Alabaster [Hardcover]

Caitlin R. Kiernan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 2006

An albino girl wanders the sun-scorched backroads of a south Georgia summer, following the bidding of an angel - or perhaps only voices in her head - searching out and slaying ancient monsters who have hidden themselves away in the lonely places of the world. Caitli-n R. Kiernan first introduced Dancy in the pages of her award-winning second novel, Threshold (2001), then went on to write several more short stories and a novella about this unlikely heroine, each a piece, of which, has become an epic dark fantasy narrative. Alabaster finally collects all these tales into one volume, illustrated by Ted Naifeh (Gloomcookie, Courtney Crumrin)

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Dancy Flammarion, an albino adolescent who speaks to angels and slays monsters in human guise in the backwoods of contemporary Georgia, is the heroine of the five interlocking stories that make up this eerie dark fantasy collection. Kiernan introduced Dancy as an enigmatic waif in her horror opus Threshold (2001) and has since conceived an elaborate cosmology in which the fey girl is one of many human avatars fighting small skirmishes on Earth that have cataclysmic repercussions across planes of reality. In "Les Fleurs Empoisonnées," Dancy is taken captive by a matriarchy of necrophiles whose decaying mansion is a nexus point for perverse and grotesque phenomena. "Bainbridge" interweaves multiple story lines that cut across time and space to show the far-reaching ramifications of Dancy's efforts to exorcise an ancient evil infesting an abandoned church. Kiernan imbues the tales with disquieting gothic imagery and envelops them in rich, evocative prose that conveys cohesiveness beyond their fragmentary plots. (Sept.)
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From Booklist

In her fourth short-story collection, Kiernan revisits a quirky character from her acclaimed horror novel Threshold (2001). Dancy Flammarian is a haunted albino teenager receiving guidance from an invisible guardian angel to track down and eliminate primordial, hellish monsters. Five previously uncollected stories follow Dancy's macabre questing from her childhood in the swamplands of Northern Florida to her hitchhiking travels across the red dirt backroads of Georgia, everywhere confronting evil face-to-face. In "The Well of Stars and Shadow," Dancy encounters her first demon, living in a bayou ghost town, and absorbs the uneasy revelation that every creature seems to know her name. In "Waycross," Dancy is abducted by a growling beast known as the Gynander, which disguises itself in the crinkled skins of its victims. "Les Fleurs Empoisonnees" introduces Dancy to perhaps her most ghoulish adversaries yet, the group of Savannah vivisectionist matriarchs called the Stephens Ward Tea League. Kiernan's richly evocative prose vividly portrays her twisted characters as well as it illustrates their eerie, kudzu-infested, Deep South surroundings. Carl Hays
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

• Hardcover: 182 pages
• Publisher: Subterranean Press (September 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1596060603
• ISBN-13: 978-1596060609
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,962,785 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Caitlin R. Kiernan was born near Dublin, Ireland, but has spent most of her life in the southeastern United States. In college, she studied zoology, geology, and palaeontology, and has been employed as a vertebrate palaeontologist and college-level biology instructor. The results of her scientific research have been published in the JOURNAL OF VERTEBRATE PALAEONTOLOGY, THE JOURNAL OF PALAEONTOLOGY and elsewhere. In 1992, she began writing her first novel, THE FIVE OF CUPS (it remained unpublished until 2003). Her first published novel, SILK (1998), earned her two awards and praise from critics and such luminaries as Neil Gaiman, Clive Barker, Peter Straub, and Poppy Z. Brite. Her next novel, THRESHOLD (2001), was also an award-winner, and since then she has written LOW RED MOON (2003), MURDER OF ANGELS (2004), DAUGHTER OF HOUNDS (2007), and, forthcoming, THE RED TREE. She is a prolific short fiction author, and her award-winning short stories have been collected in TALES OF PAIN AND WONDER (2000), WRONG THINGS (with Poppy Z. Brite; 2001), FROM WEIRD AND DISTANT SHORES (2002), and TO CHARLES FORT, WITH LOVE (2005), ALABASTER (2006), FROG TOES AND TENTACLES (2005), TALES FROM THE WOEFUL PLATYPUS (2007), and, most recently, the sf collection, A IS FOR ALIEN (2009). She has also scripted comics for DC/Vertigo, including THE DREAMING ('97-'01), THE GIRL WHO WOULD BE DEATH ('98), and BAST: ETERNITY GAME ('03). Her short sf novel THE DRY SALVAGES was published in 2004, and has published numerous chapbooks since 2000. Caitlin also fronted the goth-rock band Death's Little Sister in 1996-1997, once skinned a lion, and likes sushi. She lives in Providence, RI with her partner, Kathryn, and her two cats, Hubero and Smeagol. Caitlin is represented by Writer's House (NYC) and United Talent Agency (LA).

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I don't think we are in Oz anymore., July 15, 2009

By 

T. R. Volk (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Alabaster (Paperback)

Few writers today, with the exception of Clive Barker, dare to tread the grounds of dark fantasy where Caitlín R. Kiernan plays. Kiernan's writing technique polishes each sentence to gem status before moving to the next, and the result is rich prose that reads as well aloud as it does silently. Kiernan allows the plot to develop in the reader's imagination while she provides the characterization and mood. In Alabaster, the result is Dorothy and Oz as written by Lovecraft.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good for fans, great as an introduction!, July 9, 2007

By 

Stephen Jarjoura "runester" (Boylston, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Alabaster (Hardcover)

First, a confession ... I am a huge Caitlin R. Kiernan fan. Having said that, and adding that I own as many of her books and short-story collections as I could get my hands on, I can tell you that this is easily my favorite book by this author!

For long time fans, it's a fantastic addition. It adds to the growing mythos and explores one of the most fascinating characters that Kiernan has ever created. For those that have never read Kiernan before, this book is a very easy introduction to her work and presents it in easy-to-digest chunks - a series of short-stories with one primary protagonist.

Another really nice feature is two (2) tables of contents, one in the order the stories were first produced and another in the order the stories actually take place. I chose to follow that second index, others may prefer to keep with the way the author originally presented these stories.

In summary, I can highly recommend this book for fans and fans-to-be alike. If you like dark fantasy, Lovecraftian horror through a uniquely American-gothic filter, a gorgeous use of language, intensely deep and deeply fascinating characters, and stories that stick with you long after you read them - then this is the book for you. Buy it. Read it. Love it.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Surreal, Disturbing, Yet Beautiful, April 27, 2010

By 

Danielle "The Book Huntress" "Danielle" (Texas, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Alabaster (Hardcover)

Kiernan can write, no question about it. She is excellent at painting a surreal picture ripe with menace. This collection of stories was beautiful yet keenly disturbing. Reading it is like that feeling when you know someone is right behind you but they haven't announced themselves yet. The longer the feeling lasts, the worse it feels. Dancy is a very unusual protagonist, one I grew quite fond of. I'm not sure she's completely sane, but the things she's faced, who can blame her. Take a plunge into the frightening worlds that Kiernan has created, but I'd read it during the daytime if I was you.