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Chapel Hollow
Common Threads
A bind-up edition that contains Hoffman's first novel, The Thread That Binds the Bones, as well as a collection of her short stories, Handful of Twist-Ties.
443 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1995
94 people want to read
About the author
Nina Kiriki Hoffman
302 books343 followersNina Kiriki Hoffman’s first solo novel, The Thread That Binds the Bones (1993), won the Bram Stoker Award for first novel; her second novel, The Silent Strength of Stones (1995) was a finalist for the Nebula and World Fantasy Awards. A Red Heart of Memories (1999, part of her “Matt Black” series), nominated for a World Fantasy Award, was followed by sequel Past the Size of Dreaming in 2001. Much of her work to date is short fiction, including “Matt Black” novella “Unmasking” (1992), nominated for a World Fantasy Award; and “Matt Black” novelette “Home for Christmas” (1995), nominated for the Nebula, World Fantasy, and Sturgeon awards. In addition to writing, Hoffman has taught, worked part-time at a B. Dalton bookstore, and done production work on The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. An accomplished fiddle player, she has played regularly at various granges near her home in Eugene, Oregon.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
October 30, 2012
Updated Review 10/30/12: I went back to read this after reading The Enchantment Emporium, which also has a large and powerful magical family at its core. I think Hoffman does it better; Huff's version is a little too obsessed with incest, and the possibilities of her male/female magic aren't as well-delineated as I think they should be. Hoffman's extended clan of Locke, Bolte, Keye and Seale families is rooted in a sort of pagan, sort of animistic
religious/magical tradition, and when that's combined with their elemental magic, it makes for an excellent background to a story about belonging and about abuses of power.
Where I think Hoffman goes wrong is in frequently failing to point out that manipulating people, robbing of their will, is sort of evil. It's all there--in the end, the timeline shows that what caused this branch of the family to become selfish and arrogant to the point of abusing their weaker relatives and dominating ordinary (non-Family) people really does account for who's been doing the abuse and domination. This, in turn, explains why many of them don't realize it's evil. But...what about the older family members? And why is it somehow a "Family right" to take a fetch (their term for enthralling a regular person)? In reading between the lines, I think Hoffman means to draw this connection, but I can't respect the fact that she failed to do it--much as I love this story.
Review 9/8/2009: The owner of Hypatia Press used to have a wonderful little bookstore in Eugene, Oregon. He told us that his goal was always to have one copy of everything someone might possibly want, so you'd never come away without the book you were looking for. We went to the store for my birthday (he was holding one of the last remaining copies of Seeker's Mask just for me!) and picked up this little gem. Though I admit the novel The Thread that Binds the Bones is my favorite, the short stories are all very enjoyable. Hoffman has this gift for beautiful writing that doesn't interfere with the plot; also, many of her stories are set in places that are dear to my heart, which is a bonus.
religious/magical tradition, and when that's combined with their elemental magic, it makes for an excellent background to a story about belonging and about abuses of power.
Where I think Hoffman goes wrong is in frequently failing to point out that manipulating people, robbing of their will, is sort of evil. It's all there--in the end, the timeline shows that what caused this branch of the family to become selfish and arrogant to the point of abusing their weaker relatives and dominating ordinary (non-Family) people really does account for who's been doing the abuse and domination. This, in turn, explains why many of them don't realize it's evil. But...what about the older family members? And why is it somehow a "Family right" to take a fetch (their term for enthralling a regular person)? In reading between the lines, I think Hoffman means to draw this connection, but I can't respect the fact that she failed to do it--much as I love this story.
Review 9/8/2009: The owner of Hypatia Press used to have a wonderful little bookstore in Eugene, Oregon. He told us that his goal was always to have one copy of everything someone might possibly want, so you'd never come away without the book you were looking for. We went to the store for my birthday (he was holding one of the last remaining copies of Seeker's Mask just for me!) and picked up this little gem. Though I admit the novel The Thread that Binds the Bones is my favorite, the short stories are all very enjoyable. Hoffman has this gift for beautiful writing that doesn't interfere with the plot; also, many of her stories are set in places that are dear to my heart, which is a bonus.
October 16, 2019
I recently had the pleasure of reading Ms. Hoffman's young-adult fantasy novel,
Spirits That Walk in Shadow
, which served as my introduction to the magical world of Chapel Hollow, and the complicated workings of Ilmonish society. This extended clan of magical practitioners was so fascinating that I decided to go back and read the author's earlier works, and had the great good fortune to stumble across Common Threads. This limited edition publication, put out (I assume) for some sort of club, contains Hoffman's initial Chapel Hollow novel,
The Thread That Binds the Bones
, as well as a generous selection of short stories devoted to the same cast of characters.
I greatly enjoyed both the stories and novel, which paint a picture of a powerful but inward-looking family whose moral compass has gone dangerously askew. The Thread That Binds the Bones revolves around the exploits of Tom and Laura, two relative outsiders who manage to shake things up, prompting some much-needed change. Many of the short stories preceding the novel detail how various characters got to be the way they are, or, in the case on the non-magical, how they came to be in Chapel Hollow at all. The stories following the novel address some of the experiences the characters have as a consequence of the great changes...
The narrative was highly original, and the writing quite good. I did feel that the final confrontation was somewhat contrived, and too-easily resolved, but by that point the author had involved me in her characters enough that I wasn't too irritated... Overall, an entertaining read, and more than enough to convince me I should read more Nina Kiriki Hoffman...
The short stories, many of them published in journals or chapbooks previously, include: Fairy Tale / Prayers / Lost Lives / Light Search / Exact Change / Birth Day / Wishmas / Triptych / Snow Angel / Christmas Eve / Ghost Gift / What Ghost Is This / The Sixty-Foot Man / Invitation.
I greatly enjoyed both the stories and novel, which paint a picture of a powerful but inward-looking family whose moral compass has gone dangerously askew. The Thread That Binds the Bones revolves around the exploits of Tom and Laura, two relative outsiders who manage to shake things up, prompting some much-needed change. Many of the short stories preceding the novel detail how various characters got to be the way they are, or, in the case on the non-magical, how they came to be in Chapel Hollow at all. The stories following the novel address some of the experiences the characters have as a consequence of the great changes...
The narrative was highly original, and the writing quite good. I did feel that the final confrontation was somewhat contrived, and too-easily resolved, but by that point the author had involved me in her characters enough that I wasn't too irritated... Overall, an entertaining read, and more than enough to convince me I should read more Nina Kiriki Hoffman...
The short stories, many of them published in journals or chapbooks previously, include: Fairy Tale / Prayers / Lost Lives / Light Search / Exact Change / Birth Day / Wishmas / Triptych / Snow Angel / Christmas Eve / Ghost Gift / What Ghost Is This / The Sixty-Foot Man / Invitation.
April 9, 2009
A tale of magical realism, set in Eastern Oregon near the Columbia River. There is the strange rambling home to a family of magic-doers, a family whose practices have become corrupted over the years. Where they used to enjoy respect from the local townspeople for the assistance they provided, now they only get fear.
Into this setting comes Tom Renfield, a man who has struggled with his own unusual ability to see ghosts and other things. He becomes the catalyst for change and healing, which he does a little too easily for the good of the plot. He seemed to have no limits to his powers, and to be a little too wonderful to be believed.
Not that this wasn't a great read. I sped right through it, and enjoyed the creativity of the setting, and even the rehabilitation of a certain character, as unbelievably fast as it came. This makes me want to reread Hoffman's other stories about this family, now that I have this background story to draw on. If you like stories that are about relationships and power, and healing emotional wounds, manifesting through magic, you'll like this.
Similar to many of the faerie fantasies currently popular, but with a different twist.
Into this setting comes Tom Renfield, a man who has struggled with his own unusual ability to see ghosts and other things. He becomes the catalyst for change and healing, which he does a little too easily for the good of the plot. He seemed to have no limits to his powers, and to be a little too wonderful to be believed.
Not that this wasn't a great read. I sped right through it, and enjoyed the creativity of the setting, and even the rehabilitation of a certain character, as unbelievably fast as it came. This makes me want to reread Hoffman's other stories about this family, now that I have this background story to draw on. If you like stories that are about relationships and power, and healing emotional wounds, manifesting through magic, you'll like this.
Similar to many of the faerie fantasies currently popular, but with a different twist.
July 16, 2025
re-read in 2008
one of my most prized books; hunted for this thing for years and paid WAY too much. When the fire-warnings flare in the summer, I toss this and a few others in the trunk of my car and keep it there all summer long.
♥The Thread That Binds the Bones first re-read since leaving Texas 12/30/1998
♦Fairy Tale 1/24/2006 Re-read 9/10/2015
♦Prayers 1/31/2006 Re-read 9/10/2015
♦Lost Lives Re-read 11/5/2015
♦Light Search 2/1/2006 Re-read 9/10/2015
♦Exact Change 2/2/2006 Re-read 9/8/2015
♦Birth Day 2/5/2006 Re-read 9/11/2015
♦Wishmas 2/6/2006 Re-read 9/11/2015
♦Triptych 2/9/2006 Re-read 9/11/2015
♦Snow Angel 2/10/1008 Re-read 9/12/2015
♦Christmas Eve 2/11/2006 Re-read 9/12/2015
♦Ghost Gift 3/7/2006 Re-read 9/12/2015
♦What Ghost Is This, Who Laid to Rest... 3/8/2006 Re-read 9/14/2015
♦The Sixty-Foot Man 3/9/2006 Re-read 9/14/2015
♦Invitation 2/10/2006 Re-read 9/14/2015
one of my most prized books; hunted for this thing for years and paid WAY too much. When the fire-warnings flare in the summer, I toss this and a few others in the trunk of my car and keep it there all summer long.
♥The Thread That Binds the Bones first re-read since leaving Texas 12/30/1998
♦Fairy Tale 1/24/2006 Re-read 9/10/2015
♦Prayers 1/31/2006 Re-read 9/10/2015
♦Lost Lives Re-read 11/5/2015
♦Light Search 2/1/2006 Re-read 9/10/2015
♦Exact Change 2/2/2006 Re-read 9/8/2015
♦Birth Day 2/5/2006 Re-read 9/11/2015
♦Wishmas 2/6/2006 Re-read 9/11/2015
♦Triptych 2/9/2006 Re-read 9/11/2015
♦Snow Angel 2/10/1008 Re-read 9/12/2015
♦Christmas Eve 2/11/2006 Re-read 9/12/2015
♦Ghost Gift 3/7/2006 Re-read 9/12/2015
♦What Ghost Is This, Who Laid to Rest... 3/8/2006 Re-read 9/14/2015
♦The Sixty-Foot Man 3/9/2006 Re-read 9/14/2015
♦Invitation 2/10/2006 Re-read 9/14/2015
November 20, 2010
I was going to give this a 3, but the fact is that I enjoyed this so much on an emotional level. There are some complaints that others have listed: it's a bit simplistic, the new person is more conveniently powerful than the rest, he saves the day, yadda. But I took every opportunity I had to read this book, and was enchanted. The language is wonderful and captures the essence of things so well. You know when you have deep cough, and the first efforts do nothing to dislodge it, and then finally you give it one last try and it GETS to the heart of that disgusting congestion. Well, the way she described it I almost wished I had a cough so I could get the pleasure of breaking it up!
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews