Sword and Sorceress 32

Sword and Sorceress #32

by Elisabeth Waters

Women of Sorcery and Courage...

For over two decades, the late Marion Zimmer Bradley, best-selling and beloved author, discovered and nurtured a new generation of authors. The roster of contributors over the years includes Mercedes Lackey, Laurell K. Hamilton, Charles de Lint, Diana L. Paxson, Emma Bull, Jennifer Roberson, and countless others.

The original stories featured here include such stellar authors as Mercedes Lackey, Dave Smeds, Deborah J. Ross, Robin Wayne Bailey, Pauline J. Alama, and exciting newcomers whose voices are sure to be heard again.

Enter a wondrous universe...

Marion Zimmer Bradley's Sword and Sorceress

Volume 32 includes stories by Pauline J. Alama, Marian Allen, Robin Wayne Bailey, Lorie Calkins, Steve Chapman, Elaine Cunningham, Suzan Harden, Mercedes Lackey, Catherine Mintz, Kevin L. O'Brien, Michael H. Payne, Deborah J. Ross, L.S. Patton, Jonathan Shipley, Dave Smeds, Michael Spence & Elisabeth Waters, Rose Strickman, and Julia H. West.

Genres: Fantasy, Short Stories

307 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 2, 2017

About the author

Elisabeth Waters sold her first short story in 1980 to Marion Zimmer Bradley for The Keeper's Price, the first of the Darkover anthologies. She then went on to sell dozens of short stories to a variety of anthologies. Her first novel, a fantasy called Changing Fate, was awarded the 1989 Gryphon Award. Its sequel is Mending Fate, published in 2016.

She currently writes short stories and has edited the Sword and Sorceress anthology series, which ended with Sword and Sorceress 34.

She has also worked as a supernumerary with the San Francisco Opera, where she appeared in La Gioconda, Manon Lescaut, Madama Butterfly, Khovanschina, Das Rheingold, Werther, and Idomeneo.

Reviews

[eyes.2c · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantasy lovers' fest!

Another stellar collection of fantasy stories with a female protagonist, who is either witch, warrior or sorceress, or a combination of all.
The forward to these collections is always an informative read, and the one here is no exception.
I have been reading these collections since they first began and have always found rewarding the range of subject matter and the quality of writing.
Many of the top fantasy writers have begun their careers here.
If one must have favorites I particularly enjoyed, although the list could go on ... and on...
Sound of the Moon by Robin Wayne Bailey
Wight Nights by Steve Chapman
The Girl from Black Point Rock by Deborah J. Ross
Add a Cup of Terror by Michael Spence & Elisabeth Waters

A NetGalley ARC

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Sword and Sorceress 32" is a collection of 18 short fantasy stories with a female main character. It seemed like nearly all of them had witches. (Back when I last read S&S, some of these women would have been called a sorceress or magician, but I guess "witch" sells these days). About half of the stories had the dead (ghosts, zombies) playing a major role. Several of those stories had a heroine who faced an overwhelming force summon the dead (or fey, in one case) to win the battle.

I preferred the stories were the heroines faced a big challenge and used cleverness to figure out a simple, successful solution. Several stories were humorous, like "Woman's Work" by Pauline J. Alama. Others came up with an unusual idea, like "Expiration Date" by Julia H. West. Overall, I enjoyed about a fourth of the stories. There was no sex. There was occasional use of bad language (and some stories didn't have any).

The Sound of the Moon by Robin Wayne Bailey
A Librarian in Distress by Rose Strickman
Wight Nights by Steve Chapman
Unexpected by Suzan Harden
The Nature of Wraiths by Dave Smeds
Royal Daughters by Elaine Cunningham
The Girl from Black Point Rock by Deborah J. Ross
Shaman's Quest by Kevin L. O'Brien
Save a Prayer by Mercedes Lackey
Add a Cup of Terror by Michael Spence & Elisabeth Waters
Deadly Questions by Jonathan Shipley
Sky, Clouds, and Sonam by Catherine Mintz
Hostages of Honeycomb by Marian Allen
Woman's Work by Pauline J. Alama
Authority Figures by Michael H. Payne
Till the Cows Come Home by L.S. Patton
Expiration Date by Julia H. West
Finding Truth by Lorie Calkins

I received an ebook review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.

[Breane Ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

Star Rating of 4 1/2 Stars!

I have read all of the volumes in this series of Sword and Sorceress books. The authors contributing to this one are mostly the ones that became famous after having their stories published in these volumes. These famous authors and the new authors included, have all submitted fantastic stories. The stories just get better with each one as you read through the book. I will definitely recommend this volume in this awesome series to everyone. It is totally worth getting and reading! :)

The cover is amazing for this volume in this series. I love all of the stories in this book by especially the one by Mercedes Lackey, Laurell K Hamilton, Elisabeth Waters, and Deborah J Ross . Love all of them, and their stories in this book are awesome. This is the best of this series in probably 4 books. I totally recommend this series and this book! Run, don't walk to get yours today! You won't regret it. And, you'll find some new authors to find all of their books and have some great reading ahead! This book contains stories of women overcoming hardships and growing through the process. It is fantasy at it's best.

I give this book 4 1/2 stars!!!

[Adam Goss · Rating 5 out of 5]

Say it with me, it's a classic refrain: Anthologies of stories by multiple authors are always a mixed bag. I am pleased to say that this one is an improvement over the previous two volumes. Of the 18 stories, half of them were very good, and of THOSE nine, five were what I considered to be gems. Among the other 9 stories, seven were okay or meh and two I couldn't finish. So why 5 stars when only half the book is good? It's the high (relatively speaking) number of gems that cancel out the mediocrity of the ones I didn't care for all that much. This is, of course, according to my own personal tastes and your mileage will surely vary. But when at least half the stories in an anthology are enjoyable and more than half of those are outstanding? It makes it feel like the whole book was worth the money and time invested. The gems include:

"A Librarian in Distress" - Rose Strickman
"Unexpected" - Suzan Harden (by far the BEST story in the book!)
"Women's Work" - Pauline J. Alama
"Expiration Date" - Julia H. West
"Finding Truth" - Lorie Calkins

The two I couldn't finish:
"Sky, Clouds and Sonam" - Catherine Mintz (I've read previous stories by her in earlier volumes of this series, I think this is the only one I couldn't get through - something about the style of writing in this one)
"Shaman's Quest" - Kevin L. O'Brien (the man's written a whole series about "Team Girl" apparently, all self-published online, and this was his first story to be accepted by editor Elisabeth Waters for S&S - honestly, I don't know what she was thinking.)

[Jimyanni · Rating 4 out of 5]

As with almost any anthology, the quality of the writing varies from story to story. As with most books in this series, the proofreading is spotty. But also as with most books in this series, most of the stories are quite good, which makes it, overall, quite enjoyable. I do wish Waters would stop following Bradley's tradition of not bothering to proofread/edit these books; the stories are excellent, but the frequency of sloppy editing detracts from them. Just for a couple of examples, on page 78 in the story "Unexpected" (which was a fine story, but incredibly sloppy) we have both "You might want ask his co-conspirator," (leaving out the word "to") AND "He rose to his feet and peek through a window," rather than "peeked". That 18 page story has no fewer than 8 such errors; that's just too many. And it wasn't JUST that story, although none of the others were THAT egregious, and some of them were clean. Obviously, it depends on how careful the individual authors are.

[Ron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Years ago, I had a habit of picking up Sword and Sorceress volumes as they came out, but then life interrupted that habit. So I have missed many volumes in the series. But I am glad that I picked up this volume and finally got around to reading it. Volume 32 has a varied collection of stories by known and unknown authors. Some of the stories are in the same universe as in previous volumes or novels by the authors, others are stand-alone tales. My favorites (yours are likely different) are "A Librarian in Distress" by Rose Strickman, "Women's Work" by Pauline J. Alma, and "Expiration Date" by Julia H. West. That said, I enjoyed all the stories. There was a nice mix of comic and serous tales, some historical fiction along with possible post-apocalyptic fiction with a soup-con of horror for flavor. But don't take my word for it, read the book and enjoy!

[B. Phoenix · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sword and Sorceress 32 delivers a thrilling anthology of heroic fantasy stories, featuring daring warriors like Kaela Stormblade, Lyria Moonshadow, and other fierce heroines confronting dark forces and hidden enemies. Betrayals cut deep as allies reveal secret agendas, mysterious figures manipulate events from the shadows, and high-stakes escapes push the characters to their limits. Each tale blends magic, swordplay, and suspenseful intrigue, from treacherous quests through enchanted forests to confrontations with ruthless warlords. Fast-paced and varied, the collection keeps readers on edge while exploring courage, loyalty, and the consequences of power. Overall, Sword and Sorceress 32 is an engaging read for fans of adventurous, female-led fantasy, earning a 6.5–7/10 rating for its entertaining mix of action, magic, and suspense.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful collection of Fantasy and tales of magic. These collections offer a wide variety of story lines and new authors. Many are stand alone and a few are connected to series.
Volume 32 includes stories by Pauline J. Alama, Marian Allen, Robin Wayne Bailey, Lorie Calkins, Steve Chapman, Elaine Cunningham, Suzan Harden, Mercedes Lackey, Catherine Mintz, Kevin L. O'Brien, Michael H. Payne, Deborah J. Ross, L.S. Patton, Jonathan Shipley, Dave Smeds, Michael Spence & Elisabeth Waters, Rose Strickman, and Julia H. West. Anthologies like this are perfect for a busy reader who wants a quick read before sleeping or a cup of coffee in the afternoon.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a fan of this series. I enjoyed seeing the women overcoming hardships. Each year, I find myself looking forward to getting the next volume to read. I think that the stories in this volume were good throughout the volume. I hope you will agree with me when you read it. If you hadn't read any of these, feel free to start with this one!

Disclaimer: I received an arc of this book free from the author/publisher from Netgalley. I was not obliged to write a favorable review, or even any review at all. The opinions expressed are strictly my own.

[Melanie Thorpe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sword and Sorceress always delivers!

Elisabeth Waters has admirably continued this anthology where Marion Zimmer Bradley left off. Whether they are stories about characters I already know by authors I already like, or new stories with new ideas, the Sword and Sorceress books are always filled with wonderful tales. I highly recommend these books to anyone - anyone at all! - who likes a good story.

[J.D. DeHart · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is hard to read this book and not find something enjoyable. There is a variety of voices assembled here that approach fantasy and science fiction from a variety of angles. Of course, of note here is the always-talented Mercedes Lackey. Well worth a read. My review was based on an advance copy.

[Mary Alexander · Rating 5 out of 5]

Elizabeth waters does not disappoint in her choices of stories for this collection. The series has been great since the first anthology came out and is still that. A wonderful mix of new and old authors adding to the still small selection of works about strong women and their stories/adventures.

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this free from NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review.
Eighteen stories featuring strong women. Some are good and some are great. Not a bad one in the bunch. A variety of authors, some that are known and others just starting out. You just might find a brand new favorite author.

[Sctechsorceress · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much better than the last two editions! I do enjoy reading stories about women who save the day.

[Lynda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another set of excellent stories, many of which are continuances of character story-lines.