Set in Stone

by K.J. Parker

A sculptor struggles when he is commanded to perpetuate the lies of a deceitful and cruel king...

Genres: Fantasy, Short Stories, Historical, Historical Fiction, Adult, Fiction, Novella

32 pages, ebook

First published September 4, 2024

About the author

K.J. Parker is a pseudonym for Tom Holt.

According to the biographical notes in some of Parker's books, Parker has previously worked in law, journalism, and numismatics, and now writes and makes things out of wood and metal. It is also claimed that Parker is married to a solicitor and now lives in southern England. According to an autobiographical note, Parker was raised in rural Vermont, a lifestyle which influenced Parker's work.

Reviews

[Elentarri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: 3.5 stars

This is a short story set in J.K. Parker's equivalent of Constantinople, involving a naive stone mason and the meaning of "truth".  Interesting.

[Penny -Thecatladybooknook · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sculptor who is "famous" for his sculpture of lions, struggles with the order from the King to carve a scene which is a lie. You could almost think of this as you read as "The Emperor isn't wearing any clothes." Don't believe your eyes, right? Lots of thought and discussion can come out of this short story.

[Steve Kimmins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very enjoyable. A 30 page short story by a favourite author; an hours pleasant diversion for the cost of half a cup of shop bought coffee.

The tale of a sculptor, often working on royal commissions, in a typical Parker historical fantasy world. He seems to lack confidence in his abilities, especially his creative imagination. A nice variation by this author whose lead characters can often be cynical, detached observers of their world. Here the sculptor has probably bought into the stories, propaganda even, the kingdom he lives in creates for its subjects.

Not an earth shattering tale, just a nice personal story about a period in the life of this character. Probably a comment on the lies a state can direct at its population. I normally rate almost everything by this author as 5*, but maybe 4* in this case as I have a separate rating system for his books. Perhaps just not quite as imaginative as some other short stories I recall (e.g.Prosper's Demon).
This story will probably be in a collection of his short stories some years down the line but I couldn’t wait. Waiting impatiently for a full length novel by this author which appears to be in the pipeline.

[Boulder Boulderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A short story of truth and lies.

[Shane Findlay · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s Parker being Parker. 5⭐️

[Mark Redman · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Set in Stone" is a 30-page short story about a renowned sculptor who grapples with his conscience when the King personally commissions him to create an imaginative battle scene as a propaganda piece. The request has significant implications for the sculptor's personal life, especially after he gained a promotion for his only living relative, a soldier nephew, as part of his reward. True to Parker's style, the story is well-written and expertly plotted, with a thought-provoking ending. Brilliant!

[S.A Reidman · Rating 3 out of 5]

What is truth in a land covered in lies?
Of course when a witness reveals it just sounds like lies.
I missed Parker's prose, sometimes his narrators are unreliable, in this case, his narrator has been fed a steady stream of fake news in Statuesque form, actually, he went so far as to unwittingly create fake news himself thus perpetuating the cycle.
🤔why does this sound so Murdoch-orous ...you get it, looking at you🦊news.

*note to self* Saloninus is the smartest man in the world.

[Kam Yung Soh · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sculptor, famous for his portrayal of lions, is commanded by the king to produce a battle scene featuring the king triumphant on the battlefield. Being a loyal subject, the sculptor does so. Only he keeps hearing rumours, especially from his nephew in the army, that the king may not be as brave as he is said to be, and his battles may not be so victorious after all. But what is a loyal subject to do, if not do to as the king says?

[Colin Murtagh · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I normally love Parkers books, this is not his strongest short story, but even at that, it's still enjoyable.
Set in his normal fantasy world, the story revolves around a stone mason. While best known for his carvings of lions, the King has asked for a relief based upon a battle. Issue is the battle never really happened.
From there we go to ideas of propaganda, truth and art. It is little bit more sledgehammer than stiletto, and to a large extent without the humour he's normally got.
Saying that, given it's less than the price of a coffee, it's well worth the money

[Liviu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun short story (around 30 odd pages) about a sculptor who battles his conscience when the King asks him by name to produce an imaginative work of art when he previously had no qualms about producing propaganda sculptures for the King and being well rewarded for them. In addition his personal life gets complicated when for one of his rewards he asks a promotion for his only living relative, a soldier nephew.

[কৌশিক ভৌমিক]

So far, I've only read two of K J Parker's shorter works and I've loved both. There's a lot to ponder in this short tale, about narratives that drive our lives, story we get told and tell ourselves and how that shapes our reality, and what counts for true art. I need to start one of his novels but I'm not sure if I'll love them as much. For longer fiction I tend to favor likable characters. Do his novels have them?

[Radwa · Rating 4 out of 5]

K.J. Parker writes the best short stories for me. a story of a sculptor who's conflicted between believing the king's propaganda and listening to the truth of what his nephew tells him about what actually happens on the front lines, while trying to focus on his work as he gets entangled in sculpting victory scenes for the kings

[David · Rating 1 out of 5]

?????? Why ??????

Again, Why??? This could be a chapter, a novella perhaps but even as a short story it fails.

Because its central theme is so simple that, brief yet often, repetition doesn't strengthen the point. We get it - propaganda! A fake news world. And other tropes.

K.J.P.T.H. please get back to form - we need ya.

[Greg S · Rating 3 out of 5]

About truth and propaganda and white lies. It would have been more interesting ten years ago, but a little late now. Also, it’s an odd choice that the author only referred to the female character using pronouns.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid short story. Free to read
https://reactormag.com/set-in-stone-k...

[Chloe · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I want him to live on. And since it makes absolutely no difference to the outcome, and there are now no reliable witnesses, I guess it’s the truth, at that."
about sums that up lol

link: https://reactormag.com/set-in-stone-k...

[José Alejandro Vázquez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un poco mejor que las noveletas anteriores que he leído de Parker, el autor aprovecha para regresar a sus temas favoritos y reflexionar a través de su narrador sin nombre sobre la verdad, el adoctrinamiento y el simbolismo el régimenes totalitarios.

[T Davidovsky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another KJ Parker story that's the same as all his other stories. Unreliable stream of consciousness narration. Protagonist with niche skill that he's really, really, really good at. Twist that raises questions about truth and power. The formula somehow hasn't gotten old yet. I loved it.

[Katherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was pretty fun. A nice bit of historical satire that was ultimately a bit depressing, but very of the moment politically.

[Dea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Underwhelming.

[Jill Carroll · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holy snakes, this is good. Like scalp-prickling, ache-in-the-chest good. My first story by this author and obviously not the last.

[Zach Laengert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good story about the idea of Truth; wish I'd read it before writing my recent post, but ah well. Kind of surprised Orhan and Aechma didn't mirror this a little more in 'Sixteen Ways'.

[Peter Staples · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well done

I enjoyed this short read. Always enjoy seeing who KJ Parker is going to have as the main character in his different stories.

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

liked this one a lot. setting a reminder to myself to read more by KJ Parker.
https://reactormag.com/set-in-stone-k...

[Sierra Hess · Rating 4 out of 5]

[Ben Vogensen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was solid. The stone carver is very funny.

[Cora · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heartbreaking ending

[Jinan · Rating 4 out of 5]

O.O surprisingly good! Statues, truth, making truth, art, creativity, creation, and lies.

Excellent story writing and character drive. Could be a fable-eqsue.

[Tim]

The synopsis sounded interesting, the first 20% was boring. DNF @ 23%.

[emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

30 in 30 challenge : 3/30

a stream of consciousness musing on art and truth with a neat little gut-punch of grief and war woven in.