mysteries published by BAEN

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by birdbrainbb

I'm not entirely sure what Richard III did that keeping him alive would change history so much, but I'm sure a trip to Wikipedia will fix me up.

Not having read these books I'm not sure what is postulated in terms of "alternate history", but keeping Richard III alive means no Tudor dynasty in England, and the Tudors did rather a lot of things which quite radically changed England - the break from Rome and disolution of the monastaries to name but two. No Henry VIII, no Elizabeth I; things would probably never been very different.

[zelda_pinwheel]

Originally Posted by birdbrainbb

A small update since my last posting:

I finished Snake Agent (the first Detective Inspector Chen book) and LOVED it. (My review is linked in my sig if anyone wants to check it out.) Definitely recommended reading for those who love sci-fi/fantasy/mysteries.

I also read Doc Sidhe, and while it wasn't as good as Snake Agent it was entertaining and had some interesting things in it. It's not as much of a mystery as an action/adventure novel, but there are hints of mystery in it, if that counts?

And now I've started on the Lord Darcy story collection. It's quite good; definitely feels like something related to Lord Peter Whimsy, if that interests any of you (or maybe more like Ellery Queen?). The alternate history part is a bit confusing to me since I'm not entirely sure what Richard III did that keeping him alive would change history so much, but I'm sure a trip to Wikipedia will fix me up.

thanks very much for the update ! i'm still only about a third through émile gaboriau's Monsieur Lecoq (it's looooooong) so i'm not sure when i'll be starting a new book but i'm really looking forward to these (particularly Lord Darcy ).

[Xenophon]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Not having read these books I'm not sure what is postulated in terms of "alternate history", but keeping Richard III alive means no Tudor dynasty in England, and the Tudors did rather a lot of things which quite radically changed England - the break from Rome and disolution of the monastaries to name but two. No Henry VIII, no Elizabeth I; things would probably never been very different.

Other than the obvious large differences HarryT points to, the only other things Randall Garrett is sort-of-specific about are

• Richard III was a changed man after the fever that killed him in our history. He settled down to become one of the best Kings ever in British history.
• a mention that (somewhere in there, time-wise) a monk/scholar/something "codified the laws of magic" sufficiently to make magic into a repeatable, reliable tool. He also hints that this happened earlier than the point of the scientific revolution in our history.

Beyond that, you should think of the "Richard III didn't die" thing as the excuse for whatever difference you see. The "MacGuffin," as it were. The details are not incredibly important to the stories.

Xenophon

[wayrad]

Originally Posted by birdbrainbb

The alternate history part is a bit confusing to me since I'm not entirely sure what Richard III did that keeping him alive would change history so much, but I'm sure a trip to Wikipedia will fix me up.

Wasn't it the survival of Richard the Lionheart, not Richard III, that was the key event in the Darcyverse? It's been a while since I read any of them though...

[Xenophon]

Yes. Lionheart, not IIIrd. Ooops!

Xenophon

[birdbrainbb]

Originally Posted by Xenophon

Other than the obvious large differences HarryT points to, the only other things Randall Garrett is sort-of-specific about are

• Richard III was a changed man after the fever that killed him in our history. He settled down to become one of the best Kings ever in British history.
• a mention that (somewhere in there, time-wise) a monk/scholar/something "codified the laws of magic" sufficiently to make magic into a repeatable, reliable tool. He also hints that this happened earlier than the point of the scientific revolution in our history.

Beyond that, you should think of the "Richard III didn't die" thing as the excuse for whatever difference you see. The "MacGuffin," as it were. The details are not incredibly important to the stories.

Xenophon

Oh good, that makes things much easier. Now I won't worry about it so much. Thanks!

Originally Posted by wayrad

Wasn't it the survival of Richard the Lionheart, not Richard III, that was the key event in the Darcyverse? It's been a while since I read any of them though...

Whoops, too much Shakespeare must have filtered into my brain.

[Xenophon]

Originally Posted by birdbrainbb

Oh good, that makes things much easier. Now I won't worry about it so much. Thanks!

And if/when a detail of the alternate history matters, Garrett makes sure that he tells you.

Xenophon

[Xenophon]

More mysteries from Baen:
Very Bad Deaths and Very Hard Choices, both by Spider Robinson. These are near-future SF, involving a (receive-only) telepath known as "Smelly," the middle-aged journalist who is one of the few people Smelly can stand to be in close proximity with, and a Canadian police officer. The back-cover blurb for Very Bad Deaths:

Blind to the beauty of his island home in Canada, shattered by the death of his wife of 32 years, American expatriate Russell Walker is ready to join her. But Smelly won't let him!

Smelly—notorious for his refusal to bathe—was Russell's college roommate back in 1967. He's lived a hermit's life ever since, and only Russell knows why: Smelly reads minds, can't help it—and it hurts. After all these years, Russell is still the only person Smelly can stand to be near. And now Smelly urgently needs an intermediary with the police—suicidal or not.

He's learned that a serial sadist who would terrify Ted Bundy is at play in the Vancouver area. Unfortunately, he's got only scraps of information that aren't enough to ID either the killer or his next victims. And he can't even come close enough to a cop to tell his story.

Against his better judgment, Russell brings this unlikely tale to Constable Nika Mandic, a tough but unlucky Vancouver policewoman—and soon the mild-mannered Sixties survivor finds himself conspiring with a telepathic hermit and an uptight cop to track a monster to his lair.

But are the three together smart enough to stalk a creature who thinks of himself as the first true scientist of cruelty If not, Russell's suicidal urges may be fulfilled sooner—and much less painlessly—than he planned. . .

Excellent stuff!

Xenophon

[zelda_pinwheel]

Originally Posted by Xenophon

More mysteries from Baen:
Very Bad Deaths and Very Hard Choices, both by Spider Robinson. These are near-future SF, involving a (receive-only) telepath known as "Smelly," the middle-aged journalist who is one of the few people Smelly can stand to be in close proximity with, and a Canadian police officer.

sounds intriguing ! just a question, given the story, is there much explicit violence ? i'm sort of a lightweight when it comes to gruesome details. (and by lightweight, i mean like helium)

[zelda_pinwheel]

hmmm... i just went to baen to add those two books to my wishlist, and all the ones i added previously are gone. it doesn't save your wishlist from one session to the next ? i was hoping to keep them all together there to choose easily when i want to buy them.

[Xenophon]

Originally Posted by zelda_pinwheel

sounds intriguing ! just a question, given the story, is there much explicit violence ? i'm sort of a lightweight when it comes to gruesome details. (and by lightweight, i mean like helium)

There's not a ton of explicit violence. There's some -- it's necessary to make the point about the antagonist. But these books are certainly not from the "make it extra gruesome" school of writing, either. There are, however, some points where our heros have a pretty rough time, described in enough detail to make it clear that this is not a picnic.

You're probably OK; it might be a bit of a stretch. Darned good book, though, so it'd be worth the effort.

Xenophon

[Xenophon]

Originally Posted by zelda_pinwheel

hmmm... i just went to baen to add those two books to my wishlist, and all the ones i added previously are gone. it doesn't save your wishlist from one session to the next ? i was hoping to keep them all together there to choose easily when i want to buy them.

My experience is that the wishlist persists. You do have to log in, though. Alternatively, there may have been some sort of glitch.

Xenophon

[zelda_pinwheel]

Originally Posted by Xenophon

My experience is that the wishlist persists. You do have to log in, though. Alternatively, there may have been some sort of glitch.

Xenophon

must have been a glitch, since i did log in. oh well. at least i have all the links in the first post. i'll just use this thread as my wishlist.

[zelda_pinwheel]

Originally Posted by Xenophon

There's not a ton of explicit violence. There's some -- it's necessary to make the point about the antagonist. But these books are certainly not from the "make it extra gruesome" school of writing, either. There are, however, some points where our heros have a pretty rough time, described in enough detail to make it clear that this is not a picnic.

You're probably OK; it might be a bit of a stretch. Darned good book, though, so it'd be worth the effort.

Xenophon

ok, thanks. i'll keep it near the *end* of my wishlist nonetheless.

[birdbrainbb]

Finished reading the Lord Darcy collection tonight, and it was FANTASTIC. I absolutely loved it! Completely recommended for anyone who likes to read, for sure.

Now I'm not sure what to read next. Retief, maybe? Or Thraxas? Someone help, lol.