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Deepgate Codex #1
Scar Night
Suspended by chains over a seemingly bottomless abyss, the ancient city of Deepgate is home to a young angel, an assassin, and a psychotic murderer hungry for revenge—or redemption. But soon a shocking betrayal will unite all three in a desperate quest....
The last of his line, Dill is descended from legendary Battle-archons who once defended the city. Forbidden to fly and untrained even to wield the great sword inherited from his forebears, he has become a figurehead for a dying tradition. Now he lives a sheltered existence in one of Deepgate’s crumbling temple spires under the watchful eye of the Presbyter who rules the city.
Spine assassin Rachel Hael has better things to do than oversee the Presbyter’s angel. Each dark moon she must fight for her life among the city chains, hunting an immortal predator with a taste for blood.
But when a traitor brings enemies to Deepgate’s doorstep, Dill and Rachel are forced into an uneasy alliance with the city’s oldest and most dangerous foe. They must journey down into the uncharted chasm to save their sprawling metropolis—and themselves—from annihilation. Once they descend however, they learn that what lies below is far more sinister than what they’ve been taught to expect.
The last of his line, Dill is descended from legendary Battle-archons who once defended the city. Forbidden to fly and untrained even to wield the great sword inherited from his forebears, he has become a figurehead for a dying tradition. Now he lives a sheltered existence in one of Deepgate’s crumbling temple spires under the watchful eye of the Presbyter who rules the city.
Spine assassin Rachel Hael has better things to do than oversee the Presbyter’s angel. Each dark moon she must fight for her life among the city chains, hunting an immortal predator with a taste for blood.
But when a traitor brings enemies to Deepgate’s doorstep, Dill and Rachel are forced into an uneasy alliance with the city’s oldest and most dangerous foe. They must journey down into the uncharted chasm to save their sprawling metropolis—and themselves—from annihilation. Once they descend however, they learn that what lies below is far more sinister than what they’ve been taught to expect.
608 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2006
104 people are currently reading
3708 people want to read
About the author
Alan Campbell
7 books51 followersAlan wrote the Deepgate Codex and the Gravedigger Chronicles. He's still alive.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 357 reviews
June 12, 2025
I've been reading Scar Night for 8 whole weeks! I don't get a lot of time to read but the 8 weeks is only partly a reflection of that.
For whatever reason, the first half of Scar Night didn't grip me. On the other hand I've given up on a fair number of best selling fantasy books between page 50 & 100 when they've not worked for me - and I didn't give up on Scar Night. What kept me in the game were the facts that Scar Night has excellent prose, good description, good dialogue, and tremendous imagination. I think it was simply the characters that for the longest time didn't win me over.
Eventually though the story sunk its hooks in me and I started to care a bit about the characters (and considerably more about what was going to happen).
Possibly because I'm not the widest read fantasy fan (I'm wide read, but have a narrow window on fantasy), I found Scar Night to be unlike any other tale I've read. It felt in no way derivative, and that freshness is a big plus. The city of Deepgate, hung on chains above a seemingly bottomless pit, is a fantastic work of imagination, brought to life at each turn. And the characters, whilst the least gripping part of the ensemble for me, were certainly not cliched and certainly were interesting. It was on an emotional level they failed to engage me.
So, with 90% of the required raw ingredients for an excellent fantasy Campbell sets to work and does a great job. By the end I was fully sold on the story and as the tempo picked up and we bounced from cliff-hanging thread to cliff-hanging thread I was thoroughly enjoying it all.
At the end the 'bottom of the bottomless pit' stuff was somewhat anti-climactic, but when something is built up for so long it's near impossible to fulfil expectations & the mystery of it was used to great effect for a long time - so that's ok.
I can certainly recommend the read and I'll be trying another Campbell book one of these days.
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...
For whatever reason, the first half of Scar Night didn't grip me. On the other hand I've given up on a fair number of best selling fantasy books between page 50 & 100 when they've not worked for me - and I didn't give up on Scar Night. What kept me in the game were the facts that Scar Night has excellent prose, good description, good dialogue, and tremendous imagination. I think it was simply the characters that for the longest time didn't win me over.
Eventually though the story sunk its hooks in me and I started to care a bit about the characters (and considerably more about what was going to happen).
Possibly because I'm not the widest read fantasy fan (I'm wide read, but have a narrow window on fantasy), I found Scar Night to be unlike any other tale I've read. It felt in no way derivative, and that freshness is a big plus. The city of Deepgate, hung on chains above a seemingly bottomless pit, is a fantastic work of imagination, brought to life at each turn. And the characters, whilst the least gripping part of the ensemble for me, were certainly not cliched and certainly were interesting. It was on an emotional level they failed to engage me.
So, with 90% of the required raw ingredients for an excellent fantasy Campbell sets to work and does a great job. By the end I was fully sold on the story and as the tempo picked up and we bounced from cliff-hanging thread to cliff-hanging thread I was thoroughly enjoying it all.
At the end the 'bottom of the bottomless pit' stuff was somewhat anti-climactic, but when something is built up for so long it's near impossible to fulfil expectations & the mystery of it was used to great effect for a long time - so that's ok.
I can certainly recommend the read and I'll be trying another Campbell book one of these days.
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Join my 3-emails-a-year newsletter #prizes
...
April 4, 2011
I desperately wanted to love this book, but to quote Gregory House quoting the philosopher Jagger, "You can't always get what you want." There are so many amazing concepts in this book, but that's part of the problem--there are so many potentially engaging ideas brewing in here that it's like Campbell couldn't decide on just one so decided to toss them all in at once. The result is that no one idea or character receives the full attention it deserves. For instance, the most compelling character is Carnival, a several thousand year old angel who, to maintain her immortality, must drink the blood of a mortal each month. She terrorizes the town of Deepgate when the moon goes dark--Scar Night--and she seeks out her prey. When she does kill, she inflicts another wound upon herself as punishment for once again sating her need. As a result, her body is lined with scars. She is at once a demon and a pitiable creature. She alone would have made a fascinating focus for the book, but, no, we have to be introduced to a cast of hundreds.
Some positives: Campbell has done a stunning job of creating a complex and thought provoking mythology that explains how the city of Deepgate, built in an abyss and cradled by a network of chains, came into being as a means of honoring the fallen god of chains, Ulcis. Campbell's descriptions help the reader envision such an unlikely setting as though it could truly exist (therein, though, lies another problem with the book--the lengthy and sometimes unnecessary descriptions slow the narrative pace down).
On the cover, Hal Duncan proclaims that Scar Night is "A gripping, ripping yarn which rattles along at a great pace." If by "gripping" he meant lackluster and by "ripping" he meant tedious, then I agree with him. If not, then Hal and I must part ways in our requirements for great fantasy.
Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder
Some positives: Campbell has done a stunning job of creating a complex and thought provoking mythology that explains how the city of Deepgate, built in an abyss and cradled by a network of chains, came into being as a means of honoring the fallen god of chains, Ulcis. Campbell's descriptions help the reader envision such an unlikely setting as though it could truly exist (therein, though, lies another problem with the book--the lengthy and sometimes unnecessary descriptions slow the narrative pace down).
On the cover, Hal Duncan proclaims that Scar Night is "A gripping, ripping yarn which rattles along at a great pace." If by "gripping" he meant lackluster and by "ripping" he meant tedious, then I agree with him. If not, then Hal and I must part ways in our requirements for great fantasy.
Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder
May 27, 2008
Scottish author Alan Campbell - best known for his "involvement" in designing the popular game Grand Theft Auto - spent ten years, on and off, working on his debut novel Scar Night, the first book in the Deepgate Codex. For fans of "steampunk" fantasy writer China Mieville (Perdido Street Station, The Scar, Iron Council), Scar Night is a solid, original addition to the subgenre.
The city of Deepgate hangs suspended by chains above the Abyss, its foundations built by Callis, the angel Herald of the god Ulcis who was cast out of heaven by God (his mother Ayen), who sealed it against him, and the Ninety-Nine, his angel companions. Deepgate is a creaking city of iron and steel and brick, of grime and mould and ash. The city is more-or-less ruled by the Church, and has nearly succeeded in squashing the heathen races who live in the desert lands around the Abyss. But there are only two angels left: an untested boy, Dill, the last of his line, forbidden even to fly; and a half-mad woman three thousand years old called Carnival who drinks the souls of the citizens of Deepgate every Scar Night (full moon).
Someone else is murdering citizens now, though. Someone else is draining the bodies dry of blood, so that they cannot be blessed by the church and cast into the Abyss to live in the city of Deep with their God, Ulcis. Carnival is suspected by most who know about it, but Presbyter Sypes, the old man who runs the Church, knows the truth.
The mystery of who is stealing souls is revealed about a third of the way through, but it's not the crux of the story. It's not a mystery novel, after all, and the truth of what lies at the bottom of the Abyss is what really drove me on to finish the book. There are elements here that remind me of Mervin Peake's Gormenghast, spliced with His Dark Materials blimps and Perdido Street Station thaumaturgy. The hideous god Ulcis, consuming the flesh of the corpses thrown into the Abyss, reminded me strongly of the lard-like cannibal in Ian M. Banks' Consider Phlebus. I liked the less-than-angelic angels, surviving off the souls of mortals, and I loved the strength and fighting spirit of Carnival and Rachael, an untempered Spine assassin (a group of emotionless killers who hunt Carnival through the millennia - unsuccessfully). I thought at first Dill was a little boy - from the initial description of him and a reference to 6 years being "almost half his age" made me think he was about 12. But he's actually 16. He has promise, though. I was pleased that Adjunct Fogwill Crumb was not a typically horrid administrator; despite his perfumes and silks he was not petty in the slightest. The poisoner Devon's motives were understandable. None of this I had a problem with.
My main complaint, and the reason why it took me a surprisingly long time to read this book, is with the descriptions of Deepgate. I just can't picture it. I don't get the mechanics. The foundation chains hang vertically, but are secured to the lip of the Abyss. Why do they not then just hang down the sides of the abyss, how do the hang down the middle of it? Millions of smaller chains create a kind of net between them all. But I just can't see it. How are stone and brick and tin houses, some of them huge like the Church's temple, held up? How are cobbled streets kept together? Gardens and trees and fountains - and layers? The city is in layers, is it not? I'm sure it was described thus, but how do you get from one level to another? Is it above ground level or beneath the rim? How deep does it go, how wide? Are there roads leading onto solid ground? Even when sunlight is included in the descriptions, all I see is darkness. And when I can't satisfactorily picture the landscape a fantasy is set in, I struggle with the story because it has no solid backdrop against which to play out. It's like there are details missing that would have given me the key I needed to visualise it properly - details perhaps lost between drafts. Very frustrating.
The writing could have done with some tighter editing, especially on comma placement, which too often threw me off. (I thought I had an example of this but now I can't find it, sorry.) But there's a lot of potential here, with Campbell still finding his feet a bit, and I do want to read the following books.
The city of Deepgate hangs suspended by chains above the Abyss, its foundations built by Callis, the angel Herald of the god Ulcis who was cast out of heaven by God (his mother Ayen), who sealed it against him, and the Ninety-Nine, his angel companions. Deepgate is a creaking city of iron and steel and brick, of grime and mould and ash. The city is more-or-less ruled by the Church, and has nearly succeeded in squashing the heathen races who live in the desert lands around the Abyss. But there are only two angels left: an untested boy, Dill, the last of his line, forbidden even to fly; and a half-mad woman three thousand years old called Carnival who drinks the souls of the citizens of Deepgate every Scar Night (full moon).
Someone else is murdering citizens now, though. Someone else is draining the bodies dry of blood, so that they cannot be blessed by the church and cast into the Abyss to live in the city of Deep with their God, Ulcis. Carnival is suspected by most who know about it, but Presbyter Sypes, the old man who runs the Church, knows the truth.
The mystery of who is stealing souls is revealed about a third of the way through, but it's not the crux of the story. It's not a mystery novel, after all, and the truth of what lies at the bottom of the Abyss is what really drove me on to finish the book. There are elements here that remind me of Mervin Peake's Gormenghast, spliced with His Dark Materials blimps and Perdido Street Station thaumaturgy. The hideous god Ulcis, consuming the flesh of the corpses thrown into the Abyss, reminded me strongly of the lard-like cannibal in Ian M. Banks' Consider Phlebus. I liked the less-than-angelic angels, surviving off the souls of mortals, and I loved the strength and fighting spirit of Carnival and Rachael, an untempered Spine assassin (a group of emotionless killers who hunt Carnival through the millennia - unsuccessfully). I thought at first Dill was a little boy - from the initial description of him and a reference to 6 years being "almost half his age" made me think he was about 12. But he's actually 16. He has promise, though. I was pleased that Adjunct Fogwill Crumb was not a typically horrid administrator; despite his perfumes and silks he was not petty in the slightest. The poisoner Devon's motives were understandable. None of this I had a problem with.
My main complaint, and the reason why it took me a surprisingly long time to read this book, is with the descriptions of Deepgate. I just can't picture it. I don't get the mechanics. The foundation chains hang vertically, but are secured to the lip of the Abyss. Why do they not then just hang down the sides of the abyss, how do the hang down the middle of it? Millions of smaller chains create a kind of net between them all. But I just can't see it. How are stone and brick and tin houses, some of them huge like the Church's temple, held up? How are cobbled streets kept together? Gardens and trees and fountains - and layers? The city is in layers, is it not? I'm sure it was described thus, but how do you get from one level to another? Is it above ground level or beneath the rim? How deep does it go, how wide? Are there roads leading onto solid ground? Even when sunlight is included in the descriptions, all I see is darkness. And when I can't satisfactorily picture the landscape a fantasy is set in, I struggle with the story because it has no solid backdrop against which to play out. It's like there are details missing that would have given me the key I needed to visualise it properly - details perhaps lost between drafts. Very frustrating.
The writing could have done with some tighter editing, especially on comma placement, which too often threw me off. (I thought I had an example of this but now I can't find it, sorry.) But there's a lot of potential here, with Campbell still finding his feet a bit, and I do want to read the following books.
Read
September 15, 2009Deepgate is a city hanging by chains over a nigh-bottomless abyss. There is an organization of assassins called the Adepts of the Spine that works for the church of Ulcis. One adept, Rachel, is charged with two tasks; training Dill, the last archon of his line, and hunting down Carnival, a rogue angel who claims a soul every Scar Night. Only someone else has begun claiming souls and Carnival is taking the blame...
Sounds good, right? So what's not to like? A lot, as it turns out. The writing screams both "first time writer" and "I desperately want this to be epic fantasy." The writing feels really light at times and completely unsuitable for the epic tone it strives for. The characters are pretty flat and the pace is painfully slow. At 200 pages, very very little had actually happened. There was one battle but it was a fairly ridiculous affair straight out of Pirates of the Caribean 2.
That isn't to say there's nothing to like in Scar Night. I like a lot of the ideas presented within and Deepgate is an interesting city. However, the first 200 pages could easily be condensed into 50.
I'm putting this book back on the to-read pile without rating it. I might have a higher opinion of it when I pick it back up. Right now, I'm not in the mood for a long tedious book that's part of a series.
Sounds good, right? So what's not to like? A lot, as it turns out. The writing screams both "first time writer" and "I desperately want this to be epic fantasy." The writing feels really light at times and completely unsuitable for the epic tone it strives for. The characters are pretty flat and the pace is painfully slow. At 200 pages, very very little had actually happened. There was one battle but it was a fairly ridiculous affair straight out of Pirates of the Caribean 2.
That isn't to say there's nothing to like in Scar Night. I like a lot of the ideas presented within and Deepgate is an interesting city. However, the first 200 pages could easily be condensed into 50.
I'm putting this book back on the to-read pile without rating it. I might have a higher opinion of it when I pick it back up. Right now, I'm not in the mood for a long tedious book that's part of a series.
May 5, 2013
4 Stars
I scored this a bit higher than I probably should have as I love these types of books. The cover compares Campbell to Neil Gaiman and I must say that I did not see any similarities at all. What I did see was an urban fantasy that would have fit right in with Hal Duncan's Book of all Hours series. The stories, characters, and setting are,all similar, not their writing style.(Duncan is a difficult read).
This is a fast read that is dark and dirty. The cast is diverse and we get many POV's. I wish that I would have connected more with the heroes but maybe that will come with the next book. This is a very dark and at times gory novel. The angel pictured on the cover is one step from being a vampire. I loved the imagery of the city and the chains. The graphic action is fantastic. The book has a good conclusion.
Recommended!
I scored this a bit higher than I probably should have as I love these types of books. The cover compares Campbell to Neil Gaiman and I must say that I did not see any similarities at all. What I did see was an urban fantasy that would have fit right in with Hal Duncan's Book of all Hours series. The stories, characters, and setting are,all similar, not their writing style.(Duncan is a difficult read).
This is a fast read that is dark and dirty. The cast is diverse and we get many POV's. I wish that I would have connected more with the heroes but maybe that will come with the next book. This is a very dark and at times gory novel. The angel pictured on the cover is one step from being a vampire. I loved the imagery of the city and the chains. The graphic action is fantastic. The book has a good conclusion.
Recommended!
May 27, 2020
This is the first book in a series. I have read it before and I needed something simple to read. The character development is decent, but what I really enjoy is the whole development of the world of Deepgate. The totally out there development of a society, city and religion by the author reminds me somewhat of China Mieville it is creativity.
The story takes place in the city of Deepgate. A whole city held up by chains and ropes over a bottomless pit that supposedly their god lives at the bottom. The church runs the city, and had angels that were the defenders of the city. But, over the ages they have all died and only Dill, a 16 year old "boy" is left as the last angel. He is now old enough to start his tasks at the funeral of the dead. Anyone who has died comes on set days to have the bodies of the dead cast into the pit so their souls can join the army to retake heaven. But if they have lost their blood, well that way opens up to The Maze of hellish afterlife. Quite the well developed religion.
On top of this we have an insane angel who kills a person a month to drink their blood to live on. We have the Spine, the churches assassins who try to kill her. We have the official Poisoner who developed weapons to destroy the unbelievers in the desert, but now wants to kill the entire city. We have a father who's daughter was killed by the angel for her blood and now wants revenge. And finally we have the church that knows that the god below is really coming to destroy them all. A lot of stories that connect in many ways and forms throughout the book.
This story was very well written and takes us from the streets, to the desert, to the pit below and back. I really have to say, I totally enjoyed the imagination of the author. This is not your typical fantasy story with the set roles that we all know and expect. The characters are well developed and you really start to feel for them during the course of the book. It may not be for everyone, but I do say if you want a different story, dive on in.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 8, 2012
The one thing that can be said for Scar Night: it does not retread paths already turned into six-lane super-highways. The Tower of Shadows, for instance (a worse book, and one I read right after this one) takes place in Fantasy Kingdom 17, and features a pirate cove, an enchanted port city, and a genuine, do-gooding knight, for God's sake. Where does Scar Night take place?
On top of a bottomless chasm, in a city which dangles down on a series of thick iron chains. Which is a dark, kinda cool image. The rationale for this: the god of Chains, Ulcis, dwells at the bottom of the abyss, and is recruiting the souls of the dead (the dead are lowered to the bottom) in order to raise an army that will wrest open the gates of Heaven which have been barred to mortal souls.
Oddly, when I was first writing reviews of this and Tower of Shadows, I didn't realized that both authors rewrote Paradise Lost. Of course, we all know there is only one true Fantasy rewrite of Paradise Lost, and neither of these bozos are Phillip Pullman.
Given how many people fall to their deaths over the course of the novel, you'd think they'd just build on the sides of the chasm. But that's a minor quibble, I suppose.
The real, central flaw of Scar Night is this: no one, and I mean no one, ever seems genuinely happy with their lives. I don't mean that the book itself is depressing: I've read books that made me weep (March, To Kill a Mockingbird, Bridge to Terabithia), and Scar Night doesn't come close. But a book, especially a dark book, needs the light, to establish what is at stake, or what can be lost. But when everyone in the city of Deepgate, and all the characters in the novel, seem utterly, pathologically joyless, it leaves me wondering why I should care whether or not the whole thing falls into the abyss. And this is deliberate; one character keeps commenting about how everyone (besides him; he's not happy, but he's differently unhappy) is already dead on the inside; they're just waiting to stop moving so they can join the army of their god.
One other thing: Alan Campbell's vies of religion is warped. Let's just ignore the idea, that is uncritically advanced, that everyone in Deepgage is only living as a prelude to the afterlife, or the nature of the gods in Scar Night, which would provide some spoilers without really advancing my argument. The book has two competing faiths. Most of the characters, again, live in Deepgate and pay homage to Ulcis, the God of Chains (the title doesn't really mean anything, as far as I can tell, beyond the fact that he had the city be built on chains). The rest worship Ayen, the Goddess of Light who (as has been discussed) closed the gates of heaven. What exactly do these two faiths do? Well, the church of Ulcis runs Deepgate, while those of Ayen are a bunch of barbarian nomads. Oh, and they go to war with each other every few decades, like Crusader clockwork; this appears to be the only thing the faiths inspire in their followers.
While it might be reading too much into it to say Campbell's point seems to be that religions are power hungry memes which do nothing but cause conflict and push people apart... Hey, I'm a lit major; reading too much into things is all I'm trained to do. So: Campbell's point seems to be that religions are power hungry memes which do nothing but cause conflict and push people apart.
Oh, and occasionally play a conflicting, confusing part in whether or not the world ends. Y'know. For those who care.
I mean, I'm an semi-athiest who read The God Delusion and who frequents Free Thought Blogs, and i thought he was taking it more than slightly too far.
Final note: this is a book where there is apparently a detailed understanding of genetics and chemistry, to the point that at the climax, we see a giant fleet of war-zepplins bombing the hell out of some sort of super-tank.
In this case: why, why, why, is the most advanced personal we see a crossbow? What the hell kind of tech-tree puts incendiary bombs before muskets?
On top of a bottomless chasm, in a city which dangles down on a series of thick iron chains. Which is a dark, kinda cool image. The rationale for this: the god of Chains, Ulcis, dwells at the bottom of the abyss, and is recruiting the souls of the dead (the dead are lowered to the bottom) in order to raise an army that will wrest open the gates of Heaven which have been barred to mortal souls.
Oddly, when I was first writing reviews of this and Tower of Shadows, I didn't realized that both authors rewrote Paradise Lost. Of course, we all know there is only one true Fantasy rewrite of Paradise Lost, and neither of these bozos are Phillip Pullman.
Given how many people fall to their deaths over the course of the novel, you'd think they'd just build on the sides of the chasm. But that's a minor quibble, I suppose.
The real, central flaw of Scar Night is this: no one, and I mean no one, ever seems genuinely happy with their lives. I don't mean that the book itself is depressing: I've read books that made me weep (March, To Kill a Mockingbird, Bridge to Terabithia), and Scar Night doesn't come close. But a book, especially a dark book, needs the light, to establish what is at stake, or what can be lost. But when everyone in the city of Deepgate, and all the characters in the novel, seem utterly, pathologically joyless, it leaves me wondering why I should care whether or not the whole thing falls into the abyss. And this is deliberate; one character keeps commenting about how everyone (besides him; he's not happy, but he's differently unhappy) is already dead on the inside; they're just waiting to stop moving so they can join the army of their god.
One other thing: Alan Campbell's vies of religion is warped. Let's just ignore the idea, that is uncritically advanced, that everyone in Deepgage is only living as a prelude to the afterlife, or the nature of the gods in Scar Night, which would provide some spoilers without really advancing my argument. The book has two competing faiths. Most of the characters, again, live in Deepgate and pay homage to Ulcis, the God of Chains (the title doesn't really mean anything, as far as I can tell, beyond the fact that he had the city be built on chains). The rest worship Ayen, the Goddess of Light who (as has been discussed) closed the gates of heaven. What exactly do these two faiths do? Well, the church of Ulcis runs Deepgate, while those of Ayen are a bunch of barbarian nomads. Oh, and they go to war with each other every few decades, like Crusader clockwork; this appears to be the only thing the faiths inspire in their followers.
While it might be reading too much into it to say Campbell's point seems to be that religions are power hungry memes which do nothing but cause conflict and push people apart... Hey, I'm a lit major; reading too much into things is all I'm trained to do. So: Campbell's point seems to be that religions are power hungry memes which do nothing but cause conflict and push people apart.
Oh, and occasionally play a conflicting, confusing part in whether or not the world ends. Y'know. For those who care.
I mean, I'm an semi-athiest who read The God Delusion and who frequents Free Thought Blogs, and i thought he was taking it more than slightly too far.
Final note: this is a book where there is apparently a detailed understanding of genetics and chemistry, to the point that at the climax, we see a giant fleet of war-zepplins bombing the hell out of some sort of super-tank.
In this case: why, why, why, is the most advanced personal we see a crossbow? What the hell kind of tech-tree puts incendiary bombs before muskets?
March 6, 2011
After reading dystopian books, I never thought I would meet again steampunk books. I’ve seen this book actually in Goodreads and fortunately found a copy in one of our bookstore here. I was lucky then to have this book because some of my friends find this hard to catch one.
Dill is the last angel of his line. Being the last archon tails a heavy consequence. As the age of sixteen, he still doesn’t know how to fly, much less how to fight. So when the time comes he has to become a temple angel, he meets Rachel Hael—a Spine— assassin.
Carnaval knows how murderer she is as much as the people of Deepgate know. Upon her eagerness to cure herself from killing innocent people during Scar Night, she discovers that killings around the town haven’t just been through her, others are killed to complete a wine she deeply needed to cure the curse she has.
Some of the people I have discussed with this book said they weren’t able to make through all the way with this. As for my part, yes, I have almost given up this book. The first part of the book is metaphor-coated that tends people to become confused and disoriented. The formula also leads the book to boringness that makes the people depreciate it instead. As for the boringness, I did find this book dragging during the first part, at all. Well, since it is Campbell’s debut novel I could say that this book is quite good for a new but not good enough to boil the interest of a reader. Rephrase the first part, and then I could have given my five stars.
However, contrast to the first part, the second and third make up for the lousiness of the previous one. The second part as if makes sense in just a click that got my interest to continue reading the book till the end. This book has even evoked my emotion at the halfway through especially at what happened to Dill. The metaphor lessens that becomes understandable after all.
I was even shocked at how the twist developed at the latter of their journey. This book is pretty good for a steampunk lovers.
Dill is the last angel of his line. Being the last archon tails a heavy consequence. As the age of sixteen, he still doesn’t know how to fly, much less how to fight. So when the time comes he has to become a temple angel, he meets Rachel Hael—a Spine— assassin.
Carnaval knows how murderer she is as much as the people of Deepgate know. Upon her eagerness to cure herself from killing innocent people during Scar Night, she discovers that killings around the town haven’t just been through her, others are killed to complete a wine she deeply needed to cure the curse she has.
Some of the people I have discussed with this book said they weren’t able to make through all the way with this. As for my part, yes, I have almost given up this book. The first part of the book is metaphor-coated that tends people to become confused and disoriented. The formula also leads the book to boringness that makes the people depreciate it instead. As for the boringness, I did find this book dragging during the first part, at all. Well, since it is Campbell’s debut novel I could say that this book is quite good for a new but not good enough to boil the interest of a reader. Rephrase the first part, and then I could have given my five stars.
However, contrast to the first part, the second and third make up for the lousiness of the previous one. The second part as if makes sense in just a click that got my interest to continue reading the book till the end. This book has even evoked my emotion at the halfway through especially at what happened to Dill. The metaphor lessens that becomes understandable after all.
I was even shocked at how the twist developed at the latter of their journey. This book is pretty good for a steampunk lovers.
October 1, 2011
I'm a fantasy fan, but I've gone off the genre in general. Too much heavy, overblown writing masquerading as epic style, too much Sopranos-style soap opera, too little magic and strangeness.
Despite the steampunk tag (which means nothing to me - I refuse to accept that steampunk is a genre, it's just a bit of window dressing to help focus target markets) this is a pretty good fantasy debut. Lots of dark magic and some weird technology and a healthy dose of the macabre. A great city setting and a complex plot which weaves together vast, theological undercurrents and involving foreground stories of individuals tossed around by the larger currents at play.
The minuses: enjoyable as they are, the characters are all stock figures. The style is heavy, smells of frequent dips in the thesaurus and too many times I found myself following the story despite of rather than thanks to the narrative. However, the style does settle down a bit over the course of the novel, and when Campbell is caught up enough in his story to forget to make with the opaque adverbs and portmanteau sentences, he gets a good pace going. The hopping between different storylines gets annoying as the suspense in each thread builds, but that's a problem endemic to the form contemporary fantasy has shaped for itself.
As a fairly demanding fantasy reader, I found enough here to consider it a good piece of entertainment and to at least try the second volume in this trilogy.
Despite the steampunk tag (which means nothing to me - I refuse to accept that steampunk is a genre, it's just a bit of window dressing to help focus target markets) this is a pretty good fantasy debut. Lots of dark magic and some weird technology and a healthy dose of the macabre. A great city setting and a complex plot which weaves together vast, theological undercurrents and involving foreground stories of individuals tossed around by the larger currents at play.
The minuses: enjoyable as they are, the characters are all stock figures. The style is heavy, smells of frequent dips in the thesaurus and too many times I found myself following the story despite of rather than thanks to the narrative. However, the style does settle down a bit over the course of the novel, and when Campbell is caught up enough in his story to forget to make with the opaque adverbs and portmanteau sentences, he gets a good pace going. The hopping between different storylines gets annoying as the suspense in each thread builds, but that's a problem endemic to the form contemporary fantasy has shaped for itself.
As a fairly demanding fantasy reader, I found enough here to consider it a good piece of entertainment and to at least try the second volume in this trilogy.
May 3, 2011
While this book isn't "wonderful" it has a unique flavor. I would not (as some have) call this a "traditional" fantasy. It has bits of "post apocalypse", a touch of Science fiction, some overt fantasy, a little flavor of steam punk....I'd call it sort of it's own "thing".
I'm not enamored with this book, I don't plan to re-read it, but it is worth a read to try this world out. It's a world of dry dusty want and blood smeared violence...but that's not the whole of it. Building it's own mythos and even a sort of pantheon it tells a gritty story in a world where survival seems to be at a premium.
Not one I like a lot but one I wanted to see to it's end. See what you think.
I'm not enamored with this book, I don't plan to re-read it, but it is worth a read to try this world out. It's a world of dry dusty want and blood smeared violence...but that's not the whole of it. Building it's own mythos and even a sort of pantheon it tells a gritty story in a world where survival seems to be at a premium.
Not one I like a lot but one I wanted to see to it's end. See what you think.
May 2, 2009
I was first draw to Scar Night because of its cover (I know, what a sin). But how could I resist a dark angel rising in front of a moon, AND Publisher's Weekly's claim that Campbell writes like Neil Gaiman. "That's a lot to live up to," I thought.
Campbell doesn't write like Neil Gaiman. He has none of Gaiman's humor or light-heartedness. Instead, his writing is thickly dark, with his own brand of situational humor to help lighten the mood.
Scar Night was difficult for me to get into at first, because it relies so heavily on description, and I've never been that good at imagining the words on a page. However, Campbell does a good job of repeating images until the scope of what you're "seeing" really sinks in.
As I read deeper, I was fairly certain I'd love the book because it had set up a massive belief system, which I just KNEW Campbell would show to be a lie. But eventually I realized that the existence or non-existence of Ulcis, the Chain God, is completely beside the point. Instead, with extreme finesse, Campbell weaves his characters' individual set of beliefs, setting them in motion in a political atmosphere so that very different ways of looking at the world bounce off of each other and off of the world itself. Reading this book is like watching an experiment being played out -- if these characters are placed in this world, what kinds of crazy interpretations will they come up with, what illogical actions will they take.
Despite all of this, the book is missing some narrative tug. Towards the end, I was tearing through the pages, but most of the way through the book, I was reading leisurely, enjoying the vistas. Hence the four stars. But while it may not be "gripping," Scar Night is still a great read for those who like fantasy and don't mind if it gets very dark.
Campbell doesn't write like Neil Gaiman. He has none of Gaiman's humor or light-heartedness. Instead, his writing is thickly dark, with his own brand of situational humor to help lighten the mood.
Scar Night was difficult for me to get into at first, because it relies so heavily on description, and I've never been that good at imagining the words on a page. However, Campbell does a good job of repeating images until the scope of what you're "seeing" really sinks in.
As I read deeper, I was fairly certain I'd love the book because it had set up a massive belief system, which I just KNEW Campbell would show to be a lie. But eventually I realized that the existence or non-existence of Ulcis, the Chain God, is completely beside the point. Instead, with extreme finesse, Campbell weaves his characters' individual set of beliefs, setting them in motion in a political atmosphere so that very different ways of looking at the world bounce off of each other and off of the world itself. Reading this book is like watching an experiment being played out -- if these characters are placed in this world, what kinds of crazy interpretations will they come up with, what illogical actions will they take.
Despite all of this, the book is missing some narrative tug. Towards the end, I was tearing through the pages, but most of the way through the book, I was reading leisurely, enjoying the vistas. Hence the four stars. But while it may not be "gripping," Scar Night is still a great read for those who like fantasy and don't mind if it gets very dark.
January 5, 2012
I was a little apprehensive about reading Scar Night but I thought that it sounded pretty good. When I started reading it I felt that it was a little slow but quite interesting. As the story progressed however, I got really sucked into the story and it had a sort of exponential curve of interest.
I absolutely loved Scar Night. It’s really original and while it has quite a lot going on, it’s really easy to follow and I didn’t get lost trying to follow one individuals story as they all managed to be unique and easy to distinguish.
I liked Dill, Rachel and Carnival. I thought it was awesome that Rachel was a kick-ass female, she was strong and independent and I always enjoy reading about female characters like that. My favourite character would have to be Carnival. At first, she comes off as really scary and the bad guy but then you actually get to know more about her and I started really feeling like she was a good character, just misunderstood.
I think the overall plot of the book was really good and I found it to be highly intriguing. It’s so different to most books I read and it was just fantastic. I felt that the ending was really good too. It finished the story but also left a little opening for the next book in the series. I like series’ that tie up their main stories and allow you the option to read it as a standalone.
I feel like I could talk about how I really enjoyed this book for a really long time but all I have to say really is that Scar Night is an amazing fantasy novel and I cannot wait to get my hands on the next book in the series.
I absolutely loved Scar Night. It’s really original and while it has quite a lot going on, it’s really easy to follow and I didn’t get lost trying to follow one individuals story as they all managed to be unique and easy to distinguish.
I liked Dill, Rachel and Carnival. I thought it was awesome that Rachel was a kick-ass female, she was strong and independent and I always enjoy reading about female characters like that. My favourite character would have to be Carnival. At first, she comes off as really scary and the bad guy but then you actually get to know more about her and I started really feeling like she was a good character, just misunderstood.
I think the overall plot of the book was really good and I found it to be highly intriguing. It’s so different to most books I read and it was just fantastic. I felt that the ending was really good too. It finished the story but also left a little opening for the next book in the series. I like series’ that tie up their main stories and allow you the option to read it as a standalone.
I feel like I could talk about how I really enjoyed this book for a really long time but all I have to say really is that Scar Night is an amazing fantasy novel and I cannot wait to get my hands on the next book in the series.
April 18, 2021
An awesome plot, interesting characters, but muddled descriptions make this book a mixed bag. To be honest, I still have a hard time picturing the settings of this book. It tells of a city of chains built over an abyss but doesn’t give a good enough description for me to picture it. I’ve decided it’s a kind of steampunk-ish Victorian style place precariously perched on a web of chains of various thicknesses and widths, but I still don’t know why that would be a thing. Among a few other confusingly underdescribed oddities is a giant machine called the tooth. I had such a hard time picturing it, I had to substitute the Star Wars Jawa sand crawler (with a giant shredder on the front). That said, it was an intriguing story involving angels and demons and gods and airships, so I am looking forward to the next novel in the series.
August 31, 2010
lan Campbell is a designer and programmer for Grand Theft Auto, not exactly the type of person you would expect to write a Dark Fantasy/Steampunk novel like this.
But man, this guy is multi-talented.
Scar Night takes place in a wonderfully dark world, where blood is the currency of both heaven, and hell. Long ago, God closed the gates of hell, in a fit of anger at the evilness of mankind. Her sons rose up with an army of angels, but lost, and were cast down to earth and imprisoned. On such son was Ulcis, god of chains, bound in a deep abyss. Humans have built the city of Deepgate, above their god's prison, suspended above the abyss by chains. Ulcis collects the souls of the faithful, lest they be consumed by the Maze of Hell, and once he has enough, plans on ascending once again to wage war upon his mother. Deep Gate, once no more than a shrine and source of pilgrimages, is now a military might thanks to their Airships and Poisons.
Thousands of years later, the city sags in it's tired chains, decadent and corrupt. Dill, last of the Angels descended from Ulcis' herald, is about to reach the age of manhood. He is kept locked in a tower by priests, where he can do no harm, and he is forbidden from flying.
There is one other angel in Deepgate, Carnival. Thousands of years old and entirely mad, Carnival hunts the city of Deepgate one night a month, Scar Night, when the moon is no more than a thin scar in the night sky. She kills, then consumes the blood of her victims. And the Spine(the tempered assassins of the Church) have hunted her for a millennia.
This book is lushly dark and a terrific read. Campbell's imaginative world is full of devious characters that you cannot help but love to hate(or hate to love), like the charismatic yet creepy Master Poisoner Devon, the determined Mr Nettle, the foppish priest Fogwill Crumb, the ancient Presbyter Sypes and even the earnest yet young Dill.
I highly recommend this book, if you enjoy horror or dark fantasy or steampunk. The sequel, Iron Angel, was not nearly so enjoyable for me. Iron Angel took place in Hell, which was incredibly detailed and I loved Campbell's twists, but it simply did not hold nearly as much interest to me as Scar Night did. Most of the characters in Iron Angel were gods, the brothers of Ulcis, or powerful beings in the Maze of Hell, or even men trained to fight deamons. They were all to powerful, in my opinion. Part of what made Scar Night so good, were the nobody characters, Dill and Nettle and Sypes even Devon, who turned out to be a right bastard(but at least you understood his motivations, and even cant help rooting for him).
Five of Five stars, four stars for sequel.
But man, this guy is multi-talented.
Scar Night takes place in a wonderfully dark world, where blood is the currency of both heaven, and hell. Long ago, God closed the gates of hell, in a fit of anger at the evilness of mankind. Her sons rose up with an army of angels, but lost, and were cast down to earth and imprisoned. On such son was Ulcis, god of chains, bound in a deep abyss. Humans have built the city of Deepgate, above their god's prison, suspended above the abyss by chains. Ulcis collects the souls of the faithful, lest they be consumed by the Maze of Hell, and once he has enough, plans on ascending once again to wage war upon his mother. Deep Gate, once no more than a shrine and source of pilgrimages, is now a military might thanks to their Airships and Poisons.
Thousands of years later, the city sags in it's tired chains, decadent and corrupt. Dill, last of the Angels descended from Ulcis' herald, is about to reach the age of manhood. He is kept locked in a tower by priests, where he can do no harm, and he is forbidden from flying.
There is one other angel in Deepgate, Carnival. Thousands of years old and entirely mad, Carnival hunts the city of Deepgate one night a month, Scar Night, when the moon is no more than a thin scar in the night sky. She kills, then consumes the blood of her victims. And the Spine(the tempered assassins of the Church) have hunted her for a millennia.
This book is lushly dark and a terrific read. Campbell's imaginative world is full of devious characters that you cannot help but love to hate(or hate to love), like the charismatic yet creepy Master Poisoner Devon, the determined Mr Nettle, the foppish priest Fogwill Crumb, the ancient Presbyter Sypes and even the earnest yet young Dill.
I highly recommend this book, if you enjoy horror or dark fantasy or steampunk. The sequel, Iron Angel, was not nearly so enjoyable for me. Iron Angel took place in Hell, which was incredibly detailed and I loved Campbell's twists, but it simply did not hold nearly as much interest to me as Scar Night did. Most of the characters in Iron Angel were gods, the brothers of Ulcis, or powerful beings in the Maze of Hell, or even men trained to fight deamons. They were all to powerful, in my opinion. Part of what made Scar Night so good, were the nobody characters, Dill and Nettle and Sypes even Devon, who turned out to be a right bastard(but at least you understood his motivations, and even cant help rooting for him).
Five of Five stars, four stars for sequel.
August 23, 2020
Un buon libro fantasy dalla trama originale e ricca di colpi di scena non scontati. L'ambientazione, diversa dai canoni del genere, contribuisce a rendere piacevole la lettura: si tratta di una città sospesa sopra un misterioso abisso in cui si ritiene viva un dio. Le descrizioni efficaci e non pedanti permettono al lettore di immergersi nella città di Deepgate insieme ai personaggi del romanzo.
Il libro è il primo volume di una saga, ma ha una trama interna che si svolge dall'inizio alla fine ed è leggibile come se fosse autoconclusivo, dato che dà risposta a pressoché tutti gli interrogativi che fa destare.
I protagonisti, Dill e Rachel, non mi hanno particolarmente colpito, ma lo stesso non può dirsi per alcuni personaggi non propriamente positivi, come Carnival, Devon e Mr Nettle, i quali invece sono tratteggiati molto bene e risultano efficaci e convincenti.
Il libro è il primo volume di una saga, ma ha una trama interna che si svolge dall'inizio alla fine ed è leggibile come se fosse autoconclusivo, dato che dà risposta a pressoché tutti gli interrogativi che fa destare.
I protagonisti, Dill e Rachel, non mi hanno particolarmente colpito, ma lo stesso non può dirsi per alcuni personaggi non propriamente positivi, come Carnival, Devon e Mr Nettle, i quali invece sono tratteggiati molto bene e risultano efficaci e convincenti.
September 1, 2015
Vďaka výbornému českému prekladu veľmi čitateľné, nie je to konvenčná love story ani heroická rozprávka pre deti, zaujímavé postavy, akčný dej. Veľmi sľubné.
August 9, 2019
When it was good, it was really good. Unfortunately, the vast majority was not good. It rambled on in places, used a lot of exposition for not much information.... It just didn't capture my attention, until like, the last three chapters, at which point I was already skimming most of the book in an effort to. Just. Finish. It.
I loved the world Campbell built here, tho. It's a really interesting concept, a city built on chains. The imagery is strong and powerful. Unfortunately, the overall story, the weakly fleshed out characters, and the slow plot movement made this an less than enjoyable read for me.
I loved the world Campbell built here, tho. It's a really interesting concept, a city built on chains. The imagery is strong and powerful. Unfortunately, the overall story, the weakly fleshed out characters, and the slow plot movement made this an less than enjoyable read for me.
dnf
February 9, 2021I started this in early january got to around 40% and my god it was boring. Dark, bleak and miserable in the worst possible way with a meandering plot that i couldnt care less about. DNF'ed.
November 12, 2025
the beginning and end were worthy of 4-stars, but the middle lacked the same richness.
June 19, 2011
I have to start by saying that, although the ideas presented in this book are intriguing, it feels like a video game. The characters are mostly one-dimensional, the action is uneven and the dialogue is stiff. That said, the idea is quite interesting and I hold hope that future books in the series will help Campbell's vision to come clear.
The city in chains, on chains, over the abyss, is a bold statement and the story feels very dark. I can imagine the many buildings - all crowding together and continually building up and up so the richer people can be up in the sun - the constant creaking of the chains, the rust and decay everywhere . . . it is a richly imagined world.
Dill, the last angel in a long line going back to the great angel and battle Archon Callis who first helped drive the barbarians away from the city 2000 years ago, chafes against his duties in the temple and longs to be a battle Archon, as his ancesters were. However, the priests of Ulcis, the god of chains and the Soul hoarder - especially the head priest, Presbyter Sypes - claim that the barbarians would never dare attack the city again and that they are kept under control with the constant barrage of poisons and toxins the people of Deepgate keep dumping on them using the city's airships (similar to dirigibles) as created by Devon (the head poisoner); plus they fear the loss of their last angel - so they keep Dill in isolation to "protect" him, keeping him innocent and naive.
Devon is slowly dying from the constant exposure to the toxins he is responsible for creating, and bitterly mourns the wife he lost to the same type of lingering death (from the sound of it, she may have been the former Head Poisoner). On the surface, he appears to be the same gentle, charming man he always was (only with most of his skin turned to blisters and oozing), while under the surface he seeths; and murders people by draining their blood (thus rendering them unfit to be blessed, as blood is the soul and once it is drained the soul is lost) in his quest to create Angelwine, which will not only heal him, but make him immortal (he believes). He was sent the journals of the Soft Men, containing the formula, anonymously, but he believes the Presbyter sent it. One of the people he murdered turns out to be the daughter of a man called - always and only - Mr. Nettle.
Mr. Nettle is a bear of a man whose sole purpose in life has narrowed to avenging his daughter. At first he thinks she was killed by Carnival - an ancient, insane angel who stalks the streets of Deepgate and at the dark of every moon, takes a single victim, who she drains of blood, thus relegating their souls to Uril and the Maze since they cannot be blessed by the church. Carnival is heavily scarred so the dark of the moon is now called Scar Night. However, after the next Scar Night - when Mr. Nettle hunts Carnival but is passed over by her - he discovers that the murderer is Devon. He then turns his attention to Devon. Scar Night also sees another unsuccessful attempt by the Spine (the church's assassins) - using untempered Adept and Dill's overseer, Rachel, as bait (almost getting her killed) - to destroy Carnival. Carnival's revenge when she is injured is often extreme. . .
I could go on for ages giving you JUST the basic plot without spoiling this book for you. It is INCREDIBLY dense and I had a difficult time plowing through it. However, I remind myself that I also had difficulty getting through both "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings" series the first time and I now love both, so I will hold on to this book and hope that future books in this series will assist in bringing the first book more into focus. If you are a fan of dark fantasy or horror, you would likely find this book of interest. You may want to wait at least until the 2nd book comes out if you don't have the patience to wait to discover just where Campbell is going with this, but then again, you must make up your own mind. I know I will be waiting for the next book with interest.
The city in chains, on chains, over the abyss, is a bold statement and the story feels very dark. I can imagine the many buildings - all crowding together and continually building up and up so the richer people can be up in the sun - the constant creaking of the chains, the rust and decay everywhere . . . it is a richly imagined world.
Dill, the last angel in a long line going back to the great angel and battle Archon Callis who first helped drive the barbarians away from the city 2000 years ago, chafes against his duties in the temple and longs to be a battle Archon, as his ancesters were. However, the priests of Ulcis, the god of chains and the Soul hoarder - especially the head priest, Presbyter Sypes - claim that the barbarians would never dare attack the city again and that they are kept under control with the constant barrage of poisons and toxins the people of Deepgate keep dumping on them using the city's airships (similar to dirigibles) as created by Devon (the head poisoner); plus they fear the loss of their last angel - so they keep Dill in isolation to "protect" him, keeping him innocent and naive.
Devon is slowly dying from the constant exposure to the toxins he is responsible for creating, and bitterly mourns the wife he lost to the same type of lingering death (from the sound of it, she may have been the former Head Poisoner). On the surface, he appears to be the same gentle, charming man he always was (only with most of his skin turned to blisters and oozing), while under the surface he seeths; and murders people by draining their blood (thus rendering them unfit to be blessed, as blood is the soul and once it is drained the soul is lost) in his quest to create Angelwine, which will not only heal him, but make him immortal (he believes). He was sent the journals of the Soft Men, containing the formula, anonymously, but he believes the Presbyter sent it. One of the people he murdered turns out to be the daughter of a man called - always and only - Mr. Nettle.
Mr. Nettle is a bear of a man whose sole purpose in life has narrowed to avenging his daughter. At first he thinks she was killed by Carnival - an ancient, insane angel who stalks the streets of Deepgate and at the dark of every moon, takes a single victim, who she drains of blood, thus relegating their souls to Uril and the Maze since they cannot be blessed by the church. Carnival is heavily scarred so the dark of the moon is now called Scar Night. However, after the next Scar Night - when Mr. Nettle hunts Carnival but is passed over by her - he discovers that the murderer is Devon. He then turns his attention to Devon. Scar Night also sees another unsuccessful attempt by the Spine (the church's assassins) - using untempered Adept and Dill's overseer, Rachel, as bait (almost getting her killed) - to destroy Carnival. Carnival's revenge when she is injured is often extreme. . .
I could go on for ages giving you JUST the basic plot without spoiling this book for you. It is INCREDIBLY dense and I had a difficult time plowing through it. However, I remind myself that I also had difficulty getting through both "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings" series the first time and I now love both, so I will hold on to this book and hope that future books in this series will assist in bringing the first book more into focus. If you are a fan of dark fantasy or horror, you would likely find this book of interest. You may want to wait at least until the 2nd book comes out if you don't have the patience to wait to discover just where Campbell is going with this, but then again, you must make up your own mind. I know I will be waiting for the next book with interest.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 10, 2018
I've read Scar Night... twice now, I think, and it makes much more sense the second time I've read it. I've read a lot of conflicting reviews regarding this book, and for good reason too. There is a lot, a truly massive amount of events, going on in this book, and it does make for some complicated reading. There's a massive amount of interconnected plotlines (what with Devon's vendetta against Deepgate connecting with the walking tragedy that's Carnival whose plot connects with the untempered Spine assassin that is Rachel and the last angel of his line, Dill) that aren't really resolved by the novel's end, but this a trilogy, and will hopefully begin resolved in Iron Angel (book two) and ended in God of Clocks (book 3). This book really hops all over the place, but I personally found that it kept me on my toes, even if I couldn't find all the characters in my head. I would recommend this book because it is a fantastically imagined universe and it catches the eye: a city held by chains over a pit that supposedly has no bottom? An angel in this industrial city, cooped away in a temple and basically imprisoned by overprotective, overzealous Presbyters? Another angel who kills once a month by draining the blood of mortals to sustain herself, and then who wounds herself afterwards in guilt? The Spine, the temple's military arm, made emotionless by chemistry and mindbreaking torture?
The mythology created for this series, I think, is one of its redeeming points. It's well-crafted and definitely invokes images of the Christian religion (I remember that it does so, but not specifically how) to an interested, invested reader, and becomes a key component of the overarching plot itself (it's very difficult to tell what the main plot is, because there are so many subplots that the main plot is kind of lost). It's basically about an oncoming war between Ayen, the goddess of light and life who barred the doors to heaven, and her seven cast out sons (a probable reference to the fall of Lucifer from heaven, and the number seven). Ulcis, one of Ayen's sons, is the god of chains and of Deepgate, and is worshiped by the temple, of which Dill is the last living archon, the last living descendant of Callis, Ulcis's Herald. Iril is both god and Maze, the god of Hell, who claims the unblessed blood. The Maze is made of the actual souls of those in the realm, and is said to be conscious and looking for ways to break in to our world. It's a fantastic example of a universe and a religion built from the ground up, and is probably the most fascinating and intriguing aspect of the entire series. It's rather like a family drama met steampunk met religiously overtoned apocalypse. It's very fascinating.
While we're on the subject of family drama, the most heartrending moment in the book, to me, was the revelation of Carnival's (guilty vampiric angel) origins. Her backstory was heartbreaking, and reveals much about both her character and Ulcis's (who is eventually shown to be her father). The emotional and physical torture, her attempted murder by him, and the all-but-stated gang rape give her a story that relates her to the reader, and demonstrates that she exists (or existed) outside of her image as an amoral killer.
To simplify: there is a lot of potential here, much of which appears to be wasted, but with this potential comes an exciting read. I will say that you have to approach this book with a focused, invested mind, because if you're not invested in it, it'll go over your head and you'll find yourself wondering why exactly you should care or how any of it relates to anything else or what exactly something is. There aren't a lot of answers, but there's also two more books. To me, it seems to boil down to a matter of taste. Still recommended.
The mythology created for this series, I think, is one of its redeeming points. It's well-crafted and definitely invokes images of the Christian religion (I remember that it does so, but not specifically how) to an interested, invested reader, and becomes a key component of the overarching plot itself (it's very difficult to tell what the main plot is, because there are so many subplots that the main plot is kind of lost). It's basically about an oncoming war between Ayen, the goddess of light and life who barred the doors to heaven, and her seven cast out sons (a probable reference to the fall of Lucifer from heaven, and the number seven). Ulcis, one of Ayen's sons, is the god of chains and of Deepgate, and is worshiped by the temple, of which Dill is the last living archon, the last living descendant of Callis, Ulcis's Herald. Iril is both god and Maze, the god of Hell, who claims the unblessed blood. The Maze is made of the actual souls of those in the realm, and is said to be conscious and looking for ways to break in to our world. It's a fantastic example of a universe and a religion built from the ground up, and is probably the most fascinating and intriguing aspect of the entire series. It's rather like a family drama met steampunk met religiously overtoned apocalypse. It's very fascinating.
While we're on the subject of family drama, the most heartrending moment in the book, to me, was the revelation of Carnival's (guilty vampiric angel) origins. Her backstory was heartbreaking, and reveals much about both her character and Ulcis's (who is eventually shown to be her father). The emotional and physical torture, her attempted murder by him, and the all-but-stated gang rape give her a story that relates her to the reader, and demonstrates that she exists (or existed) outside of her image as an amoral killer.
To simplify: there is a lot of potential here, much of which appears to be wasted, but with this potential comes an exciting read. I will say that you have to approach this book with a focused, invested mind, because if you're not invested in it, it'll go over your head and you'll find yourself wondering why exactly you should care or how any of it relates to anything else or what exactly something is. There aren't a lot of answers, but there's also two more books. To me, it seems to boil down to a matter of taste. Still recommended.
April 22, 2015
In a city suspended over the void by chains of steel, angels hunt in the night…
The decaying city of Deepgate hangs suspended over the abyss by a mass of chains. It is ruled by a theocracy supported by the mythology of a god who will eventually return with a host of dead souls to kill his brother and save the world. The reality is somewhat darker, and this gritty fantasy is as blood-soaked as it is compelling.
The story starts as a dark mystery, attempting to find a soul thief in the city who murders innocents and bleeds them dry. Every eye is aimed at a mad angel named Carnival who stalks the city streets once a month for a victim to sustain herself, but the murders just don’t fit her pattern.
I’ve read – or attempted to read – this book twice. Both times, I’ve ended up quitting halfway through. I really loved the worldbuilding – this world is easily one of the most unique I’ve ever experienced, but also deeply flawed. The one thing I couldn’t get past in this book was, “Why?” Why on earth did these guys suspend their city over a giant pit? Where do the chains connect to? Why not build on the edge and just kick the dead over? I just kept yearning for an explanation, any explanation at all, no matter what it was, and it was a need that was never fulfilled.
I loved some of the characters – Dill, the innocent, hapless angel who has been brought up by the church to be an armed defender of the church but who spends most of his time pretending to be his ancestor, an angel who saved the world. I loved the story (and the backstory) of Deepgate’s resident poisoner. I appreciated the conflicted character of the head of the church, who is protecting a secret that would throw the entire world into question. I really appreciated some of the elements of steampunk that were occasionally included – the zeppelins, the war with a distant enemy fought with poisons and gas, the decaying city with parts that occasionally fell into the deeps, the scroungers… And I really liked elements of the story itself – betrayal, a social mythology built on a lie, and a lie that’s about to bite back… But somehow the execution fell a little flat.
If you’re up for a truly unique, gritty and bloody read, this is definitely a good book. But in a lot of ways, I think this would work better as a tv series, a movie, or a video game, instead of a novel.
The decaying city of Deepgate hangs suspended over the abyss by a mass of chains. It is ruled by a theocracy supported by the mythology of a god who will eventually return with a host of dead souls to kill his brother and save the world. The reality is somewhat darker, and this gritty fantasy is as blood-soaked as it is compelling.
The story starts as a dark mystery, attempting to find a soul thief in the city who murders innocents and bleeds them dry. Every eye is aimed at a mad angel named Carnival who stalks the city streets once a month for a victim to sustain herself, but the murders just don’t fit her pattern.
I’ve read – or attempted to read – this book twice. Both times, I’ve ended up quitting halfway through. I really loved the worldbuilding – this world is easily one of the most unique I’ve ever experienced, but also deeply flawed. The one thing I couldn’t get past in this book was, “Why?” Why on earth did these guys suspend their city over a giant pit? Where do the chains connect to? Why not build on the edge and just kick the dead over? I just kept yearning for an explanation, any explanation at all, no matter what it was, and it was a need that was never fulfilled.
I loved some of the characters – Dill, the innocent, hapless angel who has been brought up by the church to be an armed defender of the church but who spends most of his time pretending to be his ancestor, an angel who saved the world. I loved the story (and the backstory) of Deepgate’s resident poisoner. I appreciated the conflicted character of the head of the church, who is protecting a secret that would throw the entire world into question. I really appreciated some of the elements of steampunk that were occasionally included – the zeppelins, the war with a distant enemy fought with poisons and gas, the decaying city with parts that occasionally fell into the deeps, the scroungers… And I really liked elements of the story itself – betrayal, a social mythology built on a lie, and a lie that’s about to bite back… But somehow the execution fell a little flat.
If you’re up for a truly unique, gritty and bloody read, this is definitely a good book. But in a lot of ways, I think this would work better as a tv series, a movie, or a video game, instead of a novel.
July 27, 2015
I've read this book twice. Unlike a couple of other reviewers, I found enough to interest me that I bought the rest of the series.
Scar Night has a lot of possibility. Campbell has built an intriguing, steampunk-ish, 'is it F or SF?' world around the city of Deepgate, suspended above a truly deep and dark abyss. He's put interesting people in the world, and the story itself was strong enough to leave me wanting answers to some of the mysteries.
Unfortunately, Campbell also skimps on some of the scene setting. Even after the second read-through, I'm still not entirely clear on how the city is suspended. Campbell spends quite a lot of time talking about chains, ropes, and rings, but it's only very late in the book that we get much in the way of helpful description. So I spent much of the first reading trying to figure out what was where, what all the chains connected to, and why.
The story is similarly opaque on a number of other fronts. The uncertainty only works in the story's favor on the F or SF angle; the rest of the time it's more frustrating than intriguing. (An exception is the deliberate mystery about the base of the abyss. The reveal is a bit of a letdown, but a few pages into the sequel, Iron Angel, that may improve.)
Deepgate exudes a very Gormenghastian feel, but it's not clear to what end. The writing is not as polished as one might hope. Still, I'm happy to say that it does improve on a second reading. There's quite a lot of detail - if not quite world-building, at least world-ornamenting.
I can recommend this for fans of Mervyn Peake and steampunk. For readers who have trouble working out the engineering, as I did, I recommend looking at the above spoiler, and letting it go at that.
Scar Night has a lot of possibility. Campbell has built an intriguing, steampunk-ish, 'is it F or SF?' world around the city of Deepgate, suspended above a truly deep and dark abyss. He's put interesting people in the world, and the story itself was strong enough to leave me wanting answers to some of the mysteries.
Unfortunately, Campbell also skimps on some of the scene setting. Even after the second read-through, I'm still not entirely clear on how the city is suspended. Campbell spends quite a lot of time talking about chains, ropes, and rings, but it's only very late in the book that we get much in the way of helpful description. So I spent much of the first reading trying to figure out what was where, what all the chains connected to, and why.
The story is similarly opaque on a number of other fronts. The uncertainty only works in the story's favor on the F or SF angle; the rest of the time it's more frustrating than intriguing. (An exception is the deliberate mystery about the base of the abyss. The reveal is a bit of a letdown, but a few pages into the sequel, Iron Angel, that may improve.)
Deepgate exudes a very Gormenghastian feel, but it's not clear to what end. The writing is not as polished as one might hope. Still, I'm happy to say that it does improve on a second reading. There's quite a lot of detail - if not quite world-building, at least world-ornamenting.
I can recommend this for fans of Mervyn Peake and steampunk. For readers who have trouble working out the engineering, as I did, I recommend looking at the above spoiler, and letting it go at that.
July 18, 2008
City of Deepgate, suspended above bottomless chasm by huge chains, provides shelter for pilgrims of all sort and is the capital of religious power - the Church of Ulcis. Existence is hard and painful, especially with devilish Scar Night looming over the city every month - and now even more so, with new, unexpected threat rivaling even the demons.
The setting is gritty and dark, and even though the world looks like traditional fantasy with its lone city surrounded by hordes of barbarians (other civilized cities are vaguely mentioned), there is something fresh in it. Fresh in literary sense, for having read the novel feels uncomfortable, as if the reader somehow got covered in filth. Many books claim to be dark fantasy, but Scar Night is one of the rare ones without exaggerations but with detectable aura of disturbing evil lurking in the shadows. The author did wonderful job in describing the atmosphere of the city; angels and devils, both introduced in unique way, add to it a lot. The setting would have been great, if only Campbell described more of the Deepgate's mechanics. The readers know how the city looks like and what's on the desert - but nearly nothing about the chains or the abyss. Only near the end of the novel I realized that the chasm is probably a hole in the earth, not a huge rift - and even that is not certain, as there are no descriptions of it.
The plot is pretty unpredictable; it presents elements of well-known quests only to turn into unexpected directions, but the twists are reasonable and justified. Unfortunately, there is little character development in the story. This flaw doesn't sting though: intriguing plot and original setting make Scar Night well worth reading. It is not for weak of the heart however; I myself prefer dark to heroic fantasy, but Campbell's writing has been a little too graphic and flesh-oriented for my taste.
The setting is gritty and dark, and even though the world looks like traditional fantasy with its lone city surrounded by hordes of barbarians (other civilized cities are vaguely mentioned), there is something fresh in it. Fresh in literary sense, for having read the novel feels uncomfortable, as if the reader somehow got covered in filth. Many books claim to be dark fantasy, but Scar Night is one of the rare ones without exaggerations but with detectable aura of disturbing evil lurking in the shadows. The author did wonderful job in describing the atmosphere of the city; angels and devils, both introduced in unique way, add to it a lot. The setting would have been great, if only Campbell described more of the Deepgate's mechanics. The readers know how the city looks like and what's on the desert - but nearly nothing about the chains or the abyss. Only near the end of the novel I realized that the chasm is probably a hole in the earth, not a huge rift - and even that is not certain, as there are no descriptions of it.
The plot is pretty unpredictable; it presents elements of well-known quests only to turn into unexpected directions, but the twists are reasonable and justified. Unfortunately, there is little character development in the story. This flaw doesn't sting though: intriguing plot and original setting make Scar Night well worth reading. It is not for weak of the heart however; I myself prefer dark to heroic fantasy, but Campbell's writing has been a little too graphic and flesh-oriented for my taste.
February 28, 2012
This one kinda blew my mind.
It's a mash up of Neil Gaiman's American Gods, Neverwhere and Wayne Barlow's God's Demon. If that's not sweet enough for you, it's set in a city hanging by chains over an abyss.
Yep.
You know I love cool places. Deepgate is one of the coolest places. Ever.
Industrial city, flying ships, alchemy, angels. It's at least Steampunk-ish.
We're used to gods existing and operating outside the universe. These gods (ok, most of them) are inside the universe, operating within the physical laws, working on their various agendas, wars, etc. Think greek gods.
The angels are the warriors/messengers of the gods, but since there are multiple gods with various agendas, angels don't have to be "good". Those of you looking for beautiful, holy, guardian angels, or some kind of City of Angels love story - this is not your book.
I'm currently reading the second book, and when I'm not reading it, I'm thinking about it. There are mysteries to be solved. The mythologies the people use to operate their religion are not right. There is something off. Things considered bad or good, are not necessarily so. Maybe they've gotten twisted over 3 thousand years. Maybe they were set up wrong in the first place for a reason. The very powerful church with it's own highly trained assasins, may or may not be in the know. I can't say more without getting into spoiler territory. Besides, all has not been revealed (not even close) by the end. But I loved this book, and I am digging book two.
Characters - Very Dickens
Magic - Divine powers and a load of alchemy, but no magic
Action - plenty of fighting and bloody violence. Big battle with airships and incendiaries at the end (Yippee!!!)
Cool places - check and double check
Creatures - gods, demons and angels - oh, and some undead ghouls
It's a mash up of Neil Gaiman's American Gods, Neverwhere and Wayne Barlow's God's Demon. If that's not sweet enough for you, it's set in a city hanging by chains over an abyss.
Yep.
You know I love cool places. Deepgate is one of the coolest places. Ever.
Industrial city, flying ships, alchemy, angels. It's at least Steampunk-ish.
We're used to gods existing and operating outside the universe. These gods (ok, most of them) are inside the universe, operating within the physical laws, working on their various agendas, wars, etc. Think greek gods.
The angels are the warriors/messengers of the gods, but since there are multiple gods with various agendas, angels don't have to be "good". Those of you looking for beautiful, holy, guardian angels, or some kind of City of Angels love story - this is not your book.
I'm currently reading the second book, and when I'm not reading it, I'm thinking about it. There are mysteries to be solved. The mythologies the people use to operate their religion are not right. There is something off. Things considered bad or good, are not necessarily so. Maybe they've gotten twisted over 3 thousand years. Maybe they were set up wrong in the first place for a reason. The very powerful church with it's own highly trained assasins, may or may not be in the know. I can't say more without getting into spoiler territory. Besides, all has not been revealed (not even close) by the end. But I loved this book, and I am digging book two.
Characters - Very Dickens
Magic - Divine powers and a load of alchemy, but no magic
Action - plenty of fighting and bloody violence. Big battle with airships and incendiaries at the end (Yippee!!!)
Cool places - check and double check
Creatures - gods, demons and angels - oh, and some undead ghouls
May 20, 2009
I thought this was a pretty great book. Right from the start it hooks you and does a good job of not letting go. We're introduced to some pretty entertaining characters that do a great job of breaking away from the usual stereotypes without feeling completely unfamiliar.
Dill is an angel just coming of age, the last in a long line of temple defenders or Archons. He's portrayed as hesitant and conflicted, without degenerating into the whiny crybaby syndrome that seems to plague most "conflicted" characters in other books (read: Noble Dead series). He's still a teenager as far as angels go and it's easy to buy into his hesitancy and lack of ass kickery.
Rachel is an easy character to like, as are some of the others you meet. This book feels like it would be best served as a movie, since the settings and action sequences would be amazing if brought to life digitally and faithful to the author's work. From the city suspended by chains over an abyss, to the Tooth and the deserts, all of the scenery seems too awesome to not make it to the big screen. Of course it's easy to picture Carnival played by Tilda Swinton and who wouldn't want to see the Poisoner played by Alan Rickman? :P
It's easy to recommend this book if you like action, new settings, decent character development and new takes on plot twist ideas.
Dill is an angel just coming of age, the last in a long line of temple defenders or Archons. He's portrayed as hesitant and conflicted, without degenerating into the whiny crybaby syndrome that seems to plague most "conflicted" characters in other books (read: Noble Dead series). He's still a teenager as far as angels go and it's easy to buy into his hesitancy and lack of ass kickery.
Rachel is an easy character to like, as are some of the others you meet. This book feels like it would be best served as a movie, since the settings and action sequences would be amazing if brought to life digitally and faithful to the author's work. From the city suspended by chains over an abyss, to the Tooth and the deserts, all of the scenery seems too awesome to not make it to the big screen. Of course it's easy to picture Carnival played by Tilda Swinton and who wouldn't want to see the Poisoner played by Alan Rickman? :P
It's easy to recommend this book if you like action, new settings, decent character development and new takes on plot twist ideas.
February 20, 2009
Story:
The city of deepgate hangs suspended over a deep chasm by 99 chains . Legend says that at the bottom of this chasm lies the sleeping god ulcis, gathering a army of souls to take back the heaven that he and his followers were cast out of. Though not is all that it seems with this sleeping god. Three fates will intersect during the dreaded scar night to reveal the true nature and plans of the sleeping god ulcis.
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This is a great start to a new fantasy series. The characters are interesting and made me want to keep reading to find out what happened to them next. While the story is a bit been there read that already the author does keep it interesting with a few twists and turns. The one complaint I do have (its not a big one) is that some of the background of the characters does seem a little thin hear and there and everything that’s going on can seem like your reading a 2 hr fantasy movie, it all happens so fast. It’s not a bad thing as it keeps the story moving at a good clip. I hope that the later books in the series will flesh things out a bit more. Would recommend this to any one who likes fast paced fantasy with a bit of magic/steam tech thrown in.
m.a.c
The city of deepgate hangs suspended over a deep chasm by 99 chains . Legend says that at the bottom of this chasm lies the sleeping god ulcis, gathering a army of souls to take back the heaven that he and his followers were cast out of. Though not is all that it seems with this sleeping god. Three fates will intersect during the dreaded scar night to reveal the true nature and plans of the sleeping god ulcis.
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This is a great start to a new fantasy series. The characters are interesting and made me want to keep reading to find out what happened to them next. While the story is a bit been there read that already the author does keep it interesting with a few twists and turns. The one complaint I do have (its not a big one) is that some of the background of the characters does seem a little thin hear and there and everything that’s going on can seem like your reading a 2 hr fantasy movie, it all happens so fast. It’s not a bad thing as it keeps the story moving at a good clip. I hope that the later books in the series will flesh things out a bit more. Would recommend this to any one who likes fast paced fantasy with a bit of magic/steam tech thrown in.
m.a.c
June 19, 2009
Two immediate comparison come to mind when talking of this book: the setting is a blend of Dickensian and Gormenghast. The latter's influence can also be seen in the characters, most obviously the naming of them, although the eccentricity many act with do seem to be of the Gormenghast mould.
The book, on the whole, is uneven though. The plot feels a bit messy, and could use more focus. Good, albeit with a bit of an unpolished feel, writing overall-very nice imagery especially. The fast pace made it a flowing and engaging read but was also responsible for the underdevelopment many of the characters suffered from. Whilst all of the characters start off interesting a few either don't develop or develop backwards-this, I found, was probably the biggest downfall of the book-only two character by the end really had any sort of dynamic feel to them. This was caused more by the execution, it's likely, than the story.
Overall there is huge potential here-I love the ambition of it,the set pieces and the ideas. Stylistically it's nice, but a lot of it comes off nowhere as well as you feel it could have. Then again, this is the author's debut so if he can improve and build on what there is.
Bottom line: could have been fantastic, turned out to be good.
The book, on the whole, is uneven though. The plot feels a bit messy, and could use more focus. Good, albeit with a bit of an unpolished feel, writing overall-very nice imagery especially. The fast pace made it a flowing and engaging read but was also responsible for the underdevelopment many of the characters suffered from. Whilst all of the characters start off interesting a few either don't develop or develop backwards-this, I found, was probably the biggest downfall of the book-only two character by the end really had any sort of dynamic feel to them. This was caused more by the execution, it's likely, than the story.
Overall there is huge potential here-I love the ambition of it,the set pieces and the ideas. Stylistically it's nice, but a lot of it comes off nowhere as well as you feel it could have. Then again, this is the author's debut so if he can improve and build on what there is.
Bottom line: could have been fantastic, turned out to be good.
February 14, 2011
Okay. I'm not saying this to insult video game designers and developers. But this is not at all the sort of novel that you'd expect someone who worked on Grand Theft Auto to write. It's varyingly dark and whimsical, and doesn't take itself too seriously. I had a serious case of "Whoa, this is someone's first novel?" If you like the fantasy genre at all, you should give this a read. Caveat: one theme of this book is how people's ideas about religion can be ugly, and how they can do ugly things in the service of those ideas. (I read this and The Cheese and the Worms at about the same time, and the books had a weird synergy that way.) If your religious beliefs/faith are such that that might upset you, you might not enjoy this book. Also, here there be steampunk, but it doesn't overwhelm the story.
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Note: I later re-read this and felt like it wasn't as awesome and clever as I first thought, particularly in its attempt to handle religion.
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Note: I later re-read this and felt like it wasn't as awesome and clever as I first thought, particularly in its attempt to handle religion.
July 26, 2008
I can't say I'm disappointed with this book, I expected a lot and it delivered in a number of ways. It was dark, it had some very cool ideas, lots of very cinematic (read: Hollywood) action. But for the first 150 pages or so I wasn't very sure where it was going or who the "main" characters were. It seemed more like a guided tour of this fantastic city.
The whole city on a net of chains thing was interesting but I was having a real hard time picturing it. Was it like an island set on a net? I never understood if there was any actual ground and how it all fit together.
The biggest problem with the book overall is that none of the characters really drew me in. The innocent "Dill" seemed almost out of place in this dark setting and I was a little worried that if he turned out to be the "main" character the book would sink into the young adult reading category. But it didn't because none of the characters really dominated the book. My favorite was Sypes but he definitely a second tier character.
The whole city on a net of chains thing was interesting but I was having a real hard time picturing it. Was it like an island set on a net? I never understood if there was any actual ground and how it all fit together.
The biggest problem with the book overall is that none of the characters really drew me in. The innocent "Dill" seemed almost out of place in this dark setting and I was a little worried that if he turned out to be the "main" character the book would sink into the young adult reading category. But it didn't because none of the characters really dominated the book. My favorite was Sypes but he definitely a second tier character.
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