2012 Puddly Awards
 
 
Follow us on TwitterFollow us on FacebookFollow us on TumblrSubscribe to RSS


Recently Viewed clear list


Original Essays | February 8, 2012

Kent Hartman: IMG A Raider by Any Other Name



Perhaps you are aware of the fact that there is an oddly popular trivia game floating around that a group of clever (and likely bored) college... Continue »
  1. $18.19 Sale Hardcover add to wish list

spacer
Free Shipping!

Ships free on qualified orders.
$6.50
Used Trade Paper
Ships in 1 to 3 days
Add to Wishlist
Qty Store Section
1 Beaverton Science Fiction and Fantasy- A to Z

The Strange Adventures of Rangergirl (Bantam Spectra Book)

by Tim Pratt

The Strange Adventures of Rangergirl (Bantam Spectra Book) Cover

ISBN13: 9780553383386
ISBN10: 0553383388
Condition: Standard
All Product Details

Only 1 left in stock at $6.50!

 

Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

In this debut novel, acclaimed short-story author Tim Pratt delivers an exciting heroine with a hidden talent–and a secret duty. Witty and suspenseful, here is a contemporary love song to the West that was won and the myths that shape us….

As night manager of Santa Cruzs quirkiest coffeehouse, Marzi McCarty makes a mean espresso, but her first love is making comics. Her claim to fame: The Strange Adventures of Rangergirl, a cowpunk neo-western yarn. Striding through an urban frontier peopled by Marzis wild imagination, Rangergirl doles out her own brand of justice. But lately Marzis imagination seems to be altering her reality. Shes seeing the world through Rangergirls eyes–literally--complete with her deadly nemesis, the Outlaw.

It all started when Marzi opened a hidden door in the coffeehouse storage room. There, imprisoned among

the supplies, she saw the face of something unknown…and dangerous. And she unwittingly became its guard. But some primal darkness mustve escaped, because Marzi hasnt been the same since. And neither have her customers, who are acting downright apocalyptic.

Now its up to Marzi to stop this supervillainous superforce thats swaggered its way into her world. For Marzi, its the

showdown of her life. For Rangergirl, its just another day....

Review:

"Pratt (Little Gods), praised for his short fiction, stumbles in his first novel. Marzipan 'Marzi' McCarty, a 20ish California art school dropout, writes quirky comics. Marzi's also the night manager — barista of Genius Loci, a Santa Cruz coffeehouse decorated by vanished muralist Garamond Ray to hold in elemental Evil. The wild adventures that Marzi concocts for her cowpunk character, Rangergirl, start coming true after her artsy friends become obsessed with freeing weird gods. When the Outlaw, a representative of everyone's worst fears, busts loose from its surreal corral, the Desert Lands, it's up to Marzi, the new artist-guardian, to save the whole shootin' match from disaster. Pratt's simplistic message, glimpsed sporadically behind clouds of neo-hippie jargon, self-consciously naughty language, outdoor sex and nasty violence, is pretentious and even a little nave — that art can trap our fears and hold them at bay. Like too much marzipan, it all turns cloying mighty fast, pardners." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Synopsis:

"Tim Pratt's "The Strange Adventures of Rangergirl" is a two-fisted meta-fiction of old west mythos and modern day--sharp writing, cool characters, fascinating ideas, and the courage to have fun."--Jeffrey Ford, author of "The Portrait of Mrs. Charbuque."

About the Author

Tim Pratt has been nominated for the Nebula award and for the Campbell Best New Writer award, and his fiction has appeared in Best American Short Stories and The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror. He lives in Oakland, California, where he co-edits a literary 'zine, Flytrap, with his fiancee, Heather Shaw.

What Our Readers Are Saying

Add a comment for a chance to win!
Average customer rating based on 1 comment:

emmejo, June 7, 2011 (view all comments by emmejo)
Marzi is quite happy working at a Santa Cruz coffeehouse and writing her Weird Western comic in her spare time, but then something happens to severely disrupt her delicately balanced life and mental health: she starts seeing the characters from her comic walking around town. Before long other people can see them too, and her villain, the Outlaw, is making the kind of trouble only a walking earthquake in semi-human form can. It looks like Marzi is going to have to take up her protagonist's part and become Rangergirl.

Marzi is a pretty well-rounded character and I liked how psychologically complex the author chose to make her. Her problems aren't popular or common issues for an author to use and it's nice to see they weren't fixed with a snap of the fingers.

This is a first novel from an author used to writing short stories and the pacing limps a bit. The writing is solid, although sometimes a bit bland or vague about describing things that it would make sense to spend an extra sentence on in a novel.
Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No
(1 of 1 readers found this comment helpful)

Product Details

ISBN:
9780553383386
Author:
Pratt, Tim
Publisher:
Bantam Books
Subject:
Science Fiction - General
Subject:
Science / General
Subject:
Science Fiction and Fantasy-A to Z
Copyright:
Edition Description:
Trade paper
Series:
Bantam Spectra Book
Publication Date:
20051131
Binding:
TRADE PAPER
Grade Level:
General/trade
Language:
English
Illustrations:
Y
Pages:
402
Dimensions:
8.34x5.30x.93 in. .67 lbs.

Other books you might like

  1. $6.99 Google eBooks add to wish list

    The Dragons of the Cuyahoga

    S. Andrew Swann 9781101498491
  2. $7.99 Google eBooks add to wish list

    Dragon Bones

    Patricia Briggs 9781101133903
  3. $8.95 Used Trade Paper add to wish list

    Last Summer at Mars Hill

    Elizabeth Hand 9780061053481
  4. $1.95 Used Mass Market add to wish list

    The Dragonstone (Mithgar)

    Dennis L Mckiernan 9780451454560
  5. $14.95 Used Trade Paper add to wish list
  6. $9.95 Used Trade Paper add to wish list

Related Aisles

The Strange Adventures of Rangergirl (Bantam Spectra Book) Used Trade Paper
0 stars - 0 reviews
$6.50 In Stock
Product details 402 pages Spectra Books - English 9780553383386 Reviews:
"Publishers Weekly Review" by , "Pratt (Little Gods), praised for his short fiction, stumbles in his first novel. Marzipan 'Marzi' McCarty, a 20ish California art school dropout, writes quirky comics. Marzi's also the night manager — barista of Genius Loci, a Santa Cruz coffeehouse decorated by vanished muralist Garamond Ray to hold in elemental Evil. The wild adventures that Marzi concocts for her cowpunk character, Rangergirl, start coming true after her artsy friends become obsessed with freeing weird gods. When the Outlaw, a representative of everyone's worst fears, busts loose from its surreal corral, the Desert Lands, it's up to Marzi, the new artist-guardian, to save the whole shootin' match from disaster. Pratt's simplistic message, glimpsed sporadically behind clouds of neo-hippie jargon, self-consciously naughty language, outdoor sex and nasty violence, is pretentious and even a little nave — that art can trap our fears and hold them at bay. Like too much marzipan, it all turns cloying mighty fast, pardners." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)
"Synopsis" by , "Tim Pratt's "The Strange Adventures of Rangergirl" is a two-fisted meta-fiction of old west mythos and modern day--sharp writing, cool characters, fascinating ideas, and the courage to have fun."--Jeffrey Ford, author of "The Portrait of Mrs. Charbuque."
spacer
spacer
  • back to top
Follow us on...


Powell's City of Books is an independent bookstore in Portland, Oregon, that fills a whole city block with more than a million new, used, and out of print books. Shop those shelves — plus literally millions more books, DVDs, and eBooks — here at Powells.com.