Undermajordomo Minor

Starred review from June 8, 2015
In his delightful and dark new novel, Booker nominee deWitt brings his amusingly off-kilter vision to a European folk tale. After nearly dying from an illness that claims his father, Lucy Minor, a bored and pompous young man, leaves his fairy tale–like hamlet of Bury to begin a new life as assistant to the majordomo at Castle Von Aux. Just getting there proves to be an adventure: Lucy is beset by thieves, learns of his predecessor’s awful fate, and is relieved of his last coin by Adolphus, an exceptionally handsome soldier fighting a war in the forest. Once at the castle, Lucy befriends the thieves who robbed him, competes with Adolphus for the love of the beguiling Klara, and attempts to restore the Baron Von Aux to sanity. Lucy’s earnest actions only create more trouble when a dinner party descends into grotesque bacchanalia, a lecherous guest loses his teeth, and Adolphus makes a final play for Klara’s heart, driving Lucy to the edge of the Very Large Hole, where he vacillates between killing himself and someone else. DeWitt (The Sisters Brothers) uses familiar tropes to lull the reader into a false sense of grounding, delivering with abundant good humor a fully realized, consistently surprising, and thoroughly amusing tale of longing, love, madness, and mirth. Agent: Peter McGuigan, Foundry Literary + Media.

July 1, 2015

The latest from deWitt (The Sisters Brothers) has the feel of a folk or fairy tale but without any overt magic or fantasy elements and takes place in an unnamed (but vaguely European) place and no particular time period. Lucien "Lucy" Minor leaves his village for a domestic position in the mysterious castle of a mad baron. On his journey, he meets a pair of pickpockets, Memel and Mewe, with whom he eventually becomes friends. Lucy is soon romantically entangled with Memel's daughter, Klara, who is also being pursued by arrogant soldier Alphonse, fighting a war whose meaning or purpose is unclear. With Lucy's devil-may-care attitude and penchant for lying, he faces threats from many quarters yet always manages to escape unscathed. VERDICT This novel's cheeky tone, dry wit, and dark undercurrents call to mind William Goldman's The Princess Bride and the work of Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett. While the story seems to meander at times, by the end, all the pieces fit neatly into the author's carefully crafted design. Slight but recommended for the fun and whimsy of its storytelling. [See Prepub Alert, 3/9/15.]--Christine DeZelar-Tiedman, Univ. of Minnesota Libs., Minneapolis

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.