Caladbohlg

By Joseph Chaput

A review by INFAMOUS🦀

 

Caladbohlg was inspired by the legend of King Arthur and the sword Excalibur. The author is one of the most prolific authors on Substack under the account known as The Brothers Krynn, and if you do not know their body of work I suggest you go check it out. Really good stuff. Bros Krynn are truly dedicated to bringing back the essence of history and myth into literature without all the modernistic nonsensical approach we see today in storytelling. Since I had already reviewed their latest book, Crown of Blood, I was really excited when Chaput asked me to review this older work of his which he first published back in 2018. This book is a beast, at nearly 700 pages, but surprisingly enough, it feels like a quick read because of how it is written—no wasted words; no unnecessary chapters.

PLOT:

The story centers around Bradán, A 14-year-old orphan boy who has been raised by monks in an old monastery devoted to the fair-haired song-goddess Brigantia. When Bradán’s life and that of young widow Ríonal and her mother-in-law – Eibhlin – connect, they are plunged into an adventure like no other, at the end of which, ultimately, they all must fulfill each their own destiny. For Bradán, that destiny will be to become the next High King of Eriu, and defeat the evil Warlock-King who keeps oppressing the land. Only he who can extract sword Caladbohlg from the ancient throne can be crowned new king.

But the path to kingship is long and tumultuous, filled with losses and pain, but also with new unexpected friendships and learning curves.

PROSE:

Just like in Crown of Blood (paid link), the prose here is skillfully handled and it fits the overall atmosphere. Modern euphemisms utilized throughout the book are little to none, and characters feel authentic to the world they live in. That really shouldn’t surprise us since the author is an avid student of English/French history and mythology. It was refreshing to read dialogue that didn’t make characters sound like they belong to 21st century’s Orange County, CA.

BRADÁN, THE PROTAGONIST:

Young Bradán is truly the heartbeat of this book. He is likable because he feels like a young boy thrown into the hardship of life, and ultimately prevails through sheer grit and determination, and despite his flaws and limitations. Even after he wields the legendary sword, thus becoming High King, he doesn’t suddenly become an invincible warrior, but rather, he does what he can and surrounds himself with seasoned warriors who help him get things done. He never loses his boyish qualities and that was something of a pleasant surprise. It goes to show that writers CAN portray boys (or even women) in honorable and inspiring ways, without making them unrealistically skilled or strong for their age and/or size. They just have to be well-written.

RÍONAL: WHEN THINGS GO SIDEWAYS:

And here is where INFAMOUS REVIEWER raises his eyebrow and says: WHY?

The character of young widow Ríonal, when  first introduced into the story, had all the potential to become a reader’s favorite. All the elements were there: she is young (20-ish?), she is beautiful, but she is also virtuous and loyal. She is a devoted wife to her lifetime childhood sweetheart, Feannan, when tragedy strikes. She loses their first daughter, then Feannan himself goes MIA and is presumed dead after a year, while she also goes through a miscarriage of their second child. Beyond disruption, Ríonal has lost her will to live and she would have committed suicide if it was not for Bradán, who stops her from drowning herself at sea.

When everything fell apart for me was the moment the writer moved the narrative in a way wherein she ultimately ended up remarrying to this insufferable dude by the name of Fearghal. And when I call this character ‘insufferable’ I am referring to the fact that he comes off as shallow and not even a good match for Ríonal, who is a beautiful, strong, and virtuous girl who refused the advances of other men after her husband was presumed dead. There is NO chemistry whatsoever between her and Fearghal, NONE, but the author tries so hard to shove him down our throats as a good candidate for Ríonal by moving things around these two characters to create the perfect scenario for them to hook up. If this was a real thing, I guarantee you these two would be divorced within a year! No chemistry whatsoever!

Just think about this: Ríonal is loyal to her husband even after he is presumed dead, as we said. Her devotion and loyalty is what mainly defines her. Yet in the end, Fearghal tells his father (another king) that his kingdom will create an alliance with Bradán’s kingdom by marrying Ríonal. And Ríonal basically says “Sure, what he said.” It just felt so cringe, so unnatural, so out of character, that I thought maybe Ríonal was being possessed by evil spirits at the time. 

But It is what it is.

CONCLUSIONS:

Caladbohlg (paid link) is a well written legend with great scope. The author has laid a good foundation here for world-building that is very promising for fans of ‘Arthuriana’. I appreciate how the lineage of kings is so well mapped out as well as the history of this line of kings. In some of the  tales of the past recounted here and there throughout the book, there was one character that particularly caught my attention, a woman by the name of Feanna (?) who was presented in a story of courage and martyrdom. Personally, I want to see THAT story being turned into a book. In some ways, and from what little I read of her, she was kind of a Joan of Arc character of sorts. In my opinion, she deserves her own novel (or series of novels, even!)

I also want to point out that all characters could have used more physical descriptions, but that is more of a personal footnote than a criticism. The whole time, for example, I thought Ríonal was a brunette with curly hair but then the author told me she was blonde. If more physical traits were introduced and also brought up more often all throughout the book, these types of misconceptions wouldn’t happen.

And speaking of Ríonal, again great concept but poor execution when it came to uniting her and Fearghal in a way that felt forced and out of character (hope they divorced; she deserved better!)

Overall, this was a good read and being a book from 2018 it obviously doesn’t reflect accurately on the author’s current writing skills. But it sets the foundation of what can be a fantastic legendarium from which many amazing stories and heroes can spring out from, in the future.