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raven_morgan's review against another edition
5.0
Kim Wilkins is one of the authors who has long been on my "automatically buy" list, so when Ticonderoga Press announced the publication of "The Year of Ancient Ghosts", a collection of novellas and short stories, I happily pre-ordered the signed limited edition hardcover. As an aside, if you're ever in the position where you're trying to decide if Ticonderoga's limited editions are worth the money, they absolutely are. They are absolutely beautiful books.
This collection is filled with vibrant, beautiful prose which highlights Wilkins' expertise in the medieval period. In all of the stories, fantasy blends seamlessly with reality, to the point where it is difficult sometimes to tell which elements are fantastical and which are historical.
The collection opens with the titular "The Year of Ancient Ghosts", original to this collection, in which Jenny, unable to live by the side of her husband Lachlan, comatose after an accident, brings her two-year-old daughter Mary to the Orkney Islands, a trip that had been planned in order for Lachlan to write a book there. The ancient atmosphere of the Orkneys is vividly captured, along with the magic and mystery of the place. Gripping and emotional from start to finish.
"The Crown of Rowan" is an fantasy piece, reprinted here, set in a fantasy version of eight-century England. Told from the perspective of Rose, wife of one of the kings of Thyrsland, this story, for me, doesn't quite hit the mark emotionally. In the afterward, Wilkins states that this story is a prequel to a fantasy epic in progress, and the worldbuilding in this indicates that the novel could be something really special.
"Wild Dreams of Blood", also a reprint, intertwines the life of a modern-day woman, Sara (named in memory of Sara Douglass, a fact which brought a tear to my eye when I read the afterward), with Norse mythology. Wilkins renders Sara, and her violent tendencies and strength, so vividly that the appearance of a Norse god feels just as real. One of my favourites from this collection.
"Dindrana's Lover" is another reprint, slightly reworked, in the Arthurian mythos, telling the story of Percival's sister, and what happens to her after she is left in a sinister castle by her brother and Galahad. Dindrana herself lives and breathes, bringing real life to her tragic story. Creepy, gorgeous and heartwrenching.
The last story in the collection is the original "The Lark and the River", which juxtaposes Christian mythology with the pagan/heathen worship which Christianity replaced. There is a real reverence for both kinds of religion in this piece, and Wilkins' beautiful prose highlights the emotion of the protagonist Merewyn as she confronts her fate.
Overall, this is a collection well worth owning, even if you own the books in which the reprinted stories first appeared. "The Year of Ancient Ghosts" alone is worth the price of the book, I think. If you're a fan of Wilkins, then buying this one is going to be a no brainer. And if you've never read her before, this could be a very good place to start.
This collection is filled with vibrant, beautiful prose which highlights Wilkins' expertise in the medieval period. In all of the stories, fantasy blends seamlessly with reality, to the point where it is difficult sometimes to tell which elements are fantastical and which are historical.
The collection opens with the titular "The Year of Ancient Ghosts", original to this collection, in which Jenny, unable to live by the side of her husband Lachlan, comatose after an accident, brings her two-year-old daughter Mary to the Orkney Islands, a trip that had been planned in order for Lachlan to write a book there. The ancient atmosphere of the Orkneys is vividly captured, along with the magic and mystery of the place. Gripping and emotional from start to finish.
"The Crown of Rowan" is an fantasy piece, reprinted here, set in a fantasy version of eight-century England. Told from the perspective of Rose, wife of one of the kings of Thyrsland, this story, for me, doesn't quite hit the mark emotionally. In the afterward, Wilkins states that this story is a prequel to a fantasy epic in progress, and the worldbuilding in this indicates that the novel could be something really special.
"Wild Dreams of Blood", also a reprint, intertwines the life of a modern-day woman, Sara (named in memory of Sara Douglass, a fact which brought a tear to my eye when I read the afterward), with Norse mythology. Wilkins renders Sara, and her violent tendencies and strength, so vividly that the appearance of a Norse god feels just as real. One of my favourites from this collection.
"Dindrana's Lover" is another reprint, slightly reworked, in the Arthurian mythos, telling the story of Percival's sister, and what happens to her after she is left in a sinister castle by her brother and Galahad. Dindrana herself lives and breathes, bringing real life to her tragic story. Creepy, gorgeous and heartwrenching.
The last story in the collection is the original "The Lark and the River", which juxtaposes Christian mythology with the pagan/heathen worship which Christianity replaced. There is a real reverence for both kinds of religion in this piece, and Wilkins' beautiful prose highlights the emotion of the protagonist Merewyn as she confronts her fate.
Overall, this is a collection well worth owning, even if you own the books in which the reprinted stories first appeared. "The Year of Ancient Ghosts" alone is worth the price of the book, I think. If you're a fan of Wilkins, then buying this one is going to be a no brainer. And if you've never read her before, this could be a very good place to start.
anna_hepworth's review against another edition
4.0
this is a collection of beautiful stories, and I would probably rate it 4.5, if the half star was an option. It loses the point, because for me it was hard work to read. The stories were fascinating, the ideas were great, but the prose didn't drag me in, and I had to remind myself that this was what I was reading. Maybe another time, I'll find it more gripping, given that these are the kind of stories that usually grab me and don't let me go.
Of the five stories, I found "Dindrana's Lover" to be the stand out - a beautiful reworking/reimagining of a classic tale. Not quite a fairy tale reworking, but close enough that I had the same feel of being inside and seeing differently that I get with reworkings of well known fairy tales that I love.
These stories are not light reading. In each, the protagonist and the reader are cut fine, examined, and possibly put back together. But they are fascinating stories all the same.
Of the five stories, I found "Dindrana's Lover" to be the stand out - a beautiful reworking/reimagining of a classic tale. Not quite a fairy tale reworking, but close enough that I had the same feel of being inside and seeing differently that I get with reworkings of well known fairy tales that I love.
These stories are not light reading. In each, the protagonist and the reader are cut fine, examined, and possibly put back together. But they are fascinating stories all the same.
amandawillimott's review
5.0
I need an extra star for this because five isn't enough. I've loved Kim Wilkins's writing since her very first book, The Infernal. She captures the essence of the world she's writing in until you're right there, feeling the words wash over you, in the world she's created. This is a collection of stories, some of them set in the present day, some set in a medieval past, and one in a world that doesn't really exist at all. All the stories are wonderfully written but if I had to choose a favourite it would be The Year of Ancient Ghosts, for which the collection was named. Highly recommended for lovers of fantasy, historical fiction, historical romance, horror, and just plain good storytelling.
tsana's review
5.0
The Year of Ancient Ghosts by Kim Wilkins is a collection of five novellas. It is also the first thing of hers that I've read (despite having bought one of her novels many years ago...). I initially bought it and started reading it because the first, titular, story was shortlisted for a Ditmar, but boy am I glad I did! Not for nothing was the collection also shortlisted for an Aurealis Award and did the same story win the Best Horror Short Story Aurealis and make the Fantasy shortlist as well.
The stories contained within this collection are a mix of modern and Medieval (ish) and take us on five very different journeys. Not being much of a historian, I didn't make the connection until the afterword, but all the stories are connected by common history. All of them, including the two modern ones, are set in or take cues from the Middle Ages.
I think my favourite was "The Year of Ancient Ghosts" and I can see why it was the story to garner award nominations when one or two others (the second is a bit murky and probably doesn't count) were also first published here. Not only is it a gut-wrenching tale, it's also probably more accessible than the others.
Of the three non-modern tales, I found myself wanting more from "The Crown of Rowan". Not because it was lacking, but because there was more to the world than we really got to see in detail in the story. I was pleased to learn, when I got to the end of the collection and read the afterword, that Wilkins is working on a novel set in the same world. I will definitely be reading it when it eventuates. (Actually, I just looked Wilkins up on iBooks and it looks like the novel, Daughters of the Storm, will be out in November, so yay.)
Individual stories aside (and you can, of course, read more of my thoughts on them below), Wilkins' writing is masterful. She has the knack of using the right words to tell the story without being unnecessarily flowery in language nor too dull. I'm not sure there was a bad sentence in the entire collection. The details, historical and otherwise, are also meticulously researched so that every detail rings true. I first noted it in the main character's reaction to having to go to a foreign supermarket in "The Year of Ancient Ghosts", but it persisted throughout.
I highly recommend this collection to pretty much everyone. It's an excellent read and the expertly-crafted stories will not disappoint. I will definitely be keeping an eye out for other books by Kim Wilkins (the one presently in my TBR is unfortunately on another continent) and I look forward to reading more of her work.
~
THE YEAR OF ANCIENT GHOSTS — Set in the present, a woman whose husband is in a coma (or similar) decides to go to Scotland (from Australia) with their two-year-old to visit his foster parents as they had originally planned. It’s a cold story (sometimes literally) with a feeling of creeping dread permeating through it. I feared for some of the characters, not sure how far into the realms of darkest horror Wilkins would take it. In the end, all I can say is: it was a wonderful and emotional tale.
THE CROWN OF ROWAN — This was a good story, but I was expecting it to be more dire than it was. It's set in a fairly low-technology fantasy world with small kingdoms, skirmishes and minor magic (hedge magic, maybe, although it wasn't defined in the story) and gives us a pretty good snapshot of what life is life for some of the characters, most notably the protagonist. The wife of a king is pregnant and the story follows her through the course of the pregnancy until just after the baby is born. There are also a few subplots, but she's the main focus. I said I was expecting it to be more dire, that's mainly because of the element of magical portents and messages but also because it finished too soon. Wilkins left us wanting more with some of the main character's choices hanging in the balance. I wanted to know what happened next!
DINDRANA’S LOVER — An Arthurian tale featuring Sir Percival's sister, Dindrana. There were a few elements to this: a magic castle that only the lost can find, with a mistress whose nature is hinted at in the epigraph, and a young maiden who, on the one hand can think on her feet and on the other resents being forced to remain a virgin until her eventual marriage to (she presumes) some horrible old man. I was amused by this tale, for all that it didn't end too cheerily. Oh, and I wanted to slap Galahad.
WILD DREAMS OF BLOOD — A present-day tale of a woman with super strength who has learnt to hide it her whole life. Her life starts to change when she finds out who her father is. A fairly straight-forward story, but very well-crafted.
THE LARK AND THE RIVER — Set in Conversion England, as Christianity is encroaching on heathen beliefs. Although not the saddest story in the collection (that honour goes to “The Year of Ancient Ghosts”), it had the saddest ending. Other people might disagree. The main character is the daughter of a violent man and, despite her father's anger at the church, she becomes fascinated by the new priest.
5 / 5 stars
You can read more of my reviews on my blog.
The stories contained within this collection are a mix of modern and Medieval (ish) and take us on five very different journeys. Not being much of a historian, I didn't make the connection until the afterword, but all the stories are connected by common history. All of them, including the two modern ones, are set in or take cues from the Middle Ages.
I think my favourite was "The Year of Ancient Ghosts" and I can see why it was the story to garner award nominations when one or two others (the second is a bit murky and probably doesn't count) were also first published here. Not only is it a gut-wrenching tale, it's also probably more accessible than the others.
Of the three non-modern tales, I found myself wanting more from "The Crown of Rowan". Not because it was lacking, but because there was more to the world than we really got to see in detail in the story. I was pleased to learn, when I got to the end of the collection and read the afterword, that Wilkins is working on a novel set in the same world. I will definitely be reading it when it eventuates. (Actually, I just looked Wilkins up on iBooks and it looks like the novel, Daughters of the Storm, will be out in November, so yay.)
Individual stories aside (and you can, of course, read more of my thoughts on them below), Wilkins' writing is masterful. She has the knack of using the right words to tell the story without being unnecessarily flowery in language nor too dull. I'm not sure there was a bad sentence in the entire collection. The details, historical and otherwise, are also meticulously researched so that every detail rings true. I first noted it in the main character's reaction to having to go to a foreign supermarket in "The Year of Ancient Ghosts", but it persisted throughout.
I highly recommend this collection to pretty much everyone. It's an excellent read and the expertly-crafted stories will not disappoint. I will definitely be keeping an eye out for other books by Kim Wilkins (the one presently in my TBR is unfortunately on another continent) and I look forward to reading more of her work.
~
THE YEAR OF ANCIENT GHOSTS — Set in the present, a woman whose husband is in a coma (or similar) decides to go to Scotland (from Australia) with their two-year-old to visit his foster parents as they had originally planned. It’s a cold story (sometimes literally) with a feeling of creeping dread permeating through it. I feared for some of the characters, not sure how far into the realms of darkest horror Wilkins would take it. In the end, all I can say is: it was a wonderful and emotional tale.
THE CROWN OF ROWAN — This was a good story, but I was expecting it to be more dire than it was. It's set in a fairly low-technology fantasy world with small kingdoms, skirmishes and minor magic (hedge magic, maybe, although it wasn't defined in the story) and gives us a pretty good snapshot of what life is life for some of the characters, most notably the protagonist. The wife of a king is pregnant and the story follows her through the course of the pregnancy until just after the baby is born. There are also a few subplots, but she's the main focus. I said I was expecting it to be more dire, that's mainly because of the element of magical portents and messages but also because it finished too soon. Wilkins left us wanting more with some of the main character's choices hanging in the balance. I wanted to know what happened next!
DINDRANA’S LOVER — An Arthurian tale featuring Sir Percival's sister, Dindrana. There were a few elements to this: a magic castle that only the lost can find, with a mistress whose nature is hinted at in the epigraph, and a young maiden who, on the one hand can think on her feet and on the other resents being forced to remain a virgin until her eventual marriage to (she presumes) some horrible old man. I was amused by this tale, for all that it didn't end too cheerily. Oh, and I wanted to slap Galahad.
WILD DREAMS OF BLOOD — A present-day tale of a woman with super strength who has learnt to hide it her whole life. Her life starts to change when she finds out who her father is. A fairly straight-forward story, but very well-crafted.
THE LARK AND THE RIVER — Set in Conversion England, as Christianity is encroaching on heathen beliefs. Although not the saddest story in the collection (that honour goes to “The Year of Ancient Ghosts”), it had the saddest ending. Other people might disagree. The main character is the daughter of a violent man and, despite her father's anger at the church, she becomes fascinated by the new priest.
5 / 5 stars
You can read more of my reviews on my blog.
alanbaxter's review
5.0
An amazing collection of five novellas. Beautifully written and overflowing with imagination and historical homage. The last story, "The Lark and the River", is the standout for me - a stunning piece of work. This book was published a few years ago and it's taken me a while to get around to it, but I'm very glad I finally did.
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