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A review by mattlefevers
Across the Wall: A Tale of the Abhorsen and Other Stories by Garth Nix
3.0
I picked up this book the same day I finished reading Nix's "Old Kingdom" trilogy. I had really enjoyed Sabriel and its sequels, and wanted to round things out with the novella that opens this collection. "Nicholas Sayre and The Creature in the Case" is well worth it - though it's a novella, it takes up a third of this book's length, and it is set after the events of "Abhorsen" so it provides a satisfying glimpse at some of the aftermath of the trilogy proper. It also goes a long way to redeem the character Nick, who was (through no fault of his own) mostly weak and pointless in the other books.
The rest of the book is rounded out by short stories, none of which have any connection to the "Old Kingdom" series but most of which are pretty good in their own right. There are two very enjoyable takes on the King Arthur mythos, and an incredibly cool retelling of Hansel and Gretel in a modern setting. One of the longest stories besides "Nicholas Sayre" is called "Hope Chest", and its curious blend of classic western and Lovecraftian darkness was enough to make me wish it was even longer. It felt like Buffy The Vampire Slayer set in the Old West, and man is that a show I would watch.
The humorous stories are the ones that didn't really land for me. Nix's parody of a Choose Your Own Adventure book elicited a few chuckles from me but was mostly sort of flat, and his fake introduction to a fifty-eight book fantasy series is made up of what I almost have to call Dad Humor (referring to the third Lord of the Rings book as "The Return of the Mistakenly Purchased King" made me groan even though I kind of laughed).
The final two stories, however, end things on a strong note. "Three Roses", at only four pages long, might be the loveliest thing in the collection, and the equally minimal "Endings" closes things on a note of mystery and beauty.
Overall, there were more hits than misses here, and for fans of Lirael & company the novella would be well worth the price of admission.
The rest of the book is rounded out by short stories, none of which have any connection to the "Old Kingdom" series but most of which are pretty good in their own right. There are two very enjoyable takes on the King Arthur mythos, and an incredibly cool retelling of Hansel and Gretel in a modern setting. One of the longest stories besides "Nicholas Sayre" is called "Hope Chest", and its curious blend of classic western and Lovecraftian darkness was enough to make me wish it was even longer. It felt like Buffy The Vampire Slayer set in the Old West, and man is that a show I would watch.
The humorous stories are the ones that didn't really land for me. Nix's parody of a Choose Your Own Adventure book elicited a few chuckles from me but was mostly sort of flat, and his fake introduction to a fifty-eight book fantasy series is made up of what I almost have to call Dad Humor (referring to the third Lord of the Rings book as "The Return of the Mistakenly Purchased King" made me groan even though I kind of laughed).
The final two stories, however, end things on a strong note. "Three Roses", at only four pages long, might be the loveliest thing in the collection, and the equally minimal "Endings" closes things on a note of mystery and beauty.
Overall, there were more hits than misses here, and for fans of Lirael & company the novella would be well worth the price of admission.