Smoke and Mirrors
Short Fictions and Illusions
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4.1 • 60 Ratings
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- $4.99
Publisher Description
The astonishing and impressive first collection of short stories from New York Times bestselling author Neil Gaiman
An elderly widow finds the Holy Grail beneath an old fur coat in a second-hand store . . .
A stray cat fights and refights a nightly battle to protect his adoptive family from an unimagiable evil . . .
A young couple receives a wedding gift that will reveal a chilling alternate history of their marriage . . .
Beneath a bridge by the railroad tracks, a frightened little boy bargains for his life with a most persistent troll . . .
Such miraculous inventions and more await within Neil Gaiman’s first collection of short fiction, a gift of wonder and delight from one of the most unique literary artists of our day. In his capable hands, magic is no mere illusion, but a powerful means to reveal the nature of our humanity obscured in the smoke of our fears and anxieties . . . and reflected in the funhouse mirrors of our dreams.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Imaginative twists on old legends and frightening glimpses into the impossible combine to form this impressive collection of 30 stories and poems by the author of Neverwhere and co-creator of The Sandman graphic novels. Each entry skirts the edges of a puncture in reality through which something dark and mysterious peeks. Then it moves on and the apparition is hidden away again, but not forgotten. The narratives follow a dream logic: The angel Raguel, the Vengeance of the Lord, can bum a cigarette off a youth in L.A. and tell him the truth behind Lucifer's fall ("Murder Mysteries"), and nonchalant assassins can be found in the Yellow Pages under pest control ("We Can Get Them for You Wholesale"). The bizarre and disturbing essence of the stories is highlighted by their background of absolute normalcy. Their prose is simple yet evocative, and Gaiman's characters are textured with well-defined personalities. Because the characters treat the unreal as ordinary, the eeriness of what unfolds has all the more impact. In "Chivalry," a woman finds the Holy Grail in a secondhand shop, and Galahad must trade something for it that will look just as good on her mantle. Demons take over London in "Cold Colors," because the devil has learned how to network and God can't get "saintware" up and running. The intriguing world behind these pages is indeed smoke and mirrors, just a step or a word or a story away from our own.
Customer Reviews
Gaiman’s Short Stories and Poems from the 1990s
“Smoke and Mirrors” is a short story and poetry collection by Neil Gaiman. It was first published in 1998, and contains fiction dating back to 1993. Some of these stories have been previously published elsewhere. However, several of them have never before appeared in print. It’s a mixed bag, containing stories and poems that could be classified as fantasy, horror, sci-fi and magical realism. In his introduction, the author states that most of these are actually about love in one form or the other.
In the story “Chivalry” an elderly lady finds the holy grail in a thrift shop. In “Troll Bridge” a young boy bargains with a bridge troll for his life. “The Goldfish Pool and Other Stories” is a tale about and English writer in Hollywood. “Shoggoth’s Old Particular” is a Lovecraftian tale which has been set on the English coast. “Snow, Glass, Apples” is a medieval vampire story that is complete horror from the beginning to the disturbing ending. These are just a few of the tales in this book.
Overall, I think this is a good collection showing the range of the author’s talent. Like all anthologies, some stories will please a particular reader more than others. This is some of Mr. Gaiman’s earlier work, and it shows his experimentation with his writing.
Smoke and Shadows
Very good collection of stories from one of my favorite authors. Be prepared to be delighted and disturbed.
Uniquely written
The style of writing can and hopefully will make you wonder and think. Stories of things you think you knew about from a new perspective.
A very good read, I absolutely loved it.