Labyrinth [Paperback]

I'm sorry to say Ms Mosse's writing is clumsy to the point where it takes actual effort to read. One of the classic rules of writing is 'Show, don't tell', in other words, instead of telling us that someone is kind, let their actions show us. But Ms Mosse tells us again and again how clever and kind and brave her heros are, while giving us no evidence of those traits. Becuase of this, it feels as though none of her characters have any personality, indeed they often act inexplicably and completely at odds with the despcrition of them we have been given. For example, we are told that Alais' father was entrusted with one of the grail secrets because of his fine qualities, because he could be relied on to protect it against all odds. But as soon as the time comes when he needs to act he buries his head in the sand, procrastinates like a child, and ultimately completely fails in his duty. We are told he is a noble person, but his behaviour in general is short-sighted, bullying, and dense, making it completely implausible that anyone would trust him with a secret and duty of that magnitude.

Her general narrative is no better. She doesn't manage to make anything that happens make sense. I felt throughout that she had planned a string of events that wanted to happen without considering whether they made sense either in their context or in terms of her characters' intentions and personalities. Even in the small scale, within scenes, things have the feeling of jumping around because she misses out basic information while detailing the irrelevent. Characters teleport across the room, seeming to reveal their innermost secrets to a stranger because she hasn't bothered to tell us they've crossed the room and started whispering to someone completely different halfway through the conversation.

The constantly scattered Occitan words drove me up the wall - it was as if she was desperate to show how much research she'd done. Translate or don't translate, but don't do both within the same speech unless that character is *actually* switching langauges halfway through. Equally annoying was the way someone was kidnapped or passed out every five minutes, as if she couldn't bear to leave a passage without a cliffhanger. Her bizarre ideas about what life was like back in medieval times also drove me potty - she seems to have no feel for the past.

I kept reading to the end because I wanted to know what her 'grail secret' was. It really wasn't worth it, being of the Indiana Jones variety. And every other revelation was telegraphed so far in advance that I wanted to scream at the characters, unable to believe they were so stupid that they didn't realise that X was a traitor or that Y was actually Z all along.

I've been trying and trying to think of something positive to say, because generally speaking I believe every book has some good in it. All I can think of is that the author clearly has a great passion for her subject. I wonder whether she was under pressure from her editor to finish it quickly - it feels like a first draft, and I'm sure there is a better novel lurking in there somewhere.

If you're looking for detailed, well-research medieval fiction, I recommend you try Elizabeth Chadwick (the British one, of 'Shadows and Strongholds' or 'The Love Knot' fame, *not* the American of 'Bride Fire' fame) instead. She even wrote a book about the Cathars and the Grail - 'Children of Destiny' or 'Daughters of the Grail' depending on which side of the pond you are. Read more ›