Rating: 
Summary: Good clean fun
Review: ... in a bawdy house. Well, they're supposed to be clean and they're supposed to be fun, right? These are basically feel-good stories, and they work. I mean "feel-good" in the emotional sense. Despite a few harsh scenes, all who deserve it (and some who don't) live happily ever after. The entertainers and the clientele certainly feel each other well, too. That, however, is all hidden tastefully off stage or under euphemism. I wouldn't have any qualms about any kid I know reading the book. You may find this book filed with science fiction. That's probably because of the writer's other work and not because of these stories' content. The SF-ish parts appear only briefly, once to get a story started and once to get a story ended. If you're not a SF fan, there's still plenty here for you. It's light, fluffy, and fun. When you're done with deep meanings and grand literature for the day, give this one a try.
Rating:
Summary: Good clean fun
Review: ... in a bawdy house. Well, they're supposed to be clean and they're supposed to be fun, right? These are basically feel-good stories, and they work. I mean "feel-good" in the emotional sense. Despite a few harsh scenes, all who deserve it (and some who don't) live happily ever after. The entertainers and the clientele certainly feel each other well, too. That, however, is all hidden tastefully off stage or under euphemism. I wouldn't have any qualms about any kid I know reading the book. You may find this book filed with science fiction. That's probably because of the writer's other work and not because of these stories' content. The SF-ish parts appear only briefly, once to get a story started and once to get a story ended. If you're not a SF fan, there's still plenty here for you. It's light, fluffy, and fun. When you're done with deep meanings and grand literature for the day, give this one a try.
Rating: 
Summary: A Pun-filled Romp
Review: After reading several of the Callahan's Place books, I decided to try the Lady Sally series. Not as enjoyable or as deep, in my opinion, but still an interesting read. As in many of Callahan's books, the exposition takes forever. And just as typically, there is a huge Deus ex machina at the end. This particular one really insulted my intelligence. The wrap-up was just too easy and convenient.
If puns are not your thing, avoid all of Robinson's books!
Rating: 
Summary: Wonderfully bawdy sci-fi romp with just enough seriousness
Review: At the urging of my girlfriend I just read "Callahan's Lady" and "Lady Slings the Booze," even though I'd not thought much of Spider Robinson's "Callahan's Crosstime Saloon." I am VERY glad I listened to her. In addition to the wonderfully atrocious puns, Robinson has created what could be the nicest place on Earth to go to for escape: Lady Sally's House. In addition to the witty and good-taste portrayal of sexuality and eroticism, Sally's House is a place of warmth, love and comfort, where joy is shared as much as it is at Callahan's Saloon if not even more so. All the characters who populate the House are people I have, in just the space of two books in 2 weeks, come to think of as dear friends, who I now find I sorely miss since Robinson's proposed 3rd Sally book has not yet been written or released. The chapters involving Colt are perhaps the funniest and most arousing section of the book, enhanced because of the serious treatment of his dilemma. Maureen/Sherry is a great protagonist, and I shared her pain and despair when she thought she was too late to save The Professor from a mobster. And even the very beginning of the book is enough to make me shake my head and laugh - a werebeagle. A WEREBEAGLE??? Oy vey! And may I say I think I am in love with Dr. Kate! And Lady Sally herself is the perfect combination of friend, lover, mother and madam. If only we had a lot more people like her in this world, it would be a better place. I must count both "Callahan's Lady" and "Lady Slings the Booze" as among my most favorite books of all time. They are wonderfully bawdy fun with a sci-fi twist and enough serious elements to make one think hard and to care about the lives of the characters. It makes me wish the House was somehow real so that *I* could go there myself as a client or an artist. It comes closer to sexual and romantic utopia than anything else I have ever read. Don't let the Lady Sally books slip by you!!!
Rating:
Summary: Responding and Commenting
Review: I read that one previous Amazon reviewer advised that one should "read this book as if it's a collection of short stories, because taken together, this book has no cohesive plot." Well, DUH, fool. Go study up on Spider Robinson. A vast majority of his Callahan stories are just that: short stories. They were written and published ONE AT A TIME. Those of us who are dedicated fans read the "forewards" and pay attention to the history of the author. Others *merely* read. This and other Spider Robinson books are excellent entertainment with morals and underlying lessons for the sorry times in which we live. PAY ATTENTION, as Lady Sally would say.
Rating:
Summary: Responding and Commenting
Review: I read that one previous Amazon reviewer advised that one should "read this book as if it's a collection of short stories, because taken together, this book has no cohesive plot." Well, DUH, fool. Go study up on Spider Robinson. A vast majority of his Callahan stories are just that: short stories. They were written and published ONE AT A TIME. Those of us who are dedicated fans read the "forewards" and pay attention to the history of the author. Others *merely* read. This and other Spider Robinson books are excellent entertainment with morals and underlying lessons for the sorry times in which we live. PAY ATTENTION, as Lady Sally would say.
Rating:
Summary: Responding and Commenting
Review: I read that one previous Amazon reviewer advised that one should "read this book as if it's a collection of short stories, because taken together, this book has no cohesive plot." Well, DUH, fool. Go study up on Spider Robinson. A vast majority of his Callahan stories are just that: short stories. They were written and published ONE AT A TIME. Those of us who are dedicated fans read the "forewards" and pay attention to the history of the author. Others *merely* read. This and other Spider Robinson books are excellent entertainment with morals and underlying lessons for the sorry times in which we live. PAY ATTENTION, as Lady Sally would say.
Rating: 
Summary: Mixed reviews from an avid fan
Review: I'm a Callahan fan and very much a Spider fan, but this book left me fairly disturbed. It's written as a collection of short stories featuring Maureen, a street hooker who's lucky enough to join Lady Sally's house (where I, for one, would love to work, and I never thought I'd say that about a brothel). I love the atmosphere, and I loved being back in it. However, the villains in this book got to me a lot more than Spider's villains usually do. Two of them in particular seemed so utterly amoral that it really bothered me to read about them -- maybe I was just empathizing too much with the main characters -- and the solutions to their problems didn't really fix anything other than to get the main characters out of their immediate jam. Spider usually does much better than this at conflict resolution. Usually, at the end of one of his books, I'm glowing, and really hopeful and happy about the possibilities of the human race. At the end of this one, I was just glad I don't know anyone like Tony Donuts. I think in the end I'll say this: Read it once, then go read Lady Slings the Booze instead. That one is worth a re-read, but I don't think this one is.
Rating:
Summary: Mixed reviews from an avid fan
Review: I'm a Callahan fan and very much a Spider fan, but this book left me fairly disturbed. It's written as a collection of short stories featuring Maureen, a street hooker who's lucky enough to join Lady Sally's house (where I, for one, would love to work, and I never thought I'd say that about a brothel). I love the atmosphere, and I loved being back in it. However, the villains in this book got to me a lot more than Spider's villains usually do. Two of them in particular seemed so utterly amoral that it really bothered me to read about them -- maybe I was just empathizing too much with the main characters -- and the solutions to their problems didn't really fix anything other than to get the main characters out of their immediate jam. Spider usually does much better than this at conflict resolution. Usually, at the end of one of his books, I'm glowing, and really hopeful and happy about the possibilities of the human race. At the end of this one, I was just glad I don't know anyone like Tony Donuts. I think in the end I'll say this: Read it once, then go read Lady Slings the Booze instead. That one is worth a re-read, but I don't think this one is.
Rating:
Summary: Spider writes great short stories
Review: If you treat this book not as a novel, but as a collection of short stories on a recurring theme with recurring characters, it works much better. As a complete novel, though, Spider lacks a cohesive plot. The story of the Lady Callahan, wife of the legendary Mike Callahan and time-traveller, is by turns thoughtful and hilarious. Spider makes a whorehouse sound like a great place to spend an afternoon, and an even better place to live out your career. The chapters (that is, the individual stories) tell of grand stories of the exploits of the employees and patrons of Lady Sally's House. Ever think that a book about a whorehouse couldn't have a happy ending? Think again. Fans of humourous science fiction will likely enjoy this addition to Spider's popular series of books about Mike and Sally Callahan. For someone who has never read any of Spider's work, "Time Travellers Strictly Cash" is a better introduction to the series. Alternately, the short story collection "User Friendly" shows some of Spider's best non-Callahan work.
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