St. Patrick’s Gargoyle is Katherine Kurtz’s
expansion of her short story, “The Gargoyle’s Shadow” from the
anthology In the Shadow of the Gargoyle.
While an enjoyable novel, the book does not work as well as the
original story because Kurtz does not seem to have been able to decide on
the tone she wanted to present in the expanded work.
The original story was a tale at how Paddy, a gargoyle
from St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Dublin, enlisted the aid of Francis
Templeton, a Knight of Malta, in bringing to justice a couple of hooligans
who attacked a verger and stole some of the cathedral’s silver on the one
day of the month the gargoyles are allowed to move about reasonably freely.
This is repeated, almost exactly, in the opening chapters of St.
Patrick’s Gargoyle. Once Paddy is forced to
return to his cathedral (and the original story is concluded), Kurtz follows
the aging Templeton in the aftermath of his strange experience with the
gargoyle.
While not
humorous, the opening chapters are reasonably light-hearted, dealing with
the crime and only incidentally touching on the issues Templeton is facing
as an octogenarian in Dublin. Long
retired, the pride of his life is an ancient Rolls Royce which he uses for
the occasional wedding. His
daughter and son-in-law are trying to convince Templeton that he should give
up driving due to his advanced age and their worry that he is beginning to
decline into senility.
Even as
Templeton tries to fend off their concerns, he finds himself drawn to St.
Patrick’s Cathedral and eventually reunites with Paddy, who needs his help
in obstructing an ancient plot. At
this point, St. Patrick’s
Gargoyle begins to evolve into
a darker story. Kurtz’s sharp
focus on Paddy and Templeton and their growing relationship, however, never
allows the depiction of a strong villain.
Because of this, the sense of danger is never fully defined and their
eventual confrontation with evil is anticlimactic.
Nevertheless,
Kurtz has engaged in an intriguing effort at world-building, envisioning a
modern world in which supernatural forces surround the mundane.
Her Dublin is a mixture of Christian theology and folklore with the
world in which we live. Although
it does not seem to be entirely self-consistent, many of the inconsistencies
are explained away. Kurtz also
notes that her version of the Christian hierarchy is not entirely orthodox,
however the changes she makes are not important within the context of the
story.
Francis
Templeton is a well-drawn, likable character who realizes he is nearing the
end of his life. Although his
strained relationship with his family is a major point of contention, Kurtz
does not dwell on it, instead focusing on his relationship with his godson,
his burgeoning partnership with Paddy and his sense of honor and duty.
Despite his age, he appears to be fully in control of his facilities
and refuses to change to fit his children’s preconceived notions.
St. Patrick’s
Gargoyle may not have as much depth as many of Kurtz’s previous books,
but it accomplishes the same mixture of reality and fantasy which
characterizes her works. Her
gargoyles are believable in the way they function and their background fits
within the mythology and legends which Kurtz has employed.
