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Title: Irresistible Forces by Jo Beverley, Lois McMaster Bujold, Mary Jo Putney, Catherine Asaro, Jennifer Roberson, Deb Stover ISBN: 0-451-21111-1 Publisher: New American Library Pub. Date: 03 February, 2004 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.12 (17 reviews)
Rating: 3
Summary: Uneven, but worth reading
Comment: IRRESISTIBLE FORCES is a collection of six stories from s/f and romance heavy hitters. The best story of the lot, "Winterfair Gifts," is by Lois McMaster Bujold, and features two minor characters from her Vorkosigan novels exploring a most unusual romance amidst a backdrop of mystery and intrigue.
Only caveat: I'm unsure if someone who hasn't read much of Ms. Bujold's Vorkoverse would understand this story. Since I've read every single book Ms. Bujold has ever put out, I cannot answer that question.
But I enjoyed it very much, and thought it well worth the price of the entire book. (I bought this collection solely for that story, and looked at the other stories as an "added bonus.")
Five stars, and I'd give it more if I had 'em. :)
After that, the stories get tougher to rate. I liked Catherine Asaro's story, "Stained Glass Heart," much more than I thought I would; it appears to be an outtake from her Skolian universe series, and has two young, apparently doomed lovers, a highly stratified society, and an arranged marriage. Love, family, duty, honor, and "keeping up appearances" are all themes in this story, and all worked.
The biggest problem with this story is that the protagonists are very young -- the older of the two is seventeen -- and the two youngsters are dealing with some very adult subjects. Nothing wrong with that, exactly, just a bit offputting considering that every other story in this collection deals with clear-cut adults -- most protagonists are at least twenty-five or so.
The plot is one we've seen before, with a few twists (I don't want to spoil 'em, so I won't go into 'em here). However, it's done well here, the science fictional bits are well chosen, and if it's representative of the Skolian universe as a whole, I might have to give Ms. Asaro's work another try.
I think this is the best story I've read from Ms. Asaro, and I'd give it three and a half stars, even though I still don't understand the meaning of this story's title (except for the obvious).
I enjoyed Jo Beverley's story (I forget the title) that juxtaposed Winston Churchill, the far future, and what happens when heroes return to their homes -- but it took a long, long time to develop and the language used was rather clunky and got in the way of the story. (As far as I know, this is Ms. Beverley's first-ever attempt at a science fiction/fantasy story; it does work. But I think it would have worked better as a novel.)
Because the idea was so very strong and because I could see where Ms. Beverley was going with her story, I'd give her story three and a half stars.
"The Alchemical Marriage" by Mary Jo Putney was a decent story; it didn't really move me or engage me, but it wasn't a bad effort, exactly. I think the whole subject of how the Spanish Armada was deflected was too big for one short story; perhaps this would have been better suited as a novel subject?
And the lovers got together far, far too quickly for my taste.
Still, not bad, exactly. Just not right on the money.
Two stars for that one.
"Shadows in the Wood," by Jennifer Roberson, is another really tough one to rate. I like Ms. Roberson's writing -- I like it a whole lot. I also like the subject matter, how Ms. Roberson plays it out, and what happens in the story -- but once again, the story seems just way, way too short and truncated.
I mean, Maid Marian and Robin Hood meet Merlin? In a very short story? At the very end of the book?
Why was this story given such short shrift?
At any rate, I wish this story had been much longer. It was so enjoyable, I wanted a whole lot more.
So, I'd give the idea of the story four stars, and the writing five stars, but the fact that there wasn't enough room for the idea (and not enough room to develop it either) two. I guess I'll give it overall three stars, mainly because I do like the writer and the writing so much.
Finally, we come to Deb Stover and her good, but misplaced story "Skin Deep." This is a paranormal romance; it's a good paranormal, albeit very short, and I liked the characters.
But alongside three science fiction stories and two fantasies, it doesn't work. It just doesn't. Even if you count the Putney story as historical fantasy, it still doesn't work.
I think Ms. Stover's writing is good, and her storytelling is very interesting. She made me laugh more than any other author except for Ms. Bujold (whose writing I know very well from past experience; this was the first exposure I'd ever had to Ms. Stover). I liked her story.
But it had no place here. It threw off the tone of the anthology. And it threw the other stories even further off balance (and the anthology was already rather uneven to begin with).
Because of this story, I took off one star from the overall anthology rating (because of Ms. Bujold's very strong story, I'd normally have wished to give this anthology four stars, rounding the overall stars upward rather than down as I did here) -- but I'd still recommend this particular story to paranormal romance readers.
I know that has to sound odd; in effect, I'd give the story itself a four star rating, but separate it from the other five stories, because it just does not fit.
In conclusion, this is an uneven effort, but worth reading despite the unevenness.
Three stars, recommended for people who want to branch out from romance to s/f or vice versa.
One final note: I wish this anthology hadn't been so long delayed. It was originally set to go in 2003 and was held until 2004, supposedly to make a "big splash" at Valentine's Day of this year, in order to perhaps generate bigger sales. All I know is that the so-called "big splash" didn't happen in my neck of the woods at all, and that I had a hard time finding it in the local bookstore.
Barb Caffrey
Rating: 4
Summary: Bujold Shines!
Comment: I only bought this collection for the entry by Lois McMaster Bujold, "Winterfair Gifts", which is about the marriage of her series-hero Miles Vorkosigan, and which is set between her recent series novels A CIVIL CAMPAIGN and DIPLOMATIC IMMUNITY. I have not yet read any of the other stories, but this story alone is worth the price. It's not only about Miles's wedding, but also about more serious issues such as prejudice, trust, and some very old-fashioned romance (although one of the lovers involved is rather unusual). It's a wonderful read, and its only flaw is that it is too short.
Rating: 1
Summary: Don't waste your money!
Comment: I read this book because I'm a Bujold fan, especially of her Vorkosigan universe. I have read and re-read her books several times. "Winterfair Gifts" is an enjoyable visit to her universe, but not at all on par with her other novels or her previous short stories about Miles Vorkosigan. You certainly won't understand why there are many Miles devotees from reading this short story, which is truly for only Vorkosgian fans.
As far as the other stories, boring, boring and boring. The only possible author of interest of Asaro, I found some of the elements in her story interesting. I too agree with a few other reviewers in that I was troubled with the very young age of the protagonists.
If you are a fan of one of the authors, please take this book out of the library. This book is a shameless attempt to make money for shoddy second-rate work by beloved authors.
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Title: Paladin of Souls: A Novel by Lois McMaster Bujold ISBN: 0380979020 Publisher: Eos Pub. Date: 23 September, 2003 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title: Balance of Trade (Liaden Universe) by Sharon Lee, Steve Miller, Steven Miller ISBN: 1592220193 Publisher: Meisha Merlin Publishing Pub. Date: March, 2004 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
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Title: The Charmed Sphere by Catherine Asaro ISBN: 037380203X Publisher: Luna Pub. Date: 01 February, 2004 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
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Title: Charmed Destinies: 3 Novels in 1 by Mercedes Lackey, Rachel Lee, Catherine Asaro ISBN: 0373218338 Publisher: Silhouette Pub. Date: 01 November, 2003 List Price(USD): $6.50 |
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Title: Skyfall by Catherine Asaro ISBN: 0765306387 Publisher: Tor Books Pub. Date: 24 October, 2003 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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