Mining the Genre Asteroid: THE DRAGON WAITING by John M. Ford
It’s the 15th century, but not the 15th century we know. Julian the Apostate was no apostate in this world, and Europe, from Wales to Byzantium, is pagan. The aforementioned Byzantines are strong and vibrant, with much of Italy and France under their boot, as well as the Balkans and Middle East, and now looking greedily at the British Isles. The British Isles are wracked by a civil war between two noble houses, and, thus, are ripe for the taking; if the right outsider might be groomed for the role and given backing. Henry Tydder, bearing the symbol of a red dragon, seems like a perfect candidate for Byzantium’s plans.
Book Review: Heirs of Grace by Tim Pratt
Rebekah Lull, a Chicago art student, has gotten an offer she can’t refuse. Not without traveling to North Carolina and seeing what its all about anyway. A foundling at birth, Rebekah discovers she’s been named the heir to the estate of Archibald Grace, her biological father. This estate comprises a rambling mansion in the hills of Appalachia and some money that could make life easy for a couple of years. The money’s the easy part. The cute local lawyer? Rebekah’s got him figured. The House, even if it seems to be full of secrets, locked doors and bona fide magical objects, is a little harder to manage, but Rebekah’s game. The relatives, the other would-be Heirs of Grace? Now they are going to be the tricky part.
