A Fortress In Shadow (Dread Empire)

A Fortress in Shadow (Dread Empire Omnibus 2) by Glen Cook. Omnibus edition published by Night Shade, August 2008. Approx. 368 pages.

Before The Black Company, there was the Dread Empire.

So the blurbs often go; however, there are precious few parallels between Glen Cook's early dark fantasy series and his iconic mercenary series.

Reviewing the Dread Empire series is a bit of a tough job; I actually read the first three installments (bundled together in the A Cruel Wind omni) a few years back, but was never able to pen a proper review. I liked them; quite a bit in fact, but yeah, they're kind of odd. As early works, there're issues with pacing, direction, and cohesion of narrative.

However, before getting into the two installments included here (which, by the way, are actually prequel books to the original three), we should touch base a little with the series so far.

Apologizing in advance; I've forgotten a lot of what's transpired already. A lot. Ugh, sorry. Bear with me.

With the Dread Empire series, Cook did something he really seems to enjoy doing; basing stories off of areas from different historical points, and adding influences such as magic, and/or deities into the mix. From this template, he extrudes a compelling narrative. The titular Dread Empire serves as a stand-in for Eastern Asian expansion, while the Western kingdoms are our Europe proxy. Smack dab in the middle (or thereabouts, remember Cook eschews the inclusion of maps) lays the series' version of the Middle East, Hammad al Nakir (or is that just one of the regions? I can never remember, the name onslaught never ends...).

The first trilogy details geopolitical tumult and power moves in the Western Regions as the Dread Empire amasses power and prepares for conquering moves in the East. At the center of this is a trio of friends; Bragi (a Trolledyngjan, the series' Norse equivalent), Mocker, a scheming thief/trickster, and Haroun bin Yousif, the King Without a Throne, the vagabond king of al Nakir, and victor of the El Murid Wars. This trio are former friends and adventurers, and their paths continually cross, overlap, and intertwine as events unfold.

While that sounds pretty straightforward; as I mentioned, the first book of the series, A Shadow of All Night Falling, seems to have trouble figuring out where it wants to go. A large portion of the narrative focuses on the history and current plight of the wizard Varthlokkur, and that's great. But then, along the way, Bragi gets introduced; and in a fairly minor capacity. This is odd as he is, overall, the central character in the series. Hell, in this book, Mocker gets much more page time than him; and that doesn't really work, as Mocker is an extremely annoying character (at first, he gets better as Cook's writing got better). Haroun features barely at all.

The second book, October's Baby, was mostly battle reports (excellently done). And the third book, All Darkness Met, sees the series really hitting its stride;

with the battles and intrigue intensifying, the stakes continually getting raised, and the espionage/spy angles really being played up.

Short take: once the series really gets rolling, it's amazing. Lovers of The Black Company will of course miss the laconic, sardonic wit of a narrator like Croaker. However, they'll also be amazed by Cook's ability to turn extremely bare bones, sparse descriptions and dialogue into compelling scenes and characters. Huge battles are resolved in mere sentences. Major characters die off-screen. There is very little time spent in their heads, and yet, you still get to

know these characters well. But that's why he's such a great author.

Now, back to these prequel books. These were released around the time the first Black Company book came out. Safe to say, this is when Cook was at the top of his game, and it really shows. The writing here is top-notch Cook, and he has a clear vision for how he wants these books to play out.

The two books contained in this omni are The Fire in His Hands (1985) and With Mercy Toward None (1985), keeping up his tradition of absolutely amazing book titles. As was fairly typical of the mid-80's, these books are fairly short; coming in at about 180 pages each, making this omnibus about the size of a normal, modern book at about 370 pages.

The core thesis of the duology is as a chronicle of the El Murid Wars mentioned earlier in the series; and which forged our core trio of characters into the men they are. The primary focus is on El Murid

himself; born Micah, the son of a salt merchant (whose caravan was slaughtered by bandits), who is charged by the Star Rider (that shadowy, omnipresent interloper seen in the first books) with becoming a true Disciple of the Lord. He gifts Micah with the name El Murid, as well as a magic wrist amulet which can literally call down the power of the Heavens.

El Murid soon finds, however, that entrenched power structures are quite adverse to usurpation. El Murid must secure and grow his base of followers; then raise armies and take lands. The "Lord" has charged him with taking the religion to the lands of the non-believers, but he finds it hard going just unifying the lands of his own people. The majority of the first book deals with these actions/battles.

Also interspersed throughout the first book are the introductory backstories for Bragi (and his brother Haaken), and Haroun (which gives us an invaluable insight into the Royalists, who support the establishment over the upstart El Murid).

The second book focuses on the actual taking of the Word to the lands of the infidels. By this point, El Murid has amassed a massive army, with the Royalists reduced to a few scattered bands. By rules of lineage, Haroun is technically king, but he is stranded, on the run.

On the Western front, we see the moves, maneuvers, and power grabs/consolidations which transpire in the wake of the invading forces. There are countless battles, and positions of power shift at the drop of a hat.

Book 2 also introduces Mocker into the mix; showing him as an invaluable asset as a spy an covert ops specialist.

There isn't much else to say on this prequel duology. As already stated, even within the sparse prose; the myriad landscapes are richly envisioned and detailed. The battles effectively convey their horror, magnitude, and significance. And the characters are rich and real. El Murid, the eye of the storm in corporeal form; is an immensely deep, and tragically flawed character. He is no zealot of iron resolve. He has desires; personal desires, sexual desires, desires for power, for revenge, and even desires to grow his Empire into a verdant utopia, rather than subjugate infidels by the sword.

But life does not bend to accommodate our desires. Few authors hammer that sobering message home better than Cook.

So, are there any problems? With the story we get, not really. It's solid. Cook obviously had a vision, and he served it up. There are some questions, though. The main question is....why? Why do we have/need a prequel duology focusing on the El Murid Wars? The Dread Empire, you know that massive evil institution that serves as the primary antagonist for the series, as well as giving it its name? Yeah, them. They don't figure in these two books....at all. El Murid's jihad does not take his forces to their lands.We don't get snippets of what is transpiring in these lands when the forces of the Disciple hit the Western kingdoms (and, we know well from the first books, they're always watching).

Also, although you may have liked Haroun in the first books, and may have grown to like (tolerate) Mocker, perhaps we didn't need to see so much focus on them, especially Haroun. Compelling as his tale is; if you're reading these books, you likely remember that Haroun's tale came to a close in the third book. Mocker's too.

As you can see, the "why?"'s are no deterrent, and these books are great. You also get the added bonus of a heartfelt introduction by Steven Erikson, telling his history with Glen Cook's books. Jeff Vandermeer penned an intimate intro for the first, Cruel Wind omnibus.

So there you have it. Grab these first two omnibus volumes and enjoy some early Cook. See what a brilliant mind this natural strategist has. I'll be moving on to the final book in the series soon, hopefully.

Cover:

Night Shade has always gotten Raymond Swanland to do some of his best work ever for the Cook releases. This one is no exception. What an eye-catching cover, look at that dynamic posing.