Even a monster can have a heart. Two monstrous men make an exquisite pair in Jennifer Giesbrecht’s dark fantasy debut The Monster of Elendhaven, which came out last year from Tor.com. Though I devoured this bite-sized novella in a single day, I have a feeling its lyrical prose and intricately constructed world will linger with me for some time to come.
Johann is the monster of Elendhaven, raised on its grime-darkened streets where he learned to murder, steal, and revel in his own darkness. Herr Florian Lichenbloom is a sorcerer with a dark secret. Once the young son of wealthy aristocrats, Florian watched each member of his family succumb to a gruesome plague while industry barons squabbled over the family’s fortune and the townspeople blamed the family’s downfall on their sorcerous blood. Now Florian bides his time, carefully constructing the perfect plot to revenge himself on a cruel world. And Johann may be just the tool he needs. Positioning himself as Florian’s manservant/bodyguard, Johann throws himself whole-heartedly into his master’s diabolical schemes.
The Monster of Elendhaven partakes in the particularly Gothic tradition of positioning an irredeemable villain as the story’s protagonist. From the completely corrupted Victoria in Charlotte Dacre’s early Gothic novel Zofloya to Edgar Allan Poe’s murderous madman in “The Tell-Tale Heart,” sometimes the true horror in a story is not the blood and gore but rather watching how easily a villain justifies their unjustifiable actions. Johann and Florian in The Monster of Elendhaven are both unapologetically ruthless. Florian’s tragic backstory has him ready to burn down the whole world as an act of vengeance. Meanwhile, Johann’s nature has never been anything but casually amoral. Together, they commit some pretty heinous crimes. And yet, both are so charming that the reader cannot help but cheer them on as they carry out their evil deeds.
You can also read this story as a bit of an alternate version of Frankenstein. What would Mary Shelley’s story have been like if Victor Frankenstein was cruel and calculating rather than cowardly and sanctimonious? Without spoiling exactly how, Florian has essentially created the monster that is Johann. Knowing nothing of the world, Johann learned violence and cruelty from the other denizens of the city’s streets. And when this thuggish criminal unknowingly appears before his maker, Florian accepts him for what he is and immediately ropes Johann into his schemes. Florian certainly fits the mad scientist villain trope, although his science is tinged with magic. The compatibility of Johann and Florian does not bode well for the world of Elendhaven and beyond, but there’s something really gratifying in getting to see a monster find love and acceptance with his master.
Have you read the The Monster of Elendhaven? If not, you can find a copy at your favorite local retailer or order it online and support The Gothic Library in the process using this Bookshop.org affiliate link. If you have, let me know what you thought of it in the comments!