The Priest of Bones by Peter McLean

 The Priest of Bones by Peter McLean is a grim-dark low-fantasy opener to a series, that came out a few years back. Having read his first series, The Burned Man trilogy - which was excellent stuff - I had no qualms in jumping onto this bandwagon. And within minutes I was swept away by the grim fortunes of One Mr. Tomas Piety and his men, soldiers returning back from an ill-fated war to their home-town of Ellinburg, to an even more lopsided state of affairs with usurping foreigners, political machinations and poverty and diseases at large in his home-town. 

The setting is that of the town of Ellinburg, a down and out town with its motley collection of barhouses, whorehouses and gambling circles. A place gone to rot, with the so-called 'nobles' interested only in their own parties fueled by substance-abuse. The corrupt Governor with his men of law, are only interested in who is paying them higher taxes. Divided and ruled by different gang-lands, the most prominent are of course the Pious Boys ( Yes, Peaky Blinders !) and the Gutcutters, led by Tomas' rival Ma Aditi. 

Tomas Piety, the leading voice of the narrative, is a no-nonsense man, a practical man who wastes no time and resources in trying to win back his own businesses that had been taken over by foreign riff-raff in his absence. So Peter wastes no time in setting up the fast-paced action sequences that follow Tomas's attempts in putting together this rescue attempt, along with the tough hardy men that he brought back home from the war, all of them soldiers, ruthless killers to a fault. Tomas himself, anointed a priest, however has no time for any moral lessons except on the 8th day, when he hears the confessions of the 'damned'.  But he is a straight edge, one of the most reliable narrators you have seen/heard and his focus on "the right man for the right job" is something Tomas lives by. 

Surrounded by killers and the crazed, there's plenty of drama in his life. His own second and his confidante is Bloody Anne, a lieutenant from his war-days and the most loyal of the lot. A lady with a fearsome repute, scars and a penchant to drink most men under the table. And then there is Lochan, his own brother, half crazed by battle, whose answer to anything is the hand-axe and who's drunk more often than not. While there are a lot more of Tomas's deputies and lads who are prominent in the narrative, the two who stand out are Billy the Boy and the silent and dangerous Cutter. Billy is a twelve-year old who has been 'blessed' by Our Lady, their goddess and whose touch in magic is very strong. But this book being a 'low-fantasy', we don't dwell much on the cause or effect of magic. Except when used in force by Tomas in deviously cunning manners, to cull his own enemies. And then there is Cutter, a silent man whose capabilities with a knife are legendary and makes him a man to be reckoned with, even to Tomas. There are several others who waltz into Tomas' life even as he tries to take control of his businesses in this town - unwittingly pushed into a political conspiracy, Tomas becomes the 'pawn' and 'weapon' of the Queen, enlisted by one of the most dangerous 'men' in business - Ailsa, who takes on the role of a bar-maid and Tomas' 'fancy girl' in front of the others. Let's hope we see a lot more of her and the other Queen's men as the world expands, and the War for Rose Throne continues. 

Thematically, the Priest of Bones covers topics like PTSD, the futility of war, loyalty and even the class-divides in a society shaped by war, disease and poverty. However, Peter plays it safe without dwelling too much on each of these topics in turn. In Tomas, Peter portrays a straight-forward 'hero', a man without any compunction on using his 'soldiers' to his own selfish ends. Frankly, I found Tomas earnest and a bit boring. But it suits the grim tone of the subject, of the impending war and the after-effects of the same in a crumbling society. There is definitely a lot of dark stuff going on here, including the no-holds barred violence, the bloodshed and gore, torture etc but all of this goes with the territory we are tiptoeing into. My only grouch was the 'low-stakes' involved. I realize as a low-fantasy, magic is not central to the theme or that the entire play was centered around winning back the city of Ellinburg but in the end, it all seemed a bit underwhelming. 

Nevertheless, this is a great opener to a low-fantasy series, that fans of grim-dark action will devour - with the signature trademarks of violent gang-wars and political backstabbing, all led by a strong compelling voice. Will definitely be picking up the rest of the books in the series.