Cullen's freshman effort, the first in a fantasy trilogy loosely based on the ancient Irish epic Táin Bó Cúailnge
, fails to do justice to its inspiration. When Bricriu Poisontongue is tricked into falling into a dung heap, he retaliates by stealing the Chalice of the Just. This opens the Great Rift, setting evil free from the Otherworld. Handsome Cumac, son of the mortal hero Cucullen and the love goddess Fand, is sent to Earth to regain the chalice. Cumac searches for Bricriu, gaining renown and a band of Otherworldly heroes along the way. Bricriu must content himself with the company of a hag who, bemoaning her lost beauty, sings: “But now, my bony arms/ Are not worthy of my charms/ And I do not any longer seek/ Youths to favor with my charms.” Though former literature professor Cullen has an obvious understanding and love of myth and legend, his characters feel flat, their motivations petty and their adventures repetitive and predictable. (Feb.)
