Disposable Lit Reviews

Del Rey, 1994
336 pp.
ISBN 0-345-38101-7
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Some science fiction and fantasy novelists, when they try a novel outside their genre, falter because they don’t know how to write about things that are real; they’re used to dealing with massive quantities of necessary exposition, and a more willing suspension of disbelief from their readers.

Barbara Hambly is best known as a prolific fantasy novelist. The majority of her output is tales of magic set against a backdrop vaguely imformed by medieval Europe, arranged into series of three or more volumes. When she turned to something other than her normal arena for this novel, she wisely chose a milieu fully as fantastic and artificial as anything she had depicted previously: Hollywood of the 1920’s.

It probably doesn’t often occur to modern movie fans that even during the silent era, the hallmarks of Hollywood excess we’ve come to know and love were already well-established: The cult of personality and devotion to artifice, the reliance on and careful construction of glamour and image off the set to rival anything projected on the screen. It’s a setting into a which a fantastic element can easily be introduced, because the baseline reality is itself so unreal.

Raven-haired screen siren Chrysanda Flamande (real name Christine) is a faddish aficionado of all things Chinese, and with that in mind her producer-beau gives her a jeweled necklace, supposedly smuggled from the Forbidden City itself. Unfortunately, the claim is all too true; what’s more the necklace belongs to Da Shu Ken, the ancient Rat-God who takes the necklace’s wearer as his bride… and sacrifice.

You may suspect that someone like Christine is too shallow to be the protagonist, and you’d be right; that role falls to level-headed Norah, Christine’s British sister-in-law and a young widow of the Great War. Norah provides a necessary outsider viewpoint, relaying to us the enchantment, disillusionment, and bewilderment of the glittering new world in the California hills.

It’s a colorful tale colorfully told, with an elderly Chinese sorcerer assisting Christine and Norah with their attempts to cross the Rat-God’s desires. Also assisting are Christine’s trio of Pekingeses, whose breed was specifically created as compact demon-hunters when not fighting each other over food.

Hambly’s authorial voice is perfect, relaying exposition in subtle bite-sized pieces and dealing with potentially gaudy subject matter without dipping into the pulp tradition of purple prose. She also wisely resists the impulse to “Forrest Gump” her characters into the lives and events of the real-life silent stars.

It’s a satisfying read. Pick it up.

Nathan Shumate