The Inheritance (short story collection)

[Farseer]

Well done, Albertosaurus Rex !!

It is different to what I expected. I thought that the covers would be inverted as in 'reversed', so that when the book was held, say Hobb-side up, one had to flip the book over and then turn it around so that the Lindholm cover was then facing right-side up. I agree with joost in that I had expected the Lindholm cover to include a reference to a Lindholm world, not the Six Duchies.

In this way, I also expected that the spine would show the text to suit the two inverted, reversed covers, possibly even using different coloured fonts to distinguish the two titles/authors from each other.

A quick scribble attached to show you what I mean...    

In saying all of that, I only expected it to be that way as that's how I've always seen it done before and doing it 'as it's always been done' is not Hobb-like at all .

My final word? It's not what I expected but I still like it, and WANT it!!

[Albertosaurus Rex]

Don't give me too much praise, I just got it from the authors' website.

I would hate to be confrontational, but I'm glad it's not like your your vision. I dislike the idea of having to flip a book over, it just seems so... messy and cluttered to me. Although I did like the line "Seattle and beyond". Maybe we should mail the publisher - it might not be too late to change.

Still bothered about barcode on the spine, though.

[Nuytsia]

Hehe all you guys are so observant!
I didn't really expect anything and I didn't even notice the barcode was there until you told me! (I saw the cover before I read this post on Robin Hobb website)
I guess I'm not a real book collector or anything....... so .... probably why I don't pay a huge amount of attention to the outside look.... my bookshelves are a hotch potch!

[Mervi]

Of course I was AFK when Robin posted this! Well, I've posted it in the news now. I think it looks very nice, but it will be weird if that barcode really stays in the spine. I hope that's just a design phase.

Aaaanyway, about the "beyond Seattle" idea. I too, was expecting to see that line altered for the Lindholm cover. However, I'm not sure Seattle is appropriate. Off the top of my head, the only Seattle story I can remember is [[Wizard of the Pigeons]] and obviously that won't be included as it's a book in itself.

[Albertosaurus Rex]

What else could it be? Does Ki and Vandien's world have a name? (Assuming of course that the two short stories about them are in there, which I hope will be the case.)

[Mervi]

No, I don't think that world has a name. I'm hoping for the Ki and Vandien stories too (I've read [[The Small One]] but not [[Bones for Dulath]]). Untill we see the table of contents, the only old Megan Lindholm story I'm fairly certain will be included is [[Mother of Fey]] which takes place in our world but in an unspecified place - so that doesn't help either.

[Farseer]

I posted here earlier, and saw it on the thread, so not sure what's happened to it...!

I haven't read any Lindholm books so the 'Seattle and beyond' idea was pinched from the thread title here on thePlenty...from there, I just assumed that Seattle must be at least one world in the Lindholm works .

[Albertosaurus Rex]

They gotta have the Ki and Vandien shorts, right? They're the best known Lindholm characters, and of historical value because that's where her career as a writer began.

Going over the list, I'm trying to do some educated guessing, but I might very well be wrong:

Ki and Vandien - As stated above.
Liavek stories - Probably not included because of rights issues?
Silver Lady and the Fortyish Man - Winner of a reader's award, Nebula finalist and included in Gardner Dozois' anual Year's best SF, so it's gotta be good, right?
Cut - Also a Nebula finalist, so it's gotta be good, right?
The Fifth Squashed Cat - Fits in with the cat theme on the cover. And I want it to be included because the title has always intrigued me.

[Mervi]

- Yes, I do think (and hope!) that we'll get at least the first Ki and Vandien story. It was reprinted in 2003 but that anthology isn't the easiest to get anymore.
- [[Silver Lady and the Fortyish Man]] has been published more times than any other of her short stories I think - not sure if that changes anything though.
- [[A Touch of Lavender]] is another story that got nominated for a Nebula and a Hugo.
- [[Cut]] is available online so it might not be included if they've chosen "hard to get" stories.
- The reason I've been talking about the possibility of [[Mother of Fey]] is that a Finnish fanzine asked last year to re-publish it and was denied (also it's a story that has never been published in English!)
- [[Grace Notes]] is still very easily available and while the anthology that contains [[The Unicorn in the Maze]] is out of print, it's not too difficult to obtain second-hand.

- That leaves us with the stories that were published in the Space and Time magazines in the 70's which are almost impossible to find now (Faunsdown Cottage, Superior Graphics, Shadow Box and The Beholder) ...
- and the story [[Strays]] from the Warrior Princesses anthology - and yes, [[The Fifth Squashed Cat]], although the paperback that contains it isn't too difficult to find either.

The next question is, how BIG is this book going to be? We have to remember there will be NEW stories too, and Robin Hobb stories as well. There's been no indication of what the number of pages is going to be, so it's difficult to estimate how many stories it can contain. Also, how did they decide which stories are going to make the cut? Those that are hard to find? Those that have got good reviews/awards/nominations? Or those that people requested at the newsgroup when Robin first mentioned that an an anthology is in the works?

Also, what are the Robin Hobb stories going to be?
- I'm pretty sure we can bet our money on [[The Inheritance]]. Not just because of the title of the anthology, but because Amazon has taken down the digital copy they were selling and its only appearance in printed paper was very limited.
- Possibly [[Homecoming]]. It's relatively new (2004) but the anthology that contained it has been been published in paperback formats already, so we can hope there won't be contractual problems.
- This might not be the case for [[Words Like Coins]]. It's only a year old, the printing was very limited and the book only contained 4 stories - I can see its "value" going down if one of them is reprinted so soon elsewhere. On the other hand, it's sold out, so its value (quite literally) only interest collectors and second-hand sellers, not the publisher I think. Still, there might be a contract that says the story can't be reprinted in x years.
- And then there's [[The Triumph]] and the upcoming "Blue Boots" which I'm postive won't be in this collection because they are so recent.

- Robin also mentioned a story called "Cat's Meat" once in her newsgroup (in a discussion about submitting the anthology's manuscript to her publisher I think). Not sure if it's in the final product or even if that's the final title (or which author wrote it. )

.... and those are my thoughts tonight.

[Jussi]

There is new blurb in the HarperCollins page:

Bingtown heiresses rub shoulders in this wonderful collection with vampires and alien musicians, tramps and feral cats.

In The Homecoming, Lady Carillion Carrock and a number of other Jamaillian nobles are sailing to the Cursed Shores. Their journey is not by choice: for plotting against the Satrap, their wealth has been confiscated and they have been exiled. Until now, Carillion has done nothing but lead a life of privilege. She believes they are bound for wondrous cities, cities where ancient kings and queens dusted their skin with gold and wore jewels above their eyes. But when she is marooned by the ship’s unscrupulous captain, she will soon discover the grim reality of what survival in the Rain Wilds entails.

The Silver Lady is a would-be writer, ekeing out a dull existence by working in a Sears store. The one day a man comes in: fortyish, pleasant-looking. Nothing out of the ordinary. Except he says his name is Merlin, and he’s about to change her life.

Rosemary got involved with the wrong man. Pell is lazy, good for nothing, a bully. Her best friend Hilia knew it and so did her tom cat, Marmalade. But love is blind: Rosemary had Pell’s baby, renovated the cottage his grandfather left in his will, turned its land to good use; and then he left her for another woman. Now he’s back, and something must be done…