Masters of Fantasy (Baen Science Fiction) [Mass Market Paperback]

Bill Fawcett (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 6, 2005 | Series: Baen Science Fiction

"Masters of Fantasy" has a star-studded cast of popular fantasy writers, with brand new adventures set in their most popular series. David Weber, author of the New York Times best-selling "Honor Harrington" series, is equally a master of fantasy in his popular "Bahzell" series, including the best selling "Wind Rider's Oath". Mercedes Lackey is among the most popular of today's fantasy writers and her "Valdemar" novels are best sellers. Mickey Zucker Reichert is author of the best-selling "Bifrost Guardians" and "Books of Barakhai" series. David Drake is known for his best-selling "Hammer's Slammers" series and the equally popular "Lord of the Isles" fantasy series (Tor). Andre Norton's Witch World novels have enthralled readers for four decades. Elizabeth Moon's "Paksenarrion" series are among Baen's top-selling titles. Alan Dean Foster is known for his top-selling space adventures, his movie novelisations, and his fantasy adventure novels. Also on board are Hugo and Nebula winner Michael Resnick, New York Times best-selling author Robert Asprin, and more. This feast of fantasy adventure will be a must-buy for all fantasy fans.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School–This volume presents new stories set in several series of proven and lasting popularity, by some of the best writers in the genre. They include Mercedes Lackey ("Valdemar"), Andre Norton ("Witchworld"), Robert Asprin and Jody Lynn Nye ("Myth Adventures"), Alan Dean Foster ("Spellsinger"), Christopher Stasheff ("Warlock"), and David Drake ("Isles"). Other selections by Mickey Zucker Reichert, Margaret Weis and Don Perrin, Janny Wurts, Elizabeth Moon, Mike Resnick, and David Weber round out this impressive collection. Most of the stories manage the tricky task of introducing a whole new universe with economy while telling a story that is amusing, compelling, interesting, spellbinding, or all of the above. Though anthologies can be difficult for libraries to merchandise, this one could be very useful. Novice fantasy readers who liked J. R. R. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" series or Marion Zimmer Bradley's TheMists of Avalon (Ballantine, 1984) often find the search for "more like this" both frustrating and disappointing; though there are many other series, packaged similarly, they vary widely in style and quality. In this collection, readers who are not familiar with particular series are given an excellent sample of each, to see whether it suits their interests and tastes, and of course experienced fans of the genre will welcome these new outings in familiar universes.–Christine C. Menefee, Fairfax County Public Library, VA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 576 pages
• Publisher: Baen (December 6, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416509275
• ISBN-13: 978-1416509271
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,880,259 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An Introduction to Famous Fantasy Worlds, March 1, 2010

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looksandwords (Saint Paul, MN) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Masters of Fantasy (Baen Science Fiction) (Mass Market Paperback)

"Masters of Fantasy" provides readers an introduction to many of the big name fantasy writers publishing now, as well as the popular series each author is known for. For someone who does not know Mercedes Lackey's "Valdemar", or Andre Norton's "Witchworld", or the many other worlds evoked here by writers like David Drake, Elizabeth Moon, and Margaret Weis, this volume gives a peek into such realms. The quality of writing varies in the course of the collection. In this way, the book may be of even greater use to fantasy writers new to the genre, especially by examining what works in each story and what doesn't. For the fledgling writer, it can also be instructive to see famous names like Mike Resnick completely drop the ball. If such a prolific author can write something so painfully awful, then maybe our own ideas might not be so bad after all.

Some stories here rise above the rest. Mercedes Lackey gives us one of the more unusual denizens to inhabit her well-known world, Andre Norton tells us an unusual tale of a mute witch, and Margaret Weis and Don Perrin weave a dashing magical story. Perhaps the most satisfying stories in this volume are the ones by Elizabeth Moon ("Gifts") and Janny Wurts ("Child of Prophecy"). The volume is a grab bag, but amongst the marbles and stones are a handful of gems.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A fine collection, April 12, 2011

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Moonsong "Livres de rève" (Luxembourg) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Masters of Fantasy (Hardcover)

I've been reading fantasy for many, many years so several of the authors were "old friends" and still some of the short stories here surprised me. Some gave new accounts on worlds I thought I knew. A few of the authors were new to me. Some I liked, some less... I was moved to order more books by at least two authors I discovered here :)
A good book to read, to (re)discover known or unknown authors.

1 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Journeymen of Fantasy, June 25, 2009

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Robert Shreve "bobsh2000" (Manila, Philippines) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Masters of Fantasy (Baen Science Fiction) (Mass Market Paperback)

This is the worst book of fantasy short stories I ever read. There are possibly 2 masters here, Norton and Wurts; Lackey is ok for young adults and Moon's story is good. The rest of these authors never got past journeyman status.