Subject: RHINEGOLD by Stephan Grundy

From: [email-masked] (Evelyn C Leeper)
Date: 11 Jul 1994 19:48:04 GMT

RHINEGOLD by Stephan Grundy
        Bantam, ISBN 0-553-09545-5, April 1994, 721pp, US$23.95.
                   A book review by Evelyn C. Leeper
		    Copyright 1994 Evelyn C. Leeper

     This is a remarkable first novel, though I must admit at the start
that my ability to judge its faithfulness to its sources is limited.It
is a retelling of the classic Germanic legend, but my knowledge of the
legend is based almost entirely on Wagner's operatic interpretation--
which was undoubtedly colored by his philosophy--and by Anna Russell's
summary of Wagner's story which is, to say the least, eccentric.  So all
I can say regarding Grundy's faithfulness to the original legend is that
knowing Wagner may be more hindrance than help.

     But as a story in its own right, RHINEGOLD succeeds admirably.
Though part takes place earlier, it is primarily set in the period when
Rome was on the decline but Christianity was making inroads in Germany.
It is full of the stuff of epics: battles, magic, forbidden loves,
dragons, ancient gods, oaths, and marvels.  Grundy eschews a "formal"
style, the result being a very direct and realistic re-telling.  (So
direct and realistic, in fact, that I found reading a vivid description
of a wolf attack during a somewhat bumpy plane flight was *not* a good
idea!)  This style gives the reader a real feel for the geography of the
area--a real sense of place, if you prefer.  And it makes the story seem
real and serious, something happening to real people with real feelings,
rather than merely symbols.

     Will you like this book?  It's not like other fantasies that are
popular, though I haven't read MISTS OF AVALON by Marion Zimmer Bradley,
and suspect that there might be some level of similarity between the
two.  But RHINEGOLD is almost definitely darker and heavier, simply
because it is so dark and heavy.  It doesn't rely on gratuitous gore,
but it does have its share of explicit violence when necessary.  I have
no idea what Grundy will do for an encore, but this strikes me as a
serious contender for a Hugo nomination next year.

     (Note: At 700-plus pages, chances for a mass-market paperback seem
slim--if that's not an oxymoron.  Give it the "page 117" test and if you
like what you read, spring for the hardback.)

%A      Grundy, Stephan 
%T      Rhinegold
%I      Bantam
%C      New York
%D      April 1994
%G      ISBN 0-553-09545-5
%P      721pp
%O      hardback, US$23.95

-- 
Evelyn C. Leeper | +1 908 957 2070 | [email-masked]
"Am I politically correct today?  Do I do crystals and New Age?
Obviously, women's music's for me--Edith Piaf, Bessie Smith, and Patti Page."
				--Lynn Lavner