I first got into the works of Barry Reese when I read his first volume of The Rook stories. In the back was a timeline that listed several other works I hadn’t read. These included his previous Family Grace stories that had appeared in a self-published work.
As they seemed more fantasy oriented, I wasn’t that interested in reading them. But as time went on and other elements were tied in, my interest changed.
More recently, his website indicated a new collection of the Family Grace stories was in the works. Finally, “The Family Grace: An Extraordinary History” is here!
This is a collection of new and reprinted works. Some I have read, but others I have not.
Beginning the book are two long stories (novellas?) that were the original Family Grace stories. These are more of fantasy or “sword & planet” type of stories (think: John Carter), where the main characters pass into another world connected to ours: the World of Shadows, which is a magical world. These stories tell of the adventures of Eobard Grace and others of his family in the World of Shadows.
In the first story, Eobard goes over to the World of Shadows, rescues his uncle, saves and loves a princess, and overthrows an evil lord. At the end he returns home (when you read the story, you’ll understand why). In the second, several years later Eobard returns to the World of Shadows with his niece (and her fiance) in tow to stop a trio of demons re-uniting the World of Shadows with our own. At the end they all decide to remain in the World of Shadows.
The rest of the volume is taken up by several shorter works, many of which were included in The Rook volumes. All of their original publications are noted in the introduction.
“The Great Work” is a short story originally from an issue of Wildcat Book’s Startling Stories. It has another Grace family member and involves the horrors that exist in the universe of The Rook.
“The Gilded Beast” was intended for The Rook: Volume Three, but never saw print. This short story has The Rook, along with Ascott Keane (who fights Dr. Satan and has appeared in several Rook stories) and the Green Lama. Here, The Rook deals with a creature from the World of Shadows.
“The Diabolical Mr. Dee,” from The Rook: Volume Five, tells of The Rook’s meeting with Eobard Grace, when he and some of his friend find themselves in the World of Shadows.
“The Black Mass” (mistitled “The Black Mask”), from The Rook: Volume One, introduces the future fourth Rook and his lover, Fiona Grace, a descendant of Eobard. The barrier that separates our world from the World of Shadows has fallen, and we now see many of the magical creatures (good and bad) of that world in our own.
“The Four Rooks,” from The Rook: Volume Four, is a direct sequel to “The Black Mass.” It actually spans several years, and we see many of The Rooks, past and present.
Also included is a version of Reese’s timeline of his works. However, due to a formatting error, the titles of the works are not in bold. Also, “The Gilded Beast” is missing from this list.
For those who have read The Rook stories, this is a volume they should get, despite the repeat of some stories. Or, this can serve as a great introduction for new readers.
