Book Review: KRAMPUS, THE YULE LORD by Brom

KRAMPUS: THE YULE LORD by Brom (Harper Voyager, October 2012) Hardcover, 357 pages. ISBN # 006209565X / 9780062095657. Chesley Award 2013 Nominee for Best Interior Illustration.

Summary from the Goodreads website . . . . .

Set in Appalachia, Krampus the Yule Lord is a twisted fairytale about a failed West Virginia songwriter who gets ensnared on Christmas Eve in an eternal war between a not-so-saintly Saint Nick and his dark enemy Krampus, aka Black Peter, an ancient trickster demon.

Krampus the Yule Lord is Gregory Maguire (Wicked) meets Susanna Clarke (Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell) in the realm of Guillermo Del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth, as Clive Barker (Mr. B. Gone) works his dark sorcery from the shadows. Once again featuring Brom’s chillingly beautiful artwork throughout, Krampus the Yule Lord is a feast of wonder straight from the kitchen of Sweeney Todd.

My review on the Goodreads website . . . . .

I’m glad I didn't read the blurbs Goodreads provided before diving into this book. If I had, it would have set my expectations too high for the story to ever meet. McGuire, Clarke, Del Toro and Barker in the writing mix? How is that even possible? Perhaps that's why some reviewers didn't care for this at all. I loved it, and was pleasantly surprised. Prior to this I was only familiar with the fantastic Gothic art of Brom, and never realized he was also a writer.

This book is illustrated throughout and Brom's creations are startling, especially the muscle-bound warrior representation of Santa Claus. Krampus has never looked more frightening, while at the same time displaying a streak of mischievousness. He's a party animal who just wants to celebrate the winter solstice and the Yule traditions. He found himself in competition for attention with Santa Claus and his allegedly charitable gift-giving at Christmas-time and lost that fight, removing him from history and the public's memories. Actually, Santa Claus imprisoned Krampus in a cave and left him to rot for centuries.

Brom gives both characters Norse origins and links to both Odin and Loki. I can't tell more without spoilers. In Brom's version Santa Claus is the favored of the two by God. Santa's not entirely on the up and up according to Krampus, and has a devilish history of evil doings. However, Santa amuses God and she permits him to continue with his yearly project, using her sword-wielding angels to protect him and cover up his dirty deeds.

Krampus' escape, revival, and his attempts to get rid of Santa Claus and replace him with a return to the pagan rites of the winter solstice is at the root of this novel. However, it wouldn't be as compelling a read without the insertion of some human drama.

Jesse Walker is the main protagonist in the primary plot thread. He's a fascinating character, and one that is easy to empathize with. He's a struggling guitarist singer-songwriter trying to establish himself and make a living to support his wife and daughter. Unfortunately, he's stuck in a poor West Virginia community nestled in mountainous Appalachia and has to settle for playing at bars, sometimes only for scraps. He lacks the self-confidence to travel to Nashville for a try-out. He supplements his lowly income as a drug messenger for the local criminal kingpin, whose influence reaches as far as the local sheriff's office. Plus, Jesse's wife has left him and is shacking up with the same sheriff.

Everything changes on the night Santa Claus and Krampus interrupt Jesse's life.

Krampus, The Yule Lord is at heart an entertaining accounting of Jesse's struggles to reform, re-unite with his family and move forward. There are well-developed characters throughout the novel. I took my time reading this and savored the chapters. There are great battles, confrontations, heartfelt discussions and humor.

The ending is satisfactory, and Brom even manages to get in a few subtle digs at Christmas traditions, religion, the power of mythology and more. Recommended.