Beneath the Vaulted Hills

Beneath the Vaulted Hills (1997) Sean Russell

I’ve always been fond of Sean Russell’s books. They’re dense and complex, and I often understand them better on the second reading. But they’re also beautifully crafted works full of marvelous characters. Unfortunately, Sean Russell has not published many books. Nine fantasy novels I believe (three duologies and a trilogy) plus two mysteries co-written under the name of T.F. Banks.

Because he publishes books so infrequently, I will actually hold onto his books–even for years–before reading them. After all, you can only once read a book for the first time. So I have actually had Sean Russell’s “River Into Darkness” duology sitting on my shelves for years. Set aside for awhile, then forgotten for awhile till I was no longer sure whether I had read the books or not.

I hadn’t.

It is, perhaps, less than true to say it all began in a brothel, but I found Samual Hayes hiding in such an establishment and this marked the turning point if not an actual beginning. How Samual Hayes became misfortune’s whipping boy, I will never understand.

Eldrich is the last mage, and Erasmus Flattery spent several years as a child living in Eldrich’s house and being tutored by his servant, Walky. Now Erasmus is a grown man, haunted by his past. Despite this–or perhaps because of this–when Samual Hayes requests help, Erasmus helps him.

The Countess of Chilton is the most beautiful woman of her generation–a beauty that leads men who barely know her to duels. Yet she years for Lord Skye–the one many who seems to have no interest in her at all.

And then there is, of course, Eldrich the mage, whose life and motives are hidden to all and understood by none.

As Erasmus and Hayes attempt to discover why Hayes is being hunted by Navy men, they learn of the Stranger of Compton Heath, and discover that they are not the only ones interested in this mystery.

Like Sean Russell’s other books, the story is complex and wide ranging, and almost as much of a mystery as a fantasy. Who was the Stranger of Compton Heath? Why was he taken away? Where did he come from? Why has interest in this Stranger lead to so much difficulty for so many people?

One of the things I enjoyed most about this story (and also about his “Moontide and Magic Rise” duology) is the setting. The feel is of Regency or Victorian England–science is starting to overcome magic, not only because Eldrich is the last mage, but because the population believes in science as something they can understand, while magic has always been the realm of a select few.

If you enjoy Guy Gavriel Kay, Ellen Kushner, and Lian Hearn, then you may enjoy Sean Russell. Although I didn’t like “Beneath the Vaulted Hills” quite as much as I loved The Initiate Brother or “Moontide and Magic Rise” it is still very good, and well worth reading.
Rating: 7/10

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