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Kyreol and Terje grew up as children together in the Riverworld, but left it many years ago and now live in the Dome City, where Kyreol has trained as a pilot and to travel to other planets and study other peoples. Terje still visits the Riverworld to observe the hunters and their rituals while staying unobserved himself. Terje is beginning another visit to the Riverworld just as Kyreol is about to leave for her first off-world trip, to the planet Xtal. Kyreol's mother, Nara, has some presentiment or dream of danger but doesn't know what exactly will happen or what to do about it; and both trips end up being quite different than anyone expected.

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Every night in the small harbor town of Sealey Head, just as the sun goes down, an invisible bell tolls. It's happened every day for as long as any of the inhabitants can remember, and most of the inhabitants don't even notice it anymore. But a few of the younger people are fascinated, or perhaps even obsessed with it-- Judd Cauley, the innkeeper's son; the merchant's daughter, Gwyneth Blair, who sits at her little desk in the attic and writes story after story trying to make sense of the bell; and even a visiting scholar from the city, Mr. Ridley Dow. Emma, who works as a scullery maid at Aislinn House, also knows there is something magical about the place-- ever since she was a child, sometimes the doors in the house open onto a castle in some other place, where she sees a girl near her own age, a princess named Ysabo.

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Wonderful book! Glad that I have this in a one book set, because I'm not sure I'd do well waiting to find the next book. :) Mckillip always writes well. And in a way that there are a number of layers to her writing and stories and characters. This book is no exception, although it is one of her earlier works. Morgon of Hed is sent on an adventure that covers the entire length and breadth of known lands .. and beyond. His circle of acquaintances grows, as does those who he trusts and those who trust him. Hed is a quiet, peaceful island where most of the people are farmers who live simply. But his journey takes him far from all of those things. A journey filled with land-rule .. the High One .. his harper .. music .. riddles .. learning .. endurance.

This time around, I really enjoyed the land-rule. Morgan is a land-ruler, and when he is tormented by Ghisteslwchlohm he loses that land-rule. Like losing a layer of himself. But .. over time .. he learns that he knows how land-rule works. And eventually, this means that he forms a set of connections similar to land-rule without taking it from the rulers already in place. Of course, they feel what he is doing, and allow him to do so .. but he learns the intricate details of every place across the land. Each kingdom has specific characteristics. Hed, where he is from, is sown with a deep peace and quietness that is reflected in the people and their ruler. Herun, a land full of dangerous marshes, has a ruler who is highly perceptive and can see into people and beyond mountains. She is quiet but with a deep awareness of everything around her. An is a land with a history full of fighting, so the land-ruler is powerful and must keep all of the old spirits in check. The land is hard and somewhat ferocious, ready to fight for what matters. Osterland is in the north, a land of gentle snow beasts and harsh conditions, so the people and the ruler know how to endure and are full of strength. Isig is a mountain, and the ruler is steadfast and secure. How beautiful .. that each of these lands brings something specific and unique and beautiful to their people. So it is with humans .. each person is meant to be themselves, and in so doing, can reflect an amazingly beautiful diversity.

Title:	The Riddle-Master Trilogy
Author:	Patricia A. McKillip
Date published:	1976/1999 (in one book)
Genre:	Fantasy
Series:	Riddle-Master
Number of pages:	571
Notes:	Repeat reading. Gift from Larq

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The first time I read this book I had an insight into what makes McKillip's writing so powerful for me. I've been wanting to reread it for a while, and then after Ash Wednesday was reminded of it again because of the image and the insight that stuck with me. The book starts with a young child surviving a fire that destroys his family and entire house by hiding in a marble fireplace. McKillip describes this child who has turned to ash in the fireplace and then is shaped and sculpted back into human form when he is discovered by an uncle, and because her books take place where real magic happens, it takes a long time before you know whether the child was literally turned to ash by the flames, or if it is more figurative description of the trauma experienced by a child who watched his family burn. This is masterful, and it works perfectly because the child himself doesn't remember who he is and runs from the flames in his memory for a long time, even refusing to play the harp because it burns in his hands, until he is eventually he faces his memories and returns to face the man who destroyed his family, the Basilisk of the title. Like some other McKillip books stories, this story is full of the power of music, both beautiful and deadly.

The orphaned child is taken to the school of the bards, far north of the city and the provinces on a rocky island near the hinterlands, where there is wild magic and strange musical instruments, and where the first Bard learned his power. As a child he is called Rook for his dark eyes, and then later he goes by the name his uncle gave him-- Caladrius, for a bird whose song portends death. Rook's family was destroyed in a war between the four great houses of the city of Berylon. Each family has a totem figure; the ruthless man who crushed the other houses and seized power is Arioso Pellior, known as the Basilisk both for the symbol of his house but also for his strange and deadly powers.

Caladrius eventually goes to the Hinterlands to discover the flames in his memory he has feared and avoided since childhood, and once he comes to grips with his past he decides to return to Berylon for his revenge. Much of the story ties in with music-- there is a music school, with collected instruments from the north, including some with strange and dangerous powers. There are some beautiful, amazing moments... Caladrius and his son Hollis both playing on the deadly fire-bone pipe to try to kill the Basilisk (and they succeed in summoning some kind of deadly white basilisk that makes Pellior very ill), but as a blind and insightful old woman observes, they fail because they were each playing out of love for the other-- not for revenge but each to protect the other. Then, once Caladrius is revealed as the heir to Tormalyne house and they are being hunted through the city, he plays another set of pipes to travel somewhere safe-- they are transformed and travel as sound itself to the Hinterlands and back, although my prosaic description doesn't do justice to McKillip's beautiful evocation of this.

Also fascinating is Luna Pellior, daughter of the Basilisk-- not his firstborn, but heir in power and magic. She is enigmatic and dangerous, with green eyes that might be those of a mesmerizing serpent. Until the end of the story reveals her motivation and depth, I understood her very little; she orchestrates things perfectly for an appropriate justice-- the raven blinds the aging basilisk in some mysterious way that even the main participants don't fully understand-- and finally brings peace and harmony back to the city of Berylon.

This book is worth reading again.

Title:	Song for the Basilisk
Author:	Patricia McKillip
Date published:	1998
Genre:	Fantasy
Number of pages:	306
Notes:	second reading

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A very enjoyable book, about a woman who loves the forest and nature and freedom. One day, a man walks into being in her forest .. and she sees him change from sunshine into human. A man who wants to become human, but cannot quite do it. He is stuck in another world .. without freedom. His grandfather cursed his father, and the village wonders where this new man fits into the curse and the story. Roise, the woman who loves freedom, sees more than most, and so has the ability to know Corbet is more than he appears and also to fight with him for his freedom.

Two characters are known to chase after what they cannot have. Perhaps not to chase physically, but to so long for it that they begin to waste away, to care about nothing else, to cease living fully in this world. How hard for those around them to watch .. and to see them choosing poorly. They both care about a man and he goes away, and part of them is carried with them. These men go to another world .. a parallel world, perhaps, and the women cannot follow them. But they try. One is described as slowly taking up less and less space, belonging less and less to this world -- eating less, breathing less, feeling less, giving up self. Makes me wonder how we do this in less visible ways - seeking things we cannot have, searching so strongly for things that are gone that we begin to lose what is right next to us, becoming preoccupied with the past or future so the present loses its power. How easily we humans can be distracted from this business of living, choosing instead those things which lead to death and lifelessness.

The lives of Roise and Corbet become slowly intertwined, and in that other world the possibility of them becoming inseperably intertwined is very real. Roise loves nature and the woods, and is always bringing home beautiful flowers and tasty mushrooms and healing herbs. Corbet is stuck in the woods (in a sense), and she goes into them to bring him out. In one of the last scenes, the Woman of Winter (who has control over this other world) promises Roise that she and Corbet (who she loves) will be together forever, the ivy and roses growing together so one cannot live without the other. This woman has turned Corbet into ivy a number of times before, so it stands for and is part of him. Roise is given the opportunity to be married to him and to have children with him .. but in this other place, with no option for freedom. She will not accept it and fights for their lives. But the image of ivy and roses growing together is beautiful, crosses the lines between worlds, and full of meaning.

Title:	Winter Rose
Author:	Patricia McKillip
Date published:	1996
Genre:	Fantasy
Number of pages:	262
Notes:	Repeat reading (and more to come!)

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As usual, McKillip crafts her tale with a variety of characters. The Kingdom has a magic school where anyone with strong power is taught. All other magic is illegal, so that the king can have all the power. But what about magic that is not controllable and does not fit into the mold? Then, there are some wonderful questions and intriguing dilemmas.

Brendan Vetch is called by Od to be a gardener at the school .. Od, whose magic includes knowing and caring for animal .. and begins to discover that he has much more power than he thought. Yar, a magician who has been teaching at the school for a long time begins to question the assumptions about 'acceptable magic' that have become foundational. Sulys, the princess, struggles with the expectations of her father and betrothed and what place she and her talents are to have in their relationships. Valoren, the King's head magician & advisor, comes into contact with magic that does not make any sense and is reminded about the beauty of not knowing everything. Tyramin and his daughter Mistral come to town with an illusion show, but the King wonders whether it is illusion or magic, and their freedom to stay in the city is questioned. There are more characters, but all these stories interweave to form a book that will be read again... soon!

Title:	Od Magic
Author:	Patricia McKillip
Date published:	2006
Genre:	Fantasy
Number of pages:	315
Notes:	Gift from Lark

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What a delight -- a McKillip book during vacation. A variety of characters have lives that intertwine more than they realize. The safety of their kingdom is held in the hands of those who are unlikely, but also both powerful and gentle. A young princess has recently become queen. An orphaned translator intercepts a book with an alphabet only she can read. Two friends grow up together and discover a way to do all they dream, which is impossible. 3 separate tales (and their own larger stories) are drawn to one ending, where each has a vital role to play, and seeming weaknesses are suddenly strengths and characteristics to depend on.

The Queen of Raine is young and is not her father. Her advisor is an old witch (in a good sense -- not a hag!), who is frustrated at all the work she must do. Through a series of events, it is discovered that the Queen of Raine does not her father's skills -- but she does have magic powers and unexpected wisdom. This Queen has the unlikely ability to hide -- to go into the magic forest and to be told secrets and kept safe and quiet. She can also be invisible so that others go on with their business and let her in on truth. This comes in very useful -- the innumerable army is coming to conquer her land, and she gets all the other magicians to help her hide her kingdom and people. It works .. and the land they come to is desolate, decaying, empty. at least that's how it appears ...

The powerful mage who has supplied the means to this king and his army to conquer untold lands is slowly revealed through the story she writes of herself to her daughter. She hid herself in a disguise so she could be near the man she loved -- the king. To keep it secret, since his marriage day, nobody but him has truly seen her or heard her voice. She is feared and honored, but not known or loved by any but him. When he discovers how powerful she is, he asks what she wants from him. One thing only does she ask of him -- a child. Nepenthe is that child. At the end, the mage is asked to choose between her lover and her daughter -- to choose between power and being seen. How often we seek to hide, to be something we are not -- even for good reasons. But what great freedom is offered to us when we choose to step out of hiding and be as much ourselves as is possible. What great freedom comes in truth.

Title:	Alphabet of Thorn
Author:	Patricia McKillip
Date published:	2004
Genre:	Fantasy
Number of pages:	304
Notes:	Borrowed from lark

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This is a mysterious, moving, and haunting work, and the first science fiction by Patricia McKillip that I've read (she's only written a couple, as far as I know). As in other McKillip works, there is a beauty and a power to her language, although here her tone and imagery seems perfectly suited to the futuristic setting. The story begins and ends with the likely-insane prisoner Terra Viridian, who has been sent to the space prison orbiting Earth, known as Underworld. All the other characters and threads of the story eventually get connected to Viridian and the unearthly vision that made her kill over a thousand people and made her crazy.

McKillip's futuristic is different and believable; it makes sense without an overwhelming amount of detail. For instance, the Suncoast Sector is immediately recognizable. Music also plays a large role in the story, and the futuristic musical instruments are referred to just enough to give hints of what they might be (for instance the "cubes," which are some kind of strange percussion instrument akin to drums). The music is also still connected to the past by way of the ancient instruments pianos and guitars that bar owner and music afficionado Sidney Halleck collects and the ancient music, such as Bach, that the Magician plays.

The book is full of interesting, fascinating characters, all with their own stories and problems. A psychologist comes to Underworld to run an experiment on Terra Viridian; they hook up a computer to her brain and train it on her thoughts so that they can see the images she sees, but even then they can't make any sense of it. The Magician's band gets invited to give a performance for the prisoners at Underworld, and unbeknownst to them they bring along Terra's twin sister (who has been in hiding for years), and the guard Aaron whose wife was murdered by Terra and has been trying to track her sister down for years.

The fool's run of the title is a poker hand: "Ten, Jack, Queen, King, Ace of Hearts, and the two wild cards, the jokers, the jesters", but it's also the foolish race through space that the Magician makes from Underworld in his ship, the Flying Wail-- he knows he won't be able to get away, and has no weapons to protect himself, but it gives him and Terra Viridian enough time to communicate some part of the vision that made Terra crazy.

There are hints early on that the Magician is psychic-- he knows things about peole he shouldn't, and claims that he heard it in the intonation of their voices. When he meets Terra at Underworld (almost by chance), he sees her vision-- and during the fool's run of a chase, he is able to share enough of it to Aaron and the head of Underworld. Terra is a psychic who has somehow been caught up in the compelling, beautiful, foreign vision of some immense alien creature far away as it goes through its harsh life cycle, and this was what caused her apparent insanity and why she killed all those people. It's a beautiful, strange vision, and even the other people who only experience it second-hand are clearly haunted by it.

Very poetic; even the prison, Underworld, and the Magician's flight from it, becomes a version of the Orpheus myth. Beautiful descriptions of music, as in many of McKillip's fantasy works. Sidney Halleck, the lover of antique music, says:

I don't believe anything is ever really lost. Not a note of it. I think we dwell among the echoes of all the music ever played just as surely as we dwell among our ghosts. No instrument is ever obsolute; someone is always born to play it. You play music hundreds of years older than you are; it lingered for that long in the air, beyond all the noises of the world, until you heard a fragment of it, between noise and noise, an intimation of its existence. Then came the quest for it. The hunger.

Title:	Fool's Run
Author:	Patricia McKillip
Date published:	1987
Genre:	Science Fiction
Number of pages:	221

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I've read most of McKillip's more recent books (pretty much everything I could get my hands on), so I've started to look for some of her older works. This one is only McKillip's second published book, and it's a little strange in some ways-- but it also has the fairy tale feel that so many of her books do. The story centers on the Cnite Caerles, who loves the King's Damsen (his daughter) and asks for her hand in marriage. But the King is pining away for the great Throme of the Erril of Sherill and demands that Caerles quest to find the Throme before he can marry Damsen. However, this is an impossible task (as everyone else tells Caerles), because the Throme doesn't exist. However, Caerles loves Damsen and sets out to find the Throme-- even if it doesn't exist, he intends to find it-- and this leads him on an interesting journey.

Caerles meets all manner of interesting people and creatures on his quest, and gradually trades or gives away (all for honorable reasons) all the trappings of a Cnite (his horse, shield, sword, and even his boots) so that by the end of his journey, he no longer even looks like one. Everyone he meets tells him that the Throme does not exist-- but each sends him to a completely different place to look, such as the Floral Wold at the end of the world, or the Dolorous House of the Doleman. Finally, he meets a country woman who gives him some sensible advice-- he must write the Throme himself. He is able to do this, but only because of the experience of the Quest. In fact, his throme is so wonderful that the King is convinced that Caerles succeeded-- but Caerles is unwilling to win his Damsen by a lie, and tells the truth. The King demands that Damsen refuse to marry him, but after seeing what he has gone through for her and laughing at him, barefoot in his leaf cloak with a starry staff and riding a fire-breathing hound, she finally stands up to her father and chooses to live with her love.

The names and language in this book are a little strange, which suits the kind of story McKillip tells, although sometimes it is more jarring than magical. Caerles come across a "dagon," a huge hound with violet eyes and fiery breath that is large enough to ride like a horse, and falls into a Borebel pit, and falls asleep in a norange grove. Even the names of the people that Caerles meets, such as the Earl Merle, seem more like they belong in a Dr. Seuss book than in a McKillip fairy tale.

An enjoyable little tale, and a quick read, with entertaining, musical language. Also shows some hints of the magic and depth of McKillip's later works (Caerles reminds me in some ways of Cyan Dag in The Tower at Stony Wood; even his emblem of three moons bears a similarity).

Title:	The Throme of the Erril of Sherrill
Author:	Patricia McKillip
Date published:	1973
Genre:	Children's Fantasy
Number of pages:	69

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This book is a departure from most of McKillip's novels in a couple of ways: it is set in the present-day, and is a kind of sequel to the haunting Winter Rose, although it happens several generations later. Sylvia Lynn is summoned home by her grandmother for her grandfather's funeral. She has purposely avoided home and lived in the city to avoid her home and the peculiar power of the forest near Lynn Hall because of her own connection to the Otherness of the wood.

Lynn Hall and its wood are a place of passageways, full of points of connection with the Otherworld of the wood-folk, the fairies. Sylvia knows that she herself is half fay (her mother never married and never said who the father was), but has never admitted it-- particularly to her grandmother. After the funeral, Sylvia learns that her Gram Iris leads the Fiber Guild - a group of women who get together to sew, but also to close and protect the passageways between worlds, binding things with their sewing needles and crochet hooks. (The Fiber Guild reminded me of McKillip's short story, "The Witches of Junket," which features another forceful grandmother and a group of unlikely modern witches who defeat an ancient evil with a fishing rod and crochet hooks.)

Some of Iris' bindings have come apart-- enough to open up a few passageways and allow for some connection with the world of the fairies (even though the two worlds are already more connected than she realizes, as with Sylvia). Events and people start to tangle and unravel-- Sylvia and her younger cousin Tyler both cross over into the other world (one by force, the other by choice), and eventually Iris and Sylvia come face to face with the Queen of the Wood, who asks the chance to "give them a different tale"-- to change the story they have been told about the wood folk. Iris and her forbears had been taught that the fairies were heartless, evil creatures who were dangerous and incapable of love, and must discover that, like humans, not all fairies are heartless and cruel. At the end, Iris comes to the wonderful recognition that her husband Liam loved the wood because he was not afraid of it-- while, because she was so busy trying to protecting them from it and keep it contained, she could never enjoy its splendor and beauty.

The book is told from many different perspectives, always in first person, shifting from chapter to chapter. This is an interesting device; sometimes I felt like the different characters' voices weren't distinct enough (they all have that overtone of McKillip's beautiful, lyrical language), and sometimes it felt a bit jarring when I had to wait for one part of the story to go follow a different character. But this also allows for some wonderful moments; one chapter is told from the perspective of a changeling pretending to be human, and his thoughts as he learns and experiences human language are delightful. At another point, when Tyler has been taken to the Otherworld he is caught up in memories of his dead father and thinks of his new step-father as a changeling (this image rang so true-- it was perfect within the context of the character and the whole world of the book).

Title:	Solstice Wood
Author:	Patricia A. McKillip
Date published:	2006
Genre:	Fantasy
Number of pages:	278

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Another enchanting story about a young girl discovering herself-- it actually surprised me how like Howl's Moving Castle this book was (something I might not have noticed if I hadn't read them in sequence). Periwinkle (Peri, for short) is young girl who lives in an island village, and she hates the sea because it has taken both her parents from her-- her father was a fisherman who died at sea, and ever since then her mother has been absent and untalkative, a stranger. In her anger, Peri decides to hex the sea-- and strange & amazing things begin to happen in her small village. Like Sophie in Howl's Moving Castle, as Peri grows up and learns more about the world, she also discovers the magic that is within her.

As she lingers by the sea, Peri meets the King's son Kir, who comes with his father to the seaside for the summer-- but Kir longs for the land under the ocean. Peri's hexes, all unknown to her, loosen some of the underwater magic. A huge, friendly sea dragon with a gold chain appears in the waters near the village, and a magician named Lyo comes (ostensibly to get the gold chain for the villagers). Lyo and Peri discover together that the king had two sons, one on land and another on water-- and the one he knows is the "changeling" longing for the underwater world he belongs to.

A sweet, delightful book. The magician Lyo in particularly seems an amusing and whimsical character, but he also has surprising depths. As always, McKillip's prose is magical-- gorgeous without being too much. Here's Lyo's description of learning magic:

Slowly you learn to turn the dark into shapes, colors.... It's like a second dawn breaking over the world. You see something most people can't see and yet it seems clear as the nose on your face. That there's nothing in the world that doesn't possess its share of magic. Even an empty shell, a lump of lead, an old dead leaf-- you look at them and learn to see, and then to use, and after a while youc an't remember ever seeing the world any other way. Everything connects to something else.

Later on, Lyo explains how he intuited the true story of the King's two sons.

Odd things draw my attention. Happiness, sorrow, they weave through the world like strangely colored threads that can be found in unexpected places. Even when they are hidden away, most secret, they leave signs, messages, because if something is not said in words, it will be said in another way.

Title:	The Changeling Sea
Author:	Patricia McKillip
Date published:	1988
Genre:	Young Adult Fantasy
Number of pages:	137
Notes:	Second reading

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Savored every word. Will read this book again, without a doubt. So much truth hidden in its pages and spoken clearly. McKillip almost makes this implausible place seem possible, in such a way that one almost wishes to make a visit -- and then one stops reading and sadly remembers it is not a place one can visit. But one can continue reading about Morgan of Hed, who has more than one true name. And the woman he loves, Raederle of An, the second most beautiful woman in the world. And Deth the High One's Harpist -- who also has more than one true name. And their struggle to solve riddle upon riddle and fight for the people and places and things they love.

Land-rule is how the Kings and Queens have power. It is given to them, and each has one land-heir who will inherit their power and ties to the land once they die. The rulers are Danan of Isig, who can become a tree and see in the darkness; Har of Osterland, who can become almost any animal and sees the truth easily; the Morgul of Herun, who can see through almost anything; Heureu of Ymris, who was married to a shape-changer and whose one-eyed brother and land-heir, Astrin, sees more clearly than most two-eyed men; Mathom, King of the Three Portions (An, Aum, and Hel), who can become a crow and who has visions about the troubling future; and Morgan of Hed, who simply wants to live at peace on his small island, but is taken from it to answer too many riddles and become something he hardly recognizes. So -- the idea of land-rule is intriguing. Each ruler is part of their land -- knowing each rock, tree, animal, human, and being bound to them. When something steps onto their land which is not their own, they know instinctively. These rulers did not ask for power, but it was given to them and they have opportunities to use it well or poorly. Along with this comes an instinctive trust of the High One, whom none of them has seen or heard from (except through His Harpist), for too long to remember. But they trust Him even though they cannot see Him, and will obey His will without question when it is shared with Him. (Like Christians are called to instinctively trust our High One and believe Him whenever we hear from Him, His Word, or His people. And it is written on our hearts!)

(Careful -- contains spoilers!!) Names are often important in fantasy books, and this one is not unusual in that. But -- there are a number of people who have three names (Morgan, Deth, and Master Ohm). And three is always significant to a Christian -- especially because these three men could be compared to Jesus, God the Father, and the AntiChrist. They all have great power, and Morgan (the Christ-like figure) goes from simply knowing the land-rule of Hed and loving riddles, to being the most powerful person in the land. Everyone is drawn to Morgan and Deth, without reason - but simply because that trust is born in them. And it has been earned as well, which gives the land-rulers reason to obey this blind trust they have. As one would expect in a riddle-book, names are important, and some people must discover over and over again what their own name is -- and what the names of others are.

Title:	Riddle-Master collects The Riddle-Master of Hed (1976), Heir of Sea and Fire (1977) and Harpist in the Wind (1979)
Author:	Patricia McKillip
Date published:	1999
Genre:	Fantasy
Series:	Riddle Master Trilogy
Number of pages:	571
Notes:	repeat reading -- in about 4 days

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Another magical book from McKillip-- this time, a collection of her short stories. I was pretty excited to see a new book from McKillip when I first discovered this book; I have to admit, I was a little disappointed when I finally got a copy from the library and found out it was a collection of short stories. I think sometimes I don't enjoy short stories as well because there is no continuing engagement with the book: each section you have to start over again with new characters and places, and often in a book like this I enjoy some stories more than others, and usually find a few to dislike. That was not the case here-- they are self-contained, but still delightful.

There are many wonderful stories here, so I'll try to limit myself to a few of my favorites.

In the title story, "The Harrowing of the Dragon of Hoarsbreath," two young people meet up with the ice dragon who keeps the cold of a unique arctic-like mining community-- and in the process of "harrowing" the dragon, or driving it away from the people, end up changing their home forever.

"A Matter of Music" is a wonderful story that, like McKillip's Song for the Basilisk, draws on the power of music-- in this case, a young female bard's music has the strength to reunite a prince with his estranged wife and to begin the difficult task of restoring a relationship between two warring peoples.

In "The Fellowship of the Dragon" several women go on a quest at the behest of their Queen & friend-- they cross over into the kind of place "where anything can happen," and one by one they are separated. When the last one (the narrator) finally comes to the Queen's bard she was sent to rescue, she discovers she gets along with the dragon better, so the two of them go off to try to find and recover her friends.

"Lady of the Skulls" is strange and almost fable-like; a kind of morality tale about relationships and true value. Several men come to a tower in the middle of the desert filled with untold wealth and tended by one woman. If they can correctly choose the one thing that is most valuable in the tower, then all of it will be theirs; but if not, they must die (and many have tried and failed, hence the skulls). Only one young man among the group has the keen insight to discern the true value the tower holds.

"The Lion and the Lark" is a wonderful fairy tale that starts out like Beauty & the Beast, but goes much further. "Ash, Wood, Fire" tells of young girl who works as a fire tender in a medieval kitchen. In "Transmutations," a young woman works for a philosopher in order to transform her poetry into something golden-- but when she sees the perfection and stillness to which transmutation aspires, she decides she prefers the noisy, imperfect, everyday world. "Star-Crossed" is a wonderful story about "what came after" Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet (the story is so familiar, and we're so used to watching it all unfold that we forget-- all those who knew the true story died), as a city watchman struggles to uncover the reasons for the many bloody bodies in Juliet's tomb. Similarly, "Toad" takes on the fairy tale of the Princess & the toad, told from the toad's perspective-- but the story hints at something else: how fairy tales and stories can change your life, fascinate you and make you grow up suddenly when you weren't expecting it.

There are many more-- a few in more contemporary settings, most in the fantastic worlds like most of McKillip's books. Overall, these stories are well worth anyone's time.

Title:	Harrowing the Dragon
Author:	Patricia McKillip
Date published:	2005
Genre:	Fantasy, Short Stories
Number of pages:	310

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Enjoyed this book, as I have enjoyed the other few things I've read by McKillip. A story of individuals who together create a force strong enough to radically change the world. Not that they aim for that, but it begins to happen when their lives intermingle. Domina Pearl, who wants to rule the land of Ombria and suck the life out of it (as she has done to herself) begins the book by gaining power to rule, and wants more. Few are willing to stand up to her or to ask her questions, but those few who do make all the difference.

The characters almost fit into categories for a fairy tale. The Evil Stepmother -- Domina Pearl, who has been alive longer than anyone can remember and whose magic skills are almost first among the land. The Knowledge-Seeker -- Camas Erl, who loves knowledge almost more than life itself. The Grieving Prince -- Ducon, who does not fit anywhere well, but because of that can draw together the unexpected. The Young Prince -- Kyel, who wants to be loved but those he trusts are taken from him. The Beautiful Young Woman -- Lydea, mistress to the dead ruler, who now fits neither in the court or in her father's tavern, also drawing together the unexpected. The Sorceress -- Faey, who lives beneath the city, working for anyone who will pay, with more power than anyone expects. The Waxling -- Mag, who has a knack for disappearing and knowing more than she should.

Mag, the waxling, is a wonderful character, who discovers she is human when she is seven. She lives under the city in the past with Faey, the sorceress. The city is sinking underground and has done so for many years, so there are pieces of the city's history. Mag knows all the passages from 'normal' life into this ancient amalgamation of life where she lives with Faey. Mag is the piece that ties together everyone else in the story. She is curious enough to be willing to get into trouble in order to find information, and tricky enough to usually not get caught. Even willing to meddle in Faey's work, when it is important enough. Mag grew up knowing Faey and not really anyone else, but she still has ideas of what is right and wrong. Which seems so true -- most people have ideas of right and wrong, which may be part cultural. Enjoyable to read about this girl who discovers what it means to think for herself, to trust herself, to grow up, to love.

Title:	Ombria in Shadow
Author:	Patricia McKillip
Date published:	2002
Genre:	Fantasy
Number of pages:	298
Notes:	Recommended by Lark (who last read it in 2005)

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Another enchanting book from McKillip-- about magic, but more about seeing and listening to other people. Od is a mysterious (female) magician who founded a magic school centuries ago in the capital city of Numis; Od herself has been seen now and then in various places, usually surrounded by the many animals she is working to heal. Over the years, the kings of Numis have come to feel that Od's school and its magicians belong to their kingdom, and have made rules to keep the magic under their control, lest it be a political threat. Od is still around, and influences events and people indirectly to steer her school back to where it belongs, and to bring back a sense of wonder and awe to the study of magic.

One of the ways Od brings changes to her school is through Brenden Vetch, who she invites to come work as a gardener. The significant thing about Brenden is that, while he is very powerful, he hasn't been trained by anyone or learned any rules; he loves plants, and has simply learned how to "listen" to things until they talk to him-- they tell him how to take care of them, what they might be good for. One thing I found particularly interesting-- Brenden doesn't recognize his power for a long time because of the weight of grief he carries (his parents died in a plague and he couldn't cure them, other loved ones left him). When he suddenly uses his power in an unmistakable way, he finally sees this.

Tears he held, a deep welling of grief, and something else, more powerful than either, that he had mistaken for sorrow. It had no name, this power, and no face but his own.

I wouldn't have associated power and sorrow, but McKillip's beautiful language convinces me of it.

Brenden's magic is different from the other magicians in that he simply learns by listening and watching his plants (McKillip also makes a language/image distinction). There are a number of nale-female pairings where this is also significant. One man falls in love with the magician Tyramin's daughter-- and she falls in love with him, too, because he recognizes her, and sees her as beautiful, without the masks on she wears in Tyramin's performances. The princess Sulys becomes engaged to the powerful wizard Valoren Greye, who is so busy with politics that he fails to take the time to see and listen to his future bride. Another pairing, Ceta & Yar, seem so well-suited to each other-- perhaps precisely because they do listen to each other, and see each other for who they really are.

This is a beautiful book, and very engaging (I read in just a few days). Probably not my favorite of McKillip's, although I'm not quite sure why... It seemed like there were too many characters, and I guessed that some of them were not what they seemed (like the curious and powerful magic young student Elver); perhaps having so many characters made it more difficult to engage or connect with any of them deeply. Also lots of oddities (like the twilight quarter, which wakes up at dusk and sleeps during the day) which added uniqueness and interest to the scenery, but didn't seem particulary purposeful.

Title:	Od Magic
Author:	Patricia Mckillip
Date published:	2005
Genre:	Fantasy
Number of pages:	315

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Patricia McKillip's books are magical and wondrous, and among her many fine works, this one stands out. It is a fairy tale, but one written for and about complex, adult characters with both troubles and joy. How many fairy tales do you know of where the prince is a widower, driven nearly mad by the loss of his wife and newborn child? The story is spun into motion by Brume, the oldest and most feared witch in Serre, who lives in her house made of bones, and along with the mysterious and beautiful firebird, she is at the heart of the magic in Serre which propels the story and makes healing possible.

Where do you hide your heart? What does it look like, and what is it worth to you? This book repeatedly brings up the idea of the heart, in many different ways. Prince Ronan, when he is bargaining with Brume for his life, decides to give her his heart in payment-- he is so wounded by his grief that he thinks he would rather live without it. When Princess Sidonie learns this, she secretly steals away to deal with the fearsome Brume-- because, she says, while Ronan may be able to live without his heart, she cannot. These issues of the heart also touch on the wizard Gyre, who escorted and protected Sidonie on her trip from Dacia into Serre-- because years ago he had found and stolen the heart of a fearsome monster. And of course, there is the beautiful firebird, whose song and lovely form ensorcel people so, because they look and sound like the desires of your heart.

Part of the story is told through the experiences of the scribe Euan, in Sidonie's home kingdom of Dacia. Euan is hired by the wizard Unciel, who is recovering from a difficult battle which nearly destroyed him, and which, for a time, he refuses to talk about. This is, of course, the monster whose heart Gyre stole-- Unciel defeated the monster only by becoming the monster, which nearly destroyed him; the magic of Serre eventually allows a possibility for Unciel to heal from this ordeal of self-destruction. Euan is an interesting character, and the first time I read the book I wondered why McKillip wasted time on him; he is not merely a scribe, but also a dreamer and a lover of language and story, and I see now that his presence in the book allows McKillip to write more about the power of words and tales. And this is more important, because of the kind of land that Serre is.

You never know, in Serre, when and where a tale will become true.

This is a book worth reading and re-reading, worth thinking and dreaming about. It is beautiful and mesmerizing and powerful-- especially the strange connection between the heartbreakingly beautiful firebird and the hideous and terrible Brume, something which is all the more mysterious and magical because it is never fully articulated.

Title:	In the Forests of Serre
Author:	Patricia McKillip
Date published:	2003
Genre:	Fantasy
Number of pages:	295
Notes:	Second reading. Christmas present from Sapphire.

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The first book I have ever read by McKillip. It will definitely not be my last. Would like to read this book again - slowly - to savor and catch more of the underlying meaning and ideas that are beautifully hidden. McKillip creates a fantasy world where magic is part of the weave of society and the environment. A princes (Sidonie) is sent to marry a prince (Ronan) in another kingdom (Serre), where odd things are known to happen almost commonly. Ronan interacts with Brume the witch, who sends him on a quest to find the firebird who is beautiful, gold, bird, woman, and so captivating that all those who hear its beautiful song lose their hearts.

McKillip uses common magic characters like witch, ogre, talking animals, things that appear one way but are another – but uses them to describe people as well, and not just those who are truly magic. For instance, one man is an ogre because of his spitefulness and anger, which is an interesting crossing of lines. Many people have some form of power or magic, and it is used well and poorly and to affect others for good or evil. Things only possible in a fantasy world happen beautifully and characters that seem disconnected suddenly find themselves needing and affecting each other. McKillip's work is both refreshing and captivating, like the song of the firebird.

Title:	In The Forests of Serre
Author:	Patricia McKillip
Date published:	2003
Genre:	Fantasy
Number of pages:	295
Notes:	Recommended by Lark

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Corleu is a young man of the Wayfolk, a wandering people hesitant to pass over thresholds, but his mysterious heritage is visible in the white-blond hair he inherited from a great-grandfather he knows only by a story. He loves to read and tell stories to the other Wayfolk children, but discovers that words have power when he begins to encounter the characters from the tales he tells-- the Gold King, the Blind Lady who wears the silver ring of time, the dancer who brings dreams to humans, the blood fox with the shadow of a man, all of whom are also constellations, bound by the powerful Cygnet. These powerful beings send him on a quest, and he encounters the sorceress Nyx, the daughter of the Lauro Ro, the powerful mistress of Ro Holding. Nyx helps Corleu in his quest, but out of a desire for more knowledge and power. Along the way, Corleu's story intertwines with that of Nyx's cousin Meguet, a woman with her own unknown and powerful heritage.

McKillip has created a complete world here, with different peoples and customs, and their own legends and constellations, which come to life. As in many of McKillip's books, we also find many strong female characters, of several different types-- the powerful sorceress Nyx, who left behind family and love to study the arcane arts anywhere and with anyone who might increase her knowledge; Meguet, who is a warrior and guardian; Lauro Ro, loving mother to Nyx and her sisters, but still managing an entire holding. Even Nyx's sisters are all different. Iris is practical and unmagical, but discovers she has the ancient power to move the entire house of Ro Holding, when necessity demands it. Nyx's sister Calyx loves to read the histories and ancient books in the tower of Ro Holding.

"I watch the stars," Calyx said simply. "Sometimes it seems that all the constellations exist in a strange, ancient tale that we only catch glimpses of in our short lives, while they move slowly as centuries through it."

Where do you hide your heart? Is it hidden away somewhere? Corleu's "heart" is Tiel, the Wayfolk girl he loves; this is why he does the bidding of these powerful beings he fears, because they have captured his heart. When Corleu frees the Warlock from the shape of a blood fox, he makes a blood star to do so-- the Warlock's heart. Nyx is so caught up in knowledge and power that she has forgotten about her heart. And the Cygnet's heart itself, which Corleu is looking for, is hidden in an unlikely and surprising place.

I read this book once many years ago, and did not understand it. I remember feeling like I was reading the sequel to something, as if I had come into the middle of a story and things didn't make sense. As for the conclusion... what happens is only touched on briefly, once. Things aren't explained completely (this is a McKillip book, after all), and what happens is a bit of a surprise-- so if you aren't paying careful attention at that one point, it seems possible to be very confused about what has actually happened. This strange, evocative ending suggests that the tales, and the stars, don't always mean what we think, and that the stories don't always end or begin where we think they do. In the evocative words of the tinker,

... whatever sun touches, whatever dreams, whatever works magic, whatever flies... When the heart casts a shadow instead of dancing light, there story begins.

Title:	The Sorceress and the Cygnet
Author:	Patricia McKillip
Date published:	1991
Genre:	Fantasy
Series:	Cygnet
Number of pages:	248
Notes:	Second reading.

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It took me a bit longer to get into this book than is usual with McKillip's work, but once I did, it was as if I had been ensorcelled-- rather like several of the characters in the book. There are several different towers in this book, and one of them is a tower where a young girl, Melanthos, goes to see things-- fragments of stories-- in a mirror, and then she embroiders what she sees. The reader of this book has a similar experience: you enter this tower, this book, and you glimpse fragments of several different stories, and slowly those stories are woven together until you become part of the story, too.

The main thread of this interwoven plot centers on a knight named Cyan Dag (whose emblem, incidentally, is three towers), who is sent on a quest by a mysterious woman bard-- but his quest is not quite what he thinks when he embarks. I had my doubts about the veracity of the reason for his quest early on, but I didn't guess the real reason for his quest. It is all the more beautiful and moving when you discover why it is that Cyan Dag, and he alone, was chosen for this quest. It is mentioned more than once that Cyan Dag sees with his heart, that he has ancient eyes. He could never have accomplished what he did if he'd been asked directly-- he would have thought it impossible for anyone, and perhaps his brain would have gotten in the way of his heart. The bard explains to him, after his quest is over:

We needed you... We wanted all your courage and your gentleness, your determination, your loyalty, and your gift for seeing and for doing, as when you heard the young boy crying in the rain, what must be done.

This is a beautiful book-- three towers (and more), three sisters, and one faithful knight bringing peace and magic back into his world.

Title:	The Tower at Stony Wood
Author:	Patricia McKillip
Date published:	2001
Genre:	Fantasy
Number of pages:	304
Notes:	This book was a birthday present.

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The more I read Patricia McKillip, the more I think that she knows just where to end her stories. She doesn't tie up all the loose ends, she leaves you wanting more of the world & characters she's created. The main conflict is usually resolved (or begun to be resolved), but the other pieces are left more open-ended. At the end of Alphabet of Thorn, the Queen is wondering how she can possibly explain the recent, extraordinary events to her people in language they will understand. Her advisor, the Mage Vevay, says, "Just begin at the beginning and proceed whichever way you can into hope." I wonder if McKillip operates that way for her own work?

As might be expected from the title, much of this book is about language and writing; the main character is a foundling who has been trained as a translator, and she is a gifted one. Nepenthe finds a magical book written in thorny letters, and it ensorcels her so she spends every waking moment working to translate it. Similarly, as a reader, I found it easy to be drawn into this book of Nepenthe's world. This thorny alphabet also conveys a powerful message about the power of writing to communicate and connect people.

There are plenty of interesting characters and history in Nepenthe's world; I would have been pleased to read more about many of them. The forest and the floating Wizard school are delightful; the student of magic, Bourne, is just beginning to discover the extent of his powers; the mage Vevay has had a long lifetime, doubtless full of adventure; the young queen Tessera, who is trying to discover how to rule without being her father; the ancient first King of Raine, who awakes to warn Tessera of danger, and who turns out to be a warrior queen; and of course the fascinating legend and history of Axis & Kane.

Ultimately, the mystery behind the magic of the alphabet written in thorns is compelling, and does not disappoint. It is fascinating to see Nepenthe's story connect with the legends she is translating, and the resolution, while perfectly believable, is not the one you might expect.

Title:	Alphabet of Thorn
Author:	Patricia McKillip
Date published:	2004
Genre:	Fantasy
Number of pages:	291
Notes:	This book was an early birthday present.

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