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To Hell and Back Again...With a Little White Dog
A fantasy novella.
Geoffrey Keyes has hired magicians Morris and Cathleen Madison to rescue his impetuous stepdaughter Anastasia after her foolhardy trip to Hell goes (rather unsurprisingly) wrong. But there are so many things he doesn't understand. Why has Anastasia gone to Hell at all? What, or who, is holding her there? What has a pomegranate got to do with blood sacrifices?
And most importantly--why do Mr. and Mrs. Madison insist on bringing their little white dog with them into Hell?
Geoffrey Keyes has hired magicians Morris and Cathleen Madison to rescue his impetuous stepdaughter Anastasia after her foolhardy trip to Hell goes (rather unsurprisingly) wrong. But there are so many things he doesn't understand. Why has Anastasia gone to Hell at all? What, or who, is holding her there? What has a pomegranate got to do with blood sacrifices?
And most importantly--why do Mr. and Mrs. Madison insist on bringing their little white dog with them into Hell?
89 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2013
3 people are currently reading
12 people want to read
About the author
E.M. Epps
16 books42 followersBy day, E. M. Epps is a bookseller in Seattle, WA. By night, she writes high fantasy with likable but pragmatic heroes, who are likely to be diplomats, warriors, sorcerers, or some combination of the above. To receive free stories and writing updates, sign up for her mailing list at www.emepps.com.
As a young writer, she was inspired by the action and heroism of C.S. Forester, the scope of Tolstoy, the scientific magic of Diane Duane, the romance of Catherine Asaro, the martial arts of Michelle Yeoh and Jackie Chan - and, above all, the diversity of human cultures featured in the anthropology textbooks she devoured in her teens.
She is the author of the court intrigue novel THE INTERPRETER'S TALE and the single-volume epic adventure COMPLETE WITH SHIPWRECK (both set in her Direnayu high fantasy world), the fantasy romantic comedy COLD SANDWICHES AND ALL, and many, many other works.
As a young writer, she was inspired by the action and heroism of C.S. Forester, the scope of Tolstoy, the scientific magic of Diane Duane, the romance of Catherine Asaro, the martial arts of Michelle Yeoh and Jackie Chan - and, above all, the diversity of human cultures featured in the anthropology textbooks she devoured in her teens.
She is the author of the court intrigue novel THE INTERPRETER'S TALE and the single-volume epic adventure COMPLETE WITH SHIPWRECK (both set in her Direnayu high fantasy world), the fantasy romantic comedy COLD SANDWICHES AND ALL, and many, many other works.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 28, 2017
E.M. Epps has crafted a fun and imaginative short story that's less about the plot than it is about the world. The setting is Edwardian-esque (or so it felt, to me) but magic is real and certain folks are trained magicians who can, among other unspecified things, walk between worlds. There's a very sweet subplot story about family, mainly from the perspective of the step-father, that felt genuine. Overlaid on that was a melange of Greek mythology and a What Dreams May Come take on hell, and plenty of bad-manners and odd-man-out humor.
My biggest complaint about this story is that the ending felt rushed and anti-climactic. I wanted to see more of the world and its people, aside from the immediate plot. I wanted to keep those poignant family moments happening. I wanted more stories in the universe she's so cleverly crafted here.
My biggest complaint about this story is that the ending felt rushed and anti-climactic. I wanted to see more of the world and its people, aside from the immediate plot. I wanted to keep those poignant family moments happening. I wanted more stories in the universe she's so cleverly crafted here.
July 17, 2017
Oh wow, a magic-next-door book, my favourite subgenre of fantasy. Good character development, exciting story, humour, but not long enough by far!
April 30, 2020
Well another day shot all to hell because of Ms Epps' insistence upon writing good stories.
3 stars just for correct spelling and sentence structure alone. That's shamefully rare these days.
My mind stumbled a little at first trying to place it in time, but it was easy to let go: oddly, I just thought "steampunk" and my mind was freed {shrug}. I wish it were longer so I could vicariously explore Hell. Also, there was a sudden jump from point A to point B which was jarring *BUT* also leaves it open for that story to be told on its own. Which I look forward to, Ms Epps. Ahem.
As I've said before, Ms Epps is definitely on my watch-for-more list.
3 stars just for correct spelling and sentence structure alone. That's shamefully rare these days.
My mind stumbled a little at first trying to place it in time, but it was easy to let go: oddly, I just thought "steampunk" and my mind was freed {shrug}. I wish it were longer so I could vicariously explore Hell. Also, there was a sudden jump from point A to point B which was jarring *BUT* also leaves it open for that story to be told on its own. Which I look forward to, Ms Epps. Ahem.
As I've said before, Ms Epps is definitely on my watch-for-more list.
September 27, 2013
This is a story about a teen who finds a way to go to hell and rescue her father, but did not make the proper provisions to get back out again. It is a story of a stepfather who will go through hell to save his step-daughter.
A good read with great writing and very little to no errors. I would recommend it to young teens and adults.
Good character and story development but would have personally wished it were longer.[[ASIN:B00AYUHFAE To Hell and Back Again...With a Little White Dog]]
A good read with great writing and very little to no errors. I would recommend it to young teens and adults.
Good character and story development but would have personally wished it were longer.[[ASIN:B00AYUHFAE To Hell and Back Again...With a Little White Dog]]
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews