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Borderland #7
The Essential Bordertown
Bordertown. Once a normal American city, now a perilous nexus between the World and returned Elfland. From the banks of the addictive Mad River to the all-night clublands where young elves and humans fight and play, all the way up to glittering dragon's Tooth Hill, where high society seals itself away from the street--this is no city to trifle with.
Bordertown. A place of hidden magic, flamboyant artists, runaway teenagers, and pagan motorcycle gangs. The city you always knew was there.
Bordertown was created by Terri Windling, multiple World fantasy Award-winning editor, artist, and writer. Now thirteen of modern fantasy's finest writers return to Bordertown once again, to tell a new cycle of tales of the city. Here are Charles de Lint, Ellen Kushner, Patricia A. McKillip, Felicity Savage, Delia Sherman, Midori Snyder, Caroline Stevermer--and here is bestselling author Steven Brust with "When the Bow Breaks," chosen as a finalist for the Nebula Ward after the hardcover publication of this volume.
Bordertown. It's an attitude and a state of mind. It's elfin light and human sweat. It will never let you go.
Bordertown. A place of hidden magic, flamboyant artists, runaway teenagers, and pagan motorcycle gangs. The city you always knew was there.
Bordertown was created by Terri Windling, multiple World fantasy Award-winning editor, artist, and writer. Now thirteen of modern fantasy's finest writers return to Bordertown once again, to tell a new cycle of tales of the city. Here are Charles de Lint, Ellen Kushner, Patricia A. McKillip, Felicity Savage, Delia Sherman, Midori Snyder, Caroline Stevermer--and here is bestselling author Steven Brust with "When the Bow Breaks," chosen as a finalist for the Nebula Ward after the hardcover publication of this volume.
Bordertown. It's an attitude and a state of mind. It's elfin light and human sweat. It will never let you go.
383 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1998
11 people are currently reading
1021 people want to read
About the author
Terri Windling
120 books711 followersTerri Windling is an American editor, artist, essayist, and the author of books for both children and adults. Windling has won nine World Fantasy Awards, the Mythopoeic Award, the Bram Stoker Award, and her anthology The Armless Maiden, a fiction collection for adult survivors of child abuse, appeared on the shortlist for the James Tiptree, Jr. Award. She was also honored with SFWA's Soltice Award in 2010, a lifetime achievement award for "significant contributions to the speculative fiction field as a writer, editor, artist, educator, and mentor". Windling's work has been translated into French, German, Spanish, Italian, Czech, Lithuanian, Turkish, Russian, Japanese, and Korean.
In the American publishing field, Windling is one of the primary creative forces behind the mythic fiction resurgence that began in the early 1980s—first through her work as an innovative editor for the Ace and Tor Books fantasy lines; secondly as the creator of the Fairy Tales series of novels (featuring reinterpretations of classic fairy tale themes by Jane Yolen, Steven Brust, Pamela Dean, Patricia C. Wrede, Charles de Lint, and others); and thirdly as the editor of over thirty anthologies of magical fiction. She is also recognized as one of the founders of the urban fantasy genre, having published and promoted the first novels of Charles de Lint, Emma Bull, and other pioneers of the form.
With Ellen Datlow, Windling edited 16 volumes of The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror (1986–2003), an anthology series that reached beyond the boundaries of genre fantasy to incorporate magic realism, surrealism, poetry, and other forms of magical literature. Datlow and Windling also edited the Snow White, Blood Red series of literary fairy tales for adult readers, as well as many anthologies of myth & fairy tale inspired fiction for younger readers (such as The Green Man, The Faery Reel, and The Wolf at the Door). Windling also created and edited the Borderland series for teenage readers.
As an author, Windling's fiction includes The Wood Wife (winner of the Mythopoeic Award for Novel of the Year) and several children's books: The Raven Queen, The Changeling, A Midsummer Night's Faery Tale, The Winter Child, and The Faeries of Spring Cottage. Her essays on myth, folklore, magical literature and art have been widely published in newsstand magazines, academic journals, art books, and anthologies. She was a contributor to The Oxford Companion to Fairy Tales, edited by Jack Zipes.
As an artist, Windling specializes in work inspired by myth, folklore, and fairy tales. Her art has been exhibited across the US, as well as in the UK and France.
Windling is the founder of the Endicott Studio, an organization dedicated to myth-inspired arts, and co-editor (with Midori Snyder) of The Journal of Mythic Arts. She also sits on the board of the Mythic Imagination Institute. A former New Yorker, Windling spend many years in Tucson, Arizona, and now lives in Devon, England. She is married to dramatist Howard Gayton, co-director of the Ophaboom Theatre Company.
In the American publishing field, Windling is one of the primary creative forces behind the mythic fiction resurgence that began in the early 1980s—first through her work as an innovative editor for the Ace and Tor Books fantasy lines; secondly as the creator of the Fairy Tales series of novels (featuring reinterpretations of classic fairy tale themes by Jane Yolen, Steven Brust, Pamela Dean, Patricia C. Wrede, Charles de Lint, and others); and thirdly as the editor of over thirty anthologies of magical fiction. She is also recognized as one of the founders of the urban fantasy genre, having published and promoted the first novels of Charles de Lint, Emma Bull, and other pioneers of the form.
With Ellen Datlow, Windling edited 16 volumes of The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror (1986–2003), an anthology series that reached beyond the boundaries of genre fantasy to incorporate magic realism, surrealism, poetry, and other forms of magical literature. Datlow and Windling also edited the Snow White, Blood Red series of literary fairy tales for adult readers, as well as many anthologies of myth & fairy tale inspired fiction for younger readers (such as The Green Man, The Faery Reel, and The Wolf at the Door). Windling also created and edited the Borderland series for teenage readers.
As an author, Windling's fiction includes The Wood Wife (winner of the Mythopoeic Award for Novel of the Year) and several children's books: The Raven Queen, The Changeling, A Midsummer Night's Faery Tale, The Winter Child, and The Faeries of Spring Cottage. Her essays on myth, folklore, magical literature and art have been widely published in newsstand magazines, academic journals, art books, and anthologies. She was a contributor to The Oxford Companion to Fairy Tales, edited by Jack Zipes.
As an artist, Windling specializes in work inspired by myth, folklore, and fairy tales. Her art has been exhibited across the US, as well as in the UK and France.
Windling is the founder of the Endicott Studio, an organization dedicated to myth-inspired arts, and co-editor (with Midori Snyder) of The Journal of Mythic Arts. She also sits on the board of the Mythic Imagination Institute. A former New Yorker, Windling spend many years in Tucson, Arizona, and now lives in Devon, England. She is married to dramatist Howard Gayton, co-director of the Ophaboom Theatre Company.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 43 reviews
May 2, 2016
Posted at Shelf Inflicted
This is a fun and satisfying collection of stories about runaways. Some are running to something or away from something. Some are human, some halfie, and others are elves, or True Bloods, as they call themselves.
Bordertown is a city between the Human World and The True and Only Realm that is inhabited by the Fae folk. Elvin magic does not work in the World and technology does not work in the Realm. Both work in Bordertown inconsistently and with interesting effects.
Between each story is a little guide to language, people, hospitality, elvin etiquette, food, nightlife, and the peculiarities of humans.
The stories were sad, humorous, engaging and made me want to run away from home.
I especially loved the touching “Argentine” by Ellen Steiber, set in Bordertown’s El Barrio and told from the perspective of a young Elvin thief. This beautifully written story explores love, death, grief, and redemption. I loved its vibrant colors, its soul, and its distinctly Latin feel.
This is a fun and satisfying collection of stories about runaways. Some are running to something or away from something. Some are human, some halfie, and others are elves, or True Bloods, as they call themselves.
Bordertown is a city between the Human World and The True and Only Realm that is inhabited by the Fae folk. Elvin magic does not work in the World and technology does not work in the Realm. Both work in Bordertown inconsistently and with interesting effects.
Between each story is a little guide to language, people, hospitality, elvin etiquette, food, nightlife, and the peculiarities of humans.
The stories were sad, humorous, engaging and made me want to run away from home.
I especially loved the touching “Argentine” by Ellen Steiber, set in Bordertown’s El Barrio and told from the perspective of a young Elvin thief. This beautifully written story explores love, death, grief, and redemption. I loved its vibrant colors, its soul, and its distinctly Latin feel.
May 2, 2016
Read in 1999, not reviewed at the time.
Re-read 5/2016:
“Socks” by Delia Sherman
At a flophouse where a group of misfit kids, including one girl known derisively as 'Socks,' has found a degree of safety and protection, a new girl comes into the fold. Tough-talking and damaged, she's full of unlikely stories about her mother being a runaway princess of Elfland. But more of her tales might be true than one might guess, and she could help Socks heal, in more ways than one.
I found this a bit more heavy-handed upon re-reading than I think I did the first time around. I think it might mostly be that I'm just not the right age for the 'Bordertown' tales anymore... they were more meaningful to me than nearly anything when I first discovered them, back in 1986.
Re-read 5/2016:
“Socks” by Delia Sherman
At a flophouse where a group of misfit kids, including one girl known derisively as 'Socks,' has found a degree of safety and protection, a new girl comes into the fold. Tough-talking and damaged, she's full of unlikely stories about her mother being a runaway princess of Elfland. But more of her tales might be true than one might guess, and she could help Socks heal, in more ways than one.
I found this a bit more heavy-handed upon re-reading than I think I did the first time around. I think it might mostly be that I'm just not the right age for the 'Bordertown' tales anymore... they were more meaningful to me than nearly anything when I first discovered them, back in 1986.
May 6, 2016
Another Borderland anthology. This one didn't stick in my mind the way that Bordertown did, but going back through it once I started reading the first story I discovered that I had read it before. And then it turns out that the stories I liked the best weren't any of the stories that I remembered.
My favorite part of the book wasn't any of the stories at all, it was the Guide to Bordertown segments inserted between the stories written from the perspective of a bunch of Bordertown kids. As such, it starts out with a guide to squats and moves on to subjects from the best places to eat and dance or see theatre (important in a city where computers and television don't work) to a guide for elvin runaways who want to get out of the True and Only Realm. Since the stories are written by different contributors, they all have a slightly different take on what Bordertown is like, and while I don't expect this guide is objective in any real sense, it satisfies my urge for worldbuilding.
I'm not sure if it's because I read it most recently, but I think the story that stuck most with me is "How Shannaro Tolkinson Lost and Found His Heart" because it shows an important part of running away to Bordertown--some people do it with bad motives. There's plenty of focus on how life is often hard in Bordertown, but people leave even harder situations behind and are willing to endure to find their own life. There's not much focus on people who use Bordertown's reputation to drag other people along with them into a life they think would be magical but is actually just another cage. And here's it's two elves and the cage is literally magical, but I liked the metaphor. Sometimes, the person who wants to sweep you off your fate and take you away from all this doesn't have your best interests at heart. Sometimes, they just want to devour you at their leisure.
"Changeling" seems a little dated now (though only a little, and it depends on where you live), but I like it because it deals with another aspect of acceptance. Racism isn't the only problem in Bordertown, and there are some things that can still mark you out as separate even if they aren't as obvious as silver hair or pointed ears. I also liked the bit about the theatre, because the audience is on your side. They want to believe, and given the flimsiest of excuses, they're willing to do so. A flashlight and a mirror can be just as good as magic out of Faerie when the mood is right.
I didn't particularly care for the plot of "Hot Water: A Bordertown Romance," but I did like how it pointed out that by the return of Faerie expanding the range of possibility for human dreams, it's possible to have higher expectations and thus fall even further from reaching them. The story says:
In contrast to that, "Argentine" is the story of an exiled elf, thrown away for constantly stealing from others. Across the Border, she takes up stealing again, working for a fence and passing a few items on, but mostly stealing items whose owners find value in them. Their "best beloved," as she puts them. And while the message that she steals because she has no best beloved of her own and doesn't understand that love can only be freely given, it cannot be stolen, is trite, it's still true and is something all too many people don't understand. It also helps that there's a smartass ghost and a tale of love lost involved.
"When the Bow Breaks" was odd, but it certainly stuck in my memories. While most Borderland stories are set in an indeterminate time that is still recognizably "late 20th century," this one seemed almost 19th century. Sea trade on the Mad River, with piracy and cannons? Enough trade on the river to support masted ships? I couldn't get a handle on this story at all. Though admittedly, I did like the reason why the Company didn't use ships on the Mad River for more than four years before decommissioning them.
"May This Be Your Last Sorrow" is a short story and mostly about someone who ran away because she couldn't live up to their parents' expectations. And now things are pretty nice since no one is placing any demands on her that she cannot fulfill, but there's just something...missing. She loves going to art exhibitions and listening to music, and everyone leaves her alone if she doesn't want to be bothered, but it gets lonely, regardless.
I get that. There's a difference between being alone and being lonely, and it's much easier to be lonely in a crowd that it is in an empty room. It's possible to simultaneously keep everyone at arm's length and yet want someone to push past that, because that proves they're interested, that you are accepted and wanted for who you are. And a lot of the people who come to Bordertown want to be accepted and are fleeing a place that won't do so, but there are no guarantees in life. And in our lives, there's no Bordertown.
Huh. Maybe "May This Be Your Last Sorrow" is my favorite.
I'd read "The Essential Guide to Bordertown" as a standalone book with no short stories in it at all, but there are plenty of good stories in here too.
My favorite part of the book wasn't any of the stories at all, it was the Guide to Bordertown segments inserted between the stories written from the perspective of a bunch of Bordertown kids. As such, it starts out with a guide to squats and moves on to subjects from the best places to eat and dance or see theatre (important in a city where computers and television don't work) to a guide for elvin runaways who want to get out of the True and Only Realm. Since the stories are written by different contributors, they all have a slightly different take on what Bordertown is like, and while I don't expect this guide is objective in any real sense, it satisfies my urge for worldbuilding.
I'm not sure if it's because I read it most recently, but I think the story that stuck most with me is "How Shannaro Tolkinson Lost and Found His Heart" because it shows an important part of running away to Bordertown--some people do it with bad motives. There's plenty of focus on how life is often hard in Bordertown, but people leave even harder situations behind and are willing to endure to find their own life. There's not much focus on people who use Bordertown's reputation to drag other people along with them into a life they think would be magical but is actually just another cage. And here's it's two elves and the cage is literally magical, but I liked the metaphor. Sometimes, the person who wants to sweep you off your fate and take you away from all this doesn't have your best interests at heart. Sometimes, they just want to devour you at their leisure.
"Changeling" seems a little dated now (though only a little, and it depends on where you live), but I like it because it deals with another aspect of acceptance. Racism isn't the only problem in Bordertown, and there are some things that can still mark you out as separate even if they aren't as obvious as silver hair or pointed ears. I also liked the bit about the theatre, because the audience is on your side. They want to believe, and given the flimsiest of excuses, they're willing to do so. A flashlight and a mirror can be just as good as magic out of Faerie when the mood is right.
I didn't particularly care for the plot of "Hot Water: A Bordertown Romance," but I did like how it pointed out that by the return of Faerie expanding the range of possibility for human dreams, it's possible to have higher expectations and thus fall even further from reaching them. The story says:
Before the elves, humans had their own magic.but now that there's real elves and a real road to Faerie, that gets washed away by the glow of the Border. It's like the lesson in Finder, where some people decide that the real problem isn't in anything in their lives, it's with them. With humanity and its mundanity, and if there was a bit more magic around, then everything would be better. It's gazing at the stars and not noticing the cliff you're walking straight toward.
In contrast to that, "Argentine" is the story of an exiled elf, thrown away for constantly stealing from others. Across the Border, she takes up stealing again, working for a fence and passing a few items on, but mostly stealing items whose owners find value in them. Their "best beloved," as she puts them. And while the message that she steals because she has no best beloved of her own and doesn't understand that love can only be freely given, it cannot be stolen, is trite, it's still true and is something all too many people don't understand. It also helps that there's a smartass ghost and a tale of love lost involved.
"When the Bow Breaks" was odd, but it certainly stuck in my memories. While most Borderland stories are set in an indeterminate time that is still recognizably "late 20th century," this one seemed almost 19th century. Sea trade on the Mad River, with piracy and cannons? Enough trade on the river to support masted ships? I couldn't get a handle on this story at all. Though admittedly, I did like the reason why the Company didn't use ships on the Mad River for more than four years before decommissioning them.
"May This Be Your Last Sorrow" is a short story and mostly about someone who ran away because she couldn't live up to their parents' expectations. And now things are pretty nice since no one is placing any demands on her that she cannot fulfill, but there's just something...missing. She loves going to art exhibitions and listening to music, and everyone leaves her alone if she doesn't want to be bothered, but it gets lonely, regardless.
I get that. There's a difference between being alone and being lonely, and it's much easier to be lonely in a crowd that it is in an empty room. It's possible to simultaneously keep everyone at arm's length and yet want someone to push past that, because that proves they're interested, that you are accepted and wanted for who you are. And a lot of the people who come to Bordertown want to be accepted and are fleeing a place that won't do so, but there are no guarantees in life. And in our lives, there's no Bordertown.
Huh. Maybe "May This Be Your Last Sorrow" is my favorite.
I'd read "The Essential Guide to Bordertown" as a standalone book with no short stories in it at all, but there are plenty of good stories in here too.
September 7, 2014
Having just finished this book, I feel as though I’ve come home from a week spent walking the wild, gritty streets of Bordertown. The memories of madness, desperation, beauty, grime, and magic still cling to me, and I’m not sure if I’m going to be able to easily shake them off. Thirteen authors take the reader’s hand in this urban fantasy collection, lead the reader to the city limits and thrust them into a world of street kids, rock and roll, elves, enchantment, dreams and disappointments. The sheer story-telling talent in this book is undeniable, and the same goes for the gleeful imagination in each story. Make no mistake, the Border will change you, but this is a book I highly recommend.
Full review here.
Full review here.
June 14, 2011
An interesting anthology of short stories based on Terri Windling's Bordertown. To sum up, Faerie/Arcadia/whathaveyou pops back into the real world. That doesn't work so well, so instead a magic Berlin Wall of sorts is put up, so ne'er will Earth and Faerie meet again. Except for Bordertown, which is basically stuck in the middle where humans and faeries, technology and magic, mix up, sometimes well, oftentimes not. This was my first foray into Bordertown, and I liked the setting; Bordertown has that 'frontier town' feel where anything can and does happen, and it makes for a very dynamic, even exciting setting. Most of the stories are quite good; the girl seeking to learn magic and the one about the band especially stick out in my mind.
June 24, 2009
I love the Bordertown books, but this is my least favourite. I could never quite put my finger on why - I like the travel-guide sections between the stories, the stories themselves are hit or miss, but that's normal for anthologies, and there are some interesting characters.
Then I read an Amazon review (I think) that referred to this volume as "gentrified", and realized, by Jove, that's it exactly. It somehow feels gentrified.
Then I read an Amazon review (I think) that referred to this volume as "gentrified", and realized, by Jove, that's it exactly. It somehow feels gentrified.
March 30, 2016
I was disappointed with this installment of the Borderland series. Gone were my favorite characters from the original books and gone were any memorable new characters. I was hoping for more adventures of the bands, gang members, runaways, and artists from the originals. Not only those things but I felt it didn't have the same "magic" or feel.
March 29, 2013
Meh. Depressing. Short shorts about a gritty fantasy world with too much 'real' world drama, underdeveloped characters and too many quirks and costumes for my taste.
March 24, 2017
Great writers, but I couldn't get into it. May try it again another time in a different mood.
June 16, 2020
Enjoyment Rating: 5🌟
Writing Quality: 4.75🌟
Every time I finish another installation of the Borderland series, I feel like a Mad River Rat - shaking and aching for my next drink. This particular book is shaped as a Guidebook. Where to eat, which neighborhoods to frequent, how to avoid culture clash between Truebloods (aka Elves) and humans. I love everything about this world. The unreliable magic and inconsistent science. The gritty breath of every day life. The fact that not all, in fact not even most, of these stories do not come wrapped with a pretty ending, but instead shine the hard truth that some people can't catch a break no matter how hard they wish for it, and others fall into luck by mere happenstance. I would give just about anything for the chance to spend one day walking the streets of Bordertown, witnessing all it's wonders.
Writing Quality: 4.75🌟
Every time I finish another installation of the Borderland series, I feel like a Mad River Rat - shaking and aching for my next drink. This particular book is shaped as a Guidebook. Where to eat, which neighborhoods to frequent, how to avoid culture clash between Truebloods (aka Elves) and humans. I love everything about this world. The unreliable magic and inconsistent science. The gritty breath of every day life. The fact that not all, in fact not even most, of these stories do not come wrapped with a pretty ending, but instead shine the hard truth that some people can't catch a break no matter how hard they wish for it, and others fall into luck by mere happenstance. I would give just about anything for the chance to spend one day walking the streets of Bordertown, witnessing all it's wonders.
January 25, 2019
While not all of the stories in this collection are absolutely wonderful, reading them is important if you have any interest in the development of the urban fantasy genre. Mostly stories, the remainder of this volume is sort of a newcomers' guide to Bordertown. What made this interesting is that this was the last volume of the series before the 13-year hiatus.
Stories by Patricia McKillip, Steven Brust, Midori Snyder and Charles de Lint are among the best in my opinion, but your mileage may differ.
The important part of this collection is that we see parts of Bordertown from different viewpoints, different parts of the subcultures, and a few sneaky bits of the culture on the other side of the border.
Stories by Patricia McKillip, Steven Brust, Midori Snyder and Charles de Lint are among the best in my opinion, but your mileage may differ.
The important part of this collection is that we see parts of Bordertown from different viewpoints, different parts of the subcultures, and a few sneaky bits of the culture on the other side of the border.
September 8, 2021
In some ways, this anthology is the best introduction to Borderland, a perfect way for new readers to encounter the shared 'verse. Each contributing author provided an Introduction that helps orient the reader to this place, from how to find it to where to stay, where to eat, dangers to avoid, to differences between elves and humans and where the great music is. The stories themselves are phenomenally well written. Most of them find their way to an upbeat, satisfying conclusion, but since life keeps on happening, none of them feel like endings. If you like the stories you find here, you can find more in the other Borderland collections and novels, or follow the threads of authors' names; anything you liked here, they did more of elsewhere.
October 7, 2022
For lovers of Charles de Lint's urban fantasy. Pureblood fae, halfbloods and humans all mix it up in Bordertown, on the border of the Fairy Realm and the real world. Magic works but not the way you'd expect it, and there are pirates on the Mad River, which runs red and the fish have five sets of eyes. Terri Windling writes and does some editing and need I say more? A pleasure, a treasure, a treat and a trick.
August 25, 2017
4.5 stars
June 1, 2020
I didn't love every single story, but in general I absolutely love this shared world. If there was ever a fantasy world that I want to live inside, Bordertown is it.
March 3, 2021
Of course it's good; it's Bordertown!
January 27, 2014
I felt that this book started out much stronger than it ended. It was a very neat idea; a guidebook to the Bordertown between the human world and the elven world, interspersed with short stories about various aspects of life in this mythical town. The concept itself is fascinating and there is some pretty impressive world building, just because there were so many authors involved. The stories started off very well, and I sped through most of the book in a day. The last few stories stopped holding my attention as much and I had to struggle to finish the book. It took me about three days just to read the last three stories and the interspersed guidebook parts. It was still a decent read overall and a very nice departure from traditional urban fantasy.
July 3, 2008
This collection is right up there with Lost Souls at the top of my guilty pleasures list. Unrelentingly "twee" tales of adventurous kids running away to the glittery 24/7 RenFair that is Bordertown with dreams of being rock stars and hanging out with elves, only to find themselves stumbling around like clueless noobs while struggling to find a place to fit in in a town full of misfits. Taking the same "shared world" approach as the Thieve's World series, the Bordertown stories are more fun and less prone to bogging down into the endless political scheming and "my guy vs. your guy" showdowns that killed Thieve's World for me.
February 5, 2008
This is an anthology of stories set in Bordertown, a gritty city perched between the modern human world and the Realms of Faerie. Interspersed with short stories by such favorites as Charles de Lint, Midori Snyder, and Ellen Kushner are exerpts from a "traveller's guide" to Bordertown, detailing where to find good eats and how to avoid offending the Truebloods (elves to you and me). Like all anthologies, there are stories that are better than others, but overall it's a real gem and a hell of a lot of fun, whether you're new to Bordertown or coming back for a return visit.
March 19, 2013
The Essential Bordertown, as with all the Bordertown anthologies, is an incredible new kind of teen urban fantasy. It deals with all the well-known “teenage problems” – particularly cultural identity – in a magical, energetic way by turning them into wonderfully plotted metaphors that are both entertaining and insightful. That said, Bordertown is more than a series of self-help essays in fantasy short-story format. Bordertown, in its own way, represents a bit of a movement in teen fantasy, which offers a dark, interesting, and altogether original world.
February 17, 2008
I thought this was a fabulous collection. It reads like a travel guide for a place called Borderland. Chapters about where to stay, where to see live music, and how to get to Borderland are followed by stories that match up with the previous chapter. I especially love the part that this is a land that was made up by someone, but that has inspired so many author's to write their own stories from the perspective of any they can think of in this city of characters.
December 24, 2010
A wonderful collection of fantasy authors who all work off the same premise. The world of the Fae has bumped up against our own world and created a no-man's (or elf's) land where magic and technology only sometimes works and often goes wrong. Also the two races only sometime get along. Great stories about run-away teens and bad ass Fae with attitudes. Not your high minded Tolkien elves in this town and half breeds better hide.
July 22, 2016
I love this world, and the way this anthology is put together (the guidebook sections are, I think, a stroke of genius), and the way everything dovetails. It's just fabulous. I've actually owned two copies, because after spending years in my backpack the paperback copy eventually looked too miserable for me to subject it to further indignities. I managed to lay hands on a hardback, which I've been kinder to (not needing to tote a backpack around helps).
June 9, 2013
Collections of short stories generally aren't my thing, but this book has been on my radar for a long time, so it was time to read it. I really enjoyed the different stories being tied together by location. Most of the shorter stories I wanted to be longer, and most of the longer stories I thought dragged on a little too long. Over all I am glad I read this book, but it was a bit of a disappointment.
January 6, 2014
I love all the Bordertown stories, but this is an exceptionally well-done collection. I like the layout of the book as a guidebook and the connection between the introduction segments and the short stories. All of the characters are interesting and the stories layer on top of each other well. Despite some of the hardships and tragedies that the book highlights as part of Bordertown, you can still feel the romance and wonder that are part of this world, too.
September 7, 2012
I liked the concept surrounding this book. Basically the Fairyland has returned, and with it the elves. And the book is stories about the border between elves and humans. It leads to some interesting stuff about racism, and both magic and technology only work about half the time, which can also lead to fun. But mostly these are all character stories. None of them are bad, but I also wouldn't say they're particularly amazing either, as a group. Entertaining, but not amazing.
May 30, 2013
Forget where I heard about this but the idea of elves meet the real world sounded more interesting than the execution. The setting is a somewhat derelict town of drifters and gangs that borders the human technology world and the elven magical world, where neither magic nor technology work reliably. The theme that was repeated too much was about outcasts running here to fit in with all the others, the message obviously being about runaways and the homeless.
August 21, 2010
The short stories are always a fun mix - reminding me of nothing so much as War for the Oaks but obviously not novel length. They're rarely totally sad, which I heartily approve of and Bordertown is at least as well developed as Lint's Newford - considering the anthologies always have multiple authors that's saying something.
Good author selection, too!
Good author selection, too!
June 21, 2012
A fairly even collection - and some new authors to explore. The punctuating definitions and explanations of Bordertown grew thin as the book progressed and became completely unnecessary by the close of the book - but just skip over those and delve into the stories. They give you a better definition of Bordertown through your own imagination without beating you over the head.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 43 reviews