I'd been wanting to read this book for a while, so when a chance gift certificate happened along, this was my purchase.  The title struck me right away to the fact that this would not be a scholarly, heavy tome on weighty matters within Firefly and Serenity.  Yes, intellectual issues were discussed, but it was in the manner of real people speaking, not some professor lecturing to a bunch of truant students.</p>

I didn't agree with everything said in the book, and while we can all hate the network which didn't renew Firefly, that same network has given us Bones, and frankly, with lots of market forces in play, the book does degenerate into a bit of Fox is the evil, evil empire, cue Star Wars-ian music, a bit too much of the time.  But, I found each essay broad enough that it differed from its companions, and the lively, yet intelligent tone taken with the works assumed not only did the readers enjoy the show, but yes, also brought their own subtext, and in fact, it is this subtext which gave rise to some of the essays.

If you're watching a television show or a movie for more than the "ooh, pretty pictures" effect, then you're bound to think about it and ponder the various points.  Finding Serenity does just that.  It ponders the points raised in the television series, Firefly, and provides some interesting discussion on them.  A wonderful companion to the television series and the movie, which was released after the book.

So I'm vamp willow.  Not evil vamp Willow, but okay, so I'm evil, because well, gee, it's FUN.  This is an AU dream.  Buffy died and wasn't resurected.  The spell failed or something.  And I, as Willow, was attacked, had my blood drained and all of that, and so I'm a vamp, but I have my soul, I'm still a "good" person (or as good as I, in a vamp willow body could be, heh!).  So this chick I'm dating, can't remember her name, because Tara's out of the picture and had been a long time, sees me, freaks, and then we hug, and she's okay with it. 

Except I have a hunger for a long, thick bite of Angelus.  He's a bit wary, being Angelus and all, and not sure "fluffy" Willow will fit in with his plans.  But I follow him, a biting, and a killing my way through, and then of course, we have a house full of hostages, many of whom are pretty pretty ladies, and so I pick one and start having sex in front of Angelus.  Oh yeah, he want's some of this, but I sit there, and hold his gaze, and am like "sorry boy, you turned it down."  So I'm all naughty and making Angelus all into the watchy. 

Anyway, so I woke up before I could taste Angelus, alas, sigh, why are the dream-gods so cruel? - but I'm really thinking of an AU vamp Willow/Angelus pairing, and how totally awesome that would be.

I just love my subconcious...

And boy do I need some vamp Willow icons.  Me thinks I should probably get a paid account here too.... heh!

Winter Moon
Mercedes Lackey, Tanith Lee, C.E. Murphy
Luna Books
November 2005, Trade-sized paperback, $13.95
ISBN #0-373-80239-0

I’d been trying to get a hold of this anthology for a while, so I was pleasantly surprised when Luna included it as the “free” book I received for trying their services. The three novellas in this volume, I believe, epitomize the blend of rich fantasy, strong female characters, and romantic elements offered by the books in the Luna line. Being a bit of a romantic myself, I prefer a solid “happily ever after” type ending, or at least a strong “happy for now” one. So, the first two novellas in this collection did deliver more solidly on that promise than did the last, but that in no way diminished my enjoyment of this collection, and each story within it.

Moontide by Mercedes Lackey starts off this anthology. In this story, the author takes us back to her Five Hundred kingdoms, only this time, it tells the tale of the daughter of the lord of a Sea-Keep sent off to fosterling. Her father wants her back, and she’s certain it’s for a marriage proposal. However, the proposal doesn’t exactly materialize, and what she discovers means treason against the crown. She has only the skills she learned as one of the Countessess’ “Grey Ladies” and a Fool, on which she can rely. Will it be enough to stop a threat to not only the King’s person, but his very kingdom?

Having been disappointed with the author’s work of late, I’m very pleased to have found a story which drew me in and kept me turning pages. Our heroine is a strongly drawn character, with a strength of will and a keen mind, which makes her the perfect foil for her father’s plans. With the Fool, a man who is never quite completely drawn, we’re shown that in him, she has a partner to help save the king. While the romance is understated, it is there, and is satisfactorily wrapped up in the story. I certainly hope we see more of the Grey Ladies in future stories.

The Heart of the Moon by Tanith Lee is the middle story. A warrior, wounded by the betrayal of a man she called lover and a woman she called friend, finds herself cursed. When she’s sent to the Isle of the Moon she finds herself on a spiritual journey and meets a man similarly betrayed. As they work through their issues, they discover a love for each other. Except once their time of the isle is over, they’re torn apart, and have to find their way to each other.

I’ll be honest, I hadn’t been impressed with Tanith Lee’s contributions to romance anthologies in the past, and I didn’t expect much this time around. However, this story with is poignant characterization and the emotional trails of the characters, created a compelling read, and once that impressed this reader. The Heart of the Moon is a journey of the heart.

Banshee Cries by C.E. Murphy, ended the anthology. An author whose work I wanted to read, I found myself eagerly looking forward to this story. A reluctant beat cop has to come to grips with her shamanic power, her dead mother, and her position within the police department.

I found the characterization and sense of place in this story; however, I kept looking for romantic content and found it lacking. This was mentioned as being book 1.5 of the series, so perhaps reading the first book would help ground the reader in the world and the sense of place. However, as an urban fantasy story, this tale does its job in creating an otherworldly sense to our day-to-day lives, and the narrator’s unique and strong voice makes it a page-turning read.

for my Mal ficlet for the Summer of Malcontent over at firefly_fiction. It's probably about 2000 words... more like a vignette than a story... but I've never done firefly fanfic so me, a tad bit nervous. :)

Thanks so much!

http://www.mkwintersong.com

I need to work on expanding it, of course, but I'm pretty ticked that I've gotten this far. :)

Off to Demi Con today. Woohoo!!!

The fanfiction stories (Her Perfect Present, my Christmas Spuffy story written for caliente_uk and Normal Guy 3) are up on the site, as are the bookreviews that I had posted in this blog. And, thanks to Myra I fixed the HTML code on the fanfic and reviews page so that way it didn't all run together. So hooray!!!!!!!!!!

I think we're all up and live. Now to get time to finish the two Fanfic stories I'm working on at the moment. :) (Normal Guy 4 and Return to Me, which I think will be the start of a very interesting saga).