In the Cities of Coin and Spice

English language

Published Sept. 22, 2007 by Bantam Books.

ISBN:: 978-0-553-38404-8

(1 review)

A Book of Wonders for Grown-Up ReadersEvery once in a great while a book comes along that reminds us of the magic spell that stories can cast over us--to dazzle, entertain, and enlighten. Welcome to the Arabian Nights for our time--a lush and fantastical epic guaranteed to spirit you away from the very first page....Secreted away in a garden, a lonely girl spins stories to warm a curious prince: peculiar feats and unspeakable fates that loop through each other and back again to meet in the tapestry of her voice. Inked on her eyelids, each twisting, tattooed tale is a piece in the puzzle of the girl's own hidden history. And what tales she tells! Tales of shape-shifting witches and wild horsewomen, heron kings and beast princesses, snake gods, dog monks, and living stars--each story more strange and fantastic than the one that came before. From ill-tempered "mermaid" to fastidious …

A Book of Wonders for Grown-Up ReadersEvery once in a great while a book comes along that reminds us of the magic spell that stories can cast over us--to dazzle, entertain, and enlighten. Welcome to the Arabian Nights for our time--a lush and fantastical epic guaranteed to spirit you away from the very first page....Secreted away in a garden, a lonely girl spins stories to warm a curious prince: peculiar feats and unspeakable fates that loop through each other and back again to meet in the tapestry of her voice. Inked on her eyelids, each twisting, tattooed tale is a piece in the puzzle of the girl's own hidden history. And what tales she tells! Tales of shape-shifting witches and wild horsewomen, heron kings and beast princesses, snake gods, dog monks, and living stars--each story more strange and fantastic than the one that came before. From ill-tempered "mermaid" to fastidious Beast, nothing is ever quite what it seems in these ever-shifting tales--even, and especially, their teller. Adorned with illustrations by the legendary Michael Kaluta, Valente's enchanting lyrical fantasy offers a breathtaking reinvention of the untold myths and dark fairy tales that shape our dreams. And just when you think you've come to the end, you realize the adventure has only begun....From the Trade Paperback edition.

4 editions

Kadomi reviewed The orphan's tales. by Catherynne M. Valente (A Bantam Spectra book)

Review of "The orphan's tales." on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

I loved this baffling, bedazzling book of tales within tales within tales. The book has a framework of a young girl with mysterious ink around her eyes hiding in a garden by an undefined sultan's palace. The sultan's young son meets the girl and learns that the ink are stories that the girl knows, and so he makes her tell him two tales. The first tale is about a prince who kills the daughter of a witch, the second tale is about a girl as pale as snow living in an icy city. But both tales are like Russian dolls, nested within them are tales within tales within tales as the reader gets to meet gods that used to be stars, mystical creatures like the Leucrotta, opulent cities like Al-A-Nur, demons and necromancers. The two tales are actually sharing narrative strands. Sometimes it's a bit difficult to follow when picking …

I loved this baffling, bedazzling book of tales within tales within tales. The book has a framework of a young girl with mysterious ink around her eyes hiding in a garden by an undefined sultan's palace. The sultan's young son meets the girl and learns that the ink are stories that the girl knows, and so he makes her tell him two tales. The first tale is about a prince who kills the daughter of a witch, the second tale is about a girl as pale as snow living in an icy city. But both tales are like Russian dolls, nested within them are tales within tales within tales as the reader gets to meet gods that used to be stars, mystical creatures like the Leucrotta, opulent cities like Al-A-Nur, demons and necromancers. The two tales are actually sharing narrative strands. Sometimes it's a bit difficult to follow when picking the book back up but I mostly found it enchanting and difficult to put down. I loved fairy tales as a child, and these tales had the same atmosphere. Sometimes enchanting and colorful, sometimes very dark and grim. It's Arabian Nights meets Grimm.

I'm looking forward to reading the second volume.