Jean RabeCritiques

In Tennessee William’s play A Streetcar Named Desire, the character of Blanche Dubois says, “I don’t want realism. I want magic!”–a quote that aptly describes this collection of tales related by their relationship to their cities. Many of the exploits and adventures within the stories could have mundane explanations. Maybe the mother really did kill her daughter in Michael A Stackpole’s “The Devil Within,” or maybe the character was imagining the sounds coming from beneath her bed in Judi Rohrig’s ”Falls the Shadow.” But who wants to read about that when there could be something truly extraordinary about the circumstances?

Admittedly, not all the stories were to my liking, but on the other hand I found several new authors I wanted to try out. There were also returning favorites from whom I was delighted to read more. As seems usual for anthologies, there were so-so stories and then there were more intriguing stories. Of the thirteen stories contained, eight of them were interesting, but not attention-grabbing, while the five I enjoyed the most held a little something extra.

“The Devil Within” by Michael A. Stackpole: This is a story set within the universe he created for his character Trick Molloy, who’s pulling time as a private investigator for this story. Stackpole gives new meaning to the phrase “religious fervor.” I was pleasantly surprised by Trick’s cynicism; there’s nothing I like more than a character who’s an unrepentant cynic. Stackpole does a good job of laying the foundation for the world without bogging the story down with too much exposition. I found it intriguing that for a person to tap into their magical ability, they had to have a “trip”–a catalyst, really.

“Falls the Shadow” by Judi Rohrig: This is my first experience with this writer, though she appears to have several stories in anthologies waiting on my TBR pile, so I’ll have to read those, as well. This is the classic case of things that go bump in the night but with a twist on what those critters are. I freely admit I don’t understand this story completely; parts of the action jumbled themselves together, and the explanations were confusing, but the idea of it intrigued me and kept me reading. I would definitely love to see the idea expanded into a novel, or given a few more stories to flesh it out a bit.

“We Burgled It, We Sure Did” by Mickey Zucker Reichart: Leprechauns! This is a story about what happens when people believe a little too much in some of the old tales. Following the Leprechauns’ speech pattern is a little mind-bending, but the resolution to their problem makes a whole lot more sense than you’d believe from the premise alone.

“Disarmed and Dangerous” by Tim Waggoner: This is a short story featuring Waggoner’s zombie PI, Matthew Richter. I love the Matthew Richter books (Nekropolis and Dead Streets, both from Angry Robot Books), but even for someone without prior knowledge, Waggoner sets forth the background details well. Humor, a little bit of horror, and action abound, and it was also nice to see Matthew’s friendship with Papa Chatha deepen.

“‘Twas the Happy Hour After Christmas” by Robert Wenzlaff: Santa walks into Thor’s bar, and the two of them share stories about what it’s like having mythologies that keep changing on a mortal’s whim. Poor Santa is sick of the commercialism of the holiday ruining his life and just wants a vacation. Meanwhile Thor, who’s had his own share of publicity problems, comes up with a solution. This was a short, amusing, and intriguing piece full of incidents such as what happened to Odin and how he got his eye back.

In the end, the anthology stood out for one reason to me–each story captured some of the magic and uniqueness that can only be found if you live in a city. Amid the constant lights, streams of traffic, and seeming sleeplessness, a city holds a powerful magnetism for ordinary and paranormal folks alike. This collection spotlighted the best of those feelings.

Anthologies are always hit or miss for me. Usually if I like the premise then I'm likely to find it harder to enjoy the individual stories. If I am only mildly interested in the premise and picking the book up more for the authors included, I fare far better. Such is the case with Timeshares. Six of the authors listed are of interest to me for various reasons and the premise was interesting enough to garner my attention.

Who hasn't wanted to travel back in time? I know I used to dream about traveling back and meeting Cleopatra or taking some leadership lessons from Queen Victoria. Here in the present we can look at the past and see exactly where we can get our answers instead of working them out for ourselves. I was shocked at how few were about going back and learning wisdom from famous people.

My favorites by far were "The Shaman" by Annie Jones, "A Portrait of Time" by Kelly Swails and "But I'm Not the Only One" by Chris Pierson. All three were surprisingly touching and well written. "The Shaman", about a woman who accidentally finds herself thrown back in time to Ancient Arizona, was simple and inspiring. "A Portrait of Time", about a woman who travels back to save her twin sister, was heartbreaking because of the depth of feeling both the women felt. And lastly "But I'm Not the Only One", about a famous musician's trip to the future, was both surrealistic and touching (especially in the end).

Surprisingly I enjoyed the anthology as a whole, finding each different writer's take on what could happen unique and interesting. Some of them ended well ("Limited Time Offer" by Dean Allen Leggett and "Unsolved Histories" by Greg Cox) and some ended quite badly for the character at least ("Timeless Lisa" by Robert E. Vardeman), but no two ideas were similar. No two writers wrote their character's motivations and reasoning to be the same as another's.

There is some great little known talent in this volume, as well as great introductions to some well known talent, but I think in the end there will be a story, or setting, for everyone to enjoy.

Decent story, I liked that the young warrior character is female, but the ending was unsatisfying.

Dhamon Fierolobo y su banda de mercenarios han fijado sus condiciosas miradas en el siguiente objetivo, un tesoro largo tiempo olvidado y oculto bajo una pradera. Las leyendas prometen incontables riquezas, una fortuna tan inmensa que resulta increíble.
Pero en el mundo de los ladrones, lleno de secretos y engaños, hay que pagar un alto precio por una fortuna semejante, un precio mayor que la insoportable agonía que Dhamon padece bajo la maldición de una escama de dragón. Un precio tan alto que puede costarle la vida a Dhamon.

¿Existe la redención para un héroe caído o no hay marcha atrás? Poseído por la maldición de una escama de dragón, Dhamon Fierolobo teme la muerte y el poder insidioso de sus propios demonios. En una carrera contra el tiempo y el destino a través de Ansalon, Dhamon busca compensar sus pasados errores. En su camino se cruzan agentes de un misterioso dragón: si no consigue vencerlos, es posible que pierda su alma.

¿Hasta qué punto puede un héroe deshornarse? ¿Tanto como para perder su alma? Dhamon Fierolobo, Héroe del Corazón del pasado, se ha sumido en una amarga vida de crimen y sordidez. Ahora, mientras los poderosos dragones, señores supremos de la Quinta Era, conspiran fríamente para consolidar su dominio y destruir a sus enemigos, Dhamon debe encontrar la fuerza de voluntad para redimirse. Aunque tal vez ya sea demasiado tarde.

Los dioses se han desvanecido y la magia se ha debilitado hasta casi desaparecer de Krynn. Es la Era de los Mortales, pero también es la Era de los Dragones, más grandes y poderosos que nunca. Arrasan pueblos, esclavizan a sus gentes y se proclaman señores supremos de Ansalon. Goldmoon, miembro del grupo original de los Compañeros, no se da por vencida y busca nuevos héroes que desafíen a los dragones. Un hombre atormentado responde a su llamada, y a él se unen una hermosa kalanesti, un enano apellidado Fireforge, un arrojado marinero de piel negra y su compañera (un semiogro), un lobo rojo y, cómo no, un par de kenders. Todos ellos deben reunirse en Refugio Solitario con un mago llamado Palin Majere.

Malystryx y Khellendros, los más poderosos de entre los dragones, se desviven cada uno a su manera por obtener el control definitivo sobre Ansalon. El Dragón Azul conspira contra Malys, en un intento de obtener el suficiente poder para acceder a El Griseo y la furia de la hembra Roja ante esa traición resulta gigantesca y abrasadora. La Roja pretende convertirse en diosa agrupando todos los objetos mágicos y sustituir a la Reina Oscura. La pugna entre los malignos dragones y el intento por instaurar el Bien por parte de la nueva generación de héroes configuran el desenlace de la primera trilogia épica sobre la Quinta Era.

Overall, this was a solid collection of stories based (sometimes very loosely) on fairy tales and folktales. There were of course some that I did not enjoy as much as the rest, but there were no clear misses for me. I think my favorite stories were "Once They Were Seven" by Chris Pierson, "Three Wishes" by Kelly Swails, and "Capricious Animistic Tempter" by Mickey Zucker Reichert.

Rabe describes this novel as a cozy procedural-- it really is--with the small town cozy feel but the grit of a procedural. The pace of this book keeps the tension high. I was sucked in and freaked out {this isn't much of a spoiler exactly but you might opt to skip this comment--the point of view changes from time to time from the main character to her co-workers to the killer... it was getting in the head of the killer that got me; I wasn't ready for that and that chapter bumped us out of cozyland} -- I couldn't put it down.

[b: The Bone Shroud|39096071|The Bone Shroud|Jean Rabe|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1520644146l/39096071._SY75_.jpg|60677289] This is the first book I've read by Jean Rabe, and it will certainly be the first of many! It was a great choice during a time that escaping into a book is the best way to cope with the reality of the 2020 pandemic. I loved the history of unfamiliar religions; she provided just the right amount of insight along with the fast pace of the plot Jean's descriptions of the city's underground world were so realistic that I could smell the dampness (and felt a bit claustrophobic in the tunnels...). I hope there is to be a sequel with more adventures for Irem the archivist, and yes, a bit of character growth as she learns more about archeology and perhaps, to make smarter decisions while investigating! A new-to-me author to add to the want-to-read list.

The Dead of Night by Jean Rabe has two stellar things going for it, well developed characters that I will be visiting again and multiple mysteries that Sheriff Blackwell and her small department must solve. This is a community that you can tell the police department feels protective of, even if some of them are considered to be a conspiracy theorist or a few fries short in their Happy Meal.

The Dead of Night picks up right after the first book in the Piper Blackwell Mysteries, The Dead of Winter. Rabe gives us enough background information about what happened in the first book that the reader isn’t lost. Sheriff Blackwell caught a serial killer in the first book while running for sheriff and being a 23 year old just out of the military. I don’t often go back to previous books in a series if I start it on a later book, but I am so intrigued by the premise of the first book and enjoyed the main cast of characters so much that I do want to go back and read The Dead of Winter.

While one of the two main mysteries was pretty easy for me to figure out what was going on early in the book, the second one had me guessing until the end. The way Rabe interweaved the two mysteries and how the cops were going about solving them was very well done. I enjoyed the dynamic between the Sheriff and her Chief Deputy, and am interested to see how the Chief Deputy’s granddaughter fits into upcoming books.

If you are looking for a series with well developed characters and a mystery with lots of suspects, you’ll want to check out the Piper Blackwell Mysteries.

This lady LOVES the word Rheumy! Every third character introduced has "rheumy eyes". We get it lady, you have a new vocabulary word...good for you! NOW SHUT UP ABOUT IT ALREADY! Actually, this is not the only often repeated phrase or theme. It's just the one that irritated me the most.

Also, every conflict or challenge is almost immediately resolved with little flare, struggle or imagination.

Jean Rabe seems so far to be a very lazy author and I'm not impressed.

I completely recommend the earlier books by Weis and Hickman, but these later books by random whoever...no, no I don't recommend them. I'm just reading the ones I already bought (before I knew they were crap) for some masochistic reason. Do as I say, not as I do...seriously.

Crap. AND, after finishing these three miserable books I had NO resolution. Basically, if you want to know what happens you have to read the next three! I don't want to know that bad.

A peculiar reading experience. Jean Rabe completed it after Norton's death, and it feels like more of a labor of love and a tribute to Dragon Magic than a book on its own. It lacks Norton's storytelling charm, and the historical factoids are intrusive. It reads a lot like a children's book, but is presented as a novel for adults. I suspect it would be a better book if it got a rewrite and was marketed for the 9 - 12 year old market.

This book didn't click for me. Maybe I shouldn't have read Dawn of Summer Flame right before reading The Dawning of a New Age. Seems to me, that only a few authors can really capture the Dragonlance universe.

This book did start to take off near the end, so hopefully the second and third book in this series are better than the first.

The story is interesting enough but the writing seems off. Dragonlance should only be in the hands of Margaret, Tracy, and a handful of other writers.

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Title: Red Magic
Series: Forgotten Realms: The Harpers #3
Author: Jean Rabe
Rating: 2 of 5 Stars
Genre: Fantasy
Pages: 320
Format: Digital Scan



Synopsis:
Maligor, a Red Wizard of Thay, has plans, big plans. He’s built himself up an army of gnolls and has let it be known that a newly established young red wizard has built his tower on some land that Maligor wants. In secret, Maligor has been building an army of darkenbeasts out of cute wittle woodland animals and is planning on taking over the gold mines for his own personal enrichment.

The city of Aglarond, which is close to Thay, is worried about all the activity going on and they hire some Harpers to investigate. Galvin the druid and his friend Wynter the pacifist minotaur. Aglarond sends it own representative in the form of Brenna Greycloak, a small time politician and enchantress.

In the process of infiltrating Thay, the Harpers are captured by Szass Tam, lich wizard and main character in other future books. Szass Tam has them lead an attack on the mine to stop Maligor. They succeed, skedaddle out of Thay and go their separate ways.



My Thoughts:

I enjoy stories about the Red Wizards of Thay and about Szass Tam, so I was hoping this book was going to hit the spot, kind of like a good chili dog. Sadly, this chili dog had been left on the counter for a week then overcooked in the microwave for 10minutes.

The interactions between ANY of the characters, whether with other main characters or side characters, was complete cardboard. Galvin and Brenna fall in love for the adventure but then realize their separate life goals aren’t compatible at the end, so they amicably go their separate ways. Wynter the minotaur. THAT should have been awesome. But partway through he gets “magic’d” and acts like a child for some time. And don’t get me started on Maligor and his assistant Asp. I got whiplash from how they interacted. It was completely dictated by the plot instead of the other way around.

Then all the harping (hahahaha) about what a great strategic genius Maligor is because he’s using a public gnoll army to distract everyone while doing his real business with the darkenbeasts? It was bogus. I’m no military genius and even I would have been smarter than Maligor. I would have gathered in some other Red Wizards as “allies” and then betrayed them all like a Good Red Wizard is supposed to. Use their forces for my ends, weaken them and my other enemies and then crush them all in the end, using yet another set of “allies”. Szass Tam did this, Maligor, not so much.

Honestly, this whole book felt like the author hadn’t written any fantasy before, didn’t know how to make use of her characters, hadn’t ever watched one war movie and had no idea how to write a battle scene. “Meh” probably accurately sums up this whole book.

And this is what I got to read last week when I was super busy and doing lots of stuff outside of work as well. Not that I’m bitter or anything.

★★☆☆☆

This anthology collects 19 stories from various authors -- some famous, some I never heard of -- that take the idea of Pandora and capture items from various places - some items magical, some terrifying, some fun -- and mix the characters' ideas, societies and sometimes shocking sensibilities as pertain to these items.

You can find a complete list elsewhere, but the following are what grabbed me (as with any anthology, some just didn't make the cut):

Timothy Zahn, best known for his Star Wars novels, wrote The Ring, an item found in a pawn shop that actually feeds off the greed of a broke stocktrader and immediately makes him extremely wealthy -- as long as he stays greedy -- but is saved by his lady love.

Louise Maley's "Technicolor" was a fascinating peek at Dorothy from Oz, now a degraded middle-aged woman in Kansas, who longs for her ruby slippers.

The best one was about a magical wedding dress, handed down the generations, that made their wearer's beautiful and stunning. But what would it do to a cross-dresser?? Here's a guy who has always loved cross-dressing. One day he needed a job and they were particularly wanting a female employee, so he dressed up as one! Surprisingly, someone fell in love with him. How will he admit to his fiance that Stephanie is really Stephen? Oh my! The twist ending was a lot of fun. [The Travails of Princess Stephen by Jane Lindskold.:]

The stories I did not like were either political or created worlds that were so secondary to plot that they did not make a lot of sense. A mouse during World War II fighting against Adolph and his Ratzi's? Sounds cute but it wasn't. Or a pair of John Lennon's glasses in an apocalyptic future and its affect on a spy -- droll. And Seebohm's Cap, A Clean Getaway and others were a bit boring. Maybe it's because the same theme is repeated over and over, it might be best to take breaks between stories, LOL.

This was Andre Norton's last book. Unfinished at her death, it was completed by Rabe, a friend of Norton's, from her notes. I didn't get the impression that Norton was anywhere close to finishing the book, but that's okay.

Young Wisteria, called Eri, has natural magic, which she is trained in by the witch Nanoo Gafna. One day she is out hunting for the village, and when she returns, it is to a scene of devastation and bloodshed. The only person left alive in the village is the Nanoo's other apprentice, a young girl named Alysen, whom Nanoo put an invisibility spell on to protect. Alysen bitterly tells Eri that it is all Eri's fault that the village was slaughtered, that the armed band of men led by Lord Purvis, were looking for Eri, to kill her because of her magic. Regardless of Alysen's anger, Eri feels the responsibility to bring the younger girl safe to the witches' settlement before going out for revenge.

This setup is fine, if not terribly original, but then, an inordinate amount of the subsequent plot has to do with the girls' dealings with a random supernatural creature that they encounter in the wild, which has not much to do with anything, and doesn't really go anywhere.

Another great adventure in the 5th age... I really need to find the rest of this revamped novelisation of ShadowRun.

This anthology collects 19 stories from various authors -- some famous, some I never heard of -- that take the idea of Pandora and capture items from various places - some items magical, some terrifying, some fun -- and mix the characters' ideas, societies and sometimes shocking sensibilities as pertain to these items.

You can find a complete list elsewhere, but the following are what grabbed me (as with any anthology, some just didn't make the cut):

Timothy Zahn, best known for his Star Wars novels, wrote The Ring, an item found in a pawn shop that actually feeds off the greed of a broke stocktrader and immediately makes him extremely wealthy -- as long as he stays greedy -- but is saved by his lady love.

Louise Maley's "Technicolor" was a fascinating peek at Dorothy from Oz, now a degraded middle-aged woman in Kansas, who longs for her ruby slippers.

The best one was about a magical wedding dress, handed down the generations, that made their wearer's beautiful and stunning. But what would it do to a cross-dresser?? Here's a guy who has always loved cross-dressing. One day he needed a job and they were particularly wanting a female employee, so he dressed up as one! Surprisingly, someone fell in love with him. How will he admit to his fiance that Stephanie is really Stephen? Oh my! The twist ending was a lot of fun. [The Travails of Princess Stephen by Jane Lindskold.:]

The stories I did not like were either political or created worlds that were so secondary to plot that they did not make a lot of sense. A mouse during World War II fighting against Adolph and his Ratzi's? Sounds cute but it wasn't. Or a pair of John Lennon's glasses in an apocalyptic future and its affect on a spy -- droll. And Seebohm's Cap, A Clean Getaway and others were a bit boring. Maybe it's because the same theme is repeated over and over, it might be best to take breaks between stories, LOL.

Päähenkilö Dhamon Sudenotsa on erinäisten tapahtumien jälkeen muuttunut ihmisestä mustaksi lohikäärmeeksi. Dhamon -saagan neljännessä ja viimeisessä osassa hän yrittää muuttua jälleen takaisin ihmiseksi. Kirjassa on seikkailua ja vauhtia, mutta lukijan kannattaa aloittaa lukeminen sarjan ensimmäisestä osasta.

... ma non ci sono riuscito. A 13 anni da "I draghi dell'estate di fuoco" ho voluto continuare il discorso dove l'avevo lasciato. Sono arrivato a metà, ma non ce l'ho fatta.
L'idea di base è carina (anche se immagino sia stata realizzata sotto precise direttive della TSR), ma personaggi insulsi e enormi buchi logici (come anche la solenne buffonata del concilio dei maghi) mi hanno allontanato sempre più dalla storia.
Magari salterò direttamente alla Guerra delle Anime.

Crap. AND, after finishing these three miserable books I had NO resolution. Basically, if you want to know what happens you have to read the next three! I don't want to know that bad.