I am a big fan of George R.R. Martin’s ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’ (known better as the ‘Game of Thrones’ books, and, now, T.V. series).  It’s not High Art, but Martin is a great imaginative builder; ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’ is complicated and rich.  So, I was interested to learn that he had written a vampire novel, ‘Fevre Dream’, since vampire stories are, to my mind, pretty well played out these days.  A great story is always a great story, but I had a hard time imagining a lot of room for new thought in the vampire genre.

I want to keep the plot synopsis minimal here, since much of what makes ‘Fevre Dream’ interesting is a conceptual twist on the traditional vampire legend, and which would constitute a spoiler if I revealed it.  I can safely say, however, that ‘Fevre Dream’ is the story of Abner Walsh, the extremely ugly Mississippi steam boat captain who suffers the loss of most his company in the harsh winter of 1857.  Thus down on his luck, he is approached by tall, pale, nocturnal, and mysteriously compelling Joshua York, who offers to enter into partnership with him.  York will provide extravagant funding for Walsh to build the boat of his dreams, and they will sail the Mississippi together.  The only conditions are that Walsh not ask his companion about the odd habits he has, or the odd company he keeps.  Most of the time, York will allow Walsh entire control of the ship; when, however, York makes the odd request, it must be obeyed totally and without question.

Peculiarities ensue.  

‘Fevre Dream’ does offer a new take on the vampire story, and I liked it.  It’s actually a fairly simple alteration, but one that puts the entire mythology in a new light.  Still, fans of the ‘Song of Ice and Fire’ might need a little adjustment in their expectations.  The characters of ‘Fevre Dream’ lack the complexity of Martin’s other work - lack it big time.  Martin has a reputation for building characters that straddle Good and Evil; that doesn’t really happen here.  ‘Fevre Dream’ shows originality of thought, but not in its cast.  Rather, it shows it in its plot, and in its premise.

‘Fevre Dream’ stymies the reader’s anticipation of the normal plot climax.  It’s sort of tricky that way: it sets you up for one, and then doesn’t really come through, leading you instead on a deceleration that feels much more realistic, insofar as that term even applies to a novel about vampires on steamboats.  Martin fans will find this familiar: the unwillingness on the part of this author to adhere to genre conventions is one of the things that has made him deeply beloved.

What has not made him beloved, at least not to me, is the quality of his writing.  I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: all I ask of horror novels is that they not distract me with the badness of the writing.  I am perfectly happy to be carried along by engrossing plot, but terrible clangers always jar me out of absorbtion.  There are a few too many such clangers in ‘Fevre Dream’, cliches so memorably wincing that I could actually quote a few off the top of my head.  It’s not all Martin’s fault, really; as I said above, vampires are played out, and there aren’t that many ways to describe thin, preternaturally beautiful strangers with strange magnetism and eyes whose terrible depths speak of untold ages remembered.  Purple descriptions like that make my teeth hurt, and ‘Fevre Dream’ is full of them (idea for a drinking game: take a shot at every mention of Valerie’s “deep, violet eyes”).  This is not good writing.  Martin has always loved his motifs; when he finds a metaphor he likes, he clings doggedly to it.  You can get away with that in the 8,000 pages of ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’ - you can’t in the 368 pages of ‘Fevre Dream’.

When all is said and done, however, ‘Fevre Dream’ is totally worth it.  It’s a quick read, and an entertaining one.  It isn’t totally predictable, and it provides a neat twist on an old idea.  If you’re sick of vampires, I understand, but if you’re willing to give them one more run, this one deserves a shot.  Recommended.

Thanks again to Patsy for adding this so quickly!

Recommended: Yes