"My favorite novella this year [from Baen's] was by a new writer, Holly Messinger. "End of the Line" (February) is a fantasy Western, about a man who can see ghosts who encounters spooky creatures on a trip west. Messinger is apparently planning more stories in this series."
Planning, yes. Executing... not so much. *sigh* It's either write for love or sew for money, these days.
Thank you, Rich. That means a lot to me, considering the quantity of fiction you slog through every year. I'll buy you a drink next time we're at the same Con.
8 comments:
I find myself in agreement with Mr. Horton. "EOTL" is my favorite novella of the year. It almost wins it by default, since I haven't been reading all that much SF/fantasy lately. The several novella length stories in David Drake's "Grimmer than Hell" that I read just recently don't count; they were written several years ago. Lois McMaster Bujold's "Sharing Knife" trilogy is not in contention either, since those stories are novels.
Several stories in the February issue of Baen were novella length, and I enjoyed them, but hanged if I remember them.
SG
Speaking of Lois McMaster Bujold: I recalled having seen your list of favorite lady authors some years ago, did the necessary research to access it again, to learn that she isn't included in that list. Should she be? I don't know; it isn't my call to say what ought to be on your lists, but she has launched herself onto my favorite list with her Sharing Knife trilogy. I have just read and reread her novel "The Spirit Ring." There are aspects of it that I think you would like, were you to have time and inclination to read it. There are ghosts, and magic. Fiametta, the heroine, is one strong women.
SG
I actually hadn't read any Bujold until recently. I found a giveaway copy of The Sharing Knife book One a couple of months ago, read it, found the second one, read it. I enjoyed them, I'll probably read the third one, but my jury is still out on Bujold as a writer.
See, while I found the books engaging, and the worldbuilding was certainly interesting, I found the two books lacking in plot. Romantic complications aside, there wasn't enough plot in either book for a single novel, let alone three.
I remember trying to read her Miles K-what's-his-name books a few years back and they didn't snag me. I don't remember why. Probably because my mom recommended them and I didn't trust her taste.
Oh, and I also found her characters rather flat. Fawn and Dag were very likable and that's about all they were. They never really came alive for me.
I couldn't say at all that Fawn and Dag will come alive for you in the third Sharing Knife novel. That is your call, should you choose to read it. It was rather by accident that I read it first. It was an SF Book Club selection, and I overlooked sending the "Don' t Send" card that month. I was weary of returning unwanted merchandice, having done so too many times in the past, so I paid the bill and read the book. I was hooked, so I actually spent good federal money to obtain the first two novels.
I am on my third reading of "The Spirit Ring."
SG
Well, we'll see. I do want to read the 3rd one, because she was doing some interesting plot things that I want to see played out.
Right now, however, I am moving into my new workroom, which will require making curtains, and making Christmas presents. What little reading I am doing is mostly nonfiction essays from the 19th century, about haunted places, mediums, debunking mediums, superstitions and the like. Research, in other words.
And, uh, did you notice there's a fourth book coming out in January?
I dunno, I suspect the woman's resting on her laurels.
Wow! Have I ever been living under a rock! Until such time as I googled Ms. Bujold, I was unaware that she has won four Hugos, as many as RAH, and that she was Guest of Honor at the WorldCon in Denver this past summer.
That's some cushion of laurels to be resting on.
Come to find out, "The Spirit Ring," her first venture into fantasy these fifteen years ago, met with mediocre sales and lackluster reviews. But I am enjoying the royal hang out of it. I am really really getting my money's worth; I only paid two dollars for it at a thrift store.
SG
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