The Griffin or the Agate

    Uhm. Yeah. When is a book not a book? When it's a novella stretched to the breaking point trying to pass itself off as a full-length novel, evidently. Dzur, the latest Vlad Taltos entry by Steven Brust, carries just such an air about it. The things that made the series somewhat interesting in the beginning - Vlad's relationship with his familiar Loiosh, his devotion to klava, a coffee-like drink, the Henry Jamesian attention to detail - are now staring to wear very, very thin. The Vlad-Loiosh interactions aren't cute anymore, and readers have pretty much gotten down the fact that Taltos does indeed love his klava, yessiree he does! Burdened with a plot that doesn't have very far to go, Dzur is in trouble early.
    It's hard not to have the feeling that this book was contractually obligated and more or less gutted out by a disinterested author going through the motions. The first chapter describes a meal Vlad has at his favorite restaurant with a young Dzur. Subsequent chapters open by revisiting this dining experience and expounding on the food preparation and the conversation. This is, for the most part, nothing more than padding and seems unnecessary, until you realize that if it wasn't there Dzur wouldn't be much more than a long short story. Vlad is in trouble again back in his hometown of Adrilankha and trying to help his ex-wife, a rather unsympathetic character from many books back, and it's hard to stay interested as he slinks around undercover and has Loiosh call him 'Boss.' The climax never gets above being half-deflated from the start, and at only 285 pages of large pitch size and double spacing in an undersized book, Dzur doesn't come close to delivering what it should. Perhaps Vlad's saga should have ended a few books back, but it's unlikely that Dzur will cause readers to clamor for more.   §

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