Dance of the Goblins by Jaq D. Hawkins

Synopsis

Haghuf, respected elder among the unseen goblins, has only scorn for humans. Yet he is drawn into friendship with a human aristocrat by the Dance, the celebration of life that holds the goblin society together in a world where nature has moved to cleanse itself of the ravages of human exploitation.

Count Anton - human, magician, shapeshifter rules the human world above despite the conflict between the religious ideals of the common people and his own close society of magicians who live quietly among them. Anton wanders freely within the underground world of the goblins, gathering information on their society under the assumed protection of his friendship with Haghuf.

When an unwitting human wanders accidentally into the caverns, a series of events is set into motion that will lead fanatical humans into an invasion of the underground goblin world. Count Anton’s friendship with Haghuf leads him to betray his loyalty to his own people to avoid a war that the humans cannot possibly win. It is his fascination for Talla, a goblin succubus, that may tip the delicate balance between the human and goblin worlds.

Hunted by humans who feel he has betrayed them by his friendship with the goblins, and unwelcome in the goblin world where all humans are considered the enemy, he will be thrown into a deeper world, where even the goblins have reason to be afraid.

Review

This one is slightly Dark Fantasy in the Traditional Fantasy genre.

The story begins several generations after a planetary disaster reduced the human population so much that society as we know it collapsed and a feudal way of life developed. Hand crafts, swordplay and a certain amount of superstition make this new society resemble the Dark Ages with a few exceptions where current modern life left its mark.

The humans are ruled by a group of magicians led by Count Anton. The reason he isn't King Anton becomes clear later in the story and will appeal to Larpers. This is a book where you definitely don't want to skip the prologue! An accidental encounter between human and goblin sets things in motion and essential information about goblin magic comes through. Part of the goblin magic is that they express their spirituality in ecstatic dance, which explains the title.

I found the dynamics between humans and goblins a very interesting contrast of cultures and the writing style very easy to read. The magic is often subtle with a bit of shapeshifting, some psychic ability and plausible things like weather magic. The goblin society is very different to that of the humans by necessity, as they don't breed easily and to keep their species going requires a female-led approach to breeding.

There is exposition and world building as well as action and this will most likely appeal to those who like watching a Fantasy world come alive, like LotR readers. It's one of my all time favourite Fantasy series and worlds.