Rating: 
Summary: A Sterling Example of Storytelling
Review: I have not read Beagle's earlier work (though I have since read Giant Bones). I was suprisingly captivated by this book. I agree with some of the reviewers here that some of the shifts in character perspective are slightly clumsy (it seems odd to include sections by Lisonje and Marinesha if they only appear once or twice), and that some of the storytelling is over-the-top. But in general, I was stunned by the depth of the world which Beagle created. Someone commented that the world he created was stark -- which is precisely why I liked it. It is not filled with sylvan glens, impossibly wise and beautiful elves, dour dwarves, or fantastic dark towers wherein true evil lies. It feels very solid. The characters, through straightforward but powerful language, establish themselves as real people, rather than "high fantasy" sterotyped flat "heroes." Karsh is a man you love and hate; Rosseth is a teenager whose thoughts recall exactly what was going on in you during those years; Lal and Nyanteneri and Lukassa all break through both the "warrior-woman" and the "helpless maiden" roles to become developed characters. And, perhaps most intriguing of all, Beagle leaves mysteries unsolved, questions unanswered. You feel that his world is complete, but he has no need to strut around proving to the reader what a clever man he is for having devolped such a complex, rich reality. I cannot recommend this book enough to those interested in good fantasy which doesn't fall into the traditional traps of the genre.
Rating:
Summary: A heretical take on Peter S Beagle
Review: I kept hearing about Peter S Beagle, so I kept trying his books. I read about half of "The Last Unicorn", and couldn't be bothered to finish it. I read "A Fine and Private Place", and it was OK - well written and unusual, but that's as far as I would go. Then I read "The Folk of the Air" and I thought: what is a writer this good, doing writing a book like that? Is it a famous author, writing a "genre" book under a pseudonym, or what?And then I read "The Inkeeper's Song" and I fell hopelessly, shamelessly in love with it. Never mind the obligatory supernatural climax, which thankfully does not end the book. Never mind some quibbles about plot mechanics. The book is populated by compellingly vivid characters, who by the end become utterly real people, living in a real world. This is writing of a quality verging on magical, which leaves one with the lasting impression of knowing the book's characters in all their quirky, individual humanity - and caring for them! So, ignore those who say that "The Inkeeper's Song" is not up to Beagle's best standard. It IS Beagle's best standard! Just don't read it in the "quick - what happens next?" frame of mind. Read it, and get to know Rosseth, Neyteneri, Lal (Swordcane Lal, Saylor Lal, Lal Alone, Lal After Dark) and all the others. It is worth it. Believe me it is worth it! And I don't rave easily.
Rating:
Summary: A heretical take on Peter S Beagle
Review: I kept hearing about Peter S Beagle, so I kept trying his books. I read about half of "The Last Unicorn", and couldn't be bothered to finish it. I read "A Fine and Private Place", and it was OK - well written and unusual, but that's as far as I would go. Then I read "The Folk of the Air" and I thought: what is a writer this good, doing writing a book like that? Is it a famous author, writing a "genre" book under a pseudonym, or what? And then I read "The Inkeeper's Song" and I fell hopelessly, shamelessly in love with it. Never mind the obligatory supernatural climax, which thankfully does not end the book. Never mind some quibbles about plot mechanics. The book is populated by compellingly vivid characters, who by the end become utterly real people, living in a real world. This is writing of a quality verging on magical, which leaves one with the lasting impression of knowing the book's characters in all their quirky, individual humanity - and caring for them! So, ignore those who say that "The Inkeeper's Song" is not up to Beagle's best standard. It IS Beagle's best standard! Just don't read it in the "quick - what happens next?" frame of mind. Read it, and get to know Rosseth, Neyteneri, Lal (Swordcane Lal, Saylor Lal, Lal Alone, Lal After Dark) and all the others. It is worth it. Believe me it is worth it! And I don't rave easily.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting read!
Review: I love the way inwhich "The Innkeeper's Song" was written. The format follows that of an interviewing type which I thought was excellent! It kept me guessing and wondering. Even now, I still wonder what REALLY happened in the story. It's one of those I like to read again and again. (I don't think there was any part of the story that Beagle thought was unnecessary.)I loved it!
Rating:
Summary: Something new at last
Review: I was waiting for this. A fantasy novel that doesn't involve games of state (I guess I should say kingdom), plots of kings and princes, teenage hero + party of five deliver world from evil doom, or the quest for the magic sword. Instead, you get treated to a very quiet tale about a couple of characters who all converge at an inn. No earth-shattering battles. Rather, the tale deals with questions of loyalty and friendship in a very personal way, never overdoing it, not going for the cheap drama. If the plot is rather simple, the book more than makes up for it with the characters and world-building. Beautiful writing and a fresh taste.
Rating: 
Summary: Good, but not Beagle's Best
Review: I'm in agreement with several other reviewers of "The Innkeeper's Song." Without a doubt, Peter S. Beagle is an outstanding writer who never ceases to offer up surprising, on-target yet offbeat descriptions and analogies that leap off the page like fleas and take me by delighted surprise. Unlike my other two Beagle favorites, "A Fine and Private Place" and "The Folk of the Air," however, "The Innkeeper's Song" just didn't hold together for me. The climactic good-vs.-evil scene in which the Fox revealed his true nature (which was...what?) and Lukassa transformed into...what? was vague and unsatisfying. I shouldn't read through 300+ pages and be left wondering...what exactly happened back there? I do think Beagle used well the device of telling his tale from the various characters' POVs. I just wish there had been a more definite resolution to the tale.
Rating:
Summary: Watch out folks...
Review: I've read that this is Beagle's favorite of his stories. It's not mine. Captivated by Beagle's work, I devoured this book in search of a continuation (of style or feeling) of The Last Unicorn and A Fine and Private Place. This book is not at all what I was looking for. To make a true judgement on the book, I'd have to read it again - I was really just too shocked to see this book for what it was instead of what it wasn't. This book has an orgy in it - not a bad thing, but not exactly The Last Unicorn either, now is it? I guess it was kind of like trying to recapture your childhood, only to find that you've become and forever will be an adult.
Rating:
Summary: Weird, troubling, touching, beautiful, unforgettable
Review: Peter Beagle has a reputation as a young adult's author -- why, I'll never know. I didn't much like him as a teenager, but the older I get, the more I admire and enjoy his fantasies. The Innkeeper's Song is a beautiful book, but certainly better for 30 than 13 -- unless, perhaps, for a 13-year-old who has already had to deal with death. It concerns attempts to cheat death by magic, and the strange and unforeseen consequences, both good and ill, of raising a drowned young woman from the dead. The book is also noteworthy for a varied and unforgettable cast of characters who take turns narrating the story, giving the reader many perspectives on the same events and aiding suspense by concealing certain facts until the narrator shifts to someone in the know. Beagle's writing is so beautiful it's practically musical. I recommend this book highly to anyone who loves fantasy, folklore, mythology, and the grand old tradition of storytelling.
Rating:
Summary: Weird, troubling, touching, beautiful, unforgettable
Review: Peter Beagle has a reputation as a young adult's author -- why, I'll never know. I didn't much like him as a teenager, but the older I get, the more I admire and enjoy his fantasies. The Innkeeper's Song is a beautiful book, but certainly better for 30 than 13 -- unless, perhaps, for a 13-year-old who has already had to deal with death. It concerns attempts to cheat death by magic, and the strange and unforeseen consequences, both good and ill, of raising a drowned young woman from the dead. The book is also noteworthy for a varied and unforgettable cast of characters who take turns narrating the story, giving the reader many perspectives on the same events and aiding suspense by concealing certain facts until the narrator shifts to someone in the know. Beagle's writing is so beautiful it's practically musical. I recommend this book highly to anyone who loves fantasy, folklore, mythology, and the grand old tradition of storytelling.
Rating:
Summary: Beagle surpasses his own high standard
Review: Peter Beagle ranks so far above the rest of the field of contemporary fantasy writers that he really merits his own genre. His (sadly infrequent!) novels have grown steadily more sure and sophisticated over the years, and "The Innkeeper's Song" is the finest among them. The narration switches hands among nearly a dozen characters, and much of the depth of the tale comes from this confusion of perspective, and the uncertainty of the motivations and even the true identities of many of the characters. Despite all this complexity, "The Innkeeper's Song" is an immensely warm and exciting story, set in an absolutely believable fantasy universe which is happily free of the cliches of the genre. This is as good as it gets
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