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The Best of John Jakes
" Foreword; Introduction; The Western, and how we got it; 11 Shootout at White Pass; The Woman at Apache Wells; Hell on the High Iron; A Duel of Magicians; Death Rides Here; The Winning of Poker Alice; To the Last Bullet; Little Phil and the Daughter of Joy; The Tinhorn Fills His Hand; The Naked Gun; Dutchman; Carolina Warpath; a note on sources; a bibliography of books; and credits."
252 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published June 21, 1977
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About the author
John Jakes
414 books965 followersJohn William Jakes, the author of more than a dozen novels, is regarded as one of today’s most distinguished writers of historical fiction. His work includes the highly acclaimed Kent Family Chronicles series and the North and South Trilogy. Jakes’s commitment to historical accuracy and evocative storytelling earned him the title of “the godfather of historical novelists” from the Los Angeles Times and led to a streak of sixteen consecutive New York Times bestsellers. Jakes has received several awards for his work and is a member of the Authors Guild and the PEN American Center. He and his wife, Rachel, live on the west coast of Florida.
Also writes under pseudonyms Jay Scotland, Alan Payne, Rachel Ann Payne, Robert Hart Davis, Darius John Granger, John Lee Gray. Has ghost written as William Ard.
Also writes under pseudonyms Jay Scotland, Alan Payne, Rachel Ann Payne, Robert Hart Davis, Darius John Granger, John Lee Gray. Has ghost written as William Ard.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
March 21, 2021
3 stars, Metaphorosis Reviews
Summary
A collection of speculative stories by John Jakes.
Review
I grew up with Secrets of Stardeep, a moving SF juvenile about a boy’s quest to redeem his father’s reputation. I still think it’s a great book. Eventually, I picked up other mid and full length work by Jakes – On Wheels, The Planet Wizard, The Asylum World – realizing along the way that he was much more famous for his historical fiction (which I haven’t read).
Whether The Best of John Jakes really captures his best SFF, I can’t say, but there are certainly some stories here that captured my imagination, and one or two that stayed firmly in my head for years. Others are more of their time (50s and 60s) or straightforward applications of moderately interesting concept. If you’re a fan of Jakes for other reasons, it’s worth picking up. The best stories:
"The Sellers of the Dream" - a dystopian future of commercialization and spies, this one had some images that stuck firmly in my head, though the background faded out a bit.
"One Race Show" - an art dealer searches out a unique, troubling painter. While the concept at the heart of this is familiar, Jakes does a good job of bringing emotion and drama to it in a new way.
"There's No Vinism Like Chauvinism" - war is both commercial and fake, until someone goes too far. Here, Jakes might have done better to expand this into a full novel or novella; the concept feels underexplored and a bit rushed as he focuses on the relationship at the heart of the story.
Interesting, if not always captivating.
Summary
A collection of speculative stories by John Jakes.
Review
I grew up with Secrets of Stardeep, a moving SF juvenile about a boy’s quest to redeem his father’s reputation. I still think it’s a great book. Eventually, I picked up other mid and full length work by Jakes – On Wheels, The Planet Wizard, The Asylum World – realizing along the way that he was much more famous for his historical fiction (which I haven’t read).
Whether The Best of John Jakes really captures his best SFF, I can’t say, but there are certainly some stories here that captured my imagination, and one or two that stayed firmly in my head for years. Others are more of their time (50s and 60s) or straightforward applications of moderately interesting concept. If you’re a fan of Jakes for other reasons, it’s worth picking up. The best stories:
"The Sellers of the Dream" - a dystopian future of commercialization and spies, this one had some images that stuck firmly in my head, though the background faded out a bit. "One Race Show" - an art dealer searches out a unique, troubling painter. While the concept at the heart of this is familiar, Jakes does a good job of bringing emotion and drama to it in a new way.
"There's No Vinism Like Chauvinism" - war is both commercial and fake, until someone goes too far. Here, Jakes might have done better to expand this into a full novel or novella; the concept feels underexplored and a bit rushed as he focuses on the relationship at the heart of the story.
Interesting, if not always captivating.
Displaying 1 of 1 review