Status
Available
Call number
Publication
(date?), Unknown Binding
Description
Brian Duffy, aging soldier of fortune, had been hired in Venice by a strange old man who called himself Aurelianus Ambrosius. He was supposed to go to Vienna and act as bouncer at an inn where the fabulous Herzwesten beer was brewed. That was clear enough. But why was he guided and guarded on the trip by creatures from the ancient legends? Why should he be attacked by ifrits and saved by mythical dwarfs? What was so important about the Herzwesten beer to the Fisher King -- whoever he was? Why was Duffy plagued by visions of a sword and an arm rising from a lake? And what had a bunch of drunken, ancient Vikings to do with it all? Then there was no time for speculation as Vienna was besieged by the Turkish armies of Suleiman. Duffy found himself drawn into a war of desperation and magic. It was up to him to preserve the West until the drawing of the Dark.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member williemeikle
THE DRAWING OF THE DARK is Tim Powers at his most playful.
Sure, he drags a whole bevvy of archetypes on stage as is his wont, with Fisher Kings and wise men to the fore. But we also get drunk Vikings, enchanted swords, wild journeys with high magic through the mountains, more beer, and large-scale
The plot revolves around the secret history of Europe, and a brewery that conjures up the stuff that champions are made of. It's fantasy, Jim, but not as we know it.
It's early powers, so it's not as intricate or tight as his later work, and not as densely lyrical. But it's an awful lot of fun, especially after the Vikings turn up and the mayhem proper gets under way.
And did I mention that Merlin is in there too? And that he has a fondness for smoking dried snakes?
Powers invention is fully to the fore in this one, and also his way with a set piece, with the aforementioned trip through the mountains being a highlight, along with a descent deep into the bowels under the brewery with Merlin, where much that is hidden is revealed and the plot, and the beer, thickens.
A fantasy novel about beer, and Arthurian archetypes by one of the greatest novelists of our time? That'll do for me.
Sure, he drags a whole bevvy of archetypes on stage as is his wont, with Fisher Kings and wise men to the fore. But we also get drunk Vikings, enchanted swords, wild journeys with high magic through the mountains, more beer, and large-scale
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battle scenes.The plot revolves around the secret history of Europe, and a brewery that conjures up the stuff that champions are made of. It's fantasy, Jim, but not as we know it.
It's early powers, so it's not as intricate or tight as his later work, and not as densely lyrical. But it's an awful lot of fun, especially after the Vikings turn up and the mayhem proper gets under way.
And did I mention that Merlin is in there too? And that he has a fondness for smoking dried snakes?
Powers invention is fully to the fore in this one, and also his way with a set piece, with the aforementioned trip through the mountains being a highlight, along with a descent deep into the bowels under the brewery with Merlin, where much that is hidden is revealed and the plot, and the beer, thickens.
A fantasy novel about beer, and Arthurian archetypes by one of the greatest novelists of our time? That'll do for me.
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LibraryThing member RandyStafford
My reactions to reading this novel in 2002.
This is the most humorous Powers’ novel I’ve read, a delightful placing of the Arthur myth into the 1529 Siege of Vienna. Powers said in an interview that the book started out as part of a series placing King Arthur in various historic settings.
Like other historical fantasies I’ve read by Powers, The Anubis Gates and On Stranger Tides, Powers manages, at times, in his unornate prose, to create a sense of place and time. Here, it was in the battle scenes outside of Vienna.
I liked how the humorous book progressively got darker with Brian Duffy finding himself possessed (body switching and possession are archetypal Powers’ themes) by Arthur, a player in schemes not to his liking, manipulated by fate and Aurelianus/Merlin to be the champion of the West and the Fisher King. Powers is a master at knowing when to be explicit and when to be, for maximum effect, strategically vague. Aurelianus tells him that the battle for Vienna is the battle between East and West without telling us exactly what that means, what philosophies and moralities are at stake. Powers leaves that up to the reader’s imagination, perhaps informed by his reader’s cultural background.
Eventually, Duffy is present at the accidental death (or, perhaps, suicide or even accidental homicide) of his beloved Epiphany. He survives the end of the novel, but his friends and Epiphany are dead, and he has little to show. His is not even a champion anymore, Arthur’s spirit is in hibernation again, just a solider of fortune.
As usual, Powers combines a lot of mythologies: Finn MacCool, the Fisher King (the Fisher King waxing and waning and connected with the state of the land or vice versa seems to be somewhat inconsistently similar to the dead Balder of Norse mythology who the antique Vikings believe to be buried in Vienna -- it’s MacCool), Arthur, Sigmund from Teutonic myths, Arabic beasts, and Japanese myth. (Powers seems to have made a mistake in his figure of Antoku Ten-No, an actual Japanese child-emperor who died in 1183 not, as Merlin says, eight hundred years before 1529.)
Powers' skill is seeming to reveal all to interest his reader, wow him with his invention, and then introduce even more wonders. He does a nice job with Duffy who really, most of the time, doesn’t want to be a champion, an incarnation of author. I liked the scene where Duffy is escorted across the Alps by mythical creatures. I also liked how Powers evoked the emotion of song Arthur sings through Duffy; Powers does it by telling of events the music resembles but not in a programmatic way. This novel also makes use of Powers’ characteristic notion of blood and grounded magic. I also liked the future King John I of Hungary showing up as Zapolya.
It’s not hard to see why this was the novel that made Powers’ reputation. .
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However, the project was cancelled, and Powers used his notes to produce this novel. Like other historical fantasies I’ve read by Powers, The Anubis Gates and On Stranger Tides, Powers manages, at times, in his unornate prose, to create a sense of place and time. Here, it was in the battle scenes outside of Vienna.
I liked how the humorous book progressively got darker with Brian Duffy finding himself possessed (body switching and possession are archetypal Powers’ themes) by Arthur, a player in schemes not to his liking, manipulated by fate and Aurelianus/Merlin to be the champion of the West and the Fisher King. Powers is a master at knowing when to be explicit and when to be, for maximum effect, strategically vague. Aurelianus tells him that the battle for Vienna is the battle between East and West without telling us exactly what that means, what philosophies and moralities are at stake. Powers leaves that up to the reader’s imagination, perhaps informed by his reader’s cultural background.
Eventually, Duffy is present at the accidental death (or, perhaps, suicide or even accidental homicide) of his beloved Epiphany. He survives the end of the novel, but his friends and Epiphany are dead, and he has little to show. His is not even a champion anymore, Arthur’s spirit is in hibernation again, just a solider of fortune.
As usual, Powers combines a lot of mythologies: Finn MacCool, the Fisher King (the Fisher King waxing and waning and connected with the state of the land or vice versa seems to be somewhat inconsistently similar to the dead Balder of Norse mythology who the antique Vikings believe to be buried in Vienna -- it’s MacCool), Arthur, Sigmund from Teutonic myths, Arabic beasts, and Japanese myth. (Powers seems to have made a mistake in his figure of Antoku Ten-No, an actual Japanese child-emperor who died in 1183 not, as Merlin says, eight hundred years before 1529.)
Powers' skill is seeming to reveal all to interest his reader, wow him with his invention, and then introduce even more wonders. He does a nice job with Duffy who really, most of the time, doesn’t want to be a champion, an incarnation of author. I liked the scene where Duffy is escorted across the Alps by mythical creatures. I also liked how Powers evoked the emotion of song Arthur sings through Duffy; Powers does it by telling of events the music resembles but not in a programmatic way. This novel also makes use of Powers’ characteristic notion of blood and grounded magic. I also liked the future King John I of Hungary showing up as Zapolya.
It’s not hard to see why this was the novel that made Powers’ reputation. .
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LibraryThing member iayork
Disappointing: After seeing the positive reviews on Amazon, combined with what appeared to be a very intriguing premise, I was very excited to read Powers' "The Drawing of the Dark." I finished reading it earlier today, and as the 2-star review indicates, was not much impressed with the book and am
First, the dialogue is very generic and flat. It does nothing to make the reader feel like he (or she) is in 16th century Vienna--where the main action takes place--to say nothing of evoking Sigmund, King Arthur or any of the various other mythical figures and far-away peoples who are involved in the story. It could really be from any fantasy novel, in any setting and does nothing to distinguish the novel, the characters, or the setting from any other fantasy novel.
Second, the characters do not show much depth and appear to have been taken directly from a vault of fantasy novel cliches. There's a wise old wizard who makes a grand show of not revealing what he knows, an evil wizard from the East, and a reluctant hero. None show any significant character depth and all appear to be pretty much typecast. I didn't find anything that connected me emotionally to any character.
Third, the plot does not make much sense. As the Amazon and other reviews state, the story is based around the Ottoman Empire's siege of Vienna in 1529, which is portrayed as the decisive battle between the East and West (the West, predictably, are the good guys). However, by overlaying a fantasy story involving long-ago and frequently pagan heroes and myths on this historical battle, the real political, military and religious factors that led to the Siege of Vienna are mooted. For example, the reader can hardly believe that Odin shows up to defend Christendom or cares about the Holy Roman Empire. So why are the East and West fighting? This is never explained. In fact, this whole dynamic is made even more confusing by the fact that a group of Vikings show up to defend Vienna against Surter and the armies of Muspelheim, which in Norse mythology is located in the South not the East!
The book does has some good points. It moves at a good pace, has some nice moments of humor, and I have to admit that the premise is a pretty neat idea. Had I read it as a teen--before I really new what good fantasy writing was like--I probably would have liked it. But the novel's overall execution is not very good, and it pales in comparison to the better fantasy novels that are available. I would recommend spending your hard earned money on other, better books: Earthsea, Neverwhere, Lud-in-the-Mist, and so on. Perhaps Powers' other books are better.
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surprised at the praise this novel has garnered. It has a few significant flaws. First, the dialogue is very generic and flat. It does nothing to make the reader feel like he (or she) is in 16th century Vienna--where the main action takes place--to say nothing of evoking Sigmund, King Arthur or any of the various other mythical figures and far-away peoples who are involved in the story. It could really be from any fantasy novel, in any setting and does nothing to distinguish the novel, the characters, or the setting from any other fantasy novel.
Second, the characters do not show much depth and appear to have been taken directly from a vault of fantasy novel cliches. There's a wise old wizard who makes a grand show of not revealing what he knows, an evil wizard from the East, and a reluctant hero. None show any significant character depth and all appear to be pretty much typecast. I didn't find anything that connected me emotionally to any character.
Third, the plot does not make much sense. As the Amazon and other reviews state, the story is based around the Ottoman Empire's siege of Vienna in 1529, which is portrayed as the decisive battle between the East and West (the West, predictably, are the good guys). However, by overlaying a fantasy story involving long-ago and frequently pagan heroes and myths on this historical battle, the real political, military and religious factors that led to the Siege of Vienna are mooted. For example, the reader can hardly believe that Odin shows up to defend Christendom or cares about the Holy Roman Empire. So why are the East and West fighting? This is never explained. In fact, this whole dynamic is made even more confusing by the fact that a group of Vikings show up to defend Vienna against Surter and the armies of Muspelheim, which in Norse mythology is located in the South not the East!
The book does has some good points. It moves at a good pace, has some nice moments of humor, and I have to admit that the premise is a pretty neat idea. Had I read it as a teen--before I really new what good fantasy writing was like--I probably would have liked it. But the novel's overall execution is not very good, and it pales in comparison to the better fantasy novels that are available. I would recommend spending your hard earned money on other, better books: Earthsea, Neverwhere, Lud-in-the-Mist, and so on. Perhaps Powers' other books are better.
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LibraryThing member craso
The action in this novel is centered around an inn and brewery in 1500's Vienna. The city is under seige from the Turks. An Irish adventurer named Brian Duffy is hired by a magician named Aurelianus to help defend the city. Duffy keeps having strange visions and dreams. Could he be a reincarnated
The author uses some interesting mythology and folklore. Norse and Arthurian legends are integral to the plot. Magical creatures are conjured to help and to hinder. This does not do much to liven up the story. Once the Turks attack the tale plods along at a slow pace. Some minor characters die and no one seems to morn them. The author may have wanted to show that in war you have no time to morn the dead or that you can not change your destiny. The story is a good read, but disappointing for an author who has written such strange and fantastic sweeping novels.
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king come back to save the Western world from the East?The author uses some interesting mythology and folklore. Norse and Arthurian legends are integral to the plot. Magical creatures are conjured to help and to hinder. This does not do much to liven up the story. Once the Turks attack the tale plods along at a slow pace. Some minor characters die and no one seems to morn them. The author may have wanted to show that in war you have no time to morn the dead or that you can not change your destiny. The story is a good read, but disappointing for an author who has written such strange and fantastic sweeping novels.
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LibraryThing member isabelx
Battles, beer, broken swords and burial mounds.
Tim Powers uses familiar mythological characters and themes to create a truly original story, with the mystical elements of the story slotting seamlessly into the realistic historical setting of Vienna in 1529. I never come away from one of his books
While the citizens of Vienna and their hired mercenaries prepare for a siege and wonder why the Turks are attacking so late in the year, other forces are at work. Something older and more mysterious than the clash between the Ottoman Empire and the Holy Roman Empire. The mystical king of the West is wounded and his weakness affects the land, so the East is in the ascendant.
The forces of the East head for Vienna, intending to prevent the king's health from being renewed on All Hallow's Eve, while the heroes of the West, as remembered in myth and story across Europe, converge on Vienna to protect the wounded king and make a last stand against the East. They make their headquartes at the millennia-old Herzwesten brewery, which has been protected over the years by a Roman fort, a monastery and then an inn.
The hero of the book, Brian Duffy, is a middle-aged mercenary, battle-hardened, disappointed in love and not keen on believing in the supernatural, even though he has had strange experiences since boyhood. He is relieved to realise that the brocken spectre that he sees on his way across the Alps is a natural phenomenon, and dismayed when it is immediately followed by the ghostly shapes of legendary creatures. He is much better equipped to face the human assassins sent to prevent him from reaching his destination, than the strange creatures, both friendly and unfriendly, that dog his path on his journey from Venice to Vienna. Duffy is an amusingly stroppy hero, never willing to do anything just because Aurelianus tells him to. One of the funniest things in the book is Aurelianus' shock at Duffy's reaction to being given a legendary sword after his own is broken:
". . . if I were going to use this in combat, I'd want the blade narrowed and shortened by at least a foot, the grip shortened by five inches, and a solid bellguard welded around this crosspiece. . . I think I'd be more comfortable with a regular rapier, thanks. Save this for scything wheat.
Tim Powers uses familiar mythological characters and themes to create a truly original story, with the mystical elements of the story slotting seamlessly into the realistic historical setting of Vienna in 1529. I never come away from one of his books
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thinking I've read it before, nor does he feel the need to stretch a story over twelve volumes when one will do.While the citizens of Vienna and their hired mercenaries prepare for a siege and wonder why the Turks are attacking so late in the year, other forces are at work. Something older and more mysterious than the clash between the Ottoman Empire and the Holy Roman Empire. The mystical king of the West is wounded and his weakness affects the land, so the East is in the ascendant.
The forces of the East head for Vienna, intending to prevent the king's health from being renewed on All Hallow's Eve, while the heroes of the West, as remembered in myth and story across Europe, converge on Vienna to protect the wounded king and make a last stand against the East. They make their headquartes at the millennia-old Herzwesten brewery, which has been protected over the years by a Roman fort, a monastery and then an inn.
The hero of the book, Brian Duffy, is a middle-aged mercenary, battle-hardened, disappointed in love and not keen on believing in the supernatural, even though he has had strange experiences since boyhood. He is relieved to realise that the brocken spectre that he sees on his way across the Alps is a natural phenomenon, and dismayed when it is immediately followed by the ghostly shapes of legendary creatures. He is much better equipped to face the human assassins sent to prevent him from reaching his destination, than the strange creatures, both friendly and unfriendly, that dog his path on his journey from Venice to Vienna. Duffy is an amusingly stroppy hero, never willing to do anything just because Aurelianus tells him to. One of the funniest things in the book is Aurelianus' shock at Duffy's reaction to being given a legendary sword after his own is broken:
". . . if I were going to use this in combat, I'd want the blade narrowed and shortened by at least a foot, the grip shortened by five inches, and a solid bellguard welded around this crosspiece. . . I think I'd be more comfortable with a regular rapier, thanks. Save this for scything wheat.
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LibraryThing member drbubbles
A fairly flat story that goes nowhere and doesn't seem to have much of a point.
I found this fundamentally unsatisfying. There is a plot but it's kept in the background. Some interesting magical things happen but aren't described or explained very well. There isn't much depth to the characters. The
The standout feature is the humorousness.
I found this fundamentally unsatisfying. There is a plot but it's kept in the background. Some interesting magical things happen but aren't described or explained very well. There isn't much depth to the characters. The
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story just sort of develops and then ends before the important events that are being protected get to occur. It's almost like a stream of consciousness, with nothing being much more or less significant than anything else. Perhaps that's all as it's intended to be, though; the protagonist is a minor piece in a medieval siege, having some magical but little social or military importance. But I have a hard time thinking it's an intentional device. There is magic and myth but they're mostly just wall hangings, with little influence on anything. Again, maybe that's how magic and myth would work, but it doesn't make for much of a story.The standout feature is the humorousness.
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LibraryThing member kukkurovaca
Interesting. In many respects more traditional than the other Powers books I've read, and certainly more historical, with no trace of a modern setting. Still, the usual powers sketchiness and character non-development are present in spades.
LibraryThing member wyvernfriend
Brian Duffy, an Irish soldier of fortune, finds that Venice isn't that healthy for him and when he's offered the job of bouncer for a tavern in Vienna that brews it's own, along with a healthy wage, he jumps at the chance.
Unfortunately for Brian, what he thought would be a retirement turns out to
Interesting look at the war in Vienna between Austria and Turkey with reincarnated heroes and the people of the time trying to be themselves and resist the overshadowing by the archetypes. Although more mythic than fantastic (that border is kinda fuzzy in my head) I found Ash (by Mary Gentle) better book of this type.
The characters felt very real and were well fleshed out people with motives and problems and their lives got complicated by action or inaction.
Unfortunately for Brian, what he thought would be a retirement turns out to
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be a war between, not only the physical armies, but also the forces of good and evil and he has a pivotal role in this fight.Interesting look at the war in Vienna between Austria and Turkey with reincarnated heroes and the people of the time trying to be themselves and resist the overshadowing by the archetypes. Although more mythic than fantastic (that border is kinda fuzzy in my head) I found Ash (by Mary Gentle) better book of this type.
The characters felt very real and were well fleshed out people with motives and problems and their lives got complicated by action or inaction.
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LibraryThing member pauliharman
An entertaining well-paced novel set in the 1500's at the seige of Vienna. Powers throws in various mythologies and blends them together into an enjoyable narrative.
LibraryThing member Bruce_McNair
A rollicking ride through 16th century Venice and Austria encountering magicians, soldiers of fortune, strange creatures, the army of Suleiman the Magnificient and many more. The "Dark" is not what you'd first think and provides powers to those that manage to partake of it. Highly recommended to
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those that enjoy fantasy or adventure stories. Show Less
LibraryThing member DinadansFriend
There is an "Eternal Arthur" meme, where a writer places this person in many reincarnations, along with other members of the Arthurian Romance in different historical and fantastic settings. I think it is a lazy tactic, and this book, setting in the first Ottoman siege of Vienna, in 1529, has
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little to recommend it. Don't bother, read a straight history of the siege if one can be found in English. Show Less
LibraryThing member nhlsecord
The final battle was too long and quite similar to other stories, but the characters were interesting and likable, and their story was worth reading.
LibraryThing member bespen
Since I realized that I never reviewed what is probably my favorite Tim Powers novel, The Drawing of the Dark, I decided to rectify my appalling lack. A secret history, written in what has come to be Powers’ defining style, The Drawing of the Dark is a fusion of European myth with the events of
Written in 1979, The Drawing of the Dark is only Powers’ third novel, but there was a notable increase in polish compared to the two previous books, The Skies DIscrowned and An Epitaph in Rust. Unlike his approximate contemporary, Timothy Zahn, Powers usually takes about three years to write one of his novels. That is not pulp speed, but it does allow Powers to do some amazing things in his books that no other author does.
In this book, Powers creates a clash between rival civilizations that has a vaguely Spenglerian cyclicity and also manages to accept and invert Fraser’s The Golden Bough. Balder not only pre-figures Christ, he actively participated in making the future Christendom fertile ground.
Declare is sometimes talked about as Tim Powers’ first explicitly Catholic novel, but like The Lord of the Rings, the structure of the plot in The Drawing of the Dark follows the liturgical year. An example of why it takes Powers so long to write a book is that he makes a plot that not only follows the cycle of major feasts and saint days, but also matches up with secular history.
I assume that Powers took more liberties with history in The Drawing of the Dark than Declare, as the pivotal and unsubtly named Herzwestern Brewery, which the protagonist Brian Duffy is hired to protect, does not actually exist in Vienna, but the major structure of events in the siege is well-attested, and Powers deftly weaves his story around it. Duffy is hired in Venice by Aurelianus, a shifty old wizard, on Ash Wednesday. Duffy spends most of Lent traveling to Vienna, but he arrives before Easter, when the bock beer will be served at the Brewery.
On Holy Saturday, Duffy and Aurelianus travel to the Viennese underworld, following an attempt to destroy the Herzwestern brewery on Good Friday, when God is dead. Much like the period now known as ordinary time, there is an extended pause over the summer, and things pick up again about Michaelmas. The deadline for the eponymous drawing of the dark is All Hallow’s Eve. Nearly everything that happens in the book follows this pattern.
On the other hand, Brian Duffy is a pretty scandalous character, in the technical sense of Catholic theology. A boozy old soldier, Duffy sees things on his journey to Vienna that he might have attempted to pass off as the effects of delirium tremens if not for the repeated way in the which the pious recoil in horror from him and his otherworldly attendants. Duffy oversees a cremation, in an era in which cremation was generally not practiced by Christians. Indeed, on the very day that Aurelianus hires him, Ash Wednesday, a universal day of fasting and penance, Duffy is fresh from a banquet in Venice, and full of victuals and drink.
On the gripping hand, everything that happens to Duffy displays the touch of Providence. Which is not to say he leads a charmed life, precisely. Duffy repeatedly ends up where is supposed to be, whether he likes it or not. Since Duffy participates in the life of earlier heroes of the West such as Sigmund and Arthur, his life is rather more tragic than he would prefer.
I first read The Drawing of the Dark long before King, Warrior, Magician, Lover, but my appreciation for Powers’ work is deeply rooted in that psychological analysis of the masculine archetypes presented in that book. Aurelianus and Duffy very much are archetypes, so this isn’t really surprising, but Powers manages to write the two men in a way that resonates with me.
They instantiate the magician and the warrior, cleverness and action respectively, but at the same time they also seem like real men who somehow manage to be somewhat fond of each other despite frequently being at odds over how to approach a problem. Much like Tyrus and Casper in Galaxy’s Edge, they work best as a team, but sometimes that is difficult.
This book is also quite funny. Powers has an eye for the absurd and strange things that nonetheless actually happen, and he peppers the text with them. Sometimes we get such observations from Duffy’s black sense of humor, or Aurelianus’ waspish one, but we also get the narrator chiming in as well. That a book with such a deep and subtle crafting can also manage to be laugh out loud funny is a remarkable accomplishment.
The Drawing of the Dark has rewarded me everytime I’ve come back to it. I encourage anyone with a love of chanson de geste, adventure, or myth to give it a try. And hoist a beer for Brian Duffy, who saved that brewery.
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the 1529 Siege of Vienna by Suleiman the Magnificent. In accord with my editorial policy, I am going to discuss what makes the book interesting, which may or may not accord with modern notions of “no spoilers”. Since this book is older than I am, I don’t care.Written in 1979, The Drawing of the Dark is only Powers’ third novel, but there was a notable increase in polish compared to the two previous books, The Skies DIscrowned and An Epitaph in Rust. Unlike his approximate contemporary, Timothy Zahn, Powers usually takes about three years to write one of his novels. That is not pulp speed, but it does allow Powers to do some amazing things in his books that no other author does.
In this book, Powers creates a clash between rival civilizations that has a vaguely Spenglerian cyclicity and also manages to accept and invert Fraser’s The Golden Bough. Balder not only pre-figures Christ, he actively participated in making the future Christendom fertile ground.
Declare is sometimes talked about as Tim Powers’ first explicitly Catholic novel, but like The Lord of the Rings, the structure of the plot in The Drawing of the Dark follows the liturgical year. An example of why it takes Powers so long to write a book is that he makes a plot that not only follows the cycle of major feasts and saint days, but also matches up with secular history.
I assume that Powers took more liberties with history in The Drawing of the Dark than Declare, as the pivotal and unsubtly named Herzwestern Brewery, which the protagonist Brian Duffy is hired to protect, does not actually exist in Vienna, but the major structure of events in the siege is well-attested, and Powers deftly weaves his story around it. Duffy is hired in Venice by Aurelianus, a shifty old wizard, on Ash Wednesday. Duffy spends most of Lent traveling to Vienna, but he arrives before Easter, when the bock beer will be served at the Brewery.
On Holy Saturday, Duffy and Aurelianus travel to the Viennese underworld, following an attempt to destroy the Herzwestern brewery on Good Friday, when God is dead. Much like the period now known as ordinary time, there is an extended pause over the summer, and things pick up again about Michaelmas. The deadline for the eponymous drawing of the dark is All Hallow’s Eve. Nearly everything that happens in the book follows this pattern.
On the other hand, Brian Duffy is a pretty scandalous character, in the technical sense of Catholic theology. A boozy old soldier, Duffy sees things on his journey to Vienna that he might have attempted to pass off as the effects of delirium tremens if not for the repeated way in the which the pious recoil in horror from him and his otherworldly attendants. Duffy oversees a cremation, in an era in which cremation was generally not practiced by Christians. Indeed, on the very day that Aurelianus hires him, Ash Wednesday, a universal day of fasting and penance, Duffy is fresh from a banquet in Venice, and full of victuals and drink.
On the gripping hand, everything that happens to Duffy displays the touch of Providence. Which is not to say he leads a charmed life, precisely. Duffy repeatedly ends up where is supposed to be, whether he likes it or not. Since Duffy participates in the life of earlier heroes of the West such as Sigmund and Arthur, his life is rather more tragic than he would prefer.
I first read The Drawing of the Dark long before King, Warrior, Magician, Lover, but my appreciation for Powers’ work is deeply rooted in that psychological analysis of the masculine archetypes presented in that book. Aurelianus and Duffy very much are archetypes, so this isn’t really surprising, but Powers manages to write the two men in a way that resonates with me.
They instantiate the magician and the warrior, cleverness and action respectively, but at the same time they also seem like real men who somehow manage to be somewhat fond of each other despite frequently being at odds over how to approach a problem. Much like Tyrus and Casper in Galaxy’s Edge, they work best as a team, but sometimes that is difficult.
This book is also quite funny. Powers has an eye for the absurd and strange things that nonetheless actually happen, and he peppers the text with them. Sometimes we get such observations from Duffy’s black sense of humor, or Aurelianus’ waspish one, but we also get the narrator chiming in as well. That a book with such a deep and subtle crafting can also manage to be laugh out loud funny is a remarkable accomplishment.
The Drawing of the Dark has rewarded me everytime I’ve come back to it. I encourage anyone with a love of chanson de geste, adventure, or myth to give it a try. And hoist a beer for Brian Duffy, who saved that brewery.
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LibraryThing member dogboi
I generally only read literary fiction, but I make an exception for some fantasy writers. Tim Powers is one of those writers. Declare and Last Call are amongst my favorite novels. This novel, however, fell flat. The lack of a cohesive ending, paired with a less than coherent plot made this a dud
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for me. I'd have given it two and a half stars if I could, but only because of my love of anything involving the Fisher King (who I wish we'd seen and heard more from). Show Less
LibraryThing member Zare
Old mercenary finds himself employed by mysterious man in Venice to become a bouncer in Vienna's most popular brewery. A couple of months before Austria gets invaded in full force by Turks.
If you think above sounds not so interesting (I said he is hired to be bouncer right :)) then let me tell you
Humor permeates the entire story and you'll find yourself giggling every so often :)
if you like "High Crusade" (and if you did not read it do it immediately :) ) you will like this one too.
Highly recommended.
If you think above sounds not so interesting (I said he is hired to be bouncer right :)) then let me tell you
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that this is just the start - this adventure includes mythical creatures, mystics, an ancient conflict between East and West and of course reincarnation... lots of it. And beer, let's not forget the beer - beer is sort of a main character here (heh, wine is described as less potent drink here that actually helps you sleep and relax :))Humor permeates the entire story and you'll find yourself giggling every so often :)
if you like "High Crusade" (and if you did not read it do it immediately :) ) you will like this one too.
Highly recommended.
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Subjects
Language
Original publication date
1979-06
Physical description
384 p.; 6.77 inches
ISBN
0583133193 / 9780583133197