An omnibus of fairy tales given a twist by McKillip. In general, I find McKillip's writing to be lyric poetry. In this group of tales, she seems to be more musical. Harrowing of the Dragon of Hoarsbreath was a very frustrating tale of a dragon fighter taking on a dragon whose only fault…so far…is 11 months of winter. A Matter of Music was very good and, true to its title, revolves around music. It also brought in a reference to another of McKillip's stories, In the Forest of Serre. It made me think of "pagan" harvest festivals, people's belief systems, and the power of love whether it be of people or one's passions. A Troll and Two Roses made me think of several fairy tales mingled into one. Snow White and Rose Red and all the tales of bridge trolls. Who knew that a troll could have a heart? Baba Yaga and the Sorceror's Son shows that even Baba Yaga has a sense of humor…and a heart! Fellowship of the Dragon is an odd twist on all the fairy tales in which the various heroes, heroines in our case, are distracted by magical tricks and wander off from their intended paths. I did like our winning heroine's approach when she found her "treasure"…what a comeuppance that was! Lady of the Skulls is a fine entrapment allowing self-judgment to punish the lesser. A most surprising ending. Snow Queen starts out so sadly and ends so well. A tale that every woman should take to heart and hold a true path. Ash, Wood, Fire was nearly incomprehensible. Taking place in a castle kitchen, we observe the frenetic actions as meals are prepared except everyone is addressed as the items they are in charge of: Onion, Fire, Cream, Pastry, Kitchen-Beetle, etc. It does have a lovely incarnation of an ending. Stranger is a scam perpetrated by an artist of colors whose visual art is appreciated by a local weaver. She is entranced by the visual feast but appalled at his use of his skills. A most unexpected and lovely ending. Transmutations is a curious tale of students and professor as they explore the mysteries of life in a laboratory pursuing the alchemical arts. Lion and the Lark is a twist on Grimms' The Singing, Soaring Lark. Witches of Junket is a contemporary setting for a family of witches who must battle an ancient threat. Star-Crossed provides an inside look at what "really happened" between Romeo and Juliet. Voyage into the Heart a mage uses a young virgin to entice a unicorn to be slain for its horn. The sight of the slaughter causes the mage to reconsider. Toad is a more realistic look, from the frog's perspective, of the character of the princess who kisses the toad. Poor king. Poor toad. The CoverI've suddenly realized of what McKillip's covers remind me—those gorgeous, highly-lacquered Russian boxes. They have that same quality of luminous, jeweled depth. Much like her writing. In this case, the cover is of an unearthly white horse posed deep in the forest ridden by a Valkyrie with her cape floating behind her.
This collection of short stories was just beautiful. McKillip is an artist with words, the way she can describe the worlds and weave magic into every single story. I must say, there are some stories that are a lot stronger than others. I particularly fell in love with the first two: "The Harrowing of the Dragon" and "A Matter of Music". Oh but "The Fellowship of the Dragon" was lovely too - and "The Stranger" was just heart-wrenching. Ah, I should probably stop before I list most of the stories. "The Harrowing of the Dragon" is about a boy who comes to save an island from their sleeping dragon - and a girl who wishes he would stop trying to save them. It's just lovely, lovely writing with a different quirk than you would expect."A Matter of Music" was (duh) about music. And oh, McKillip's description of songs and notes soaring through the old castle halls are just heart-stopping. The emotions were tense and beautiful and the ending was just perfect. I am definitely overusing the words "beautiful" and "lovely" to write this review, but really, what else can I do?I almost threw a fit at the end of "The Fellowship of the Dragon" because I wanted to see the end, to continue following these characters. But as I reflected a little (and told myself it's not good to throw fits in public), it really did end perfectly. There are a couple of weak stories that just seem to be based loosely on a fairy tale with a unique spin, but it never quite comes together. "Ash, Wood, Fire" was just a little too odd with not enough concrete points to make sense of the whole story. "Toad" was just boring and a poor way to end the novel. "Star-crossed" was interesting for the premise, but also not very exciting or moving. So there you have it. Some stories are just beautiful, some are meh. But this is one collection worth reading anyway.3.5 stars rounded down. I really would have rounded up, but there were a few too many stories that were subpar. Highly recommended for any fairy-tale lovers out there, or anyone who loves beautiful language.
What do You think about Harrowing The Dragon (2006)?
"The Harrowing of the Dragon of Hoarsbreath" ★★★★☆"A Matter of Music" ★★★★☆"A Troll and Two Roses" ★★★★☆"Baba Yaga and the Sorcerer's Son" ★★★☆☆"The Fellowship of the Dragon" ★★★★☆"Lady of the Skulls" ★★★★☆"The Snow Queen" ★★★★☆"Ash, Wood, Fire" ★★☆☆☆"The Stranger" ★★★☆☆"Transmutations" ★★★☆☆"The Lion and the Lark" ★★★★☆"The Witches of Junket" ★★☆☆☆"Star-Crossed" ★★★☆☆"Voyage into the Heart" ★★★☆☆"Toad" ★★★☆☆
—Aly
It has been some few years since I read anything by Patricia McKillip; I was unsatisfied by her Riddlemaster trilogy, although I liked its first installment pretty well. I tend not to enjoy stories of the general formula: "hero steadily becomes more powerful until practically invincible, yet remains uncorrupted by said power due to his/her humble, kindhearted, and/or underdog upbringing, thus becoming able to defeat the tale's one-dimensional, nigh-omnipotent villain and stop his/her world-ending schemes coming to pass."This collection, however, was quite different. I was transported by nearly every tale in it, a remarkable feat - especially considering that I read these stories while sitting in that most mundane of places, a car repair shop waiting room. They are exquisite. When they aren't original, they either peep around the corners of familiar fairytales - showing up the cobwebs, the side passages, the "minor" characters murmuring about the periphery - or model a new tale after the pattern of the old. McKillip's writing is superb and her stories are haunting, or funny, or thoughtful. Here's a good book for a rainy day... or to keep in the car for when you've got to kill some time in a waiting room.
—J. Aleksandr Wootton
I've been reading two very different fantasy short story collections, this more lyrically written, fantastical one by Patricia McKillip, one of my favorite authors, and The Very Best of Kate Elliott, a darker, more challenging collection. So I'm going to do some drive-by shooting of ratings and opinions on the fifteen stories in this collection, so this review doesn't take all night to write:"The Harrowing of the Dragon of Hoarsbreath": 3.5 stars. Bothering dragons can backfire. Who knew? Moody and atmospheric, but the ending felt a little flat."A Matter of Music": 5 stars. Adventures of a magical bard, a character type I've met before in McKillip's stories, but this story was really well done. Imaginative and surprising."A Troll and Two Roses": 4 stars. Sometimes trolls just want a little love. Sweet and humorous."Baba Yaga and the Sorceror's Son": 3 stars. More humor, of the Russian folk tale variety. Mildly amusing."The Fellowship of the Dragon": 3.5 stars. Another one that felt unfinished, but it had kind of a cool group of female adventurers, off to rescue a guy from a dragon. Some interesting twists."Lady of the Skulls": 4 stars. A lady in a tower is surrounded by magical treasures. Pick the most valuable one and you get them all. Pick wrong and you die a horrible death."The Snow Queen": 5 stars. Kay and Gerda are a young married couple with some issues, and the snow queen is a femme fatale who seduces Kay away from Gerda, in a city encased by winter. But which way lies happiness? I loved this one."Ash, Wood, Fire": 1.5 stars. Short and incomprehensible."The Stranger": 4 stars. A stranger comes to an island, creates magical dragons who ravage the island, and demands a hefty price from the villagers to make them go away. Intriguing."Transmutations": 2.5 stars. Not sure what the point was here."The Lion and the Lark": 4.5 stars. An interesting mix of Beauty and the Beast and a couple of other fairy tales. Beautiful but spoiled princess ("She doesn't listen very well") does her best to steal the guy. Delightful story."The Witches of Junket": 3 stars. Good thing we have witch covens around to keep us safe from ancient menaces."Star-Crossed": 2.5 stars. Straightforward spin-off of Romeo and Juliet, which takes place just after the play ends, as the town tries to figure out what happened to Romeo, Juliet and Paris, and why. Not sure what the point of this one was either. It wasn't particularly interesting."Voyage into the Heart": 3.5 stars. A prince and his mage use a virgin to capture a unicorn, with some unexpected results. Interesting."Toad": 3.5 stars. Explores the "Princess and the Frog" fairy tale. We get it, the girl was a jerk. A little too ambiguous an ending for me.Averages out to 3.6 stars. A few gems here. As always, McKillip's writing is poetic and lovely. If you like fairy tale retellings and aren't too averse to some ambiguity, this collection should appeal to you.
—Tadiana ✩ Night Owl☽
