Once upon a time, William Goldman brought us The Princess Bride, that classic tale of true love, treachery, revenge, heroics, high adventure, and the victory of beauty and truth over death and selfishness. Well, actually, he brought us the “Good … Continue reading
I’ve always had a soft spot for the works of Mercedes Lackey. I discovered her soon after her first book, Arrows of the Queen, first in her long-running Heralds of Valdemar series, came out, and I stuck with her as … Continue reading
THE ONION GIRL Anyone who’s ever visited Charles de Lint’s mythical North American city of Newford knows Jilly Coppercorn. Artist, visionary, friend, described by de Lint as “the heart and soul of Newford.” She moves from story to story, book … Continue reading
Listen close, for I’m about to tell you a story that sounds familiar, yet is as different from what you know as rain is from snow. It’s a story of magic, and love, power, and loss, life, and death. In … Continue reading
Most people don’t realize it, but the veil separating our world from the countless, unimaginable horrors of Hell is a thin one, often frayed almost to the point of breaking, and very little stands between us and horrible, messy deaths, … Continue reading
Once upon a time, as the story goes, there was a princess. As an infant, she was blessed by some of the mightiest fairies in all the land, save one. That one, the most powerful and malevolent of creatures, resentful … Continue reading
We all know what a Hero is like. Though born of ignoble birth, he overcomes great odds and adversity to accomplish noble quests, gain the aid of mysterious allies and ancient artifacts, and show up to save the day in … Continue reading
A Shakespeare Sketchbook, by Renwick St. James and James C. Christensen (Greenwich Workshop Press, 2001) Shakespeare on Fairies and Magic, by Benjamin Darling (Prentice Hall Press, 2001) There’s no doubt that Shakespeare, whether he was a playwright from Avon-on-Stratford, Sir … Continue reading
Some months back, I raved about Seven Nations’ 1999 release, The Factory. Now I’m back with a pair of releases from one of the best Celtic rock bands out there. The Pictou Sessions, released in 2000 on their own label, … Continue reading
“They talk about the Islands and they have been called Wild Queens. I wonder if they were not really Anne Bonney and Mary Read, those piratical dames, those buccaneer broads, those sword-and-knife wielding beauties of the Bounding Main. After all, … Continue reading
