It's true that the title of this blog does not look like anything to do with historical fiction, but the equilibrium between wildlife and humanity was not always so precarious as it is now. Finding the balance which existed at the time you're writing can be a very useful tool to setting a believable background for your writing. So here are a few mammal considerations... Wild mammals were everywhere - they still are, in fact! Whether you're writing about the middle of a city or the middle of nowhere, it should be a given that these animals will influence life. As well as the obvious and frequently maligned rats and mice, other mammals have cohabited our cities with us. Foxes have always had a partially urban existence, and the building of cities on waterways also often lead to otters and (depending on how far inland they were) seals being resident. Mankind knew how to find wild mammals - there is a continuous development in the scientific study of our wild mammals and this...
"Only One Death" by Alexander Crow
Book Review
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☆☆☆☆☆
“Only One Death” is an engaging novel, which is quite dark
in places, but creates a sense of urgency for the reader to read on…you need to
find out what’s going to happen next!! As a result, this is a very difficult
book to put down!
It is a fantasy novel and some of the names can be a bit
tricky, especially as it is about a group of 10 people. Three characters, in
particular, are very well developed. As it is a novella, it is quite short, but
you feel like you really know some of the characters by the end.
The book is written by someone who knows how to survive in
the wilderness, and this comes across in the writing. The wilds play an
important role in the story, and is clearly important to the author. The reader
is left pondering on a time when more of Britain was engulfed in wilderness,
rather than the towns and settlements we know today.
I would certainly recommend this book to any lover of
fantasy stories.
Book Blurb (from Goodreads)
“Amongst his people ten was an unlucky number.”
Dhinal is searching for a guide into the high mountains. With his mismatched band of companions, he knows he must find the legendary Red City. Meanwhile, in Eastsea, Kees prepares to leave behind the Talking Races for winter. Both Dhinal and Kees know that nature does not care whether you live, or whether you die. Both Dhinal and Kees know that even the best prepared of expeditions can falter and fail. A journey into the mountains, with winter approaching. A group with secrets to hide. What could possibly go wrong? The novella Only One Death is the first of three introductions to the Isthmus, and both a homage and an alternative approach to the standard fantasy quest. |
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