A review by 

I was at first on the fence about whether to upload this review or not. But hindsight I felt like this could serve as a lesson on:

1. What to do
2. What not to do 

…as a fiction writer. 

 

Let me first go on record stating that Christopher Buehlman is an objectively GOOD writer. He knows how to build a world with interesting characters and plot lines, at least judging by Between Two Fires, the only book of his I’ve ever read so far.

The issues I found in this book, however, are significant and my suspicion is that these are more a result of the worldview lens Buehlman applies to see the world through, and Christianity in particular.

 

PLOT:

The story catapults us into XIV plague-ridden France where the lives of three seemingly different characters converge under some very special circumstances:

• Thomas: a former knight with a grudge
• Delphine: a young orphan girl with strange supernatural gifts
• Matthieu: a priest with personal secrets

When Thomas saves Delphine’s life, he doesn’t realize that he has also committed his sword to not only protect the young girl but to also aid her in a mysterious mission allegedly imparted by the angels of Heaven themselves. In their journey, Pierre Matthieu, a priest addicted to wine and with same-sex attraction tags along, having nothing else left in his hometown now devastated by the plague.

Their journey will create a strong bond. Working together just out of mere survival, these three main characters start to care for one another genuinely.

HISTORICAL TIME AND PLACE:

What I really appreciated about BTF is how the description of medieval France is well executed.  The towns, rivers, bridges, houses, palaces, all feel accurate. This comes to no surprise since the author majored in History with a minor in French, and it shows. For a guy from Florida, US, to write about period France in such an accurate manner, I couldn’t ask for more verisimilitude, honestly. Well done.

NEGATIVE REMARKS:

1. The author delights in the use of profanity, coarse language, crude jokes, and seems to have some weird obsession with anything related to feces and genitalia.

I understand that some of the characters might not be ‘saints’ (pun intended) but there are ways to communicate certain data to the readers without being so graphic to the point that it seems as though the author actually revels in this excessive graphic language. Reality is that it is NOT essential for plot or character building at all, and it just becomes annoying and ‘cheapens’ the overall quality of the book.

2. The author, throughout the story, seems to be taking jabs, albeit subtle, at the Christian faith. Whether this is intentional or the result of general biblical ignorance on behalf of Buehlman, that’s debatable. But he manages to reduce the Christian faith to nothing more than a pagan set of beliefs adept for backward people without a thinking brain.

For example, when Delphine tries to get Thomas to swear less:

 

Delphine “Maybe God would be more generous if you swore less.” 

Thomas “God starves babies sometimes, and they don’t swear at all.”

 

Of course the author can say that this is simply part of the character, but similar examples are found over and over throughout the book. Maybe the author thinks those are clever arguments that would make readers realize how silly Christianity is? Only the author really knows.

But as a reviewer I can tell you that those continuous remarks and innuendos are not helping the book overall, especially when these jabs are always one sided (there are no similar examples aimed at-say- atheists or other religious groups in this story.)

CONCLUSION:

Between Two Fires is an excellent story with rich characters and compelling plot lines. The accuracy of depiction of medieval France being devastated by the plague is superb. The prose flaws nicely and it is all very professionally put together.

Unfortunately within it there is too much of that Game of Thrones depraved, nihilistic vibe that taints an otherwise 5-star quality read. Bloated with profanity and unnecessary coarse language, constantly taking jabs at Christianity, singling out the Christian faith as another form of paganism for dimwitted country folk, this book is an amalgamation of peaks and valleys, going back and forth from excellent to cringeworthy. And that’s a shame.

🦀