Dog Days, by John Levitt (Ace, 2007)

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Meet Mason. He’s a musical prodigy with a talent for improvisation, and a definite skill when it comes to performing magic on the fly. But ever since he quit being an active part of the magic game, he’s been content to fly under the radar, playing his guitar as a jazz musician. It’s just him, his music, and Louie, his dog. Sort of. See, Louie’s actually what the magical community refers to as an Ifrit, mysterious spirits who masquerade as animals and serve as familiars to certain lucky practitioners. At any rate, things are quiet . . . for the moment. And then the attacks begin. Strange magical attacks that seem aimed at either getting Mason out of the way, or at least testing the limits of his skills and abilities. Before he knows it, Mason’s been dragged right back into the thick of the magical community, working with old friends once again. It seems he’s not the only person to have been attacked lately. Worse yet, there’s already been at least one death.

Now Mason, along with his colleagues, must unravel a deadly mystery affecting the entire magical community. Someone out there is gathering power in a highly unethical, unorthodox, and even unprecedented manner, and they’ve marked certain people, including Mason, for death. Can Mason figure out who’s behind the recent events before someone he cares for pays the price? One thing’s for certain: he’ll have to do what he does best. Improvise.

Dog Days presents a compelling magical mystery, filled with twists and some uncomfortable turns, as it follows a likeable new character through a mostly-familiar San Francisco. Levitt gives us a whole host of intriguing, complex characters to deal with, from the commitment-avoiding Mason to the to-good-to-be-true Sherwood, to prissy-yet-dangerous Victor, to the practical-yet-sexy healer, Campbell. The system of magic presented in this book is also intriguing; it’s relatively nebulous, yet accessible by simple virtue of being so individualized. Everyone’s a little different, and Mason’s talent is almost unique in its flexibility. Where else can you see someone cast a spell that uses the ambient cold, the smell of garbage, and the shape of a dog’s head, while making a fist? It’s hard to explain, but it’s nice to see a magic system that embraces the abstract while fully engaging the senses. Oh, and there’s one scene, midway through the book, where our heroes are engaged in a life-or-death battle against an unstoppable creature, and let me just say, I cheered at their solution, if just because it was common-sense, unexpected, and brilliant under the circumstances. It’s nice when characters surprise you.

I thoroughly enjoyed Dog Days. It’s proof that there’s still a heck of a lot of potential for variation in the urban fantasy genre, and it’s a highly satisfying read. I’m looking forward to the next in the series, especially if we’ll continue to see more details about the world the characters live in, their history, and just what’s up with the Ifrits. We get just enough to work with this time around, with plenty of questions left for another time. Dog Days is an excellent start to a promising new series.

Crashing Paradise, by Christopher Golden and Thomas E. Sniegoski (Ace, 2007)

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The Menagerie, that strange collection of supernatural beings lead by immortal sorcerer and alchemist Arthur Conan Doyle is back, and this time, their worst enemies are lurking in the shadows, ready to put an end to their works. Ceridwen, exiled Fey princess, faces off against a legendary half-blood, her age-old nemesis. Eve, the first woman and mother of all vampires, is stalked by a demon she’s feared since time began. Squire the hobgoblin is hunted by a shadowy predator. The ghostly Dr. Leonard Graves, pulp-style adventurer turned spectral investigator, and Danny the teenage demon, and even Clay, a shapeshifting golem abandoned when the world was young, likewise encounter their worst nightmares, as the dark forces unite together for a concerted attack upon a long-lost place, the secret heart of all that’s good and pure in the world. This may be the battle that the Menagerie, accustomed to being the underdogs, simply can’t win. But if they fail, Eden itself will fall, and with it, the world. Doyle and his motley crew must accept some dubious aid, and marshal their dwindling resources in a desperate attempt to prevent disaster . . . all the while knowing that the true fight has yet to occur. Once again, the fate of the world lies in the hands of a bunch of outcasts, oddballs, and monsters.

Crashing Paradise is the fourth book in the Menagerie saga, which reads like a horror-infused, dark fantasy version of Alan Moore’s League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, if you fed it a steady dose of Phillip Jose Farmer and a little Simon Green for good measure. The characters are drawn from a wide spectrum of inspirations, from the pulp-era adventurer turned ghost, to the Biblical Eve as a repentant vampire, to the sheer outrageousness of Arthur Conan Doyle reimagined as an unaging, manipulative, secretive sorcerer and the leader of this band of misfits. They make for a fascinating group to read about, especially when pitted against their opposite numbers, worst enemies, and darkest secrets. Golden and Sniegoski do a great job of keeping things moving, switching gears and focus to follow the various plot threads in this book. We continue to learn more of the various characters, with Eve and Clay getting some more of the focus this time around, just as in previous books, Danny and Graves got their turn to shine, and before that Doyle and Ceridwen. As always, Squire, the foul-mouthed, shadow-stepping, snake-loving goblin, their armorer and resident lech, gets the best lines, stealing the show whenever he’s around to offend peoples’ sensibilities.

The only drawback is that this is the fourth in an ongoing series, and as such, it picks up on situations and storylines carried over from the previous books, including one major overarcing plot which promises to be resolved at a later date. Newcomers might want to start with the first in the series, The Nimble Man, and work their way forward, just to gain a proper understanding and appreciation of what’s going on in Crashing Paradise. Of course, it’s a wholly enjoyable series, so this shouldn’t be too great a task. Existing fans of the series will most likely continue to enjoy it. With its unusual blend of dark fantasy, superhero, and pulp influences, Crashing Paradise is another worthy installment of the Menagerie series, and I’ll be anticipating whatever comes next for our unlikely heroes.

Coyote Dreams, by C.E. Murphy (Luna, 2007)

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Joanne Walker is a very reluctant shaman. After coming into her powers as an adult less than a year ago, she’s been through all sorts of crises and catastrophes as she tries to master her abilities before things get out of hand. This bizarre change in her life has thrown a major monkey wrench into the comfortable existence she’d created for herself. Now, instead of happily fixing cars as a mechanic for the Seattle Police Department, she’s a beat cop. Instead of being one of the guys, her relationships with most of her coworkers is somewhere between strained and confused, thanks to the inexplicable supernatural events that always crop up in her vicinity. And let’s not even get into her complex interactions with her boss, Captain Michael Morrison. It’s all enough to make her wish she’d never awoken as a shaman for the modern era.

Things get really ugly, however, when a sleeping sickness strikes Seattle, starting with many of Joanne’s closest friends, placing them in comas she can’t break. Who or what could be targeting these people, and what’s their connection to Joanne? Worse, Coyote, Joanne’s spirit guide, is missing and presumed sulking, captured, or dead after a previous adventure, leaving her mostly in the dark. Joanne has to race to protect her remaining friends, and stop whatever’s putting people to sleep before it gets to her . . . and it’s getting closer every time she closes her eyes. All this, and she has to sort out her complicated feelings for Morrison, and reconcile them with the new guy in her life, who seems too good to be true.

Coyote Dreams is the third book in Murphy’s series, The Walker Papers, and we’ve seen a steady growth of the character over these stories. One can only hope, however, that Joanne continues to embrace her powers and destiny, because after what she’s been through, it’s clear she’ll have to adapt or die. At least this time around, we get a lot more insight into why she remained blocked for so long, even if the explanation is a little convoluted and steeped in symbolism. But watching her grow as a person is half the fun. That, and watching her come to terms with how she deals with the people around her. Joanne’s most definitely a flawed protagonist, which is ironic; she’s supposed to heal other people, but in many ways she needs healing even more than they do.

I’m afraid I did find myself skimming at times, whenever the book went into long, loving descriptions of dreamscapes, internal gardens, and symbolism writ large. But that’s mainly because I’m a plot and characterization kinda guy. I’m happy when people are saying and doing things. Show me a pretty garden, and I want to see who’s doing what to whom in it. C.E. Murphy, however, writes some gorgeous descriptions, and she plays up to her strengths in this regard. And given that a good portion of this book (and series) take place in dreamscapes and astral plains, she knows how to make it work. It’s all very beautiful.

What I really enjoy about this series, something we see even more in this book, are the character relationships. Joanne has forged an unusually strong bond with Gary Muldoon, a seventy-three year old cab driver who’s gradually taken on a role as mentor, friend, and father figure, and all I can say is the world needs more supporting characters like that. Gary is a strong character who brings a lot to the story. Meanwhile, you have Joanne’s nemesis/possible interest, Captain Morrison. Put Joanne and Morrison together, watch the sparks fly as they butt heads over and over. And as long as they work together, they’ll never be together, which makes their relationship all the more complicated. Someday, perhaps they’ll come to an understanding, but it won’t be anytime soon.

The plot itself for this book is fairly straight-forward, but getting from start to finish still puts Joanne through a few wringers. Murphy keeps up the sense of urgency with well-placed character bits from those indirectly affected by what’s going on. The resolution seems a little weak, but then again, not everything can be solved with high explosives and a cast of thousands.

Overall, I greatly enjoyed Coyote Dreams, and I’m quite assuredly looking forward to the next in the series. C.E. Murphy delivers a strong mixture of characterization and narrative, augmented by the afore-mentioned beautiful descriptions, and her heroine continues to travel down an intriguing road of self-discovery. This series is one of the strongest to come out of the Harlequin Luna imprint.

Burning Bridges, by Laura Anne Gilman (Luna, 2007)

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Life used to be so much easier for Wren Valere. As a lonejack Talent, she was beholden to no faction, responsible for no one but herself, and free as a bird. As a highly skilled Retriever, she tackled whatever jobs would challenge her and bring in the good money, acquiring all sorts of items in a less than legal manner. The only one she had to keep happy was her agent and partner, Sergei. Life was easier by far. But that was before she fell in love with Sergei. Before she got tangled up in the politics of the magical community known as the Casa Nostradamus. Before she became troubleshooter, representative, figurehead, champion of the underdogs, and too well-known for her own good. Before people started dying. Wren Valere used to be invisible. Now she’s at the center of everything that’s going on, and hating every moment.

As Wren works on convincing the inhuman Fatae, the contrary lonejacks, and the bureaucratic members of the Mage Council to work together against a common set of enemies, Sergei struggles against his renewed, unwelcome obligations to his former employers, the enigmatic Silence. Fatae are being killed in the streets, victims of a vicious hate group, and in a seemingly unrelated series of events, any number of minor Talents have simply gone missing, with no clue left to their ultimate fates. Wren and Sergei, torn by their alliances and obligations, may find themselves working against one another, their purposes crossing rather than overlapping. With internal problems distracting both Silence and Council, it looks as though the only one who’ll come out on top is whoever’s pulling all the strings. And by the time the puppet master is possibly revealed, there’ll be an epic showdown such as New York rarely sees, as factions collide, alliances are tested, and bridges are burned. And Wren and Sergei’s fragile, growing relationship may be one of the many victims of the conflict.

Burning Bridges, the fourth in Gilman’s Retrievers series, manages to up the stakes in an already volatile setting, expertly playing various ongoing storylines against one another in an ever-more complex tapestry. We’ve seen the gradual, steady growth of the main characters as they change and evolve thanks to their experiences, and things really hit the fan in this installment, leading to some major payoffs and startling developments. Gilman’s built things up quite nicely over the series, and Burning Bridges is anything but dull, as conflicts of personality, idealogy and purpose come into play on all sides. The way in which she weaves together action, mystery, magic and romance is wholly satisfying, focusing as much on the emotional and romantic entanglements of the main characters as on the political and social maneuverings of the various groups. One really has to feel for Wren and Sergei as they try to carve out a love life amidst all manner of intrigue, trying to stay together and safe when everything’s collapsing around them.

Gilman’s take on an urban fantasy setting continues to intrigue, as she avoids so many of the usual elements, and plays up the less familiar aspects. No vampires or werewolves to be found here, just oddball demons, piskies, griffins, angels, nausanni, dryads and more, hiding in plain sight. No wand-waving wizards, but current-manipulating Talents, both organized and fiercely independent. It’s a fascinating angle with a lot more room for exploration, and I’m glad we’ll be seeing more of it in upcoming books. I’ve been saying it all along, and I’ll say it again, this is an excellent series, well worth picking up, and I haven’t been let down yet.

Blood Lines, by Eileen Wilks (Berkley, 2007)

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In an alternate world where magic is real, werewolves have gone public, and the FBI has an entire section devoted to dealing with supernatural problems, troubleshooting agents don’t come any better than Lily Yu or Cynna Weaver. Lily, who can detect all sorts of magic with a simple touch, is mate-bonded to one of the most powerful werewolves in America, Rule Turner. Cynna’s a magically-Gifted woman with a dark past and talents whose limits she has yet to discover. Along with the enigmatic, independent sorcerer Cullen Seaborne, this oddball team of friends is assigned to investigate the case of a lifetime. Demons are appearing on Earth, and killing targets seemingly at random. When a pattern emerges, however, it could threaten the stability of the werewolf clans, and the entire world. Now our heroes must fight the mastermind behind these demons, navigate the treacherous politics of the werewolves, and come out in one piece. And maybe, just maybe, Cullen and Cynna will find a little time amidst the chaos to spend together, where they can explore a growing attraction to one another.

I was drawn to Blood Lines by its vibrant, sexy cover, and an intriguing premise, for the most part. To be honest, these paranormal/urban fantasy romances have become dime a dozen for the most part, so I wasn’t exactly holding high hopes for this one. I expected a good, fun read, with some action, some romance, and maybe a slightly different take on the “supernaturals walk among us . . . and boy, are they sexy!” and that’s pretty much what I got. To her credit, Wilks delivered thoroughly on the character interaction, the action and adventure, and the internal politics. I certainly had very little to complain about in those regards. Cynna and Lily are both wonderfully complex leading characters, and Rule and Cullen both fulfilled their roles with dutiful attention. The meat of the story (and there were several intertwining plotlines of consequence) really overshadowed both the existing romance between Lily and Rule, and the newly-formed one between Cynna and Cullen. The characters played well off one another, but the romantic interest was, while present, pleasantly underplayed, which helps to bridge that gap between paranormal romance and urban fantasy.

The magic system shows promise, though in my experience, it didn’t feel explain thoroughly enough, nor did much of the unique social setting that drove the story. And therein lies my major complaint, and not one that is exactly this book’s fault: this is the third in a series. It follows Tempting Danger and Mortal Danger, neither of which were conveniently available when I picked this one up. And unfortunately, a lot of the backstory that influences this book, as well as the Lily/Rule romance, was established in those books. I can only wish that the publishers had seen fit to release the precursors to this book, or that Wilks had taken the time to explain some more of the backstory in depth. All we got were tantalizing mentions of what’s gone before. Normally, I wouldn’t complain about this, recommending to any first-time reader that they start at the beginning of the series, but this one leapt like an orphan onto the shelves, with a different trade dress and style of cover (one that’s much more eye-catching than the previous books) and a title that doesn’t suggest any connection to a series. These are the things one has to be aware of when leaping into the middle of a series.

Addressing Blood Lines as a standalone book, then, I found that it’s quite enjoyable, and sure to entertain, but it lacks a little something that’s hard to name, that would give it the power to properly stand on its own. As part of a series, it would make a great continuation to the story. As my introduction to Wilks’ world, it left me with questions. However, I can’t fault her writing style, or her ability to keep up a fast-paced story with plenty of danger and intrigue, and I certainly wouldn’t rule out reading more of her books, should I run across them. If you like urban fantasy, you can do far worse than Blood Lines. And if you like paranormal romance, this will probably be right up your alley.

The Spriggan Mirror, by Lawrence Watt-Evans (Cosmos Books, 2007)

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In the city of Ethshar by the Rocks, the best supplier of materials for wizard spells is Gresh, whose worldwide network of contacts, friends, and trade secrets has give him the reputation as a man who can find anything a wizard might need. So when Tobas, a young wizard whose miscast spell went horribly awry some years ago, is ordered by the Wizard’s Guild to rectify the matter, he goes to Gresh. The job? Find the enchanted mirror which is the origin of all spriggans in the World. The payment? Just about anything Gresh can think to name, within reason and sanity. The problem? The spriggans are indestructible, immortal, mischievous creatures, who stole the mirror years ago to protect themselves from people who’d try to destroy them all. The bigger problem? The realization that if the mirror isn’t dealt with, someday in the future the World will be overrun by the little green nuisances. Gresh, with his reputation to uphold, and a hefty payment on the line, takes the job, and soon narrows down the area in which to search. Together with Tobas and Tobas’s two wives, Gresh now has to find the mirror, wrestle it from the multitudinous hands of the spriggans, and decipher the secret of its power, so that the threat of spriggan overpopulation will be curtailed once and for all.

Of course, the spriggans don’t plan to make it easy. And as everyone knows, messing with magic can be dangerous, foolhardy, and sometimes even suicidal. Will it be enough to break the mirror, or can they disenchant it? Can they reverse its effects, or are they stuck with the spriggans for good? Worse still, what’re the ethical ramifications of trying to wipe out half a million sentient — if annoying — magical beings? What starts off as a simple retrieval operation swiftly becomes a complex moral issue for which Gresh has no ready answers. All he knows is that his conscience may not let him finish the job easily. And that’s before the mirror is tampered with, and an additional twist is thrown into the equation. . . .

As with almost all in the Ethshar series, the main crux of the plot stems from magic gone wrong, and the complicated ways in which it can get even worse. In this case, The Spriggan Mirror actually picks up from a plot point in an earlier Ethshar book, With A Single Spell, and follows up on the characters first introduced in that book, though the focus is on Gresh, who’d only been mentioned in passing before. Watt-Evans certainly has a great magic system set up in the Ethshar series, with its multiple forms of practictioning, its rules and limitations, and its creative, sometimes whimsical spell names. It’s attention to the little details about what a spell can and can’t do that helps fuel much of the suspense and complications as the plot progresses, as well as providing some amusing moments along the way.

I’ve always enjoyed the Ethshar series, with its varied settings, intriguing characters, unstable and volatile magic, and fast-moving plots, and The Spriggan Mirror lives up to the usual standards, offering an entertaining, thought-provoking story. It’s nice to find an intelligent non-epic fantasy book that can stand alone, while still being part of a larger world, without relying upon massive amounts of bloodshed or violence to keep the masses occupied. The Spriggan Mirror is more then welcome on my shelves, where it’ll join the rest of the series, and I definitely recommend it to those seeking a good, solid, well-told fantasy adventure.

The Cipher, by Diana Pharaoh Francis (Roc, 2007)

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Lucy Trenton leads a complicated life. A member of the Rampling family, which rules the powerful harbor city of Crosspointe, she works as a customs inspector, responsible for overseeing so much of the trade which flows through the city. What very few people know, however, is that she can actually sense majick in its various forms, an ability which earned her distrust and mockery as a child. What no one (or so she thinks) knows is that Lucy has accumulated a small collection of so-called “true ciphers,” dangerous majickal artifacts whose possession is strictly illegal. And then, after one fateful day, everything changes. First, a cipher attaches itself to her arm. Invisible to everyone but her, unable to be removed, chances are good it’ll kill her, sooner or later. And then the first of several letters shows up, claiming to know all about Lucy’s secret collection and threatening to reveal this information to the public if she doesn’t betray the trust placed in her as a customs inspector.

Under a likely death sentence, and swayed by the blackmail, Lucy has no choice but to make the wrong choice, no matter which way she turns. Her life begins to spiral out of control, faster and faster, and even her friends and family begin to suffer. Worse, one of the only people Lucy can count upon now is Captain Marten Thorpe, a roguish man whose gambling debts have sent him down a self-destructive path partially orchestrated by a ruthless conspiracy. The two will have to work together if they want to unravel the true nature of a threat, not just to themselves, but all Crosspointe. And just what’s the story behind Lucy’s cipher, anyway?

The Cipher is the first in a fascinating new series by Diana Pharoah Francis, and so far, it’s shaping up to be a remarkably intriguing twist on the usual fantasy setting. Instead of hewing to the medievalesque timeframe most fantasies find most comfortable, Crosspointe seems to take its inspiration from the heyday of the British Empire, circa the 19th Century (though history not being my strongest point, I may be a little off, here), and more importantly, from a time when trading ships and merchant vessels made up a vast part of a global economy. It’s a refreshing change of pace, and a setting that seems ripe for exploration. Francis throws in a healthy dose of manipulation, corruption, intrigue, and politics to go with the surface trappings, presenting an environment always on the verge of explosive, unpleasant change. Add to that the enemies amassing at the metaphorical gates, both inside and outside of Crosspointe, and you have plenty of fodder for future volumes in the series.

The characters are definitely complicated and full of morally grey areas: Lucy’s responsible for upholding the law, yet breaks it on a regular basis, while Marten Thorpe’s a despicably flawed man whose weaknesses affect the people around him as much as they do himself. Lucy’s best friend is a potentially ruthless killer playacting at being a respectable woman of business, and one of Marten’s best friends is an unregistered majicker in a society where all majick practioners are required to register and work part-time for the government. They’re not the most heroic of people, but separate and together, they provide an interesting dynamic, especially as Lucy and Marten get to know each other better . . . perhaps a little too well.

There’s actually a lot going on in this book, with several deep-layered plots weaving in and out, and it all culminates in an epic manner, laying down a status quo which will make the next book in the series, The Black Ship, all the more interesting. I’ll certainly be looking forward to it, that’s for sure, if just to see what happens next in the tale of Lucy Trenton and Marten Thorpe. This is definitely a fantasy to look out for.

Heir of Autumn, by Giles Carwyn and Todd Fahnestock (Eos, 2006)

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Welcome to Ohndarien, the so-called Jewel of the Known World. A vital cog in the shipping and trade industries, it sits between the Summer Seas and the Great Ocean, connecting the two bodies of water and their respective inhabitants. It is a city of beauty, and of freedom, and of justice, and it is greatly coveted by neighboring countries. But for centuries, it has defended itself fiercely. Ruled by eight people, the Brothers and Sisters of the Seasons, who are chosen by the magical Heartstone which is buried deep within Ohndarien, it was strong for generations. But now, it is weak. Ever since the four Brothers of the last generation journeyed forth years ago and never returned, the city has been ruled only by the Sisters, and a foreign-born Brother of Autumn named Krellis, who originally came to the city to conquer it. Everyone thought Krellis would be satisfied with ruling the city as a Brother. They may have been wrong.

Brophy is a Child of the Seasons, heir to the power and destined to possibly take up his father’s mantle as a Brother. But as of fifteen, he’s still too young, too inexperienced. He spends his time with Trent, Krellis’ son, the two often getting in trouble with their escapades. That friendship is about to change the face of the world.

Ultimately, plans begin to collide, and destiny unfolds. Brophy, framed for a brutal crime, is exiled from Ohndarien. Mentored by an enigmatic assassin, Brophy ends up in the court of Physendria, a strange and deadly place where power and status all relate to a dangerous competition known as Nine Squares. Should Brophy ever wish to get revenge and return home, he must now trust in the favors of a seductive queen, and survive the winner-take-all games.

Meanwhile, even as Brophy struggles for survival and freedom against all odds, Physendria launches a long-delayed invasion of Ohndarien, even as the city itself has become divided in a civil war between Krellis and the Sisters. Caught in the middle as pawns are the Zelani, who practice old, powerful magics fueled by emotion and sex. But even this struggle for control of Ohndarien pales under the threat of a long-hidden evil, one which will destroy them all if it wakes. Who will sacrifice themselves for the sake of the world? Who will live, who will die, and who will achieve their destiny? It all begins here.

As can be inferred from the lengthy synopsis above, a lot happens in Heir of Autumn, a densely-packed book that nears epic proportions as it weaves multiple threads and stories together. Luckily, it’s not hard to keep track of the characters as they follow their interlocking storylines, even if the passage of time is occasionally hard to gauge. It’s hard to talk about the events in the latter half of the book, if only because I don’t want to spoil (any more than necessary) some of the earlier developments. This book is full of twists and turns, unlikely alliances and surprise betrayals. There’s more than one sudden change in the status quo, and it all fuels a plot that builds towards a massive resolution. (That’s reviewer-speak for ‘Lots happens, and there’s at least one big battle. . . .)

Overall, I was quite pleased by Heir of Autumn. It’s a good, solid storyline, filled with memorable characters, and a refreshingly original setting. I suppose one could compare Ohndarien to Switzerland, however, if it was sitting in the middle of the Panama Canal, but that’s doing the city an injustice. Even more intriguing is Physen, a city built around and in an extinct volcano, where life is brutal and cheap if you’re not one of the lucky elites, and where everything revolves around a game that rewards the survival of the fittest (and most ruthless). Not so intriguing is the Ohohhim culture, which we see relatively little of, and which to all appearances, fills the need for an Oriental-inspired society.

I enjoyed Heir of Autumn, though at nearly 600 pages, it occasionally proved to be a bit of a slog. Things kept moving skillfully enough that was it was hard to stop reading, on the other hand. Thanks to its relatively unusual setting, its memorable cast of interesting characters, and its entangled plotlines, Heir of Autumn manages to stand out from the usual crop of epic fantasies, enough that I’ll be looking forward to the sequel, Mistress of Winter, when that comes out.

Goblin War, by Jim C. Hines (DAW, 2008)

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Some goblins just don’t have any luck. And others, like Jig “The Dragonslayer”, have way too much of the wrong sort of luck. Short, scrawny, weak, nearsighted and generally unimpressive, even for his already much-maligned (and deservedly so) race, Jig has two attributes in great abundance: cunning and cowardace, which combine to form one heck of a self-preservation instinct that’s gotten him through more in the past few years than the rest of his brethren are likely to see in their entire lives. All of this (as detailed in Goblin Quest and Goblin Hero) has saddled him with a reputation he can’t escape, a number of enemies lurking in the corners, and an ancient forgotten god in his head. And then a band of humans invade his mountain once more, looking to steal the fabled Rod of Creation. The leaders of this group turn out to be the siblings of the -last- humans to mess with Jig, and they’re out for a little revenge. Before the blood’s had time to dry, Jig and many of his fellow goblins are captured and taken as slaves, in order to perform a little hard labor for Princess Genevieve, who’s been tasked with protecting the nearby human town of Avery from… what else, goblins and other such undesirables. Her brother, Theodore, takes the Rod of Creation as his own personal spoils of war.

This being a tale about goblins, one thing leads to another, and before long, Jig’s on the run. His companions are Relka, an overenthusiastic kitchen drudge, and Trok, a goblin warrior, and of course, Tymalous Shadowstar, the god kept alive through the feeble prayers of Jig and his fellows. The unlikely bunch end up running right into an army of goblins, orcs, trolls, kobolds and worse, all led by one rather ambitious orc named Billa the Bloody. Once Jig realizes that a greater plan is afoot, one that doesn’t leave much hope for his people’s survival, he starts thinking outside the box, looking for a way to survive the war that’s about to come crashing down upon them all. Unfortuntely, little does he realize that where one god – Tymalous – is involved, there might just be others. In an epic clash of good versus not-so-good, of light versus shadow, one goblin may just make all the difference. If he doesn’t get eaten by wolves first. Or killed by his own allies. Or catapulted by an angry tree. Or… well, you get the point.

Jim Hines takes all of the usual epic fantasy tropes, and pretty much folds, spindles and multilates them, going against expectations and convention with style and panache. This is humorous fantasy, but executed in a fairly straight-forward way, with the genuinely funny moments coming when least expected. Told from the viewpoint of characters usually offered up as bait and minor obstacles for more heroic adventures, Goblin War finally gives the underdog a chance to shine. Jig’s no hero, not by a long shot. He’s physically unimpressive, morally questionable, ethically lacking at times, and primarily concerned with saving his own skin, and those of his friends, making him the most unlikely of pivotal elements in the much larger picture. And so we can honestly root for him, watching him overcome and cope with his base instincts to do what’s right … or most expedient.

Furthermore, Hines makes sure to distribute a wide range of depth and motivations to the rest of the characters. Some may be stupid, or careless, or arrogant, but they’re well-rounded for all that, with even the lowliest of kobolds displaying some useful and redeeming qualities. It’s that level of complexity in everyone from the minor supporting characters, to the main “villains” themselves that makes Goblin War such a great read. You can look at it as a comic fantasy novel, a clever satire, an epic fantasy turned inside-out, or whatever else suits, it’s all there for the taking. Jig’s adventures pretty much singlehandedly redeem the traditional monster races, the orcs and trolls and goblins and so forth, the ones who usually wander the forest waiting to shake down that level 2 fighter you rolled up last Saturday.

I loved Goblin War. It’s a breath of fresh air in the fantasy field, a wonderful change of pace from the usual bloated epics and never-ending series, a story that remembers to laugh without giving up its dignity (inasmuch as goblins can have dignity…) Whether or not Hines writes anything more in Jig’s saga, or at least in his world, I’ll be following his work with great interest.

Goblin Quest, by Jim C. Hines (Daw, 2006)

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You know, it sucks to be a goblin. Small, not all that bright, pretty much condemned to live underground, and nothing but cannon fodder for every Tom, Dick, and Arthur Adventurer that comes questing for treasure and glory. It sucks even more if you happen to be Jig, who’s one of the smallest, most hapless members of said goblin race. He’s scrawny, puny, near-sighted and a target for bullies.

All of this, of course, leads him to being placed on guard duty at exactly the wrong moment on the wrong night, when an all-new group of adventurers comes a’visiting. Before he knows it, Jig’s been captured and forced to serve as a native guide for these people as they journey deep into the tunnels that stretch below Jig’s home, down into the bowels of a magic-carved mountain, in search of the legendary Rod of Creation.

Now Jig has to contend with a pathetic elven thief, a pompous sword-wielding prince and his erratic magic-using brother, and a dwarf priest, as the unlikely group navigates through danger-filled tunnels, defying death on a constant basis. They’ll have to deal with hobgoblins, trolls, bats, spiders, the walking undead, an insane necromancer, and each other. That’s before they even get to the dragon, which reportedly holds the Rod of Creation. Believe it or not, Jig is the one with the most common sense, the best sense of self-preservation, and the one most likely to survive under pressure — especially after he makes a deal with a long-forgotten god who’s willing to take on a goblin as a worshipper. (Sometimes, even a goblin is better than nothing!)

Goblin Quest is definitely not your traditional fantasy. It’s a skewed, hilarious twist on epic quest fantasy, turning things upside down and showing them from the viewpoint of the cannon fodder. All of the usual troops are here: warriors, wizards, dragons, dungeons, quests, goblins, and so on, but nothing is exactly as you’d expect. Sick of those formulaic epic fantasies? Goblin Quest is the exact opposite of them. It reminds me heavily of Eve Forward’s Villains by Necessity, which likewise showed a fantasy quest from an unusual viewpoint. I had a great deal of fun following Jig as he took control of his own destiny, and I look forward to future installments in his story. Goblin Quest is a very welcome breath of fresh air, and a great addition to the comic fantasy genre.