Product Description
A gripping fantasy adventure from the author of the Deverry series, set far in the future on the strangely beautiful but inhospitable planet Snare.The Kazraks arrived eight hundred years ago from the Homelands, determined to found a pure society and live simple lives based on the teachings of the three prophets. But the despotic rule of the Great Khan leads a small band to take drastic action. Following information from Yarl Soutan, a mysterious sorcerer from the far away Cantons, Captain Idres Warkannan and his nephew Arkazo set off to find the Great Khan's younger brother, Jezro, and bring him back to stage a coup. But first they must cross the purple grassy plains inhabited both by the peace-loving comnees, and by the terrifying ChaMeech, intelligent beasts who regularly raid their borders.Meanwhile Zayn Hassan, a loyal member of the Chosen, the Great Khan's deadly secret service, is well on his way to successfully infiltrating a comnee in order to cross the plains and the Great Rift safely. His mission is to follow Yarl Soutan and find out what he's doing leading the devoutly religious Kazraks to the decadent Cantons.But he hasn't bargained for the simple pleasure of life on the plains, or the attractions of Ammadin, the comnee's fiercly independent spirit rider.As both parties journey across the plains they come to realize that there is more at stake than their individual quests. Centuries-old falsehoods are gradually revealed as all the factions begin to see that their histories and identities are not what they thought they were.Combining the dazzling invention of her SF with the gripping adventure of her bestselling Deverry series, Katharine Kerr has created a truly unique and thrilling literary fusion. ... Read more

Product Description
The cholera epidemic that ravaged the city of TrevHael has left many orphans in its wake, including Neb, the scribe's son, and his brother. Sent to the desolate farm of their last living relative, they soon learn that a worse plague lurks beyond the western border of Deverry. The savage Horsekin tribes, spurred on by their new goddess, Alshandra, are raiding the villages and taking slaves as the first step in their plans to destroy the nomadic Westfolk and the Deverrian farmers both. Drawn into a war for the survival of the kingdom, Neb and his soulmate Branna will face enemies they have fought before in past lives they no longer remember. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Deverrey continues, but without lots of intrigue-ful baggage
This book made my fingers hover over the rating... it's probably 4.5 stars.

I read the original novel in this series when it first came out in, what, the 80s? early 90s? I must have re-read it a dozen times in the years since then, because Kerr did such a wonderful job of world building. Her main characters span multiple lifetimes, and usually they do not remember what they did in an earlier incarnation. I was absolutely charmed, because the system of magic was consistent; the characters were well drawn (in an Arthurian "honor matters!" way); and it was not a predictable "oh you know how it'll end" tale.

The first several books were great, and I highly recommend that you start with Daggerspell. But the later series somehow tired me for reasons I never did figure out.

I'm happy to report that this new trilogy (one presumes?) has brought back the original magic from the first books. Nevyn and Jill do get together (yay!, after only what, 600 years) and it's fun to see the two dweomer-masters as teenagers dealing with the "but who was I? am I still that person?" identity crisis. There is humor, compassion, honor... and none of it gets in the way of telling a good story.

Great start to the end of a great series!
I absolutely adore this series and am sad to see it coming to an end.It was horrible to wait this entire time for this book (if you followed it and saw all the pushbacks like I did), but it was well worth it.It doesn't really answer questions but it definitely sets up the next two books to tie everything together.This book, unlike the others, only stays in one timeline choosing to tell the past by using small character flashbacks that are actually told to other characters instead of that character being in that time.A definite must for any follower of the series.

After a long silence....
Ms. Kerr finally drops this in our lap.I must say it was an enjoyable read, if a bit callow at times.Think of how Tolkien started "The Hobbit" as a child's book."The Fellowship of the Ring" was light and airy, and each subsequent book gets more and more "dark" and "adult".Katharine Kerr writes backwards.Her books started out "dark" and "adult" and now seem airy and breezy.

One big annoyance is she has a terrible habit of turning a phrase and sticking with it continuously.All her characters "tossed his head like an angry horse" SO often that I wonder just what kind of world she's from where people actually do this.It happens - literally - on almost every page. The characters that have depth and strengths in other books in this one seem shallow and weak.

I did enjoy reading, but I felt she was just throwing us a bone.

truly ineffable...
Let's hope we don't have to wait a very long time for the continuation of this series! As with every time I pick up a Katharine Kerr book, I can't put it down. I stay up late at night fighting the sleep dweomer and end up late for work! It's well worth it!

If I had dweomer powers I would hurry up Katharine to finish the next book!

In the meantime, maybe I will re-read the whole saga since it's been years since I read the first book.

A transition novel
As noted in the other review, this is the least complex and challenging of the Deverry series to date.The ongoing story of Nevyn and Jill is resolved, almost too easily, given the tangled paths these characters have had in past books.

The setup, however, gives promise for the next volumes in the series, and we still have Rhodry as a dragon and Dallandra to provide the connecting threads.Not the best Deverry to start on, as it would be very difficult to follow without knowing the backstory.

Keep 'em coming Kit! ... Read more

Product Description
Five generations of the Corey family are overseen by the ominous Nick Harrison, who tells the stories of Maggie, Janet, Tiffany, and two others at pivotal moments when their lives hang in the balance. Reprint. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

It works better as short stories
OK, I'm biased.One of the four stories that make up this book was previously published independently as "Resurrection" -- and I already owned that title when I bought "Freeze Frames".

I really feel this book would work better if it were openly billed as a group of short stories, rather than trying (ineffectively) to integrate them into a whole.I think part of the reason I disliked it so much is because it tried -- and failed -- to connect stories that should have been allowed to stand independently.

Misleading synopsis
I owned "Resurection", which makes up one of the four stories here, when this book came out.The back page synposis was really misleading.I would have enjoyed it more had I never read it.

This works best simply as four independend short stories.Any "connection" implied in the synopsis is truly misleading, and you'll be disappointed if yo look for it.

wow... get it in print NOW
I don't believe this- I picked up this book from my local library, tucked away at the back of the fantasy/sci fi section... it's one of the best books I've ever read. It doesn't even exist on the English Amazon, and it's out of print on here- please, people, recognise a good book when you see it. It holds your attention to the last page... the only criticism I have is the ending- it somehow isn't quite finished off. However, the originality of the rest of the book makes up for this by far. I'd reccomend this especially to any fantasy lover who wants a break from dragons and the Middle Ages.

Intresting, original, and very, very strange!
This book is like no other book I have ever read. Its basically an account of all the strange things that happen to a family through out the successive generations. The book could be seen as a collection ofsuccessive inter-linked short stories. But the thing that makes this bookso enjoyable is it's originality, it seems like in the world of KatherineKerr anything goes! You are never sure where the story is going to go! Letme warn you this book is really bizarre. It features all sorts ofcharacters from futuristic asylum seekers to the devil, and even has cameosfrom giant dragonflies! Ok, It's weird, It's crazy, It's such an amazingbook I recommend it to all! ... Read more

Product Description
Bestselling author Katharine Kerr joins with Mark Kreighbaum to present a vivid, alluring and terrifying world of the future.They call it Palace, the capital of a planet located in a region of space known as the Pinch.Here a bitter Lep outcast has been hired to murder two humans: Arno, the son of the Master of the Cyberguild, and Vida, a young woman destined for sensual slavery in the Pleasure Sect.Arno is on the track of strange anomalies in the Map, the cyberspace repository of knowledge.And Vida has powers that could change Palace forever.As Arno goes into hiding to escape the assassin, Vida seeks refuge at Government House, the corrupt center of authority, where betrayal is a way of life and death. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

Extremely lacking in context.
Vida, a girl raised from birth to become a prostitute, is suddenly revealed to be the long-lost heir to a very valuable noble family. She is betrothed immediately to the son of the First Citizen (aka president) and meanwhile has to dodge murder at the hands of an infamous assassin known as the Outlaw.

There never was a clear plot in this novel. What makes this book unusual is that there was never any particular goal that the main characters were striving towards - aside from Vida's goal to stay alive, of course. There was never a plan to save the world, win a war, rescue someone, escape from something, or anything like that. Rather, this book was more like a snapshot of a futuristic (but very primitive in many ways) society, shown from the viewpoints of many characters, of which Vida was only the most prominent.

I liked the setting of the book. There were certain details I picked up on quickly and wondered where they originated from - such as the fact that most character names seemed to originate from Spanish, and that gender-based titles had disappeared so that everyone was called "Se" (the 'se' from 'senor' or 'senorita'). There was also a fascinating history alluded to in little fragments here and there, including ancient religious wars called "schizms", a new religious order, other planets neighbouring this world, other intelligent races, and so on. Yes, as far as setting was concerned, it was very original.

But - and it's a big but - this originality was also, indirectly, the book's biggest flaw. The problem was that all these fascinating details weren't explained. There were whole segments of the book that I could only partially understand. Even though the terminology was possible to grasp from context after a while, there was a mountain of cultural information referred to that simply lacked enough context to be understood properly. It's as if the whole book was written for omniscient readers who already knew all about this universe. There were countless examples, so I'll just list some of the most prominent here:

1. The "Map". This seemed to be some kind of computer system, perhaps like the internet, but possibly also a virtual reality system. There was a whole swag of jargon associated with this that was very difficult to pick up, and no background information with which to put it into context. There were many pages devoted to hacking activities in the map, but they meant very little to me, because it was never explained what the purpose of the Map was. Was it a security system? A communications network? A purely economic thing for business and banking (which were briefly mentioned)? I have no idea. Apparently drugs were needed to access the Map - but again, no explanation why. It's an utterly bewildering example of how there could be chapters worth of information about something and yet I could still have no idea what it actually did. The best assumption I could make was that it was a place for storing information, like the internet - but it was horribly vague. Instead of technical jargon, a few paragraphs of basic explanation in layman's terms would have achieved so much more (and more efficiently).

2. History. Scraps of history kept being referred to - like the Schizm wars - but were never explained, even briefly, or explained in a way that used more obscure jargon than the original statement. (It's like looking up a new word in a thesaurus, only to find that you don't recognise any of the synonyms, either!) I wanted to know about religion, about the planets, about all the tempting little tidbits that were thrown my way - but nothing was ever offered, and thus I struggled through the book without really understanding the events in context.

3. The political system. Same as above.

4. The city/planet itself. The title of this book is called "Palace", which referred to the book's setting. However, even at the end of 430 pages, I am still unable to tell you whether "Palace" was the name of a city or the whole planet. I thought it was the name of the planet at first, though I had to make an assumption because this was never directly shown. But then there was a scene where characters were describing the "edge" of Palace; that it clearly had a border, which threw me off balance. So, is it a planet, or just a city on a planet? I honestly have no idea. This is seriously basic information that every reader should know, authors! Come on! Similarly, there was something called the "Pinch" (this book is "a novel of the Pinch", for instance), and I have no idea what that is, either. A union of planets is my best guess, but I don't know. Why were such vastly important details left out?

5. "Revenants". Contrary to the name, which sounds like a mythological creature, it was clear that these creatures had something to do with computers ('the Map', that is). But as to what, I haven't a clue. They seemed like servants at first, or guides, but they might have been the computers themselves, or just part of computers... and there were different types (ancient, superior ones, and normal, modern ones), and the difference between those wasn't explained either.


Practically everything else in the book was like this, too. It was just vague, despite being full of detail. All the minor details were there, yes, but the major ones - the ones that make sense of everything and put it into the bigger picture - were completely missing. It's no use describing the habits of cats to an alien visitor if they don't know what a cat is to start with. First, you need to show that a cat is an animal, what it looks like, what its most important traits are, and so on. Without a context, the rest is useless information.

Back to the events of the story now, I mostly enjoyed them. There were many overused cliches in here, such as the long-lost heir (particularly with superior inherited traits), the dramatic rise to status and power all of a sudden, and the irredeemable villains who liked to torture and rape - but there were also some fascinating issues such as the impact of racism on various factions and the power plays of various groups to achieve their own profitable ends. Characterisation was mostly good, with the exception of Vida, a blatant Mary Sue (nicer than everyone else, outstandingly beautiful, superior genetics, nobility, brains, power, influence, charm, etc etc etc). I actually liked Vida, however, because she was very logical and practical about her situation, and did pretty much exactly what I would have done in her position. Most heroines lack any sense of rationality, but not her. She's one of the few Mary Sues I've read that actually comes across as the decent person she's set up to be.

One very overused cliche present in "Palace" was that of the unwilling arranged marriage (especially since the characters were basically the likewise overused equivalents of prince and princess). Normally this really puts me off a book, but I thought this one was handled well. For one thing, Vida wasn't all emotional and illogical like most stereotypical heroines (yay Vida!). She realised she had a lot to gain, that love wasn't the be-all-and-end-all, and she was actually accepting of the marriage (without being hardened and cynical, which was very refreshing).

Overall, however, this book was just far too vague. Although it was interesting and addictive, it was simply impossible to understand what was going on in anywhere near the depth I wanted. Basic infomation that should have been shown to the readers was completely missing. This could have been a great book, but without context I'll never have a hope of translating the jargon and setting into meaningful terms. What I want to know is basic things like: What IS the Map? What ARE revenants? What do they actually DO? What is their PURPOSE? Telling me that files are stored in a cache on a grid inside a Gate on the fifth level behind a meta that can only be accessed by a drug-using cybermaster in the form of an abstract concept or an ancient revenant with the das dev genotype of the L'Vars is complete gibberish without it. But that's the kind of thing you can expect from this book. If you can understand it, you're obviously much smarter than I.

I have to give this one two stars. I want to give it more, I really want to. There's a lot of potentially fantastic material in it, along with a great story. But what use is a great story when a reader can't understand it? Context is so important.

A Palace to creativity! Fantastic!
This is the best SF book I have ever read! The world of Palace is absolutely unique, the characters solid and believeable, the plot rich and exciting, and to crown it all, the actual writing is superb! I really love a story that depicts not only the events through the eyes of the characters, but also the ethical issues, the "good and evil". What is more is that there are no unnecissary people involved. Each character has a stake in the story, now or later in forthcoming novels: nothing is left over for slop. There is not a single character that I did not like, or at least empathize with (except Wan!), even Kata. I really hated him, yet one cannot help but feel with him! Vanna too. I absolutely cannot wait for the sequel (Eyes of God, unfortunately out of print. Mark Kreighbaum does have a few copies availible on his website for interested parties, by the way). What will happen to Vida and Rico? Pero, Damo and Barra? Not to mention Molos, Kata's brother. He knows more than he's telling! And of course Vanna. She's up to something! This book is a crowning achievement! I can only hope the series doesn't end with Eyes of God. I have a feeling it won't!

Complex, just the way I like it - but...!
I've been rather bored with books lately, there are too many that are too similar to each other, but this one really caught my interrest. It has an intricate, well thought-out plot, fascinating characters and a society which feels alive - but...! It left too many loose ends.

So I went to look for information about this book on the net, and behold, there is indeed a sequel. Though I'm glad there's more, I just whish I'd known beforehand it wasn't a stand-alone novel since who knows how long before I get my hands on the next one?

I truly recommend reading Palace, but make sure you have the sequel as well - this is a "to be continued"-book in my opinion.

A wonderful surprise
Usually indifferent to reading books written by more than one author, I was more than pleasantly surprised when I began Palace. This book flowed in a way that co-authorship does not usually allow.

Although the first two chapters made it harder to get into, once I perservered I found that this story was fantastic and I really enjoyed it - science fiction, action, romance, mystery all in one. Kerr and Kreghbaum do a great effort in making the story interesting and making me want to read more.

A fantasitic book and there is another in the series
What a fantastic book.I did some research and found out that the sequal 'Eyes of God - A Novel of the Pinch' by Mark Kreighbaum has not only been written but is also reportedly an excellent read.BUT it is already out of print without any one appearing to know it was ever written.

This is a sad loss.Does any one have an idea how I could get hold of a copy? ... Read more

Product Description
Resurrected after her mysterious death, former Air Force Captain and pilot Tiffany Owen walks back through the doors to the world in which she died and attempts to restore her lost memory. Reprint. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

RESURRECTION by Katharine Kerr
I have been a fan of Katharine Kerr for many years after reading her book on the Deverry Series, so when I found her book on the Resurrection I just had to buy it and read :)

Well I am happy to say I was not dissapointed :) her style of writing shined through and for a short story it was a very good read :) what I did find was that it left me wanting to know more about Tiffiany and her new life.

Hugs Dawsie :)

Resurrection one of the best modern short SF novels
"Resurrection," by Katharine Kerr, is one of the best short SF novels I've ever read.

Captain Tiffany Owens died -- twice -- and was brought back to life.Yet nothing seems to fit; well, almost nothing.Her cat remembers her; her family still loves her and shrugs off her strange behavior, and her fiancé is happy beyond words that his love survived, even if _not_ in one piece.

During her long stint in rehabilitation, Tiffany had come to terms with the odd, shifting sense of reality, and had blamed it on "bad neural wiring."As coma patients and people who've had horrific injuries have learned, the "wiring" doesn't always seem to match up with what one remembers of reality.

Or so Tiffany thought, until two strange men showed up.One, an impossible Reb from an impossible place, tells her he wants her to be happy.The other, an impossibly handsome man, tells her to go home -- to the Republic of California, what Tiffany's been assuming all this time was a fiction of her imagination.

But it's not.It's real; the blast that killed her threw her from one dimension into another, and she was brought back to life _in the wrong Universe_.

The story is whether or not Tiffany will stay where she is, where everything feels subtly wrong -- or go home, where everyone is used to her being dead, and everyone has gone on with their lives.

It's an extremely compelling story, enlivened by lots of realistic behavior from coma and rehabilitation patients, and a good amount of humor.

Ms. Kerr is better known for her Deverry/Westlands saga than any of her science fiction.Although I enjoy those books immensely, I think it's a shame those are what made her famous, and not this incredible novella.

This book deserved to win every award there was.I still have no idea why it didn't; maybe it wasn't even nominated, for all I know, which is even _more_ a miscarriage and a travesty of justice.

Read this book, and enjoy it; let's hope it'll be reprinted soon, so my mostly worn out copy can be replaced.

The Republic of California...
This novella is the basis for Ms. Kerr's later novel "Resurection".However, I feel this story stands better on its own.

This is the story of a female fighter pilot recovering from injuries endured in the line of duty, and trying to return to her old life.Except things are not as she remembers them... things like the name of the country she lives in.

This is definitely "specultative fiction", but nothing like the Deverry novels.It's set in California, probably about 20 years from "now".We see things through the heroine's eyes, and share her sense of fuzzy unreality as she chats with the devil & the mysterious rabbi who keep following her.The "revelation" at the end felt rather like the one at the end of "The Sixth Sense", or like watching "The Matrix":It left me wondering about the solidity of my universe. ... Read more

Product Description
A collection of fantasy tales set in mysterious and bewitching forests includes the adventures of a woodcutter's daughter-turned-private detective, a young tribesman who is torn from his forest home, and a woodsman's unexpected encounter with a witch. Original. ... Read more

Product Description
RETURN TO THE FANTASTICAL LAND OF MYTH, MAGIC AND PASSION

Over a thousand years ago the People of Deverry were driven from their splendid kingdom by their enemy, the Hordes, and forced to find sanctuary in the remote forests in the east of their lands where they eventually settled. Succeeding generations remembered these terrible events as the Burning - and they never forgot the cities, towns and marvels of the far, far west.

Dawnspell, the third compelling volume in Katharine Kerr's epic Deverry series, continues the bold saga of Nevyn, Rhodry and Jill as they battle with the evil forces threatening the world of Deverry in the decades that follow the Burning. Rooted in Celtic mythology, this dazzling novel offers a vision of an extraordinary universe of magicians, kings, elves and prophets, of a world where love is triumphant - even over death. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Third of the Ten (currently) in the Series
Against the passionate sweep of Deverrian history, the powerful wizard Nevyn has lived for centuries, atoning for the sins he committed in his youth. Now, with so much of his work at stake, Nevyn discovers that the Dark Council has been quietly interfering with the already tangled politics of war-torn Eldidd. Their evil webs are nearly spun before Nevyn, with all the power at his command, even realizes there's a war of magic destroying his world.

Katherine Kerr's writing takes a bit of getting used to, but it's worth the effort. She approaches her stories with a Celtic storytelling mindset, which means she conveys events according to their significance to the story, as opposed to chronologically. Consequently, while the stories begin in the "present" (which is an elastic concept, anyway, in a fantasy setting), the events unfold, chapter wise, both in the "present" and in the distant past. This can be frustrating, at first, but Kerr's writing is heavily steeped in Pagan and Western Mystery tradition, and the Celtic setting (and mindset) of her characters means that time, or chronological time, is not essentially relevant. To be honest, I found the first book infuriating, as I spent a lot of time trying to adjust to the writing style. However, I found the story engrossing enough that I persevered, and by the second book was so hooked I've read all ten in her three series.

Kerr's story evolves around the concept of reincarnation, and unfinished business, and "karma", and fate. The same souls recur again and again, just in new bodies, over the course of the centuries over which the story unfolds.

Kerr's world is one of High Fantasy, populated by Elves, Men, and Dwarves, as well as faeries/elementals, which she terms the "Wildfolk". However, hers is a slightly more dark, dangerous and less clear cut world than the works of other High Fantasy authors, not the least due to the fact that someone who was your friend in a former life can re-emerge in the story centuries later as a foe, and vice versa. There is a tremendous amount of magic, but it's the magic of the Western Mystery tradition (quite a bit of Golden Dawn and even Enochiana), and that of R.J. Stewarts Faery tradition. There are dragons, and giant beast men.

The Elves are a fallen race, driven out of their magnificent and palatial cities centuries before by invaders, and who now roam the plains as primitives. They possess the potential to be superlative magicians, but the knowledge was lost in the fall of their civilization. Humans, though warlike and shorter lived, have preserved this knowledge, but guard it jealously. The Wildfolk, basically magic incarnate, are unhinged from the effects of "karma", but lack permanence of personality, and cannot grow or develop, cursed to stagnation. The Dwarves are a secretive mystery, entrenched within the earth. Each has something to offer the other, and the story that unfolds is the story of this "technology" exchange, of sorts, between them.

Fans of Marion Zimmer Bradley, who clearly influenced Kerr, will be enraptured by this series, as will fans of Kate Eliott, who Kerr, herself, clearly influenced. It's phenomenal! Devotees of the New Age, Esoteric or Occult will find themselves nodding and smiling as they read, and sincerely hoping Kerr's writing will do for the Western Mystery and Faery traditions what Bradley's has done for Wicca.

Still nothing wrong, but without novelty not as compelling
Still nothing wrong, although I'm not relishing it as much as earlier in the series. While the structure is still enjoyable, particularly where you see the threads of past and future, an epic series only works for me if it is steadily building to a stunning climax (as in the slowest of burns in Dumas' fabulous Count of Monte Cristo), or if it meanders a bit but each episode is good enough to stand alone (hard to think of any that keep up this standard - perhaps Saberhagen's Swords series, although at times there isn't really a uniting plot over some of the episodes, they just happen to be inhabiting the same world) - or if it manages to do both (which is why there's still daylight between Tolkien and everyone else).

There's some fairly tenuous things going on here as Kerr pushes Rhodry off to Bardek. Sure, it could be an interesting change of scene, but I found it a bit hard to swallow that a couple of bribes and lucky conversations managed to overcome the efforts of the entire kingdom of Deverry, backed up by close friends, the good wife, and various and sundry dweomer masters. The sub-plot around Jill's tragic seduction/ensorcelment was the only part of the book that made me forget I was reading for a while, and while potent in itself, not enough to bring me to recommend this volume except as part of the series. Maybe I need to leave it a year or two before I pick up Volume 4 (like I do with Rowling and Pratchett to maximise pleasure), which is a shame because clearly the intent is to lock me in. Hey, I want to be locked in, but this is a low security facility with day release (yes, I freely admit that this is an appalling metaphor).

Was this THE BRISTLING WOOD?
It sounds from the synopsis as if this book was the one originally titles "The Bristling Wood".

She's been re-writing her series from the beginning.I thing her original names for the first few books were terrible (almost kept me from reading them), but changing them is confusing!

Classic Katharine Kerr
Katharin Kerr has created another classic celtic fantasy with her book, Dawnspell.Once again, Rhodry, Nevyn, and Jill battle to save Deverry from the forces of evil.The best part of this book, however, is the lenthyreincarnation flashback, dealing with the formation of the Silver Daggers. I would reccomend this book to anyone who enjoys reading fantasy, becauseit is a wonderful book! (Make sure you read Daggerspell and Darkspellfirst.) ... Read more

Product Description
For this volume of Person County genealogy, Mrs. Kendall and her sister, Mrs.Donaldson, have abstracted a number of rich and varied record collections touching on no lessthan 6,000 persons. The three tax lists, which are arranged by district or militia company, givethe taxpayer's name, the number of acres taxed, and the number of white and black polls on hisproperty. References in the record book abstracts, the largest component of the volume, includeestate sales, suits, transfers of land, inventories of estates, apprenticeship records, abstracts ofwills, powers of attorney, additional tax lists, and more. The letters of attorney give the names ofthe persons involved in the transfer of power of attorney, while the land grants identify thegrantee, number of acres granted, date the grant was entered, and geographic location. ... Read more

Product Description
FROM THE LEADERS OF FANTASTIC FICTION, stories that travel beyond THE SHIMMERING DOOR...

Open and enter...

Every age has known shamans and sorcerers including our own. Katharine Kerr's magical collection brings together some of the finest writers in fantasy to examine the world of spellcasters.

Contributors include:Kate Elliot * Lisa Mason Simon IngsEsther Friesner * Dennis McKiernanDiana Paxson Charles de LintLawrence Watt-Evans Nina Kiriki HoffmanGregory Feeley Mike Resnickand many others ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

"Open and Enter . . ."
For those who are wondering, this is the same book that was published as 'Sorceries' by Voyager in Australia and England.

A wonderful mix of authors, and a wide variety of stories and setting.It was a greatintroduction to me to authors who are not available in Australia, and awelcome homecoming to some of my favourite fantasy authors.I was onlysorry that there was nothing by Kerr herself in the collection, althoughher co-author of the Pinch novels, Mark Kreighbaum is represented, alongwith another of my favourites, Charles de Lint.

My most favourite storyin the whole collection was Connie Hirsch's 'Wicked Cool'.A fun story inan absolutely luscious setting.I hope she writes some novels or perhaps acollection of short stories in that world, as I would love to visit thereagain.The setting is a university in Boston where the students studymagic as part of the curriculum, encounter ghosts on the stairwell and flyaround on broomsticks.More please! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Not Free SF Reader
A classic detective story, with telepathic baseballers.Highly enjoyable tale.A woman is good at the investigating stuff.Her boyfriend has a secret.

An old ex-friend has information she needs, so should she mend fences?Politics, money and murder, with a wise old aunt type.

cyber noir at it's most entertaining
Katherine Kerr has written just 3 Science Fiction books, and a whole lot of Fantasy ones...
In my opinion her sf books are Very good, a step above the competition!
This book is a mixture of detective, cyberpunk, space opera, with some politcs thrown in for good measure

The characters draw you in and you will miss them when the book ends... but then I just discovered that there is a sequel... yippee!

So different but so good!
This book is very different to Kerr's other books but I think it is better.Mystery, fantasy and a touch of romance make for a great book. Set in the white slums, police, politics, powers of the mind and a littlebaseball will keep you interested 'til the end.Just amazing! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A good read
I had not read any of Ms Kerr's works before I read this one and I'm glad.Polar City Blues is not Celtic mystical warriors and elves--it is a good solid science fiction\fantasy\murder mystery with a plot that doesn't stop,interesting people and locations, and a subtlety of humour that slips byalmost without being noticed.The planet of Hagar has a capital city ofSara.There is an over-controlling computer, a wimpy baseball player, amysterious alien with the highly politically incorrect name of Mrs. Bug. Gender and colour roles are reversed without hindering the plot in anyway. The only flaw is that so much is going on that we get a touch confused. The action is non-stop, the writing is lucid and I'd like to hear more ofthese people. ... Read more

Product Description
Nero Wolfe investigates the murders of Dazy Perrit, an underworld kingpin, Ben Jensen, a well-connected publisher, and Eugene R. Poor, an inventor of novelties. Reissue. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

Three more inferior wartime Wolfe stories
Rex Stout had important duties in World War II, so he apparently couldn't devote much effort to the first two of the three stories here, and it shows.(It also shows how much effort he put into his better stories, something his imitators don't seem to manage.)The third, set shortly after the war, is less bad, but still weak.As (minor spoiler) Inspector Cramer notes, the murderer is an idiot, which is how Stout got the plot to work.But it has certain points of interest for completists; the tone is slightly coarser and more real than in most of the other Wolfe stories.

Dead Men Walking
Trouble in Triplicate is a collection of three novellas. The common theme in each is that a man is murdered shortly after visiting Wolfe.

Before I Die: The first story begins with gangster Dazy Perrit telling Wolfe that he has been hiding a daughter who would be in danger if rival mobsters knew where she was. Perrit has hired a girl to impersonate his daughter as a decoy but she has begun blackmailing him with the secret he hired her to protect. After Perrit is murdered, his gangland friends suspect Wolfe and Archie in the crime. Archie is more worried about staying alive than solving the case, but Wolfe is unperturbed.

Help Wanted, Male: Ben Jensen receives an anonymous letter in the mail threatening his life. He comes to Wolfe for help, but Nero turns him down flat. When Jensen is killed hours later, Wolfe is unconcerned. Until he receives an identical threat the next day. This leads him to hire a body-double... no mean feat for a man of Wolfe's dimension. Using the man as a decoy, Wolfe tries to solve the murder before he can become the next victim.

Instead of Evidence: Eugene Pool and his wife Martha state that his business partner is about to murder him. Pool gives Wolfe $5,000 not to prevent the death, but to catch the murderer if it happens. When a cigar fatally explodes in Pool's face that afternoon, Wolfe is forced to earn the money, however reluctantly.

All of the books containing multiple stories are built around some theme or other, but this one may be a bit too strong a connection. There's something a bit repetitious as each of these men is not only killed, but Wolfe doesn't really want to investigate any of the crimes until circumstances force the issue.

Fortunately, each of the tales is entertaining enough in its own way. It also helps that the cast of characters varies considerably and so do the specific circumstances of each crime. The humor that characterizes the series is solid, if not quite at its best.

Trouble in Triplicate is a good collection of Nero Wolfe stories. Each story is about 70 pages long so there aren't a lot of slow parts, things tend to move right along. Veteran fans of the series should be happy with it. Those looking for their first look at the corpulent detective might do better to start with Black Orchids (Nero Wolfe Mysteries) if looking for a compilation or Some Buried Caesar for a full-length novel. Both exhibit Rex Stout's writing at it's finest.

Fun Mysteries
Classic American with the two awesome characters of Nero and Archie.Sure to sparkle a drab day.

Master of the Short Story
Two of these - "Help Wanted, Male" and "Before I Die" - were made into an A&E episodes.All three of them, though, were more than strong enough to be adapted successfully.

"Help Wanted, Male" happens during WWII, when Archie is a major, and Wolfe has volunteered to help military intelligence.Archie is assigned to Wolfe, which he does not like, but cannot get General Carpenter to reassign him.

A&E really bungled this badly.Rex Stout was a patriot, and, while a libertarian, would not have wanted to depict the military as A&E did.None of the senile, babbling foolishness demonstrated by Gen. Carpenter is depicted in the story itself.

The story is strong, innovative and clever, with good character development and imagery.

"Before I Die" was also adapted for A&E's 2nd season, to somewhat better effect.Wolfe is more sympathetic to organized crime here than anywhere else, because he believes that he can get fresh meat in deiance of rationing requirements.We are all slaves to our own appetites, and Wolfe is no exception.It's a clever plot line, although the gangland depictions do not ring very true.The characters here, though, are not as well formed;A&E actually beefed them up a little for TV.

"Instead of Evidence" - A&E did not try this one, perhaps because of limitations on their special effects budget.Read the story to see why...

Short, sweet, delightful
While I'm a longtime Wolfe fan, this is the first time I've read him in a short story collection. It really worked for me. Fritz, Archie and Wolfe are all in fine form. The truncated storylines do not mean diminished character involvement. The plots are tense, the villains are neatly and economically drawn. I had a fine time with it. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Not Free SF Reader
Not quite up to the standards of the first novel, but it has interplanetary sports leagues.That can't be bad.The usual suspects from the first novel pretty much return.A detective, her baseball playing boyfriend, who has the dirty secret of being a telepath, her mentor, another smart operative.


... Read more

Product Description
Twenty-three imaginative stories--by Brian Aldiss, Diana Paxson, Charles de Lint, Kate Elliott, Mike Resnick, Gregory Benford, and others--explore the life and works of Shakespeare. Original. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

interesting and enjoyable
The turning of the tide shows the uprise of the popularity of Shakespere. And rightly so too-it It seemed that for a while, his name was condemned to a fate of "just another white, male, Anglo-Saxon writer". Thisbook has brought a different light to all of the plays that were onceforgotten.Even though this book has also been forgotten and reshelved forthe new, some libraries still have it, and I really enjoyed some of theofferings. My favorite was the "this is the way it actuallyhappened" scenerio of Hamlet and the possible importance of Yorick.Another great one was the joke of the porn director trying to enlist thebrightest stars of Hollywood to try to recapture the "prestige"of Hamlet with Mel Gibson.There is a little mention of Tom Stoppard in ittoo, which I liked. Recommended! ... Read more