Academic Exercises

Known mostly for dark historical fantasies, the pseudonymous Parker (The Folding Knife; Sharps) proves his (or her) skills in the short form with these ten stories and three essays. The stories have a loose connection in that they share a setting and the characters all have some affiliation with the Studium (this medieval world's university). Some tales include magic, such as "Amor Vincit Omnia," in which a representative from the Studium is trying to track down a rogue magic user. Others are more mundane, including the two World Fantasy Award-winning stories "Let Maps to Others," about rival geographers searching for a lost island of riches, and "A Small Price To Pay for Birdsong," about a twisted relationship between a music teacher and his murderous star pupil. But whether magical or not, they all feature riveting, dark characters and twisty plots.