title: Changing the Worldauthor: Mercedes Lackey
series: Tales of Valdemar #5
published: 9 December 2009
publisher: DAW
genre(s): fantasy
pages: 343
source: bought
format: eBook
buy/shelve it: Amazon | B&N | BookBub | StoryGraph | Goodreads
rating:
| series rating: the blurb
In March 1987, a young author from Oklahoma published her first novel, Arrows of the Queen. This modest book about a magical land called Valdemar was the beginning of a fantasy masterpiece that would span decades and include more than two dozen titles. Now sixteen of today’s hottest fantasy authors—including Tanya Huff, Mickey Zucker Reichert, Fiona Patton, and Judith Tarr—visit the world of Valdemar, adding their own special touches.
my review
The short stories in this collection, written by both Mercedes Lackey and a variety of other invited writers, are a lovely “gift” of sorts to the Valdemar series. They embody both the feel of the world and that of the characters, weaving together old characters and new in ways completely in keeping with the world established by Lackey herself.
With one exception. “Interview with a Companion” by Benjamin Ohlander.
This story was set in the real world rather than that of Valdemar. In it, a Companion comes to Kentucky to give an interview with a journalist. To be fair, there is nothing wrong with the story. It’s well written, witty and amusing. But its juxtaposition with the rest of the Valdemar stories and books was rather jarring for me. It was so out of place that I had a hard time with it. I confess that I am a bit of a purist when it comes to the Valdemar world.
About Mercedes Lackey
Mercedes entered this world on June 24, 1950, in Chicago, had a normal childhood and graduated from Purdue University in 1972. During the late 70’s she worked as an artist’s model and then went into the computer programming field, ending up with American Airlines in Tulsa, Oklahoma. In addition to her fantasy writing, she has written lyrics for and recorded nearly fifty songs for Firebird Arts & Music, a small recording company specializing in science fiction folk music.
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