Customer Reviews

Sword and Sorceress XV

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Reading this book, I found it difficult to put down. I really enjoy a good short story, and I rarely find a book in which I like ALL the short stories. An Excellent read!

The Sword And Sorceress series is a series of collections of short stories, of traditional "sword and sorcery" style, but with women as main protagonists. Marion Zimmer Bradley always explains in her introductions that she began the series because in traditional sword and sorcery, what female characters are to be found are invariably "bad conduct prizes" for the (male) main characters.

It's a fine series, and this volume may just be the best; there was not a bad story in the lot, although I wasn't really taken with "Shimmering Scythe", by Vera Nazarian, and had serious doubts about the ending of "A Matter Of Names", by Cynthia Ward. But I WAS very taken by "Oaths", by Lynn Morgan Rosser, perhaps the best of a very good lot, and there were also a number of stories that continued the exploits of characters found in previous volumes, all of which were a pleasure, a renewal of old friendships: "The Sick Rose", by Dorothy Heydt, continues the adventures of Cynthia, the witch of Syracuse; "Skin Deep" by Heather Rose Jones, continues the stories of Laaki, Asholi, and Eysla the skin-changers; "Spring Snow", by Diana Paxson, the adventures of Bera, apprentice Norse wisewoman; and "The Dragon's Horde", by Elisabeth Waters and Raul S. Reyes, the adventures of Princess Rowena and the dragon. If you've enjoyed any of the other collections in this series, you are more than very likely to enjoy this one; if you're not familiar with the series, this is as good an introduction as any.

This is a great compilation of stories. Period. It's nice to see good writing with main characters as women, but it is the overall quality of the writing that has drawn me back to series, not the theme of it.

I bought this book for the story "Cecropia". Loved this story. Lots of other good stories too.

Wow! I luved #15! I love Sword and Sorceress, and this was no dissapointment! All the stories were great! Read this book!