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Damar
Imaginary Lands
It was on a ferry ride to Manhattan that the idea for this anthology was conceived: Sometimes the ground the characters of a story walk on is no more than that; but sometimes the landscape is a character in its own right. Nine writers, including James P. Blaylock, Peter Dickinson, Patricia A. McKillip, P C Hodgell and the editor, Robin McKinley, have written stories where the land is crucial to the tale: the armchair traveller will find the best of fantasy on this grand tour of imaginary lands.
1 • Paper Dragons • [Land of Dreams] • novelette by James P. Blaylock
23 • The Old Woman and the Storm • short story by Patricia A. McKillip
35 • The Big Rock Candy Mountain • novelette by Robert Westall
59 • Flight • novelette by Peter Dickinson
91 • Evian Steel • [Merlin's Booke] • novelette by Jane Yolen
125 • Stranger Blood • novelette by P. C. Hodgell
155 • The Curse of Igamor • short story by Michael de Larrabeiti
169 • Tam Lin • novelette by Joan D. Vinge
199 • The Stone Fey • novelette by Robin McKinley
1 • Paper Dragons • [Land of Dreams] • novelette by James P. Blaylock
23 • The Old Woman and the Storm • short story by Patricia A. McKillip
35 • The Big Rock Candy Mountain • novelette by Robert Westall
59 • Flight • novelette by Peter Dickinson
91 • Evian Steel • [Merlin's Booke] • novelette by Jane Yolen
125 • Stranger Blood • novelette by P. C. Hodgell
155 • The Curse of Igamor • short story by Michael de Larrabeiti
169 • Tam Lin • novelette by Joan D. Vinge
199 • The Stone Fey • novelette by Robin McKinley
256 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1985
5 people are currently reading
1678 people want to read
About the author
Robin McKinley
43 books7,264 followersBorn in her mother's hometown of Warren, Ohio, Robin McKinley grew up an only child with a father in the United States Navy. She moved around frequently as a child and read copiously; she credits this background with the inspiration for her stories.
Her passion for reading was one of the most constant things in her childhood, so she began to remember events, places, and time periods by what books she read where. For example, she read Andrew Lang's Blue Fairy Book for the first time in California; The Chronicles of Narnia for the first time in New York; The Lord of the Rings for the first time in Japan; The Once and Future King for the first time in Maine. She still uses books to keep track of her life.
McKinley attended Gould Academy, a preparatory school in Bethel, Maine, and Dickinson College in 1970-1972. In 1975, she was graduated summa cum laude from Bowdoin College. In 1978, her first novel, Beauty, was accepted by the first publisher she sent it to, and she began her writing career, at age 26. At the time she was living in Brunswick, Maine. Since then she has lived in Boston, on a horse farm in Eastern Massachusetts, in New York City, in Blue Hill, Maine, and now in Hampshire, England, with her husband Peter Dickinson (also a writer, and with whom she co-wrote Water: Tales of Elemental Spirits in 2001) and two lurchers (crossbred sighthounds).
Over the years she has worked as an editor and transcriber (1972-73), research assistant (1976-77), bookstore clerk (1978), teacher and counselor (1978-79), editorial assistant (1979-81), barn manager (1981-82), free-lance editor (1982-85), and full-time writer. Other than writing and reading books, she divides her time mainly between walking her "hellhounds," gardening, cooking, playing the piano, homeopathy, change ringing, and keeping her blog.
Her passion for reading was one of the most constant things in her childhood, so she began to remember events, places, and time periods by what books she read where. For example, she read Andrew Lang's Blue Fairy Book for the first time in California; The Chronicles of Narnia for the first time in New York; The Lord of the Rings for the first time in Japan; The Once and Future King for the first time in Maine. She still uses books to keep track of her life.
McKinley attended Gould Academy, a preparatory school in Bethel, Maine, and Dickinson College in 1970-1972. In 1975, she was graduated summa cum laude from Bowdoin College. In 1978, her first novel, Beauty, was accepted by the first publisher she sent it to, and she began her writing career, at age 26. At the time she was living in Brunswick, Maine. Since then she has lived in Boston, on a horse farm in Eastern Massachusetts, in New York City, in Blue Hill, Maine, and now in Hampshire, England, with her husband Peter Dickinson (also a writer, and with whom she co-wrote Water: Tales of Elemental Spirits in 2001) and two lurchers (crossbred sighthounds).
Over the years she has worked as an editor and transcriber (1972-73), research assistant (1976-77), bookstore clerk (1978), teacher and counselor (1978-79), editorial assistant (1979-81), barn manager (1981-82), free-lance editor (1982-85), and full-time writer. Other than writing and reading books, she divides her time mainly between walking her "hellhounds," gardening, cooking, playing the piano, homeopathy, change ringing, and keeping her blog.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
September 28, 2013
Imaginary Lands - Robin McKinley, ed.
I expected to like this anthology a lot more than I did. Many of the authors are ones that I greatly like and respect; and a couple of the entries were excellent - but others fell a bit flat, to me.
contents:
• James P. Blaylock. Paper Dragons. 1985
This story had a bit too much of the classic 'tall tale' to it for my taste. Those who enjoy that sort of thing may love it, but it just wasn't for me.
• Patricia A. McKillip. The Old Woman and the Storm. 1985
This was a beautiful story with the feel of an authentic legend. Brought tears to my eyes, I must admit!
• Robert Westall. The Big Rock Candy Mountain. 1985
This story was notable for its vivid evocation of its location - a town built over salt mines, gradually sinking due to subsidence. (A real place, the author tells us). However, its sense of place took precedence over the actual events portrayed.
• Peter Dickinson. Flight. 1985
Some great ideas here, and I liked it for about the first third of the piece. However, after that the gimmick began to wear thin - it's written as an intentionally dull and dry 'historical' account of events long past, in an academic style. It got tiresome to read, event though the world and events portrayed were intriguing.
• Jane Yolen. Evian Steel. 1985
I usually love Jane Yolen - however, the 'power' of menstrual blood is not an idea that resonates with me, even when mixed in with Arthurian legends of Avalon.
• P. C. Hodgell. Stranger Blood. 1985
I always feel like I would like to like Hodgell's writing more than I do. I mean, it's high fantasy mixed with a nice gothic aesthetic. But her writing style just doesn't do it for me,.
• Michael de Larrabeiti. The Curse of Igamor. 1985
A well-crafted fairy tale, with shades of Celtic legends and a bit of the Pied Piper...
• Joan D. Vinge. Tam Lin. 1985
Another retelling of a much-retold story. I liked its nod to the fact that the questing is so often more exciting than the getting...
• Robin McKinley. The Stone Fey. 1985
A wonderful story, set in McKinley's Damar, but far from the dramatic events and aristocratic doings of the two novels set in that land. Telling the story of a young shepherdess' encounter with the eerie, it achieves something which is very rare. It convincingly portrays a realistic person making a choice to follow a 'normal' life, and succeeds in showing that she has gained, not lost, by making that choice. The book is worthwhile, just for this story.
I expected to like this anthology a lot more than I did. Many of the authors are ones that I greatly like and respect; and a couple of the entries were excellent - but others fell a bit flat, to me.
contents:
• James P. Blaylock. Paper Dragons. 1985
This story had a bit too much of the classic 'tall tale' to it for my taste. Those who enjoy that sort of thing may love it, but it just wasn't for me.
• Patricia A. McKillip. The Old Woman and the Storm. 1985
This was a beautiful story with the feel of an authentic legend. Brought tears to my eyes, I must admit!
• Robert Westall. The Big Rock Candy Mountain. 1985
This story was notable for its vivid evocation of its location - a town built over salt mines, gradually sinking due to subsidence. (A real place, the author tells us). However, its sense of place took precedence over the actual events portrayed.
• Peter Dickinson. Flight. 1985
Some great ideas here, and I liked it for about the first third of the piece. However, after that the gimmick began to wear thin - it's written as an intentionally dull and dry 'historical' account of events long past, in an academic style. It got tiresome to read, event though the world and events portrayed were intriguing.
• Jane Yolen. Evian Steel. 1985
I usually love Jane Yolen - however, the 'power' of menstrual blood is not an idea that resonates with me, even when mixed in with Arthurian legends of Avalon.
• P. C. Hodgell. Stranger Blood. 1985
I always feel like I would like to like Hodgell's writing more than I do. I mean, it's high fantasy mixed with a nice gothic aesthetic. But her writing style just doesn't do it for me,.
• Michael de Larrabeiti. The Curse of Igamor. 1985
A well-crafted fairy tale, with shades of Celtic legends and a bit of the Pied Piper...
• Joan D. Vinge. Tam Lin. 1985
Another retelling of a much-retold story. I liked its nod to the fact that the questing is so often more exciting than the getting...
• Robin McKinley. The Stone Fey. 1985
A wonderful story, set in McKinley's Damar, but far from the dramatic events and aristocratic doings of the two novels set in that land. Telling the story of a young shepherdess' encounter with the eerie, it achieves something which is very rare. It convincingly portrays a realistic person making a choice to follow a 'normal' life, and succeeds in showing that she has gained, not lost, by making that choice. The book is worthwhile, just for this story.
July 16, 2019
Rating is mostly for Joan D. Vinge's take on Tam Lin, as I didn't care much for the other stories as I'd expected given the big names included.
May 8, 2010
I really struggled through this anthology. I picked it up because of McKinley's name on the cover. I love Robin McKinley, but this book makes me embarrased for her and several of the authors who contributed. Some of the stories felt like they were just trying so hard to make the setting of the story the focal point that the actual story was completely lost or irrelevant. Most of them did not include enough character development to make the characters matter to the reader and very few of them held my interest enough to pull me into the story and make me wish to stay there. Many of the story ideas should never have been done as a short story. There was too much going on and because of the size constraint, way too much information was left out that would have been very helpful to the understanding and enjoyment of the story.
A book like this should encourage readers to seek out more writing by the authors to enjoy more of what they have accomplished. I was put off more writers form this anthology than encouraged. I doubt I will seek out much work by these authors that wasn't already on my TBR list, although there are one or two I might look more into.
I don't always (or often) break down an anthology by each individual story, but where each of these were so incredibly different and were each by different authors, I'll include my view on each individual story. These were written as I read them, so this is what I thought of the story just after reading:
Paper Dragons- James Blaylock: I didn't like this story much. It felt a little too abstract for my taste. I know that it's fantasy, but it didn't so much feel like fantasy as delusions. (2.5 stars)
The Old Woman and the Storm- Patricia McKillip: I loved this story. It felt strongly of the old Native American Indian folk tales and stories that I love hearing. The characters aren't as important as what they portray, or represent and the earth and nature are truly important to them. I loved the symbolism hidden in the story and the ability demonstrated to see beauty in all things and to find joy and love in even the most unlikely of places. (4 or 4.5 stars)
The Big Rock Candy Mountain- Robert Westall: I am a little better than neutral about this one. I didn't love the beginning, but as the story goes on, it gets better. Once night falls in the salty town, the story picks up and begins to get more interesting. It wasn't a favorite, but it wasn't awful either. (weak 3.5 stars)
Flight- Peter Dickinson: This read like an overly researched, poorly written, very dry history text book. I realize that the intention was to make it sound like a scholarly text, but I've read many text books with more interesting language than is demonstrated here. I didn't feel that much of the actual history was explained very well. I understand that the author tells us in the beginning that this text contains the pieces that are missing, but none of us have read what is already there, so how are we supposed to know what else goes there?! Don't ever assume that your reader has the same imagination that you do. It doesn't work well. A few of the anectdotes were really interesting and the story ended perfectly. I love me a good irony. However, the introduction was weak, disjointed and awkward. It also didn't hold my attention very well at all. I rather feel that if I would rather stare at the rushing cement walls out the metro windows than read the book in my lap then said book is probably rather dull. (weak 3 stars)
Evian Steel- Jane Yolen: This story makes me wish that I knew more about Arthurian legends. I don't know if the characters here were entirely Yolen's creation or if she borrowed from legend. This was one of the better stories. I didn't love the story as much as the landscape she created and since that was the ultimate part of the story, I felt it was well done. I felt like I was on that fog shrouded isle. At times while reading this story, I felt like I was walking through the mist, waiting for that break that would show me the light passageway. I wouldn't mind reading more from Yolen about this world and these characters she has crafted to fit her ideas. (weak 4 stars)
Stranger Blood- P.C. Hodgell: Weird story and weird setting, but definitely one I would have liked to hear more about. Oooh... Apparently this is a series. I will have to look into it. The idea that there is a world of darkness and shadows that touches ours is intriguing and terrifying. I would love to read a story that explores this idea more fully and in more detail. (4 stars)
The Curse of Igamor- Michael de Larrabeiti: I really liked the feel of this story. It had that feeling of an old horror story to it. I can just imagine being those children shaking in my bed at night for fear of Igamor. The only complaint I have is the ending. I wish there had beem just a little bit more to the ending than there was. There was this build up and anticipation to the story that had no where to go. It was still very enjoyable and I quite liked it. (4 stars)
Tam Lin- Joan Vinge: Very, very good. I've never read a retelling of Tam Lin and it was only very recently that I became aware of the story. This isn't a tale that I grew up with, but I am excited to read more retellings soon, mostly because of this story. It was very tastefully done and I loved the reality of the emotions Jennet faces at the end of the story. She feels like a real character to me. I wish there had been more explained about the relationships within the story- Jennet and her father, her father and the priest and her father and her mother. The focal point within this story was the landscape however, so I am willing to forgive the weak relationships. I also wish that there had been a little more depth to each of the side characters. I didn't feel I really got to know them. However, I still very much enjoyed the story. It has whetted my appetite for more and I will now be moving some of those retellings on my list to a higher position within the que. (strong 4 stars)
The Stone Fey- Robin McKinley: I was really excited for this story, because I love McKinley's books set in Damar. They are the stories that made me realize I could and did enjoy fantasy, if it was done right. While I did enjoy this story, it was weaker than I expected, especially knowing it wad McKinley + Damar. I realized that I don't love Damar so much as I love the incredibly strong heroines who live in Damar. Maddy was... almost pathetic. There was so little character development as to make the story listless and unexciting. Her character wasn't developed enough for us to feel the loss of what made her essentially Maddy as her family did in the middle of the story. The only time I felt any emotional response to any character was Donal and his fears right at the end of the story. Nothing else seemed to matter. Aerlich was the best, most developed character in the story and he is just a sheep dog! While the story was not bad, it was no where near as strong as I had expected and hoped. This was the story that kept me going through the rest of this rather cumbersome, tiring book, and it was, in a word, disappointing. (3.5 stars)
A book like this should encourage readers to seek out more writing by the authors to enjoy more of what they have accomplished. I was put off more writers form this anthology than encouraged. I doubt I will seek out much work by these authors that wasn't already on my TBR list, although there are one or two I might look more into.
I don't always (or often) break down an anthology by each individual story, but where each of these were so incredibly different and were each by different authors, I'll include my view on each individual story. These were written as I read them, so this is what I thought of the story just after reading:
Paper Dragons- James Blaylock: I didn't like this story much. It felt a little too abstract for my taste. I know that it's fantasy, but it didn't so much feel like fantasy as delusions. (2.5 stars)
The Old Woman and the Storm- Patricia McKillip: I loved this story. It felt strongly of the old Native American Indian folk tales and stories that I love hearing. The characters aren't as important as what they portray, or represent and the earth and nature are truly important to them. I loved the symbolism hidden in the story and the ability demonstrated to see beauty in all things and to find joy and love in even the most unlikely of places. (4 or 4.5 stars)
The Big Rock Candy Mountain- Robert Westall: I am a little better than neutral about this one. I didn't love the beginning, but as the story goes on, it gets better. Once night falls in the salty town, the story picks up and begins to get more interesting. It wasn't a favorite, but it wasn't awful either. (weak 3.5 stars)
Flight- Peter Dickinson: This read like an overly researched, poorly written, very dry history text book. I realize that the intention was to make it sound like a scholarly text, but I've read many text books with more interesting language than is demonstrated here. I didn't feel that much of the actual history was explained very well. I understand that the author tells us in the beginning that this text contains the pieces that are missing, but none of us have read what is already there, so how are we supposed to know what else goes there?! Don't ever assume that your reader has the same imagination that you do. It doesn't work well. A few of the anectdotes were really interesting and the story ended perfectly. I love me a good irony. However, the introduction was weak, disjointed and awkward. It also didn't hold my attention very well at all. I rather feel that if I would rather stare at the rushing cement walls out the metro windows than read the book in my lap then said book is probably rather dull. (weak 3 stars)
Evian Steel- Jane Yolen: This story makes me wish that I knew more about Arthurian legends. I don't know if the characters here were entirely Yolen's creation or if she borrowed from legend. This was one of the better stories. I didn't love the story as much as the landscape she created and since that was the ultimate part of the story, I felt it was well done. I felt like I was on that fog shrouded isle. At times while reading this story, I felt like I was walking through the mist, waiting for that break that would show me the light passageway. I wouldn't mind reading more from Yolen about this world and these characters she has crafted to fit her ideas. (weak 4 stars)
Stranger Blood- P.C. Hodgell: Weird story and weird setting, but definitely one I would have liked to hear more about. Oooh... Apparently this is a series. I will have to look into it. The idea that there is a world of darkness and shadows that touches ours is intriguing and terrifying. I would love to read a story that explores this idea more fully and in more detail. (4 stars)
The Curse of Igamor- Michael de Larrabeiti: I really liked the feel of this story. It had that feeling of an old horror story to it. I can just imagine being those children shaking in my bed at night for fear of Igamor. The only complaint I have is the ending. I wish there had beem just a little bit more to the ending than there was. There was this build up and anticipation to the story that had no where to go. It was still very enjoyable and I quite liked it. (4 stars)
Tam Lin- Joan Vinge: Very, very good. I've never read a retelling of Tam Lin and it was only very recently that I became aware of the story. This isn't a tale that I grew up with, but I am excited to read more retellings soon, mostly because of this story. It was very tastefully done and I loved the reality of the emotions Jennet faces at the end of the story. She feels like a real character to me. I wish there had been more explained about the relationships within the story- Jennet and her father, her father and the priest and her father and her mother. The focal point within this story was the landscape however, so I am willing to forgive the weak relationships. I also wish that there had been a little more depth to each of the side characters. I didn't feel I really got to know them. However, I still very much enjoyed the story. It has whetted my appetite for more and I will now be moving some of those retellings on my list to a higher position within the que. (strong 4 stars)
The Stone Fey- Robin McKinley: I was really excited for this story, because I love McKinley's books set in Damar. They are the stories that made me realize I could and did enjoy fantasy, if it was done right. While I did enjoy this story, it was weaker than I expected, especially knowing it wad McKinley + Damar. I realized that I don't love Damar so much as I love the incredibly strong heroines who live in Damar. Maddy was... almost pathetic. There was so little character development as to make the story listless and unexciting. Her character wasn't developed enough for us to feel the loss of what made her essentially Maddy as her family did in the middle of the story. The only time I felt any emotional response to any character was Donal and his fears right at the end of the story. Nothing else seemed to matter. Aerlich was the best, most developed character in the story and he is just a sheep dog! While the story was not bad, it was no where near as strong as I had expected and hoped. This was the story that kept me going through the rest of this rather cumbersome, tiring book, and it was, in a word, disappointing. (3.5 stars)
September 29, 2009
edited by Robin McKinley
This the second time I've read this anthology. Oddly enough, I think I liked it more this time around. There were still a few stories I wasn't as wild about. But "Flight" by Peter Dickinson, "The Old Woman and the Storm" by Patricia McKillip, and "The Stone Fey" by Robin McKinley herself were all, in my opinion, excellent. They were also, interestingly enough, the stories which I felt best fulfilled the stated mission of the book: "the stories...must have a particularly strong sense of location, of the imaginary land each was laid in."
Having just read Fire and Hemlock, Joan Vinge's "Tam Lin" provided an interesting counterpoint. Fire and Hemlock is still my favorite (although Elizabeth Marie Pope's The Perilous Gard comes in at a very close second). It may have something to do with the length--book length lets Diana Wynne Jones build up her characters much more effectively. But I think it's mostly that I prefer Fire and Hemlock's conclusion. While both are somewhat bittersweet--something lost and something gained--Fire and Hemlock felt both more real and more hopeful to me.
"Stranger Blood" by P.C. Hodgell was another of my favorites. Again, there was a strong sense of the land and culture as something both distinct and real.
All in all, I'd definitely recommend this anthology if you enjoy reading fantasy, especially fantasy set in a specific location.
Book source: Southern Oregon University library
This the second time I've read this anthology. Oddly enough, I think I liked it more this time around. There were still a few stories I wasn't as wild about. But "Flight" by Peter Dickinson, "The Old Woman and the Storm" by Patricia McKillip, and "The Stone Fey" by Robin McKinley herself were all, in my opinion, excellent. They were also, interestingly enough, the stories which I felt best fulfilled the stated mission of the book: "the stories...must have a particularly strong sense of location, of the imaginary land each was laid in."
Having just read Fire and Hemlock, Joan Vinge's "Tam Lin" provided an interesting counterpoint. Fire and Hemlock is still my favorite (although Elizabeth Marie Pope's The Perilous Gard comes in at a very close second). It may have something to do with the length--book length lets Diana Wynne Jones build up her characters much more effectively. But I think it's mostly that I prefer Fire and Hemlock's conclusion. While both are somewhat bittersweet--something lost and something gained--Fire and Hemlock felt both more real and more hopeful to me.
"Stranger Blood" by P.C. Hodgell was another of my favorites. Again, there was a strong sense of the land and culture as something both distinct and real.
All in all, I'd definitely recommend this anthology if you enjoy reading fantasy, especially fantasy set in a specific location.
Book source: Southern Oregon University library
August 10, 2015
I may have read this when it came out -- many of the stories were familiar, although not the one I liked best, by Robert Westall.
July 31, 2017
4 stars for Robin McKinley's The Stone Fey, aka the reason i bought this book.
June 14, 2008
A collection of stories . . . some are good. Not a super-strong collection.
May 4, 2025
After the insanity that was Draco, I needed a palate cleanser and more Robin McKinley seemed like the perfect place to find one.
However, as I started, it quickly became clear that there wasn’t a lot of Ms. McKinley in this book, as it’s an anthology by various authors, with her contributing only the final story and editing. Nonetheless, this book was a really enjoyable time and while, as is pretty much always the case, some of the stories resonated more than others, I feel like I’ve found a bit of hidden gem here.
The book has nine stories in it, the longest about 35 pages and the shortest around 12, all designed around the idea that the land itself would be a prominent feature of the story. The stories we get:
“Paper Dragons” – An unnamed narrator travels to San Francisco to help an eccentric neighbor with his quest to build a dragon
“The Old Woman and the Storm” – At the dawn of all things, Arram meets a mysterious and capricious old woman.
“The Big Rock Candy Mountain” – Hiram, Sonja, and their parents’ vacation is derailed to a mysterious English town that is slowly sinking into the hillside
“Flight” – A pseudo-history of the only tribe never conquered by the great Ob empire
“Evian Steel” – On the island where no man is allowed to spend the night, a young noblewoman joins an order of sword forgers and meets a mysterious older girl with a secret
“Stranger Blood” – A young man with a bad leg discovers that death is stalking a remote border fortress when a woman with a dark past arrives
“The Curse of Igamor” – A corrupt noble controls his populace with threats of a cursed horse with a long back
“Tam Lin” – Retells a classic Scottish ballad about a young woman who falls in love with a fairy knight
“The Stone Fey” – In a remote village, a shepherdess falls under the spell of a hill spirit
The stories have a pleasing variety to them – “Big Rock Candy Mountain” and “Curse of Igamor” are lighthearted children’s tales while “Flight” and “Paper Dragons” have a sadness and longing to them. “Tam Lin” and “Evian Steel” reference well-known tales and “Stone Fey” and “Stranger Blood” are set in the worlds of other works by the authors. Settings range from classic high fantasy to pseudo-steampunk and everything in between.
Ironically, the story that led me to seek this book out in the first place (Stone Fey) is one of the weaker entries with McKinley’s frequent sin of fumbled endings showing up again here and the Damarian setting seeming more window dressing than anything actually connecting it to The Blue Sword or The Hero and the Crown.
“Flight” was probably my favorite, fitting the brief to perfection and featuring both creative worldbuilding and an engaging writing style that kept me invested despite being one of the longest stories.
I definitely recommend this one as I found myself really enjoying uncovering all the unique directions the stories would take and waiting to see how they ended. It’s fast, fun reading and is a great way to break up longer or more intense reads with a few really creative ideas
However, as I started, it quickly became clear that there wasn’t a lot of Ms. McKinley in this book, as it’s an anthology by various authors, with her contributing only the final story and editing. Nonetheless, this book was a really enjoyable time and while, as is pretty much always the case, some of the stories resonated more than others, I feel like I’ve found a bit of hidden gem here.
The book has nine stories in it, the longest about 35 pages and the shortest around 12, all designed around the idea that the land itself would be a prominent feature of the story. The stories we get:
“Paper Dragons” – An unnamed narrator travels to San Francisco to help an eccentric neighbor with his quest to build a dragon
“The Old Woman and the Storm” – At the dawn of all things, Arram meets a mysterious and capricious old woman.
“The Big Rock Candy Mountain” – Hiram, Sonja, and their parents’ vacation is derailed to a mysterious English town that is slowly sinking into the hillside
“Flight” – A pseudo-history of the only tribe never conquered by the great Ob empire
“Evian Steel” – On the island where no man is allowed to spend the night, a young noblewoman joins an order of sword forgers and meets a mysterious older girl with a secret
“Stranger Blood” – A young man with a bad leg discovers that death is stalking a remote border fortress when a woman with a dark past arrives
“The Curse of Igamor” – A corrupt noble controls his populace with threats of a cursed horse with a long back
“Tam Lin” – Retells a classic Scottish ballad about a young woman who falls in love with a fairy knight
“The Stone Fey” – In a remote village, a shepherdess falls under the spell of a hill spirit
The stories have a pleasing variety to them – “Big Rock Candy Mountain” and “Curse of Igamor” are lighthearted children’s tales while “Flight” and “Paper Dragons” have a sadness and longing to them. “Tam Lin” and “Evian Steel” reference well-known tales and “Stone Fey” and “Stranger Blood” are set in the worlds of other works by the authors. Settings range from classic high fantasy to pseudo-steampunk and everything in between.
Ironically, the story that led me to seek this book out in the first place (Stone Fey) is one of the weaker entries with McKinley’s frequent sin of fumbled endings showing up again here and the Damarian setting seeming more window dressing than anything actually connecting it to The Blue Sword or The Hero and the Crown.
“Flight” was probably my favorite, fitting the brief to perfection and featuring both creative worldbuilding and an engaging writing style that kept me invested despite being one of the longest stories.
I definitely recommend this one as I found myself really enjoying uncovering all the unique directions the stories would take and waiting to see how they ended. It’s fast, fun reading and is a great way to break up longer or more intense reads with a few really creative ideas
January 8, 2025
Your bog-standard fantasy short story collection complete with a handful of hits and misses. These days, I read classic SFF short stories moreso to discover authors I may have missed and in this I wasn't disappointed. My favorite story was actually the first in the collection, "Paper Dragons" by James P. Blaylock. I'd never heard of Blaylock, but was instantly charmed by his wry humor and atmospheric prose. Though lesser known than some of the other genre titans in the collection, his story stood out as the best among a series of weaker entries. A few points also go to Jane Yolen's "Evian Steel", an unexpected Arthurian prequel, and Robert Westall's innovate horror novelette "Big Rock Candy Mountain", but I was disappointed by both McKillip and McKinley's entries. Also, negative points for weak retelling of my favorite fairy tale, Tam Lin, by Joan D. Vinge.
March 14, 2024
I am blown away by this collection. They are all strange, weird and wonderful. I bought them for Robin McKinley's story, and actually it is my least favourite in a way in the collection - but no matter. The others are really worth reading too - and I can't help but continue to lap up anything by McKinley, even her Stone Fey story that left me feeling like it was far too short, needed more, and more from Daria as a whole.
It has taken me ages to finish, not because the stories aren't amazing, but because I've just been busy, reading other things and didn't want to stop between completion of one tale.
It has taken me ages to finish, not because the stories aren't amazing, but because I've just been busy, reading other things and didn't want to stop between completion of one tale.
July 2, 2022
It is hard to rate a collection of short stories since I don't necessarily love all of them. But here is an overview of how I felt about each of them.
I loved the two stories: Tam Lin and The Stone Fey. They were awe-inspiring fairy stories. I also enjoyed the Igamor story and Evian Steel. I really didn't care for Paper Dragons, Flight, or Rock Candy Mountain. The rest were okay, just not amazing.
I loved the two stories: Tam Lin and The Stone Fey. They were awe-inspiring fairy stories. I also enjoyed the Igamor story and Evian Steel. I really didn't care for Paper Dragons, Flight, or Rock Candy Mountain. The rest were okay, just not amazing.
December 30, 2017
Mixed bag as all anthologies are. Best three were The Big Rock Candy Mountain, Tam Lin, The Stone Fey. All three slightly eerie, with BRCM more modern and Tam Lin a bittersweet ending. Stone Fey best of the bunch. Honourable mention for Flight which had an interesting central idea that faded in and out of focus due to the conceit that it was a historical narrative over centuries.
June 29, 2023
I enjoyed most of the stories in this collection, particularly The Stone Fey and Stranger Blood. However, this review will focus on Tam Lin.
The focus of this anthology is on landscape – imaginary lands, in fact, which is somewhat ironic as Tam Lin is set in a real place. Or it’s supposed to be. This telling of Tam Lin is set in a Scotland most closely aligned with Brigadoon. There’s a reference to an ‘endless Highland winter’ despite being set in the Lowlands, Carterhaugh has been anglicised to Carter Hall, the characters speak like children at an English boarding school (‘Rot’), and the buildings, clothing, customs, and faith are just wrong, wrong, wrong. It is such a pity because it is otherwise a good retelling.
It would have been better for the story to be moved somewhere else entirely – indeed, like how the author of The Curse of Igamor, another story in the collection, took the myth of the Kelpie but set it somewhere new.
For those who are unfamiliar with the Scottish Borders (or indeed the country as a whole – this story is not accurate even as a vague picture of Scotland OR England) you will probably enjoy it, and not notice the glaring errors. For those who are: well, it took me some effort not to hurl the book across the room.
The focus of this anthology is on landscape – imaginary lands, in fact, which is somewhat ironic as Tam Lin is set in a real place. Or it’s supposed to be. This telling of Tam Lin is set in a Scotland most closely aligned with Brigadoon. There’s a reference to an ‘endless Highland winter’ despite being set in the Lowlands, Carterhaugh has been anglicised to Carter Hall, the characters speak like children at an English boarding school (‘Rot’), and the buildings, clothing, customs, and faith are just wrong, wrong, wrong. It is such a pity because it is otherwise a good retelling.
It would have been better for the story to be moved somewhere else entirely – indeed, like how the author of The Curse of Igamor, another story in the collection, took the myth of the Kelpie but set it somewhere new.
For those who are unfamiliar with the Scottish Borders (or indeed the country as a whole – this story is not accurate even as a vague picture of Scotland OR England) you will probably enjoy it, and not notice the glaring errors. For those who are: well, it took me some effort not to hurl the book across the room.
September 10, 2021
Wide variety of styles and subjects - some more engaging than others.
February 22, 2022
An enjoyable read for the most part. There were a couple stories I didn't care for, or didn't really get, but there are some I would definitely read again.
August 28, 2024
2.5 Suffers from the anthology curse. Couple high 3, couple stinkers
August 15, 2019
Quite, quite enjoyed this. I haven't done a short story collection by different authors in some time, and I found the change of style very refreshing. Other reviewers indicated that the Joan D. Vinge was one of their favorites, but I found the storyline similar to McKinley's entry, the Stone Fey, and not as compelling. Surprisingly, I really enjoyed Peter Dickinson's - I generally just skipped his dense pieces in his and McKinley's collaborations, but maybe I've grown up :)
Whew, the ending of The Stone Fey hit home and deep. My most similar reading experience was The Likeness by Tana French. Utterly different in every way except the feeling of loss associated with a good but hard choice. A story that leaves one hungering for more - but not in a bad way. In a way that primes the imagination and transforms the following days into a fantasy world of one's own.
Whew, the ending of The Stone Fey hit home and deep. My most similar reading experience was The Likeness by Tana French. Utterly different in every way except the feeling of loss associated with a good but hard choice. A story that leaves one hungering for more - but not in a bad way. In a way that primes the imagination and transforms the following days into a fantasy world of one's own.
January 17, 2025
I enjoyed this collection of short stories which had a particular focus on setting.
James P Blaylock, Paper Dragons - this is an odd steam punk story about a man who watches his neighbour's attempt to build a mechanical dragon, and gets caught up in the stories about a famous vivisector who combines animal parts and machinery to create new creatures; also, his other neighbour is an observer of sea life.
Patricia A. McKillip, The Old Woman and the Storm - an allegory set in prehistoric times, about a man who meets storms personified and has to try to find something to like about her
Robert Westall, The Big Rock Candy Mountain - the tale of a rich American family on their way to Europe who take an ill-fated tour north to Scotland, but stall in a salt town
Peter Dickinson, Flight - a fascinating and well-written essay-style account of the history of an empire. Probably my favourite of the collection
Jane Yolen, Evian Steel - a retelling of Arthurian legend, set in Avalon and with some unexpected character changes
PC Hodgell, Stranger Blood - I enjoyed this as well, it was an interestingly conceived secondary world fantasy with clear hints of epic proportions
Michael de Larrabeiti, The Curse of Igamor - a children's tale, really, of a nasty town leader and his two helpers who use the superstitions of a local people against them, and the travelling one-man band who isn't happy with this outcome
Joan D Vinge, Tam Lin - a romantic (but also anti-romantic!) telling of the tale, very vivid in its painting of the faery (actually reminding me a lot of McKillip's Winter Rose).
Robin McKinley, The Stone Fey - I had read this before and really enjoyed it. This time round I thought it interesting in the depiction of the fey as a kind of addiction and ourselves as little more than sheep in their eyes
James P Blaylock, Paper Dragons - this is an odd steam punk story about a man who watches his neighbour's attempt to build a mechanical dragon, and gets caught up in the stories about a famous vivisector who combines animal parts and machinery to create new creatures; also, his other neighbour is an observer of sea life.
Patricia A. McKillip, The Old Woman and the Storm - an allegory set in prehistoric times, about a man who meets storms personified and has to try to find something to like about her
Robert Westall, The Big Rock Candy Mountain - the tale of a rich American family on their way to Europe who take an ill-fated tour north to Scotland, but stall in a salt town
Peter Dickinson, Flight - a fascinating and well-written essay-style account of the history of an empire. Probably my favourite of the collection
Jane Yolen, Evian Steel - a retelling of Arthurian legend, set in Avalon and with some unexpected character changes
PC Hodgell, Stranger Blood - I enjoyed this as well, it was an interestingly conceived secondary world fantasy with clear hints of epic proportions
Michael de Larrabeiti, The Curse of Igamor - a children's tale, really, of a nasty town leader and his two helpers who use the superstitions of a local people against them, and the travelling one-man band who isn't happy with this outcome
Joan D Vinge, Tam Lin - a romantic (but also anti-romantic!) telling of the tale, very vivid in its painting of the faery (actually reminding me a lot of McKillip's Winter Rose).
Robin McKinley, The Stone Fey - I had read this before and really enjoyed it. This time round I thought it interesting in the depiction of the fey as a kind of addiction and ourselves as little more than sheep in their eyes
November 29, 2013
My wife brought this anthology home because it was edited by her favorite author. I've never been enthralled by McKinley myself, but I recognized several of the authors in this collection and decided to give it a chance. Also, my wife made the task easier by marking those stories she felt were particularly enjoyable. So, my caveat to this review is that I've actually only read 5/9ths of the entire volume.
The highpoint for me was "Flight" by Peter Dickinson, which was quite wonderful. It was a well-crafted, meticulously "researched" essay exploring the relationship between an Empire and one recalcitrant tribe stretching over hundreds of years, from the Empire's mythical origins through the Industrial Revolution, political revolution, and the Nuclear Age. It accomplished what the best fantasy should: holding up a mirror to the real world in a thoughtful and entertaining way. (I think the mirror analogy is especially apt. The most mundane scene takes on an entirely new aspect when seen in reflection. Dickinson's work does this with our history.)
There were other good stories as well, but nothing that stood out like Dickinson's contribution. "Rock Candy Mountain" was cute, as "The Stone Fey" was haunting. In all, I wondered what the common theme was holding these together beside a strong sense of place-- yet some of the stories lacked it. I think I was most disappointed with "Paper Dragons," which started the collection. The language in this piece was evocative and effective, but the story never gathered steam and eventually came to pieces like the dragon in Filby's garage.
The highpoint for me was "Flight" by Peter Dickinson, which was quite wonderful. It was a well-crafted, meticulously "researched" essay exploring the relationship between an Empire and one recalcitrant tribe stretching over hundreds of years, from the Empire's mythical origins through the Industrial Revolution, political revolution, and the Nuclear Age. It accomplished what the best fantasy should: holding up a mirror to the real world in a thoughtful and entertaining way. (I think the mirror analogy is especially apt. The most mundane scene takes on an entirely new aspect when seen in reflection. Dickinson's work does this with our history.)
There were other good stories as well, but nothing that stood out like Dickinson's contribution. "Rock Candy Mountain" was cute, as "The Stone Fey" was haunting. In all, I wondered what the common theme was holding these together beside a strong sense of place-- yet some of the stories lacked it. I think I was most disappointed with "Paper Dragons," which started the collection. The language in this piece was evocative and effective, but the story never gathered steam and eventually came to pieces like the dragon in Filby's garage.
October 20, 2023
"Here the past still lived."
Paper Dragons: Not really sure what happened here. Is that machine a real dragon? Idk
The Old Woman and the Storm: I love creation myths
The Big Rock Candy Mountain: This kind of reminds me of a Goosebumps novel
Flight: I feel like I just read the summation of a history textbook for an imaginary place
Evian Steel: I ADORE Arthurian legends. This is the best one so far
Stranger Blood: I like this world, it seems to have a really interesting history set up. Out of the new worlds here, this is the most fleshed out without being confusing."
The Curse of Igamor: All I got from this is the Curse is some kind of spectral horse like a kelpie or a pooka? Idk."
Tam Lin: I wish this was longer, I love Faerie stories
Also contained here: The Stone Fey, which I read as a standalone.
Paper Dragons: Not really sure what happened here. Is that machine a real dragon? Idk
The Old Woman and the Storm: I love creation myths
The Big Rock Candy Mountain: This kind of reminds me of a Goosebumps novel
Flight: I feel like I just read the summation of a history textbook for an imaginary place
Evian Steel: I ADORE Arthurian legends. This is the best one so far
Stranger Blood: I like this world, it seems to have a really interesting history set up. Out of the new worlds here, this is the most fleshed out without being confusing."
The Curse of Igamor: All I got from this is the Curse is some kind of spectral horse like a kelpie or a pooka? Idk."
Tam Lin: I wish this was longer, I love Faerie stories
Also contained here: The Stone Fey, which I read as a standalone.
August 19, 2010
A story collection, Robin McKinley edited and contributed one story (The Stone Fey, which is also available separately).
It wasn't really great. I think I was expecting stories more like Robin's but they weren't really. A couple were the weird, surreal stories that seem to think themselves cool or highly literary when they leave the reader going "Huh? Was that based on half an odd dream, or what?" that you find in fantasy collections but never make it as books. I wouldn't have considered it a great loss if I'd never read it, so I guess it deserves 2* for "it was ok", but there were one or two things that caught at me and I enjoyed, so 2.5 stars, rounded to three.
PS: I actually like some surreal, dreamlike stories, but they have to be told well enough to draw you in and give you that dreamlike conviction that everything makes perfect sense even when it doesn't.
It wasn't really great. I think I was expecting stories more like Robin's but they weren't really. A couple were the weird, surreal stories that seem to think themselves cool or highly literary when they leave the reader going "Huh? Was that based on half an odd dream, or what?" that you find in fantasy collections but never make it as books. I wouldn't have considered it a great loss if I'd never read it, so I guess it deserves 2* for "it was ok", but there were one or two things that caught at me and I enjoyed, so 2.5 stars, rounded to three.
PS: I actually like some surreal, dreamlike stories, but they have to be told well enough to draw you in and give you that dreamlike conviction that everything makes perfect sense even when it doesn't.
March 16, 2009
On the whole, I was a little disappointed by this short story collection; I had high expectations of an anthology, edited by McKinley, but none of the stories other than McKinley's own "The Stone Fey" particularly resonated with me. And if you want to read "The Stone Fey", I'd recommend the stand-alone illustrated version.
Still three stars, though. A disappointing McKinley collection is still better than most collections.
Still three stars, though. A disappointing McKinley collection is still better than most collections.
September 14, 2010
None of the stories in here were very appealing to me. Though some of them might appeal to other readers, or even to me in a different mood. I mainly got this from the library because I was mildly surprised that Robin McKinley had edited an anthology.
January 30, 2011
Blah. Wasn't really in the mood. I mainly chose this book for the Darian short story. And it was poorly written. Which hasn't inspired me to read any of the other stories in the collection. Thank goodness for library books ...
August 4, 2016
I really read this book to read McKinley's short story about Damar which was SO intriguing and had such a solid, original ending. The other stories were good and, from a teaching perspective, had excellent descriptive paragraphs/"snapshots" to use for instruction.
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June 13, 2007An anthology of short stories by various writers.
September 21, 2007
A nice collection of fantasy stories (and SF?--not sure), edited by McKinley.
April 17, 2008
Books like this are great for finding new authors and new "worlds." I'm already making a list of existing lands that I would like to futher explore!
August 16, 2014
If you read nothing else in here, read Peter Dickinson's contribution. You don't know irony until you've read "Flight." Dryly hilarious, in a pseudo-dry-as-dust-history kind of way.
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