Black Projects, White Knights is a collection of short stories set in Kage Baker's The Company alternate history series. The fifteen stories revisit some familiar characters like Mendoza, Joseph, and Kalugin and I enjoyed those but my favorite were the four stories featuring Alec, the mysterious child who is possibly genetically-modified, possibly a cyborg, but certainly a bright and unique boy. My favorite was The Dust Enclosed Here which happens to be available online. If you want to read a fun story about a technologically advanced kid who meets a holographic William Shakespeare and liberates him, then this is your lucky day!

http://webereading.com/2017/07/the-company-in-short-form.html ( )

This collection contains fourteen short stories set in Kage Baker’s world of time traveling cyborgs and the mysterious Company. I can add little to previous reviews other than to say that these tales provide additional detail into some of the cyborg characters from her other books. It also introduces young Alec Checkerfield, who bears a striking resemblance to two human men the Cyborg Mendoza was well acquainted with in previous novels. Alec is a tall lad of remarkable capabilities who hangs out with an AI pirate. He’d make a great character for his own YA series but as to what he might really be, and whether he is a clone of the men he resembles remains unknown. I recommend this collection for all established Kage Baker fans. ( )

An extremely excellent colletion of Kage Baker's short stories regarding 'The Company.' Three of these were not published previously, and all of them include essential(?) clues and backstory regarding the Company and its mysterious, shadowy projects which interweave the entirety of human history.

Absolutely a must-read for anyone who's read any of the Company books - or a good introduction to the series.

I'm quoting Wikipedia for the contents summary, cause I'm lazy:
"Contents
The stories in this volume are:

Introduction: The Hounds of Zeus: A brief introduction to the world of The Company.

Noble Mold: Mendoza and Joseph attempt to secure a special plant from a Native American family living in 19th century Mission California.

Smart Alec: On the origins of the mysteriously talented Alec Checkerfield.

Facts Relating to the Arrest of Dr. Kalugin: Vasilii Kalugin has a bad week in the company of a very old Company operative.

Old Flat Top: A young Cro-Magnon learns some facts about how his valley came to be settled from the Enforcer Joshua.

The Dust Enclosed Here: A simulacrum of William Shakespeare encounters Alec Checkerfield and comes out of the experience changed.

The Literary Agent: Robert Louis Stevenson hallucinates a strangely contemporary encounter with a Mephistophelean figure who helps him rediscover his inspiration.

Lemuria Will Rise: Mendoza encounters an eccentric hermit in 19th century Pismo Beach.

The Wreck of the Gladstone: Victor and Kalugin have to recover Company property from a wreck off the coast of Los Angeles without damaging the local mortals too badly.

Monster Story: Young Alec Checkerfield goes to take his exams.

Hanuman: Mendoza gets hit on by an augmented australopithecine with a story to tell about his tragic upbringing.

Studio Dick Drowns Near Malibu: Joseph goes to shed one mortal identity and assume a new one, but first he has to resolve a complication.

The Likely Lad: Alec Checkerfield and his amoral pet artificial intelligence take to the high seas.

The Queen in Yellow: Literature Preservation Specialist Lewis is given a job on a dig in Egypt for which he is poorly suited.

The Hotel at Harlan's Landing: A storm on the coast of California during the Great Depression where Company secrets are revealed, and more questions posed. ( )

This is a great collection. It kind of fills in some of the blanks of the company and some of characters from the series--it is a short story collection with a short intro by Baker. At first I hated The Machine's Child--what was this hokey pirate theme, well you'll find the answer here... ( )

This is a collection of short stories set in the "Company" universe. Each story serves to flesh out one (or more) of the recurring characters, and fill in some gaps. If you're reading the Company series you will want to read these stories at some point, especially if you find yourself going "who is this guy again?" or "what's that plot point they're alluding to?" I would suggest reading these stories after you've read the first 3 or 4 Company novels.

The stories themselves are a bit uneven in terms of quality, but all are interesting in the sense of giving a glimpse into how the series evolved in the author's mind. ( )