Nugget’s Tenth Life
by Adam Holcombe,
DETAILS: Series: Chronicles of Gam Gam Publisher: Bounty Ink Press Format: eBook Length: 32 pgs. Read Date: September 23, 2024
There is a saying among humans that a cat has nine lives, but this is not entirely accurate. See, it is simply that cats are notoriously skilled at almost dying. It is only by the ninth time that the dying tends to stick.
What’s Nugget’s Tenth Life About?
For those who are familiar with Gam Gam the Necromancer, you are familiar with her familiar*, Nugget. If you haven’t read anything about Nugget before—let me introduce him to you.
Gam Gam is a newly graduated necromancer, despite being…well, a Gam Gam. Her familiar is a cat she revivified—I guess it’s better to call Nugget the animated skeleton of a cat—with all the memories, habits, and attitudes of the stray cat he was before he needed revivification to prowl around.
This would be his tenth life—this short story is the recounting of the previous nine lives he enjoyed (or at least lived through). It’s about his Brother, Sister, Mother, and his Sister’s two kits as well—but primarily about Nugget doing his best to help his family survive and keep their shelter.
* A phrase that I wrote without forethought.
So, what did I think about Nugget’s Tenth Life?
Maybe (very likely) I’m in the minority here. But I was not curious at all about Nugget’s life (or, lives) before Gam Gam. I was curious about Gam Gam’s backstory. I was curious about the Knight Revenant. I can see reading more about Mina. But an elderly necromancer (or any necromancer, really) with a skeleton familiar? That seems fitting and generally unsurprising—I didn’t need to know any more about him.
But now??? I’m so glad we got this. I loved that opening I quoted above and was quickly invested in Nugget’s story.
Getting that little bit of time with Gam Gam at the end reminded me how much I liked the character—and I’m now more than ready for The Wishing Stone‘s release next month so I can spend some extended time in this world.
This would make a decent jumping-on point for those who haven’t tried this series before. If you have, I probably don’t need to encourage you to give it a shot (but I will anyway).
