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Secret Books of Paradys #3
The Book of the Dead
The ambience of fin de siecle France imbues these eight gothic tales in the third volume in Lee's Secret Books of Paradys tetralogy, tracing the tortured lives once led by those buried in the crypts and cemeteries of the mythical (or forgotten) city of Paradys. "The Weasel Bride" twists a folktale about a man who marries an enchanted weasel and dies of her bite into an account of a young husband who kills his beloved bride on their wedding night and takes her dreadful secret to the gallows. The artist in "The Glass Dagger," who normally saves her emotion for her art, is consumed by jealous rage and turns to supernatural revenge when a jaded aristocrat tries an old stratagem to win her love. In "The Moon Is a Mask" a drudge who creates a world of beauty in her garret room steals to buy a mask that turns her into a vampire owl. The miasma of corruption and death, combined with vivid and at times elegiac writing will engross readers who fancy this dark shade of fantasy writing.
208 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1991
16 people are currently reading
442 people want to read
About the author
Tanith Lee
615 books1,970 followersTanith Lee was a British writer of science fiction, horror, and fantasy. She was the author of 77 novels, 14 collections, and almost 300 short stories. She also wrote four radio plays broadcast by the BBC and two scripts for the UK, science fiction, cult television series "Blake's 7."
Before becoming a full time writer, Lee worked as a file clerk, an assistant librarian, a shop assistant, and a waitress.
Her first short story, "Eustace," was published in 1968, and her first novel (for children) The Dragon Hoard was published in 1971.
Her career took off in 1975 with the acceptance by Daw Books USA of her adult fantasy epic The Birthgrave for publication as a mass-market paperback, and Lee has since maintained a prolific output in popular genre writing.
Lee twice won the World Fantasy Award: once in 1983 for best short fiction for “The Gorgon” and again in 1984 for best short fiction for “Elle Est Trois (La Mort).” She has been a Guest of Honour at numerous science fiction and fantasy conventions including the Boskone XVIII in Boston, USA in 1981, the 1984 World Fantasy Convention in Ottawa, Canada, and Orbital 2008 the British National Science Fiction convention (Eastercon) held in London, England in March 2008. In 2009 she was awarded the prestigious title of Grand Master of Horror.
Lee was the daughter of two ballroom dancers, Bernard and Hylda Lee. Despite a persistent rumour, she was not the daughter of the actor Bernard Lee who played "M" in the James Bond series of films of the 1960s.
Tanith Lee married author and artist John Kaiine in 1992.
Before becoming a full time writer, Lee worked as a file clerk, an assistant librarian, a shop assistant, and a waitress.
Her first short story, "Eustace," was published in 1968, and her first novel (for children) The Dragon Hoard was published in 1971.
Her career took off in 1975 with the acceptance by Daw Books USA of her adult fantasy epic The Birthgrave for publication as a mass-market paperback, and Lee has since maintained a prolific output in popular genre writing.
Lee twice won the World Fantasy Award: once in 1983 for best short fiction for “The Gorgon” and again in 1984 for best short fiction for “Elle Est Trois (La Mort).” She has been a Guest of Honour at numerous science fiction and fantasy conventions including the Boskone XVIII in Boston, USA in 1981, the 1984 World Fantasy Convention in Ottawa, Canada, and Orbital 2008 the British National Science Fiction convention (Eastercon) held in London, England in March 2008. In 2009 she was awarded the prestigious title of Grand Master of Horror.
Lee was the daughter of two ballroom dancers, Bernard and Hylda Lee. Despite a persistent rumour, she was not the daughter of the actor Bernard Lee who played "M" in the James Bond series of films of the 1960s.
Tanith Lee married author and artist John Kaiine in 1992.
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
May 4, 2016
I will argue that, at her best, Tanith Lee is in the same league of Gothic writing as Angela Carter; multilayered fictions about sexuality and possession and identity, built of startling imagery and metaphor. Unfortunately, The Book of the Dead, the third quarter of the Paradys cycle, is a long, long way from her best.
There are many problems with this book. Paradys, that shadow Paris where vampires and shapeshifters and magic roil beneath the surface, a main character throughout the previous stories, is barely present. Most of the tales here are barely connected to it and, even in those that are, it is the flimsiest of painted backdrops. The stories themselves are generally weak, feeling throwaway and somehow unready, and not even saved by forming together into any sort of thread as had the tales in the previous volumes. The protagonists seem to be involved for no good reason - these are not tragedies where a character brings doom upon themselves by their own greed or recklessness or malice or hubris, more they feel like failed attempts to try for a kind of Lovecraftian random universe - and often the stakes are so low and the motivations so pointless that it is to no effect.
For example, in the story Morcara’s Room we start with an interesting set up. A young woman grows up unusually strong and sure of herself for the time period, self-assured and dominant and, being an only child, inherits the estate. She dresses how she chooses and selects her lovers with impunity. Her downfall occurs the first time a man spurns her, although we are simply told this, not shown it, and in such passing detail that her reaction - to shut herself in a tower chamber and commit suicide - is so melodramatically over the top as to be absurd, even in context of a gothic tale. To compound matters, this is merely the backstory; in the present a traveller comes to the estate to find an elderly brother and sister living in the house, who tell him this story - of their ancestor, her death, that there was a warning on the door “all who enter will die” and the servant who broke down the door fell down the stairs and broke his neck. The cursed tower has been sealed for many years (after a subsequent death for which the siblings bear some guilt) and the denouement is this rather arrogant interloper stating that this was not a curse but a simple statement of fact: all who enter the tower room will die, because everyone dies in the end. The whole thing reads like some very early gothic story you’d study in a literature class and you’d have to give a pass because the once-original ideas had become cliche.
Indeed, each of the stories feels as though Lee is trying her hand at a different era of horror writing, without really committing to it. The segment Lost in the World finds a man obsessed with obscure travel writings of a previous century journeying to Africa to try and locate the hidden valley they mention, finding it, being trapped, and (spoiler) being killed by one of the pterosaurs that inhabit it - although the final image here of his aerial view of what he had taken as a huge, ruined temple is a nice idea, the story as a whole is disjointed and messy, and reads like bad Lovecraft, complete with period casual racism.
Definitely a highly disappointing effort, and I’d probably have chucked this part way through had it not been multiple tales. I hope the final part of the Secret Book of Paradys, The Book of the Mad, finishes on a higher note.
There are many problems with this book. Paradys, that shadow Paris where vampires and shapeshifters and magic roil beneath the surface, a main character throughout the previous stories, is barely present. Most of the tales here are barely connected to it and, even in those that are, it is the flimsiest of painted backdrops. The stories themselves are generally weak, feeling throwaway and somehow unready, and not even saved by forming together into any sort of thread as had the tales in the previous volumes. The protagonists seem to be involved for no good reason - these are not tragedies where a character brings doom upon themselves by their own greed or recklessness or malice or hubris, more they feel like failed attempts to try for a kind of Lovecraftian random universe - and often the stakes are so low and the motivations so pointless that it is to no effect.
For example, in the story Morcara’s Room we start with an interesting set up. A young woman grows up unusually strong and sure of herself for the time period, self-assured and dominant and, being an only child, inherits the estate. She dresses how she chooses and selects her lovers with impunity. Her downfall occurs the first time a man spurns her, although we are simply told this, not shown it, and in such passing detail that her reaction - to shut herself in a tower chamber and commit suicide - is so melodramatically over the top as to be absurd, even in context of a gothic tale. To compound matters, this is merely the backstory; in the present a traveller comes to the estate to find an elderly brother and sister living in the house, who tell him this story - of their ancestor, her death, that there was a warning on the door “all who enter will die” and the servant who broke down the door fell down the stairs and broke his neck. The cursed tower has been sealed for many years (after a subsequent death for which the siblings bear some guilt) and the denouement is this rather arrogant interloper stating that this was not a curse but a simple statement of fact: all who enter the tower room will die, because everyone dies in the end. The whole thing reads like some very early gothic story you’d study in a literature class and you’d have to give a pass because the once-original ideas had become cliche.
Indeed, each of the stories feels as though Lee is trying her hand at a different era of horror writing, without really committing to it. The segment Lost in the World finds a man obsessed with obscure travel writings of a previous century journeying to Africa to try and locate the hidden valley they mention, finding it, being trapped, and (spoiler) being killed by one of the pterosaurs that inhabit it - although the final image here of his aerial view of what he had taken as a huge, ruined temple is a nice idea, the story as a whole is disjointed and messy, and reads like bad Lovecraft, complete with period casual racism.
Definitely a highly disappointing effort, and I’d probably have chucked this part way through had it not been multiple tales. I hope the final part of the Secret Book of Paradys, The Book of the Mad, finishes on a higher note.
May 12, 2022
Lee is swimming around in mood and fantasy, not so much with the plot. Whether this works is up to the reader. For me, not really. You can only douse yourself in decadence and melodrama for so long, serving up twists on fairy tales and legends and obviously-telegraphed doom.
How many of these are about loners and misanthropes? Four? Over half?
How many of these are about loners and misanthropes? Four? Over half?
October 28, 2023
Unlike the previous 2 Secret Books of Paradys which contained 3 thematically linked novellas, the Book of the Dead is an anthology of 8 stories – the wrap-around being the intrusive narrator wandering around a cemetery in Paradys and recounting the stories leading to the deaths of 8 people buried there.
The links are the setting – Paradys (a fantasy Paris) and Death – Which are pretty tenuous when you look at how tight the Book of the Beast was. The stories are disappointingly for Lee, a very mixed bag.
The Weasel Bride
Beginning with a quote from Yeats, this one’s a fairytale with real bite and I do mean that literally – We get a selkie like metamorphosis tale with weasel instead of a seal, and then the main body of the tale which features Vagina Dentata and takes you nowhere near where the set up implies…. It’s odd.
The Nightmare’s Tale
A voodoo tale of revenge – our hero travels to the fantasy equivalent of Haiti for revenge and when he finds his mark has died, resurrects him as a zombie to kill him again, with of course fatal repercussions.
Beautiful Lady
Another oddity – The set up reminded me of Louisa the Poisoner which Lee went on to write a year later but it mixes that with myth debunking and gives us a very practical solution for why everyone around the heroine keeps dying – another oddity
Morcara’s Room
Is another myth debunking of a sort – a woman commits suicide and the room where she killed herself is reputedly cursed. Wonderfully gothic but kinda disappointing in its mundane ending.
The Marble Web
One of the few Lee stories I really don’t rate, or don’t ‘get’ – A conjurer takes a fancy to one of Lee’s usual unstable heroines Jausande and encorcells her to her doom. I just did not engage with this one which seemed pointless.
Lost in the World
Lee’s tribute to Victorian Adventure stories – this has a At the Earth’s Core/Journey to the Centre of the Earth/Lost World vibe – You get a Rider Haggard/Robert E Howard style – It’s highly derivative – but I think that’s the point as it’s a homage to this style of literature – it also feels hugely out of place in a very different vein and genre from the other stories here.
The Glass Dagger
We’re back in classic Lee territory here – with her usual gothic, unstable, inscrutable heroine, here an artist – Who seemed disinterested in her lover but becomes unbelievably jealous when he leaves her for an opera singer.
The Moon is a Mask
Is by far the best tale here and feels in keeping with the Book of the Beast – A woman finds a bird-mask in a curiosity shop and transforms into an owl vampire and terrorized the streets of Paradys.
Note the heroine in this last story is called Elsa (Owlsa) Garba – very close to Lee’s pseudonym Esther Garber. And indeed, Lee the author is a very strong presence in this anthology where there is a fair bit of intrusive narrator, particularly in the linking segments. This is quite unusual, normally the narrative and the characters take over.
Overall, this is quite a mixed bag of styles of story here that don’t hang together brilliantly. Certainly disappointing after the first two books in the series, but still wonderful gothic prose in places and Lee’s genius still shines through in places, it’s just not her best. It also doesn’t delve into the same many of the usual themes than run through her work.
Themes
• Gothic
• Metamorphosis
• Murderer/Murderess
• Revenge
• Unstable heroine
• Vampirism
The links are the setting – Paradys (a fantasy Paris) and Death – Which are pretty tenuous when you look at how tight the Book of the Beast was. The stories are disappointingly for Lee, a very mixed bag.
The Weasel Bride
Beginning with a quote from Yeats, this one’s a fairytale with real bite and I do mean that literally – We get a selkie like metamorphosis tale with weasel instead of a seal, and then the main body of the tale which features Vagina Dentata and takes you nowhere near where the set up implies…. It’s odd.
The Nightmare’s Tale
A voodoo tale of revenge – our hero travels to the fantasy equivalent of Haiti for revenge and when he finds his mark has died, resurrects him as a zombie to kill him again, with of course fatal repercussions.
Beautiful Lady
Another oddity – The set up reminded me of Louisa the Poisoner which Lee went on to write a year later but it mixes that with myth debunking and gives us a very practical solution for why everyone around the heroine keeps dying – another oddity
Morcara’s Room
Is another myth debunking of a sort – a woman commits suicide and the room where she killed herself is reputedly cursed. Wonderfully gothic but kinda disappointing in its mundane ending.
The Marble Web
One of the few Lee stories I really don’t rate, or don’t ‘get’ – A conjurer takes a fancy to one of Lee’s usual unstable heroines Jausande and encorcells her to her doom. I just did not engage with this one which seemed pointless.
Lost in the World
Lee’s tribute to Victorian Adventure stories – this has a At the Earth’s Core/Journey to the Centre of the Earth/Lost World vibe – You get a Rider Haggard/Robert E Howard style – It’s highly derivative – but I think that’s the point as it’s a homage to this style of literature – it also feels hugely out of place in a very different vein and genre from the other stories here.
The Glass Dagger
We’re back in classic Lee territory here – with her usual gothic, unstable, inscrutable heroine, here an artist – Who seemed disinterested in her lover but becomes unbelievably jealous when he leaves her for an opera singer.
The Moon is a Mask
Is by far the best tale here and feels in keeping with the Book of the Beast – A woman finds a bird-mask in a curiosity shop and transforms into an owl vampire and terrorized the streets of Paradys.
Note the heroine in this last story is called Elsa (Owlsa) Garba – very close to Lee’s pseudonym Esther Garber. And indeed, Lee the author is a very strong presence in this anthology where there is a fair bit of intrusive narrator, particularly in the linking segments. This is quite unusual, normally the narrative and the characters take over.
Overall, this is quite a mixed bag of styles of story here that don’t hang together brilliantly. Certainly disappointing after the first two books in the series, but still wonderful gothic prose in places and Lee’s genius still shines through in places, it’s just not her best. It also doesn’t delve into the same many of the usual themes than run through her work.
Themes
• Gothic
• Metamorphosis
• Murderer/Murderess
• Revenge
• Unstable heroine
• Vampirism
June 30, 2019
3.5
There were probably more themes in this collection than just death, but I didn’t pick up on them. I’ll just give a few thoughts on each short.
There is a prologue for this one about some clown who fakes his own funeral so he can make sure it’s done right. Then before each story is a little blurb told by the same narrator (I presume) who tells the story of the clown.
The Weasel Bride – The swan princess but with a weasel who bites her husband and then another tale about a woman who has teeth in her ladybits (woof.)
The Nightmare’s Tale – This one dragged a bit. Some kid (young man, really) wants vengeance and makes a long journey to get it, only death cheats him of it. So some friendly natives bring the corpse back to life so the kid can kill him again. Then the natives kill the kid later? Disliked.
Beautiful Lady – A woman whose mere presence causes some to sicken and die. People think she’s a poisoner. DID NOT see the twist at the end. It really made the story. WTF.
Morcara’s Room – A look at superstitions and death. This one was surprisingly realistic. Really enjoyed this.
I also loved this description of Morcara: “And there were images too of Morcara in her silver silke and diamonds, dancing. But once she picked a live coal off the fire and threw it in the lap of a woman who (she thought) had insulted her, and once she challenged a man to a duel, and when he did not go to it because, he said, he would not fight a woman, she visited him and cut him across the forehead with her rapier.”
Also: “For death is the destiny of all, and unavoidable, be it now, tomorrow, or eight decades hence. But how often do we like to be told, how often do we not convince ourselves we are immortal?”
The Marble Web – I wasn’t sure what to make of this. Something about a girl being kidnapped into a magical realm by some creepy conjurer. Mostly I was confused.
Lost in the World – This reminded me of Arthur Conan Doyle’s Lost World (intentional?), but had an unexpected twist.
I marked this quote: “Oberand was by now mad. It was a fact. Much of his freedom came from it. It was sanity that had caused unhappiness, as so often it does.”
The Glass Dagger – How not to woo your lady, or, a study in jealousy.
The Moon is a Mask – A magical mask turns a girl into an owl, but the mask is not to be trusted. This made me think of the Icarus myth a little.
In all, this was a successful collection, especially compared to The Book of the Beast. I enjoyed most of the stories, loved a couple and only really disliked two. I don’t feel that you need to read any of the Paradys books in a certain order, or even read them all in order to enjoy one. If you only pick up one from this collection, I recommend The Book of the Dead.
There were probably more themes in this collection than just death, but I didn’t pick up on them. I’ll just give a few thoughts on each short.
There is a prologue for this one about some clown who fakes his own funeral so he can make sure it’s done right. Then before each story is a little blurb told by the same narrator (I presume) who tells the story of the clown.
The Weasel Bride – The swan princess but with a weasel who bites her husband and then another tale about a woman who has teeth in her ladybits (woof.)
The Nightmare’s Tale – This one dragged a bit. Some kid (young man, really) wants vengeance and makes a long journey to get it, only death cheats him of it. So some friendly natives bring the corpse back to life so the kid can kill him again. Then the natives kill the kid later? Disliked.
Beautiful Lady – A woman whose mere presence causes some to sicken and die. People think she’s a poisoner. DID NOT see the twist at the end. It really made the story. WTF.
Morcara’s Room – A look at superstitions and death. This one was surprisingly realistic. Really enjoyed this.
I also loved this description of Morcara: “And there were images too of Morcara in her silver silke and diamonds, dancing. But once she picked a live coal off the fire and threw it in the lap of a woman who (she thought) had insulted her, and once she challenged a man to a duel, and when he did not go to it because, he said, he would not fight a woman, she visited him and cut him across the forehead with her rapier.”
Also: “For death is the destiny of all, and unavoidable, be it now, tomorrow, or eight decades hence. But how often do we like to be told, how often do we not convince ourselves we are immortal?”
The Marble Web – I wasn’t sure what to make of this. Something about a girl being kidnapped into a magical realm by some creepy conjurer. Mostly I was confused.
Lost in the World – This reminded me of Arthur Conan Doyle’s Lost World (intentional?), but had an unexpected twist.
I marked this quote: “Oberand was by now mad. It was a fact. Much of his freedom came from it. It was sanity that had caused unhappiness, as so often it does.”
The Glass Dagger – How not to woo your lady, or, a study in jealousy.
The Moon is a Mask – A magical mask turns a girl into an owl, but the mask is not to be trusted. This made me think of the Icarus myth a little.
In all, this was a successful collection, especially compared to The Book of the Beast. I enjoyed most of the stories, loved a couple and only really disliked two. I don’t feel that you need to read any of the Paradys books in a certain order, or even read them all in order to enjoy one. If you only pick up one from this collection, I recommend The Book of the Dead.
April 25, 2018
Disappointing: I really like this author, and I picked this book based on the title and my enjoyment of other books I've read of hers. Unfortunately this is not one of the good ones, the writing is as usual rather interesting, creative, a sort of romantic picture writing but the plots ranged from uninteresting and shallow, to mildly entertaining but ponderous they all take place in an imagined city like Paris a generic romantic old European city set somewhere between the 1880's and the 1920's that is the only common thread between the collection of not so short stories which sometimes ends and begin in abrupt fashion. Overall this is a book that I could have easily gone without reading and when I was reading it I more than a few times thought I should file it on the can not finish shelf but I just was stubborn and didn't want to give up on it so I stuck it out but it never got better.
July 4, 2023
The third book, The Book of the Dead is a collection of short stories. It again has a more playful tone than the previous books, taking the form of a tour through a graveyard. It’s a little like one of those anthology horror films and the crypt keeper is less formal than previous narrative voices. It’s also a nice conceit that each story happens at a later date than the last, taking us through the City’s history.
Being short, the stories often have a little twist or punch at the end, often ending on an irony. This book has vagina dentata, a cursed room and a woman with a little homunculus that kills people. There was a voodoo story told in a fictional Haiti called Ha1issa - which raised more questions about what places were the same and which were not.
A particular favourite story was Lost in the World, a pastiche of Arthur Conan-Doyle’s tale, in which a Professor Challenger figure is laughed out of academia for believing in a lost world ruled by a giant. He sets off alone and finds it, but sees no giant. As he is picked up by a huge flying beast to be murdered and fed to chicks, he realises the marble buildings in the distance were the bones of a massive, dead giant. He smiles as he goes to meet his doom.
Though the stories seem slight compared to the previous books, I connected much better to this book as Lee is having more fun with her creation. The best gothic works are those that acknowledge and enjoy the silliness as much as they revel in the drama - it’s that which makes The Monk so good. I had felt that the straight goth-face was too plastered on to crack a smile and it was great to see it.
Being short, the stories often have a little twist or punch at the end, often ending on an irony. This book has vagina dentata, a cursed room and a woman with a little homunculus that kills people. There was a voodoo story told in a fictional Haiti called Ha1issa - which raised more questions about what places were the same and which were not.
A particular favourite story was Lost in the World, a pastiche of Arthur Conan-Doyle’s tale, in which a Professor Challenger figure is laughed out of academia for believing in a lost world ruled by a giant. He sets off alone and finds it, but sees no giant. As he is picked up by a huge flying beast to be murdered and fed to chicks, he realises the marble buildings in the distance were the bones of a massive, dead giant. He smiles as he goes to meet his doom.
Though the stories seem slight compared to the previous books, I connected much better to this book as Lee is having more fun with her creation. The best gothic works are those that acknowledge and enjoy the silliness as much as they revel in the drama - it’s that which makes The Monk so good. I had felt that the straight goth-face was too plastered on to crack a smile and it was great to see it.
August 15, 2020
The third book of Paradys consists of a series of short, unrelated stories about individuals intended for the Grave. As usual Tanith Lee proves herself as a talented writer of the dark and bizarre. Like with her other works (especially the works of Paradys), you must make an allowance for a bit of confusion with some of these stories; most are quite easy to digest, but one or two are more opaque. To enjoy Tanith Lee is to enjoy puzzling out a story for a couple days after you read it, piecing together details and themes - this is what I love about reading her. If you're not into that sort of thing, you may not like this as much.
January 30, 2022
Still loving these Paradys books. This one doesn't pack the same kind of punch in that the stories are more unrelated so they don't build on each other. Some are stronger than others. But some still made a big impression. The theme that draws them together is death, but for Lee love and death seem to be very much two sides of the same coin, which I appreciated. It seemed logical. My favorites were probably Morcara's Room, the Beautiful Lady and The Glass Dagger. Certainly didn't put me off from reading the last book in the series!
October 20, 2017
I love Tanith Lee's work, so it's really surprising how much I disliked this book. Set in her alt.Paris, Paradys, they're moody stories that just don't work at any level (I can't believe she actually used vagina dentata as the big reveal in one tale). And too many of them have a protagonist who's an emotionally disconnected woman just going through life's motions (it could be a theme, but I don't think it is)>
July 14, 2019
I started reading this book years ago but sadly misplaced it during a move. I finally re-acquired and finished it. As a collection of short stories, the interruption did not affect my enjoyment of it. Tanith Lee never fails to impress!
July 30, 2021
A series of eight short stories themed around characters who have died and are now buried in the graveyards a d cemetaries of the mythical city of Paradys.
As others have noted this isn't Lee's strongest work, but I enjoyed the short stories nonetheless. The concepts and details she comes up with are always thought provoking and inspiring.
The Weasel Bride ⭐⭐⭐
The Nightmare's Tale ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Beautiful Lady ⭐⭐⭐
Morcara's Room ⭐⭐⭐
The Marble Web ⭐⭐⭐
Lost in the World ⭐⭐⭐
The Glass Dagger ⭐⭐⭐
The Moon Is a Mask ⭐⭐⭐⭐
As others have noted this isn't Lee's strongest work, but I enjoyed the short stories nonetheless. The concepts and details she comes up with are always thought provoking and inspiring.
The Weasel Bride ⭐⭐⭐
The Nightmare's Tale ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Beautiful Lady ⭐⭐⭐
Morcara's Room ⭐⭐⭐
The Marble Web ⭐⭐⭐
Lost in the World ⭐⭐⭐
The Glass Dagger ⭐⭐⭐
The Moon Is a Mask ⭐⭐⭐⭐
August 28, 2022
When the first story here abandons the care and thoughtfulness of the previous volumes in this series for a cheap shock value punchline, you know the Paradys series has gone off the rails. Full review: https://fakegeekboy.wordpress.com/201...
June 18, 2020
even the best fall down sometimes 🥺🥺🥺
December 3, 2021
An ornate chalice rich in patterns won't quench one's thirst if it holds no substance. Likewise with prose.
August 14, 2012
Taken as a whole, this series is a fascinating excursion into the fantastic city of Paradys, a sort of darkened magical mirror version of Paris that spans several centuries. This particular volume, "The Book of the Dead" struck me as one of the weaker books in the series, which is not to say that it isn't effective in terms of writing and atmosphere, only that it was less cohesive in terms of tying the stories together. As the title might suggest, each story ends with a death, and this running motif is framed by a walk through the cemetery. Rather clever, but also a bit incidental and tacked-on. I am tempted to think of Bradbury's "The Illustrated Man," which perhaps made best use of a framing device in a short story collection, itself being its own story. This one is not, and that might be why I found it rather paltry. Taken individually, the stories are for the most part very effective, dripping with atmosphere and Lee's usual beautiful prose. As is typical, her characters are usually on the margins of society and driven for various reasons to go beyond the confines of normal society--in short to transgress. Echoes of Poe and Baudelaire abound throughout the series, but this particular volume seems to rest most firmly in the horror and ghost story tradition. She remains at an even keel throughout, to the extend that it's hard to state which story stood out most.
March 3, 2014
Since I don't normally write reviews unless I have something specific to say, here's the break down of how I rate my books...
1 star... This book was bad, so bad I may have given up and skipped to the end. I will avoid this author like the plague in the future.
2 stars... This book was not very good, and I won't be reading any more from the author.
3 stars... This book was ok, but I won't go out of my way to read more, But if I find another book by the author for under a dollar I'd pick it up.
4 stars... I really enjoyed this book and will definitely be on the look out to pick up more from the series/author.
5 stars... I loved this book! It had earned a permanent home in my collection and I'll be picking up the rest of the series and other books from the author ASAP.
1 star... This book was bad, so bad I may have given up and skipped to the end. I will avoid this author like the plague in the future.
2 stars... This book was not very good, and I won't be reading any more from the author.
3 stars... This book was ok, but I won't go out of my way to read more, But if I find another book by the author for under a dollar I'd pick it up.
4 stars... I really enjoyed this book and will definitely be on the look out to pick up more from the series/author.
5 stars... I loved this book! It had earned a permanent home in my collection and I'll be picking up the rest of the series and other books from the author ASAP.
August 22, 2008
I liked the Book of the Dead very much. More like reading ghost stories by a fire place, and I'm very fond of ghost stories. It kind of reminded me of that TV show Tales From the Crypt. And the narrator, or guide seeded like the Crypt-keeper. Anyway, it was very good. And in some cases very sad. I'm not sure if I like Lee's style of writing, it's very flowery. Sometimes I think her use of the words might take away from the story. All and all a good read, better than the first two books.
December 10, 2008
I have this book, paired with Book of the Mad. The Paradys books (Beast, Damned, Dead, Mad) should be read together. They span generations & even dimensions in a land called Paradys, & although each book can stand alone, the greater picture Lee is painting is only told by the series, not any one individual book from it.
I'd rate the books alone (with the exception of Mad) as 3, but the series as a whole is a 5.
I'd rate the books alone (with the exception of Mad) as 3, but the series as a whole is a 5.
December 4, 2016
This book is a mess. The stories contained herein are lazily written (which is very uncharacteristic of Tanith Lee) and only seem loosely connected together; by a theme of doom and death. The writing in this volume isn't nearly as vivid or horrific as in the previous volumes and to me seem for the most part irrelevant to the series as a whole, thus this volume I'd guess is entirely skipable.
May 30, 2012
8 Gothic short stories, partially set in the city of Paradys while some go as far as French colonies. All involve one or more person getting killed (hence the title) and written in Tanith Lee's rich, dark style. I'm not sure if I get all the mythology/religious references in it.
May 29, 2012
Read it a while ago.
October 26, 2014
So beautiful! Tanith Lee's prose is art. This is the 3rd book in the Paradys series but it is different than the first two because this one is made of short stories. They were all beautiful.
May 27, 2015
I really love the whole series. Just fantastic!
January 16, 2014
The weakest book in the series.
April 20, 2017
Tanith Lee should be required reading for anyone interested in fantasy....I think 'The Book of the Dead' is one of her best works
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