Priya Sharma

Somewhere out there, away from the big city of Bath, there is a land where a dragon sleeps. That's how Priya Sharma starts this novella - with the legend heard by a 7 years old boy called Gideon. His father used to be a scholar but after some not very nice experiences, he had to go back to the land where he grew up - and help run the family farm again. Except that the family is special - because once a upon a time, a great dragon called Orme chose them as her guardians.

Gideon grows up on show more the farm, with the legend in his mind and with an innocence which makes one wince occasionally. Until the day he loses his father. It takes a few more years for Gideon to understand what really happened in that dark night. Most of the story shows the boy growing - and exploring the land that is supposed to be his one day. It is not a happy story - it has shades of Dickens and "The Thorn Birds" (the scenes with the sheep shearing and some of the school scenes reminded me of that one a lot) - but it is not a sad story either. Yes, bad things happen. But in a way, the end is a happy one - in a very Victorian way - you get betrayal and evil - but you also get love and hope.

Are dragons real in this land? That is one of the questions which every reader needs to answer for themselves. The story leaves the question open - one can chose which version to believe. As such, the fantasy is subtle enough to almost make that a mainstream story - although I would not go there - even if the dragon was just an imaginary pet (and the end was caused by a volcano for example).

If you do not try to find the exact time where this novella can fit, it could have happened in our England. The pieces that do not fit can be explained with imagination. But if you look a bit closer, you will realize that it cannot fit - the shadows of different times seem to merge into one thus sending that into a new world.

I loved the writing style - the novella is really a series of shorter vignettes allowing the action to jump in time (and space) and draw the needed parallels. And at the end, it all boils to same old question - is gold worth it if you lose everything else? show less

Oh, this one is creepy. Think: Ishiguro's 'Never Let Me Go' meets Thompson's 'Divided Kingdom' in a Dickensian alternate England. A bit of a steampunk feel to it (think George Mann's 'Affinity Bridge') - minus the steam.
But it's also a wonderful story in which humanity and compassion come to the fore, even in the face of complete and utter callousness. It illustrates both the best and the worst that people are capable of. I hope to read more from Sharma in the future.

A historical farming family drama with background notes of constructed mythology. A coming of age story in which a young man realises his family are shits and that he really is as naive as his horrible uncle says he is.

This is one of those reads it's hard for me to rate. I didn't enjoy it at all, but there's nothing wrong with it per se - it's just not quite what I expected, and not my cup of tea. It is a cup of tea, though, and some of you may enjoy drinking it.

That said, I specifically show more didn't like the ending. It feels too easy a resolution and narratively unearned (but I'll say no more here because spoilers).

Do not expect: magical realism, fantasy elements, any surprises

Do expect: a historical tale played more or less straight, bullying, god-awful families, and occasional Hardy or Poldark moments such as the brilliant sheep-shearing scene or Gideon's discomfort at his uncle stripping off in the kitchen

On the one hand, I sort of feel that if this might have worked for me as a novel where there'd be more to sink my teeth into (depth of character, nuance, atmosphere). On the other hand, if it were longer I wouldn't have finished it as I didn't enjoy the prose style.

Full review show less

https://nwhyte.livejournal.com/3694056.html

I was blown away by Sharma's novella, Ormeshadow, which I read at the end of last year; this is a collection of her short stories, almost all of them with some genre elements (though one of the best, "Small Town Stories", seemed to me to be a straightforward psychological tale). I thought they were tremendously good, combining fantasy, horror and human elements, each one of them a real jewel. Strongly recommended.