About the Author:
Best selling author Janet Morris began writing in 1976 and has since published more than 20 novels, many co-authored with her husband Chris Morris or others. She has contributed short fiction to the shared universe fantasy series Thieves World, in which she created the Sacred Band of Stepsons, a mythical unit of ancient fighters modeled on the Sacred Band of Thebes. She created, orchestrated, and edited the Bangsian fantasy series Heroes in Hell, writing stories for the series as well as co-writing the related novel, The Little Helliad, with Chris Morris. Most of her fiction work has been in the fantasy and science fiction genres, although she has also written historical and other novels. Morris has written, contributed to, or edited several book-length works of non-fiction, as well as papers and articles on nonlethal weapons, developmental military technology and other defense and national security topics.
Review:
Janet Morris, Tempus (1987), and, with Chris Morris, Tempus Unbound (1989), The Sacred Band (2010).A fantasy series about the Sacred Band of Stepsons, an elite army modeled on the fourth-century B.C.E. Sacred Band of Thebes. The stories explore the fraught personal relationships of mixed hetero- and homosexual troops, only sometimes paired, as they fight for their commander, the immortal Tempus. Morris includes archaeological and historical details, from physical items to social practices, religion, and philosophy, to create a fantasy world that is, in many ways, more historically accurate than many popular accounts of antiquity. -- Robert W. Cape, Jr, in Classical Traditions in Science Fiction, Oxford University Press
"Janet Morris has always written some of the best and most literate stories in all heroic fantasy. She writes my kind of tale, too: lean, mean, character-driven, creative, and intelligent. I first encountered Tempus and his Stepsons during the heyday of the Thieves World series, and Morris' tales and characters soon became my favorites. I am happy and pleased that she has continued to write of the further adventures of Tempus and his Sacred band of Stepsons. It was a pleasure to revisit such classics as "And End to Dreaming," "Vashanka's Minion," and "Wizard Weather." Reading these stories brought back such wonderful memories; it was like visiting with old friends. The stories written especially for this volume, "A Better Class of Enemy," "For Love of a Ghost," and "Blood and Honor" are just as good as her earlier tales, and help fill in the blanks, so to speak, adding further info and insight into the series, and helping make this collection more than just another anthology -- they pull everything together and turn the parts into a whole novel. TEMPUS AND NIKO is a reason to celebrate, and Janet Morris gets a big SHOUT OUT from me. I look forward to revisiting more of her work, and catching up on those I have missed. Bravo, Janet! Life and everlasting glory to you!" -- Joe Bonadonna in The Dowser's Delusions
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