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
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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 )
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