now I come to the end of my thoughts on this book. If you have to choose between reading Being Dead and this book, you should definitely pick this book. But there are so many better books out there. Hmm…I wonder if I should really bother with blogging for mediocre books.
I think as long as it isn’t a burden to you, you should continue blogging about even such mediocre books. I also liked the Riddle Master trilogy, but had not heard of this book. I may pick it up and give it a try. Or, since it doesn’t seem to be too worth it, maybe I won’t. But, at least I know it exists and the outline of what it’s about now.