I found Chthon in a used bookstore and impulse bought it because I loved the name and the back-cover blurb. It then sat on my shelf for more than a year, as most of my impulse buys do. Eventually, wanting to read something on the short side (in between entries in the Wheel of Time series), I pulled Chthon off the shelf for some light reading.
Do not pull Chthon off the shelf for some light reading.
To be clear, I mostly enjoyed the read. Chthon is dark, moody, dangerous, and at times thoughtful. The prose is skillfully written, when the book isn't being purposefully inscrutable. Some developments in the story manage a shock. Though personally, I had predicted some of the major developments early on, because they were seeded all throughout. I don't think these developments were intended to be twists. Rather, it is the inevitability of the disturbing, repulsive, and tragic that gives the rest of the story its tension and weight.
One of the novel's gimmicks is its flashback and flashforward chapters. Some have remarked that the book is confusing because of this. I can't say I felt confused, but certainly the effect is disorienting. Add that to the list of effects the author may have intended. Either way, the structure serves to obscure elements of the plot and the nature of the protagonist, Aton, from the reader. In this way, almost every chapter is revelatory. That being said, Aton is just an entire heap of shit. He's violent, selfish, manipulative, and spiteful. There are sections of the story where you can suspend your hatred of him and he certainly seems capable of good. But on closer inspection it seems pretty clear that he's only ever looking out for himself. Aton's actions routinely cause harm to others, oftentimes intentionally. I've come across other reviews from folks who interpreted the ending as Aton's redemption. If it was intended to be, it's unjustified and silly. Aton never confronts any of the horrible things he's done, never self-reflects on his various and sundry misdeeds. His circumstances change. He adapts to them. But Aton never undergoes meaningful change himself. Did Piers Anthony intend the end to be a redemption? I don't know. I hope not. Aton is a villain when the book starts, and there's no reason to believe he's fundamentally different by the end. After all, he ends the story in the same state as he begins, willingly entering a metaphorical underworld.
But I found the end hopeful regardless: not in the form of Aton, but in the form of a crystalline alien intelligence whose outlook on life and humanity change just by witnessing one event of human kindness. With just that one event, the crystal becomes sure that there is something in humanity worthy of existence. That's my whole take: sentient crystals are pretty dope, actually. Before you read the book, be aware it has some nasty stuff in it. Content warning: extreme violence, gore, body horror, rape
Plot: 7 Characters: 7 Themes: 6 Prose: 7 Overall score: Oedipus-myth-is-tedious/10
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