REVIEW: The Betrayer
The Betrayer: Violet Needham, The Children’s Book Club
This story revolves around another adventure for the Stormy Petrel, aka Dick Faconbois. Fortunately, it comes after the happenings related in ‘The House of the Paladin’ (reviewed here) but it refers to past events in other books and to characters by aliases (e.g. Wych Hazel!, Far Away Moses) - most of them have titles, too - in a way that confused me as someone who’s only read 'The House of the Paladin'. I was slightly less impressed by this book than the latter.
Instead of reminding me of Hope’s ‘The Prisoner of Zenda’, this has echoes of Orczy. Although he hasn’t set himself up to be a great hero like Percy did as the Scarlet Pimpernel, boy hero Dick is called upon to help foil a conspiracy that would end an Empire and bring about a Republic. He does it, too, called by a spirit of adventure and guided by loyalty, but loyalties to different people lead to more internal tension than derring-do.
I just didn’t think Needham quite brewed up the fervid atmosphere needed for a conspiracy. It’s also striking that this is a book about a fifteen year old, who may be old for his years, extremely capable and someone who has built up quite the reputation, but is mixed up in grown-up affairs in a story written for children (Needham dedicates the book to her child readers). She isn’t an author who panders, exactly, but she only hints at some motivations while over-explaining others. Too much hinges on coincidence, Dick walking into clues and a lot of characters making themselves miserable because they don’t communicate. It takes a twelve-year-old girl who is willing to ask for help (actually two of them) to get some communication going between the right people.
I thought that Needham was most uncomfortable in depicting the character of Chris the Flute-Player. Perhaps I’d feel differently if I’d encountered him in earlier books, but I didn’t. Dick has seen Chris, so far, from a child’s perspective, as an entertainer. Count St. Silvain, who is Chris’s contemporary (and a friend of Dick’s), knows more about Chris’s past and character, the former tragic, the latter obdurate in nature. Both the count and Dick are unswervingly loyal to Chris because of past bonds, even after Chris has shown himself willing to carry out treason. A mixture of idealistic obstinacy and spurned man, he is willing to consider murder (of certain persons) to bring about a republic. But under the influence of one professional crook and a woman who is quite openly out for revenge (again for something that probably happened in a previous book), Chris becomes willing to use innocents as tools to bring about those deaths he deems necessary, moving on from being the assassin himself. I expected the author to dub him insane sooner than she did, because he’s certainly irrational. A writer like Orczy would have cranked it up for longer and harder (and I would probably be complaining about the melodrama).
Needham’s setting is a cluster of Ruritanian countries, modern enough to have cinemas and a road-building programme, but there’s a Regent and an Emperor approaching his majority, complicated recent politics and a slightly feudal society, and yet some of the characters have an English sensibility. The list of main characters is fairly slim, which makes sense for the band of conspirators and, on the other side, the very important people they’re trying to bring down. But it’s really striking that Dick can wander into town and talk to a couple of people and get the very nugget of information he needs by gossiping with them. Apart from the internal turmoil - there are republicans who dislike the current leader and those who dislike the Government’s attempts at progress (this is really background for the conspiracy, not something Needham goes into much), Flavonia is on the verge of signing a treaty with the small principality or duchy Oronowitza, currently run by young Duchess Anastasia and her corrupt Government. She’s brave and clever, but in a difficult position. Can the Flavonians come to an agreement with her in a way that will be best for her people and fair (they’re looking for a confederation)? And if Dick is involved in discussions, will that succeed in keeping him out of the trouble that gave him his nickname?
It’s more than hinted that Anastasia is a match for Dick, who likes her as a person, but as a fifteen-year-old who is only just thinking of what he’s going to do about his future - although his ability to drop studying for adventure’s siren call would probably infuriate readers with big exams on the horizon - he isn’t thinking that far ahead. But it seems as if the idea of children having their futures set appealed to its readership.
I did like reading about Dick working through his issues with, eventually, the help of the (many) people who care for him. Although we’re talking about people who rule countries, the interaction of many of these characters reminded me forcibly of the Abbey girls. Perhaps it’s the fact that they’ve been introduced in past books, but Jasper and Moses’s abilities to read motivations and all the conversations about what’s going on with other people also seemed familiar. Dick has a real sense of modesty, which blinds him to how much quite a lot of characters are willing to do for him. He does try to listen to the advice of Tranto, the head of security forces, and avoids getting in the thick of things when the danger is at its highest, but has to deal with the emotional fallout of what he has been involved in.
So, there’s an overheated plot, not quite matched by writing, as if it’s not quite to the author’s taste. I kept expecting Wych Hazel/Antoinette to get more involved and to find out what she thought, but she’s kept out of it. But it was enjoyable enough, although I might have reacted more favourably if I’d read more books about The Stormy Petrel and all these other characters and knew the backstories referenced. I’ve subsequently found this list of summaries of Needham’s books useful.
This entry was originally posted at http://feather-ghyll.dreamwidth.org/120872.html. Please comment wherever you prefer to.
This story revolves around another adventure for the Stormy Petrel, aka Dick Faconbois. Fortunately, it comes after the happenings related in ‘The House of the Paladin’ (reviewed here) but it refers to past events in other books and to characters by aliases (e.g. Wych Hazel!, Far Away Moses) - most of them have titles, too - in a way that confused me as someone who’s only read 'The House of the Paladin'. I was slightly less impressed by this book than the latter.
Instead of reminding me of Hope’s ‘The Prisoner of Zenda’, this has echoes of Orczy. Although he hasn’t set himself up to be a great hero like Percy did as the Scarlet Pimpernel, boy hero Dick is called upon to help foil a conspiracy that would end an Empire and bring about a Republic. He does it, too, called by a spirit of adventure and guided by loyalty, but loyalties to different people lead to more internal tension than derring-do.
I just didn’t think Needham quite brewed up the fervid atmosphere needed for a conspiracy. It’s also striking that this is a book about a fifteen year old, who may be old for his years, extremely capable and someone who has built up quite the reputation, but is mixed up in grown-up affairs in a story written for children (Needham dedicates the book to her child readers). She isn’t an author who panders, exactly, but she only hints at some motivations while over-explaining others. Too much hinges on coincidence, Dick walking into clues and a lot of characters making themselves miserable because they don’t communicate. It takes a twelve-year-old girl who is willing to ask for help (actually two of them) to get some communication going between the right people.
I thought that Needham was most uncomfortable in depicting the character of Chris the Flute-Player. Perhaps I’d feel differently if I’d encountered him in earlier books, but I didn’t. Dick has seen Chris, so far, from a child’s perspective, as an entertainer. Count St. Silvain, who is Chris’s contemporary (and a friend of Dick’s), knows more about Chris’s past and character, the former tragic, the latter obdurate in nature. Both the count and Dick are unswervingly loyal to Chris because of past bonds, even after Chris has shown himself willing to carry out treason. A mixture of idealistic obstinacy and spurned man, he is willing to consider murder (of certain persons) to bring about a republic. But under the influence of one professional crook and a woman who is quite openly out for revenge (again for something that probably happened in a previous book), Chris becomes willing to use innocents as tools to bring about those deaths he deems necessary, moving on from being the assassin himself. I expected the author to dub him insane sooner than she did, because he’s certainly irrational. A writer like Orczy would have cranked it up for longer and harder (and I would probably be complaining about the melodrama).
Needham’s setting is a cluster of Ruritanian countries, modern enough to have cinemas and a road-building programme, but there’s a Regent and an Emperor approaching his majority, complicated recent politics and a slightly feudal society, and yet some of the characters have an English sensibility. The list of main characters is fairly slim, which makes sense for the band of conspirators and, on the other side, the very important people they’re trying to bring down. But it’s really striking that Dick can wander into town and talk to a couple of people and get the very nugget of information he needs by gossiping with them. Apart from the internal turmoil - there are republicans who dislike the current leader and those who dislike the Government’s attempts at progress (this is really background for the conspiracy, not something Needham goes into much), Flavonia is on the verge of signing a treaty with the small principality or duchy Oronowitza, currently run by young Duchess Anastasia and her corrupt Government. She’s brave and clever, but in a difficult position. Can the Flavonians come to an agreement with her in a way that will be best for her people and fair (they’re looking for a confederation)? And if Dick is involved in discussions, will that succeed in keeping him out of the trouble that gave him his nickname?
It’s more than hinted that Anastasia is a match for Dick, who likes her as a person, but as a fifteen-year-old who is only just thinking of what he’s going to do about his future - although his ability to drop studying for adventure’s siren call would probably infuriate readers with big exams on the horizon - he isn’t thinking that far ahead. But it seems as if the idea of children having their futures set appealed to its readership.
I did like reading about Dick working through his issues with, eventually, the help of the (many) people who care for him. Although we’re talking about people who rule countries, the interaction of many of these characters reminded me forcibly of the Abbey girls. Perhaps it’s the fact that they’ve been introduced in past books, but Jasper and Moses’s abilities to read motivations and all the conversations about what’s going on with other people also seemed familiar. Dick has a real sense of modesty, which blinds him to how much quite a lot of characters are willing to do for him. He does try to listen to the advice of Tranto, the head of security forces, and avoids getting in the thick of things when the danger is at its highest, but has to deal with the emotional fallout of what he has been involved in.
So, there’s an overheated plot, not quite matched by writing, as if it’s not quite to the author’s taste. I kept expecting Wych Hazel/Antoinette to get more involved and to find out what she thought, but she’s kept out of it. But it was enjoyable enough, although I might have reacted more favourably if I’d read more books about The Stormy Petrel and all these other characters and knew the backstories referenced. I’ve subsequently found this list of summaries of Needham’s books useful.
This entry was originally posted at http://feather-ghyll.dreamwidth.org/120872.html. Please comment wherever you prefer to.