Review: IN THE PALACE OF SHADOW AND JOY by D.J. Butler

An organized crime hit mixed with flagrant insurance fraud in a fantasy/distant-future setting, with a pair of buddy-cop protagonists leading the way.

An organized crime hit mixed with flagrant insurance fraud in a fantasy/distant-future setting, with a pair of buddy-cop protagonists leading the way.

The story

Indrajit is a gambler with a drinking problem, or maybe the other way around. Either way he's run out of luck with both hobbies and finds himself in a tight spot. Then a shady benefactor appears and covers his tab at the local bar, then hires him to carry out a protection contract on a local celebrity singer. Turns out that Indrajit isn't the only one with a contract on said singer, and now a lot of highly motivated factions are about to car-crash into each other, while Indrajit tries to figure out what the hell is actually going on.

The characters

Indrajit is our protagonist, and he's paired up with a straight-shooter named Fix, who is his opposite in every way: literate, handsome, and competent. They're out to protect a singer named Ilsa Without Peer, who performs at the nearby opera house, the eponymous Palace of Shadow and Joy. They're our principal three characters. The antagonist list is...pretty long.

The world

Similar to Earth in the fundamental ways, but all of the humanoid species appear to be mutated or descended from animal species, such as fish or camels. The political power structures will feel familiar, if varied, and concepts like organized crime, insurance fraud, and waning artistic careers play a strong role in the story. It's a high fantasy world that feels familiar in its humanity.

The politics

No parallels to real-world politics. This book is more entrepreneurial than political, really focusing on two guys who are just trying to get reliable income so they can improve their lives, but they keep hitting speed bumps.

Content warning

None! Just fantasy action and some combat scenes, but no profanity or sensuality.

Who is it for?

Fans of high fantasy or epic fantasy who wonder what life is like for the blue-collar types in back alleys when monsters and magic are commonplace.

Why read it?

It's light entertainment in a genre that tends to stare at its own navel for 1000 pages. While there are a few Scooby-Doo-esque dialogue scenes where characters take stock of what happened and try to guess why, the progression of the story is smooth and quick enough to keep the reader engaged. Genre fiction used to be like this and it can be again with more titles in this vein.