Rating: 
Summary: A real treat -
Review: "Jack the Giant Killer," the first of the two stand-alone stories in this book, was written for the seemingly ill-fated Fairy Tale series edited by Terri Windling. And it's wonderful, a very fresh take on the old "Jack" fairy tales, in which a puckish and courageous and strangely lucky young man slays giants and performs wonders.The biggest, first twist is that the Jack is actually Jacky Rowan - a young woman who has just been dumped by her jerk boyfriend and is facing a crisis when she unwittingly crosses into faerie. This is the best of Charles de Lint's fanstasy Urban Faerie work. Here the world we know lies cheek to jowl with the fantastic realm of faerie. And he makes it work so congruently, it's just great stuff. This is the writing that made his fame. And it's a great story. Jacky and her pals are loveable, interesting people in fantastic circumstances. There are giants to be dealt with, the Unseelie court to be fought and the laird's daughter to be rescued - all against terrible odds. The pacing is very tight, signature de Lint, and it's literally a story you just can't put down until you read the last word. The second story is pretty good, too. I'm a great fan of this author, and this is one of my all-time favorites. Five stars and a pat on the back for some excellent story-telling.
Rating:
Summary: Magical
Review: "Jack the Giant Killer", the first of the two books included in _Jack of Kinrowan_, tells the story of a depressed young woman named Jacky, stunned by her recent breakup, and seeing no point or direction in her life. But one night, she stumbles drunkenly into Faery. Upon hearing that the faery princess of Ottawa has been abducted by the evil Unseelie Court, she volunteers for a rescue mission--despite the fact that every Seelie faery in the city has chickened out and called it a lost cause. She joins forces with some interesting friends, and through luck and resourcefulness, fights the Unseelie Court. Jacky and her best friend, Kate Crackernuts, are wonderful characters, and I was glad to see them in the sequel, _Drink Down the Moon_, the other novel included in this book. Unfortunately, _Drink Down the Moon_ is a little bit of a letdown after _Jack the Giant Killer_. It's still a three- or four-star book in its own right, but it wouldn't stand very well on its own, and Jacky and Kate have too-small roles. The novel's finest moments are those in which Jacky or Kate or both are present, but in _Drink Down the Moon_, Jacky herself has become the "rescue-fodder", and center stage is taken by characters that fail to engage the reader quite as much. I had hoped to see more of Eilian as well. What I really want is for de Lint to write a third installment, in which Jacky and Kate are prominent again, and perhaps challenge the Seelie Court itself, and ask the Laird a few hard questions--like why he's always out of town when he's needed most.
Rating:
Summary: A real treat -
Review: "Jack the Giant Killer," the first of the two stand-alone stories in this book, was written for the seemingly ill-fated Fairy Tale series edited by Terri Windling. And it's wonderful, a very fresh take on the old "Jack" fairy tales, in which a puckish and courageous and strangely lucky young man slays giants and performs wonders. The biggest, first twist is that the Jack is actually Jacky Rowan - a young woman who has just been dumped by her jerk boyfriend and is facing a crisis when she unwittingly crosses into faerie. This is the best of Charles de Lint's fanstasy Urban Faerie work. Here the world we know lies cheek to jowl with the fantastic realm of faerie. And he makes it work so congruently, it's just great stuff. This is the writing that made his fame. And it's a great story. Jacky and her pals are loveable, interesting people in fantastic circumstances. There are giants to be dealt with, the Unseelie court to be fought and the laird's daughter to be rescued - all against terrible odds. The pacing is very tight, signature de Lint, and it's literally a story you just can't put down until you read the last word. The second story is pretty good, too. I'm a great fan of this author, and this is one of my all-time favorites. Five stars and a pat on the back for some excellent story-telling.
Rating:
Summary: A real treat -
Review: "Jack the Giant Killer," the first of the two stand-alone stories in this book, was written for the seemingly ill-fated Fairy Tale series edited by Terri Windling. And it's wonderful, a very fresh take on the old "Jack" fairy tales, in which a puckish and courageous and strangely lucky young man slays giants and performs wonders. The biggest, first twist is that the Jack is actually Jacky Rowan - a young woman who has just been dumped by her jerk boyfriend and is facing a crisis when she unwittingly crosses into faerie. This is the best of Charles de Lint's fanstasy Urban Faerie work. Here the world we know lies cheek to jowl with the fantastic realm of faerie. And he makes it work so congruently, it's just great stuff. This is the writing that made his fame. And it's a great story. Jacky and her pals are loveable, interesting people in fantastic circumstances. There are giants to be dealt with, the Unseelie court to be fought and the laird's daughter to be rescued - all against terrible odds. The pacing is very tight, signature de Lint, and it's literally a story you just can't put down until you read the last word. The second story is pretty good, too. I'm a great fan of this author, and this is one of my all-time favorites. Five stars and a pat on the back for some excellent story-telling.
Rating: 
Summary: voice of.. dissention? moderation?
Review: "The Jack of Kinrowan" is, in my opinion, not a "five-star" book [or duo of books, rather]; it is, though, an awfully fun read. Technically, the writing is inferior even to some of his own shorter stories: there are inconsistencies, holes, and various shabby-looking bits to the writing and the story both. Characters have brown hair one minute, black the next; hot-wiring a car takes only a few seconds of fiddling under the dash, etc. I've conveniently written all these off to the strange and mercurial properties of Faerie, but I'd rather not have had to. He also does a lot of unnecessary explaining and describing. The first rule you're supposed to learn as a writer is "show, don't tell". I'd love to learn the history of Faerie in some other form than a lecture from every other character's lips. And I certainly don't need to know about every single item in someone's apartment, or what album by what artist someone is listening to.. especially when it adds nothing to the story. Use a few adjectives and move on, for heaven's sake. My biggest grumble about the story, though, is mostly subjective: the Jack and her friends get through their various scrapes not by wit or intelligence, but by luck. While this is certainly befitting a Jack, I tend to like my heroes to have to *work* to get to the end of their quests; when the solution to every problem just *happens* to come to them, easy as pie, without them having to really lift a finger, I feel a little intellectually and emotionally cheated. Still, it's a quick and fun read. Recommended to fans of Neil Gaiman and Pamela Dean, et al.
Rating:
Summary: voice of.. dissention? moderation?
Review: "The Jack of Kinrowan" is, in my opinion, not a "five-star" book [or duo of books, rather]; it is, though, an awfully fun read. Technically, the writing is inferior even to some of his own shorter stories: there are inconsistencies, holes, and various shabby-looking bits to the writing and the story both. Characters have brown hair one minute, black the next; hot-wiring a car takes only a few seconds of fiddling under the dash, etc. I've conveniently written all these off to the strange and mercurial properties of Faerie, but I'd rather not have had to. He also does a lot of unnecessary explaining and describing. The first rule you're supposed to learn as a writer is "show, don't tell". I'd love to learn the history of Faerie in some other form than a lecture from every other character's lips. And I certainly don't need to know about every single item in someone's apartment, or what album by what artist someone is listening to.. especially when it adds nothing to the story. Use a few adjectives and move on, for heaven's sake. My biggest grumble about the story, though, is mostly subjective: the Jack and her friends get through their various scrapes not by wit or intelligence, but by luck. While this is certainly befitting a Jack, I tend to like my heroes to have to *work* to get to the end of their quests; when the solution to every problem just *happens* to come to them, easy as pie, without them having to really lift a finger, I feel a little intellectually and emotionally cheated. Still, it's a quick and fun read. Recommended to fans of Neil Gaiman and Pamela Dean, et al.
Rating:
Summary: Funniest of Lint's books
Review: Although this isn't my favorite of Lint's books, it is definitely the funniest one I've ever read as his books aren't normally what you would call a comedy-crossover. Putting together two small books in one convienent cover, this is actually the one I've wished the most for a sequel to. It's a lighter introduction to Lint's world of urban fairie when two young women find themselves catapulted into the fae world without warning. Read it, enjoy it, and then try Moonheart and Greenmantle before you give up and buy all the rest of his books. The only of Lint's books I haven't loved is the short story collections, and only because I find short stories frustratingly well, short.
Rating:
Summary: Funniest of Lint's books
Review: Although this isn't my favorite of Lint's books, it is definitely the funniest one I've ever read as his books aren't normally what you would call a comedy-crossover. Putting together two small books in one convienent cover, this is actually the one I've wished the most for a sequel to. It's a lighter introduction to Lint's world of urban fairie when two young women find themselves catapulted into the fae world without warning. Read it, enjoy it, and then try Moonheart and Greenmantle before you give up and buy all the rest of his books. The only of Lint's books I haven't loved is the short story collections, and only because I find short stories frustratingly well, short.
Rating:
Summary: Mr. DeLint in Top Form
Review: Downtown Ottowa at nighttime - a beautiful place unless you're being pursued by The Unseelie Court, protected by Hobb spells and are in possession of a magical cap of Seeing. Such is Jack of Kinrowan, my favorite urban fantasy book. Ever. Jack of Kinrowan is actually two novellas under one cover - two adventures for the price of one, tho' I would have been happy to pay more (if necessary ;)) In these stories we meet Jacky Rowan, lost, disheveled and fresh out of a bad relationship (which she thought was pretty good) and her best friend Kate "Crackernuts" Hazel. Out of the goodness of their hearts they become emeshed in a plot to defend Ottowa's Faerie denizens from the darker, unsavory elemnts of the Boarderlands (Hey, not all Faeries are sweetness and light. Let's face it, even Tinkerbell was a little hellion for being a "good guy".). Charles DeLint obviously loved writing this novel. It's so real (for being a fantasy) and so intriguing, one feels that he must have actually met these people, and transcribed their story. I wish there were more adventures with these plucky ladies, but, sadly, there have been none (tho' they were referenced in "Spiritwalk"). Get in touch with magic. Read this book.
Rating:
Summary: Mr. DeLint in Top Form
Review: Downtown Ottowa at nighttime - a beautiful place unless you're being pursued by The Unseelie Court, protected by Hobb spells and are in possession of a magical cap of Seeing. Such is Jack of Kinrowan, my favorite urban fantasy book. Ever. Jack of Kinrowan is actually two novellas under one cover - two adventures for the price of one, tho' I would have been happy to pay more (if necessary ;)) In these stories we meet Jacky Rowan, lost, disheveled and fresh out of a bad relationship (which she thought was pretty good) and her best friend Kate "Crackernuts" Hazel. Out of the goodness of their hearts they become emeshed in a plot to defend Ottowa's Faerie denizens from the darker, unsavory elemnts of the Boarderlands (Hey, not all Faeries are sweetness and light. Let's face it, even Tinkerbell was a little hellion for being a "good guy".). Charles DeLint obviously loved writing this novel. It's so real (for being a fantasy) and so intriguing, one feels that he must have actually met these people, and transcribed their story. I wish there were more adventures with these plucky ladies, but, sadly, there have been none (tho' they were referenced in "Spiritwalk"). Get in touch with magic. Read this book.
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