Last year, I received the Victorian Age: Vampire hardcover for my birthday. My friends gave me the first part of the Victorian Age fiction trilogy with it, suitably called A Morbid Initiation. While reading through the main book, I got a bit apprehensive about the novel. After all, my previous experiences with Vampire novels weren't really satisfactory. The Black Dog offering Eternal Hearts (of which you can read my review here) left me with a bad taste in my mouth. It focussed on style over substance, and the 'erotic' elements weren't really, uhm, erotic. The next novel I read was Clan Novel: Toreador, — being the first of the original Clan Novels, that are now being reissued as four massive tomes. It was an intriguing read, but it didn't really inspire me to get the rest of the series. This is something that A Morbid Initiation did — after finishing it, I made a point of obtaining the other two instalments.
Good, wholesome Gothic-ness
The three novels are set in the Victorian Age, and are called A Morbid Initiation (ISBN 1-58846-828-3), The Madness of Priests (ISBN 1-58846-829-1) and The Wounded King (ISBN 1-58846-858-5). Of course, this Victorian Age is not the same as the actual one, but rather the World of Darkness version of it. If you're reading this review, you probably already have at least a passing familiarity with it: supernatural creatures roam the world, everything is a fair bit darker, and terrible things go bump in the night. White Wolf's description of it is "Gothic-Punk." This time, however, the Punk has all but disappeared, instead focussing on the Gothic.
This may seem trivial to you, even evident without reading the books. Why bother writing a series like this, set in the Victorian Age, without adding the proper atmosphere? Ah, yes — but Philippe Boulle, the author, does a superb job on it. The way the books are set up, the events, the backdrops and the language: everything drips with good, wholesome Gothic-ness.
Boulle evidently knows his subject matter and has probably done a fair amount of research to get the minutes correct. He writes here in a style that is very reminiscent of the actual Gothic literature. It's very flowery and describes both characters and backdrop in great detail. It takes some time to get used to, and some readers may be put off by it. Yet it's not as overwrought as, for instance, the introductory fiction in the Victorian Age: Vampire core book. Ghosts, vampires, deranged priests, top-hat gentlemen, cemeteries, ages-old legacies, monsters, secret cults — all stops are pulled out.
The story told is that of Regina Blake, a wilful miss and daughter of Colonel Lord Blake. The likeable if occasionally daft Regina is slowly but surely drawn into the nocturnal world of vampires. Boulle makes this transition quite believable, a feat considering the other task he has to pull off. Boulle has the double job of painting two parallel worlds, both alien to us: the Victorian Age of the British Empire, and the society of the Kindred. He succeeds at this most admirably. I especially like the books for its low threshold. Never does the narrative take a lecturing stance, but between the lines a reader gets a thorough primer on both of the worlds. This makes the series very appropriate for beginning Vampire players and GMs.
Meanwhile veterans can amuse themselves with the appearance of half a dozen signature characters and an intricately woven plot. En passant, it discusses some of Vampire's themes like loss of humanity, and the price of longevity and immortality, with poignant examples. The details here are very inspiring. For example, a certain Toreador suffers from her clan weakness: an uncontrollable tendency to fall into a trance that is triggered by a specific kind of beauty. Instead of making this an annoying thing that devalues the character, we are shown that this weakness is bound to the vampire's human life and can provide solace from her undead state.
I'm wondering if Boulle somehow overdid it. Of course, the Victorian Age is a grand period with many elements that can be showed. The Crystal Palace, the building of the Eiffel Tower, the splendour of Vienna, the depredations of Jack the Ripper, British colonialism — they're all very interesting. But I'm thinking that the author had better been a bit more subtle. Instead of throwing all this (and then some) at the readers, he could have chosen a few of the elements.
This applies to some of the sexual references as well. There are quite a few, as well as some detailed descriptions of violence and the results thereof. I know that these things were also elements in the fiction of the time, but it's hard to believe that it had this detail and frequency.
The plot is rather involved so you'd better pay attention. Almost all of A Morbid Initiation is introduction, and rightly so. The book slowly draws you in, familiarizing you with most of the major players and the exotic setting of the late 1880s of Britain. A firm foundation is laid upon which The Madness of Priests builds a grandiose haunted mansion. The pacing picks up, schemes are revealed and expanded, and we leave England for some time. This volume is clearly the summit of the series.
The Wounded King begins strong, but unfortunately it deteriorates from there. The pacing is less effective, the schemes are drawn out too long — the plot arc overextends itself. It still is a good book, mind you, it just doesn't compare favourably to the first two books. The Epilogue of the last book is also a bit awkward — the sudden shift in time (from 1888 to 1916) is jarring, however well it illustrates one of the novels' themes.
Presentation
The paperback novels are bound in glossy covers that carry the Victorian Age: Vampire graphic elements. Wrought iron gates frame stunning Christopher Shy illustrations, each in a different colouring scheme. They convey a brooding atmosphere from the get-go.
The type setting is generally good, and I spotted few typos, although I noticed more in the last book than in the two first. Also, The Wounded King is printed in a smaller font than the first two, making it less comfortable to read. One final gripe: A sudden increase in font size occurs in the final chapter of The Madness of Priests, which is annoying and lends a sloppy look to the book.
Conclusion
This fiction trilogy is well worth your time and money. It's well written and contains an interesting plot, and is worth your consideration for that alone. What's more, the books serve as excellent introductions to the Victorian Age and Vampire for both players and Storytellers. I got quite some inspiration from them.
However, the last book spoils a bit of the grandeur of the previous instalments by having a less satisfactory plot. Therefore, its Substance drops from 5 to 4. Style still rates a solid 5 — maybe not earth-shattering but still Very Good.
On a final note: For those of you who are interested in the books, but are still hesitating: you can get the first 71 pages of A Morbid Initiation here from White Wolf's website. (PDF, 394 KB)
