Most of you know I’m a sucker for short stories and anthologies. It’s such a fun way to sample different authors’ writing and I love the challenge of reviewing them.
Enjoy my review and don’t forget to enter the giveaway!
Genre:Fantasy Anthology (mixed sub genres)
Publisher: Roane Publishing
Release Date:June 5, 2014
Keywords:Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Sword and Sorcery, Urban Fantasy, Steampunk, Short Stories, Picture Prompt
Description:
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No matter what world you call home, or what your station in life, there are just some paths that weren’t meant to be tread.
Ordinary World by Laurie Treacy
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Imagine a new neighbor moves next door, a creepy guy who gives fifteen year-old Amy Silva the willies? Amy wonders what the stone archway in the backyard is for. Her life becomes even more stressful when her family reveals they’re witches.
Could Amy’s new neighbor have anything to do with a local girl’s disappearance or be a threat to her magical loved ones?
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Maronda’s Quest by Christy Thomas
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The Grand Wizard has decreed Maronda enter the Portal of Life to embark upon a quest of great importance, but despite her Ma’s claims it is a blessing, premonitions of danger persist.
Lenox works to prove his worth to wed her, his true love, but it appears a wizard plots to remove him from Maronda’s life forever. To secure their future together, Lenox decides to accompany her on the quest, even if forbidden. He must ultimately choose between using his dragon fighting skills which could lead to his death, or give Maronda her greatest desire.
In the end, it’s Maronda who must learn to live with the consequences of his decision.
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Mexmur, the Huntress by Anna Simpson
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Long ago a dragonkeeper betrayed his charges. To bring back magic, to set things right, Mexmur is sent through the portal.
Can she succeed armed with only a poem, talon and blade.
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Entrance of Lost Souls by Echo Shea
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A guardian to the entrances between worlds, Gladys has been called to bring a little girl back from Fairyland. Passing through the Entrance of Lost Souls is no fun, neither is hunting down a deranged banshee, but what is a guardian to do?
And, is the banshee really kidnapping the girl…or saving her from something else?
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Where Once were Hearts by Havva Murat
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After losing both his parents, his entire fortune and his childhood sweetheart, Master Bartholomew Battlesby sets out into the wilds of Northern England to make the acquaintance of his only surviving relation, the landed recluse, Mr. Horatio Grimsby who has an eerie penchant for both tinkering and clockwork. But, on finding his relation dead, with a gaping hole in his chest, and the beautiful, but scornful, Miss Evangeline Witherop ruling in his place, Bartholomew learns there is more than one way to lose your heart.
Can Bartholomew reignite the spirit of love and mercy within Miss Witherop, or will he suffer the same fate as his poor, heartless cousin?
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The Lunatic Queen by Michael Siciliano
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The land of Mershinka has been thrown into perpetual night. Their King is dead and a moon witch, known as The Night Queen, rules from the royal palace in Grosnov. An endless fog shrouds the land, killing crops and starving the populace. Cold-eyed enforcers put down rebellions while volksa, twisted wolf-creatures, roam the mists looking for prey. Many have given up hope and wait for the inevitable end. All seems lost.
Two teenagers, Pavel and Tamara, devise a plan to kill Vazya the Night Queen when the moons Kainsk and Seresnya are down, end the stifling enchantment, and bring the sun back to their dying land. But, they need a watch to tell time, a compass to guide them through the mists, weapons to fight off Vazya’s minions, and all the courage they can muster.
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MY REVIEW
I love reading an anthology, especially one with a theme.
In Portals you get five authors spinning their own tales about a portal.
Ordinary World
Amy Silva has a new neighbor. Ozzie dresses like a nerd but that’s not why he gives her the creeps. She senses evil.
When she tries to explain her feelings to her best friend Remy, he warns her to be careful what she says. People will think she’s a witch.
When Remy starts avoiding her, Amy is left alone to unravel the mystery of her new neighbor.
For such a short story, there were many characters. I had a fun time weeding out the bad guys. It wasn’t too hard but I still enjoyed being vindicated when I was right.
A fun tale of witches with an exhilarating ending.
Moranda’s Quest
Moranda fears her sojourn through the portal. Dragons tread there. The Grand Wizard bestowed it as a gift to her family and each generation, a girl enters the portal to discover her future.
Moranda is skilled with the blade and she’s prepared for battle. Lennox, the young man in love with her knows this and has to fight his natural instincts to protect her.
All the rules change when Moranda goes through the portal and the author took me in a different direction than I expected. That’s the fun thing about this fantasy, nothing was set in stone.
Mexmur, The Huntress
If you love dragons, this ones for you.
Mexmur is forced to enter the portal to recharge a talisman of magic. The King is willing to sacrifice her and his son in his quest to steal power from the dragons.
Can a spoiled prince and a lowly huntress survive the dragon’s breath? Or will they become a meal?
Mexmur is a huntress so she has skills to hunt the dragon. The spoiled prince has some surprises of his own and I grew to like him. These two both learn a lot once through the portal and the dragons are great teachers.
I really enjoyed the dragon characters. They had their own agenda and played a big part in the story.
Entrance of Lost Souls
I like where the author went with this one. I kept thinking the main character was human, forgetting these are fantasies and there are no rules.
Gladys is definitely not human, and you wouldn’t expect her to be a good guy.
She is though and she has to be a tough character to handle a banshee, demons, and whatever the thing is in the well.
Where Once Were Hearts
When Bartholemew Battlesby loses his fortune he sets out to befriend his only living relative, cousin Horatio Grimsby, hoping he’ll take him in.
He arrives at a gated estate landscaped with eerie mechanical trees. Upon entering he discovers Horatio dead, his heart torn from his body. And then things go dark.
When Bart wakes up, he’s suspended upside from the ceiling and the luscious but wicked Evangeline reveals her plans for him.
Bartholemew had to think hard and quick if he wasn’t going to lose his heart, literally.
At first, Bartholemew came across as a loser. He did waste his fortune and he did hope to ingratiate himself with Grimsby, hoping to become heir to his estate. But I liked his pluck.
The same goes for Evangeline. She is a murderess, but what made her that way?
Had a lot of fun figuring this one out.
Lunatic Queen
Sweethearts Tamara and Pavel are on a mission to destroy the Night Queen. Her reign of perpetual darkness is causing all life to suffer from slow starvation. Someone has to do something.
As they begin their journey, the volksa, a kind of werewolf, attack and force them to take cover in an old library. There, they find an unlikely ally. Now they just need the queen to take the bait and free their world of darkness.
This had an eerie atmosphere right from the beginning. The volksa add an element of danger and the Night Queen is evil through and through.
While the ending was bitter-sweet, it fit and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
I enjoyed all of these stories. The authors did a great job building new worlds and introducing their characters. If I’m not mistaken, some of these stories are debuts and I couldn’t tell which ones. I’d definitely read more if they chose to develop these into novels and now I’m curious about their other books.
4 STARS
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Purchase Links:
Roane Publishing Createspace Amazon
Digital
Barnes and Noble (Coming Soon) Kobo (Coming Soon)
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