The Mystery of Grace by Charles de Lint

It’s territory he’s covered before, but he does it so (pun unavoidable) gracefully that his body of work has become defined by its sensitivity to character, and to the way human beings attempt to confront the unknown and unexpected in the course of trying to live what are already hard lives.

There is much to love about this haunting and emotionally textured story, though, for my own tastes, I had to back down from the full four stars it was getting due to some choices de Lint makes towards the climax, which I will attempt to explain without spoilers. I have a feeling after I’ve explained them you’ll know whether or not what bothered me will bother you, at which point you’re free to scale the rating upwards. If you’re a longtime de Lint fan, go ahead and do so now.

SF REVIEWS.NET: The Mystery of Grace / Charles de Lint ☆☆☆½.

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