A Book Review: The Steel Remains by Richard Morgan

Richard Morgan, well known for his sci-fi/cyberpunk novel, Altered Carbon. is also very well known in the readerships of Grimdark fantasy, for his noirish and brutal fantasy trilogy, A Land Fit for Heroes. The first book in this trilogy is called The Steel Remains. I have long heard of this book but I haven't had the chance to read it. Last month, I was browsing the offerings at my local library when I came upon this book, and I borrowed it immediately. I read this book over the next 4 nights. I enjoyed the story, but I didn't like it as much as I thought I would.

Synopsis:

Ringil Eskiath, a cynical, washed-up war hero whose downward spiral was checked only by his skills with a sword, was enlisted by his mother to free a cousin who was sold into slavery. Ringil tracked down his cousin, only to uncover a conspiracy that threatened to drown the world in blood; for an elder race, the Aldrain, cruel yet beautiful, are clawing their ways back to Ringil's world.

At the onslaught of Aldrain's dreadful return stood only Ringil and two of his old comrades. Normally, Ringil and his comrades are the furthest thing from heroes, but this time they all the cards the world can put on the table. However, if Ringil and his comrades are to be the last light for hope, then the world might do better to plunge itself into the darkness instead...

My thoughts on this book:

I liked The Steel Remains because it draws inspirations from my favorite fantasy books, to name a few; Elric of Melnibone, Karl Edward Wagner's Kane sagas, and Poul Anderson's Broken Sword. This book has a distinctive flavor of grimdark; every character's moral compass points to a shady gray, and the world they inhibit is gritty and harsh. This book has all elements I like in a fantasy book, but I didn't like this book as much as I thought I would.

My biggest problem with this book is its pacing, it moved at a weird pace. Every chapter in the first half of the book gave us new information. It was as if Richard Morgan spent half of the story doing worldbuilding, and the book was slogging like a burdened cart going uphill. Not only was the first half of the book very slow, but it was also very confusing. I mean, after I read the first 5 chapters of the book I still didn't know what was going on, and I seriously considered quitting it at that time ( and I don't quit a book easily). If you feel like quitting this book after reading a few chapters, then I know how you feel, but I would also encourage you to continue reading it, because once you are over the 50% mark then this book suddenly becomes an addictive read.

That is right, over the halfway mark, the bits and pieces of the information finally sank in, and I began to enjoy this book. There are three POV characters in The Steel Remains, the main protagonist, Ringil, is gay and an ex-soldier. There aren't many homosexual protagonists in fantasy books so this book is unusual in this regard. I find Ringil the most interesting character in this book, and I like the way Richard Morgan depicted, how Ringil struggled to live both as a gay and a former war hero in a pseudo-medieval culture not very tolerant of homosexual people.

Aside from the interesting protagonist, The Steel Remains also boasts some of the best action scenes written in fantasy. There are many sword fights in this book, and they are gritty and brutal as real sword fights would be. You will feel the danger and the thrill in every sword thrust and cut, as if you are seeing it in front of your eyes. Yet, when Ringil cleaves his enemy from the shoulder to the breast, the brutality would also repulse you. In the traditional fantasy books, such as The Lord of the Rings, sword fights are romanticized as something dashing and glorious, by contrast The Steel Remains shows its readers that killing people with a sword is an affair most depressing and ugly. This is another reason why I prefer grimdark fantasy over traditional fantasy, because even though grimdark fantasy is much more gory and brutal than the traditional fantasy, but unlike traditional fantasy where violence is associated with heroics, in grimdark fantasy the scenes with flying bits of limbs (and heads) aren't something to be cheered at, instead they are meant to make a reader really feel the ugliness of violence, and it can produce a meaningful impact on its readers, especially if you were writing a war story to explore the human conditions.

Over the halfway mark, The Steel Remains became a fast-paced and unputdownable read. The last 100 pages of the book, in particular, was very gripping. The book's ending tied up most of the story threads and you don't really have to read the sequel, but given the book's exhilarating conclusion, the chances are you will want to read the next installment. If I was to rate this book, out of five stars, then I would rate the first half with 3 stars, and the second half with 5 stars. The first half of the book was indeed a slog, but the second half redeemed the book for sure. I will be reading the sequel, The Cold Commands, when it becomes available for loan at my local library. Meanwhile, I would recommend The Steel Remains to kindred spirits who enjoy the works of Joe Abercrombie, Poul Anderson, Karl Edward Wagner, and Michael Moorcock.