Maske: Thaery-Jack Vance novel, book review

Maske: Thaery-Jack Vance novel

Maske: Thaery was first published in 1976 and is currently available in a high quality paperback edition by Spatterlight Press.  My Berkeley/Putnam out of print hardcover copy is 181 pages long.

Maske is a planet and Thaery is a region on the planet that is composed of 13 different "districts" or "counties".  The district our main character, Jubal Droad, is from is called Glentlin.  People from Glentlin are known as Glints and are considered independent and proud but also rather crude and boisterous.  For many years Glentlin was independent from the 12 districts of Thaery whose people were called Thariots.  But the Glints were conquered after three centuries of piracy and conflict so that Glentlin is now one of the 13 districts of Thaery. 

The original inhabitants of the planet are called Saidanese (homo moras) and cannot interbreed with homo gaeas, the people from the planet of Diosophede who came to Maske many years ago to settle in Thaery.  The Saidanese were pushed out of Thaery and now live mostly in the region called Djanad so are also known as Djans.  Djans are famous for their exotic hand made rugs and are widely employed as laborers by the Thariots.  The Thariots also employ specially trained warrior Djans known as “perrupters.”  But Djans, for reasons that are explained, only seem to get along with one another when in groups of four.

Jubal is the second son in an aristocratic Glint family.  When his father dies his older brother assumes responsibility for the Droad home and family affairs.  Jubal is free to do as he pleases and decides to go on a Yallow, a rite of passage to adulthood whereby a young Thariot (of either sex) contemplates life while wandering through the thirteen counties of Thaery to work on the land by planting trees, repairing trails, clearing thickets, and performing other public service tasks.

Jubal is working in the countryside repairing a trail in the hills when a man leading a group of riders begins to enter the trail that is being repaired.  Jubal yells out a warning to him that the trail is too unstable, but the man intentionally ignores him and continues on.  The trail collapses with some of the debris falling on Jubal.  None of the men on horseback are injured but Jubal is seriously hurt.  After Jubal recovers from his injuries he wants revenge on this man who ignored his warnings and caused the accident.  He eventually learns that the man is Ramus Ymph, an arrogant nobleman from a powerful family.

After Jubal finishes performing his “Yallow” duties his uncle provides him with a letter of introduction to an important man in the city of Wysrod.  This man, Nai the Hever, offers Jubal a job as a Sanitary Inspector in the Department of Sanitation with minimal pay.  At first Jubal is taken aback by being offered such a lowly job, but he learns that the Department of Sanitation is a cover for Nai the Hever's spy network.  Jubal soon encounters opportunities (and pay) far beyond the scope of an ordinary Sanitary Inspector.  His first assignment is to investigate his enemy, Ramus Ymph, the man who nearly killed him when the trail in the hills collapsed.

Thariots are forbidden to travel to other planets, but Jubal provides evidence to Nai the Hever that Ramus Ymph has secretly been going off planet.  In one of his first assignments Jubal is assigned to visit another planet to track down Ramus Ymph to determine why he is going off planet.  He makes a trip a half a million miles away to the city of Kyash on the planet of Eiselbar where tourists are highly valued and music is an obsession.  Every person living there or visiting is expected to play out loud "personal music" also called "chote" when in public through a "musical adjunct" that is worn on the shoulders.  One cannot become too lackadaisical while walking and listening to the music, however, because "mobile slime" are almost everywhere on the planet and a false step off a protected path can bring painful stings or even death.  After careful investigation Jubal learns that Ramus Ymph is involved with marketing rare Dijan rugs from Maske in order to finance the purchase of a space ship.

Jubal is called away during a family crisis in Glentlin.  After returning home and dealing with the problem he begins to suspect that Ramus Ymph was also involved with his family affairs.  When Ymph leaves Thaery by sailboat, Jubal teams up with a Sea Nationalist friend and follows.  After arriving at the destination we learn about the mysterious tree worshipers called Waels from Wellas who came to the planet with the other Thariots but went their own way culturally and religiously.  Jubal is also able to learn  the secret of why Ymph has been traveling off world and getting involved with so many plots and intrigues.  The ending is very creative.

In the novel there is some fascinating world building and imaginative descriptions of different people, regions and planets.  In addition to learning about the history and people of Thaery, the music obsessed people on Eiselbar, and the Waels with their tree worshipping and their magical "Minie" who seems to disappear at will, we also learn about the Sea Nationalists who rule the seas, fortress-fish that try to harpoon sailing ships, and a secret Pan-Djan Binadary that appears to be dedicated to the expulsion of all Thariots from Maske.  Jubal is developed as a main character and others are presented in about as much detail as one can expect in such a short novel.  There are also a number of humorous and satirical scenes.  The plot is minimal but, as usual for Vance, the novel is very well written.  Maske: Thaery is more of a fantasy, adventure, and investigative novel than science fiction, though.

Maske: Thaery is also a novel that is dense with details, and I frequently referred back to the three page introduction or other sections of the book as I read it.  Because of this, it is probably better suited to Vance fans than to general readers.  Although Maske-Thaery is not one of Vance's really great novels, it is a very fascinating. I have read this novel twice so far and thoroughly enjoyed reading it both times and continue to rate it a 4 “Really liked it.”