Retrospectives: 2004
Realms of Fantasy: December 2004 (Issue 62)
Part sixty-two in my ongoing retrospective as I read the fiction to the back issues of Realms of Fantasy and offer my thoughts, right up to the present. This time aroud it’s all about the December 2004 issue.
The cover is another movie cover for Lord of the Rings, our fourth such cover (Elijah Wood is looking mighty anguished). It is the magazine’s sixth movie cover and its eighth media cover.
On to the fiction …
A rundown of this issue’s nonfiction is as follows:
In the movie/TV column, Resa Nelson covers The Lord of the Rings Exhbition; in the adult books column, Gahan Wilson reviews The Faery Reel: Tales From the Twilight Realm, edited by Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling, The Captain of the ‘Pole Star’ by Arthur Conan Doyle, I Am Alive and You Are Dead: A Journey into the Mind of Phillip K. Dick by Emmanuel Carrere, The Bloody Crown of Conan by Robert E. Howard, Year’s Best Fantasy 4, edited by David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer, and Paul Witcover reviews Iron Council by China Mieville; in the folkroots column, Gregory Frost (with Helen Pilinovsky) writes about the inaugural Mythic Journeys Conference in Atlanta, GA, which took place from June 2-6, 2004; the past lives column makes its return again as Emma Bull writes about the importance of clothes at historical reenactments; in the artist gallery, Ari Berk writes about Goblins! A Survival Guide and Fiasco in Four Parts by himself and artist, Brian Froud; and in the gaming column, Eric T. Baker reviews the RPG DragonMech from White Wolf Publishing, the RPG, Deliria: Faerie Tales for a New Milennium, Front Mission 4 for the PS2, Sly 2: Band of Thieves for the PS2, and Spider-man 2 for the PC. This issue also marks the last appearance of the past lives column.
On to the fiction …
The lead story in this one is “The Cardinal’s Cats” by Cherith Baldry. This story takes an idea more common to the mystery genre, wherein the story is told through the pov of the lovable feline who pluckiness manages to save the day. Set in sixteenth century France, our feline heroine & company (the company being more cats), set out to thwart the machinations of the Cardinal’s nephew and his evil witch lover. Considering that this is a fantasy magazine, I found the idea of telling this from the pov of a cat to be rather refreshing. Art to this one was provided by Craig McKay, which marks his second illustration in the magazine.
After this we have “Sonnets Made of Wood” by Leah Bobet. A glance at the accompanying artwork will bring to mind Robin Hobb’s high fantasy trilogy, The Liveship Traders. And while there are indeed some superficial similarities between the two words, this story is entirely Leah’s own. As to the story itself, the language carried a dark charm that sucked me right in. It tells the tale of a mermaid who has given up her tail to take a human king for a husband. This part is pretty much standard fare when it comes to many a mermaid tale, but the author takes this one in some rather unusual directions, including a reversal of the standard mythology of the mermaid seducing the unsuspecting human. The climax to this one is both horrific and heartbreaking, as it sheds light on a seemingly innocent riddle presented earlier in the tale. Coming back to the art on this one, it was provided by Matt Hughes, which marks his third illustration in the magazine.
Next up we have “The Chamber of Forgetting” by Sarah Prineas, which marks her second appearance in the magazine. This one is a high fantasy tale that starts off by introducing us to a man in excrutiating pain who has no idea who he is. As the tale unfolds, we gradually learn that he is an assassin from an enemy nation, sent to the kill the king. These particular assassin are extremely deadly even for someone of their profession. Their training begins when they’re children and they kill their first victim before they turn ten. If they fail at their mission, they’re expected to kill themselves. Only this particular assassin was taken prisoner. Besides undergoing some extreme questioning that has left him with scars and mangled fingers, he was also placed in the newly created chamber of forgetting. This chamber causes a loss of memory, and so when we meet the assassin, he’s a very different person from the one who tried to kill the king. Instead, he’s gentle and unassuming. When negotiations are opened with his home nation, his return is demanded. Everyone knows he’ll be killed if he’s returned for failing at his mission and not taking his life, and this in turn raises some serious ethical dilemmas: those who placed him in the chamber of forgetting caused this man to change into someone different, with no memories of what he’d done before. Given this, is it right to turn him over for crimes he has no recollection of and no intention of committing when they’re the ones who changed him? Good stuff. Art tot his one was provided by Hugo Martin, which marks his fourth illustration in the magazine.
Following this we have “The Wild Man” by Caitlin Matthews. This one dips into Arthuriana, but unlike the other tales to appear in this magazine, this one draws on the Mabinogion, which shares the stories of Arthur and his court from the Welsh perspective/interpretation. In this one, Arthur and his companions come upon a man more than half wild, haunted by painful memories form his past. Gradually we learn that the Wild Man was forced to watch various tortures inflicted upon his kin that either killed them or left them as rabid as wolves …and their torturer was one of Arthur’s kin. And so Arthur is forced to decide between family and justice. The author sheds some light on her idea in an afterword. To quote part of it: “This is one of the untold stories hidden with Culhwch and Olwen, that great compendium of lost British Celtic tales, one of the oldest stories in the Mabinogion.” Art to this one was provided by Paul Lee, which marks his tenth illustration in the magazine.
Then we have “The Secret of Making Brains” by Joe Murphy. This one marks the first of Joe’s popular Sprokly tales to appear in the pages of ROF. This is also the first continuing series I’ve come across that was still being published in our pages when I came aboard. In fact, our latest issue at the time I’m writing this (October 2008) includes a story called “The Horned Toad in the Hubcap,” which is set in this universe. So it lets you all know that my arrival to the magazine is drawing near. As to the story itself, as I’ve already made abundantly obvious, we’re introduced to Sprokly and her family who live in an abandoned town. Grampser is the head of her family …except this is no ordinary family. Grampser has learned the secrets of words and symbols and other strange powers, and combined with his amazing technical proficiency, he is able to create manikins and imbue them with life. He has created a number of mechanical animals that are more than just mechanical, including a rather unique species of horned toad. Grampser has taught/is teaching these secrets to other members of his family, including some of the created ones like Sprokly. In this tale, Sprokly is trying to figure out the secret of making brains. It takes place during her thirteenth birthday, which is made all the more interesting when they receive an unwanted human visitor who has come to study the horned toads. Sprokly is fascinated by him, as is her brother, who is a real human. And while Grampser wishes to keep other off his property, he aslo doesn’t want anyone leaving. So when Sprokly’s brother tries to sneak off with the human visitor, it leads to Sprokly learning the secret of making brains. It also represents the beginning of the end to Sprokly’s childhood, as she learns that the world in not entirely black and white. Art to this one was provided by Andrea Wicklund.
Finally we have “Talent” by Laura Ann Gilman, which marks her second appearance in the magazine. This one is a horror tale that takes place in what might be termed as the pool hall, because all the best people and all the up-and-comers frequent this spot. Among this group is someone named Eddie. Back in the day, Eddie was the best. But that was a long time ago. A long time ago. But Eddie refuses to acknowledge his time as king of the hill past, so he clings to an unnatural life (if you can call it that), hardly uttering a word, sitting in the pool hall night after night, watching the pool players come in and out. And when a fourteen-year-old prodigy comes through those doors one night, well, suffice it to say that Eddie isn’t pleased. Art to this one was provided by Michael Gibbs, which marks his eleventh illustration in the magazine.
And with these stories read and my write-up of each of them complete, I am happy to announce that I’ve now read every single story ever published in Realms of Fantasy. There are still a couple of issues to go before we reach my time, but I had these issues in my possession and had read the stories before I started these retrospectives. So yeah. I’ve conquered the mountain …or part of it anyway. I mean, I still have twenty-three (and counting) retrospectives to go. But now that I’ve read all the stories, I feel like I can take a breath. I mean, it took me over a year to be able to say I’ve read everything, so it’s been quite a project.
As to the rest of the retrospectives, as has been promised at the beginning of almost every single one of them, I will take us all the way to the present for ROF. But there are some things to keep in mind. Even though I’ve read everything, you shouldn’t expect me to spit out twenty-three retrospectives over the next twenty-three days. First, it takes a while to write these, and I doubt I’ll have the time or inclination to write them every night. Second, while I may have read everything, for most of the remaining issues it’s been somewhere between 1-3+ years since the last time I read their stories. For some of these tales, I won’t be comfortable writing about them until I’ve had the chance to read them again. Other stories I remember perfectly, although I’ll admit that I may use these retrospectives as an excuse to reread a few of my favorites. 
Third, now that I’ve read everything, I expect my urge to write these retrospectives won’t be as fierce. Until this point, whenever I read an issue, I tried to write the retrospective asap so that the issues in need of a retrospective didn’t accumulate. These retrospectives are often lengthy, so that sort of homework would’ve been daunting. But now I can approach everything differently, and there isn’t that little voice urging me on, telling me to keep reading so that I can say I’ve read all of the stories in ROF. Lastly, and this just happens to be some coincidental timing, in addition to my work at ROF I’m taking on some new and exciting responsibilities that won’t allow me as much time for the retrospectives. But as I said, I will finish this series. I’m just going to be more laid back about it now. In theory, I’d like to do one retrospective each week. Time will tell whether this is a realistic goal. In reality, so long as I manage to do one retrospective each month I’ll be ahead of the publication table for the latest issue of ROF, and hence drawing closer to the end of this series. That is definitely manageable. Regardless, I think it’s a safe bet that these retrospectives should continue for at least another half a year.
So that wraps up this issue, as well as 2004. And my favorite story? “The Chamber of Forgetting” by Sarah Prineas. And my favorite illustration? Matt Hughes’ illustration to “Sonnets Made of Wood” by Leah Bobet. Next time around (hopefully in a week or so), I’ll kick off the 2005 publishing season when I discuss the February 2005 issue.
Until then …
Realms of Fantasy: October 2004 (Issue 61)
Part sixty-one in my ongoing retrospective as I read the fiction to the back issues of Realms of Fantasy and offer my thoughts, right up to the present. This time around I’ll be slicing and dicing the October 2004 issue, which makes ten years for the magazine, although I suppose the previous issue marks ten years of published issues. Regardless, in this day and age for speculative fiction in print magazines, ten years is quite the accomplishment.
The cover to this one is by Luis Royo, which marks his twelfth illustration in the magazine. This is another one of the magazine’s chicks in chain mail covers.
There are some tidbits worth noting in this issue’s masthead. First, Joe Varda’s run as Publisher has drawn to its close. There is no one taking his place in the masthead for this position. Mark Hintz was the publisher before him, and when Joe Varda took over this title, Mark became the Chief Executive Officer. Mark is still the CEO in this issue, and the title of publisher has been dropped from the masthead. Also, Laura Cleveland’s long run as Managing Editor has drawn to a close. Taking her place is Christopher D’Amore. For whatever reason, he’s listed as the Assistant Editor, but his duties are those of the managing editor. And we’re not quite done. Samantha DeTulleo is no longer listed as the Art Director. Strangely, no else is either. That title is also absent from the masthead. These days, Samantha is listed in the masthead in the exact position in question. So I’m uncertain whether she left and later came back to this position, or if she was here all along and title just got dropped from the masthead for a while.
A rundown of this issue’s nonfiction is as follows:
In the movie/TV column, Resa Nelson coves the movie, Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow; in the folkroots column, Ari Berk writes about the Dance of the Labyrinth; in the adult books column, Gahan Wilson reviews Gaspard de la Nuit by Aloysius Bertran (translated and introduced with an introduction and afterword by Donald Sidney-Fryer and forward by by T.E.D. Klein), Swiftly by Adam Roberts, Dead Lines by Greg Bear, The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Dave McKean, and Paul Witcover reviews Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erickson, The Darkness that Comes Before by R. Scott Bakker, Novelties & Souvenirs by John Crowley, and Another Green World by Henry Wessells; in the artist gallery, Karen Haber covers the artwork of Daniel Horne; and in the gaming column, Eric T. Baker reviews the RPG, Adventure!, the video game version of the movie, Van Helsing, for the Xbox and PS2, Shrek 2 for the PC, Xbox, PS2, and GC, La Pucelle: Tactics for the PS2, and Thief: Deadly Shadows for the PC and Xbox. There is no past lives column this issue.
On to the fiction …
The lead story is “Almost (But Not Quite) Heaven” by Tom Gerencer, which marks his second appearance in the magazine. This one is a humorous tale about a man who’s visited by a host of different zany gods that you wouldn’t expect to be gods, like the god of hors d’oevres and the god of sushi. It’s one big party until the god of agnosticism arrives. The whole scenario feels rather Lewis Carollesque. Art to this one was provided by Craig McKay
After this we have “Embers” by Rudi Dornemann. This one marks the first steampunk tale to appear in ROF. The story starts out when a young woman and her father come across a clockwork man in their courtyard in a steam town in a nineteenth America that is starting to develop its railroad systems. Until this point, steam-powered machines have been the prevalent sources of energy and transporation, with things like dirigibles already in existence. The emerging railways are also experimenting with steam, and using the fire of dragons to power many of their devices. I think the presence of the dragons keeps this one from veering too much into the realm of science fiction. Anyway, the clockwork man they discover isn’t on, but the woman and her father manage to wake him by placing in a fire and heating his ceramic skin. Of course, this causes quite the brouhaha in town, since the clockwork man is a product of the rail companies, are the emerging rail roads are threatening the business done by steam towns. To complicte matters, the young woman feels an emerging attraction toward the well-spoken and charming clockwork man. Eventually an angry mob shows up, fearing what the clockwork man represents. Mind you, it isn’t the theat of machines, but the threat to their livelihood. It all leads up to a poignant climax and ending that deals with the end of childhood, love, loss, and dreams. Art to this one was provided by Lori Koefoed, which marks her tenth illustration in the magazine.
Next up we have “There Are Girls, Green Girls” by Ian McDowell. This one is a YA tale about an adolescent Jewish girl growing up in redneck country (this term being how the narrator desribes this region). She is something of an outcast here, even among the other outcasts. Then she makes friends with the new Chinese girl in town, who is also an outcast. Things take a sharp turn when she learns that her new friend’s mother was actually a Chinese forest spirit, and the mother wishes to bring her daughter back to the forest. The catch is that so long as she wishes to stay among the humans, she can. But the call is growing ever stronger. Things come to a head when the two friends (and the hot new boyfriend) go to a nighttime party on a secluded hill …surrounded by the forest. Art to to this one was provided by Dave Leri, which marks his fourth illustration in the magazine.
Then we have “The Old Woman and the Moon” by Stephen Popkes, which marks his fifth appearance in the magazine. This one draws on Native American mythology. It starts by telling the tale of a magician who falls in love with the moon and devises a spell to bring her down to him so he might take her for his wife. Time passes, so much that the world has forgotten about the moon. A woman eeking out a harsh existence finds herself thrust into the task of returning the moon to her rightful place in the sky, but there is a price to be paid to restore the world to its proper balance, a price that might be too steep to ask of any one person, or as Shawna puts it in her editorial caption: “Sometimes a sacrifice requires you to dig into yourself, but sometimes you have to dig deep into another.” Art to this one one was provided by Jess Guay, presumably the same Jesse Guay listed in the masthead as Graphic Designer.
Following this we have “King Orfeigh” by Ruth Nestvold. This one is based on the medieval tale of Sir Orfeo, a mixture of the Greek myth of Orpheus and Celtic folklore. In this one, the King of the Sidhe has charmed away the human king’s wife and is taking her back to his kingdom. But the man is in pursuit, hoping to bring her back to him. But all he can rely on the win her heart back is his music. And surely this isn’t enough to overcome the many charms of the King of the Sidhe …surely? Art to this one was provided by Paul Lee, which marks his ninth illustration in the magazine.
Then we have “The Beast” by Bruce Holland Rogers, which marks his ninth appearance in the magazine. This one is another short-short from Rogers, about a man who captures a strange beast whose saliva has great curative properties. But the only way to get the Beast to give up its saliva is to make it suffer. Once again I’ll steal Shawna’s editorial caption to sum this one up: “What would you pay for the health–for the life–of your children and family? Is there any price too high?” Art to this one was provided by Matt Tisdale.
Finally we have “In a Glass Casket” by Tim Pratt, which marks his sixth appearance in the magazine. This one is a horror piece about a young boy who comes across a glass casket in an alley. Locked inside in the glass casket is a teenage girl, but he can’t tell whether she’s alive ..until he sees the tears leaking from her closed eyes. Uncertain what to do, he leaves the girl and hurries home before he’s late. Ever since Billy’s father left, the boy’s mom likes him to be home where she can keep an eye on him. But when Billy gets home, there is a strange man over, asking his mother questions about a girl that he’s looking for. His mother is acting strangely, as if unaware of what’s going on. The man asks Billy about the girl, but Billy lies, saying he doesn’t know anything. Later, he sneaks out to rescue the girl, using the tools from his father’s toolbox. When he finally frees her, we learn the man looking for her is her father. Her father is overly possessive refusing to let the girl go, going so far as to use his magic to cause his daughter pain to keep her from escaping. But his daughter has magic of her own to evade him, and the chase has been going on for quite some time. It all leads up to a rather horrifying conclusion, between the girl and her father …as well as Billy and his own mother. Art to this one was provided by Patrick Arrasmith, which marks his thirteenth illustration in the magazine.
So that wraps up this issue. And my favorite story? It was a tough choice, but I have to give the honors to “In a Glass Casket” by Tim Pratt. The ending sent a serious shudder down my spine that forced me to give the nod to this story. And my favorite artwork? Dave Leri’s illustration to “There are Girls, Green Girls” by Ian McDowell. Next time around I’ll wrap up this 2004 publishing year when I discuss the December 2004 issue.
Until then …
Realms of Fantasy: August 2004 (Issue 60)
Part sixty in my ongoing retrospective as I read the fiction in the back issues of Realms of Fantasy and offer my thoughts, right up to the present. This time around I’ll be discussing the August 2004 issue.
The cover to this one is another movie cover, which marks the magazine’s fifth movie cover and the seventh media cover. It features Keira Knightley in her role as Guinevere in the movie, King Arthur. Concerning this movie, while I thought some of the actors gave strong performances, overall I found this movie rather weak, adding little worthwhile material to the Arthurian mythos.
A rundown of this issue’s nonfiction is as follows:
In the movie/TV column, Resa Nelson covers the aforementioned King Arthur movie; in the folkroots column, Terri Windling discusses the lore of Little Red Riding Hood; in the adult books column, Gahan Wilson reviews Gathering the Bones, edited by Jack Dann, Ramsey Campbell, and Dennis Etchison, All Hallows: The Journal of the Ghost Story Society, edited by Barbara Roden, Selected Letters of Clark Ashton Smith, edited by David E. Shultz and Scott Connors, Gates of Empire and Other Tales of the Crusades by Robert E. Howard, edited by Paul Herman,and Paul Witcover reviews Monument by Ian Graham and The Fourth Circle by Zoran Zivkovic; the past lives column makes a return this issue, as Anastasiya Samusenska discusses the historical reconstruction of knighthood in the White Castle Festival in Belarus; in the artist gallery, Jane Frank discusses the artwork of LesEdwards/Edward Miller; and in the games column, Eric T. Baker reviews Ninja Gaiden for the Xbox, the RPG, Riddle of Steel, Champions of Norrath for the PS2, Nightshade for the PS2, Blood and Salt from White Wolf’s Exalted line, and Unearthed Arcana, a supplement to Dungeons & Dragons.
On to the fiction …
The lead story is “The Angel’s Daughter” by Jay Lake, which marks his second appearance in the magazine. This one is a short-short that delves into Arabian mythology about a brave lad of the desert who manages to capture the heart of an angel’s daughter. This piece would be right at home among the tales of Scheherazade’s One Thousand and One Nights. Art to this one was provided by Maral Agnerian.
Following this we have “The Smell of Magic” by Mike Lewis. This one is a high fantasy tale about a young man who has been apprenticed to sniff out the magic dwelling in shapeshifters who live among the humans. When I say “sniff” I mean that quite literally. He has an extraordinary sense of smell. If you’ve ever seen the movie, Perfume, it approaches that level. The test involves the teenagers in a given village who have come “of age” for the testing, presumambly because the smell can now be detected. In this particular tale, the protagonist has returned to his village after a couple of years away, and is reuinited with family, friends, and the requisite village love. The writing is nice enough, but everything struck as rather predicactable and ho-hum …or so I thought until I reached the end. That made reading this one entirely worthwhile. Art to this one was provided by Heather Hudson.
Then we have “The Water Castle” by Jay Lake, which marks his third appearance in the magazine and his second story in this issue. Back in the June 2000 issue, Nicola Griffith actually had three stories in one issue. However, those stories were loosely connected, and in that respect it was no surprise to see them all published in the same issue. In Jay’s case, “The Water Castle” & “The Angel’s Daughter” are not connected at all, except through author. So this would make Jay the first author to have two completely unrelated stories in one issue of ROF. As to the story itself, it’s rather rich in detail. We’re introduced to a world where humans were once served by small furry creatures called the Pleasant People. However, concerning this servitude, let’s just say it wasn’t all gumdrops and lollipops. So eventually, when humans gave birth, the Pleasant People developed a method of creating twins of the newborn babies from the afterbirth. These twins became known as the Poison People, and their presence eventually sparked a war that, come the beginning of the story, has left mankind struggling for its survival. The story itself focuses around a woman, starting in childhood with the death of her father, and it follows her through the years as she becomes mankind’s greatest hope for survival. Thanks to her father’s experiments before his death, the girl knows how to use a crude form of science to tell the Poison People from the real people. This one skirts the line between high fantasy and science-fantasy as the girl rallies humankind through the years. And all the while, she seeks to learn her ultimate destiny, which is somehow connected to a glass egg her father gave to her at his death. I’m leaving lots of juicy details ot here, but I can’t help it. Jay packed enough into this world to return here and write a novel if he wants to. Art to this one was provided by Scott Grimando, which marks his ninth illustration in the magazine.
Next up is “Words & Music” by Kate Riedel, which marks her fifth appearance in the magazine. It is also the 350th story to be published in Realms of Fantasy. This features a teenage runaway in need of work. She walks into a bookstore, hoping to sell some textbooks, and ends up accepting a job, complete with a room upstairs. Seems ordinary enough, accept that soon she notices that the bookstore has a habit of having whatever the customer asks for, even if it wasn’t on the shelf a moment ago. And of course it makes absolutely no difference if the text has been erased from the face of the earth. There is something cosmic about this bookshop but it’s never explained in full. This didn’t really bother me, which is a testament to the author. This sort of stuff often drives me nuts. But the people are vehicles to the cosmic function of the bookshop. Those who come looking for these books are meant to find them. Yet while the people serve the will of the bookshop, the employees of the shop seem to pick whom they wish to hire to continue serving. It’s all very fascinating, and there’s a strong religious undercurrent throughout that kicks this one into another level of thoughtfulness. Art to this one was provided by Chris Cocozza, which marks his third illustration in the magazine.
Then we have “The Right God” by Richard Parks, which marks his fourteenth appearance in the magazine. This one takes a somewhat lighter approach to religion than the previous story, presenting a world where traditional religion has broken down. Instead, new gods seem to be popping up everywhere. Enter Don Lang, an average divorced guy in his forties …average except for the god called Rockball that has taken up residence in his mirror and has informed Don that his new vocation is to be Rockbottom’s prophet? The problem (if this isn’t enough)? Rockbottom has no idea what he’s a god of. Things are further complicated when Don meets a woman named Amelia who’s basically in the same situation he is, only her god is named Stonemother. Thanks to the meddling of their gods, both of them find themselves out of work. With all this time on their hands, they end up joining forces to figure out what the deal is with these mysterious gods, all the gods in general, and all the while, there is a possible attraction developing between them that is only made more complicated by the presence of their gods. Art to this one was provided by Hugo Martin, which marks his third illustration in the magazine.
Following this we have “Elfrither’s Ghost” by Kij Johnson, which marks her second appearance in the magazine. This one is a short-short ghost story that takes place in some ancient Roman ruins. I’ll steal Shawna’s editorial caption to describe this one: “Ghosts are not made of flesh and blood, but they are often made by flesh and blood.” Art to this one was provided by Laurie Harden, which marks her sixteenth illustration in the magazine.
The penultimate tale in this issue is “The Laily Worm” by Nina Kiriki Hoffman, which marks her third appearance in the magazine. This story is adapted from the story, “The Laily Worm and the Machrel of the Sea,” from the Child’s Ballads. As to the Child’s Ballad’s here is the explanation I stole from Wikipedia: The Child Ballads are a collection of 305 ballads from England and Scotland, and their American variants, collected by Francis James Child in the late 19th century. The collection was published as The English and Scottish Popular Ballads between 1882 and 1898 by Houghton Mifflin 10 Volumes. As to the story itself, it deals with a pair of siblings with royal blood. Along with their father and stepmother, they’re exiled to an isolated castle in the north that guards against raids from the Norsemen. Everything seems to be going well enough, until the stepmother becomes pregant. Suddenly the children she’d forged such wonderful relationships with have become obstructions to advancing her own blood. So she casts a spell on both children, changing them into their inherent animal forms. The brother becomes a dragon, the sister a macherel. The sister is tossed into the sea and the stepmother forces the brother to guard a mysterious oak tree. The brother is in danger of losing his humanity, until he’s visited by his sister, who’s learned how to change into human form once each week. When she’s there, she cleans her brother and brushes his hair (yup, this dragon has hair), and it brings back memories of his childhood and helps him maintain a semblance of his humanity. The characterization of the dragon is particularly interesting, and everything unfolds rather logically. I’ve never read the original story, but I get the feeling that Hoffman remained rather true to it, because there’s a lot of resonance in this one that strikes the mythic cord deep inside the reader. Art to this one was provided by Peter Ferguson
Finally we have “Falling With Wings” by Devon Monk, which marks her sixth appearance in the magazine. This one has an interesting premise. Winged beings toss their children from the sky when their still babies or young children and let them fall into the mud around Mount Discard when the children are still wingless. It’s believed there is something in the soil that is essential to the children growing their wings when they’re older so they can take their place in the sky. Anywho, there is a tribe of sorts at the base of the mountain, featuring everything from babies to adolescents on the verge of adulthood. Most if not all of them were retrieved from the mud by a man named Setham, who is wingless and helps raise the children until they grow their wings and are ready to jump from Mount Discard and put their wings to use. One of the oldest of the tribe is Dawn, who narrates the story. The time is drawing close when Dawn will seek to take her place in the sky. Only she is rather attracted to Setham. The problem? Sethem is wingless and long past the age of sprouting wings. But there is also more to him than meets the eye. But is it enough for love between the two of them to take wing? If you’ve read the past fifty-nine retrospectives, then you know I’m not going to tell you! Art to this one was provided by Matt Hughes, which marks his second illustration in the magazine.
So that wraps up this issue. And my favorite story? Many worthy candidates, but I must give the honors to “The Laily Worm” by Nina Kiriki Hoffman. And my favorite artwork? Matt Hughes’ illustration to “Falling with Wings” by Devon Monk. Next time around I’ll discuss the October 2004 issue.
Until then …
Realms of Fantasy: June 2004 (Issue 59)
Part fifty-nine in my ongoing retrospective as I read the fiction to the back issues of Realms of Fantasy and offer my thoughts, right up to the present issue. This time around I’ll be discussing the June 2004 issue.
The cover to this one is by Matt Hughes. It features a woman draped across her bed, sheets covering her, with with a fairy hovering in the corner.
A look at this issue’s masthead reveals that Jennifer Schneider’s considerable run as Graphic Designer is over. Taking her place is Jesse Guay.
rundown of this issue’s nonfiction is as follows:
In the movie/TV column, Resa Nelson provides a round-up of spring movies; in the folkroots column, Terri Windling discusses animal brides and bridegrooms in folklore and fantasy; in the adult books column, Gahan Wilson reviews In the Land of Time and Other Fantasy Tales, edited with an introduction and notes by S.T. Joshi, The Collected Jorkens by Lord Dunsany, introduced and edited by S.T. Joshi, Tales of War, edited by Darrell Schweitzer, The Double Shadow and Other Fantasies by Clark Ashton Smith, Songs and Sonnets Atlantean, the Second Series by Clark Ashton Smith, Graphic Classics Mark Twain, edited and published by Tom Pomplun, and Paul Witcover reviews Alphabet of Thorn by Patricia A. McKillip and The Tyrant by Michael Cisco; in the artist gallery, Ari Berk discusses the Ancient Spirit, Modern Voice: The Mythic Journeys Art Exhibition; and in the gaming column, Eric T. Baker reviews Sex and Sorcery, a supplement to the RPG, Sorcerer, Jet Li: Rose of Honor for the PS2, Drakengard for the PS2, Wrath Unleashed for the PS2 and the Xbox, The Diamond Throne, a sourcebook for the Arcana Unearthed Campaign in Dungeons & Dragons, and the War of the Worlds Sourcebook. There is no past lives column this issue.
On to the fiction …
The lead story is “Singing Innocence & Experience” by Sonya Taafe. This one takes place in modern times and revolves around a unicorn that looks like a man. Where the horn should be there is a mark on his forehead. This unicorn has become bonded to a woman in her twenties who is still a virgin. Throughout the story there is a delicate balance between the woman, the unicorn (who has become a roomate of sorts), and the woman’s human love interest. At the same time, she finds the unicorn heartbreakingly beautiful. Saying anything would be to reveal how this one plays out, but I did enjoy the concept of the unicorn in human form. Art to this one was provided by Brian Horton, which marks his second illustration in the magazine.
Following this we have “Tiny Bells” by Bruce Holland Rogers, which marks his eighth appearance in the magazine. As with most of his ROF tales, this one is a short-short. These are always the hardest sorts of stories to describe without giving away everything, because they’re over in a blink. So I’ll leave this one as being about displaced dreams seeking a home and let your imagination do the rest. Art to this one was provided by Laurie Harden, which marks her fifteenth illustration in the magazine.
Next up we have “Stalking the Leopard” by Tanith Lee, which marks her twelfth appearance in the magazine. This one takes place in a futuristic city at the height of decadence that mixes in just a touch of noir flavor. It focuses around a woman of high society who has become bored with life. All that changes when a rare fire breaks out in the city. When the protagonist and her friends go to investigate, she spots a striking man walking out of the fire unharmed. Avly (the protogonist) becomes quite attracted to him and takes to following him over the ensuing days. And when she discovers that this man is an assassin, it only heightens her attraction. It all builds toward a climax that I’m not about to share with you. Art to this one was provided by John Berkey, which marks his tenth illustration in the magazine.
Then we have “On Windhover Down” by Liz Williams, which marks her sixth appearance in the magazine. This one takes place near an alternate London, where strange and decadent gods are worshipped. When a young girl delivers a head to the worshippers of these gods, she becomes embroiled in far more than she bargained for and must turn to ancient and forgotten forces to save her. Art to this one was provided by Allen Douglas, which marks his fourth illustration in the magazine.
After this we have “Country Life” by Karen D. Fishler. Instead of London, we move to outside of Paris during the time Louis XVII, as a tax collector visits an unmapped county that appears to have never paid its taxes. However, he’s not on official business, and plans to earn himself a small fortune through his “collecting.” But as such stories go, the collector becomes embroiled in far more than he expected, as he meets the beautiful daughter of the imposing countess he hopes to scam, must deal with the beautiful woman’s highly protective brother, unravel the mystery of where this county’s gold comes from, and all the while there is some strange and monstrous creature eating the local cows at night. Art to this one was provided by Lori Koefoed, which marks her ninth illustration in the magazine.
Then we have “The Archer” by Ian Donald Keeling. This one also features a female protagonist who happens to be a virgin, this one at age thirty. This one has never even been on a date. But everything changes when she meets a gorgeous man who turns out to be Cupid from Greek mythology. And of course he fires his love arrow and our loveless protagonist fires love at last. But all is not as it seems. It turns out that once upon a time Cupid defied Zeus and took a mortal woman for his lover that Zeus desired for himself. In his wrath, Zeus decreed that their child would never know love. And Cupid has honored that decree …until now. And now we’re up to that part where I don’t tell you how this one plays out. 
Art to this one was provided by Michael Kerr, which marks his fifth illustration in the magazine.
Finally we have “Charlie the Purple Giraffe Was Acting Strangely” by David D. Levine. According to Carina Gonzalez’s old (and now defunct) slush site, David is a slush survivor. I have to admit that I’m a little puzzled by this. According to David’s bio in this issue, he attended the Clarion West Workshop in 2000. My understanding from multiple sources (including Shawna) is that back during Carina’s tenure (and before this as well, I believe), graduates from any of the Clarion workshops were automatic passes to Shawna. This practice was discontinued after I took over as assistant editor, although every so often I still encounter the occasional Clarion student under the impression that his or her story should be passed along to Shawna for this reason alone. Regardless, I have no idea how David both attended Clarion but is also considered to be a slush survivor. As to the story itself, it features comic characters, the principle being Charlie the Purple Giraffe. And the reason Charlie has been acting strangely. Quite simply, he has become aware that there are readers. Of course, none of his fellow comic characters believe him. Most of the characters react to him as you might expect, and while everything unfolds inside your mind like a lighthearted cartoon, there is a disturbing undercurrent that grows stronger as the story moves along. This undercurrent manages to strike a nerve, and perhaps others thought so as well, because this piece was reprinted in Year’s Best Fantasy 5, edited by David Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer. as well as The Mammoth Book of Extreme Fantasy, edited by Mike Ashely. Art to this one was provided by Dirk and Lieve Michaels.
So that wraps up this issue. And my favorite story? The possible slush survivor, “Charlie the Purple Giraffe Was Acting Strangely” by David D. Levine. And my favorite illustration? Allen Douglas’s illustration to “On Windohover Down” by Liz Williams. Next time I’ll talk about the August 2004 issue.
Until then …
Realms of Fantasy: April 2004 (Issue 58)
Part fifty-eight in my ongoing retrospective as I read the fiction in the back issues of Realms of Fantasy and offer my thoughts, right up to the present. This time around I’m be yakking about the April 2004 issue.
I’ve read this issue before. When I interviewed with Shawna back in 2005 for the position of Assistant Editor, one of her questions was whether I had read any issues of the magazine. I had read two and have covered both of them in previous retrospectives (August 1997 & August 2000). But when Shawna decided to take me on for a trial period, she also wanted me to familiarize myself with some of the more recent issues. So she grabbed the two closest issues and told me to read the fiction in them. One of these issues was April 2004, which means I first read this one back in May 2005. That’s well over three years, so I took the time to read all of these stories again.
But before we get into this fiction …
The cover to this one is by Gordon Crabb, and was originally the cover Guardian of the Promise by Irene Radford. It features a woman about to grasp a sword held by ghostly looking king while some fairies are fluttering nearby.
A rundown of this issue’s nonfiction is as follows:
In the movie/TV column, Resa Nelson discusses fantasy time travel movies; in the folkroots column, Helen Pilinovsky discusses how the Russian fairy tale character Baba Yaga has a place in contemporary fiction; in the adult books column, Gahan Wilson reviews Lost Boy Lost Girl by Peter Straub, The Complete Tolkien Companion by J.E.A. Tyler, The Lord of the Rings and Philosophy: One Book To Rule Them All, edited by Gregory Bassham and Eric Bronson, Zippy Annual, drawn and written by Bill Griffith, and Paul Witcover reviews The Knight by Gene Wolfe, Conqueror’s Moon: Book One in the The Boreal Moon Tale by Julian May, and The Thackery T. Lambshead Pocket Guide to Eccentric & Discredited Diseases, edited Dr. Jeff Vandermeer & Dr. Mark Roberts (I will assume this is tongue in cheek); in the artist gallery, Jane Frank covers the art of Lisa Snellings; and in the gaming column, Eric T. Baker reviews Draconomicon (an obvious riff on H.P. Lovecraft’s Necronomicon) for the Dungeons & Dragons line, The Player’s Guide to Low Clans, a supplement from White Wolf for the Dark Ages: Vampire line, the RPG, Viking Age, Hunter the Reckoning: Redeemer, the third in the series and second for the Xbox, the RPG, Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge, and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon for the PS2. There is no past lives column this issue.
On to the fiction …
The lead story is “In a Tower High” by Pamela D. Lloyd. I guess the best to describe this one is an anti-fairy tale. This one takes place in modern times, and depicts a working woman in the city. At every turn in the story (which is basically a depiction of her life at the moment), we are introduced to the fairy tale equivalent, or rather the anti-fairy tale equivalent, which go on to demonstrate why this woman’s life is no fairy tale. I should add that I don’t mean to make it sound like this is a sad tale, or that the protagonist is miserable. Far from it. Her life is just utterly devoid of fairy tale sensibilities. Art to this one was provided by Laurie Harden, which marks her thirteenth illustration in the magazine.
Next up is “Israbel” by Tanith Lee, which marks her eleventh appearance in the magazine. This time Tanith takes on vampires, setting the story in Paris. One of the common traits is vampires is that they can’t see their reflection. So in this one a beautiful vampire hires an artist to paint her portrait, so that she can finally look at herself once more. It’s a clever twist, I think, and things only become more twisted when the matter of payment is discussed and the artist wishes to become a vampire. A human wishing to become a vampire isn’t exactly knew, but how humans become vampires in this one, along with what happens after he makes his request are both elements that help make this one a worthwhile addition to this crowded area of fantasy/horror. Art to this one was provided by Patrick Arrasmith, which marks his twelfth illustration in the magazine.
After this we have “The King’s Snow” by Josh Rountree. According to her old (and now defunct) slush site, Josh is one of Carina Gonzalez’s slush survivors. As to his story, this one is a high fantasy tale taking place in a world whose inhabitants wish to avoid being subjected to the King’s Snow, a terrible winter storm from what I gathered. In order to avoid this fate, the king periodically selects a Daggerbearer, basically his chosen champion to once more do battle with and slay the mysterious creature known as the Turion. Each time, the Daggerbearer is accompanied by the Witness, the lone person who accompanies the Daggerbearer on his journey from beginning to end. In this one, the Daggerbearer turns out to be an unwilling hero, a farmer and a devoted father who wants nothing to do with the glory of being a Daggerbearer. Yet he’s intent on doing his duty to king and providing his son a future, something that can’t happen if he doesn’t slay the Turion. Of course, as every high fantasy fan knows, it’s traits such as these that help make the protagonist even more of a hero! Art to this one was provided by Eric Fortune, which marks his second illustration in the magazine.
Then we have “The Tao of Flynn” by Eric M. Witchey, which marks his second appearance in the magazine. This one deals with insurance salesmen. Richard is the best salesmen in the office …until Flynn comes along. Every time Flynn visits a potential customer, he gets the sale. Every single time. No one sells every single time out. Cooper the boss gets suspicious, so he orders Richard to spend the day with Flynn, to make sure that Flynn is with the program, a set of guidelines Cooper expects everyone to follow when seeking a sale. So Richard spends the day with Flynn …and there’s something about this guy. Charming as can be, almost too charming. Almost as if there’s something magical about him. Everyone is anxious to hear what Flynn has to say, wants to be his friend, wants to talk to him. And so on. And yet there’s nothing sinister going on. Not one bit. Flynn is a good guy, which is why Richard takes to his program (and really, you would too). Cooper doesn’t like this one bit, which is why he puts a plan into action to take both Flynn and Richard down. But that Flynn …oh he’s tricky. Art to this one was provided by Andy B. Clarkson, which marks his second illustration in the magazine.
Following this we have “Portrait of an Unidentified Angel” by Wendy A. Shaffer. This one takes place during the Renaissance and features a painter named Michelangelo (but not the Michelangelo) who is gravely ill. He is also in hiding for some of his past crimes, and there are those who dearly love to help rush along the end of his life. But all this is pushed to the side when Michaelangelo is visited by a mysterious angel who wishes him to paint its portrait. Given that he’s too weak to travel, flat broke, and the artist in him would love nothing more than to paint this fine specimen, he agrees. But the angel refuses to reveal its identity. Instead, it wishes Michelangelo to guess, promising that if he fails to guess properly, then it will reveal its identity when the portrait is finished. Details about Italy and painting are in abundance in this one, and while I knew what was coming this time around, I still remember the pleasant surprise I encountered the first time I read this one come the story’s end. Art to this one was provided by Dave Leri, which marks his third illustration in the magazine.
Finally we have “Calamity Warp” by Gene Wolfe, which marks his fourth appearance in the magazine. This one is a short but odd tale about the new pet dog that is able to move through space-time. That creates some serious problems when the dog starts fetching things out of space-time. Eventually she brings back a new shadow to her master …and the shadow decides to stay. Art to this one was provided by Laurie Harden, which marks her fourteenth illustration in the magazine. I believe this also makes her the first artist to have two illustrations in back to back issues.
So that wraps up this issue. And my favorite story? *Hesitates* I can’t choose which one I like more. Therefore, I declare our first tie, between “The Tao of Flynn” by Eric M. Witchey and “Portait of an Unidentified Angel” by Wendy A. Shaffer. And my favorite artwork? Dave Leri’s illustration to “Portrait of an Unidentified Angel” by Wendy A. Shaffer. Next time I’ll get back to discussing stuff I haven’t read, with the June 2004 issue.
Until then …
Realms of Fantasy: February 2004 (Issue 57)
Part fifty-seven in my ongoing retrospective as I read the fiction to the back issues of Realms of Fantasy and offer my thoughts, right up to the present. This time around the February 2004 issue steps up to the plate.
The cover to this one is another LOTR movie cover. This is the fourth LOTR movie cover, the fourth movie cover overall, and the sixth media cover.
A rundown of this issue’s nonfiction is as follows:
In the movie/TV column, Resa Nelson covers the final LOTR movie, The Return of the King; in the Folkroots column, Ari Berk discusses various facets of northern European folklore, particularly Kalevala; in the past lives column, Emma Bull discusses finding your niche if you want to be a part of Renaissance fairs and such; in the adult books column, Gahan Wilson reviews five volumes that collect much of Manly Wade Wellman’s work, these being, The Third Cry to Legba and Other Invocations, The Devil is Not Mocked and Other Warnings, Fearful Warnings, Fearful Sin’s Doorway and Other Ominous Entrances, and Owls Hoot in the Daytime and Other Omens, as well as The Boats of the “Glen Carrig” and other Nautical Adventures by William Hope Hodgson, Midnight Sun, which gathers all the short fiction and poems about Karl Edward Wagner’s Kane, A Choir of Ill Children by Tom Piccirilli, Veniss Underground by Jeff VanderMeer, and Paul Witcover reviews Fudoki by Kij Johnson, Tooth and Claw by Jo Walton, and Mortal Suns by Tanith Lee; in the artist gallery, Karen Haber covers the artwork of Greg Spalenka; and in the gaming column, Eric T. Baker reviews Final Fantasy XI for the PC, Disgaea: Hour of Darkness for the PS2, Otogi: Myth of Demons for the Xbox, and the RPG, Orpheus, from White Wolf Publishing.
On to the fiction …
The lead story is “The One Who Conquers” by Bruce Holland Rogers, which marks his seventh appearance in the magazine. This is a dark fairy tale about a tribe of trolls who are visited by a strange voice that goads to attack the humans on the surface, so that they might take over the humans’ towns and have all the comforts they do. The voice provides them all sorts of advice and protection, and everything goes accorrding to plan when the trolls do as their new god tells them. Unfortunately for these trolls, everything is also going according to plan for the voice. Art to this one was provided by Laurie Harden, which marks her eleventh illustration in the magazine.
The next story is “Still Man” by William R. Eakin, which marks his sixth appearance in the magazine. Like his five previous tales in ROF, this one takes place in the town of Redgunk, Mississippi. In this one, there are stories that circulate among the folk of Redgunk about a man they call the Still Man, part of the reason being the special brand of moonshine he makes in his stills. Still Man also happens to be experimenting with AI. For the most part, people give him a wide berth, because of some of the darker rumors surrounding him. But all that changes when a young woman from social services comes to his home, looking for his daughter. When the social worker drinks this special moonshine, primal truths are unlocked in the bargain. Art to this one was provided by Brian Horton.
Then we have “Tiny Flowers & Rotten Lace” by Jay Lake. The protagonist in this one is a young boy, but to me this one feels less like middle-grade fantasy and more like horror. In this one, our protagonist has a mother who’s gone insane and a cruel father that keeps her locked in the bedroom at all hours. At the beginning of the story, he’s being pursued a mysterious brick monster. Given his family situation and how he gets picked on at school, he doesn’t really have anyone to turn to. But although he’s scared and isolated, gradually he manages to uncover the dark secrets of his family. In the bargain, he learns who true monster is. Art to this one was provided by Lori Koefoed, which marks her eighth illustration in the magazine.
After this we have “Rattler” by Gene Wolfe & Brian Hopkins. For Wolfe, it marks his third appearance in the magazine. For Hopkins, I can only assume this is the same Brian Hopkins who co-wrote “The Hounds of Winter” with James Van Pelt back in the August 1999 issue of ROF. That would make this his second appearance in the magazine. This would also make him the first author to co-write stories with two different authors have them published in the magazine. As to the story itself, it’s about a car that’s inhabited by the spirit of a man’s dead dog. Not much more I can say, since this one is all in the telling. Art to this one was provided by Joel F. Naprstek, which marks his seventh illustration in the magazine.
Following this we have “The Flowers of Tekheli” by Liz Williams, which marks her fifth appearance in the magazine. This one takes place in the nation of Kazekhstan. In it, a young woman is in a car accident with her brother and his friends. Her brother’s friends are killed, but the woman’s brother mysteriously disappears. Eventually it’s discovered that he’s being held captive by the ancient and vengeful spirit of a young woman. In life, this spirit was a poet, but some young men did something terrible to her, which cost her the ability to use her voice. Since she didn’t know how to write, she could no longer perform her poetry. Hence the whole vengeful spirit angle toward young men. It falls to the young woman to rescue her brother while appeasing a spirit that seems inconsolable. Art to this one was provided by Allen Douglas, which marks his third illustration in the magazine.
Next up is “Power Sources” by Julia H. West. Depending on how you look at this one, it could be termed science fiction or fantasy. A modern-day woman storyteller has traveled to another planet to learn their methods of storytelling, which involves using living fibers (such as a sample of someone’s hair), which in turn draws on the planet’s “energies.” We’re never really told what these energies are, which is fine. But because it remains nebulous, it falls to the reader decide whether these energies are magical, of if there is a more scientific explanation. The protagonist in this one considers it magic, so that could sway some readers to argue this is fantasy. Personally, this read like unexplained science fiction to me, but not to the degree that I’ll argue the relevance of it belonging in a fantasy magazine. Art to this one was provided by Michael Kerr, which marks his fourth illustration in the magazine.
Finally we have “Heart’s Desires” by Nina Kiriki Hoffman, which marks her second appearance in the magazine. This one takes place during Halloween. I haven’t been keeping track of this particular fact, but it may be our first Halloween story. Anyway, this is a short piece about some trick-or-treaters who visit the house of what turns out to be a witch. When one of the boys has an attack because of his sickness, we’re shown how you needn’t always fear what you don’t understand. Art to this one was provided by Laurie Harden, which marks her twelfth illustration in the magazine.
So that wraps up this issue. And my favorite story? “The One Who Conquers” by Bruce Holland Rogers. And my favorite artwork? Brian Horton’s illustration to “Still Man” William R. Eakin. Next time around I’ll discuss the April 2004 issue.
Until then …
