Truth and Fear

Wolfhound Century #2

by Peter Higgins

Investigator Lom returns to Mirgorod and finds the city in the throes of a crisis. The war against the Archipelago is not going well. Enemy divisions are massing outside the city, air raids are a daily occurrence and the citizens are being conscripted into the desperate defense of the city. But Lom has other concerns. The police are after him, the mystery of the otherworldly Pollandore remains and the vast Angel is moving, turning all of nature against the city. But will the horrors of war overtake all their plans?

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Science Fiction, Urban Fantasy, Alternate History, Science Fiction Fantasy, High Fantasy

392 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

Peter Higgins is a British author. Wolfhound Century and Truth and Fear are published by Gollancz in the UK and Orbit in the US.

Peter's short fiction has appeared in Fantasy: Best of the Year 2007 and Best New Fantasy 2, in Asimov’s Science Fiction, Fantasy Magazine, Zahir and Revelation, and in Russian translation in Esli.

Reviews

[Althea Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

A worthy follow-up to 'Wolfhound Century.'

The author provides a web page with a list of books that inspired or were used for research while writing this book... the collection gives a good idea as to the 'feel' of the book:

http://www.wolfhoundcentury.com/books...

The story follows the characters from the previous book (now-former) Inspector Vissarion Lom and Maroussia Shaumian, both on the run from the secret police. Meanwhile, political coups and plots throw the Vlast (state) into chaos, and under the struggling leadership of the sadistic Commander Lavrentina Chazia and the slippery, tyrannical Josef Kantor, the capital city of Mirgorod becomes a chancier and chancier place to be.

I felt like this sequel was a bit more alt-historical and a bit less 'fantasy' than its predecessor. Yes, we still have a character who happens to be a werewolf, alien golems, and more. The mysterious and magical (?) artifact, the Pollandore, is the MacGuffin that drives the action. But this is very much a close analogue of Stalinist Russia, complete with not-exactly-Jewish ghettoes, pogroms, the same kind of military conflicts and state violence. There is more attention given to these realistic details than to the more fantastic elements of the book.

It works very well. And although this world is bleak and horrible in many ways, it is beautifully, beautifully written. Higgins' way with words elevates this to a full 5 stars. That said, it is a little middle-book-ish. You need to have read 'Wolfhound Century' first for this to make sense, and you'll definitely want to read 'Radiant State' when you're done. I'll be reading the final book in the trilogy soon!

[Kristin (MyBookishWays Reviews) · Rating 5 out of 5]

http://www.mybookishways.com/2014/03/...

Shortly after the events of Wolfhound Century, Vissarion Lom and Maroussia Shaumian are on a tram headed into Mirgorod, battle weary and all too aware that they’re being pursued by Commander Lavrentina Chazia, chief of the Mirgorod Secret Police. Mirgorod is on the verge of war with the Archipelago, and they don’t have a chance against their vast armies, but for Chazia, that means an opportunity to remake the Vlast just as she wants, pure and united under her. Her patience is waning, however, and she’s convinced the Pollandore holds the keys to her success. But Chazia doesn’t know how to use the Pollandore, and she thinks that Maroussia Shaumian does. Chazia isn’t the only one after Maroussia, though. Josef Kantor wants her dead, and he plans on remaking himself anew. He has grand plans for Mirgorod and his capacity for hard work is inexhaustible, his desire for utter supplication unending, if it is to meet his goals. Meanwhile, thousands of miles away from Mirgorod, there are diabolical machinations underway of apocalyptic proportions. In the forest, an Archangel is stirring, and it whispers to Josef Kantor, much to Chazia’s frustration, and she continues to use angel flesh on herself, in an attempt to connect to the ancient being, the only living angel, but every day, every minute, it drives her more and more insane.

I was blown away by Wolfhound Century, so does Truth and Fear measure up? Actually, it more than does, and as good as Wolfhound Century was, Truth and Fear is even better. Lom is a man whose only goal has become keeping Maroussia safe, and he’ll do that even at great, even grave, risk to himself. Luckily, he has an ally, in the form of a shapeshifter named Antoninu Florian who seems to have his own agenda, but proves more than useful in aiding the two fugitives. Maroussia is a young woman whose fate is entwined intimately with the Pollandore and believes it has the capacity to remake the Vlast into something good, not this burning mass of chaos and war that it currently is under the psychotic gaze of Chazia and Kantor.

When Maroussia is taken, Lom sets off with Florian to save her, and their harrowing journey will lead them to a glass city called Novaya Zima, and a violent, earth shattering conclusion that will change his destiny. In Truth and Fear, as in Wolfhound Century, Peter Higgins has created more than just a story. It’s an immersive, sensory experience, populated by giants, shapeshifters, earthy magic, and the power of ancient beings. Lom is a hero in the truest sense, in that he doesn’t see his actions as heroic, they just are, and they come as naturally to him as breathing. Prepare yourself for quite an ending, and the promise of more to come. The world-building is superb, and Higgins’s writing is, as usual, lyrical and sometimes brutal. I love this world, and I love these complicated, flawed, and utterly unique characters. I can’t wait to see what Peter Higgins gives us next.

[Mir · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title comes from this poem by Osip Mandelstam, who was was arrested and sentenced to exile for his criticism of the Soviet regime; he expressed astonishment at not being executed in another poem, from which comes the title of the preceding book, Wolfhound Century.

I was washing in the yard at night.
The firmament was brilliant with rude stars.
Starlight lay like salt upon the axe,
The barrel cooling, filled up to the brim.

The gates are tightly shut and locked,
And the earth is stern and conscientious.
No foundation is likely to be found
As pure as the truth of a fresh canvas.

The salt star melts in the barrel,
And the cold water grows blacker –
Death grows purer, misfortune saltier,
And the earth edges closer to truth and to fear.

Here the author lists some other influences: http://www.wolfhoundcentury.com/books...

[Strix · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a true review, as I am so, so tired of this book. It is gorgeous with descriptions and character movement and everything builds in a crescendo for everyone except the main character. Lom's sequences of travel with Florian got to me, until I couldn't read it anymore, and skimmed bits of it until we were at ground zero.

The rest of it? Sumptuous.

[Matt Brady · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite as cool-sounding title as "Wolfhound Century" but the sequel is just as good. The setting, of a fantastical quasi-Soviet Union, is still fascinating. Giants, space angels and a mystical, pan-dimensional forest existing alongside airplanes, machine guns and collectivized farms. Not something you'll say often about a book, especially a fantasy, but the story is maybe a bit too narrow at times and could benefit from a little sprawl. Higgins has created such an interesting world, and his eye for detail and his way of describing it make me want to learn a lot more about it. Also, the second book in the series is maybe a good time to start revealing a little bit more about your main characters. Higgins plays his cards close to his chest and doesn't explain a lot of the weird stuff that's going on, and I like that for the most pat, but after following Vissarion Lom and Maurissa Shaumian for two books now I feel like I should have a better idea of their mysterious past. There's a hell of a lot to like here, though, and I'll definitely read the next one.

[Aildiin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book improves on the first book in the serie.
It's bursting with ideas and somehow the author manages to mesh them all together and keeps us enthralled. There are bits of fantasy , science fiction, thriller and steampunk sprinkled through the pages. The chapters are very short and it allows us to digest better the content.
The story follow the steps of former Inspector Vissarian Lom and of Maroussia Shaumian as they try to survive to stay one step ahead of their opponents in a city that is looking more and more like World War 2 Stalingrad.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm just loving this series, and I am supremely pissed that no one made the third book into an audiobook. Must not have sold well or something, which is stupid and why I hate people. There is so much fucking cool shit going on here, god.

[Silvio Curtis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Still similar to the first book in the series. That is, it still has a thriller plot, gorier than I'd like it to be, and a blandly traditional main character, but keeps switching out of thriller style into chunks of elegant descriptive/contemplative prose. Those parts are the ones that build up an interesting if unsubtle transposition of the worst parts of 20th-century Europe into a fantasy setting. The war between the Vlast and the Archipelago is suddenly developing faster than almost anyone thought it would. I suppose you could say it's changed from a World War I into a World War II. Because of that the villains are now setting their various incompatible plans in motion, and they're big plans. Meanwhile the main characters still don't really know what they're doing, even as they start doing it, and the reader doesn't either. In fact, one of the two main characters has pretty nearly disappeared as a POV character. On the other hand, now there's also a werewolf. I'm noticing some new things about the imitation of real-world languages. The names of the Vlast are still mostly in quasi-Russian, but I'm seeing some quasi-Hungarian, quasi-Romanian, and quasi-German too, and the giants' language is still quasi-Finnish. The really interesting thing is that the inhabitants of the Archipelago, who are so peripheral to the story, seem to be the ones who speak quasi-English.

[Jerry Jr. · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first distinctive thing about Truth and Fear you notice is its language. This is a beautifully written book. It's not just that the expert use of detail masterfully constructs the intricacies of lived experience in this fictive alternate world, it's that Higgins vividly presents for us the sensory life of his characters. Some of the moments he presents in Truth and Fear that I will take with me include experiences as simple as feeling the cold of dawn in a subarctic forest, tasting campfire coffee made in a pan, seeing the street-level view of his fictional cityscapes. He imbues all this with an immediacy and a poetry that is unequaled in any fantasy novel I have ever read, and seems more akin to Marquez or Woolf than even the best of his peers in the genre.

But the fact remains this poetic richness is deployed in a fantasy novel, and that ratchets up the sense of consequence when he puts at risk the characters we have been experiencing his world through. All this sensory detail also makes the uncanny and inexplicable occurrences in the world of the Vlast feel anything but distant or abstract. For example, Higgins relates several times what it feels like to have the consciousness of dying angels bleed out into the world like some kind of psychic pollution and touch one's own mind. When he's done you don't feel like quibbling with his description.

But in praising Higgins' language I do not want to make his storytelling seem insufficient. Time and again, his plot surprises the reader with a turn subtler and more intelligent than expected. Truth and Fear takes place in a police state society, and when our heroes, pursued by the sinister VKBD, take refuge with a charming family, both the generic conventions Higgins works with and the events of the previous novel in this series lead you to expect something horrible is going to happen. And something horrible does. But what happens is so much worse, more impersonal, and surprising that it moves the novel into the harrowing realm of dystopia, and is reminiscent of the most emotionally resonant moments of Alan Moore's original V for Vendetta. ("Where are we going?"..."Do you want to stay on the train?" "No." "Then it's time to get off.")

Higgins obviously has made wide use of Russian history and culture in building the world in which this occurs. While an awareness of these components makes the experience of reading the novel richer, not knowing the background hardly seems like it would necessarily detract from the experience. This is a self-contained fantasy world, albeit one in which the main sweep of events eerily mirrors the siege of Moscow in 1941. There is something deeply uncomfortable about this, and provocative. Truth and Fear is a fantasy novel making use of events that involved tens of millions of corpses, events themselves so outside the scale of normal human experience that most people living today in the west are far more comfortable pushing them outside our consciousness. That Higgins has written Truth and Fear with the obvious intent of creating art that examines this history critically helps matters, but it does not satisfy all these misgivings. Nor does it try to. Truth and Fear treads its path unapologetically, which is the only way for it to do so and not be buried beneath all those dead in the real-world eastern front of the Second World War.

Like Wolfhound Century before it, this is a novel that works on multiple levels, from a writer who deploys a neverending set of admirable skills, creating a fantasy world which excites an ever-accumulating number of questions. I want more. And that is perhaps the greatest frustration I feel finishing Truth and Fear.

[Stefan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wolfhound Century by Peter Higgins was one of last year’s strongest debuts, a unique dystopian fantasy set in an alternate Stalin-era USSR with Russian mythological elements and vague hints of something science fictional happening out in space.

The story of downtrodden investigator Vissarion Lom hunting down the terrorist Josef Kantor at the behest of the totalitarian Vlast was mostly set in Mirgorod, a gray, rainy city that seemed to fall somewhere between New Crobuzon and Moscow. Wolfhound Century was one of the first novels in a long time that actually deserved the frequent comparisons to China Miéville, thanks in large part to Peter Higgins’ beautiful prose.

Read the entire review on my site Far Beyond Reality!

[Haley Mathiot · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was so excited about this audiobook that I went back and re-listened to the first one in the series so I’d be on top of all the details. It did not disappoint. More mystical creatures than ever, a wholly other side of the same terrifying magic, a fast-paced exciting plot that never stopped, all concluding to me absolutely dying for the next book. I cannot wait to find out what happens to all my favorite characters. I cannot conceptualize how this story will end—and that, for me, is the best thing ever, because so many stories out there are so easy to guess the plot and the conclusion but this… this is something entirely other that I cannot expect. And I’m in love with it.

I whole heartedly recommend reading this series!

[Jack Deighton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Following on from the death of the Vlast's leader, the Vorozhd, in Wolfhound Century. the previous book in Higgins’s trilogy, Vissarion Lom and Maroussia Shauman are continuing their search for the Pollandore, while trying to dodge the attentions of the Vlast's security forces. Its security chief Lavrentina Chazia, who has designs on full power, has the Pollandore in confinement in the Lodya. Chazia has discovered that while her focus has been on supernatural eminences a secret project on the remote province of Novaya Zima has produced a technological weapon of devastating power. This project she hijacks by eliminating its instigator. In line with the book’s “Russian” background there are some scenes here which seem to be based on the Great Patriotic War. As the Vlast's war with the Archipelago has not been going well and its forces are now capable of bombing the capital, Mirgorod, this new weapon shapes up to be a timely development.

Lom and Shauman are arrested but then broken free due to the intervention of shapechanger Antoninu Florian - a kind of supercharged werewolf. But Shauman is recaptured. Lom and Florian chase her down to Novaya Zima to where Chazia has taken her. Meanwhile the supernatural entity, Archangel, whose thoughts are rendered in italics is pursuing the Pollandore in order to destroy it. When the old hierarchy abandons Mirgorod, Josef Kantor takes charge in the guise of General Rhizin and puts the new technology to terrible use.

Higgins writes well and knows how to keep the reader turning the pages yet despite copious incidents there is a sense in this volume of marking time. Among other things, Elena Cornelius and her children are left hanging. There is, of course, ta third instalment of Higgins’s trilogy to go but I am intrigued enough by Higgins’s scenario not to leave it too long.

[Sean Parson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very solid sequel to the wolfhound century, and up until the last 1/5, I felt was a significant improvement of an already solid book. the world building here works, for me (I like soviet influenced worlds) as did the spy craft and cold war type politics. This really did field like china mielville writing a cold war spy thriller (though much less complex in style, story, and character development). The only negatives are 1) the character development of Lom is not that impressive or unique, he feel flat, 2) they build up an amazing character and the end is sort of an anticlimatic let down, and 3) everything moves methodically and smart and then just speads through at the end. I felt like the book could have used another 40-50 pages to really draw out and make the end fit with the rest of the book. A really wonderful weird, fantasy, sci fi, political drama that is totally worth a read.

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I saw and picked up this book off the library shelf, without knowing anything about it. I was misled, because this is the second in a trilogy, and there was no indication of that on the book or the jacket.

However, I really enjoyed it. It is a strange mix of science fiction, soviet history, and mythology. For some parts it seems like you are in WWII Russia, and other parts seem more modern, and other parts take you to werewolves and vampires and angels who aren't good. I'm going to find and read the other 2 books in the trilogy. This one picks up from the story in the first book, which makes it hard to understand what is happening and who these people are without reading it first. This book ends with a cliffhanger of sorts; the end is sudden and resolves nothing.

[Fraser Sherman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sequel to Wolfhound Century set in "the Vlast," Higgins' alt.Russia. Former security official Lom continues to struggle against his enemies with no real idea what's at stak. The head of the secret police plots to destroy the Pollandore, the cosmic McGuffin. The fallen angel slowly advances its own plans. And all this in the middle of a war the Vlast is slowly losing. Absorbing and beautifully written.

[Thomas Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Higgins builds on the solid foundations of the first book and the whole journey and build up to the end of the book is fantastic. I feel like the ending was a bit too abrupt though and the fast pace while gripping when being read left me a bit hollow once I realised it had come and gone so quickly.

I'd rate it a solid 3.5 if I had the option to but it deserves more then a 3 hence the 4 stars!

Looking forward to diving into book 3 though!

[Alex Rogers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good follow up to Wolfhound Century. I love the alt-Russia that he has created here, his characters are strong, and the developing story fascinating. Combines wonderful descriptive passages with tense action, strong plot and a real skill at building his alternative world. Definitely better read after Wolfhound Century. I'm looking forward to more.

[Kevin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this but not as much as the first one. The story was still good and the writing was excellent but it was a bit boring as it focused more on political machinations and there was very little fantastical involved. A good continuation of the story but not great.

[Josiah John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent continuation of the story from Wolfhound Century. Definitely need to get book 3 next time I am in the library and find out what happens with Vissarion.

[Daniel Christensen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good extension of Book 1. Went in some directions I didn't expect, and made excellent use of the Revolutionary-Russia-but-not-really setting.
Maybe less 'magic' than Book 1, but excellent atmosphere, and moved at a great pace.

[Ryan Viergutz]

I finished this a while ago but I needed a while to process my feelings about it.

Wolfhound Century reminded me of the twisted parts of the 1920s but this book felt more like a gigantic fictional WWII siege of possibly Leningrad.

It starts right where the last book ended, with Lom and Maroussia on the run from Chazia and her secret police. They keep being hunted nonstop, by both the police and this mysterious benefactor who helps them by strewing tons and tons of blood everywhere he goes. Yeah, it's that kind of series; even the good guys have to do some terribly brutal things.

The second half of the book involves Kantor, who irrevocably changes himself, taking control of Mirgorod and putting his plans in motion while Chazia thinks she has the upper hand on him. So utterly devoted to the angel she doesn't realise the angel isn't the highest power in the world. That there's something worse than Archangel is implied... but until much later it isn't outright stated.

Then the climax puts together a race to a mysterious island called Novaya Zima. The race does take a while, honestly, but it's so immersive I didn't mind. The battle is comparatively fast and brutal, wherein Chazia, Lom, Maroussia and the Pollandore slam together in a battle whose results NONE of them see coming.

I can't wait for more. This series is crazy.

[Blodeuedd Finland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Look at that, I actually liked book 2 more. That does not happen a lot but here, maybe it was because now I knew the world, now I was truly invested, or maybe just because book 2 kicked it up a notch.

Lom and Maroussia return to the city. There are more to Lom than meets the eye and I do wonder about his origin. While Maroussia is no longer the confused woman on the run, she now has a goal. Together they must run from those who seek them. Closer and closer to the Pollandore which might change the world.

The world is still awesome. War is coming closer, the dictator is dead. The leadership of the city had changed, and yes the angel is still watching and playing.

This book is about a journey through the city, fighting for your life, seeking and what war do. And the end, oh that was rather evil wasn't it. Now I need more. Now I need to know what will happen to Vlast.

[Ruth · Rating 3 out of 5]

c2014: As most of the commentators have already said this is a heady mixture of steam-punk, grimdark and history. The city is as pervasive as the cold in this book. Really evocative descriptions and soul-grinding greyness. I can't say that I totally understand the plot but I suppose that may be half the fun. Whenever angels are mentioned, I can't seem to quite grasp where they are in the bigger picture as I first have to clear my mind of the image I get every time I read the word 'angel'. Recommended to those of the normal crew that enjoy a different type of spec-fic. "There is a gun against your leg. It won't make a hole, it will blow your leg away. Maybe both of them. Shatter the bones. Sever the main arteries. You'll bleed empty in minutes. So just keep looking ahead and driving normally. Don't mind me. I'm only along for the ride."

[Shane Kiely · Rating 4 out of 5]

Similarly exquisite prose as first part of Wolfhound Century trilogy this time around, though I found it more accessible, it may be down to me becoming more sophisticated as a reader or probably just that I was more aware of what to expect (see also me reading Iain M Banks for a second time). That being said there are still instances when complexity of prose can be a little overwhelming & my mind started to drift. I found the plot more engaging this time around as it establishes the central thread early on & begins to work toward that conclusion quite early on. The skill at prose translates well to action which means there are several notable set-pieces. Resolves in a manner I hadn't expected & I'm definitely curious to see how the trilogy plays out.

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a weird and good book.

[Curt Hopkins Hopkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

This second book in the series is much better than the first, which wasn't bad. Higgins sets his alternative universe in a Russian-inflected world. He also uses "angels" in a very unusual way as part of the world building. Geographically, theologically, politically, and culturally (including the folklore), it's Russia. I don't really want to say anything about the angels, aside from perhaps to say there is a hint of the more outre Marvel Comics titles - the ones that orbited the Silver Surfer mythos. That risks making it seem cartoony but it's not. It feels substantial.

But most importantly, in the second book, you start to actually care about the central charater, Inspector Lom.

[Nathan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lom and Maroussia arrive back in Mirgorod just as the armies of the Archipelago enter the frame. Things are not going well for the Vlast, and the rats decide to leave the sinking ship. But in the meantime we encounter all sorts of wonders mystical and technological.

Higgins continues to write lovely prose in his fairly confusing setting. The first volume definitely read to me like a take on the 1920s, but here we are suddenly in the mid 1940s. Odd.

Final third of the volume didn't quite seem to match the tone of the first two thirds, but things are set up for number three.

Rated M for some personal violence, war violence, supernatural and fantasy themes. 3.5/5

[Greg · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.75 stars. This was less of a complete mess than the first volume, but still seems a story in which too many disjointed ideas are mashed into a very small container in the expectation that compression will have a positive effect. Higgins's writing is not terrible or confusing - indeed, he has a certain gift - but insufficient time seems to have been taken to craft the world and make it plausible. Instead, this often seems a mixture of childish fantasy and wish-fulfilment with melodrama.

[Claudia Putnam · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series has been a terrific discovery. I don't feel like going into a comprehensive review, but the alt-history/fantasy/nature/Russia (was going to say Soviet, but really it's Russia, it's ever been Russia itself responsible for the USSR) stuff is a wonderful mashup. Higgins is beautiful writer. The only disappointment, and it's a bit major, is that the villains, especially Chazia, are cardboard. Really, just grasping power is what motivates her? And Kantor? Borrring.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

A relentless pace throughout and quite a complex thread which I thought I was losing at one point but it all came back together fantastically. Epic scale and explosive finish. Well set up for the final part next year