Jonathan N Pruitt, author of The Amber Menhir, has surreptitiously created a fantasy series that eludes the defenses of readers and hastens them into an unexpectedly captivating journey—a journey with purpose. Fans of the ilk of Jordan Peterson and Ayn Rand have perhaps finally found in Pruitt what they’ve been looking for: the next iteration of bold fiction unafraid of tackling major issues in society through blistering metaphor.
Pruitt’s dark fantasy series, The Shadows of the Monolith, entraps readers in a world of ‘deadly power politics and corruption.’ The Amber Menhir, the series’ first installment of five novels, sets the academic world squarely in its sights, captured in a dark fantasy setting. Readers and thought leaders critical of academia’s stewardship, who’ve been waiting for a piece resembling Animal Farm, were it enveloped in high fantasy’s skin, will have their appetites satiated.
Pruitt is no stranger to controversy—in fact, the fallen academic courts it. Emboldened by a past as bombastic as any fiction, Pruitt is not apt to apologize for saying what needs to be said. On the contrary, The Amber Menhir appears to seek backlash, without fear, grazing countless sociopolitical nerves within its pages.
Throughout The Amber Menhir, Pruitt uses the concepts of utopia and dystopia as a lens to evaluate societal issues. Pruitt’s prose walks the tightrope of societal advancement with surprising tact too, as someone’s utopia is also their dystopia, or that of just their neighbor’s. Pruitt’s narratives send a meaningful message with conviction: that the advancement of society must be handled carefully, to maintain a balance between differing concepts of utopian and dystopian within a people, and to prevent any one prevailing philosophy from extinguishing the existence of others.
Pruitt is equipped to describe dark academic settings in an addictively entrancing manner. He’s familiar with the practice of using sound logic to convince society about narratives that are critical to their own interests, and it shows in the powerful efficacy of his debut work. After being engulfed in scandal for years, Pruitt faced great adversity in the debut of his fantasy series, including considerable backlash from the academic world prior to and since The Amber Menhir’s release. Yet, it seems Pruitt is not unaccustomed to ignoring adversity, and rather harnesses his talents to help actualize betterment in our society, through allegorical genius, if just barely.
As a result of his academic abilities, Pruitt was recruited to Canada as one of the world’s greatest minds for the country’s 150th birthday. Although this accolade is prestigious, there is no pretense present in the creation of Pruitt’s debut novel. One to write via bar top with creative inebriation, while editing sober–very Hemingway-esque, Pruitt never speaks down to his audience. Instead, The Amber Menhir embraces the reader, like-minded or not, like a trusted companion, fostering the connection needed to convey its twinned messages.
Authentically biting, dark, and playful humor are intricately laced throughout Pruitt’s debut, tying these flavors together with a signature voice that can’t be duplicated. In the end, despite the tale’s sardonic tone, Pruitt appears to treat all sides of our own society with notable respect, like a just literary adjudicator of the state of our society, and where Pruitt believes it should be headed. Whether one agrees with Pruitt or not, what The Shadows of the Monolith attempts is considerable and brave.
The Amber Menhir is available now. It is not one best suited for those prone to indigestion. But for the strong of stomach, it is a worthy ride.
