Book Review: Empire of Wild by Cherie Dimaline
Goodreads Description: Broken-hearted Joan has been searching for her husband, Victor, for almost a year--ever since he went missing on the night they had their first serious argument. One terrible, hungover morning in a Walmart parking lot in a little town near Georgian Bay, she is drawn to a revival tent where the local Métis have been flocking to hear a charismatic preacher named Eugene Wolff. By the time she staggers into the tent, the service is over. But as she is about to leave, she hears an unmistakable voice.
She turns, and there Victor is. The same face, the same eyes, the same hands. But his hair is short and he's wearing a suit and he doesn't recognize her at all. No, he insists, she's the one suffering a delusion: he's the Reverend Wolff and his only mission is to bring his people to Jesus. Except that, as Joan soon discovers, that's not all the enigmatic Wolff is doing.
With only the help of Ajean, a foul-mouthed euchre shark with a knowledge of the old ways, and her odd, Johnny-Cash-loving, 12-year-old nephew Zeus, Joan has to find a way to remind the Reverend Wolff of who he really is. If he really is Victor. Her life, and the life of everyone she loves, depends upon it.
My Review: For a genre with a capacity for incredible flexibility, urban fantasy often finds itself stalling over the same set of overused tropes that inhibit innovation or creativity. Compared to some other genres, urban fantasy isn't wrapped up in as many restricting 'hallmarks,' yet it constantly pulls from the same pool of myths and interprets them through near-identical white and western perspectives. Fantasy often likes to sand off the cultural markers of mythology to make the narratives more accessible to wider audiences, but this generalization often robs these myths of their more interesting aspects. Watering down mythology has had successes, but it's pervasiveness has also left authors in a creative slump where they don't know how to present this mythology in fresh ways, leading to a stagnation in the genre.
Enter Cherie Dimaline.
As a Metis author, Dimaline tackles urban fantasy through her own cultural lens to provide a fresh perspective on werewolf mythology. In many different ways, this book is about blending old and new, familiar and foreign, whether that's through her use of fantasy and mythology, Indigenous and settler cultures, or traditional and modern ideas. Metis people themselves are a culture somewhere between two others, and this is reflected in the entirety of the book -- the narrative doesn't imply that Indigenous old ways are better, settler ways are better, Indigenous spirituality or Catholicism is better-- it implies that truth can be found more in the middle. Empire of Wild follows many of the traditional narrative beats expected of the urban fantasy genre, but Dimaline contrasts this familiarity with her werewolf -- or rogarou-- which draws from Indigenous legends. Dimaline's cultural perspective also informs character motivations, priorities, power and family dynamics, making the book more than just a different way to present werewolves. Dimaline interweaves aspects of Indigenous and settler culture to create a world and characters that are both incredibly familiar and yet refreshingly new. The novel doesn't shy away from clashes of cultural differences either, and even addresses different forms of the 'wolf' that appear around the world. This bit of worldbuilding reflects the mythological diversity of the real world and creates an impression of a pantheon of living myths, as opposed to presenting one definitive image of this world's 'werewolf.'
Prior to this novel, Dimaline wrote and published YA fiction, the influence of which can be felt through Empire of Wild's pacing and action. Empire of Wild is a fast-paced, action-over-introspection, almost cinematic experience, and while Dimaline does explore narrative tangents that are more common in adult literature, this mostly took place at the beginning of the novel during exposition. While Empire utilizes many YA elements, the content, particularly its tackling of sexuality, especially as a weapon, places it firmly in an adult market. Blending features of both adult and YA fiction makes this novel quite accessible for young adults who want to move out of YA, but find themselves turned off by slower paced, introspective literature.
And finally, the characters. Oh, this band of squishy, lovable idiots. The characters were fleshed out and crafted with their own set of flaws to make them feel like dynamic individuals, yet a personality trait from each was also exaggerated just enough to give them a cartoonish, larger than life feel. While it did break some of the realism, it also allowed the reader to quickly attach to them and gave these guys a chance to really pop off the page through archetypes -- the Sassy Grandma, the Optimistic Kid, the Badass Heroine. Joan carries the story with her no fucks taken attitude, but is also balanced out with a deeply emotional, sensitive side that makes her quite endearing. Ajean is both a source of comedy and wisdom, while Zeus captures a kid who is very mature for their age but still so innocent and vulnerable -- a kid that 'knows' but doesn't fully 'understand.' Even Victor, who spends much of the book as a damsel in distress, managed to capture my heart and hook me deeper into the stakes. Dimaline feels like one of those authors who just gets people, because all her characters come across as both effortlessly real and charming.
All in all, this book is a fun, fantastic read. From cover to cover, the story felt smart and new while still folding itself into familiar genre beats. If you enjoy urban fantasy, I can't recommend this romp with the rogarou enough.
TL;DR: 5/5 stars. Fresh, familiar, fun. A must-read for urban fantasy lovers.
