There exists a book that I saw mixed opinions about. Some called it “shit” or “disappointing”, others called it legendary and epic. So what to do? Only one way to find out: I read it. And I believe: both of the aforementioned types of reviews are not really doing the subject matter justice.

First class premise

The Goblin Emperor by one Katherine Addison (a nom de plume of one Sarah Monette) starts from a unique and captivating situation. An unloved and slightly embarrassing son of the Emperor of Elvenkind, incidentally the offspring of the short-lived marriage of the Elven Emperor with a Goblin Princess, lives a dreary life in a faraway castle out in the bland nowhere-land and expects to stay there until he dies. But then, all of a sudden, the line of ascension gets, well, in trouble, and our forgotten half-elf is called upon to sit the throne, because he jumped from number ump-teen to number 1 in one fell swoop.

Why is this unique and captivating?

Because the young goblin has little clue about the intricacies of court life. He gets thrown into palace etiquette, high nobility fashion, stilted parlance and politics domestic and foreign like so much fresh meat to the lions. It is by sheer luck that his protector, relegated to being forgotten just like the half-goblin, has taken the pains to school his ward in the basics to while away the time.

In other words, we, the reader, get thrown in with him (classic fish-out-of-water setup) and experience with our hero how any normal impulse can lead to shocked gasps and hostile glances by all the others who know so much better.

The author manages to capture this feeling of loneliness in company, being the odd one out at center stage, very well. The main character cherishes the moments when he can have alone time, but he also yearns for company, and it is easy to feel it with him.

Spotty world

We do not really get a good grasp of that empire, which is a bit sad for a story about an emperor But it is also very fitting and supports the premise, because the emperor has no freedom to experience the empire. Whatever comes before the throne gets there through the voice of someone. The emperor is shielded from the real world, so it is sad, but authentic that we do not really know any clear facts about the empire.

Few stories would have the discipline to stay boxed in on that prison of a throne like that: Even walking down two flights of stairs is generally an extraordinary expedition that throws court procedures into disarray.

Excellent characterisation

The writer, Sarah Monette / Katherine Addison has a good hand for bringing different characters to life. A wide range of rather contrasting persons are portrayed in a very believable way, and the web of relationships that is a) uncovered and b) develops after Maia shows up in the capital feel real. There are people with whom the main character has little interaction, and they remain slightly opaque, and there are other people that are basically with him day and night, and we get to know them intimately – all very natural.

There are some other parts that are visited, or touched on, albeit very fast.
I am not sure how exactly to evaluate these added topics. They have an air of material that was added later. I will trust a number of possible future guest writers with the correct street cred to weigh that question authoritatively.

Gaps

The story covers quite a long time in a relatively short volume, and it does that by skipping a month or three here and there.
That does make sense, and is generally well handled by explaining a regular trot settling in that makes the months fly by without any highlights that stand out.

But it makes it more akin to a collection of mostly regular, but slightly disjointed shorts than a classic novel.

And finally, language

The author goes to the trouble of developing a system of nomenclature and forms of address, which is, for one, necessary, for otherwise the book would fall short, as the topic demands court etiquette and high culture, but not a human one. And yet, for another, it feels slightly unsatisfying to me. I cannot quite lay my finger on it. Maybe a linguist can deliver a more solid judgement.

Some negatives

While the books starts out very well and with a captivating premise, it allows in several tropes over time that begin to diminish the overall result. I assume that is where the more negative reactions are triggered.

First of all, the Half-Goblin, Half-Elf person on the throne is an all too simple setup to be a bit heavy-handed about race relations. The author generally avoids to be too on-the-nose about it, but the vibe is there and casts a bit of a shadow, as there are some early characterizations of elfs and goblins that try to bend them towards human cultures. Again, important to state that at least in this first book the author is good enough not to run into it like a bulldozer.

Then there is some box-ticking going on, introducing critique of religion, gender-issues and sexual preferences, which are all introduced in a way to signal very clearly that the author is on the “right side of history”. Due to the short time these elements have to breathe they appear sort of arbitrary, like something that had to be added in order to qualify for something, maybe for some award? Again, it is not pushed with force, it is simply set up for later development.

Now why is that negative?

Because the plot slowly devolves over the course of the book. The Goblin Emperor was started with a premise in mind, but it has no real destination. The general story is basically told before we are at the end and there is no particular way it is going. The book could be over after certain crises have been handled, plots resolved, maybe with a foreshadowing about unresolved issues that could become more pressing in the foreseeable future.

But that does not happen. Instead, the story is kept going in order to bring some more things into it, the aforementioned subtle box-ticking, and the quality suffers ever so slightly because it happens without a solid plot to contain it. It isn’t a problem in this book, but if the follow-ups continue in that same manner, that would be bad.

One can only hope that the follow-ups will discover where they are supposed to be going. Because now the Goblin Emperor is Emperor, and in order to be a solid main character we need a Goal to strive for — a goal that is bigger and more concrete than “I want to be a good Emperor.”

Verdict: Good enough to be recommended

Still: It works, it has dedicated fans who draw pictures of the main character to post on the internet, and even though it is not a perfect gem, it certainly deserves to be read, and I can see a potential for sequels, if the Addison manages to give them a solid direction.

In short: The premise is outstanding and the execution inspiring and well worth looking at.
It has sequels, though, and the general trend of the book’s story does leave room for doubt, although they cannot be discounted out of hand.