PAVANE
by Keith Roberts
I wish I’d written this ...
... because it’s mesmerising.
A marvellous, beautifully written and utterly beguiling novel. It’s a “fix up,” comprised of six interconnected stories that together paint a picture of an alternate history in which Britain remains under the sway of the Catholic church. Roberts was a very visual writer (unsurprising, since he was also an accomplished illustrator), and his descriptions of landscapes, seascapes, castles and villages spring fully fledged into the mind’s eye. His characters, too, are wonderfully realised, all eccentric, passionate and uneasy in the world they inhabit. And what a remarkable world it is—one in which discontent gradually builds toward rebellion, while, simultaneously, the “Old Ones” lurk out on the moors, among the ancient stone circles, where perhaps the true heart of England can be found. PAVANE is rightfully regarded as a classic. I highly recommend it.
From the publisher
In the year 1588, Queen Elizabeth was assassinated. That single tragedy set off a whole series of events, resulting in the Spanish Armada's defeat of England and subsequent demise of Protestantism. Now it's the 20th century, and the Church of Rome reigns supreme. People live a pastoral existence of guilds and farming, with technology held back to the level of the steam locomotive and primitive radio. Still, science cannot be held back forever ... a revolution is building.
