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SERRAted Edge #2-3
The Otherworld
Contains When the Bough Breaks and Wheels of Fire.
ebook
First published February 1, 2000
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509 people want to read
About the author
Mercedes Lackey
432 books9,562 followersMercedes entered this world on June 24, 1950, in Chicago, had a normal childhood and graduated from Purdue University in 1972. During the late 70's she worked as an artist's model and then went into the computer programming field, ending up with American Airlines in Tulsa, Oklahoma. In addition to her fantasy writing, she has written lyrics for and recorded nearly fifty songs for Firebird Arts & Music, a small recording company specializing in science fiction folk music.
"I'm a storyteller; that's what I see as 'my job'. My stories come out of my characters; how those characters would react to the given situation. Maybe that's why I get letters from readers as young as thirteen and as old as sixty-odd. One of the reasons I write song lyrics is because I see songs as a kind of 'story pill' -- they reduce a story to the barest essentials or encapsulate a particular crucial moment in time. I frequently will write a lyric when I am attempting to get to the heart of a crucial scene; I find that when I have done so, the scene has become absolutely clear in my mind, and I can write exactly what I wanted to say. Another reason is because of the kind of novels I am writing: that is, fantasy, set in an other-world semi-medieval atmosphere. Music is very important to medieval peoples; bards are the chief newsbringers. When I write the 'folk music' of these peoples, I am enriching my whole world, whether I actually use the song in the text or not.
"I began writing out of boredom; I continue out of addiction. I can't 'not' write, and as a result I have no social life! I began writing fantasy because I love it, but I try to construct my fantasy worlds with all the care of a 'high-tech' science fiction writer. I apply the principle of TANSTAAFL ['There ain't no such thing as free lunch', credited to Robert Heinlein) to magic, for instance; in my worlds, magic is paid for, and the cost to the magician is frequently a high one. I try to keep my world as solid and real as possible; people deal with stubborn pumps, bugs in the porridge, and love-lives that refuse to become untangled, right along with invading armies and evil magicians. And I try to make all of my characters, even the 'evil magicians,' something more than flat stereotypes. Even evil magicians get up in the night and look for cookies, sometimes.
"I suppose that in everything I write I try to expound the creed I gave my character Diana Tregarde in Burning Water:
"There's no such thing as 'one, true way'; the only answers worth having are the ones you find for yourself; leave the world better than you found it. Love, freedom, and the chance to do some good -- they're the things worth living and dying for, and if you aren't willing to die for the things worth living for, you might as well turn in your membership in the human race."
Also writes as Misty Lackey
Author's website
"I'm a storyteller; that's what I see as 'my job'. My stories come out of my characters; how those characters would react to the given situation. Maybe that's why I get letters from readers as young as thirteen and as old as sixty-odd. One of the reasons I write song lyrics is because I see songs as a kind of 'story pill' -- they reduce a story to the barest essentials or encapsulate a particular crucial moment in time. I frequently will write a lyric when I am attempting to get to the heart of a crucial scene; I find that when I have done so, the scene has become absolutely clear in my mind, and I can write exactly what I wanted to say. Another reason is because of the kind of novels I am writing: that is, fantasy, set in an other-world semi-medieval atmosphere. Music is very important to medieval peoples; bards are the chief newsbringers. When I write the 'folk music' of these peoples, I am enriching my whole world, whether I actually use the song in the text or not.
"I began writing out of boredom; I continue out of addiction. I can't 'not' write, and as a result I have no social life! I began writing fantasy because I love it, but I try to construct my fantasy worlds with all the care of a 'high-tech' science fiction writer. I apply the principle of TANSTAAFL ['There ain't no such thing as free lunch', credited to Robert Heinlein) to magic, for instance; in my worlds, magic is paid for, and the cost to the magician is frequently a high one. I try to keep my world as solid and real as possible; people deal with stubborn pumps, bugs in the porridge, and love-lives that refuse to become untangled, right along with invading armies and evil magicians. And I try to make all of my characters, even the 'evil magicians,' something more than flat stereotypes. Even evil magicians get up in the night and look for cookies, sometimes.
"I suppose that in everything I write I try to expound the creed I gave my character Diana Tregarde in Burning Water:
"There's no such thing as 'one, true way'; the only answers worth having are the ones you find for yourself; leave the world better than you found it. Love, freedom, and the chance to do some good -- they're the things worth living and dying for, and if you aren't willing to die for the things worth living for, you might as well turn in your membership in the human race."
Also writes as Misty Lackey
Author's website
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
June 17, 2008
Two more books to the race-car driving elves series that falls chronologically between the first and second story in The Chrome Borne (?) that I just read.
Yhea, it didn't make much sense to me either.
The first story was pretty good - filling in the story of Joe and the cult he was liberated from that was talked about in the last book. Paced well, and the characters were well faceted. Overall, it wasn't bad.
The second one felt rushed and repetitive. By now I'm pretty tired of the "elves that fall in love with humans" story line (it was overdone after the FIRST one) and the main characters are... dumbed down? I can also see the author having gone to a race track for research and meeting up with some unsavory NASCAR testosterone types - and it leaking out into the characters here. The Brainless Jock as Hero - who never really develops a brain during the story - doesn't carry well here. You just don't really like any of the protagonists. The second story also dealt with Child abuse and it had that train-wreck feel to it. Not wanting to read, but needing to finish the story just so that the bad guy could get creamed and you could sleep a little better at night. I DONT recommend it for anyone with any sort of childhood abuse trauma, the triggering factor is nauseating. The author made a point of pushing the numbers that one in five people have been abused - and I understand her trying to get across the sense that no-one should feel alone in their pain. Yes, good ethical point - but it still hurt the story flow in the end.
Eh. It was heavy on the "just ok" and not my favorite series by this author.
Yhea, it didn't make much sense to me either.
The first story was pretty good - filling in the story of Joe and the cult he was liberated from that was talked about in the last book. Paced well, and the characters were well faceted. Overall, it wasn't bad.
The second one felt rushed and repetitive. By now I'm pretty tired of the "elves that fall in love with humans" story line (it was overdone after the FIRST one) and the main characters are... dumbed down? I can also see the author having gone to a race track for research and meeting up with some unsavory NASCAR testosterone types - and it leaking out into the characters here. The Brainless Jock as Hero - who never really develops a brain during the story - doesn't carry well here. You just don't really like any of the protagonists. The second story also dealt with Child abuse and it had that train-wreck feel to it. Not wanting to read, but needing to finish the story just so that the bad guy could get creamed and you could sleep a little better at night. I DONT recommend it for anyone with any sort of childhood abuse trauma, the triggering factor is nauseating. The author made a point of pushing the numbers that one in five people have been abused - and I understand her trying to get across the sense that no-one should feel alone in their pain. Yes, good ethical point - but it still hurt the story flow in the end.
Eh. It was heavy on the "just ok" and not my favorite series by this author.
March 22, 2021
Having just finished this double feature, I'm at a loss of words, to describe just how powerfully both of them affected me.
That these sort of stories have to be written, is an indictment on our society I feel - but all power to everyone who brings it to our attention!
Both stories, each in their own way, were disturbing, they were powerful in their message, and were heartbreaking, too, especially in the fact that neither situation is unique in human history, even today.
I would so love to be alive when humankind learn not to be this way - but guess that's an impossible dream - at least for now!
That these sort of stories have to be written, is an indictment on our society I feel - but all power to everyone who brings it to our attention!
Both stories, each in their own way, were disturbing, they were powerful in their message, and were heartbreaking, too, especially in the fact that neither situation is unique in human history, even today.
I would so love to be alive when humankind learn not to be this way - but guess that's an impossible dream - at least for now!
January 20, 2019
This was not even close to what it seems. After reading the synopsis and reviews, on the cover, I was expecting something much more upbeat and humorous than the dark raw content I encountered. This was my first of this series, and I will tread carefully in the future.
My rating (2.5 stars) has less to do with the content, and more to do with the publisher's misleading cover material.
My rating (2.5 stars) has less to do with the content, and more to do with the publisher's misleading cover material.
March 20, 2022
full review here:
https://jamesgenrebooks.blogspot.com/...
While there is better and more recent urban fantasy out there, these are still fun to read, even with all the children in jeopardy.
https://jamesgenrebooks.blogspot.com/...
While there is better and more recent urban fantasy out there, these are still fun to read, even with all the children in jeopardy.
March 17, 2020
Lovely elves racing cars books, with mysteries and rescues. I don't know how I missed these 2 books when I first started reading Mercedes Lackey, but they did not disappoint.
January 12, 2014
First off, this book gets trigger warnings for child abuse.
Misty normally does not write books about 'issues,' and in the two stories in this book she manages (in my opinion) to tackle the very difficult topic of child abuse while keeping the story central and not turning preachy. That said, anyone unfamiliar with the realities of child abuse can learn a fair bit from these stories. For her handling that that alone, this book would get high marks from me.
Otherworld is set in Misty's urban elves world. This particular book is the only one that really focuses on elves as the main characters. In Wheels of Fire, Alinor is travelling the wilds of the human world, doing test runs on the first cast aluminum engine block Fairgrove has sent out to the Real World. He has a human partner, Bob, both to help with the engine and keep him out of trouble. Being Alinor, he finds trouble anyway.
When the Bough Breaks has MacLynn, who's been dodging his responsibilities to the Court and burying himself in the human world ever since the woman he loved died 200 years ago. His quest to ditch his duties eternally takes a wrong turn when the student of his current human lover unintentionally becomes a threat to his home court while trying to escape her abusive father.
Both stories are well written, and give readers an inside look at what life is like for elves living in a world run by humans. I have a slight preference fro Wheels of Fire, partly because it ties into the stories about the human mage Tannim, who is one of my favorite Misty characters, partly because I really enjoy Alinor, and partly because When the Bough Breaks hits on some stuff that does trigger me.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys Misty, elves, race cars, people who stand up to do the right thing, and unusual urban fantasy.
Shelving note: I've tagged this book as romance, but it is not your typical romance. While both stories do have HEA, . Not your typical romance ending, but I rather like the way it turns the expected cliches awry while still giving HEA. Others may not consider this book a romance, and the romance plot is definitely not the main plot of either story.
Misty normally does not write books about 'issues,' and in the two stories in this book she manages (in my opinion) to tackle the very difficult topic of child abuse while keeping the story central and not turning preachy. That said, anyone unfamiliar with the realities of child abuse can learn a fair bit from these stories. For her handling that that alone, this book would get high marks from me.
Otherworld is set in Misty's urban elves world. This particular book is the only one that really focuses on elves as the main characters. In Wheels of Fire, Alinor is travelling the wilds of the human world, doing test runs on the first cast aluminum engine block Fairgrove has sent out to the Real World. He has a human partner, Bob, both to help with the engine and keep him out of trouble. Being Alinor, he finds trouble anyway.
When the Bough Breaks has MacLynn, who's been dodging his responsibilities to the Court and burying himself in the human world ever since the woman he loved died 200 years ago. His quest to ditch his duties eternally takes a wrong turn when the student of his current human lover unintentionally becomes a threat to his home court while trying to escape her abusive father.
Both stories are well written, and give readers an inside look at what life is like for elves living in a world run by humans. I have a slight preference fro Wheels of Fire, partly because it ties into the stories about the human mage Tannim, who is one of my favorite Misty characters, partly because I really enjoy Alinor, and partly because When the Bough Breaks hits on some stuff that does trigger me.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys Misty, elves, race cars, people who stand up to do the right thing, and unusual urban fantasy.
Shelving note: I've tagged this book as romance, but it is not your typical romance. While both stories do have HEA, . Not your typical romance ending, but I rather like the way it turns the expected cliches awry while still giving HEA. Others may not consider this book a romance, and the romance plot is definitely not the main plot of either story.
March 2, 2014
ELVES AT THE WHEEL, KIDS ON THE EDGEThere are elves out there. And, mostly, they're the good guys. Oh, they drive too fast [they love hot cars] but we'll forgive them that since they also make a habit of rescuing children in peril.But this time it isn't just the children who are in peril. Jamie's father has joined a fanatical cult that is in contact with a supernatural entity that is ancient, powerful -- and unspeakably evil. And Amanda is an abused little girl who has unheard of psychic powers. In her pain, she might lash out and destroy Earth and Faerie both!
-- My Notes
Omnibus edition of Serrated Edge, volumes 2 & 3.
January 8, 2011
A sexually abused little girl with multiple personalities, or is it? While it is true that there were a few split personalities with Abby, there was a twist when the fae are involved. This story was one of the darker ones by Ms. Lackey. Child abuse is never something to be made light of and in this story, it is taken very seriously. I enjoyed this book and Ms. Lackey's take on the elves.
March 18, 2009
This was much darker than I was expecting. Both stories deal heavily with child abuse. I still enjoyed the topic of elves in Nascar, but I just was not ready for the depressing content in these books.
November 9, 2015
I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/13689465
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/13689465
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews