"The Conqueror's Shadow" by Ari Marmell (Spectra)

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The Conqueror's Shadow
Ari Marmell
448 pp. Spectra. $26.00
Pub. Date: 2/23/2010
ISBN-13: 978-0553807769

Reviewed by Paul Stotts

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In Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight, Gotham District Attorney Harvey Dent remarks that “…you either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.” Thanks for the foreshadowing, Harvey. But let’s change this statement up, going for the opposite approach. Namely, you either die a villain, or live long enough to see yourself become the hero. Now what would that look like. (Hopefully not like Darth Vader, his change of heart was the lameness.)

One day you’re out conquering the land, putting people to the sword, working on your evil genius cackle—the one that has chickens across the land dropping their nuggets and maidens fainting dead away—before finally making enough stupid tactical decisions that a hero or group of heroes can put a stop to your nefarious deeds. Which usually means getting put down for a dirt nap—cue the worms. Oh, nefarious deeds, I hardly knew you.

But maybe you got lucky like an Irishman and survived. Maybe you split as the heroes stormed the walls, tucking your bushy tail between your legs like a squirrel and sprinting for a tree. Better to pony up and run than getting pointy thing-ed to death. Live to fight another day, right?

Surprisingly, hiding in solitude suits you; you eventually settle down, start a family, rear some children, and feed copious amounts of slop to pigs. Decades pass, and then another evil conquering yahoo starts terrorizing people, one of whom happens to be you; the pigs, thankfully, are left alone. Well, that just burns your brisket and smashes your sweet potatoes. So you put your best boots on, shine up your armor, kiss the wife and kids goodbye, and set forth on a heroic adventure, intent on doling out some retribution.

Ari Marmell’s debut original novel, The Conqueror’s Shadow, uses this idea as its foundation, taking the villainous (at least in the Prologue) Corvis Rebaine, Terror of the East, and transforming him into a hero for the rest of the book. It’s an intriguing setup, and Marmell does a solid job in breathing life into the idea.

But Rebaine’s transformation is hardly from villain to hero; there is no moral epiphany that causes him to change his life. He is the same person, just viewed from a different perspective, an anti-hero, an example of one man’s freedom fighter being another man’s terrorist. The horrendous acts attributed to Rebaine in the book are perpetrated by truly evil minions who are operating outside of Rebaine’s knowledge and without his assent, providing Corvis with a buffer that allows him to never become morally unpalatable to the reader. He’s essentially the evil conqueror version of the hooker with a heart of gold cliché; he’s Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman, except with scary skull armor.

This moral hedging was disappointing. I would have preferred it if Marmell had transformed a truly evil character into a reluctant anti-hero, but that would have required a darker, more pessimistic approach to the book. The Conqueror’s Shadow ultimately needs to be grittier, meaner than a junk yard dog chewing rusty syringes; this is material that would have sparkled in the hands of a dark fantasist like Joe Abercrombie or George R.R. Martin.

Instead, Marmell attempts a treatment along the lines of Scott Lynch or Brent Weeks, using sarcastic humor to mask the unpleasant and dark thoughts. Unfortunately, he never captures the magic of those two authors, though he is closer to Weeks. Fans of Brent Weeks should appreciate the pacing and minimalist approach to world building in The Conqueror’s Shadow, but will miss the grand theatrics and rollercoaster ride that made the Night Angel Trilogy so memorable.

Make no mistake; The Conqueror’s Shadow is a solid epic fantasy. It’s just disappointing since it had the potential to be a great one.

Final Grade: 72 out of 100