Bookworms: Tales of the Slayer Volume 4 (2004) by Various
The Tales of the Slayer series are my favorite fiction books based on Joss Whedon’s magnificent Buffy the Vampire Slayer world. Each book is comprised of multiple short stories written by talented authors, many well known in the television, film and media tie-in genres. Inside, several slayers’ lives are chronicled, offering rare glimpses into the legacy that Buffy made cult classic.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Tales of the Slayer Volume 4 is a great place to start with these short stand-alone stories. This volume focuses on stories of Slayers and their experiences with their Tento di Cruciamentum, the frightening challenge each Slayer is traditionally forced through by her Watcher and the Council. She is drugged, rendering her helpless as us mere mortals, and left to face a strong vampire on her own, testing her natural cunning, skills and strategy. A ritual described once in the television series is now fleshed out through the ages of Slayers in this volume.
These stories hold their own as unique tales, though they definitely follow in the dark, desperate and heart wrenching theme established through Buffy’s own Cruciamentum trials in the season three episode Helpless. Included in the ranks of Volume 4 authors are Nancy Holder, known for her own novels and her media tie-in fiction books; Greg Cox, known for his movie novelizations and media tie-in fiction pieces, and the ever inspiring Jane Espenson, writer and co-producer of Buffy, as well as many other fan favorites like Battlestar Galactica, Torchwood and Once Upon A Time. These and the other talented authors penned the eight Slayer tales in this volume, deepening the epic history of the Slayer.
From the tales of Nikki Wood in her leather coat in New York before ever meeting Spike, to the Slayer pretending she is married to her watcher for decorum’s sake in 1876 to a carnival in 1911 and the stage performing Slayer Millie, each story is captivating and often heartrending. The characters and stories are placed within the Buffy world at various times in history, with nods to characters, mythos and timelines already established. Follow the eight Slayers followed as the each reach their Cruciamentum and learn what it truly means to be the Slayer, the one girl Chosen to fight the evil in the night.
I highly recommend any of the Tales of the Slayer books, but Volume 4 holds a special and terrible charm with the dramatic Cruciamentum as a common thread that brings out the best and worst of the Slayer world and the Slayer herself, all to the tune of beloved Slayer wit, action and innate strength.