Review: Adventure, Exorcisms and Conspiracy in Ancient China
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 11 11, 2011
Welcome to the Underworld is a collection of four short stories centered around Dao Shi, an out-of-favour former historian turned charlatan exorcist in a sort of ancient China. The first story, Looking for Goats, Finding Monkeys, introduces Dao Shi and the sort of world in which he resides, opening with a fake exorcism to lay a family's ghost of an ancestor. (Please not that though he largely fakes the exorcisms, he views it as a service to the family so they can move on and focus properly; these are not done out of greed or malice.) In the first story we also learn that demons are occasionally real, and that a little knowledge can go a long way with the right handling. The second tale, The Turning of the Tiles, introduces a second plot involving the Imperial government and the death of his son. The second plot is continued through the third and fourth stories, becoming more of the focus of the tales.I really enjoyed these stories - their pacing is excellent for the length; the slow discovery of the main character is built into the story revealing him more and more as they go and events never feel forced or glossed over*. The stories are told in the first person, making the reminisces feel more genuinely sentimental, and the main character, Dao Shi, views himself with a self depreciating eye, with wry  humour giving his narration a nicely human and very believable feel. Banter between characters is excellent, no awkward stiltedness except where you'd expect it (in front of ranking government official, for example.) All in all, an excellent read.Minor editing issues - a missing word and possibly some typos need mild editing to give this excellent little collection a high polish.Overall rating: 4.5 or 5 stars. Mr. I. F. Rowan, I'd like more stories, please.*Though I'd also like to know more about the former soldier who was begging in that first story; it felt like there should be more there from the time spent on him.Review copy supplied by the author as part of LibraryThing's Member Giveaway program.