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.
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.