Jeanne C. Stein
Author of The Becoming
About the Author
Image credit: Kelly Weaver Photography/ Denver
Series
Works by Jeanne C. Stein
Associated Works
Whedonistas!: A Celebration of the Worlds of Joss Whedon by the Women Who Love Them (2011) — Contributor — 109 copies, 4 reviews
At the Scene of the Crime: Forensic Mysteries from Today's Best Writers (2008) — Contributor — 34 copies, 3 reviews
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Legal name
- Stein, Jeanne Cline
- Birthdate
- 20th Century
- Gender
- female
- Nationality
- USA
- Places of residence
- Colorado, USA
San Diego, California, USA
Members
Reviews
Lists
Awards
You May Also Like
Associated Authors
Statistics
- Works
- 22
- Also by
- 12
- Members
- 3,483
- Popularity
- #7,300
- Rating
- 3.6
- Reviews
- 137
- ISBNs
- 48
- Languages
- 3
- Favorited
- 9
The first story 'Magic Dreams' is set in Andrews' Kate Daniels universe, about Dali, a brilliant Indonesian woman who is called upon when her crush is exposed to deadly magic. It's a solid story, although I feel like Dali's personality doesn't come through well; she mostly seems like a young, awkward girl with a giant crush on a powerful man. This is in contrast with the confident woman of the Daniels' series, who volunteers for death matches and pretends she's a professional race-car driver. Still, it has fun mythology and gives a little more insight into another corner of Atlanta. Three stars.
The second story, 'Ice Shards' by Yasmine Galenorn is utterly incomprehensible, over-wrought, over-written drivel of the sort a clever fifteen-year-old who reads too much Juliet Marillier might write. Twenty pages was enough to make me swear off reading for the evening, poisoned by the language sinking into my brain. In an effort to purge it, I'll share: "I stared at Grandmother Coytoe's portal. We were standing in the middle of a snow-shrouded wood, in the Belles-Faire district of Seattle, a few miles from home. But we were about to travel through the veil, to the Otherworld, the land of Camille's birth. From there we would journey to the Northlands, the world I'd left behind so long ago, when I'd been branded a murderer, stripped of my strongest powers, and cast out of the order of Undutar, the Goddess of the Mist and Snow." That's on page three, in case you were wondering. No, you don't get more explanation that makes sense.
How about our heroine? "Most people thought I was a pushover, an easy mark, since I was so short and petite. Some assumed I was mild and delicate; others thought I was a cozy maid. But I'd seen too much to ever be mild or cozy or an easy mark. I hid my memories well, but they were always there to fuel the need to fight." Gack. What is a 'cozy maid?' Why are we bringing memories into it? And believe me, in twenty pages, there wasn't any fighting, just a tear or two, a meeting in a bar and etc., etc., yawners. One star.
The third story, 'Double Hexed,' by Allyson James, is a fun urban fantasy and will probably appeal to fans of Kate Daniels. A hotel owner, her boyfriend, a couple of staff members and others are trapped in the hotel by a hex. The protagonist is a no-nonsense heroine that is looking out after her friends. James has a straight-forward writing style with interesting magical-being building, although I could have passed on the tantric magic. Interesting integration of Southwest Native mythology with conceptions of withcraft, vampires and black magic. Three stars.
The final story, 'Blood Debt,' by Jeanne C. Stein feels a little knock-off-ish and unfinished, but with potentially interesting bones. A woman who was recently made a vampire is called to account for killing a murderous witch by powers from the other world. Straight-forward prose. Choppy with partial sentences. Love-at-first-sight love interest (see what I did there?) Two stars.
Overall, definitely don't buy. Worth picking up only if you want to see a novella by one of the authors you enjoy.… (more)