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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Every one of these stories is a winner, April 14, 2007
This review is from: Gods and Pawns (Company) (Hardcover)
I dare say that you found this collection of stories (mostly novellas and long short stories) because you -- like me -- discovered Kage Baker's marvelous universe of The Company, in which cyborgs serve a huge corporation of the future. If you haven't yet read the series, I strenuously recommend that you begin with In The Garden of Iden. You can probably follow each of the stories if you start with this collection (the author does a brief arm-wave in each one to tell you the basics), but your experience will be vastly enhanced if you read these in a larger context. (You don't have to read EVERY one of the full novels, but I think you need the character understanding from the first one or two.)
I tend to be uncomfortable reading most short story collections, because there are predictably a few really excellent tales, a couple that are pretty good, and the rest... ho-hum or worse. I'm happy to say that Gods & Pawns is a remarkable exception. Every one of these stories is excellent, shows an aspect of history (through the eyes of Dr Zeus Inc.), and lets us vicarously enjoy the experiences of characters we've grown to love (Mendoza, Lewis, and Joseph). They're funny, thoughtful, surprising... everything I want from short fiction.
If you like Kage Baker's "Company" universe, this is definitely worth your time and money. If you haven't yet discovered this marvelous author, then you should read her stuff... but please don't cheat yourself. Read In the Garden of Iden first, so you can appreciate the depth she brings to even a short story.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Being an immortal cyborg is not a fulltime party, May 14, 2007
This review is from: Gods and Pawns (Company) (Hardcover)
The beauty of the universe created by Baker is that the characters may appear in any place and any time (after their own birth). In these seven stories we see Literary Preservationist Lewis, Botanist Mendoza, Facilitator Joseph and others in a range of times and locales. A recurring theme is that they carry out the will of the Company without always knowing the reasons for the assignments and often with any particular joy. Such is the life of these immortal cyborgs, serving the entity that created them.
Personally, I think the short form is Kage's strongest area and this is some of her best.
To The Land Beyond The Sunset.
Mendoza and Lewis in the New World of the seventeenth century
The Catch
Concerning the Company's early and imperfect efforts to create an immortal
The Angel In The Darkness
Set in 1990s Los Angeles - a cyborg watches over family members
Standing In His Light
The life of the painter Vermeer - and the desires of a cyborg for something different
A Night On The Barbary Coast
Set in early San Francisco Joseph and Mendoza on an errand for the company
Welcome To Olympus, Mr. Hearst
Set in 1933 at Hearst Castle. Joseph and Lewis on an errand for the company
Hellfire At Twilight
Lewis on an errand for the company
Does it sound like the cyborgs spend a lot of time running errands for the Company? You are correct.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great stuff, though you need some background, August 17, 2007
This review is from: Gods and Pawns (Company) (Hardcover)
The most recent couple of novels in the "Company" universe have been a little bit disappointing to me - in fact, in my review of one of them, I stated that it would have been a better book had it been short stories. Well, in this book, Baker proves she is still really good at the stories! I was much happier with these than I had been with the "Machine" books.
The stories in this one mostly involve Lewis. There are references in the stories to things that have happened in the earlier novels; the stories are best enjoyed if you've already read "In the Garden of Iden" although you don't have to have read the rest of the novels - that one will provide enough background. That's not to say you shouldn't read the rest of the earlier novels - all four of the first four Company novels are great!
The first story, "To the Land Beyond the Sunset," contains allusions to a particular disaster that happened to Lewis in another book. The indigenes in this story are very funny. (The dust jacket illustration is probably supposed to refer to this story, but it's not accurate.)
The third story, "Angel in the Darkness," is the one that will provide you with some background about how the Company universe works and who are these cyborgs, anyway?, if you haven't read the novels.
The last story, "Hellfire at Twilight," may particularly appeal to readers of Georgian and Regency romances, who will be familiar with the idea of Hellfire clubs.
Several of the stories have already appeared in magazines, particularly Asimov's, but I didn't mind; I enjoyed re-reading them.
All in all, her best in a while!
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