inferior by peadar guiln marketed in

The Inferior by Peadar � Guil�n

Marketed in places as YA and others as science fiction, Peadar �

Guil�n's debut novel, The Inferior, defies easy categorization. By the

end of the novel we can firmly place it in the realm of science

fiction, but elements early on lend an equally `fantastic' feel.

Plot-wise and thematically, The Inferior reads like a YA that crosses

over well into an adult audience - though I'd suggest is should be a

mature YA audience with things like cannibalism and rape occurring.

Stopmouth exists in the shadow of his older brother - a brilliant

hunter and strategist with ambitions of one day becoming chief.

Handicapped by a stutter and the resulting lack of confidence,

Stopmouth simply strives to stay alive and useful to his tribe in the

bitter world they live in - a post-apocalyptic shell of a world with

only poisonous plants forces sentient species to hunt each other's

flesh for food. Times grow harder when two rival species inexplicably

learn how to communicate with each other, coordinating their efforts

to gain flesh. At the same time one of the mysterious `orbs' from the

roof (sky) crashes, and with it a human like none of the tribe has

ever seen.

This is a coming-of-age story - our young hero overcomes personal

limitations and excels. In this respect the story does little that

surprises, though the character growth of Stopmouth satisfies with in

the context of the story.

Thematic elements challenge the idea of inferiority (as the title

itself implies) throughout the book. Stopmouth continually faces those

that feel he is inferior, while harboring his thoughts of superiority

over others. Nearly every interaction between humans (and the other

sentient species) comes back to this concept. This YA thematic

approach is neither too simplistic nor obvious to alienate the more

mature reader.

� Guil�n excels with the presentation of his world - a Darwinian

nightmare where a variety of sentient species battle for survival and

dinner. The horrors of this harsh world truly come alive his

utilization of third-person perspective from the point of view of

Stopmouth. � Guil�n must have had a load of fun dreaming up different

species, their characteristics and various ways to eat each other.

The biggest failing of The Inferior is the lack of a coherent

direction. There is no single antagonist spanning the novel and only a

vague goal that abruptly changes focus. This might have been an

attempt at some amount of `realism' or a product of this being the

introductory book of a trilogy, but at times the plot seems to just

ramble on.

The Inferior kicks off The Bone World trilogy - annoyingly, there is

no mention anywhere on the book itself that I could find that

indicates this book is the first of a trilogy. That being said, I

think that this could be read as a satisfying stand-alone if you can

accept open-ended endings. A lot of questions remain, but in terms of

character development, the end is well placed (of course I do look

forward to seeing what happens later).

The Inferior is a solid debut that should appeal to both a mature YA

and an adult audience. I look forward to seeing where � Guil�n takes

us with The Deserter later this year. 7/10

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