Robin Hobb & Megan Lindholm: The Inheritance

Hi

The Inheritance is the first short stories collection by Robin Hobb and Megan Lindholm. Both are pseudonyms used by Margaret Lindholm. She sees these two pseudonyms as very different authors with a very distinct and not interchangeable writing style. Combining their stories into one collection made me see these differences quite clearly even though I’ve never read anything by Megan Lindholm.
I got this book at the Boekenfestijn and it has exactly 400 pages.

“The Inheritance & Other Stories is a marvelous new collection of short fiction from New York Times bestselling master storyteller Robin Hobb—including tales written under the pseudonym Megan Lindholm, by which the acclaimed fantasist first began her illustrious writing career. Included in this essential volume are Hugo and Nebula Award-nominated short masterworks, as well as brand new tales and the never before published in the U.S. title story—a unique compendium of wonders displaying the breathtaking skill, imagination, and remarkably varied styles of both alter egos.”

This collection includes the following stories:
as Megan Lindholm: A Touch of Lavender, Silver Lady and the Fortyish Man, Cut, The Fifth Squashed Cat, Strays, Finis and Drum machine
as Robin Hobb: Homecoming, The Inheritance and Cat's meat

Lindholm’s stories were a bit too short for me. I enjoyed them so much I wanted more of them and I wanted them to slow down a bit because they were so fast paced and sometimes shallow. These stories were more SF or urban in a recent setting. Hobb’s stories were fantastical as are her novels and they were slower too, which I liked.

I really liked this extremely descriptive collection. It’s very different from other collections and Lindholm’s stories especially were unique in their setting. The stories are very empowering, sad, moving and oddly triumphant. 

I enjoyed it but the stories are too predictable and shallow to really love them.

Happy reading.
Helena