What do you think?
Rate this book
Chance & Other Gestures of the Hand of Fate
In the fastnesses of the forest called Wirral, strange beings make their ancient home. They are called Denizens by those who dare to speak of them at all. They are not human - and theur weapons are far deadlier than the axes of those who intrude upon their domain, as Chance the forester discovers to his sorrow...
Plus seven stories never before in book form - including The Nebula Award Finalist, "The Boy Who Plaited Manes"
Plus seven stories never before in book form - including The Nebula Award Finalist, "The Boy Who Plaited Manes"
240 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1987
About the author
Nancy Springer
196 books2,438 followersBIO -- NANCY SPRINGER
Nancy Springer has passed the fifty-book milestone, having written that many novels for adults, young adults and children, in genres including mythic fantasy, contemporary fiction, magical realism, horror, and mystery -- although she did not realize she wrote mystery until she won the Edgar Allan Poe Award from the Mystery Writers of America two years in succession. DARK LIE, recently released from NAL, is her first venture into mass-market psychological suspense.
Born in Montclair, New Jersey, Nancy Springer moved with her family to Gettysburg, of Civil War fame, when she was thirteen. She spent the next forty-six years in Pennsylvania, raising two children (Jonathan, now 38, and Nora, 34), writing, horseback riding, fishing, and birdwatching. In 2007 she surprised her friends and herself by moving with her second husband to an isolated area of the Florida panhandle, where the birdwatching is spectacular and where, when fishing, she occasionally catches an alligator.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
April 1, 2012
It's hard to rate a collection since some stories were better than others... it might even out to about 2 1/2 stars, though I had expected it to be better. Most of the stories were okay, but nothing outstanding, with the high points being the poems and the two stories from the world of Isle and Vale.
February 25, 2020
This has been on my keeper shelf since my junior year of high school. It is my favorite short story collection of all time.
The stories are sheer enchantment, and pull me into a beguiling web every single time I read them.
The stories are sheer enchantment, and pull me into a beguiling web every single time I read them.
June 3, 2023
It was almost all sad and horrible. I only liked one story--and I already own that story in another book! Very disappointing.
August 5, 2018
Before I really get into my review, I ought to warn you that Chance and Other Gestures of the Hand of Fate includes domestic violence, the murder of several horses, a surprising emphasis on phalluses, and other unpleasant and/or potentially uncomfortable topics.
With that said, none of the warning-worthy topics in the book—save, perhaps, the cocks—are belabored. I’m a squeamish sort, and I got through it just fine.
Chance and Other Gestures of the Hand of Fate is a compilation of short stories, poems, and a novella. All but one short story and one poem are fantasy-themed.
The opening piece, Chance, is a novella that reads like a traditional tragedy. It’s tremendously written, utterly compelling, and made me cackle until I couldn’t breathe by the sudden appearance of a monstrous dick monster.
More than anything, though, it made me think. I pondered on a person’s lot in life, on the pervasive way in which time and place can mold a person, on the nature of good versus evil, redemption, loyalty, and love.
And then, those thoughts still swirling in my head, I started on the next story. And if I was worried about the tone of the book veering too heavily into that of emotions and human nature—and, frankly, I was—this next story alleviated that concern while still dazzling me.
The Boy Who Plaited Manes is about an odd boy preternaturally good at—and obsessive about—braiding. And while Chance dug into what it means to be human, The Boy Who Plaited Manes cared little for that topic. The concept of this boy, of his skill, and of how the world responds to him took center stage.
And when the story was over, I was satisfied while wanting more. If that sounds like an oxymoron, imagine you’ve just had dinner and a slice of pie and you’re comfortable and full, but the remaining pie—still warm from the oven—sits before you. And it smells good.
Though I want to learn more about the boy who plaits manes, I realize that it would be like another slice of pie. Thankfully, Nancy Springer is wise enough to know this.
I enjoyed every story in this collection, though I’m not sure there’s much of a theme or connection to be found between them. Some are happy, some are sad, some are cynical. I guess two consistent things are the exceptional style of writing, and Nancy Springer’s ability to effortlessly portray humans in all their complexity in such few words.
I’m not sure what else I can really say. With such short stories, discussing them almost at all would pull too much of a punch.
Even if you’re not normally a short-story sort of person, I’d urge you to consider giving Chance and Other Gestures of the Hand of Fate a chance. Heh.
[I read old fantasy and sci-fi novels written by women authors in search of forgotten gems. See more at forfemfan.com]
With that said, none of the warning-worthy topics in the book—save, perhaps, the cocks—are belabored. I’m a squeamish sort, and I got through it just fine.
Chance and Other Gestures of the Hand of Fate is a compilation of short stories, poems, and a novella. All but one short story and one poem are fantasy-themed.
The opening piece, Chance, is a novella that reads like a traditional tragedy. It’s tremendously written, utterly compelling, and made me cackle until I couldn’t breathe by the sudden appearance of a monstrous dick monster.
More than anything, though, it made me think. I pondered on a person’s lot in life, on the pervasive way in which time and place can mold a person, on the nature of good versus evil, redemption, loyalty, and love.
And then, those thoughts still swirling in my head, I started on the next story. And if I was worried about the tone of the book veering too heavily into that of emotions and human nature—and, frankly, I was—this next story alleviated that concern while still dazzling me.
The Boy Who Plaited Manes is about an odd boy preternaturally good at—and obsessive about—braiding. And while Chance dug into what it means to be human, The Boy Who Plaited Manes cared little for that topic. The concept of this boy, of his skill, and of how the world responds to him took center stage.
And when the story was over, I was satisfied while wanting more. If that sounds like an oxymoron, imagine you’ve just had dinner and a slice of pie and you’re comfortable and full, but the remaining pie—still warm from the oven—sits before you. And it smells good.
Though I want to learn more about the boy who plaits manes, I realize that it would be like another slice of pie. Thankfully, Nancy Springer is wise enough to know this.
I enjoyed every story in this collection, though I’m not sure there’s much of a theme or connection to be found between them. Some are happy, some are sad, some are cynical. I guess two consistent things are the exceptional style of writing, and Nancy Springer’s ability to effortlessly portray humans in all their complexity in such few words.
I’m not sure what else I can really say. With such short stories, discussing them almost at all would pull too much of a punch.
Even if you’re not normally a short-story sort of person, I’d urge you to consider giving Chance and Other Gestures of the Hand of Fate a chance. Heh.
[I read old fantasy and sci-fi novels written by women authors in search of forgotten gems. See more at forfemfan.com]
August 29, 2024
**
A collection of fantasy short stories and a few poems by Nancy Springer. These stories are rather dark with a hint of strangeness about them. Although the writing is quite good, many of these tales were a little too much for my taste.
-Chance- Chance is a young peasant, woodsman to the strange forest of Wirral, and friend to his lord Roddarc. A friendship that has cost him, and may stand in the way of his future.
-The Golden Face of Fate- All in Chance's life goes horribly wrong as he loses everything he holds dear. This pair of stories are interesting as in the first Chance is portrayed as the long suffering hero trying to do right,
-The Boy Who Plaited Manes- A strange boy appears who can effortlessly and beautifully braid a nobleman's horses, before taking a dark turn.
-The Bard- On the eve of battle, a young man encounters a goddess and is given a gift.
-Bright-Eyed Black Pony- A young prince seeks refuge with a sorcerer, who helps him to see the truth about himself.
-The Prince Out of the Past- A horseman meets a strange man at the fair, which turns into trouble when forbidden magic is used on a lame horse. From the Magic in Ithkar anthology.
-Amends- A companion story to the book, The Silver Sun. Hal and Alan return home and help an ill family, facing the darkness that threatens them.
-The Dog-King of Vaire- An excerpt from Springer's excellent book, The Black Beast, my favorite book by her. It differs slightly from the novel.
-Primal Cry- Debora is an adopted woman intent on discovering her mysterious ancestry. The only story that takes place in a contemporary setting.
Poems:
-The Wolf Girl Speaks
-Come In
-We Build A Shrine
Personal history: Purchased a used copy.
A collection of fantasy short stories and a few poems by Nancy Springer. These stories are rather dark with a hint of strangeness about them. Although the writing is quite good, many of these tales were a little too much for my taste.
-Chance- Chance is a young peasant, woodsman to the strange forest of Wirral, and friend to his lord Roddarc. A friendship that has cost him, and may stand in the way of his future.
-The Golden Face of Fate- All in Chance's life goes horribly wrong as he loses everything he holds dear. This pair of stories are interesting as in the first Chance is portrayed as the long suffering hero trying to do right,
-The Boy Who Plaited Manes- A strange boy appears who can effortlessly and beautifully braid a nobleman's horses, before taking a dark turn.
-The Bard- On the eve of battle, a young man encounters a goddess and is given a gift.
-Bright-Eyed Black Pony- A young prince seeks refuge with a sorcerer, who helps him to see the truth about himself.
-The Prince Out of the Past- A horseman meets a strange man at the fair, which turns into trouble when forbidden magic is used on a lame horse. From the Magic in Ithkar anthology.
-Amends- A companion story to the book, The Silver Sun. Hal and Alan return home and help an ill family, facing the darkness that threatens them.
-The Dog-King of Vaire- An excerpt from Springer's excellent book, The Black Beast, my favorite book by her. It differs slightly from the novel.
-Primal Cry- Debora is an adopted woman intent on discovering her mysterious ancestry. The only story that takes place in a contemporary setting.
Poems:
-The Wolf Girl Speaks
-Come In
-We Build A Shrine
Personal history: Purchased a used copy.
Read
June 29, 2012I read this at some point in high school, I think. It was the first Nancy Springer I read, the title story involves castration, and yet I continued reading her! I think she used castration as a critical plot point in three books in a row. It was disturbing. Yet striking. Her books had the vividness of idfic, and sometimes vivid ickiness; they felt dreamlike and unfair, or fair according to rules I didn't agree with. Moral rules written into nature: I guess you could say a lot of fantasy does that.
Her treatment of gender and sexuality was very very individual and very very odd. She started off writing these dreamy crosses between Tolkien and Robert Graves and eventually wandered often into a kind of Jungian exploration of gender in contemporary fantasies. It's been a while, but in retrospect I think the early books were probably tremendously slashy -- very often there were dual protagonists whose literal or spiritual brotherhood was tested by a competition for a not particularly well-distinguished woman. Classic homoerotic triangle stuff. All the emotional force was in the bonds between men.
I'm not sure I'd recommend her books and I'm not sure I actually still own any of them, and suddenly it seems a shame because I'm curious what I'd make of them now.
How she turned into a writer of children's books I have no idea.
Her treatment of gender and sexuality was very very individual and very very odd. She started off writing these dreamy crosses between Tolkien and Robert Graves and eventually wandered often into a kind of Jungian exploration of gender in contemporary fantasies. It's been a while, but in retrospect I think the early books were probably tremendously slashy -- very often there were dual protagonists whose literal or spiritual brotherhood was tested by a competition for a not particularly well-distinguished woman. Classic homoerotic triangle stuff. All the emotional force was in the bonds between men.
I'm not sure I'd recommend her books and I'm not sure I actually still own any of them, and suddenly it seems a shame because I'm curious what I'd make of them now.
How she turned into a writer of children's books I have no idea.
May 8, 2015
Chance is a stunning collection of eerily beautiful stories and poems, ranging from the mythic to the modern. Many of the stories are reminiscent of ancient legends, infused with the otherworldly or supernatural, much like the stories of the Mabinogion. The title story, Chance, illustrates the power of the fae, and the consequences of failing to pay for their aid. In this and the majority of stories in the collection, human might is no match for the otherworldly, and doom comes of human arrogance. This is not an anthology filled with happy endings, rather there are just consequences. There is also beauty and hope, where faith and belief are rewarded. All of the tales and poems share a common lyrical beauty and timelessness.
Chance is a haunting anthology, filled with magnificent stories that will be remembered long after the last page is turned.
I received a copy of Chance from the publisher and netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.
--Crittermom
Chance is a haunting anthology, filled with magnificent stories that will be remembered long after the last page is turned.
I received a copy of Chance from the publisher and netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.
--Crittermom
August 5, 2008
sci fi short stories
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews