Review of "The Shuttered Temple," by Jonathan L. Howard, in Black Gate 15

Last night I read the second story in Black Gate 15, "The Shuttered Temple," by Jonathan Howard. I really enjoyed it. The main character, Kyth, was intriguing, and the plot, though simplistic, was engaging.

There were a couple of things about this story that weren't to my taste. But, above all, it was quite entertaining.

The main character, Kyth the Taker, is a kind of "razor girl," if you will: an acrobatic, very wise, Rogue-type figure who always seems to be a step ahead in the game. Kyth is unique in that she's a "smart aleck" who always cracks jokes and says what she's thinking. Her skill, I would say, comes from her ability to analyze and extrapolate and understand things at sight. There's a scene where she's evaluating a specific problem, and--snap--she just understands. In this way, strangely enough, she suggested to me the non-fiction work Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell (in this book he analyzes folks who are able to just understand things because of their deep, ingrained professional abilities). In large part, Kyth is a super thief/burglar. I really liked Kyth and she was a big reason why I liked this story.

The plot some was somewhat simplistic for my tastes and I think there was a missed oppurtunity. It concerns this scary, evil temple that has never been infiltrated. Our protagonist, of course, has to infiltrate it. I won't spoil it for you. Finding out what is in the temple is great. And yet--I would have liked to have seen more of the temple. Your imagination runs wild as you think to yourself, "Just what? Oh--what?! is?! in that temple?!" Could it be zombies? Demons? A lich lord? The story helps in suggesting things that might be lingering inside of it. And yet, I felt as though it failed to deliver.

Nevertheless, I valued the story for its ability to evoke this curiosity in me.

The dialog was somewhat irritating. In spite of Kyth's likableness, sometimes she speaks too much like a modern person. I know, I know--secondary world fantasy isn't necessarily in "the past." I agree. I agree. I guess, when reading fantasy (and sword and sorcery) one of the elements I take pleasure in is the anachronistic language. This language seems slightly stilted, a little awkward, and somewhat historical. Rather than, "Hello! How're ya doin'?" you have, "Hail! Well met! How are you, friend?"

I'm absolutely sure this is a personal taste thing. I experience "modernized" dialog in secondary world fantasy as an incongruity. I mean, just look at my fiction. My characters speak like bad parodies of Shakespeare plays.

Briefly, let me say something about the writing style. I don't want to take it fore granted. Howard's writing is great. It's the kind of narrative style that becomes a "window," if you will; you forget you're reading. You just concentrate on the story. This isn't banality on his part. It takes a lot of skill and practice to develop this type of "organic" narrative prose. I wish I could do it.

Conclusion: great story. Some elements of it weren't to my taste. But! It was a great story: intriguing plot, likeable character, and skillful, economic prose.

Rating: 4/5