Charles de Lint, The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, October 2002

“Embraces the age-old struggle between scholars and mystics . . . to bridge the gulf that separates history from mystery. . . . Engaging characters, with their sharp dialogue and complex relationships . . . and the wonderfully realized setting, combine here for one of my favorite books of the year.”

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Don D'Ammassa, Chronicle, October 2002

“I thoroughly enjoyed Ellen Kushner's Swordspoint several years ago, so I was happy to see her return to that richly textured world in her new collaborative fantasy. The age of kings has ended, and although history records that the kings ruled with the aid of powerful wizards, they are largely considered to have been fakes now that their power is no longer in evidence. Theron Campion is a young man studying history, whose collaboration with one of his teachers uncovers a very different story, and implications that the monarchy is not as somnnolent as it appears.

“I could almost have enjoyed this one without a plot. The complex interplay of the characters is a delight in itself, and the authors have accomplished the most difficult task in fantasy — they have created a world of magic that feels authentic. Here's a fantasy novel that won't insult your intelligence, and which almost demands re-reading to catch all the nuances you miss the first time.”

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Harriet Klausner, AllSciFi.com

“The characters, fully developed and complex creations, are prisoners of their place in society, which makes them all the more interesting when they step out of their station in life. The Fall of the Kings is an experience not to be missed.”

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Faren Miller, Locus, October 2002

“In The Fall of the Kings, Kushner and Sherman transplant the stuff of epic fantasy into a sophisticated urban setting . . . ripe for subversion. . . . By avoiding clichéd settings and plot so deftly, the authors tap into fantasy's genuine source of drama, its ability to haunt, appall, transform.”

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Gavin J. Grant, BookPage, November 2002

“For those who like their fantasy soaked in intrigue, history and romance. . . .one of the bawdiest and most intellectually stimulating novels of the year. . . .a virtual treat for all the senses!”

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Kirkus Reviews, September 1, 2002

“Immensely appealing, intelligent, and great fun.”

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Laurie J. Marks, SFRevu.com

“Marries the historical depth and sophistication of Sherman's vision to the vivid, complex characters of Kushner's world. . . . This wonderful story defies predictability at every turn. It presents a society as complex as our own, a society in which there are many kinds of power and many possible affiliations, and in which the people who seek simple independence are the most endangered . . . .

“Elegantly written, rich with conversations, peopled with confused, misled, and sincere protagonists, this novel provides a rare experience of a richly conceived and incessantly surprising world. . . . This book is big enough to live in, and its readers will be glad to take it as their residence.”

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Rachel Manija Brown, Green Man Review

“The book as a whole seems designed to evoke and provoke pleasure. . . .it gives every indication of having been conceived and executed in joy and delight.

“This is a book of witty dialogue, prose as precise as a blow to the heart . . . magic with a true aura of numinous danger, thrilling fights, thrilling scholarly debates, old books, swashbuckling aunts, exquisite clothing, ancient rituals, hot chocolate, female pirates, erotic paintings . . . true love, true kings, and a convincing demonstration of the importance of first sources in historical research. . . . It leaves one with much to consider after the book is closed.”

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Theodora Goss, Strange Horizons

“The novel is so seamless that you will forget it is a collaboration. . . . In The Fall of the Kings, every character becomes important to a plot whose unexpected turns will startle the most careful reader.

“Its focus on historical and political movements, and its attention to the everyday lives of its characters, connect it to the tradition of literary realism. This is what Dickens or Eliot might have written, if they had written fantasy. . . Pick it up and enter a world as complicated as our own, and considerably more colorful.”

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Terri Windling, Endicott Studio, Nov/Dec 2002

“Ellen Kushner's Swordspoint: A Melodrama of Manners took the fantasy world by storm when it was published in the 1980s, and Ellen was hailed as the fantasy field's answer to Dorothy Dunnett. Since then, she has published a handful of stories set in Riverside, the glittering city she created in Swordspoint ó but not until now have we received a whole delicious new Riverside novel. Created with Delia Sherman (author of The Porcelain Dove and other fine historical fantasies), this is quite simply a tour-de-force of mythic fiction, created by two of our field's top writers.”

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