Dark is Rising

Jane Drew

The Ascent by Annakovsky

'He touches Daedalus Ascending again, the elongated, stylized features of Daedalus, his angular wings, his beaky nose. Barney's always pictured Daedalus as looking something like his Great-Uncle Merry, for some reason, and the figure resembles him a little. If Gumerry had ever flown with an Icarus beside him.' A sense of looming menace grips the reader right from the opening of this story, and Annakovsky deftly interweaves the mythic & the prosaic to capture the feel of the original books

[Added 10/11/2008; Drama; 2500-6000; Dark is Rising; Characters: Barnabas Drew, Simon Drew, Jane Drew, Will Stanton, Bran Davies, Dark Rider]

Folk Art of the Ocean by Merriman

'On one side of the door is a case full of scrimshaw. The items range from piano keys to drinking horns and magnifying lenses have been provided so people can inspect the details.' A subtle look at a possible future for Jane, which sidesteps the usual DiR tropes. Atmospheric & memorable

[Added 28/05/2012; Character Piece; 1000-2500; Dark is Rising; Characters: Jane Drew]

Only Revolutions by Cherry Ice

"Sometimes," Jane murmurs, Jana, Jano, "when I wake I can't quite remember my own name." A particularly strong take on the lost memories theme, lyrical & atmospheric

[Added 10/11/2008; Character Piece; 1000-2500; Dark is Rising; Characters: Jane Drew, Bran Davies, Barnabas Drew]

Watch for the Greenwitch by Selden

'In the light from the bonfire the Greenwitch rose up, tall and ragged against the sky, like something from long ago. Not the fine past of the grail, of long spears and iron, thorny, intricate poetry and patterns. Not even the past, thought Jane, of neat sharp flints laid out on red velvet under museum lights, axes and arrowheads. Something older, like rough rock, the rings of yellow lichen spreading out through the years like ripples from a stone thrown into still water.' The luscious description really makes this unusual slow-building horror story, which spins off Greenwitch

[Added 20/01/2012; Drama; 1000-2500; Dark is Rising; Characters: Jane Drew, Will Stanton, Merriman Lyon, Mrs Penhallow]