The Mystery of Grace [Paperback]

Charles De Lint (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: TOR; First Edition edition (2009)
• ASIN: B002GBGY42
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)

More About the Author

Charles de Lint and his wife, the artist MaryAnn Harris, live in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. His evocative novels, including Moonheart, Forests of the Heart, and The Onion Girl, have earned him a devoted following and critical acclaim as a master of contemporary magical fiction

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not his strongest, but a good read anyway., March 26, 2009

By 

Sammey's Mom "Suzanne" (Colorado Springs) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Mystery of Grace (Hardcover)

De Lint writes some of the finest urban fantasy around -- character driven, mystical, and with a deep faith in humanity's goodness. This foray into the Southwest lacks the depth of his Newford stories. Grace, his main character, has interesting quirks, but never attains the depth of some of his earlier heroines. Having found three unusual characteristics -- tattoos, hot rods and rockabilly -- De Lint seems to never quite get beyond them and, in fact, repeats these characteristics over and over again. The mystical qualities of life after death and the essences of faith, family and friendship are, as usual, fascinating and the ending remains a mystery (as it should). All the wonderful ambiguities of our humanity are here, but Grace lacks the strength to carry them on her own.
I recommend it to his fans, but it's not the best first novel for a newcomer to DeLint's work.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sweet and hopeful story, March 28, 2009

By 

dSavannah George-Jones (rural Arkansas) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Mystery of Grace (Hardcover)

Charles de Lint is one of my favorite authors. I have been anxiously anticipating this newest novel, and I was not disappointed. I enjoyed that CdL explored a different world than he usually does, but he stayed true to the urban fantasy genre. He also wrote about many of the themes he has tackled in the past - mystery, spirit, grace, hope, and one of the big questions - what happens when we die?

I somewhat agree with the other reviewer who said that Grace is somewhat one (three) -dimensional. You feel for her situation, and you feel for John, but you don't LOVE either of them, like you do with Jilly or some of CdL's other characters.

I gave "Grace" four stars instead of five because it's not as powerful as some of his other work, but it's a great book.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ~ another must read ~, April 12, 2009

By 

Kathleen Wagner (SWPA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Mystery of Grace (Hardcover)

There is a blurb on this book by Alice Hoffman. She said "Nobody does it better".
I don't usually put much stock in these author blurbs, but I have to say that I agree with this one.
I don't remember how I found Charles De Lint, but I am grateful that I did, because as Ms Hoffman says, nobody does it better.

This is the story of Grace. It is a story of live and love and faith, or the loss of it.
It is a story of friendship and commitment and death. Most of all, it is a story that reminds us, as do all of De Lint's books of the magic within us all.

Grace with her tattoos and her grease and her family, the good and the bad,, is each one of us. Grace is more aptly named than you might think at first look. Grace learns to open her heart wider than she ever believed that she could, and see truth.

This is yet another must read in a long line of must reads by this magical author.