The Good, The Bad, and the Uncanny

Today I'm going to review Simon R. Green's The Good, The Bad, and The Uncanny: A Novel of the Nightside.

Wow that title is a mouthful. This is the tenth Nightside novel, and the series hasn't bothered to slow down one little bit. If you've never picked up a Nightside novel, go buy all ten. You will NOT regret it.

Shameless plug aside, time for the review.

Firstly: Writer's Trinity.

You thought I was done harping on that, didn't you? Nope. Never. I feel that if a book can't stand up against the "plot, character, setting" model there's no reason to read it. Yes, there are some "literary" stories out there that lack parts of this... but I have no use for "literary" work. I love STORIES. Not pompous examples of artistic expression. If you're too good to write an enjoyable story, then I'm too good to waste my time reading it.

Rant over, review continuing.

Plot:
Excellent. I'll give a brief overview. This is one of those stories for which spoilers don't matter. It's the experience that's important, not any individual plot point. Don't worry, I won't give anything too juicy away. I want you to read the book.

John Taylor is a private detective in a place called the Nightside, which is... well. It's the Nightside. It's where legends go to die, or be reborn. It's a hive of scum and villainy. It's a sanctuary for the lost. It's an experiment in how well Good and Evil can survive living side by side. I'll go into it more when I get to "setting".

John Taylor is extremely good at his job because he has certain advantages, mostly inherited from his mother... who I am not naming, sorry. He uses these advantages to do whatever is necessary to help his clients. He's the good guy... mostly. He tries to be. He's fought wars (at least two) and prevented many more. He may one day destroy the world. His favorite weapon is a handful of black pepper.

In this installment, John is first hired to help an elf cross the Nightside. This simple task of course spirals all out of control, and introduces the reader to such colorful characters as Ms. Fate, a genuine super hero; Dr. Fell, a terrible fallen vicar; and most dangerous of all Walker... the Authorities' Man, charged with maintaining the status quo of the Nightside.

This novel focuses mainly on Walker, and something revealed about him in the ninth novel. It is a twisting, tightly constructed plot that leaves you guessing until the last page. Which leaves you hoping book eleven will hurry up and get published. This does feel like a "transitional" plot, shifting the Nightside and John Taylor from what they were to what they will be. That's not to say it isn't wonderfully written. It just feels like the author wants to whet our appetites before the real fun begins.

Character


I mentioned John Taylor. He's a brilliant character, complex enough to stay interesting through ten novels but still predictable enough that the reader feels they know him. He's powerful, but in subtle ways. It's easy to relate to him, sympathize with his problems, and cheer at his successes.

Some supporting characters include Walker, who is sometimes a supporter and more often an antagonist. In this one... I can't even begin to classify him. His job is to maintain the status quo, and he does it. With a vengeance. He's utterly ruthless, willing to sacrifice anything to do his job. He's chilling, capable of gutting his best friend, wiping off the knife, and politely asking for the time.

Susie Shooter is John's girlfriend, and a bounty hunter. She is awesome. She doesn't appear much in this book, as she has her own interests and jobs to be doing and can't always be babysitting John. I only mentioned her because she's pretty much my favorite character in this series and I'm glad that she can be shown to change and grow without diminishing from what she started out as.

Lord Screech is the elf who hires John in the beginning of the novel. He's untrustworthy, snarky, a skilled fighter and of course deceiving everyone. He also keeps his word... oddly enough. He shows cruelty and compassion in equal wide strokes. I hope his character returns.

I could fill up a blog with these characters, but I won't. One great thing about the Nightside novels is the feeling that you're only getting the tip of the iceburg. Every single character is a character, not a set piece. Everyone has a story, everyone's going someplace or been everywhere. We see it all through John's eyes... and he's barely scratched the surface.

Setting


Wow. Where do I start?

I've mentioned that the best settings are almost characters in and of themselves. Nightside is definitely one of the best settings I've ever read. It's gritty, it's vast, and it never sits still. I don't think I'd like to visit this place in real life, but a part of me likes to imagine such a place could exist, somewhere just a step to the side of everyday reality. But then, I love the idea that the old legends could be true, even the terrible ones... because they mean the world is a bigger place than we think and isn't that a wonderful notion?

Nightside has so much I won't even bother trying to list it all. I'll say that this book focuses on the Street of the Gods, where various gods, demigods, and wanna-be objects of worship thrive. It also focuses on the only "real" church of the Nightside, Saint Jude's. In point of fact, the climatic encounter of this novel happens there.

So, writer's trinity?

The Good, The Bad, and The Uncanny passes with flying colors on all three.

Now, I will have to add a few qualifications to this statement.

It's set in Britain, sort of, so it's a very British novel. That's not a bad thing, at all. I'm just pointing out that some terminology and humor may be difficult to follow for my fellow American readers. It's also "epic", normally a major flaw to any story in my opinion. However, Simon R. Green has the singular ability to tell an epic, universe spanning tale and yet never once lose sight of the characters who make the story matter.

This is the latest in a long running series, so I can't recommend just picking this one up and reading it. I think you'll still enjoy it, but I can't be sure because I have read all of the others. I think if you do read it, you will be finding and buying the rest. It isn't a "stand alone" novel, it's definitely part of a bigger story.

So. There's my review of Simon R. Green's latest Nightside novel. It's another wonderful novel from a brilliant writer. I will now be stalking Hastings to find out when book eleven comes out.

Until next time!