Lace and Blade

by Deborah J. Ross, Catherine Asaro, Dave Smeds, et al.

Introducing LACE AND BLADE -- an original new anthology series of elegant romantic fantasy, edited by Deborah J. Ross, premiering on Valentine's Day 2008.In the spirit of classic period swashbucklers,... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1494488167
• ISBN13: 9781494488161
• Release Date: February 2008
• Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
• Length: 308 Pages
• Weight: 0.91 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Excellent new collection of mannered fantasy

I really enjoyed almost every story in this anthology, most of which have a charming swashbuckling quality to them. These are very mannered fantasy/romance stories, reminiscent of the writings of Tanith Lee, Jack Vance, Alexei Panshin or Ellen Kushner's "Swordspoint." Looking forward to reading Volume 2, which is just out.

Romance, Adventure and Magic--Well Worth the Read

Highwaymen, court intrigue, romance, derring-do, swash-buckling adventure--along with other worlds and magic; it's a potent mix. And a more varied and interesting mix of tales and settings than one would think. There are swordswomen and unwise ingenues, Brazilian magic, werewolves, duels, demons, horrific spells, obsession, betrayal, jewels, unexpected love, dastardly lords, slavery, eunuchs, and royal intrigue; nine tales crafted by Tanith Lee, Catherine Asaro, Sherwood Smith, Diana L. Paxon, Chaz Benchley, Mary Rosenblum, Dave Smeds, Robin Wayne Bailey and Madeleine E. Robins. I am usually not a huge fan of story anthologies, but I found the theme intriguing and well represented by these stories. I found this collection well worth the read and will definitely look for the second collection of LACE AND BLADE.

Sword and Socery lives!

It's diverse, fun, frightening in places and often sexy. What a good literary party this is! The stories are all well done, though a couple of them didn't appeal to me personally. That's the advantage of anthologies, though: you get to pick and choose. I hope Norilana keeps on doing these.

consistently lush

Every time I begin to write this review I start with silly gushes like "couldn't put it down." I'll try to be a little more coherent. This is a diverse collection of skilled authors who bring their unique voices to a common theme. The stories fit very well together without being uniform. The fantasy elements aren't overbearing. In each story, the magic has a natural, sometimes subtle, sometimes strong but integrated feeling. I always had a sense that I was in a real place and time, even though there's no way for a head to be able to do that on our world. There are some fascinating, inventive ideas in this collection that kept me thinking long after I'd reached the end. The cover art transmits the feeling of these stories very well. There's swashbuckling, romance, and a strong sense of culture (but not uniform culture--there's a wide variety of settings.) It's not entirely set in a given century or region, and one of the stories occurs at sea. It's a lush, dangerous, bejeweled group of tales and fans of lace and blade type stories will not be disappointed. The authors are (in order of appearance): Madeleine E. Robins, Diana L. Paxson, Robin Wayne Bailey, Tanith Lee, Dave Smeds, Catherine Asaro, Mary Rosenblum, Chaz Brenchley, and Sherwood Smith. I liked some better than others, but there weren't any stories I would skip on reread. I'm keeping this one, and plan on rereading it many times.

Not only a cool anthology, but the new publisher's track record is tops

This is a fun anthology. A collection of very sexy stories wherein daring and dashing heros and heroines resolve their problems with wit and the threat of a blade. The publisher, Norilana, is new and the book and anthology collections coming from it are, without erring in the books I've read so far, great! Support a new publisher (flesh blood) and get yourself some great reads with this book, Warrior Wisewoman and A Posse Of Princesses.