Halls of the Turnip King. Brenda Hickey (Writer & Artist) Pegamoose Press (20202)

 

A charming and engaging comedy fantasy. When the king of the elves decides that a diplomatic mission to the kingdom of the dwarves would be a good idea to forestall potential conflict, he sends his son, Prince Tatian to lead the delegation. Things go as badly as could be hoped for, happily they go wrong is unexpected and very funny was and the whole mess escalates beautifully and reaches a very satisfying conclusion.

Brenda Hickey takes some well-established fantasy ideas and uses them in a distinctive and very appealing way to create a fresh story and a deeply engaging cast. She neatly sidesteps being a attire or a parody, this is a straight forward and serious fantasy story that manages to be completely ridiculous without ever winking at the reader. The story moves at a great pace, the reveals are very well staged and lead to nicely unexpected results.

The cast are lively and energetic. The leading players are all developed characters who are trying to get what they want and working hard to get it. They make the superbly structured farce that unfolds a natural consequence of their colliding into each other. The supporting cast are just as lively, they engage the reader and provide a depth of context and action that is a pleasure to read.

The art is friendly ad engaging. The cast are clearly differentiated, and very expressive, facial features and body language are eloquent and bring the situations string to life. The cloths and the physical details of the locations for the action create a credible context for the action and anchor the story.

The colours are soft and bring out the details of the art with great effect. They give the story a depth that allows the action to shine.

Brenda Hickey cheerfully mixes a range of elements into the story, coffee and video games into a traditional fantasy setting without disruption. She confidently includes them, and the reader can accept them without be thrown out of the story.

The story is delivered with wonderful confidence, it has a happy charm and sharp humour that is a deep pleasure to read.