Diablo: The Black Road | a Review
originally published on 20/02/2023;
Hello everyone, I am the wayfinder, G.E.M.Simov, a wanderer lost in the past and the future, and I've come here today to tell you about Mel Odom's "Diablo: The Black Road".
Simple review details - I attempt to rank books on an out of 10 basis, granting up to 3 points in 3 categories, as well as a last, single point from my own self, depending on my experience with it.
Content
Out of all the Diablo Novels, I think this was the most… impressive one, in the sense that it leaves an impression. If I were to compare the four Diablo Novels, even though there are more than four of them, I'd place the Black Road as the most impactful, as it features an almost nuanced depiction of Angels and Demons.
While the previous entry in this loosely connected series, Richard A. Knaak's "Legacy of Blood", featured a very set in stone dichotomy of evil demons, who are evil just because, and good angels, who are good just because. In this one, while the fact remains that the angels and the demons are what they are by default, rather than being such as a result of personal development and choice, there is a measure of nuance.
The most appropriate example would be Kabraxis, as he is the only sentient demon in this book. However, unlike Xazax or the multitude of other sapient demons in Legacy of Blood, he doesn't seem to be far too dismissive of the lives of humans. In fact, he finds them useful, and, not only that, but he approaches things through a far more reasonable approach. After all, Xazax was all about murder and the disdain he felt towards humans.
It is quite impressive just how reminiscent of inter-human racism that thing displayed by Xazax in Legacy of Blood was. Humans were just perceived as lesser in his eyes, and thus they could have no real redeeming qualities. In contrast, what Kabraxis seems to do in The Black Road is far more interesting.
Sure, there is the underlying knowledge of his possessed superiority, sure, there is the dismissive behavior in regards to humans, but there is also a very real, very reasonable expression of care. His approach to humans, I suspect, is more similar to the approach an adult takes when interacting with a child.
Or maybe it isn't that, and, instead, the amusement I felt whilst reading about Kabraxis was owed up to his interactions with Buyard Cholik… And maybe it was not that, but rather the more macro plan of action.
The most impressive thing about this book is that it tackles religion, and that it tackles religion in a very convincingly good way. It really does away with religion's properties of explaining the world and takes it to the next logical step - of, instead of providing a multitude of rules to follow as a means of helping people solve problems, solving these problems for them. Ill? The church will make you not sick. Old? The church will make you young again! Poor? The church will make you wealthy!
Religion, being this means of fulfilling a specific need - be it for an explanation or purpose or something else - is very handy, when it comes to controlling people. Not only as a means of controlling people, but also as a means of… well, what more could one truly need? This book provides an incredibly convenient display of just that, of religion being the opiate of the masses and exerting monstrous amounts of control over the government and other entities meant to be separate from it, through its control of the masses.
I might risk dipping my toes into the political puddle, but ask yourselves why it is that a vast number of Republican representatives and Senators and, overall, politicians, base all their views on the Bible and nothing BUT the Bible… Yet Religion and State must be separate. Funny that.
Well, aside from the interesting depiction of Religion and the slight amendment of the issue of EVIL BY DEFAULT, there's a bit more work done to bring Angels and Demons to an equal footing. The Angels are described as being soldiers, and their own ways of influencing mortals are also very similar to those of the demons - through fear and through promises of something good, although that is very minor.
In relation to it, there was one very good saying in the book, uttered by the Main Character - Darrick Lang - which claimed that it is not the Demons or the Angels who should help or guide humans, but, rather, humans ought to do it themselves, as they have previously done. This way of viewing things is very fresh and quite pleasant, as considering some extraordinary or supernatural guidance or presence a necessity in the lives of men (as in mankind) is very lame, as though it is a means of excusing actions.
No, it was not my fault, all my actions are predetermined by fate, or they are being manipulated by Angels or Demons, by the Devil or by God! Personal responsibility extends only so far as the failings of others are concerned in matters that the one observing the failure has succeeded… But, even then, it is only so much, as it is all part of the Great Design, or God's Plan, or the Black Road.
There is a lot of destiny to be considered here. There is a prophecy involved in the story, which pops up out of nowhere, and it then further leans into the specificity of destiny, rather than the happenstance of things. There is, once more, an emphasis on uniqueness, an emphasis on inequality, for it is only those who are X, Y and Z that can do A, B and C.
If the prophecy was not part of this story and destiny had nothing to do with it, then Darrick would have been able to grasp Stormfury straight off the bat, for the requirement - that he be present at Kabraxis' re-entry into Sanctuary - would have been fulfilled.
Instead, he can not do it, because the requirement was that Mat be the one to take hold of Stormfury. Not only that, but then ONLY HE could face the demon, because he was prophesied to do it. That was a pointless aspect of the story that did not serve to add any depth, but only lessened the impact of it. Instead of the perceivable interpretation being that one ought to be at the right place and at the right time, it became different, that one ought to be special, and then everything would wind up being exactly as it was meant to be.
Meant, of course, by some higher power that is neither sapient or reasonable, neither perceivable or understandable.
However, the presence of this idea with the balance and its preservation - which seems to only exist in this book - was interesting, even if it was also very wonky. The fact that any Demon or Angel's entry into Sanctuary is then somehow counteracted through a mystical power that appears and makes sure that neither side will wind up with an advantage is very strange. It also seems to operate in stark contrast to the games themselves - mainly Diablo 2 and 3 - because they feature treks into both Heaven and Hell, and those treks feature no lessening in the heroes' ability to slaughter their enemies. Heaven and Hell are outside of Sanctuary, and yet that's that…
Either way, it is wonky, as stated, though it is very interesting. I suppose it can be associated with the balance kept by the priests of Rathma - the necromancers - and the wonky explanation can also be associated with the fact that no such priest is present in this book.
With those topics addressed, but far from sorted or even resolved, I suppose we can get on with the more micro-focused things. The more human aspects of this book's story, for example.
The main one, and the truly driving force of the conflict, would be the way people deal with death, whether they accept it, whether they see it as it is, or whether they try to fight it tooth and nail - this is what leads into the events of the book. Cholik, fears death. Darrick also fears it, but he also both accepts it and sees it as it is. Darrick's approach is most human, as at times he craves death, and in other situations he desperately wants to avoid death.
That's a nice driving force for the inciting incident. Cholik, seeking a way to prolong his life, fearful of death, already weakened by age, finds the gate beyond which Kabraxis is sealed, and unleashes the demon, being granted wondrous gifts in return for his eternal soul… Or so it goes.
Darrick, on the other hand, is mainly concerned with just living, what with him being a young lad. When the situations present themselves to him, he wants to not die, but then there's a side of him that is almost content with dying at those points in his life. Throughout the duration of the book, he goes from that middle point to one end of the spectrum - wanting to die - and then also winds up on the other end of the spectrum - wanting to remain alive.
It is not a truly rich examination of Death, for there is no consideration of it, but there is a great measure of what it means. There is also a lacking presence of what comes after, but there is a lot of considering what preceded it. Was it a life worth living, or were there too many regrets? Does it end at the right time, or does it end prematurely? Maybe these things are not examined with as much detail as I am giving them credit for, but they were mentioned, at least, and they played a part.
But what was most intriguing, definitely, was mental health. More appropriately, it was trauma. The characters in this book appear fraught with trauma, just because of monstrous its effect is on the Main Character, as well as based off of its recurrence through the Black Road itself.
Not only does every time we are treated to the Black Road - be it Cholik, Darkulan or Darrick himself - spell a deep dive into the character's psyche, presenting their worst fear, but it is also the prevalent source of anguish and conflict for Darrick.
Being the victim of monstrous amounts of abuse over the course of his childhood, Darrick is a troubled man, as would be any person having gone through that kind of upbringing. Fortunately, he has a good childhood friend who offers him comfort and is, essentially, his pillar in life. Without that friend, Darrick becomes a wreck. He stops living and starts barely surviving. The demons of his past show up and assail him without pause, and the legitimacy of everything he has done starts getting questioned.
I quite liked the way this was handled, though there was also something I disliked. When a character is such, he happens to be very lacking in confidence or proactivity, instead just simply being and allowing themselves to get carried by the waves. Darrick very finely manages to linger on that line between annoyingly lacking in self esteem and reasonably interesting, but the fact is that most characters I've recently considered, and the media they stem from was not total garbage, are very tame and self contained and uninspiring.
Enter Aragorn from the Lord of the Ring movies, or Norrec from Legacy of Blood - they feel like they're far too subdued.
Regardless, the psychological aspect of it all does not end there. There's this very intriguing snippet that shows up, being referred to as the Three Essences, which is almost a retreading of the fanciful Ego, Super Ego and the Id. There's the way people want to be seen by others, there's the way people see themselves, and there's the way people truly are on the basest level. For those of you who know Freud's trio, there's a very neat correlation to be discovered and observed.
There's also the six layers of human nature, which are less relatable to things in reality, due to the fact that they are tightly bound to Kabraxis, the funny imaginary demon dude from the book, but are still very interesting, even if I won't list them here.
One other thing that I realize was interestingly well defined is the Act system. This book is separated into three distinct Acts - Act 1 being the events in Tauruk's Port, Act 2 being the events featuring Darric's wanderings about and his exploits in Seeker's Point and Act 3 being, well, Bramwell. I found that quite neat, even if it wasn't that fantastic.
Now, onto problems. Aside from the few I mentioned - destiny, lack of true depth and just being born evil - there's the fact that the story really loses the richness it had. Whereas there are many moments that feature characters encountering one another and having their own chapters or sections in those chapters of reacting to these encounters, the third act is dreadfully simple. Even though all the characters collide and encounter one another, even though some of them see one another after more than a year, there are no sections or chapters that make use of someone else's Point of View, aside from Darrick's.
Now, it is obvious that we needed the focus to longer on Darrick, so that he could overcome the issues he was facing and so that the reader could well understand the issues in question, but this still feels like a loss.
In fact, the whole ending seemed rushed, but I'll save that for the Story part of this review. Either way, the contents of this book were amazing and interesting, and the fact that the way Cholik went from nothing and got himself a big cathedral was very reminiscent of a management game turned into a book… I quite liked that. 2/3
Richness of Expression
The Black Road has a bit of an edge over its competitors, it seems, as there is a vast number of very interesting things said in it. There are many comparisons, which comparisons I would not make in modernity, but which comparisons are incredibly appropriate for the supposed time frame of the story, that being some medieval era.
Though, I should have started off with the claim that I read a translation, not the original. Still, I'm left with the impression that there was a very nice number of lexically rich statements. This one really lacked the 'hmm' factor of most other books I read, so for that I'd like to give it a good grade and be done with this section, as there's nothing that really sticks out to me. 3/3
Story
Ah, yes. The story of this book might be its, strangely, weakest point. In short, Darrick Lang is an officer in the navy, and he has the task to rescue a captive nephew of the king from a bunch of pirates. Unbeknownst to him, the pirates are working for Buyard Cholik, an old, renegade Zakarum priest, who is secretly searching for a ruined city underneath another ruined city, wherein he may find Kabraxis, who can grant him what he desires - youth and power.
The Captain of the pirates, Aribar Raithen, doesn't much like Cholik and is working to find out what Cholik is doing and what riches may be found within the ruins. Well, Cholik finds a thing in the ruins, an informant tells Raithen, Raithen takes a slip of paper to the captive nephew - because he's royalty and has studied profusely - and shows the slip of paper to the nephew. At that moment, Cholik goes on to do something with what he has found in the ruins, Darrick hops on the ship with his crew mates to rescue the nephew, and all hell breaks loose.
A few funky things happen - such as massive slabs of stone falling for no apparent reason - and Darrick saves the nephew. Angry, Raithen goes down to the ruins with his crew to kill Cholik, being certain he was behind the funky things. Meanwhile, the nephew is so uncooperative that he manages to convince Darrick that there's need to check if the demon was released.
Demon is, indeed, released, Cholik gets his wishes granted, demon (Kabraxis) murders most of the pirate crew (Raithen included), catches wind of Darrick and his friend Mat snooping around, and stuff goes down.
Later on - a few months later, that is - Cholik reaches the town of Bramwell and establishes a permanent presence there, beginning his new religion (which is a way of funneling mortals to serve Kabraxis). Darrick, in the meantime, is being very drunk and very reckless. So much so that he misses his ship's departure and winds up jobless and wanted for desertion.
Darrick, wandering from place to place doing the oddest of jobs, gets found by a Vizjerei sorcerer, who is also a demon Hunter, Taramis Volken. Taramis explains a few things to Darrick and convinces him to come with, and the two set off with two dozens worth of men. They're searching for the magical blade Stormfury which has previously bested Kabraxis.
After some trepidation, they find the blade and, following many more challenges, they wind up in Bramwell, where the big business begins and ends in a few chapters.
I must admit that the characters in this were very intriguing to observe. They had their own motivations, some clearer than others, they also had their own approaches to certain things. Naturally, some characters were irredeemable piles of filth, whilst others were nasty, but with a very human filling. Others yet were reasonably good people, but most of what was gotten were people doing some reprehensible things for the sake of their own continued survival - as is normal.
The most compelling character was Cholik, or, rather, Kabraxis, whom the reader gets to know via Cholik, so they somehow go hand in hand. An honorable mention goes to Mat, because he seemed as though he possessed great potential, and could have been a very interesting protagonist, if only he was not a secondary character in a gothic fantasy story.
I'd also like to say that Raithen managed to elicit a grand set of mixed feelings - vast understanding and great disdain, as well as a measure of compassion for his plights, whilst continuously keeping in mind that he was a very horrible human being who prized his life so much that, comparatively, everyone else was more like a dog than a human - lacking in intrinsic value.
The pace at which the story moved was very neat, and the fact that one of the places that was explored in this book - Bramwell - seemed so well developed was great, but then every other spot, including Tauruk's Port, was strangely underdeveloped. An idea could be gleaned of what Westmarch was, but it was very hectic. A clearer vision of Tauruk's Port was in store for the reader, but it, too, seemed a bit lacking.
Finally, one reaches the ending, and the ending both had something good and something bad to it. The goodness of the ending was found in the collision of the characters and the relatively interesting way things unfolded, but the bad was found in the fact that the collision of the characters was missing something AND the way the end came out was very unmemorable.
In fact, I remembered it so, so much more differently than it actually happened, as I had read the book previously, that I was wondering just how much of it I had come up with myself. It was unsatisfying, very much so, but the remainder of the story was very magical.
Ghosts, ghouls, demons, wizards, prophecies, legendary magic swords, physically and verbally abusive dads, children contemplating suicide - what's not to love?
Well, the way the ending comes around, because the last two pages of the book were fantastic.
One other thing that is really impactful and important. Throughout most of the story, Darrick Lang, who is the Main Character, seems to be very reactive and very passive to things. He does not initiate events in the book, but is, rather, nudged forwards by things that happen to him. In fact, most of the plot just happens to Darrick and he is forced to partake.
The gate? Well, the nephew ordered him to do that. The change of job? Well, his crew abandoning him makes that happen to him. The quest to kill the demon? Well, Taramis. The magic sword? Mat. Literally everything, safe for the final fight against Kabraxis - I do really mean the fight? Someone else.
With how many things I've pointed at, it feels as though the score should be slightly lower than that, but it was competently done, and I like competence. 2/3
Legendary Point
Does this book get the Legendary Point, so craved and wanted by all and none at the same time? Well…
I somehow want to. I really want to, because reading this book reminded me of the way a management game goes, where one starts off their religion (if we take the thing in the book) and builds it up slowly. I found that really fascinating and really enjoyed reading about it.
However, at the same time, I can't make myself give this book the legendary point, somehow, because… Well, because. Because I did not remember the book well enough and there was a number of things that surprised me pleasantly, but then there were things that surprised me far more unpleasantly? I can't quite put my finger on it. Maybe it was the ending? Maybe it was the destiny thing? Maybe it simply is that I do not want to give it as high a score as it would get if I were to add this point?
Ah, what does it matter, I liked the concept of 'Religion establishment'. I also liked the concept of healing being far easier than harming. So YES, it does get the legendary point. 1/1
Conclusion
8/10. This is a good read. Sure, it might not be the best choice for children, or the best choice for religious, and very insecure about it, people, but it's a decent read for nearly anyone. Fans of fantasy and Diablo should definitely give it a read.
I tuck it under my belt, another shining achievement that I proudly display. If only the finish was better…