The Dragon Book: Magical Tales from the Masters of Modern Fantasy

Nineteen distinctly different, atmospheric tales by modern-day fantasy writers, the likes of Garth Nix, Harry Turtledove, Bruce Coville, Tanith Lee, and Mary Rosenblum, make this a treasure trove for fantasy fans, especially dragon lovers. Cecelia Holland weighs in with a heroine reminiscent of Scheherazade, but here, it’s a dragon demanding the stories. In Jonathan Stroud’s “Bob Choi’s Last Job,” a dragon hunter comes up against a voracious shape-shifter. Liz Williams offers a mannered story in which a mage, summoned to vanquish a worm, encounters the unexpected. Nix depicts a radioactive man/dragon. In case you’re wondering what a police officer is to do when a large dragon plops down in a busy Oakland intersection, Peter S. Beagle has the answer. Tad Williams’ dragon tells her children the story of how in days of yore, when dragon-slayers existed, a “stark and wormy knight” came to slay her ancestor and rescue a damsel. All in all, an enticing collection for genre fans. –Sally Estes

INDEX:

Preface BY JACK DANN AND GARDNER DOZOIS
Dragon’s Deep BY CECELIA HOLLAND
Vici BY NAOMI NOVIK
Bob Choi’s Last Job BY JONATHAN STROUD
Are You Afflicted with Dragons ? BY KAGE BAKER
The Tsar’s Dragons BY JANE YOLEN AND ADAM STEMPLE
The Dragon of Direfell BY LIZ WILLIAMS
Oakland Dragon Blues BY PETER S. BEAGLE
Humane Killer BY DIANA GABALDON AND SAMUEL SYKES
Stop! BY GARTH NIX
Ungentle Fire BY SEAN WILLIAMS
A Stark and Wormy Knight BY TAD WILLIAMS
None So Blind BY HARRY TURTLEDOVE
JoBoy BY DIANA WYNNE JONES
Puz_le BY GREGORY MAGUIRE
After the Third Kiss BY BRUCE COVILLE
The War That Winter Is BY TANITH LEE
The Dragon’s Tale BY TAMORA PIERCE
Dragon Storm BY MARY ROSENBLUM
The Dragaman’s Bride BY ANDY DUNCAN