The Runes Have Been Cast
Oxford University, England, 1960, and English Literature student Lancelyn is set an essay on the Victorian ghost story by his mysterious tutor, Edward Raven. So begins a tale in which Lancelyn lives life as a mirror of his large library, heavy on magic and ritual sacrifice. He categorises his experiences by the Dewey system, in which ‘women are a subset of 395, etiquette’. When Raven introduces him to the ‘Ignatius immersion’, a deep imagining of himself within the world of a book, Lancelyn is set up for the clash of his two worlds. The historical setting has a strong feel of mid-20th century novels about young men finding their place in the world. The twist is that, rather than aspiring to rise, Lancelyn mourns that the pinnacle of his existence, as a prefect at Eton, is over. However, like other angst-ridden young men of the genre, Lancelyn’s feelings about women include obsession, ignorance, and terror. When a real woman speaks to him, he has no idea how to react.
Farce arises when the real world collides with Lancelyn’s imaginings. After an impromptu séance, Lancelyn begins to see omens wherever he goes. Irwin mocks the insular, arrogant academia of the time, making them extreme and ridiculous. I’m sure that he was satirising when one of his characters wrote that an abused woman ‘had enjoyed being whipped, as all women do,’ but sadly, I didn’t find that line funny.
Readers will enjoy this book more if they are familiar with the many texts referenced. These range from Robert Burton’s Anatomy of Melancholy (1621), to Kingsley Amis’ Lucky Jim (1954). Important plot points hinge on the works of M.R. James and George MacDonald.
