Release Date: May 9th 2023
Publisher: Angry Robot Books
Pages: 388
Find it on: Goodreads. Waterstones.
Source: The publisher kindly sent me a copy of this book to review
Rating: 3.25/5 stars

Synopsis

March’s End is a multi-generational portal fantasy of strange magics, epic warfare, and deadly intrigue, in which the personality conflicts and toxic struggles of the Harrow family are reflected in the fantasy world they’ve sworn to protect.

The Harrows are a typical suburban family who, since time immemorial, have borne a sacred and terrible charge. In the daylight they are teachers, doctors, bartenders and vagrants, but at night they are the rulers and protectors of the March, a fantastical secondary world populated with animate antiquated toys and sentient lichen, a panorama of the impossible where cities are carried on the backs of giant snails, and thunderstorms can be subdued with song.

But beneath this dreamlike exterior lie dark secrets, and for generation after generation the Harrows have defended the March from the perils that wait outside its borders – when they are not consumed in their own bitter internecine quarrels.

In the modern day the Harrow clan are composed of Sophia, the High Queen of the March, a brilliant, calculating matriarch, and her three children – noble Constance, visionary, rebellious Mary Ann, and clever, amoral Will. Moving back and forth between their youth, adolescence, and adulthood, we watch as this family fractures, then reconciles in the face of a conflict endangering not only the existence of the March, but of the ‘real world’ itself.

THE MARCH’S END is a book about growing up, in which the familial struggles of the Harrows are threaded through the mythic history of the fantastical land they protect. It is a story of failure and redemption, in which the power of love is tested against forces that seek to break it, and the necessity of each generation to recreate itself is asserted.

Review

I really enjoyed Daniel Polansky’s Empty Throne books so I was really intrigued to try something else from them. March’s End is a Narnia style story which follows the Harrow family who on the surface look like a normal, everyday family but are also the rulers of a magical world known as the March. When the March is threatened by the End, the Harrow siblings must reconcile their differences and work together to stop the End not only destroying the March but spilling to the human world too.

March’s End has a really intriguing premise and the story is a compelling one, however, the story does skip around quite a bit, following Sophia, Constance, Mary-Ann and John in the past and present as well as in the real world and in the March. I found all the jumping around a bit difficult to follow and that meant I was less invested in the story. Polansky has a really engaging writing style and I was fascinated by the world of the March and the wide variety of creatures that made up this world.

The thing I found most compelling about March’s End wasn’t so much the magical world and the battle against the End, but the siblings and their family dynamics. Constance, Mary-Ann and John are fascinating characters, each having a coming of age story as they deal with growing up in the real world and the expectations of being a Harrow of the March. I really liked how the dynamics of the siblings changed as the story progressed, particularly as John attempts to rival Constance for the throne.

March’s End is a clever story and one I think fantasy fans will really enjoy. March’s End is definitely a fresh take on the Narnia tale and while it wasn’t a new favourite I am definitely keen to read more from Daniel Polansky.