Marty's Shadow

Marty’s Shadow

Author: John Heffernan

Marty knows something is not right. There is something in his past that has left a shadow over his life. His nightmares, flashbacks and erratic behavior leave him fearful and confused. He wants to know what happened, just as much as he fears what that knowledge could mean.

This novel is difficult to read – not the prose though, which is unrelenting in it’s stark unveiling of Marty’s psyche – but in the sheer weight of the sorrows, traumas, fears and confrontations that Marty exists under. There’s the Event in his past, his alcoholic mother, abusive father, racial tensions in the town, cruel teachers, possible girlfriend, bullying at school, his pet dog, and his uncomfortable relationship with his brother. The way he deals with all this is shadowed by the Event in the past, which is slowly revealed in a series of Post Traumatic Stress induced flashbacks.

There’s brutal realism in this story; Heffernan takes Marty to the very edge of life, destroying everything Marty has ever clung to, leaving only a shadow behind. I found the ambiguity of the ending quite frightening – is his father, to continue to protect the secret from the past, actively working to ensure that Marty remains in his traumatized state? To me, that can be the only possible reason for the gift they take him…

A disturbing, engrossing read, that has left me thinking on its themes. And it’s left me wanting to read Marty’s brother’s story now, wanting to know his experience of his family, his town, his brother.

Corbenic

Corbenic

Author: Catherine Fisher

A contemporary retelling of the Fisher King legend, and Percival's search for the Holy Grail, this story confronts several dark themes in a deeply moving and emotional story.

Cal has been looking after his alcoholic, mentally unstable mum for all his young life. He jumps at a chance to go stay with a rich uncle, and ruthlessly severs his ties with his mum. However, he gets off the train at the wrong station, and finds himself in Corbenic, taken in by Bron (the wounded Fisher King), and sees a vision which he later denies.

Cal has been deeply wounded by his difficult upbringing, and his coping mechanisms work against him, leaving him lost in a pain filled wasteland. It's not until he accepts that he must face his past, acknowledge the way it has shaped him, and forgiven his mum and himself, that he can finally have a chance at gaining his Grail.

An excellent book - the dark themes are explored with confidence, and the mix of contemporary and legendary symbolism is nicely handled. I wonder though, how a reader not familiar with the source material would find the story...I feel that they may not be as drawn in as I was.