John DeChancie

This is a collection of 16 short stories that all have a castle of some sort as part of them. There is a good mix of genres: some fantasy, some sci-fi, and a little bit of horror and straight up fiction. This is a great collection with only a few duds. I was really surprised at how many great stories are in this collection.

My breakdown is as follows:

Hall of Mirrors- 2 stars. This story is part of the author's Amber series. I've never read the series, and now I definitely won't. I wasn't a fan of the writing style. Also, the story is incomplete. I'm guessing the conclusion is in one of the Amber novels.

The Garrison- 4 stars. Different and interesting take on first contact.

Castle Collapse-3 stars. Interesting concept, but too short.

Broomworms & Nosewigs- 4 stars. I remember reading this one when this book first came out. Fun story about a guy who starts to see hidden creatures.

Concrete Example-4 stars. A little slow to start. A nice twist at the end. About a woman in an abusive relationship finding her inner strength.

Death Swatch-4 stars. Humorous Beauty & the Beast type story.

Brigbuffoon- 3 stars. An OK love conquers all story.

Give Me Something to Eat-5 stars. Creepy and gross! I loved it.

Gwythurn the Slayer-3 stars. OK story about a woman finding what truly makes her happy.

Collectors-2 stars. Boring and too long.

Getting Real-5 stars. Great story about VR. I would not be surprised if this story inspired Ready Player One.

Merdinus-4 stars. King Arthur time travel story. A bit confusing, but time travel usually is.

Knight Squadron-3 stars. I don't know how I feel about King Athur being a vampire.

Swimming the Moat-2 stars. Mediocre murder mystery.

The Soft Terrible Music-2 stars. Barely has a plot. I think the author just had an idea for an awesome castle.

Held Safe By Moonlight and Vines-4 stars. Sweet story about finding yourself.… (more)

Book 9 of the Castle Perilous humorous fantasy series which I missed on its release several years ago after a gap of over 20 years since the last one. The castle is of the magical variety and has portals to other worlds. Guests come and go from these worlds but if they stay long enough usually pick up some magical ability. Gene is one-such guest who has yet to manifest any of that but makes up for it by being a more than proficient fighter. He’s got ants in his pants though and is desperate to try his hand at being a pirate. He’s been unable to find a world which would accommodate his desires though so exhorts one of the more capable sorceresses amongst the regular guests to try and invoke one from a picture. The spell is a success but things don’t quite go as planned when mayhem erupts at the castle leaving Gene and Linda trapped in the pirate world.

Going back to an old series can either be risky or can breathe a new life into it. Unfortunately this is the former variety. The first couple of books in the series seemed to give a fresh take on portal fantasy with a few laughs and a sense of adventure along the way. This just seems to be an author returning to a semi-popular title and churning out the same material once again. It’s not a terrible book as it’s at least on a par with the later books in the series but just offers nothing new. All the old regular characters resurface so if you have a hankering to spend more time with them but don’t want to pick up the old stuff then by all means give this a go. Just don’t expect any added bells or whistles.… (more)

This is a collection of 16 short stories that all have a castle of some sort as part of them. There is a good mix of genres: some fantasy, some sci-fi, and a little bit of horror and straight up fiction. This is a great collection with only a few duds. I was really surprised at how many great stories are in this collection.

My breakdown is as follows:

Hall of Mirrors- 2 stars. This story is part of the author's Amber series. I've never read the series, and now I definitely won't. I wasn't a fan of the writing style. Also, the story is incomplete. I'm guessing the conclusion is in one of the Amber novels.

The Garrison- 4 stars. Different and interesting take on first contact.

Castle Collapse-3 stars. Interesting concept, but too short.

Broomworms & Nosewigs- 4 stars. I remember reading this one when this book first came out. Fun story about a guy who starts to see hidden creatures.

Concrete Example-4 stars. A little slow to start. A nice twist at the end. About a woman in an abusive relationship finding her inner strength.

Death Swatch-4 stars. Humorous Beauty & the Beast type story.

Brigbuffoon- 3 stars. An OK love conquers all story.

Give Me Something to Eat-5 stars. Creepy and gross! I loved it.

Gwythurn the Slayer-3 stars. OK story about a woman finding what truly makes her happy.

Collectors-2 stars. Boring and too long.

Getting Real-5 stars. Great story about VR. I would not be surprised if this story inspired Ready Player One.

Merdinus-4 stars. King Arthur time travel story. A bit confusing, but time travel usually is.

Knight Squadron-3 stars. I don't know how I feel about King Arthur being a vampire.

Swimming the Moat-2 stars. Mediocre murder mystery.

The Soft Terrible Music-2 stars. Barely has a plot. I think the author just had an idea for an awesome castle.

Held Safe By Moonlight and Vines-4 stars. Sweet story about finding yourself.

… (more)