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The Garden Rules
*This short story is currently only available as part of Sharon Lynn Fisher's BEFORE SHE WAKES anthology, published by Penguin Random House.*
Sylva swallows an acorn sweetmeat at the Garden of Earthly Delights Fair. No garden-variety recreational drug, the acorn transports her to a fantasy forest where she must successfully face three trials before she can earn the title of Nymph. Her sponsor and handler for these trials is the faun Leander. He forces her to call him Master, giving her pleasure but refusing her the thing she most desires. What she views as a temporary escape from her static life becomes a lesson in having the courage to take what you really want.
Sylva swallows an acorn sweetmeat at the Garden of Earthly Delights Fair. No garden-variety recreational drug, the acorn transports her to a fantasy forest where she must successfully face three trials before she can earn the title of Nymph. Her sponsor and handler for these trials is the faun Leander. He forces her to call him Master, giving her pleasure but refusing her the thing she most desires. What she views as a temporary escape from her static life becomes a lesson in having the courage to take what you really want.
- GenresFantasy
50 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 6, 2014
40 people want to read
About the author
Sharon Lynn Fisher
15 books645 followersSharon Lynn Fisher writes mash-ups of fantasy, mystery, and slow-burn romance set in lush and atmospheric worlds. Her current series of stand-alone novels (which began with Salt & Broom) features cozy gothic fantasies set in Victorian England.
Sharon's books have been published by Tor, Random House, Blackstone, and 47North. They've been praised and recommended by Booklist, Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, the Historical Novel Society, and RT Book Reviews, among others.
Sharon's witchy Jane Eyre retelling, Salt & Broom (47North), was selected as an Amazon First Read in November 2023 and became a Top 25 Kindle Store Bestseller. Grimm Curiosities, about a young woman who inherits her father's haunted curiosity shop in York, England, was a New York Times pick for holiday reads. Her next book, Tea & Alchemy, is scheduled for release Oct. 7, 2025.
When Sharon's not writing, you'll mostly find her wandering the Pacific Northwest woods looking for fairies and mushrooms.
For more information about Sharon and her writing, visit www.sharonlynnfisher.com.
Sharon's books have been published by Tor, Random House, Blackstone, and 47North. They've been praised and recommended by Booklist, Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, the Historical Novel Society, and RT Book Reviews, among others.
Sharon's witchy Jane Eyre retelling, Salt & Broom (47North), was selected as an Amazon First Read in November 2023 and became a Top 25 Kindle Store Bestseller. Grimm Curiosities, about a young woman who inherits her father's haunted curiosity shop in York, England, was a New York Times pick for holiday reads. Her next book, Tea & Alchemy, is scheduled for release Oct. 7, 2025.
When Sharon's not writing, you'll mostly find her wandering the Pacific Northwest woods looking for fairies and mushrooms.
For more information about Sharon and her writing, visit www.sharonlynnfisher.com.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
March 3, 2018
Reviewed by Amy W.
Book provided by Sharon Lynn Fisher
Review originally posted at Romancing the Book
I’ve read plenty of erotica and fantasy themed books, but The Garden Rules by Sharon Lynn Fisher probably needs a classification all to itself.
Told from the first-person perspective, the short story focuses on the adventures of a woman named Sylva who indulges in a sweetmeat at the Garden of Earthly Delights Fair. For those readers like myself who aren’t familiar with that term, it apparently is a type of recreational narcotic. She’s talked into trying a new sweetmeat, which sends her subconscious into an erotically charged world full of strange characters.
I don’t have any problems adding a bit of erotica to my fantasy, but I have to admit that the inclusion of a faun is rather odd. I had to Google it to find out that it is a half man/half goat creature. That doesn’t exactly rate high on my personal hotness scale.
With appearances from a well known statue and Marie Antoinette, the storyline takes a dive into the completely bizarre. Even the erotic elements, complete with BDSM and f/f scenes, couldn’t put the story back on track.
If this is what happens as a result of indulging in recreational narcotics, I think I will pass.
Book provided by Sharon Lynn Fisher
Review originally posted at Romancing the Book
I’ve read plenty of erotica and fantasy themed books, but The Garden Rules by Sharon Lynn Fisher probably needs a classification all to itself.
Told from the first-person perspective, the short story focuses on the adventures of a woman named Sylva who indulges in a sweetmeat at the Garden of Earthly Delights Fair. For those readers like myself who aren’t familiar with that term, it apparently is a type of recreational narcotic. She’s talked into trying a new sweetmeat, which sends her subconscious into an erotically charged world full of strange characters.
I don’t have any problems adding a bit of erotica to my fantasy, but I have to admit that the inclusion of a faun is rather odd. I had to Google it to find out that it is a half man/half goat creature. That doesn’t exactly rate high on my personal hotness scale.
With appearances from a well known statue and Marie Antoinette, the storyline takes a dive into the completely bizarre. Even the erotic elements, complete with BDSM and f/f scenes, couldn’t put the story back on track.
If this is what happens as a result of indulging in recreational narcotics, I think I will pass.
Displaying 1 of 1 review