One month of DEAD HAND RULE
After 18 essays in October, I needed a bit of a break BUT also needed to celebrate a month of Dead Hand Rule being out in the world!
I can’t quite call this a review (I’m really not a reviewer, gang), nor is it as in-depth an analysis of the book as I want to write. That will take several essays over several months, I imagine. But, for now, let’s celebrate Dead Hand Rule with a ramble about what I loved.
Enjoy. Spoilers for Dead Hand Rule, obviously.
Hannah’s sort-of review, sort of ramble about Dead Hand Rule
In what I’m sure is no great surprise to anyone reading this, I loved Dead Hand Rule. Absolutely-over-the-moon-obsessed-how-can-this-series-keep-getting-better kind of love. It could have been written specifically for me and my personal tastes. Have I simply tuned deeply into the Craft Sequence through all my rereads, or has Gladstone actually put details in for my personal reading delight? I’ve been pretty loud about my predictions and hopes, after all…
I’m so glad this story was separated from Wicked Problems. For those who aren’t aware, Dead Hand Rule was originally written as part of the last book, but once Gladstone typed up his longhand writing he realised it was far too long. Luckily, it had a fairly self-contained setting and narrative and could therefore stand more or less alone. More Craft Sequence is always a good idea in my mind, but with this specifically I think the separation allowed the material - and the characters - to breathe. Gladstone’s writing has many strengths, but the greatest is his characterisation. Giving everyone space to think, and negotiate, and argue, and make out, and act, and worry, and try to kill each other builds the personal stakes far higher. We’ve known for a while that the stakes were the end of the world, but that matters because we care about the characters. Wicked Problems ran a mile a minute, and while I loved being on that rollercoaster I am thrilled we got the chance to exist in our character’s minds when they had to stand still for a bit.
I’ve read some people say they were surprised how slow the book was (not in a bad way, but given the world-ending stakes and the pace of Wicked Problems), but that was essential to my enjoyment of this book. In addition to the time it gave our characters, it was also painfully realistic to international negotiations.
I can’t pretend to be an expert with first-hand experience, but I did spend much of 2015 tracking the Sustainable Development Goal negotiations for language and policy connected to my organisation’s mission. Each month there would be another in-person negotiation (for the negotiators, not me) in a different country, and incremental progress would be made towards a final document. A paragraph agreed in April was gone by July. The strength of language around obligations was weakened, strengthened, removed, then returned in its weakest form. Hours could be spent negotiating punctuation. And then, of course, once the final Goals were agreed, they started on the mechanism to try to ensure states kept to their promises. But the mechanism, of course, could not be binding. There was no way for anyone to hold anyone else to their obligations. They were guidelines only, promises on paper but not reality.
You can see, I think, why the Conclave felt painfully accurate to me. Nobody is willing to give an inch, even against world ending stakes. Not to mention the fact that the biggest decisionmakers have been aware for decades of the threat that’s coming towards the Domain, and have done basically nothing until the final moment. That, too, is agonisingly realistic.
Despite this realism, the players of this game were beautifully Craft-y and unfamiliar. I’m going to scream about Belladonna Albrecht in the depth she deserves in another essay, but BELLADONNA ALBRECHT SHOWED UP?? I’m so glad she hasn’t gone full skeleton, because everything about her was perfect. I had high hopes for her, and she surpassed them all.
Not as many Deathless Kings have gone full skeleton as implied in previous books, either. We’ve really only got the King in Red in that form. Dame Alban takes on any form she wishes, as we read in Three Parts Dead, and Plenipotentiary Ambassador James has something going on that is part skeleton and part something else. The Verdance is a creepy dead forest thing. Chancellor Thistle is human in appearance at least. Belladonna Albrecht has at least a partial human face, and is something of a body builder (in terms of her own muscles, I mean, not like Frankenstein. Except… maybe both. Another reread required!)
It was delightful to meet Sir Gav, bless his innocent himbo heart. Alas, he also put paid to a headcanon shared by my (Welsh) friend and I (Scottish) that the English don’t exist in the Domain, but I shall find it in my heart to forgive him. Everything with Gav, Donnie, and Al DELIGHTED me, and that is the only word I can think to use even if it’s already been in this paragraph. I feel like this would be the subplot most likely to be cut if this story had to fit at the end of Wicked Problems, so thank you to the publishing gods for allowing this to exist.
I was speaking to a friend yesterday who is reading Wicked Problems at the moment, and they said they’re noticing the prose more than in previous books, that there is a more poetic style to much of it than in early books. Gladstone has always had some truly beautiful writing, but I agree that this has only got better across his career. Three Parts Dead is a stunning debut, but only hinted at where his writing could go. I think the post-Time War books have benefited from Gladstone exercising his poetic-prose muscles in that book.
Okay, we’re 1000 words in and this was supposed to be short because I wanted to get something up in November and I didn’t manage to finish my other essays. This started as a far more detailed dive into thoughts and theories on specific elements of th ebook, but I ran out of time. Instead, have a list of some of the things I will be discussing in that forthcoming essay:
Belladonna gods-damned Albrecht
And her daughter?!?!
With whom there is definitely a clone situation going on
Also living for Donnie’s side quest
Gav is definitely Gal’s brother, right? Which means my old theory about Gal’s mother being the Queen of Camlaan is also true, right?
ELAYNE. Always Elayne. She needs a proper hug, too.
Abelard and the King in Red were everything
Loved the brief Abelard and Caleb bromance too
Speaking of character introductions, Izza and Dawn meeting was incredible
We got Raz back! Freelance maritime property consultant, obsessed
I am reconsidering Dawn somewhat. Longer essay to come on her.
The demonglass arch in Alt Coulumb was mentioned in the past couple of Craft Wars books, but I’d never really processed it. I presume it’s from the Four Roads Cross court case, which means…is Daphne in there, dead??
Also, we finally saw the Hidden Schools!
Hall of god bones was suitably creepy
The international negotiations could have been written specifically for me
LOVED seeing Denovo’s lab, and the Tara actually destroyed it. Hell yeah Tara.
But speaking of Denovo…. Fuck everything to do with him and the skazzerai. What a cunt (derogative)
I often have to reread the super Craft-y stuff in these books. I didn’t really understand the Kai plugged into a terminal, eating the Grimwald, vampire stuff. Must reread and take notes.
BUT speaking of the Grimwald, loved how he was brought back in. But poor Kai.
Kai/Tara forever. But for the OT3, please add Shale
On that note, more Shale in general please, but I loved the lurking gargoyles shadowing all of Tara’s friends to keep them safe
Tara needs some hella good therapy. I also want her Mom to come back.
CRAFT BROADWAY
The deal between Kos and the Blue Lady made my heart sing
There will be far more, I’m sure, but that’s the list as it currently stands. There’s just so much to talk about, and only a year until the next book!
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