Hammerfall (C. J. Cherryh) Chapters 1-7

The opening scenario is one that has become almost cliché in the Sci-Fi genre:  the protagonist is a member of a lower caste in a harsh social and geographical environment, often – as in this case – on an off-the-beaten-path desert world, and the protagonist’s family has just been destroyed or torn apart by evil political forces.  Luke Skywalker in Star Wars, anyone?   Those of us who have read a lot of this genre are patiently slogging through the author’s thorough representation of what life might be like in this type of world.  If you have read Frank Herbert’s “Dune” you have cause for great skepticism as to whether this desert world could come anywhere close to Arrakis in description, believability, and sheer amazing depth of development.  But if you have read C. J. Cherryh before, you can expect there to be ample compensation in other areas instead!

This slave-march through unbearable conditions is, in fact, given an unusual twist in that the captives are all afflicted with varying degrees of “madness,” the cause of which promises to be even more intriguing.  Indeed, as the story progresses, the very premise of the book takes a radically unexpected twist, hinging on this inexplicable “madness,” and we’re suddenly dealing with an entirely different story!  This is one of my favorite plot devices that authors use to hold a reader’s attention; just as the plot begins to seem predictable, everything veers into a new direction.  And the Sci-Fi/Fantasy genre (Cherryh disdains to distinguish between the two.) lends itself to this device very naturally. 

So now our hero, Marak (rhymes with Eric? – Barack? – The Rack?) has shifted his focus – his entire reason for living – to a quest that his “madness” has been pointing him toward his entire life; finding out what lies to the East of known civilization.  This involves yet another endless trek through the sandy wastes of the desert planet he lives on.  This is presumably a topic of endless fascination for some people.  The author has devoted the great majority of the first quarter of the book to it, giving us ample opportunity to explore the ins and outs of this culture and to spend some quality time with the characters we need to care about in order to care about what happens in the rest of the book.

Yes, I’m being facetious.  But, no, it’s not really all that boring - just slow.  Especially when you compare this narrative to Cherryh’s more well-known 5-book “Chanur” series centering on the adventures of the feline Chanur clan and their space ship.  Those novels move with breakneck speed through a complex series of politically charged and harrowing situations, barely giving the characters – or the reader! – time to breathe.  This book, on the other hand (and, yes, there is at least one sequel) is intended to be more “epic” in scope.  Thus, the higher tolerance for detail and pacing required on the part of the reader.

This is not to say that there aren’t interesting plot devices here.  One fascinating plot device is the use of a devastating desert storm to mask the nocturnal activities of our love triangle (Triangle!? Gulp – should our children be reading this!?  Sure, why not) who are sharing a tent with almost a dozen other people.  Is the noise of the raging storm combined with the complete lack of light even during the day enough to cover up the love-making?  What the heck, let’s say it is, and if the others snicker at us later on, it’s just them being all nosey, right?  Actually this works, and the descriptions walk the fine line between too much and not enough with considerable skill.  Yes, I’m finding myself relating to the hero and heroine(s) despite my impatience to get to the next major plot development.

 

 

Next Week:  Chapters 8-14