Five Star Science Fiction/Fantasy - Night Lives: Nine Stories of the Dark Fantastic [Hardcover]

Phyllis Eisenstein (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0786249587 | ISBN-13: 978-0786249589 | Publication Date: March 2, 2003 | Edition: 1

From time-viewing to teleportation, from secret worlds to dream worlds, from the medieval to the modern, these stories explore the yearnings of the human heart. In these pages you will meet Edward, Jane, and Stephen, whose dreams are more real than their realities. You will journey with Alaric to the fortress in the Lake of Death, walk the seashore with Lydia in search of the great dark bird, and follow the blind man under the subway with Donnie and his father. You will pursue revenge with Tayis and heart's desire with the sleeping beauty's one true love. (20021201)

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Night Lives gathers some of Eisenstein's previously published mysterious fantasies, which vary in setting from the medieval backdrop of her stories about the minstrel Alaric to the purely dream worlds of other protagonists. Meanwhile, she is faithful to themes of the heart. In "The Island in the Lake," Alaric visits the Lake of Death, plays for both commoners and lords, and discovers a well-kept secret while using his talents to save the lord's son. "Nightlife" and "Wallpaper World" both treat of dreams made real. In the first, Jane falls in love with a dream named Jack, only to discover that he is a real man trapped in a coma; in the other, Edward's dreams of a woman he knows only from his bus ride to work turn out to have analogues in the waking world. The collection closer, "Sleeping Beauty," is a lovely, tragic take on the classic story. Fragile creations though they seem, Eisenstein's stories for the most part succeed admirably in opening windows on the unknown. Regina Schroeder
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

"From a darkly humorous tale of the power of words (Death and the Librarian) to a never-before-published response to events of September 11 (Ilion), Friesner's 12 stories illustrate the author's acutely sensitive vision of wonder in the everyday world... Known primarily for his 'Star Wars' novels... Zahn's short stories also deliver strong plots and memorable characters... Zebrowski's many novels (e.g. Macrolife) mark him as a visionary as well as a master of hard sf. The ten short stories collected in In the Distance provide a benchmark of his creativity... the author expands his concept of the human condition to embrace the stars. Part of Five Star's continuing commitment to showcasing the short fiction of the genre's most prominent author's, these three volumes belong in most libraries where short sf is popular."
-- Library Journal (December 2002) (Library Journal 20020615)

"...Part of Five Star's continuing commitment to showcasing the short fiction of the genre's most prominent authors, these three volumes (Death and the Librarian and Other Stories/ Star Song and Other Stories/ In the Distance, and Ahead in Time) belong in most libraries where short sf is popular."
-- Library Journal (December 2002) (Library Journal )

"Four more titles in Five Star's new series (God Is an Iron and Other Stories/ Generation Gap and Other Stories/ The Lady Vanishes and Other Oddities of Nature/ Suppose They Gave a Peace and Other Stories) of short fiction by noteworthy sf authors offer a variety of tales that illustrate the depth and staying power of the genre...Most of the stories in these volumes have only appeared in periodicals. Libraries wishing to augment their sf or short fiction collections should consider any of them."
-- Library Journal (June 2002) (Library Journal )

Product Details

• Hardcover: 289 pages
• Publisher: Five Star; 1 edition (March 2, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786249587
• ISBN-13: 978-0786249589
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,593,187 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars twilight Zone twist to this collection, May 17, 2003

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Five Star Science Fiction/Fantasy - Night Lives: Nine Stories of the Dark Fantastic (Hardcover)

Seven of the nine stories that make up this speculative fiction anthology were written between the mid-seventies and early eighties, insuring difficulty in finding them. The other two were furnished within the last six years. Each tale is dark as Phyllis Eisenstein shines a light on the innermost secret dreams of her varying protagonists. As the author explains in her introduction her contributions can be classified as fantasy or science fiction as she seems to have a leg in both genres. All the tales are top notch and fans of short fiction in a twilight Zone twist kind of way in which nothing is as it first seems will want to read NIGHT LIVES.

Harriet Klausner