Previous SFF Author: Catherine Gilbert Murdock
(1973- )
C.E. Murphy writes urban fantasy. She also writes romances under the name Cate Dermody. Read excerpts at C.E. Murphy‘s website.
C.E. Murphybegins Heart of Stone, the first of the Negotiator books, with our main character “Grit” being shadowed by a Gargoyle as she runs through Central Park. The Gargoyle, Alban, is a member of the few Old Races that are hidden in plain sight from the rest of humanity. His tragic history and how it compels him and leads him to eventually interact with Grit is the meat of the tale.
Murphy creates a plausible background and history for this story,
John Hulet´s rating: 3.5 | C.E. Murphy | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Queen’s Bastard by C.E. Murphy
On paper, The Queen’s Bastard is right up my alley. Court intrigue plus magic plus sex? Where do I sign up? I’ve seen comparisons to the Kushiel series and it’s not hard to see why; it’s partly the intrigue/magic/sex combination and partly the prose, which is lush and has moments of exquisite beauty. It was the prose that hooked me from the first page.
Unfortunately, other factors “unhooked” me later in the book, and now I’m three-quarters of the way through The Queen’s Bastard and not really feeling the urge to go on.
Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 3 | C.E. Murphy | SFF Reviews | no comments |
A Fantasy Medley edited by Yanni Kuznia
FORMAT/INFO: A Fantasy Medley is 136 pages long divided over four short stories and is published by Subterranean Press in two editions: A fully clothbound hardcover limited to 3000 copies and a numbered hardcover limited to 200 copies and signed by the authors and editor. Dust jacket by Kristy Doherty.
ANALYSIS:
1) “Zen and the Art of Vampirism” by Kelley Armstrong. “Zen and the Art of Vampirism” is an urban fantasy tale with all of the usual trimmings including a female protagonist,
Robert Thompson´s rating: 4.5 | C.E. Murphy, Kate Elliott, Kelley Armstrong, Robin Hobb | Short Fiction | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Urban Allies edited by Joseph Nassise
I’m always impressed when authors work together, and in Urban Allies, editor Joseph Nassise has managed to pair up twenty authors who not only collaborate, but merge their own characters into ten brand-new and original adventures. Each story shares a similar theme: popular characters from existing series or novels meet up and must join forces in order to defeat a common threat. Since these are urban fantasy authors, every story has a supernatural or paranormal aspect, though the situations and resolutions are completely unique to each tale,
Previous SFF Author: Catherine Gilbert Murdock
What a perceptive and beautiful review. You make it clear that Yamada not only knows the story she wants to…
Read together with The Serpent Mage, the series is one of the best works of art out there. The main…
thanks for this really well-written review. You've definitely piqued my interest in this, particularly in how you highlight the still…
Thanks for the kind words, Ira! Much appreciated!
Fine review