Sci-fi and Heroic Fantasy discussion
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The Best Science Fiction & Fantasy of the Year, Volume Nine
Best SF&F of Year #9 discussion
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"I Met a Man Who Wasn’t There" by K. J. Parker
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★★�Synopsis:
“Apparently,� I said, “you can teach me how to walk through walls, stop the flow of time and kill people with a single stare.� I waited. He didn’t say anything. “Is that right?�
And so, the narrator starts as a magic adept. The magic works, although the narrator is always sceptical. He doesn't attend yet another boring magic school but it turns out completely different with lots of twists and turns.
Review: Funny con-men story employing its greatest strength: Constant surprises. In addition, you'll get a nice character study of a reluctant rogue and some philosphical musings about learning. The lightness in tone reminds me a lot of The Lies of Locke Lamorra.
I liked this when I read it in , liked it just as much the second time around. (Also reminds me again how much I'm going to miss Subterranean.) I'm also really getting to like KJ Parker, and luckily have quite a nice backlog of his books to look forward to reading!
A roguish con man's story, also reminded me of Locke Lamora (an impression no doubt helped because I'm currently reading Red Seas Under Red Skies. I rather enjoy its cynical take on the world, "If we'd all been born in darkness and someone invented the Sun, the first we'd know about it was when someone used it to burn his way into the First Consolidated Bank.". (A more conventional version of that quote would be, "If we all been born in darkness and someone invented the Sun, the first we'd know about it was when someone used it to sell porn.")
It's fun the way the story keeps twisting directions. Solid story & setting, interesting characters, fund prose.
★★★★
A roguish con man's story, also reminded me of Locke Lamora (an impression no doubt helped because I'm currently reading Red Seas Under Red Skies. I rather enjoy its cynical take on the world, "If we'd all been born in darkness and someone invented the Sun, the first we'd know about it was when someone used it to burn his way into the First Consolidated Bank.". (A more conventional version of that quote would be, "If we all been born in darkness and someone invented the Sun, the first we'd know about it was when someone used it to sell porn.")
It's fun the way the story keeps twisting directions. Solid story & setting, interesting characters, fund prose.
★★★★
Enjoyed this --I usually like Parker & he seems to have a gift for short fiction that feels substantial/ satisfying (as well as, obviously, black humor). Great first & last lines in this one.(I haven't read any "Tom Holt" -- he seems to be known for a much sunnier kind of humor.)
Sci-fi and Heroic Fantasy
Books mentioned in this topic
Red Seas Under Red Skies (other topics)The Best Science Fiction & Fantasy of the Year, Volume Nine (other topics)
"I Met a Man Who Wasn’t There" by K. J. Parker
This story can be read on-line for free .
This story is part of the The Best SF&F of the Year, vol 9 (2014) group anthology discussion.