- Hardcover: 208 pages
- Publisher: Prime,US (1 Jan 2005)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 1894815580
- ISBN-13: 978-1894815581
- Product Dimensions: 23.9 x 16.1 x 2 cm
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 4,847,652 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
In the Palace of Repose
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4 reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Stories to Savor
3 Jun 2005
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
With this masterful collection, Holly Phillips has given us a genre-defying set of stories about magic, family, and finding your place in the world. She writes about places that are only slightly removed from our own, places we recognize but find are subtly different.
The title story, about an ancient king whose release may (or may not) cause great chaos in the world, is told matter-of-factly by one of his last remaining guardians. The ending is as sensible as it is surprising. The rest of the stories unfold similarly with delicacy, but never aimlessness. Take your time with this collection -- there is such a richness of characterization and, yes, magic, that you'll want to slow down and enjoy it.
The title story, about an ancient king whose release may (or may not) cause great chaos in the world, is told matter-of-factly by one of his last remaining guardians. The ending is as sensible as it is surprising. The rest of the stories unfold similarly with delicacy, but never aimlessness. Take your time with this collection -- there is such a richness of characterization and, yes, magic, that you'll want to slow down and enjoy it.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
A jewel of a book ...
27 Dec 2005
Format:Hardcover
As a rule, short fiction doesn't interest me much. I prefer novels - there's more time for the detailed development of plot, character, theme, etc. I also enjoy genre-bending fiction. So when I read the fly leaf of this book, I wasn't too thrilled about it being a collection of short stories, but I was willing to give it a try. And I'm very glad that I did.
The writing is concise and lyrical. The stories are gems that still resonate. And the author is a master at setting the mood for each of her stories. I look forward to this author's first novel.
The writing is concise and lyrical. The stories are gems that still resonate. And the author is a master at setting the mood for each of her stories. I look forward to this author's first novel.
A slow start is redeemed by some beautiful stories, but none of them are must-reads. Moderately recommended
17 April 2009
Format:Paperback
Nine stories of the magic that hovers at the edges of the known word, In the Palace of Repose ranges from a girl found in a fairy's palace to a homeless woman invited to magical masked balls, united by quiet storytelling and unique magic. Many of the stories are unremarkable, but the best--"One of the Hungry Ones" was my favorite--are beautiful, striking a balance between magic and meaning and redeeming the collection. Moderately recommended.
I fell in love with Phillips's The Burning Girl, and came to In the Palace of Repose in search of more of her work. What I found did not quite live up to my expectations, but nonetheless offers some beautiful moments. The stories are united by their quiet, concise narrative voice which creates slow, reflective pacing in some stories and distances the reader from the characters in others. It takes a a bit to adjust to this style, so it's just as well the first few stories have attention-grabbing premises but are largely unremarkable: they're enough to make the reader stick around, but not so nuanced that he'll miss anything while he adjusts.
The reader slows and the story quality improves, and the second half of the collection (with a turning point midway through "Pen & Ink") is much better. Detailed descriptions and dreamlike sequences augment the slow pacing, and the magical aspects are subtle and haunting. Some of the stories still falter under the weight of foreshortened plots, but there are moments in the second half which are simply beautiful: unexpected hauntings, fetês like fairy-rounds, unusual magic and realistic emotions all come together to create stories which balance magic against meaning and wrap both in subtle, quiet storytelling. The slow start and a few duds in the lineup make this collection a bit of a disappointment, but the few good stories redeem it--though none of them are must-reads. In the Palace of Repose is good on the whole, but deserves only a mild recommendation: pick it up if you're curious, but don't go out of your way to read it.
I fell in love with Phillips's The Burning Girl, and came to In the Palace of Repose in search of more of her work. What I found did not quite live up to my expectations, but nonetheless offers some beautiful moments. The stories are united by their quiet, concise narrative voice which creates slow, reflective pacing in some stories and distances the reader from the characters in others. It takes a a bit to adjust to this style, so it's just as well the first few stories have attention-grabbing premises but are largely unremarkable: they're enough to make the reader stick around, but not so nuanced that he'll miss anything while he adjusts.
The reader slows and the story quality improves, and the second half of the collection (with a turning point midway through "Pen & Ink") is much better. Detailed descriptions and dreamlike sequences augment the slow pacing, and the magical aspects are subtle and haunting. Some of the stories still falter under the weight of foreshortened plots, but there are moments in the second half which are simply beautiful: unexpected hauntings, fetês like fairy-rounds, unusual magic and realistic emotions all come together to create stories which balance magic against meaning and wrap both in subtle, quiet storytelling. The slow start and a few duds in the lineup make this collection a bit of a disappointment, but the few good stories redeem it--though none of them are must-reads. In the Palace of Repose is good on the whole, but deserves only a mild recommendation: pick it up if you're curious, but don't go out of your way to read it.
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