Chasing the Bard [Paperback]

Philippa Ballantine (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2005

Born into the human world with a gift; a gift that brings him to the attention of powers both dark and light from the World of the Fey, it is his burden to defend all the world. Sive, the goddess of battle, hopes that he may be able to change the fate of her people.The Fey are dying, killed by something beyond the boundaries of worlds, and Sive will do anything to save them. So she enlists the help of her trickster cousin Puck to guard the child, and watch him grow into his gift. But a dark power imprisoned by human and Fey, plots to destroy both worlds, and unmake all that they have created. Can one boy stop the destruction, even if he is William Shakespeare?

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Born in Wellington, New Zealand, I always had my head in a book, influenced no doubt by my father who thought Lord of the Rings was suitable material for bedtime reading for an eight year old.

One of my old schoolfriends remembers me trailing about with an green hardbacked journal which I was busy scratching my first 'novel' into. I had run out of stories to read, and found great enjoyment in writing my own. These early scribblings might not be publishable, and cause plenty of amusement now, but they were the stirrings of a need to express myself. But fantasy writing was not highly regarded in literary circles. My 'normal' writings earned me praise and a spot in the school magazine, but what I yearned for was magic. My writing spluttered out.

I studied English Literature and Politics at Victoria University, but soon found myself in the world of libraries. One day, after one of those painful life altering moments, I picked up the pen again, this time determined to enjoy writing for its sake, and not to worry if it bought me acclaim or not. Basically I had learned not to care about the goal- just to enjoy writing itself. I haven't stopped since. Oddly I never considered a career with books, even though they surrounded me from the beginning. Now it feels like I have found my place.

So now writing takes up large portions of my time, and the rest is taken up with various activities, like gardening, collecting dragons and ceramics, doing up our house, reading (of course) and walking around this great place I live. I'm particularly fascinated by renaissance and medieval history in Europe, and the history of my own country New Zealand and for a few years I was the New Zealand history editor at Suite101.

Product Details

• Paperback: 326 pages
• Publisher: Dragon Moon Press (April 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1896944175
• ISBN-13: 978-1896944173
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,681,051 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

New Zealand author Philippa Ballantine, is a fantasy writer and podcaster.
Her multiple series--Books of the Order, the Shifted World, and the Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences (co-written with her husband Tee Morris)--span many speculative fiction genres.
Her works have won an Airship, a Parsec, and a Sir Julius Vogel Award. They have also appeared in the Locus Bestseller list, and been in the Goodreads Top Science Fiction books of 2011.
She currently resides in Manassas, Virginia with her husband, her daughter, and a mighty clowder of cats. Visit her online at pjballantine.com or follow her on Twitter @PhilippaJane.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 20 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A delightful Midsummer Night's Dream... November 14, 2006

By Tee Morris

Format:Paperback

When my publisher told me about this book from New Zealand author Philippa Ballantine joining the Dragon Moon ranks, I was curious. Being a fan of Shakespeare (and having acting in several of his works) and a fan of the award-winning Sandman comic book "A Midsummer Night's Dream" from Neil Gaiman, I was very curious as to how this tale would pan out. This was her debut in print, and she was taking on "Wild Bill" and the Faerie Realms. Quite an undertaking.

Pip does not disappoint.

I will admit to suffering motion sickness in the Faerie Realm. It was obvious that Pip had done her research on more than just the Faerie culture of the Emerald Isles, but she pulled from many cultures. The jumps from Shakespeare's England to the Faerie kingdoms were tough for me to wrap my brain around, but once I got past that supernatural learning curve I embraced this book. Shakespeare's England I felt right at home in; and the characters introduced there were more than just famous names from history but real people with real personalities. This is a terrific trip across two worlds, across various legends and lore, and a sweet dream in print if ever there was one.

Pip has the distinction of being the only author making her debut amongst other (experienced) finalists for her country's Sir Julius Vogel Award. When you read Chasing the Bard (with an ending that will tear your heart out!), you will understand why her title is creating such a splash. Thank you, Pip, for this wonderful fight of fantastic history.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Self-Contained Fantasy Book, not a door-stopper, not a trilogy September 30, 2005

By April

Format:Paperback

It is a fictional account of a real person, set on our Earth, in the real Elizabethan England era with a fantasy story interwoven into the real world. Highly recommended if you like this specific sub-genre. Still very good if you like fantasy as a whole. The fantasy element is about the Fey or the world of fairies.

This book just grabbed me from the first page and absorbed me into it. It is very elegantly paced. Not a word I'd normally use to describe a fantasy book but it is the correct word. A lot happens in it reading from page to page. This is very consistent throughout the whole book.

You do not need to be a Shakespeare fan or greatly read in the history of Elizabethan England to like this book. I admit to being a bit of both - but only just a bit, and that was the initial appeal of this book for me. Then this rather orginal, concisely written story just grabbed me.

The book focuses on the core story. There is no padding. There is relatively little in the way of detailed descriptions. The reader is given enough background and enough of the side stories to get a solid idea of what has been going on. Despite this relative "lack" of detail, the story works well as you picture it in your mind as you are reading. The Fey world feels very beautiful and Elizabethan England feels very dirty.

It is a perfectly self-contained story. There is scope for a prequel and sequel but these would be clearly separate to this book. The cover is atypical of this genre but it is very appropriate for this book.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A good story made awkward by lack of editing July 2, 2012

By Natalie Wilcox

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Balantine's novel combines history with magic in an intriguing fashion. The plot remains consistent, if a little too predictable. The characters are, as is so rare in this genre, utterly dynamic, even as the story reaches a standstill.

The story revolves around the tribulations of the Fey - specifically Sive, the sister of King Auberon. Forced into being a figurehead for the good of their dying realm, Sive pins her hopes for the future on a mortal child. With her cousin Puck's help and the support of her aunt, the realm may stand a chance - should young William Shakespeare live up to what they need him to be.

Despite this premise and the storytelling skill Balantine possesses, the lack of proofreading or of serious editing proved to be too strong a distraction to utterly lose myself in the book. Typos, formatting, and technical errors lead me to give this story 3.5 stars.