come an increasingly prolific short story writer
since 1997, many of whose fantasies can be found
in Paying the Piper at the Gates of Dawn(2003). Her
best short stories include “The Phaerie Bride”
(1997) and “Piper at the Gate” (2000).
“Elle Est Trois (La Mort)”Tanith Lee(1983)
Tanith LEEhas proven to be one of the most reli-
able and prolific fantasy writers of recent years,
writing for both adults and children and also estab-
lishing a smaller but still respectable reputation in
science fiction and horror. This World Fantasy
Award–winning story falls within the last category.
Armand Valier is a young French poet on the verge
of starvation when he experiences a strange transi-
tion while crossing a bridge. On one side an object
in the water appears to be the drowned body of a
young girl, but when it emerges from under the
bridge it is simply a mess of rags and other debris.
Nevertheless, he feels that the bridge has somehow
marked a transition between the normal world and
some other realm of existence. Drawn by this
strange feeling, he returns to the area and catches
a brief glimpse of an aristocratic woman who also
appears to dissolve into shadows.
Valier meets several fellow failed artists in a
cafe, where he describes his encounter. He also is
reminded of a childhood game whose chanted re-
frain gives this story its title. The game is a varia-
tion of musical chairs; the individual who is left
facing a particular symbol is eliminated and de-
clared dead. Death has three faces, Thief, Seduc-
tress, and Slaughterer. One of the others, Etiens,
an artist, recalls an incident from his childhood
when he also had a series of visions of an appar-
ently imaginary person, in his case a young girl
who appeared in his room while he was seriously ill
and who at the end attempted to lure him to his
death.
The third member of their small group is
France, a musician, who returns to his apartment
just in time to be hacked to death by a vengeful ex-
girlfriend. But France saw someone else, the per-
sonification of death itself in the form of a
beautiful woman. The story ends with speculation
about the nature of fate and death and the many
faces that our personal dooms might take. If life
and death are a game, then there will be winners
and losers, and perhaps the role assigned is just a
matter of luck.Elliott, Kate(1958– )
Kate Elliott is the pseudonym of Alis A. Ras-
mussen, who used her own name for her early sci-
ence fiction and for her very first published novel,
which was a fantasy. The Elliot name was also used
initially for science fiction, although it was obvious
even then that these otherworldly romantic adven-
tures were edging closer to fantasy fiction. The
Labyrinth Gate(1988), her debut novel, is a pleas-
ant but unexceptional story of alternate worlds ac-
cessed by means of a deck of enchanted tarot cards
and bears little resemblance to her later work.
All five of her fantasy novels are in the Crown
of Stars series, which opened with King’s Dragon
(1997). The rule of the present king of Wendar is
menaced not only by his ambitious and unprinci-
pled sister, who is gathering a rival army to her
banner, but by legions of inhuman creatures in the
lands to the north and east, who are striking across
the borders. A missing heir to the throne compli-
cates matters even further in the second volume,
Prince of Dogs(1998), while the political and mili-
tary situation continues to deteriorate. In The
Burning Stone(1999) the conflict becomes more
personal and immediate, and a young woman must
decide whether to use the power of sorcery despite
the taint of evil that surrounds it. The individual
titles grew progressively longer and more complex
as Elliott developed her world and its people, with
a very large cast of characters and ever more de-
tailed background material. Child of Flame(2000)
scatters most of the main protagonists into sepa-
rate story lines. One seeks to discover the truth
about her own heritage, one uncovers a new plot
against the throne, and others simply strive to sur-
vive as the war comes closer and the world grows
more dangerous. The future is very much in doubt
in The Gathering Storm(2003), for the king has
shown questionable judgment in dealing with his
many enemies.
The series often feels more like historical fic-
tion set in an imaginary country than traditional
fantasy, but Elliott’s narrative skills have improvedElliott, Kate 105