Matt McAvoy Book Review

I’m not necessarily a big fan of high fantasy of the otherworld and dragons variety, so it’s great to see one like this, which doesn’t take itself seriously.  Oh, I don’t doubt that behind this mocking façade Kyle is actually a huge fan of the genre – he is simply too knowledgeable and accomplished not to be – but you can see that he takes great pleasure here in dissecting its usual tropes and clichés in the name of satire.  Despite that, though, and the Hitchhiker’s Guide-esque silliness to this book, the author has actually still managed to craft a pretty decent and engaging story about heroes and quests. 

Of course it’s the usual fare: an unlikely protagonist on a reluctant quest to slay a formidable dragon, meeting an assortment of characters and facing grave personal risk on the way, but even though it is parody of sorts, the characters are actually very relatable and all quite pleasant.  From an awe-inspiring, legendary knight who is actually just extraordinarily sensitive and timid, to the seafaring pursuers who just want to live in their own way, and actually think their client is something of a jerk, there are few characters in this story I wouldn’t actually describe as quite endearing.  Artie is a likeable enough chap, who doesn’t really seem overly distraught by the mortal possibilities, and even the arch-villainous prince of the tale – a real Joffrey-like, nasty piece of work – is actually quite amusing, even when being at his most deranged and sadistic.  You do find yourself rooting, quite contrarily, I suppose, for pretty much all of the cast members.

Kyle doesn’t feel the need to veer too far from formula here – apart from the obvious, that is, of addressing the reader directly in the first person as the writer, and using comedic interaction as a satirical mechanism (perhaps a little like Monty Python or Spike Milligan, though without swerving so far into the abstract).  But there are some very nice surprises, in a book which is actually a good deal better than the premise might suggest.  And I think, all in all, that “nice” is a word I would use to describe this book overall.  It is fun, pleasant and inoffensive to read, and I think you’ll enjoy it – although, I will admit, all of Kyle’s endnote interjections became a touch distracting at times, and I felt like skipping them, but didn’t do so.  He is a good writer, too, which helps.  This is easy-paced easy reading, which is consistent and perfectly timed, written articulately and clearly, to the benefit of its humour and its accomplished genre credentials.  Well worth a read – though the high-fantasy purists might scoff.  Still, I think they’ll smile in spite of themselves.