The Devil In Green (Book One of The Dark Age) by Mark Chadbourn

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The Devil In Green (Book One of The Dark Age) by Mark Chadbourn
pub: Gollancz. 358 page enlarged paperback. Price: £10.99 (UK). ISBN: 0-575-07274-1

check out website: www.orionbooks.co.uk

Following on from 'The Age Of Misrule Trilogy', where the present day world has been thrown into chaos by the return of mythical creatures, Celtic gods, demons and magic, the events of which are known as 'The Fall', 'The Devil In Green' starts approximately a year after.

It follows the events of two men, Mallory - a sceptic - and Miller - a devout Christian. Both men are on the way to Salisbury Cathedral, the last stronghold of the Christian church in England, to join the new Knights Templar.

Mallory rescues Miller in a Porsche on Salisbury Plain while being chased by various dark creatures. Both men end up spending the night together in an ancient fort. They form a friendship and head off to Salisbury Cathedral together.

Mallory is in it for free food and shelter and will fight for God as long as the pay is right but life gets difficult after a mission to rescue a lost priest goes wrong. He comes back to find the cathedral under siege by supernatural forces and the church buildings magically transformed into an ever-changing Gothic fortress. The living conditions for the Knights getting progressively worse as time goes on.

Mark Chadborn has certainly been busy reading up on Celtic mythology, Medieval Christianity, Wicca, paganism and philosophy. Chadborn has done a lot of research into British mythology and this blend of ideas and background material works really well and creates a world of myth juxtaposed with the present day.

This could lead to an overtly heavy read but Mark Chadborn keeps his writing very fresh and lively creating a very believable world. The thought of Macdonald's surrounded by demonic mythical creatures or a dragon flying over Salisbury Cathedral brings a smile to your face.

The downside to this fast-paced writing is the theological and philosophical debates of the book are not expanded on to any large extent but does make you think about the human condition. It demonstrates the way people use organised religion to instigate their own prejudices and how they can be blinded by their own belief system.

There is some very interesting character development especially that of Mallory. You just get small glimpses of his dark past and get to see his character grow throughout the book. This is not your normal A to Z of fantasy and Chadborn's ability to slowly crank up the tension means it's hard to put this book down.

One slight disappointment is the number of story threads left unfinished, obviously to be continued in the next book in the series. This left the ending and some of the characters a little lacking in overall closure. It's OK to leave some things open-ended (X-Files always took this to the extreme) but maybe Mark Chadborn should have either given up a few more carrots or left us with one or two huge ones to ponder till the next book.

Saying that, I loved this book. It is a refreshingly different mixing pot of ideas and there are some unexpected twists and changes of plot that you just don't see coming. It would also make a superb film ('Reign of Fire' producers take note).

For all its wide range of sources, this book will appeal to most fans of fantasy and Science Fiction for that matter because it's an enjoyable easy read but still makes you think which is no bad thing.

Phil Jones

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