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That Way Lies Camelot
JOURNEY THROUGH TIME AND SPACE TO ALTERNATE WORLDS AND THE NEAR FUTURE IN A BEAUTIFUL COLLECTION OF INTERCONNECTED SHORT STORIES
In the title story, Wurts poignantly addresses mortality and what it is to wish. Sandy is in the last throes of life with one final request: Sandy dreams desperately of a visit to the Round Table of King Arthur – an impossible ask, but one which is about to be realized…
In Dreambridge, the last tree linking this world to the world of the feys has been brutally attacked. Kirelle, apprentice healer, has been chosen to seek revenge on the humans who thoughtlessly attempted to destroy this sacred tie. But can they be made to understand the gravity of their actions?
In Wurts’ brilliant Fleet stories, we follow the fortunes and misfortunes of Michael Christopher Jensen Jr. and his numerous encounters with the space-pirate MacKenzie James – a relationship that will leave you wondering who the villain really is.
In the title story, Wurts poignantly addresses mortality and what it is to wish. Sandy is in the last throes of life with one final request: Sandy dreams desperately of a visit to the Round Table of King Arthur – an impossible ask, but one which is about to be realized…
In Dreambridge, the last tree linking this world to the world of the feys has been brutally attacked. Kirelle, apprentice healer, has been chosen to seek revenge on the humans who thoughtlessly attempted to destroy this sacred tie. But can they be made to understand the gravity of their actions?
In Wurts’ brilliant Fleet stories, we follow the fortunes and misfortunes of Michael Christopher Jensen Jr. and his numerous encounters with the space-pirate MacKenzie James – a relationship that will leave you wondering who the villain really is.
320 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 1994
6 people are currently reading
441 people want to read
About the author
Janny Wurts
106 books1,959 followersJanny Wurts is the author of War of Light and Shadow series, and To Ride Hell's Chasm. Her eighteen published titles include a trilogy in audio, a short story collection, as well as the internationally best selling Empire trilogy, co authored with Raymond E. Feist, with works translated into fifteen languages worldwide. Her latest title in the Wars of Light and Shadow series, Destiny's Conflict, culminates more than thirty years of carefully evolved ideas. The cover images on the books, both in the US and abroad, are her own paintings, depicting her vision of characters and setting.
Through her combined talents as a writer/illustrator, Janny has immersed herself in a lifelong ambition: to create a seamless interface between words and pictures that will lead reader and viewer into the imagination. Her lavish use of language invites the mind into a crafted realm of experience, with characters and events woven into a complex tapestry, and drawn with an intensity to inspire active fuel for thought. Her research includes a range of direct experience, lending her fantasy a gritty realism, and her scenes involving magic crafted with intricate continuity. A self-taught painter, she draws directly from the imagination, creating scenes in a representational style that blurs the edges between dream and reality. She makes few preliminary sketches, but envisions her characters and the scenes that contain them, then executes the final directly from the initial pencil drawing.
The seed idea for the Wars of Light and Shadow series occurred, when, in the course of researching tactic and weapons, she viewed a documentary film on the Battle of Culloden Moor. This was the first time she had encountered that historical context of that brutal event, with the embroidery of romance stripped from it. The experience gave rise to an awakening, which became anger, that so often, our education, literature and entertainment slant history in a manner that equates winners and losers with moral right and wrong, and the prevalent attitude, that killing wars can be seen as justifiable solutions when only one side of the picture is presented.
Her series takes the stance that there are two sides to every question, and follows two characters who are half brothers. One a bard trained as a master of magecraft, and the other a born ruler with a charismatic passion for justice, have become cursed to lifelong enmity. As one sibling raises a devoted mass following, the other tries desperately to stave off defeat through solitary discipline and cleverness. The conflict sweeps across an imaginary world, dividing land and people through an intricate play of politics and the inborn prejudices of polarized factions already set at odds. Readers are led on a journey that embraces both viewpoints. The story explores the ironies of morality which often confound our own human condition - that what appears right and just, by one side, becomes reprehensible when seen from the opposite angle. What is apparently good for the many, too often causes devastating suffering to the nonconformist minority. Through the interactions between the characters themselves, the reader is left to their own discretion to interpret the moral impact of events.
Says Janny of her work, "I chose to frame this story against a backdrop of fantasy because I could handle even the most sensitive issues with the gloves off - explore the myriad angles of our troubled times with the least risk of offending anyone's personal sensibilities. The result, I can hope, is an expanding journey of the spirit that explores the grand depths, and rises to the challenge of mapping the ethereal potential of an evolving planetary consciousness... explore free thought and compassionate understanding."
Beyond writing, Janny's award winning paintings have been showcased in exhibitions of imaginative artwork, among them a commemorative exhibition for NASA's 25th Anniversary; the Art of the Cosmos at Hayden Planet
Through her combined talents as a writer/illustrator, Janny has immersed herself in a lifelong ambition: to create a seamless interface between words and pictures that will lead reader and viewer into the imagination. Her lavish use of language invites the mind into a crafted realm of experience, with characters and events woven into a complex tapestry, and drawn with an intensity to inspire active fuel for thought. Her research includes a range of direct experience, lending her fantasy a gritty realism, and her scenes involving magic crafted with intricate continuity. A self-taught painter, she draws directly from the imagination, creating scenes in a representational style that blurs the edges between dream and reality. She makes few preliminary sketches, but envisions her characters and the scenes that contain them, then executes the final directly from the initial pencil drawing.
The seed idea for the Wars of Light and Shadow series occurred, when, in the course of researching tactic and weapons, she viewed a documentary film on the Battle of Culloden Moor. This was the first time she had encountered that historical context of that brutal event, with the embroidery of romance stripped from it. The experience gave rise to an awakening, which became anger, that so often, our education, literature and entertainment slant history in a manner that equates winners and losers with moral right and wrong, and the prevalent attitude, that killing wars can be seen as justifiable solutions when only one side of the picture is presented.
Her series takes the stance that there are two sides to every question, and follows two characters who are half brothers. One a bard trained as a master of magecraft, and the other a born ruler with a charismatic passion for justice, have become cursed to lifelong enmity. As one sibling raises a devoted mass following, the other tries desperately to stave off defeat through solitary discipline and cleverness. The conflict sweeps across an imaginary world, dividing land and people through an intricate play of politics and the inborn prejudices of polarized factions already set at odds. Readers are led on a journey that embraces both viewpoints. The story explores the ironies of morality which often confound our own human condition - that what appears right and just, by one side, becomes reprehensible when seen from the opposite angle. What is apparently good for the many, too often causes devastating suffering to the nonconformist minority. Through the interactions between the characters themselves, the reader is left to their own discretion to interpret the moral impact of events.
Says Janny of her work, "I chose to frame this story against a backdrop of fantasy because I could handle even the most sensitive issues with the gloves off - explore the myriad angles of our troubled times with the least risk of offending anyone's personal sensibilities. The result, I can hope, is an expanding journey of the spirit that explores the grand depths, and rises to the challenge of mapping the ethereal potential of an evolving planetary consciousness... explore free thought and compassionate understanding."
Beyond writing, Janny's award winning paintings have been showcased in exhibitions of imaginative artwork, among them a commemorative exhibition for NASA's 25th Anniversary; the Art of the Cosmos at Hayden Planet
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
December 20, 2018
A collection of 15 fabulous stories by Janny Wurts. By turns sensitive, evocative and compelling, they are all great and unforgettable reads!
Here is a little about each.
15. That Way Lies Camelot - 5 heartbreaking stars!!!
This story made me laugh and it made me cry!! It damn near broke my heart! And I love it!
Sandy is dying. He's dying of cancer, to the despair and anger of his mother Ann and his aunt Lynn.
Because for two years the boy had had so little, between the doctors and the treatments and the jail-like isolation necessary to shelter him from infection. And with the hope ripped out of their hearts Lynn feels like suing Allmighty God, that he would allow a little boy to be born, solely to suffer anguish and die.
Because ..."Damn, damn, damn. There aught to be a law against mother outliving their children."
And the worst part to all this is that the 2 women can't even fulfil their little boy's last wish. For Sandy would like to visit the Round Table of King Arthur - a truly impossible task! Until one day when the impossible is just about to happen. Well either that or Lynn goes irrevocably crazy!
A moving and sensitive tale that brought tears to my eyes and goosebumps on my skin. Just Magic!!
Arthur Steps Up - by Don Maitz
14. No Quarter - 4 stars
Another Fleet story continuing the adventures of the overly proud and ambitious Michael Christopher Jensen Jr.; it describes another of his encounters with the infamous space pirate MacKenzie James.
A commander now, aboard his own ship Kildare, Jensen finds himself confronted with a surprise attack by MacKenzie. This time it is MacKenzie's plan that Jensen has to follow. And the space pirate hedges his bets on Jensen's hatred and obsession as the carrot for his trap. Except that, the more you mess with a man's obsession, the more dangerous he is likely to become. And James' hatred for MacKenzie doesn't seem to be rooted in sanity any longer.
A chase and catch game in space, a trap within another and a villain without any moral or censure. And you'll have to wonder who that villain really is.
Art by Don Maitz
13. The Renders - 3.5 stars
Jaiddon's world is getting unravelled. As though smashed by a fallen sky, his whole town lay in splintered ruins. Not even the boats in the harbours have been spared.
Renders had undone one entire town as though its existence was no more solid than morning mist. If nothing is done to stop them, the entire world would follow.
And as it turns out, Jaiddon is the only one left to stand in their path. But will he be able to find a way to do it, when so many other failed before him? And will he be able to pay the price his actions will require?
12. Song's End - 5 stars
A stunning heartbreaking tale that takes us back to Huntress Skyfire continuing the events from Dreamsinger's Tale.
Woodbiter is no more and Dreamsinger's stay with Skyfire's tribe brings strife and misunderstandings. Skyfire alone is able to temper his madness and she alone can see past it, to the promise of a future where the gentleness of elvish heritage might coexist with the hardly cunning of the wolf.
She fights challenge after challenge to protect her position of chieftess and to ensure the stay of her newly found mate within the tribe. After all, she is carrying his cub.
But the challenges keep coming and treachery strikes. Dreamsinger is killed and Skyfire left heartbroken and enraged with her bonded mate no more. Her will is set on finding out the killer and the only one who can provide a clue is Song, Dreamsinger's bonded wolf, also left behind just as bereft as Skyfire herself.
Tauriel by Inna-Vjuzhanina female elf ranger
11. Dreambridge - 5 stars
Far off in the borderlands, in a cottage under forest eaves never blighted by cold or steel, apprentice healer Kirelle awakens shivering from a bad dream of an axe that fell and blood that ran, not from living flesh but over treebark, to spatter across frosted ground. She knows the bleeding tree is real.
The Eld Tree, the last tree which links this world to that of the feys had been brutally threatened and if it died, the last link would be gone and the fey mysteries would be lost to earth forever.
The Wizard of the Forest himself summons Kirelle because she has been chosen to seek revenge on the humans who have so thoughtlessly attempted to destroy this sacred link. Because the fey will cry vengeance and the blood price must be met.
But can the reckless humans be made to understand the gravity of their actions? Can a healer shed the blood the fey demand? And what if the axe was never meant to fall?
Wizard of the Owls - by Janny Wurts
10. Triple Cross - 5 stars
Another Fleet story continuing the adventures of the overly proud and ambitious Michael Christopher Jensen Jr.; it describes another of his encounters with the infamous space pirate MacKenzie James.
An officer by now and captain of his own ship The Sail, Jensen has turned the chase for his archenemy MacKenzie James into an obsession and this time he devised a well laid trap for him to fall into. Except that, as matters stand and if we trust Jensen's pilot, the whole plan may depend on MacKenzie James being quantum leaps dumber than Jensen is.
Of course everything goes down the drain again and Jensen needs to use his brains because he can't change his fuckup. So he decides to do something heroic and rescue a survivor. If only his heroic intentions wouldn't lead to trouble yet again! Because 'Obsession is a tool, invaluable because it's genuine. And a man's hatred is always more reliable than the best of laid plans.'
Full of twists and turns and one plot under another, this little Fleet story is bound to keep you on your toes!
art by Don Maitz
9. Dreamsinger's Tale - 5 stars
This little story takes us back to Huntress Skyfire and her companion wolf Woodbiter from Tale of the Snowbeast. Woodbiter is old now, and surly where he had once been full of antics. And Skyfire is stronger and faster than ever, the chieftess of her pack of Wolfriders. But something is missing, lacking and not right and Skyfire can't see or understand what.
Alone in the forest at night she hears a haunting melody and follows. What she finds out on that trail will turn her life upside down and may be a blessing or a curse for herself, as well as her whole race.
Haunting and imaginative this tale is one to keep!
Skyfire's Wolfriders Den - that's how I picture it. (elves fence forest wolf fantasy wallpaper)
8. The Snare - 4.5 stars
Story Inspired by the painting 'The Wizard' by Don Maitz
The Great Wizard of Trevior is bound in a trap by his apprentice Iveldane. And Iveldane wants revenge. He is angry and full of hatred because of thousands of years of agony in a prison fashioned by the Master. Now that he got free, he's come to collect. Tit for tat he plans to make his master suffer.
But what were the reasons behind his imprisonment? Iveldane still doesn't know and his Master isn't fighting back despite all the suffering Iveldane is causing him. Why are there tears streaming down the master's cheeks?
A moving little tale that teaches us to go beyond appearances and try to understand with our hearts. I only wish it would have been a little longer, as the end felt a little too abrupt.
The Wizard by Don Maitz
7. Double Blind - 5 stars
Another brilliant Fleet story in which we can follow the fortunes and misfortunes of Michael Christopher Jensen Jr. after his previous encounter with the infamous space pirate MacKenzie James from The Antagonist.
In her usual witty and imaginative style Janny gives us here the story of a blackmail, where a father is forced to betray the Fleet in exchange for the lives of his little daughters and a newly appointed commander has to choose between getting even for a degrading humility at the hands of his nemesis or saving innocent lives.
And still, appearances are never what they seem and even the best intentions may come with attached strings.
White Wing - by Janny Wurts
6. Silverdown's Gold - 5 stars
Trionn the scullion could never pause anywhere for more than a minute without attracting a heap of cats. It did not matter wether his clothes reeked of the midden on those days when he raked out the garbage, or if he was simply sitting, huddled against the wind, awaiting his turn at the privy. The cats always found him. It had been that way since he was a baby in the cradle and nobody could guess why.
Trionn is quiet and speaks very less, so everyone's shrugged him off as dimwitted. He smartly makes use of that to skirt his duties, especially when he is required to help slaughter a new pig for the Lord's table. For you see, the suffering of any animal makes Trionn sick. And his favourite place of hiding while skirting those duties is the neglected field of a blue dun stud, a stallion that was a killer and hated everything alive - except cats that is. He always kept his distance from cats and Trionn was safe on the mad stallion's turf with all his cats around him.
A new Lord had inherited the rule of Silverdown and a feast was gracing the tables every night, despite of Silverdown's empty treasury. Everyone knew the new Lord was trying to get his hands on a lass with a good dowry to save his estate. The stallion was the means. Wild and hateful, he was a magnificent beast and if the Lord managed to break him, Silverdown's treasury would be full again.
And here is where this little story begins, with a so called dimwitted scullion who cannot stand any animal's pain, a magnificent but killer horse full of hatred and a choice that both of them will have to make, to save Silverdow's gold.
Other great horses by Janny Wurts in To Ride Hell's Chasm
5. The Firefall - 5 stars
Alone on board the Quest III Probe launched without authorization from the Station, Ataine is trying to flee the sector. She's got a late model Sabre hard on her tail, who resorted to weapons and tried repeatedly to cripple her. But she's determined not to let herself get caught. The sophisticated chunk of technology she just stole enables Ataine to enact a desperate and crazy plan that allows her to escape and destroy her pursuer at the same time.
Except that the pursuer is someone that she cares about. And when Ataine discovers his identity she has to choose between her freedom and the life of the man she left behind in more than dire straits.
In a profoundly sensitive manner Janny makes us consider here the consequences of strong emotions left unchecked, as well as that of truths left unsaid.
Assault on Pell Station - by Janny Wurtz
4. The Crash - 4 stars
Did you ever wonder how a child would perceive the crash of a UFO in the backyard, without a grown up's intervention or influence? Read this and see for yourself how children sometimes prove to be the best of us.
Janny Wurts - Wizard of the Owls - Sci-Fi-O-Rama - Dean Ellis (5) High Wire Act
3. Tale of the Snowbeast- 5 stars but I wish I could give it 10!!
This little story had me from the very first line and I simply adore it!!
The elves in the holt are starving. The season of cold is worse than anyone can remember. With the storage nooks empty, the tribe is in desperate need of game. But not even the wolfriders with their companion wolves are able to find it anymore. Their only hope rests on a hunting party venturing deeper into the forest than elves have ever gone, to look for stag.
Huntress Skyfire and her companion wolf Woodbiter make sure they are a part of it. After all, their skills are the best! But things don't always go as planned and Woodbiter goes missing. As Skyfire rushes to his rescue, because she knows he is in pain and afraid, she stumbles upon the tracks of a huge beast.
Who the beast is? That you'll just have to see. :) I sure as hell didn't see it coming!
Skyfire and Woodbiter - this is how I see them! (pic from pinterest.com "Female wood elf with wolf")
2. The Antagonist - 4.5 stars
A great SF story by a brilliant fantasy writer!
Michael Christopher Jensen Jr desperately wants promotion, accolades and a reputation of undeniably proven merit. And above all, he wants to be granted the command of a ship with armament, instead of his present one ferrying dispatches.
Catching the infamous space-pirate MacKenzie James, wanted on no less than 86 Alliance planets is just the right thing to make it all happen. But sometimes things don't go quite as planned and the relationship between the hunter and the hunted may just leave you wondering who the real villain is.
Art by Don Maitz
1. Wayfinder - 5 stars
Sabin, a practical and pragmatic young woman remembers one night that she had forgotten her jacket out on her uncle's sloop, on which she was helping out for the summer. The jacket can't be spared as Sabin has only the one, so she goes out to the beach to fetch it.
But what starts out as a simple walk in the stormy night, down to the harborside, becomes a turning point in Sabin's life.
She seems to see great herds of white horses galloping in the sea. Of course she must be daydreaming again, because even "the village idiot knows horses do not run in the sea"! And just when Sabin decides to pull herself together and stop being silly, a mysterious stranger catches her eye. Injured, tattered and clapped in chains, he is about to drown.
A good deed on a stormy shore provides a young girl with the opportunity to discover herself and may be, just may be, the chance of doing more than just stringing the looms in her father's craft shop for the rest of her life.
"MoonlightFrolic" by Janny Wurts
I didn't find horses in the water, but found some unicorns instead. :)
Here is a little about each.
15. That Way Lies Camelot - 5 heartbreaking stars!!!
This story made me laugh and it made me cry!! It damn near broke my heart! And I love it!
Sandy is dying. He's dying of cancer, to the despair and anger of his mother Ann and his aunt Lynn.
Because for two years the boy had had so little, between the doctors and the treatments and the jail-like isolation necessary to shelter him from infection. And with the hope ripped out of their hearts Lynn feels like suing Allmighty God, that he would allow a little boy to be born, solely to suffer anguish and die.
Because ..."Damn, damn, damn. There aught to be a law against mother outliving their children."
And the worst part to all this is that the 2 women can't even fulfil their little boy's last wish. For Sandy would like to visit the Round Table of King Arthur - a truly impossible task! Until one day when the impossible is just about to happen. Well either that or Lynn goes irrevocably crazy!
A moving and sensitive tale that brought tears to my eyes and goosebumps on my skin. Just Magic!!
Arthur Steps Up - by Don Maitz
14. No Quarter - 4 stars
Another Fleet story continuing the adventures of the overly proud and ambitious Michael Christopher Jensen Jr.; it describes another of his encounters with the infamous space pirate MacKenzie James.
A commander now, aboard his own ship Kildare, Jensen finds himself confronted with a surprise attack by MacKenzie. This time it is MacKenzie's plan that Jensen has to follow. And the space pirate hedges his bets on Jensen's hatred and obsession as the carrot for his trap. Except that, the more you mess with a man's obsession, the more dangerous he is likely to become. And James' hatred for MacKenzie doesn't seem to be rooted in sanity any longer.
A chase and catch game in space, a trap within another and a villain without any moral or censure. And you'll have to wonder who that villain really is.
Art by Don Maitz
13. The Renders - 3.5 stars
Jaiddon's world is getting unravelled. As though smashed by a fallen sky, his whole town lay in splintered ruins. Not even the boats in the harbours have been spared.
Renders had undone one entire town as though its existence was no more solid than morning mist. If nothing is done to stop them, the entire world would follow.
And as it turns out, Jaiddon is the only one left to stand in their path. But will he be able to find a way to do it, when so many other failed before him? And will he be able to pay the price his actions will require?
12. Song's End - 5 stars
A stunning heartbreaking tale that takes us back to Huntress Skyfire continuing the events from Dreamsinger's Tale.
Woodbiter is no more and Dreamsinger's stay with Skyfire's tribe brings strife and misunderstandings. Skyfire alone is able to temper his madness and she alone can see past it, to the promise of a future where the gentleness of elvish heritage might coexist with the hardly cunning of the wolf.
She fights challenge after challenge to protect her position of chieftess and to ensure the stay of her newly found mate within the tribe. After all, she is carrying his cub.
But the challenges keep coming and treachery strikes. Dreamsinger is killed and Skyfire left heartbroken and enraged with her bonded mate no more. Her will is set on finding out the killer and the only one who can provide a clue is Song, Dreamsinger's bonded wolf, also left behind just as bereft as Skyfire herself.
Tauriel by Inna-Vjuzhanina female elf ranger
11. Dreambridge - 5 stars
Far off in the borderlands, in a cottage under forest eaves never blighted by cold or steel, apprentice healer Kirelle awakens shivering from a bad dream of an axe that fell and blood that ran, not from living flesh but over treebark, to spatter across frosted ground. She knows the bleeding tree is real.
The Eld Tree, the last tree which links this world to that of the feys had been brutally threatened and if it died, the last link would be gone and the fey mysteries would be lost to earth forever.
The Wizard of the Forest himself summons Kirelle because she has been chosen to seek revenge on the humans who have so thoughtlessly attempted to destroy this sacred link. Because the fey will cry vengeance and the blood price must be met.
But can the reckless humans be made to understand the gravity of their actions? Can a healer shed the blood the fey demand? And what if the axe was never meant to fall?
Wizard of the Owls - by Janny Wurts
10. Triple Cross - 5 stars
Another Fleet story continuing the adventures of the overly proud and ambitious Michael Christopher Jensen Jr.; it describes another of his encounters with the infamous space pirate MacKenzie James.
An officer by now and captain of his own ship The Sail, Jensen has turned the chase for his archenemy MacKenzie James into an obsession and this time he devised a well laid trap for him to fall into. Except that, as matters stand and if we trust Jensen's pilot, the whole plan may depend on MacKenzie James being quantum leaps dumber than Jensen is.
Of course everything goes down the drain again and Jensen needs to use his brains because he can't change his fuckup. So he decides to do something heroic and rescue a survivor. If only his heroic intentions wouldn't lead to trouble yet again! Because 'Obsession is a tool, invaluable because it's genuine. And a man's hatred is always more reliable than the best of laid plans.'
Full of twists and turns and one plot under another, this little Fleet story is bound to keep you on your toes!
art by Don Maitz
9. Dreamsinger's Tale - 5 stars
This little story takes us back to Huntress Skyfire and her companion wolf Woodbiter from Tale of the Snowbeast. Woodbiter is old now, and surly where he had once been full of antics. And Skyfire is stronger and faster than ever, the chieftess of her pack of Wolfriders. But something is missing, lacking and not right and Skyfire can't see or understand what.
Alone in the forest at night she hears a haunting melody and follows. What she finds out on that trail will turn her life upside down and may be a blessing or a curse for herself, as well as her whole race.
Haunting and imaginative this tale is one to keep!
Skyfire's Wolfriders Den - that's how I picture it. (elves fence forest wolf fantasy wallpaper)
8. The Snare - 4.5 stars
Story Inspired by the painting 'The Wizard' by Don Maitz
The Great Wizard of Trevior is bound in a trap by his apprentice Iveldane. And Iveldane wants revenge. He is angry and full of hatred because of thousands of years of agony in a prison fashioned by the Master. Now that he got free, he's come to collect. Tit for tat he plans to make his master suffer.
But what were the reasons behind his imprisonment? Iveldane still doesn't know and his Master isn't fighting back despite all the suffering Iveldane is causing him. Why are there tears streaming down the master's cheeks?
A moving little tale that teaches us to go beyond appearances and try to understand with our hearts. I only wish it would have been a little longer, as the end felt a little too abrupt.
The Wizard by Don Maitz
7. Double Blind - 5 stars
Another brilliant Fleet story in which we can follow the fortunes and misfortunes of Michael Christopher Jensen Jr. after his previous encounter with the infamous space pirate MacKenzie James from The Antagonist.
In her usual witty and imaginative style Janny gives us here the story of a blackmail, where a father is forced to betray the Fleet in exchange for the lives of his little daughters and a newly appointed commander has to choose between getting even for a degrading humility at the hands of his nemesis or saving innocent lives.
And still, appearances are never what they seem and even the best intentions may come with attached strings.
White Wing - by Janny Wurts
6. Silverdown's Gold - 5 stars
Trionn the scullion could never pause anywhere for more than a minute without attracting a heap of cats. It did not matter wether his clothes reeked of the midden on those days when he raked out the garbage, or if he was simply sitting, huddled against the wind, awaiting his turn at the privy. The cats always found him. It had been that way since he was a baby in the cradle and nobody could guess why.
Trionn is quiet and speaks very less, so everyone's shrugged him off as dimwitted. He smartly makes use of that to skirt his duties, especially when he is required to help slaughter a new pig for the Lord's table. For you see, the suffering of any animal makes Trionn sick. And his favourite place of hiding while skirting those duties is the neglected field of a blue dun stud, a stallion that was a killer and hated everything alive - except cats that is. He always kept his distance from cats and Trionn was safe on the mad stallion's turf with all his cats around him.
A new Lord had inherited the rule of Silverdown and a feast was gracing the tables every night, despite of Silverdown's empty treasury. Everyone knew the new Lord was trying to get his hands on a lass with a good dowry to save his estate. The stallion was the means. Wild and hateful, he was a magnificent beast and if the Lord managed to break him, Silverdown's treasury would be full again.
And here is where this little story begins, with a so called dimwitted scullion who cannot stand any animal's pain, a magnificent but killer horse full of hatred and a choice that both of them will have to make, to save Silverdow's gold.
Other great horses by Janny Wurts in To Ride Hell's Chasm
5. The Firefall - 5 stars
Alone on board the Quest III Probe launched without authorization from the Station, Ataine is trying to flee the sector. She's got a late model Sabre hard on her tail, who resorted to weapons and tried repeatedly to cripple her. But she's determined not to let herself get caught. The sophisticated chunk of technology she just stole enables Ataine to enact a desperate and crazy plan that allows her to escape and destroy her pursuer at the same time.
Except that the pursuer is someone that she cares about. And when Ataine discovers his identity she has to choose between her freedom and the life of the man she left behind in more than dire straits.
In a profoundly sensitive manner Janny makes us consider here the consequences of strong emotions left unchecked, as well as that of truths left unsaid.
Assault on Pell Station - by Janny Wurtz
4. The Crash - 4 stars
Did you ever wonder how a child would perceive the crash of a UFO in the backyard, without a grown up's intervention or influence? Read this and see for yourself how children sometimes prove to be the best of us.
Janny Wurts - Wizard of the Owls - Sci-Fi-O-Rama - Dean Ellis (5) High Wire Act
3. Tale of the Snowbeast- 5 stars but I wish I could give it 10!!
This little story had me from the very first line and I simply adore it!!
The elves in the holt are starving. The season of cold is worse than anyone can remember. With the storage nooks empty, the tribe is in desperate need of game. But not even the wolfriders with their companion wolves are able to find it anymore. Their only hope rests on a hunting party venturing deeper into the forest than elves have ever gone, to look for stag.
Huntress Skyfire and her companion wolf Woodbiter make sure they are a part of it. After all, their skills are the best! But things don't always go as planned and Woodbiter goes missing. As Skyfire rushes to his rescue, because she knows he is in pain and afraid, she stumbles upon the tracks of a huge beast.
Who the beast is? That you'll just have to see. :) I sure as hell didn't see it coming!
Skyfire and Woodbiter - this is how I see them! (pic from pinterest.com "Female wood elf with wolf")
2. The Antagonist - 4.5 stars
A great SF story by a brilliant fantasy writer!
Michael Christopher Jensen Jr desperately wants promotion, accolades and a reputation of undeniably proven merit. And above all, he wants to be granted the command of a ship with armament, instead of his present one ferrying dispatches.
Catching the infamous space-pirate MacKenzie James, wanted on no less than 86 Alliance planets is just the right thing to make it all happen. But sometimes things don't go quite as planned and the relationship between the hunter and the hunted may just leave you wondering who the real villain is.
Art by Don Maitz
1. Wayfinder - 5 stars
Sabin, a practical and pragmatic young woman remembers one night that she had forgotten her jacket out on her uncle's sloop, on which she was helping out for the summer. The jacket can't be spared as Sabin has only the one, so she goes out to the beach to fetch it.
But what starts out as a simple walk in the stormy night, down to the harborside, becomes a turning point in Sabin's life.
She seems to see great herds of white horses galloping in the sea. Of course she must be daydreaming again, because even "the village idiot knows horses do not run in the sea"! And just when Sabin decides to pull herself together and stop being silly, a mysterious stranger catches her eye. Injured, tattered and clapped in chains, he is about to drown.
A good deed on a stormy shore provides a young girl with the opportunity to discover herself and may be, just may be, the chance of doing more than just stringing the looms in her father's craft shop for the rest of her life.
"MoonlightFrolic" by Janny Wurts
I didn't find horses in the water, but found some unicorns instead. :)
October 22, 2014
This was a sheer pleasure to read, a collection of short stories, both SF & fantasy, by a woman who normally writes long, detailed fantasy novels. I wish she'd write more. They fit into my busy schedule better. On top of that, she did the cover art. Maybe someday when I'm rich & famous I'll be able to afford to buy one of her paintings.
The SF stories were space operas featuring a couple of the same, excellent characters. I'm glad they were done as short stories interspersed with others. Each one grew the characters a bit more & the final one was wonderful.
A couple of the fantasy stories were in the same world, a very interesting take on elves. Most were completely off the reservation showing just how far Wurts' imagination can go. Very weird & wonderful worlds. I liked the last & title story the best, but they were all very good, most excellent.
I really need to make time to finish reading her War of Light & Shadow fantasy series. I think she's working on the last book for it right now.
The SF stories were space operas featuring a couple of the same, excellent characters. I'm glad they were done as short stories interspersed with others. Each one grew the characters a bit more & the final one was wonderful.
A couple of the fantasy stories were in the same world, a very interesting take on elves. Most were completely off the reservation showing just how far Wurts' imagination can go. Very weird & wonderful worlds. I liked the last & title story the best, but they were all very good, most excellent.
I really need to make time to finish reading her War of Light & Shadow fantasy series. I think she's working on the last book for it right now.
December 24, 2024
There were a lot of really great stories in this one. What I liked most was the diversity. While a lot of the fantasy tales did often have sort of magical settings, often in nature, there were several linked sci-fi stories of space opera fare. I did enjoy those four space pirate Mac James stories that featured some great cat-and-mouse, and also enjoyed the three linked stories that followed an elf named Skyfire. Three true gems emerged: The Wayfinder, an immersive tale that begins the collection and follows a girl who rescues a man from the ocean; Dreambridge, another immersive story (there's a trend) about a woman part of the fey world who encounters three hunters; and the titular story That Way Lies Camelot, which was a beautiful tale set in our world about a woman who finds a way to grant a dying boy's last wish. A strong collection of fantastical short fiction. 4.5/5
January 11, 2025
That Way Lies Camelot sends the reader on an intriguing journey with different stories. I am addicted to this authors work.
Jannys’ work invites readers to unravel its intricacies layer by layer. It challenges them to confront the darkness within the narrative, suggesting that those who venture into this world will want to remain amongst the pages. She masterfully weaves together a tapestry of suspenseful storytelling. The narrative unfolds through edge-of-your-seat plots and chilling enigmas that ensnare readers from the very first page.
This story seamlessly blends fantasy, supernatural and paranormal elements. I am addicted! This series is gripping and exciting. It is a tangled web that leaves you breathless and craving more. It is filled with loss and hope, magic and danger, suspense and tension, and action within a world where nothing is what it seems.
Jannys’ work invites readers to unravel its intricacies layer by layer. It challenges them to confront the darkness within the narrative, suggesting that those who venture into this world will want to remain amongst the pages. She masterfully weaves together a tapestry of suspenseful storytelling. The narrative unfolds through edge-of-your-seat plots and chilling enigmas that ensnare readers from the very first page.
This story seamlessly blends fantasy, supernatural and paranormal elements. I am addicted! This series is gripping and exciting. It is a tangled web that leaves you breathless and craving more. It is filled with loss and hope, magic and danger, suspense and tension, and action within a world where nothing is what it seems.
December 22, 2013
Janny Wurts certainly know hoe to paint a picture--whether she uses pigment or words. Each short story is studded with images which leap off the page and into the reader's mind: fully realized, gripping images.
This book contains short stories--of which several are chapter tales of the same plot line. The stories range from high fantasy to space opera. They're good stories, well conceived and executed. One element that stood out was the character's motivations. Often skewed from the expected of either science fiction or fantasy, the atypical motives are perhaps the magic that separates these tales from those which flood the industry.
A good read.
This book contains short stories--of which several are chapter tales of the same plot line. The stories range from high fantasy to space opera. They're good stories, well conceived and executed. One element that stood out was the character's motivations. Often skewed from the expected of either science fiction or fantasy, the atypical motives are perhaps the magic that separates these tales from those which flood the industry.
A good read.
September 19, 2020
Despite the title, the cover, and the back cover copy, this short story collection from Janny Wurts does include science fiction!
That said, I really enjoyed this collection. My favorite stories were "Wayfinder" (a coming of age for a young girl on the coast), "Silverdown's Gold" (a beautifully wild horse is threatened with breaking), "The Snare" (an apprentice takes revenge upon his master), "Dreambridge" (the origin of the cover art, and just a nice tale of harm and remedy), and "That Way Lies Camelot" (a heartbreaking story of death and wishes).
Wurts had 4 science fiction stories featuring a Fleet officer named Jensen, from a series of anthologies set in a shared world known as The Fleet, edited by Drake & Fawcett. Jensen is obsessed with tracking a notorious skip-runner (smuggler/pirate) named MacKenzie James, but Mac James always gives him the slip. The stories often give us a somewhat surprising resolution, and the final one ("No Quarter") is quite dark indeed.
She also had 3 fantasy stories from another shared universe anthology series (this one called Blood of Ten Chiefs, edited by Pini, Asprin, & Abbey) starring an elf named Skyfire. It's all part of the larger ElfQuest comic book series, but I confess that it doesn't really interest me, and aside from the first one, "Tale of the Snowbeast," the other 2 lost my interest.
All in all, a fun look at Wurts' short work, given that she admits in her acknowledgements to this book that most of her stories turn into novels.
That said, I really enjoyed this collection. My favorite stories were "Wayfinder" (a coming of age for a young girl on the coast), "Silverdown's Gold" (a beautifully wild horse is threatened with breaking), "The Snare" (an apprentice takes revenge upon his master), "Dreambridge" (the origin of the cover art, and just a nice tale of harm and remedy), and "That Way Lies Camelot" (a heartbreaking story of death and wishes).
Wurts had 4 science fiction stories featuring a Fleet officer named Jensen, from a series of anthologies set in a shared world known as The Fleet, edited by Drake & Fawcett. Jensen is obsessed with tracking a notorious skip-runner (smuggler/pirate) named MacKenzie James, but Mac James always gives him the slip. The stories often give us a somewhat surprising resolution, and the final one ("No Quarter") is quite dark indeed.
She also had 3 fantasy stories from another shared universe anthology series (this one called Blood of Ten Chiefs, edited by Pini, Asprin, & Abbey) starring an elf named Skyfire. It's all part of the larger ElfQuest comic book series, but I confess that it doesn't really interest me, and aside from the first one, "Tale of the Snowbeast," the other 2 lost my interest.
All in all, a fun look at Wurts' short work, given that she admits in her acknowledgements to this book that most of her stories turn into novels.
August 5, 2022
I just started 'That Way Lies Camelot by Janny Wurts 7-30-22
(I am still reading this book 8-1-22) This is a book of short stories all by Janny Wurts published in 1994. I am now on the 8th chapter titled The Snare, page 175 of 15 stories and 337 pages. Janny herself made A statement in her acknowledgments saying, "Given that short fiction is not my natural venue; that about every story I ever started on my own grew rapidly into a novel or more" So-far they are all wonderous to me!
I finished this book today 8-5-22
There are both High Fantasy and Science Fiction in this book and I enjoyed them all. Five chapters are science fiction that are related to the same story... I noticed at the bottom of the cover (Bestselling author of Ships of Merior) I don't know if these stories are parts of what these chapters became? but I can say they are very intriguing, and I found them all to be stories that I wish I could know the full story and how it will end. Will the bad win over the good this time? They all seemed to be exercises in character building, that would make for a book that would be as is said in many reviews as being an unputdownable book! There are four more chapters that have the same characters and story line that I was really taken by in the high fantasy theme that were my favorites I would really like them to blend into a full-length novel, it is inhabited by familiar characters, but I have never read of them being enter-linked as in these stories, in quite the same way... Where you can truly root for the good and hope that they will not perish due to the evil they are fighting to not lose their tribes, lives, and their ways and beliefs forced into the evil interlopers' control. I even cried at one point in this story, not a lot but it put a lump in my throat and my eyes were wet and I had to wipe them, I haven't done that in a long time! There are five chapters left that are stand alone, a couple of them are very short, but they are all really good, with unique story lines that I don't think I have ever read in any other stories before. True to Janny Wurts, I love her writing and her Art on the book-jackets. This book even has a chapter dedicated and written and inspired by a painting titled 'The Wizard' by Don Maitz her husband in real life.
(I am still reading this book 8-1-22) This is a book of short stories all by Janny Wurts published in 1994. I am now on the 8th chapter titled The Snare, page 175 of 15 stories and 337 pages. Janny herself made A statement in her acknowledgments saying, "Given that short fiction is not my natural venue; that about every story I ever started on my own grew rapidly into a novel or more" So-far they are all wonderous to me!
I finished this book today 8-5-22
There are both High Fantasy and Science Fiction in this book and I enjoyed them all. Five chapters are science fiction that are related to the same story... I noticed at the bottom of the cover (Bestselling author of Ships of Merior) I don't know if these stories are parts of what these chapters became? but I can say they are very intriguing, and I found them all to be stories that I wish I could know the full story and how it will end. Will the bad win over the good this time? They all seemed to be exercises in character building, that would make for a book that would be as is said in many reviews as being an unputdownable book! There are four more chapters that have the same characters and story line that I was really taken by in the high fantasy theme that were my favorites I would really like them to blend into a full-length novel, it is inhabited by familiar characters, but I have never read of them being enter-linked as in these stories, in quite the same way... Where you can truly root for the good and hope that they will not perish due to the evil they are fighting to not lose their tribes, lives, and their ways and beliefs forced into the evil interlopers' control. I even cried at one point in this story, not a lot but it put a lump in my throat and my eyes were wet and I had to wipe them, I haven't done that in a long time! There are five chapters left that are stand alone, a couple of them are very short, but they are all really good, with unique story lines that I don't think I have ever read in any other stories before. True to Janny Wurts, I love her writing and her Art on the book-jackets. This book even has a chapter dedicated and written and inspired by a painting titled 'The Wizard' by Don Maitz her husband in real life.
June 18, 2021
Possibly a lot of my distaste for the genre of short-story writing comes from the fact that ‘Chronicles of Avonlea’ and ‘That Way Lies Camelot’ were the Ur-texts for me as far as the form is concerned. Neither Wurts nor Montgomery is interested in shite like ‘atmosphere’ and ‘poetic language’ and ‘not using quotation marks because that’s so fucking literary, Karen’. They just tell a good fucking story in a shorter space than a novel. The end.
I haven’t re-read this book in years, and I haven’t actually read the Skyfire or Mac James linked short stories probably since I first got it. They aren’t great, mainly because they’re the germ of something much bigger, but even at that they’re still better than a lot of full-length fantasy and sci-fi I’ve read. ‘Silverdown’s Gold’ and ‘The Reavers’ remain exquisite gems despite the lapse of decades since I first read them (and I still remember the cats at random times). ‘This Way Lies Camelot’ made me cry. Again. Absolutely astonishing work.
I’ve owned this book since 1994; it’s probably time to check out some of Janny Wurts’ other novels.
I haven’t re-read this book in years, and I haven’t actually read the Skyfire or Mac James linked short stories probably since I first got it. They aren’t great, mainly because they’re the germ of something much bigger, but even at that they’re still better than a lot of full-length fantasy and sci-fi I’ve read. ‘Silverdown’s Gold’ and ‘The Reavers’ remain exquisite gems despite the lapse of decades since I first read them (and I still remember the cats at random times). ‘This Way Lies Camelot’ made me cry. Again. Absolutely astonishing work.
I’ve owned this book since 1994; it’s probably time to check out some of Janny Wurts’ other novels.
March 18, 2023
I'm more familiar with Janny Wurts via her Wars of Light and Shadow books, which give her sufficient space to stretch out and build the narrative, tectonic emotions grinding under the surface. These tales are either snapshots, hurried through or squeezed like a Sergio Leone western seen on a portable black & white TV, the picture mutilated by being forced into 4:3 ratio, or they are linked episodic tales that focus heavily on personal conflicts between two recurring characters... oh, hey, a bit like Wars of Light and Shadow in miniature, eh? An interesting but not entirely convincing selection of tales by an author deservedly far better known for her longer work.
October 13, 2020
I needed to read something by Janny Wurts as I wait for maybe another book in her series. Anyway, these short stories filled the void. I enjoy the characters, her writing draws you into the story even as short as they are, I want more not because the story leaves you hanging but because you just want to read more about the characters. She goes from fantasy to sci-fi so effortlessly. She can sail a ship or fly one in space. I read everything by her. Just waiting for her talented self to write some more.
February 1, 2020
These short stories were engaging. I did enjoy how a few of them connected to each other and fleshed out a slightly longer story within the collection. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys science fiction or fantasy.
May 8, 2022
DNF, too much science fiction for my taste. Would pick up a full length fantasy story from this author though.
October 30, 2024
Janny Wurts writes pure magic.
Even the stories that didn't quite work for me in this collection were told in a masterful way that evoked wonderful imagery.
Even the stories that didn't quite work for me in this collection were told in a masterful way that evoked wonderful imagery.
June 30, 2025
I read this years ago & I remember really liking the short stories about elves.
June 20, 2020
Why to read That Way Lies Camelot:
- There are two storylines that have several short stories associated with them, which was unique (at least in my limited reading of short stories)
- You get to see how Janny Wurts is such an awesome writer and add her other books to your to-read shelf
Things that made this NOT a five star read:
- The first Spaceman story was good, but I didn't feel like it needed more short stories added to it and the subsequent ones I either skim read or skipped completely.
- Although the stories were all good -some set in exceptional worlds- I don't think I'd ever put in the time to read any of them over again.
- Just generally, short stories don't really pull the wow factor for me. This was no exception.
Overall, a good read but I wished I'd rented it from the library rather than purchasing it. That said, I'm definitely adding a couple of Wurts' books to my to-read list.
- There are two storylines that have several short stories associated with them, which was unique (at least in my limited reading of short stories)
- You get to see how Janny Wurts is such an awesome writer and add her other books to your to-read shelf
Things that made this NOT a five star read:
- The first Spaceman story was good, but I didn't feel like it needed more short stories added to it and the subsequent ones I either skim read or skipped completely.
- Although the stories were all good -some set in exceptional worlds- I don't think I'd ever put in the time to read any of them over again.
- Just generally, short stories don't really pull the wow factor for me. This was no exception.
Overall, a good read but I wished I'd rented it from the library rather than purchasing it. That said, I'm definitely adding a couple of Wurts' books to my to-read list.
June 24, 2024
An incredibly mixed bag of “short stories.” I found the actual short stories to be very enjoyable in this collection, but was bored and put off by the excerpts from Wurts’ novels. I could tell that I would have enjoyed these stories within their larger contexts, but as additions to this collection they didn’t work very well for me. Maybe the point is to make me want to read more of Wurts’ work by showing bits and pieces of her novels, however I would rather have self-contained stories meant to be experienced in the shorter format. Trimming out the excerpts would have bumped this up to 4.5 stars for me
July 9, 2013
I read an acclaimed novel by the same author and didn't much like it, so I was loath to read these shorts. But a friend of mine insisted they'd be worth my time... and boy, was she right. There wasn't a single story in this that I didn't like.
My favorite is the story about the boy who loves knights and all things medieval. But the one about the tree that's been harmed is lovely too. What I like about this collection is the great diversity. If the author had written more short stories, I'd probably go and buy them all, but I can only find novels. Highly recommended for all fantasy lovers.
My favorite is the story about the boy who loves knights and all things medieval. But the one about the tree that's been harmed is lovely too. What I like about this collection is the great diversity. If the author had written more short stories, I'd probably go and buy them all, but I can only find novels. Highly recommended for all fantasy lovers.
December 30, 2008
A volume of short stories. Some repeat characters. Some of the stories were enjoyable but the series about Jensen I thought grew a little tiresome after awhile.
You may enjoy it. I, personally, am not the biggest fan of short stories. I know I should get over it but, hey, look, I read these.
You may enjoy it. I, personally, am not the biggest fan of short stories. I know I should get over it but, hey, look, I read these.
June 10, 2009
This lady is a wonderful author!!!!!!!!
March 31, 2011
good but short stories, so no momentum
November 14, 2013
Some really nice stories that entertain and make you think.
February 21, 2016
There isn't an actual plotline and half of it is set in space. It seems more like a collection of short stories than a proper book.
July 10, 2016
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