Benjamin Wald for SFREVU praises Peter S. Beagle’s THE OVERNEATH.

There is a distinct pleasure to be found in reading a true master of the craft of writing. You can relax with the knowledge that you are in good hands, and savour the facility with language and character that shines from every page. Reading Peter S. Beagle provides exactly this variety of pleasure, and his newest collection of short fiction, THE OVERNEATH, will not disappoint. Beagle is a master of prose and his every sentence delights. In addition, he combines aa shrewd appreciation of character and human nature with a warmth and sympathy that makes even his least impressive characters instantly sympathetic. While best known for the deservedly beloved The Last Unicorn, Beagle has lost none of his skill in the intervening five decades of writing and his work remains one of the jewels of the genre.

<snip>

Overall, this is an excellent collection from an accomplished fantasist operating at the height of his powers. Pull up a chair, open the cover, and relax. You are in good hands.

Photo: Rina Weisman

At STRANGE HORIZONS, Stephen Case chose the collection as one of his genre favorites of 2017.

My first was Peter S. Beagle’s collection THE OVERNEATH, which besides some excellent urban fantasy revisited a character from The Last Unicorn and offered a sequence of stories featuring unicorns in various settings (including Colonial America) without being trite. In fact, this whole collection pretty much nailed it, showing Beagle at his wry and whimsical best. 

THE ARCHED DOORWAY includes the book, without comment on their 15 Books We Enjoyed In 2017.

For more info on THE OVERNEATH, visit the Tachyon page.

Cover design by Elizabeth Story