Books by Charles de Lint
The Dreaming Place
World Fantasy Award winner Charles de Lint conjures a thrilling, otherworldly tale of magic and family bonds.
A young woman locked in rage yet seeking magic, Ash is drawn into a wondrous Otherworld of totems and dryads, living tarots and mystic charms. At the same time, Ash's cousin Nina is stalked by an Otherworld demon—a manitou who can force her mind and soul into the bodies of beasts. Ash must find the strength to overcome her own anger, learn the full power of magic, and save Nina before she becomes the manitou's weapon, turning the faerie realm into an arctic wasteland. De Lint fans will relish this urban and otherworldly fantasy, partially set in the author's trademark Newford.
"A compelling fantasy that combines elements of Native American and Celtic mythology to create a fluid and unexpected otherworld, open to all with the ability to enter and traverse it."—School Library Journal
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The Harp of the Grey Rose
The compelling and powerful first novel from World Fantasy Award winner Charles de Lint!
He is the Songweaver, but before he was a master of song he was merely Cerin of Wran Cheaping—a seventeen-year-old orphan raised by a wildland witch. Then he encountered the Maid of the Grey Rose—the lone survivor of the war that devastated the Trembling Lands and the promised bride of Yarac Stone-Slayer, the feared and terrible Waster. The mysterious beauty captured Cerin's heart, drawing him into a world both dark and deadly, until armed with only a tinkerblade and the magic of song, he would take on a man's challenge . . . and choose a treacherous path toward a magnificent destiny.
"Charles de Lint is one of the most gifted storytellers writing fantasy today."—Locus
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The Riddle of the Wren
Minda, who is trapped inside a dark nightmare, makes a journey to another world to confront Ildran the Dream-master and try to save the Lord of the Moors.
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Waifs and Strays
From one of the fantasy genre's greatest trailblazers, Waifs and Strays is a must-read.
Charles de Lint's remarkable novels and shorter fiction are, in a very real sense, coming of age stories. Here, for the first time, is a collection of his stories for teen and adult readers alike. From the streets of his famed Newford to the alleys of Bordertown to the realms of Faerie, this is storytelling that will transfix and delight, with characters who will linger in the mind, many of them from his novels. Featuring an illuminating preface by acclaimed author, anthologist, and critic Terri Windling, Waifs and Strays is a must-own for de Lint fans, and an ideal introduction to his work for newcomers.
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Wolf Moon
His name when he was human was Kern. Now he is the most feared of beings: a werewolf. When the change first came upon him, his parents drove him away with silver daggers. Later, he sought human companionship, but he could not hide the truth for long. And so he kept running until he ran headlong into the deadliest pursuer of all-a harper bent on stealing his life away. By chance Kern was able to find refuge at the Inn of the Yellow Tinker, and the woman he was destined to love. But can he risk both human and harper vengeance to keep her?
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Spirits in the Wires: A Novel of Myth and Magic - On the Streets and On the Net (Newford)
At a popular Newford online research and library Web site called the Wordwood, a mysterious crash occurs. Everyone visiting the site at the moment of the crash vanishes from where they were sitting in front of their computers. Christy Ridding's girlfriend Saskia disappears right before his eyes, along with countless others.
To rescue their missing friends, Christy and his companions must journey into Newford's otherworld, where the Wordwood, it transpires, has a physical presence of its own...
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Trader (Newford)
A novel of loss, identity, and, in the strangest of places, hope.
Leonard Trader is a luthier, a maker of guitars. Johnny Devlin is chronically unemployed. Leonard is solitary, quiet, responsible. Johnny is a lady-killer, a drunk, a charming loser.
When they inexplicably wake up in each other's bodies, Johnny gleefully moves into Leonard's comfortable and stable existence, leaving Leonard to pick up the pieces of a life he had no part in breaking.
Penniless, friendless, homeless, Leonard begins a journey that will take him beyond the streets of the city to an otherworld of dreams and spirits, where he must confront both the unscrupulous Johnny Devlin and his own deepest fears.
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I'll Be Watching You (Key Books, 3)
In the early 1990s, Charles de Lint wrote and published three dark fantasy novels under the pen name "Samuel M. Key." Now, beginning with Angel of Darkness and From a Whisper to a Scream and concluding with I'll Be Watching You, Orb presents them for the first time under de Lint's own name.
Rachael Sorenson feared she would never escape her ex-husband's abuse. Then a passing stranger came to her rescue---a stranger who had watched her from afar.
He was a photographer, and Rachael was his perfect subject. He lived only to make her happy---and eliminate those who didn't.
Now he wants more than her beauty. She owes him her life---and he means to collect.
"[De Lint] is not only a skillful storyteller but also a chronicler of women's issues in this sensitive, if politically correct, thriller."--Publishers Weekly
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Dingo
High school senior Miguel's life is turned upside down when he meets new girl Lainey, whose family has just moved from Australia. With her tumbled red-gold hair, her instant understanding of who he is, and her unusual dog--a real Australian dingo--she's unforgettable. And, as he quickly learns, she is on the run from an ancient bargain made by her ancestors. There's no question that Miguel will do whatever he can to help her--but what price will each of them have to pay?
Dingo is quintessential Charles de Lint, set close to his beloved, invented city of Newford--a mixture of darkness and hope, humor and mystery, and the friendship within love.
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The Painted Boy
Jay Li should be in Chicago, finishing high school and working at his family's restaurant. Instead, as a born member of the Yellow Dragon Clan, like his grandmother and spiritual trainer, Paupau - he is on a quest even he does not understand. His journey takes him to Santo del Vado Viejo in the Arizona desert, a town overrun by gangs, haunted by members of other animal clans, perfumed by delicious food, and set to the beat of Malo Malo, a barrio rock band whose female lead guitarist captures Jay's heart. He must face a series of dangerous, otherworldly - and very human - challenges to become the man, and dragon, he is meant to be.
"Charles de Lint is the modern master of urban fantasy. Folktale, myth, fairy tale, dreams, urban legend - all of it adds up to pure magic in de Lint's vivid, original world. No one does it better." - Alice Hoffman
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The Blue Girl
World Fantasy Award winner Charles de Lint weaves a spellbinding contemporary fantasy that will leave you breathless.
When Imogene, her mother, and her brother move to Newford, she decides to reinvent herself—this time she won't go looking for trouble. She quickly gets to know two very different people. Maxine is a "good girl," following a strict life plan. Imogene helps Maxine loosen up and break a few rules, and in turn Maxine keeps her on the straight and narrow. Imogene's other new friend is a little more unusual. His name is Adrian. He is a ghost. Adrian was killed when he jumped off the high school roof in 1998, and hasn't left since. He has a huge crush on her—so much so that he wants her to see the fairies that also haunt the school. The fairies invade Imogene's dreams, blurring the line between the unreal and the real. When her imaginary childhood friend Pelly actually manifests, Imogene knows something is terribly wrong. With Maxine, Adrian, and Pelly's help, Imogene challenges the dark forces of Faery.
"This lively novel thoughtfully examines friendships that cross magical boundaries and explores how love can strengthen and save us."—School Library Journal
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Seven Wild Sisters: A Modern Fairy Tale
This full-color, illustrated companion novel to The Cats of Tanglewood Forest includes "beautiful bookmaking, lovely storytelling, and wondrous illustrations....Readers will be enchanted" (Kirkus Reviews, starred review). This captivating adventure from two masters of modern fantasy is a story of magic, family, and the power in believing in both.
Sarah Jane has always wanted to meet a fairy, but she has no idea that the tiny wounded man she discovers in the Tanglewood Forest is about to ensnare her in a longtime war between rival magical clans. When her six sisters are kidnapped and split up by the opposing sides, she'll need the help of several friends--from the reclusive Aunt Lillian to the mysterious Apple Tree Man--to bring them home. But if they don't untangle themselves from the feud quickly, they could all be trapped in the fairy world forever. In a starred review, Publishers Weekly noted "the lyrical narrative blends a contemporary setting with a fairy tale that might have been plucked from a distinctly different time and place.
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Seven Wild Sisters: A Modern Fairy Tale
This full-color, illustrated companion novel to The Cats of Tanglewood Forest includes "beautiful bookmaking, lovely storytelling, and wondrous illustrations....Readers will be enchanted" (Kirkus Reviews, starred review). This captivating adventure from two masters of modern fantasy is a story of magic, family, and the power in believing in both.
Sarah Jane has always wanted to meet a fairy, but she has no idea that the tiny wounded man she discovers in the Tanglewood Forest is about to ensnare her in a longtime war between rival magical clans. When her six sisters are kidnapped and split up by the opposing sides, she'll need the help of several friends--from the reclusive Aunt Lillian to the mysterious Apple Tree Man--to bring them home. But if they don't untangle themselves from the feud quickly, they could all be trapped in the fairy world forever. In a starred review, Publishers Weekly noted "the lyrical narrative blends a contemporary setting with a fairy tale that might have been plucked from a distinctly different time and place.
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The Cats of Tanglewood Forest
In this whimsical, original folktale, written and illustrated throughout in vibrant full color by two celebrated masters of modern fantasy, a young girl's journey becomes an enchanting coming-of-age story about magic, friendship, and the courage to shape one's own destiny.
Lillian Kindred spends her days exploring the Tanglewood Forest, a magical, rolling wilderness that she imagines to be full of fairies. The trouble is, Lillian has never seen a wisp of magic in her hills--until the day the cats of the forest save her life by transforming her into a kitten. Now she must set out on a perilous adventure that will lead her through untamed lands of fabled creates--from Old Mother Possum to the fearsome Bear People--to find a way to make things right.
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The Cats of Tanglewood Forest
In this whimsical, original folktale, written and illustrated throughout in vibrant full color by two celebrated masters of modern fantasy, a young girl's journey becomes an enchanting coming-of-age story about magic, friendship, and the courage to shape one's own destiny.
Lillian Kindred spends her days exploring the Tanglewood Forest, a magical, rolling wilderness that she imagines to be full of fairies. The trouble is, Lillian has never seen a wisp of magic in her hills--until the day the cats of the forest save her life by transforming her into a kitten. Now she must set out on a perilous adventure that will lead her through untamed lands of fabled creates--from Old Mother Possum to the fearsome Bear People--to find a way to make things right.
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Little (Grrl) Lost
Forced to move to the suburbs, fourteen-year-old TJ, leaving her only friend behind, finds an unexpected ally in "Little," a six-inch-high punked-out teen with a big attitude who is searching for a place in this world.
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Widdershins (Newford)
In Widdershins, fantasy author Charles de Lint has delivered one of his most accessible and moving works of his career.
Jilly Coppercorn and Geordie Riddell. Since they were introduced in the first Newford story, "Timeskip," back in 1989, their friends and readers alike have been waiting for them to realize what everybody else already knows: that they belong together. But they've been more clueless about how they feel for each other than the characters in When Harry Met Sally. Now in Widdershins, a stand-alone novel of fairy courts set in shopping malls and the Bohemian street scene of Newford's Crowsea area, Jilly and Geordie's story is finally being told.
Before it's over, we'll find ourselves plunged into the rancorous and sometimes violent conflict between the magical North American "animal people" and the more newly-arrived fairy folk. We'll watch as Jilly is held captive in a sinister world based on her own worst memories--and Geordie, attempting to help, is sent someplace even worse. And we'll be captivated by the power of love and determination to redeem ancient hatreds and heal old magics gone sour.
To walk "widdershins" is to walk counterclockwise or backwards around something. It's a classic pathway into the fairy realm. It's also the way people often back slowly into the relationships that matter, the real ones that make for a life.
A June 2006 Book Sense Pick
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Widdershins (Newford)
Jilly Coppercorn and Geordie Riddell. Since they were introduced in the first Newford story, "Timeskip," back in 1989, their friends and readers alike have been waiting for them to realize what everybody else already knows: that they belong together. But they've been more clueless about how they feel for each other than the characters in When Harry Met Sally. Now in Widdershins, a stand-alone novel of fairy courts set in shopping malls and the Bohemian street scene of Newford's Crowsea area, Jilly and Geordie's story is finally being told.
Before it's over, we'll find ourselves plunged into the rancorous and sometimes violent conflict between the magical North American "animal people" and the more newly-arrived fairy folk. We'll watch as Jilly is held captive in a sinister world based on her own worst memories--and Geordie, attempting to help, is sent someplace even worse. And we'll be captivated by the power of love and determination to redeem ancient hatreds and heal old magics gone sour.
To walk "widdershins" is to walk counterclockwise or backwards around something. It's a classic pathway into the fairy realm. It's also the way people often back slowly into the relationships that matter, the real ones that make for a life. In Widdershins Charles de Lint has delivered one of his most accessible and moving works of his career.
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Moonlight & Vines (Newford)
Offers a third collection of stories set in Newford, a gritty urban town swirling with a hidden magic perceptible to only a few
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The Very Best of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Volume 2
by Paolo Bacigalupi, Stephen King, Charles de Lint, Jane Yolen
A mutant baby goes on a rampage through Central Park. An immigrant reveals secrets in the folds of a perfect gift. Lucky Cats extend their virtual paws to salute a generous revolution. The Internet invades a third-world village.
The premier speculative-fiction magazine Fantasy & Science Fiction continues to discover and showcase many of the most inventive authors writing in any genre. Now drawing even more deeply upon F&SF’s impressive history, this extraordinary companion anthology expands upon sixty-five years’ worth of top-notch storytelling. The Very Best of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Volume Two is a star-studded tribute to the continuing vision of F&SF.
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