Tailchaser's Song

by Tad Williams

Ambitiously Tad Williams has attempted to write a fantasy whose hero is a cat. The story is a quest which begins when Fritti Tailchaser finds that a young female cat, Hushpad, has disappeared in mysterious circumstances. Further cases of vanishing felines and some grisly deaths strike a sinister chord. Something very evil seems to be about to take place, and Fritti soon finds himself setting out to find the cause of the problems.

Williams tries hard to get us to see things from the point of view of the cats, and at times almost succeeds. The trouble is, cats simply don't quest. It's not in their nature to scheme, hold council, fight in an organised manner, or not lie around all the time. And cats, friend or foe, are found behaving in a most un-catlike manner throughout the book. A pact made with the squirrels takes the story straight into Brambly Hedge territory. The characters behave like humans, and the plot only makes sense if that is what you imagine them to be.

The language of the cats is a source of annoyance. We know that animals can't really talk, and readers are prepared to put that aside for the sake of fiction. Why then does Williams invent a tongue, the Higher Singing, which has the reader reaching for the glossary at every page? It's confusing, irrelevant to the story, and far more irritating than plain English.

Tailchaser is just about sympathetic enough to carry you along with him, although he is a little blinkered. Any human being reading would be able to see the twist at the end coming from the time of Hushpad's disappearance.

The motivations of the villains are explained mostly in terms of blind, cringing obedience to their leader. Although we are dealing with cats, they are very much stock characters. The finish leaves a few loose ends hanging and could perhaps do with a little more closure. Then again, I had had enough by that point.

Tailchaser's Song is only distinguishable from the vast majority of sub-standard fantasy in that the main players are all feline. The cat part fails because it comes across as just a gimmick. Other than that it's a standard adventure story. If you still enjoy animal tales with a touch of sword 'n' sorcery, there are far better ones to be found. Not his best work.