Where the mighty cannot, they will send the Cauldron
Much to the frustration of Edmund Kociołek, the protagonist of the novel, he is not allowed to experience a peaceful life after his incredible adventures in Smoke. For once again the magnates bother him to save the Valley. Three princely siblings, Yanna, Stefan and Rupert, come to a secret meeting to discuss the fate of their lands at our hero’s inn. One of the main tasks assigned to Kociołek is to find the duke’s knight, the brave Pogorzałek, who disappeared in the title Hungry Forest after he became united with the trolls.
Evil goes to attack again and takes the trolls with him!
At first, the Cauldron flatly refuses, even when he hears an unbelievable amount of payment for his sacrifice. However, with time – horror! – even his own wife urges him to leave, because he knows deep down his husband wants it. And although the journey begins with an innocent escort of the poor priest Dola to the distant cottage cheese, then – of course – things get complicated and the brave innkeeper and his team end up in the Hungry Forest, which has its own rules. It is also there that the heroes meet a legendary creature called the Man, who – yes, you guessed it right – is something like a centaur and has great magical powers. Is Man in fact the messenger of the Evil One, as is commonly believed?
Although our heroes are taken prisoner, they eventually manage to find Pogorzałek, and then many things are explained. With Gwidon, the cruel agent of the Evil One and the would-be husband of Princess Yanna, the knight fought a fight, which almost caused him to lose his life, and his despairing wife, Yosanna, asked the newcomers to help him heal him. She herself will also have an invaluable influence on subsequent events.
The action spins off rapidly and again it’s hard to believe that all the events took place in just over a week! Slowly but surely, we discover Gwidon’s plan, and the brilliant Cauldron realizes that Evil’s three-eyed agent is about to try to take over Smoke again. This time, the demon has an army of trolls in his ranks, whom he wants to trick into the city. Will the cook and his fearless friends frustrate his plans?
The farther into the forest …
The second part of the series develops the threads of the first part, and significantly expands the world created by Mortka. Relations between the heroes develop, especially between the Cauldron and his companions. In addition, we learn more about the characters’ past and personalities. For example, the essential nature of the Urgo is revealed, as he turns his back on friends to serve Doli, a kind of religion he values above all values. He does not lose his good heart, however, and when he sees the deception of the high priest, Goderus, he quickly corrects his mistake. We learn what motivates him, and although he seems inconsiderate and dumbfounded at first, we begin to understand his actions.
A large part of the story focuses on the mysterious sorcerer, Żychłon. The character that fascinated me the most in the first part turns out to be even more interesting and complicated here. For most of the heroes’ journeys, he studies a book in which he finds the missing magical knowledge. In the end, it turns out extremely perversely that this book was given to him by the elf Eliah (seemingly indifferent to everything), and it is … a primer for young trolls to learn! By learning about glyphs and constructing the appropriate signs, the sorcerer finally has enormous magical power, which is very useful for the entire team.
The author in Głodna Puszcza places the dwarf Gramma in a historical context. The foreman repeatedly boasts of his father’s brave deeds in the times of the feud. This way a broader picture of the entire dwarven nation appears, which until now has appeared as a people indifferent to the rest of the world. Now we notice that the dwarves are not only able to fight for their own, but also forge alliances to fight for the common good alongside other races.
Another character expansion concerns the Pet goblin. We get to know other creatures of this breed with which the Animal, although it does not want to deal with, gets along quite well. Goblins are a fantastic and interesting tribe – extremely organized, but rather living in the shadows. I was absolutely touched by an excerpt from the book in which my fellow tribesmen worked in a group: “All the time they were humming a song without words, fully focused on their tasks. Every few bars, everyone stopped work to clap a few times or stamp in unison ”. This explains the musical passion of the Animal and his almost incessant playing the pipe. Goblins are great builders, which Gwidon takes advantage of and hires them overpaid to make 13 rafts for his troll army to attack Smoke.
The trolls are the next, extremely interesting tribe that was rightly given a lot of attention in the Hungry Forest. Initially, I was surprised that Pogorzałek, after all a positive figure, made an alliance with the trolls, so aggressive and impetuous. Everything lightened up when the author identified three different tribes of trolls: Speakers – the most civilized, developmental and articulate, having their own City; Wrzasklaków – the most dangerous and wildest, cooperating with Gwidon; Whispers – living closest to nature, quiet and peaceful, who with time learned to resemble trees, and then began to completely change into them. The spiritual dimension of the life of trolls, whose souls after death turn into … black pearls, was also touched! It is a pity that the author did not take the topic further and outlined more of the intriguing history of these tribes. Maybe in the next part?
Fantastic multi-Kulti
Marcin Mortka is really great at building a diverse society. Such multi-cult in a fantasy world. And, as I wrote in the review There is no bad, many races are structured in clichéd patterns (crazy dwarf-smith, cynical elven-loner, etc.), which are usually found in authors of this type of literature. Here, however, these patterns are broken, and in the second part of his cycle, the author gives more complicated features to individual races and tribes. For example, it is innovative to introduce matriarchy to the Speakers, who are the most developed group of trolls, in which the Cauldron itself – a human – feels inferior. For my taste, the author pays tribute to this type of system, or at least gives food for thought when the troll Aiana during a (by the way, strange) meeting with our hero, explains to him: respect, which in politics is called matriarchy. Try it out at home sometime. I recommend”.
This is just one of the many manifestations of feminism in the novel. Another is the fact that almost all female characters are strong characters and respected, important members of the community. Starting with Sarah, Edmund’s wife, through the slightly over-emancipated Duchess Yanna, and ending with Pogorzałek’s extremely wise, courageous, affectionate and fearless wife, Yosanna. The latter has probably become my favorite heroine of the novel. After all, in order to jump into my husband’s armor, when he lacks strength, mount his horse and save his allies from a terrible and ruthless demon, you really need to … Hm.
Nevertheless, one should return to earth, which I do with a heavy heart, and then I discover again, like reading the first part, that it is all highly idealized. The author seems to be a utopian, which makes his work lose realism. Though it might not be worth talking about realism in the case of a fantasy work?
It is not the end?
From the end of the story, it can be concluded that the next part of the adventures of the extraordinary team will appear. Chaos in the thoughts of Kociołek on the last page of the novel and an attempt to tame them, doubts about his own nature (a host-household member or perhaps an adventurer) – all this raises many doubts also in the reader’s mind. I am already expecting the third part. And more trolls in it, please!eliza sicińska
