Once More Into The Timbers Of Fennario

I pivoted on my selection of a yarn to accompany a long road trip — and I am most pleased. With 300+ miles and six hours to fill, Douglass Hoover stalked in and poached my attention. I enjoyed his The Sarvàn  a great deal, and when I discovered that his other novels are included “free” with Audible, well, that made up my mind.

Anyways…

All of Hoover’s work runs among the timbers of Fennario, the liminal space where outdoor adventure, history, ancient folklore… and horror… meet. I had been aware of his work for some time, but had not plunged in. Now I’m all the way in.

The Accursed Huntsman is set in a remote forest in Nova Scotia, on Mi’kmaq land. It brings to bear ancient legends of the Celtic fringe, and in these timbers of Fennario, the wolves are running’ round, and there is at least 600 pounds of sin awaiting atonement.

An ancient wooden barrier buried deep in the granite cliffs of Nova Scotia’s rural coastline. A long abandoned Victorian mansion sighing in the salty ocean breeze. A patchwork team of nobodies ready to breathe new life into humanity’s most ancient mystery.

Haunted by the hunting accident that took both his leg and the life of his best friend, wilderness guide Jack Steward exists on the wooded fringes of society. When an infamously foolhardy millionaire offers Jack the means to reconcile his past wrongs in exchange for participating in a remote archaeological dig along the coast of Nova Scotia, Jack straps on his worn prosthetic and ventures forth into a world of mystery, deceit, and horror. Little does Jack know that the mismatched gang of killers, junkies, has-beens, and frauds he is about to join will uncover an artifact that will shake the very foundation of history, and maybe even grant him the ability to defeat the demons of his past. However, the expedition also unearths a horrific truth – the artifact wasn’t the only thing hiding deep under the Nova Scotian cliffs…

This is just the kind of yarn for this time of year, and the audio format suits it perfectly. Dylan Wheeler executes the reading flawlessly. I fired it up the minute I got into the rental car in Bend and listened for six hours with scarcely an interruption all the way to Wenatchee, Washington. Finished it just as I pulled into a gas station in Goldendale on the return trip.

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The Accursed Huntsman invokes the legend of the Welsh Prince Madoc, replete with alternate archaeological theories. The legend has deep roots in America, and even informed the work of the Corps of Discovery. From the BBC:

The story goes that in 1170 Owain died and, almost immediately, a violent and very bloody dispute arose between his 13 children regarding the succession. Madoc and his brother Rhirid were so upset and angered by events that they decided they wanted no further part in what was happening. Indeed, they wanted nothing more to do with their family or their homeland. They duly took ship from Rhos on Sea (Llandrillo) and sailed westwards to see what they could find.

What Prince Madoc found, so the legend runs, was America. He and his brother managed to cross the Atlantic and land on the shores of the New World. Madoc returned to Gwynedd for more men, then sailed off again, this time never to return. His sailors inter-married with a local Native American tribe and for years the rumour of Welsh speaking Native American tribes was widely believed. It is, of course, the stuff of legend but like all good legends it has at least a grain of truth about it.

As America was explored and colonised several Native American tribes were discovered, speaking a language that did actually sound quite like Welsh. That was not the only connection. The Mandan Indians used Bull Boats for transport and fishing, vessels that were identical to the famous Welsh coracles. It was all too good for storytellers and poets to ignore. The legend lasted well into the 19th century and even the explorers Lewis and Clark were instructed to keep their eyes open for these “Welsh speaking Indians” while they were trekking through the interior of the country.

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Also invoked… the Cauldron of Bran the Blessed…

And if you thought you knew the nature of the Wendigo, well…

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There is a symphonic poem titled The Accursed Huntsman (Le Chasseur maudit)  in which…

“César Franck depicts the wrath that is meted out upon a huntsman for his failure to observe the Sabbath. Condemned to be pursued by Hell’s demons for eternity, the fear is palpable as the music builds to a frenetic climax.”