The Books of Barbara Hambly

Barbara Hambly is an amazingly versatile writer. Her fantasy, at first glance fairly standard formula, is original and refreshing, standing out from the run of the mill work that is prevalent on the shelves. When she turns to a vampire story, it stands out from the huge number of such novels being written. She also does wonderful mysteries and her Star Trek and Star Wars books are well above the normal quality levels usually found in those franchise novels.

New Books

Magic Time: Barbara Hambly / Hardcover / Published 2000 (Not Yet Published)
Sold Down the River: Barbara Hambly / Hardcover / Published 2000 (Not Yet Published)
Graveyard Dust: Barbara Hambly / Mass Market Paperback / Published 2000 (Not Yet Published -- On Order)
Knight of the Demon Queen ~ Usually ships in 24 hours: Barbara Hambly / Hardcover / Published 2000

The World of Darwath

The original Darwath trilogy was our introduction to Barbara's talent. It was easy to have a good first impression of her ability and happily that impression has proven accurate over the years. The characters introduced in the first book, Ingold, Gil, Rudy, Icefalcon, etc., quickly became good friends, holding our interest through many trials and dangers. The later books have revisited the world of Darwath, showing us larger parts of the world and more about our friends without wearing out our enjoyment of the visits. If you have not yet visited Darwath, you really should go there. It is worth the time and money.

The Time of the Dark (Darwath Trilogy, Vol. 1) ~ Usually ships in 24 hours: Barbara Hambly / Mass Market Paperback / Published 1988
The Walls of Air (Darwath Trilogy, Vol. 2) ~ Usually ships in 24 hours: Barbara Hambly / Mass Market Paperback / Published 1988
The Armies of Daylight (Darwath Trilogy, Vol. 3) ~ Usually ships in 24 hours: Barbara Hambly / Mass Market Paperback / Published 1995
Mother of Winter ~ Ships in 2-3 days: Barbara Hambly / Hardcover / Published 1996
Mother of Winter ~ Ships in 2-3 days: Barbara Hambly / Mass Market Paperback / Published 1997
Icefalcon's Quest (Darwath Series) ~ Usually ships in 24 hours: Barbara Hambly / Mass Market Paperback / Published 1999
Icefalcon's Quest ~ Usually ships in 24 hours: Barbara Hambly / Hardcover / Published 1998
Another excursion into Darwath, this time we take a look at one of the secondary characters in the series. But while he is a secondary character, his presence has always been felt in the series, even when he was offstage. As the central character in this book, Icefalcon is still an enigma, but with some of his mysteries explained. We find out why he is no longer welcome in his tribe and how he came to be a member of the Guard. This is in the course of his lone quest to save his king and the Keep that is their home.
First the bad news. This is not Barbara's best work. She doesn't seem to do her best unless she is doing something new, which this isn't. The good news is, it is still better than most things you will find in the SF/Fantasy section, and it is a very fun read. It is possible to read it as a stand alone novel, but I do not know why you would want to when it is even easier to pick up the earlier books in the series and enjoy all of them. And if you are a fan of the Darwath books, there is no question about whether you want to pick this up. You don't want to miss the chance to revisit hold friends and places.

The Windrose Chronicles

Another world across the Void, where once again someone from our world is drawn into their crisis. Superficially, it sounds a lot like the Darwath books. But the world and characters are quite different and engaging in their own way. Not quite as engaging as Darwath, but lots of fun to read anyway. Stranger at the Wedding is set in the same world as the first three but it is more on the fringes of the world, with mostly different characters.

The Silent Tower (Windrose Chronicles Book 1): Barbara Hambly / Mass Market Paperback / Published 1986; This is not available at all from Amazon.Com, you might be able to find it at Bibliofind.com
Silicon Mage (Windrose Chronicles, Book 2) ~ Usually ships in 24 hours: Barbara Hambly / Mass Market Paperback / Published 1988
Dog Wizard (Windrose Chronicles, Book 3) ~ Ships in 2-3 days: Barbara Hambly / Mass Market Paperback / Published 1993
Stranger at the Wedding (Windrose Chronicles) ~ Ships in 2-3 days: Barbara Hambly / Mass Market Paperback / Published 1994

Other Fantasy

Dragonsbane ~ Ships in 2-3 days: Barbara Hambly / Mass Market Paperback / Published 1987; One of my favorite Hambly books, this covers some of the adventures of a very unlikely dragon hunter and his wife. It also includes one of the best dragons ever. The best news is that Barbara is working on more stories about John Aversin, Jenny Waynest, and Morkeleb.
Dragonshadow ~ Usually ships in 24 hours: Barbara Hambly / Hardcover / Published 1999
Dragonshadow ~ Usually ships in 24 hours: Barbara Hambly / Mass Market Paperback / Published 2000
Bride of the Rat God ~ Usually ships in 24 hours: Barbara Hambly / Mass Market Paperback / Published 1994; A quite different fantasy, set in Los Angeles in 1923, there is a great deal of research and knowledge evident in the story. Fortunately the characters and events are the focal points, leaving the research to add the background that helps make the story outstanding.; A Chinese god decides he really needs a movie star for a bride so he can remain in this world. Needless to say, the marriage ceremony is not something that really appeals to her. With some surprising allies, she manages to get things handled, but the journey is lots of fun.

Vampire Stories

When Barbara set out to write a vampire story, she did it right. An outstanding effort in a very crowded field, you should get these books even if you do not like vampires. One of the amazing things about the books is that the vampires are not the good guys, but you still root for them. A remarkable job of making unsympathetic characters someone you can care about.

Those Who Hunt the Night ~ Usually ships in 24 hours: Barbara Hambly / Mass Market Paperback / Published 1990
Traveling With the Dead ~ Usually ships in 24 hours: Barbara Hambly / Mass Market Paperback / Published 1996

Mysteries

A Free Man of Color ~ Usually ships in 24 hours

Barbara Hambly / Hardcover / Published 1997

A Free Man of Color ~ Usually ships in 24 hours

Barbara Hambly / Mass Market Paperback / Published 1998

Somewhat of a departure for Barbara, this is an historical mystery set in 1833 New Orleans. The Benjamin January, the main character, is the free man of color in the title, who has only recently returned to his hometown after living in Paris for 16 years. This very nicely lets Barbara give a lot of information about the society of the time without hitting the reader over the head with large chunks of exposition. It also allows her to contrast the present society, being overran by the newcomer Americans, and the earlier days when the colored population of the city were much better off.

All of this information is only background for discovering the identity of the murderer of a beautiful placee during a Mardis Gras ball. It is a fair mystery, with all of the information presented during the course of the story, but the many twists and turns keep you guessing until the end. The characters are well drawn and distinct, an important point with the large cast present at the balls, and the city and culture of the time come to disturbing life. If you are interested in learning about a little known period of history or you want an intriguing mystery set in a fascinating culture, this is a great book to pick up. You will get caught up in the lives of fascinating people and want to hear from them again. And Barbara is working on the third book right now.

Fever Season ~ Usually ships in 24 hours

Barbara Hambly / Hardcover / Published 1998

Fever Season ~ Usually ships in 24 hours

Barbara Hambly / Mass Market Paperback / Published 1999

Graveyard Dust ~ Usually ships in 24 hours

Barbara Hambly / Hardcover / Published 1999

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