Prophet of Paradise, J. Harris Anderson, Blue Cardinal Press, 2013, paper, 483 pages, $22.95With foxhunting’s rites and traditions, its vestments and rich history, and even its own patron saint, it was but a short leap for author J. Harris Anderson to christen the chase as a religion in “The Prophet of Paradise,” his novel about sects and sex in the Virginia Hunt Country.
Ryman McKendrick, Joint-Master of Montfair Hunt, takes a tumble when his horse is startled by a large buck with something glowing in its rack. McKendrick is convinced that the illuminated object is a cross, and when the Montfair begins to see the best foxhunting—and sex—in Virginia, McKendrick is sure that he is the chosen one to spread the word about venery. He founds the Ancient and Venerable Church of Ars Venatica and is soon leading hunt members in prayer and preaching from “The Foxhunter’s Faith” before each meet.
The other Master of the Montfair, Thaddeus Augustus Billington IV, aka “Thumper,” is not so certain about the new church, but he has to admit that the hunting has improved. And so have the sex lives of many hunt members who, when they are not riding, are trysting in the trailers. Just as a good, hard chase gets the blood up, so do these amorous adventures, which often result in a couple emitting lusty cries of “a-woo.”
Soon the Montfair is the most popular hunt in Virginia and draws the attention of Janey Musgrove, an expert on fringe religions and primitive cultures. As a non-tenured professor, she desperately needs a new book to keep her job. The Ancient and Venerable Church of Ars Venatica is a natural subject for her, without the inconvenience of having to go live in a jungle somewhere. Soon she is riding to the hounds and falling in love.
Tongue firmly in cheek, Harris goes over the top with hunting as a religion, but by the time he comes to the end of his story, he has covered new love, lost love, old loves, a mother’s tragedy, child abuse, family dynamics, race relations, same sex couples and, oh yes, foxhunting. A few characters don’t quite ring true (Janey is jumping stone walls and giant coops after only one riding lesson. Would that we were all such quick learners!), but Harris’ foxhunting scenes are excellent and will give non-hunters a real taste of the thrills of following hounds on horseback.
“The Prophet of Paradise” is a vigorous tale that will entertain foxhunters and non-foxhunters alike. Perhaps Anderson is right: foxhunting may be a religion whose church is the great outdoors. But I am sure I am not the only reader who will never see the word, “a-woo,” in the same light.
Posted June 23, 2014