13 Phantasms and Other Stories

by James P. Blaylock

The first short story collection from Philip K. Dick Award-winning author James Blaylock features sixteen thought-provoking forays into the fantastic-from a tale of alien influence on an ordinary neighborhood to the story of one man's self-destructive obsession with a dragon.

Thirteen phantasms --
Red planet --
The Ape-Box affair --
Bugs --
Nets of silver and gold --
The better boy --
The pink of fading neon --
The Old Curiosity Shop --
Doughnuts --
Two views of a cave painting --
The Idol's eye --
Paper dragons --
We traverse afar --
The shadow on the doorstep --
Myron Chester and the toads --
Unidentified objects

Genres: Short Stories, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Horror, Fiction, Speculative Fiction, Anthologies

368 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

James Paul Blaylock is an American fantasy author. He is noted for his distinctive style. He writes in a humorous way: His characters never walk, they clump along, or when someone complains (in a flying machine) that flight is impossible, the other characters agree and show him why he's right.

He was born in Long Beach, California; studied English at California State University, Fullerton, receiving an M.A. in 1974; and lives in Orange, California, teaching creative writing at Chapman University. Many of his books are set in Orange County, California, and can more specifically be termed "fabulism" — that is, fantastic things happen in our present-day world, rather than in traditional fantasy, where the setting is often some other world. His works have also been categorized as magic realism.

He and his friends Tim Powers and K.W. Jeter were mentored by Philip K. Dick. Along with Powers he invented the poet William Ashbless. Blaylock and Powers have often collaborated with each other on writing stories, including The Better Boy, On Pirates, and The William Ashbless Memorial Cookbook.

Blaylock is also currently director of the Creative Writing Conservatory at the Orange County High School of the Arts, where Powers is Writer in Residence.

Reviews

[Theo Logos · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you have not yet reached midlife, you might want to subtract a stars from my rating, or wait an appropriate number of years before reading this volume. Blaylock writes with a rare, ethereal subtlety on subjects that I simply would not have appreciated in the same way as a young man. The best of these stories are about loss, longing and regret; regrets that cannot be made right, loss that will never be replaced, and longing for the irretrievably gone. These stories are melancholy, twilight magic, little meditations on fading. Definitely read it,, but consider waiting until you turn fifty.

[Jeff · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my first venture into James P. Blaylock's writing. I've been wanting to read some of his work, but usually only see it on Subterranean Press's site, which is prohibitively expensive. Anyway, I also love short stories, so this book was double good. Maybe even "double-plus good."

This was a charming set of short stories, starting out with the title story, which involved some time continuum issues.

There were several Langdon St. Ives stories, which I found very satisfying. I really want to get my hands on some more of those stories. One of those involved a very disturbing account of some jewels that made up the eyes of an idol, deep in a jungle somewhere. Only the "idol" turned out to be something more.

I recommend this book highly. I plan to find some more Blaylock soon.

[Ian McKinley]

I'm not usually a fan of short stories, but I found a few in this collection interesting, especially those dealing with Prof Langdon St. Ives. That said, I would have liked to see greater diversity in the characters (particularly a few women protagonists) and in the geographic settings.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

The flights of fancy contained in this collection of shorts just fail to ever take off the ground. The fussy style works best when applied to the steam stories the author is known for, but there's only a few of those in this book. At one point there is a lengthy short about a fight between a husband and wife about shoes and donuts, not even a particularly interesting fight, WITH AN EXPLANATION about why donuts. Most of this book feels like being trapped inside as a kid on a rainy Sunday afternoon.

[Steven · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF

[Sarah Frick · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF - I read 3ish stories before I had to give up. The ones I read were weird, confusing, and just really bad. They had ZERO context situations with overly saturated description and details coming out of nowhere. I barely knew what was going on. There was no structure or format; it felt like dropping into the middle of a book series (and flipping to a random page.) I’m not sure what the scores of accolades on the inside and back covers are founded on, but it’s not on what I read! (Or tried to! I wanted to try a few more selections from the book, (there must be ONE good one in here, right?) but found myself unable to continue because they were so awful. Is there something I’m missing here?)

[Gregg · Rating 1 out of 5]

Imagine visiting a retirement or nursing home, sometimes called an 'old folks home', and being trapped there, forced to listen to the meanderings of poor souls who can remember things from 60 years ago, but can't remember anything that happened this week. The "stories" in this book could have been written in the 1800's. They have more in common with ghost stories than they do with science fiction.

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a Blaylock fan and enjoyed most of the stories in this volume. The first is probably my favorite. Most focused on relationships and/or loss. I agree with the reviewer who observed that if you are a young person, you probably won't get the point.

[Jon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fine writing, quite, but with the occasional plot and a much more cheerful tone. Ha!

[Tania · Rating 4 out of 5]

"13 Phantasms and Other Stories is rich in quiet humor and it invites us in, makes us comfortable. The edges are soft, like the lines between fantasy and reality, and each story is a world unto itself.....In keeping with nostalgia-fantasy, this book is a time capsule of the first two decades of Blaylock's early career. From the simplistic beginning of Red Planet, where we can still see the rough edges, to the mature work of Thirteen Phantasms and The Old Curiosity Shop, where the stories are polished and become more thematically complex, this collection showcases the development of a writer. And James Blaylock turns out to be an excellent writer, a conscientious craftsman whose writing is beautiful, something to savor..... "

Read the rest of this review by M. Bobowski on The Short Review.

[Isidore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charming, gentle stories with, for the most part, the fantasy element subtle and underplayed. There is something of the wistful soft-centredness of Bradbury, but Blaylock, unlike, RB, does not slop all over. Well worth a look.

[Kiki · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful book. The stories are rich and subtle. Blaylock is a master at creating a world -- our world -- where the fantastic peeks around the corner, blurs into the mundane, and leaves a door ajar -- but only for a bit -- in case you want to walk through.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a pretty fun anthology of James Blaylock's short stories. My favorites of this collection were "We Traverse Afar" and "Thirteen Phantasms."

[Taffnerd · Rating 3 out of 5]

The best of these are kin to Roald Dahl's best adult stories. Spooky and clever and quite a bit of fun.

[Benedict Reid]

Beautifully written... but still, uncompelling. I almost didn't finish this collection of short stories. Each story started with a bang and ended with a whimper.

[laurenpie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Made me smile

Especially loved "Thirteen Phantasms" itself, a charming and clever short story. Made me smile. Enjoyed the other stories as well.