Sir Hereward & Mister Fitz by Garth Nix

Source: NetGalley, thank to Harper for the arc!
TL;DR: A collection of very fun, classic fantasy stories about a knight and a magical puppet. It surprised me and made me laugh out loud several times. If Fantasy shorts are your cup of tea – this is a great pickup.

Plot: The nucleus of each story is ‘destroy the bad godlet’ but outside of that the plots are distinct and interesting
Characters: Our main reoccurring characters, Hereward and Fitz, gave me Holmes and Watson vibes. Secondary characters had little to no staying power
Setting: Honestly I thought I was reading historical fiction at first, but the world evolves into something I desperately want more of. Where are these godlets coming from? What happened to the council?
Magic: The magic was the most interesting part to me. Though it’s not super built up and explained it was unique and fascinating.

Thoughts:

Sir Hereward and Mister Fitz are not what I expected, but I’m very happy to have read the stories of their journeys. The two, a knight and his sorcerous puppet companion, travel their realm in search of proscribed godlets. Think eldritch beings that have slipped into the world and are consuming and taking up power from the world and humanity. They have been tasked by a council to remove these godlets from this plane and sending them on to the next. They meet people, make friends and all the fun stuff while they’re out and about and the stories are short, snappy and exceptionally fun.

As far as characters and world go we get the bare minimum, but it works. There is enough humor and the attention to the world and the details that are needed at that moment carry the stories. I won’t remember the side characters, or the exact details of the settings but I will remember the antics or the way the purple light from Mister Fitz’s needle flashed. And that for me is great sign. The interactions and the uniqueness of the setting and stories carried them ultimately.

They’re not perfect stories by any stretch but for me they’re unique and fun in a way that a lot of short stories aren’t always. I never quite guessed where they would go (looking at you, Starfish Godlet) but I enjoyed the ride. I’d read a full length novel of these two or another collection in a heartbeat. If you like fantasy short stories and really enjoy a buddy cop/Sherlock and Watson style dynamic these are the stories for you.