Malazan Empire: polishgenius - Viewing Profile - Malazan Empire

Fair enough.

I guess I just assumed from the description of 'Garfield is the leader of the rebellion' that he was, you know, the leader of the rebellion, but that's marketing for you. If he's not playing Tyler that makes the project a lot more palatable.

QuickTidal, on 27 August 2026 - 04:36 PM, said:

I don't mind it at all as an origin story and setting for Robin Hood. I'm just not sure about making him into Wat Tyler, specifically.

QuickTidal, on 27 August 2026 - 02:46 PM, said:

I can't really speak to what sources your friend has and I'm not a historian, but while his first known appearances being in the 1300s and it only being later pushed back is a known thing, I've never ever heard his origins linked to Wat Tyler- and a quick scan over wikipedia now tells me that the earliest known mentions of him- in passing but in a manner that says it was already a known story orally then- predates the Peasants Revolt.

I suppose it's plausible that at some point or another some details from that did get added to the legend, but nothing specific about Tyler and the revolt lines up with the tropes of Robin Hood, except that resistance to authority and societal injustice is involved.

I like Robin Hood stories but I think linking his legend to a real historical person and series of events that definitely had nothing to do with Robin Hood and the rise of that legend is a weird choice.

I read Victoria Goddard's The Bone Harp, a standalone of hers (completely standalone- not in her Nine Worlds sequence) that is, essentially, an after-the-Silmarillion take, about what happens when the last Son of Feanor finally finds his rest, and tries to learn to accept it. Putting it that starkly seems an ungenerous way to describe it, but there's really no beating around the bush- there's some differences in both character and lore/worldbuilding in order to make the story work, but it is unquestionably what it is.


What it also is, however, is wonderful. I love Goddard's writing so much. This is the fifth book of hers I've read and I love them all. They're all different too.

What works well here is that Goddard doesn't forget that, in amongst all the epic grandness and hubristic tragedy, Tolkien's elves were also extra as fuck and capable of being silly and fun. Goddard's writing can itself be pretty extra, and while she doesn't write specifically like Tolkien really at all, she has enough lyricism that it works for what she's trying.


Which is not a story of the epic tales. Although they're mentioned here, in passing and in flashback- Tamsin has to reckon with his past- what this is about recovering from the epic tales.



It's not gonna be for everyone- even more than usual, she goes for a lot of flourishes, including in this instance a fair bit of repetition-for-effect, and given what it's about the pacing is not a typical adventure. But for those for whom it clicks, it's gonna really click.