Ombria in Shadow

For the last week or so, I've been struggling to really put into words just how good Ombria in Shadow is. Because I went into this book knowing that Patricia McKillip was well regarded around /r/fantasy, but she was not someone I had ever read before. What a surprise this novel turned out to be. A fairytale whose style feels heavily influenced by Gormenghast, while still retaining an allure I haven't been able to find in fantasy lately. In a sense, it's clear that it influenced Uprooted quite a bit and it's nice to see a standalone novel tie up its loose ends in an incredibly satisfying manner.

The Prince of Ombria is dying and with his child still a minor, it seems that his Great Aunt, the feared and reviled Black Pearl, is in line for the throne. The bastard is no potential heir either and it seems that for Ombria, dark days lie ahead. But underneath its streets, a witch of great power weaves her spells, watched over by a girl made entirely of wax...

I was enthralled by the magic system, which reveals enough to keep you interested while still keeping its secrets close to its chest. In that respect, it's very much a fairytale and if you keep that in mind while reading this, you'll avoid the frustration of not quite knowing why something is the way it is. McKillip takes you by the hand and portrays a world inhabited by light and shadow, by a potential other Ombria, hidden in the nooks and crannies and allies that no one goes down, a cast of characters that's quite small and yet still manages to make the world feel lived in and inhabited. I loved McKillip's use of language, a trait that seems to be incredibly sought after in fantasy and yet so few authors are able to elevate it to the same level as Ombria in Shadow.

How strange to be in a dream one moment and in the world the next, and to know the difference in the blink of an eye.

This is how much of Ombria in Shadow passes, like a dream that you want to cling to but can't. Entire sections feel woven from the finest silk, the thinnest candy floss, passing through your fingers and leaving behind a sense of wonder, with the barest hint of danger and even, perhaps, death. Because McKillip really goes for the fairytale approach here, where death is a genuine threat and where even the heroine isn't spare hardship. And McKillip really isn't afraid to throw the punches here. It's a haunting novel (it's why it's taken me over a week to even find the words to describe it) and, about halfway through, I realised that rather than constantly be aware of the fact that I was reading a novel, I was instead almost catapulted into the book itself, everything and everyone felt so real and so human.

There are motives at work here that go beyond the simple revenge plot and the usual character tropes you may find in a fairytale (the warm-hearted girl, in this case the King's mistress, the bastard who may or may not have a better claim to the throne than anyone else, the child who is not what she seems, even Faey and the Black Pearl, enemies and yet... not, the only two who can bring Ombria to the edge of destruction and either push it or rescue it). I was enthralled and I read the last few chapters with bated breath, guessing all the way to the end about how this could possibly happen.

McKillip came to me as a new name, someone I'd vaguely heard about but an author I had never really shown a keen interest in. However, with Ombria in Shadow under my belt, I really think I need to go and revisit her body of work. She has truly set a standard for a mythical fantasy that blends tension and adventure with a lyrical writing and beautifully portrayed characters. I absolutely recommend this to anyone interested in standalone books that are capable of wowing you up until the very last page.