Book Review: "The Muse" by Fred Warren

Overall Rating: 7.5 out of 10; Recommended

I was quite privileged to meet author Fred Warren a few weeks ago, when myself and a couple of fellow writers coalesced at the local Panera Bread to hang out and chat. It was at that meeting where I purchased a copy of his debut novel, entitled The Muse, a work which proved to be original and thought-provoking, while containing well-rounded characters, a solid story, and a couple of genuine surprises. In other words, The Muse has all you can ask for in a good fantasy story. It's a relatively short work, only around 50,000 words, so next time you find yourself on a long flight, camping for a weekend, or being dragged along on a road trip, it gives a great opportunity to step out of the world's monotony for a short season.

"What if inspiration could kill?" That is the question lying under the book's cover. Warren explores a subject most other writers overlook with surprising frequency. His work is, among other things, a fictional meditation on the stubbornness of writer's block, and the nature of human artistry and creativity. His protagonist, Stan Marino, is a fantasy writer who has formed a group with fellow scribes Jilly (who pens gothic vampire tales) and Davos (who has a penchant for hard science fiction). The group's chuckle-worthy name, The Seventh Circle of Hell, is entirely too fitting for its three members, since they all have written their stories into a corner and haven't the slightest idea of how to escape. But then along comes a mousy young woman, who sets herself up as the writers' "muse." She begins to give them ideas that shatter their writer's block, while working to connect them with some big-time publishing deals. Soon, her contributions to the group define the cliche "too good to be true", and Stan's wife begins to sense something amiss with their newest member. Before they realize what is truly at stake, the Seventh Circle stumble into a fight for their lives, where imagination is the only weapon they have.

Rarely have I seen a writer create a story about another writer, and where the writing process itself drives the narrative, the theme, and the conflict. Warren deserves some real credit for building that kind of story, even while he manages to keep things interesting.

Some readers may find the book's beginning a tad too quiet and slow. I don't mind if Warren takes his time setting up the characters and showing their regular lives and day-to-day struggles before plunging into the fantasy element, but it felt as if he were focusing on too few parts of Stan's life for too long. Stan is barely acknowledged as having a day job to support his family, and his young daughter doesn't get much time onstage until the last third of the novel. Still, in what there is, Warren does a great job of establishing the relationships between Stan and his wife (there is plenty of romance between them, but it never feels sappy or corny), and between Stan and Jilly and Davos (his description of how writers interact in a tightly knit group is quite accurate). The characters breathe; they feel like real people, something which is very hard to pull off in a debut novel. But most of the time, Warren does just fine in helping them seem alive. In fact, the only complaint I had about the character interactions would lie in the dialogue. Whenever the characters talk at length about dilemmas they face, or they elaborate on something, their words become rather dry and unnatural; they grasp the full context of a situation entirely too soon. It is in these moments where I lost the sense of immediacy, of being in the character's head. They lose their distinctive voices, and all take on the same voice, and end up commenting on what's happening to them, instead of actually existing in that moment.

Despite my gripes, I thoroughly enjoyed Warren's book. Any reader will be rewarded by the sense of humor, a villain who is confident but patient, and some truly cool highlights. At one point Stan and his friends must survive by cooperating with many other people who have been thrown into similar peril, and this scene can only be described as "nerdtastic," like your most awesome daydreams come to life.

He even makes the courageous decision to give The Muse a bittersweet ending, one which comes as an honest surprise. Warren throws the reader a major twist and continues to play fair with the rules he has set up beforehand. To be honest, I thought the semi-tragedy could stand to have a greater punch-in-the-gut feeling, and the characters' struggles to come to terms with it are mostly glossed over in the book's last chapters (understandable, since the main conflict has been solved by that point, and the story needs to wrap up). But the fact that Warren, as a first time novelist, handled it as well as he did speaks to his talent as a storyteller, and the potential his work carries.

So, again, I will heartily recommend Fred Warren's book (you can buy it on Amazon), and I already plan to watch his writing career with interest. More if you please, Mr. Warren.