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Moon #6.5
Elemental Magic
Four all-new stories of romance, fantasy, and natural enchantment.
From wizards to weathermen, many know the powers of the four elements-natural forces that can direct the fates, change destiny, and unite lovers in the most unexpected ways. Now, those magical elements-air, fire, water, and earth-come together in perfect balance, and a perfectly unique romance anthology, from four charmed authors.
In Air find romance in a breathless retelling of the Cinderella fable from award-winning Sharon Shinn, "an amazing writing talent"(Best Reviews).
In Fire blazes adventure in a parallel dimension of werewolves and love-slaves from USA Today bestselling Rebecca York, "a true master" (Rave Reviews).
In Water resides fantasy and a remarkable universe of magic, demons, and dangerous passion from "thoroughly original" (Starburst) award-winner Carol Berg.
And in Earth discover the ultimate in profound pleasure from Jean Johnson, "a fresh new voice in fantasy romance" (Robin D. Owens).
378 pages, Paperback
First published November 6, 2007
23 people are currently reading
618 people want to read
About the author
Sharon Shinn
58 books2,273 followersI’ve been writing stories and poems since I was eight years old. My first poem was about Halloween: "What is tonight? What is tonight?/Try to guess and you’ll guess right." Perhaps this inauspicious beginning explains why it took me till I was in my thirties to sell a novel. It occurred to me early on that it might take some time and a lot of tries before I was able to publish any of my creative writing, so I pursued a degree in journalism at Northwestern University so I’d be able to support myself while I figured out how to write fiction.
I’ve spent most of my journalism career at three trade and association magazines—The Professional Photographer (which, as you might guess, went to studio and industrial photographers), DECOR (which went to frame shop and art gallery owners), and BizEd (which is directed at deans and professors at business schools). My longest stint, seventeen years, was at DECOR. Many people don’t know this, but I’m a CPF (Certified Picture Framer), having passed a very long, technical test to prove I understood the tenets of conservation framing. Now I write about management education and interview some really cool, really smart people from all over the world.
I mostly write my fiction in the evenings and on weekends. It requires a pretty obsessive-compulsive personality to be as prolific as I’ve been in the past ten years and hold down a full-time job. But I do manage to tear myself away from the computer now and then to do something fun. I read as often as I can, across all genres, though I’m most often holding a book that’s fantasy or romance, with the occasional western thrown in. I’m a fan of Cardinals baseball and try to be at the ballpark on opening day. If I had the time, I’d see a movie every day of my life. I love certain TV shows so much that knowing a new episode is going to air that night will make me happy all day. (I’m a huge Joss Whedon fan, but in the past I’ve given my heart to shows all over the map in terms of quality: "Knight Rider," "Remington Steele," "Blake’s 7," "Moonlighting," "The Young Riders," "Cheers," "Hill Street Blues," "X-Files," "Lost," "Battlestar Galactica"...you can probably fill in the gaps. And let’s not forget my very first loves, "The Partridge Family," "Here Come the Brides" and "Alias Smith & Jones.")
I don’t have kids, I don’t want pets, and all my plants die, so I’m really only forced to provide ongoing care for my menagerie of stuffed animals. All my friends are animal lovers, though, and someone once theorized that I keep friends as pets. I’m still trying to decide if that’s true.
I’ve spent most of my journalism career at three trade and association magazines—The Professional Photographer (which, as you might guess, went to studio and industrial photographers), DECOR (which went to frame shop and art gallery owners), and BizEd (which is directed at deans and professors at business schools). My longest stint, seventeen years, was at DECOR. Many people don’t know this, but I’m a CPF (Certified Picture Framer), having passed a very long, technical test to prove I understood the tenets of conservation framing. Now I write about management education and interview some really cool, really smart people from all over the world.
I mostly write my fiction in the evenings and on weekends. It requires a pretty obsessive-compulsive personality to be as prolific as I’ve been in the past ten years and hold down a full-time job. But I do manage to tear myself away from the computer now and then to do something fun. I read as often as I can, across all genres, though I’m most often holding a book that’s fantasy or romance, with the occasional western thrown in. I’m a fan of Cardinals baseball and try to be at the ballpark on opening day. If I had the time, I’d see a movie every day of my life. I love certain TV shows so much that knowing a new episode is going to air that night will make me happy all day. (I’m a huge Joss Whedon fan, but in the past I’ve given my heart to shows all over the map in terms of quality: "Knight Rider," "Remington Steele," "Blake’s 7," "Moonlighting," "The Young Riders," "Cheers," "Hill Street Blues," "X-Files," "Lost," "Battlestar Galactica"...you can probably fill in the gaps. And let’s not forget my very first loves, "The Partridge Family," "Here Come the Brides" and "Alias Smith & Jones.")
I don’t have kids, I don’t want pets, and all my plants die, so I’m really only forced to provide ongoing care for my menagerie of stuffed animals. All my friends are animal lovers, though, and someone once theorized that I keep friends as pets. I’m still trying to decide if that’s true.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 84 reviews
April 11, 2020
I got to this because of Carol Berg's story and thought it was going to be a collection of fantasy & elemental magic stories, wasn't very aware of the romance part (though now I read the description again, I'm not sure how I missed it..)
So, here we go, as I read all four of them:
AIR elementals: "Bargain With the Wind" by Sharon Shinn - 2.5★
Gave me a huge feeling of Jane Austen or Brontë sisters, but with none of the finesse. The comparison to Cinderella was so far fetched, and none of the twists managed to surprise me, everything was so obvious..
EARTH elementals: "Birthright" by Jean Johnson - 3.5★
A pair of royal twins sets out to determine who is the firstborn and heir. The sex scene and the sexual open mindedness were quite a surprise, but the interesting world, paired with wry humour made me enjoy it much better than the previous one.
WATER elementals: "Unmasking" by Carol Berg - 3.5★
An enjoyable revisiting of Ezzaria, this short story stands on its own, but, for the Rai-Kirah serie's 'connoisseurs', it has a surprise in tow .
FIRE elementals: "Huntress Moon" by Rebecca York - 1.5★
In this one the fantasy was more of a pretense for the erotic parts. A daughter from a noble family now fallen from grace is sold as a sex-slave in order to spy for her city. The world and magic system aka psychic powers are hardly explained, instead we are treated to cheap romance and rash behaviour.
So, here we go, as I read all four of them:
AIR elementals: "Bargain With the Wind" by Sharon Shinn - 2.5★
Gave me a huge feeling of Jane Austen or Brontë sisters, but with none of the finesse. The comparison to Cinderella was so far fetched, and none of the twists managed to surprise me, everything was so obvious..
EARTH elementals: "Birthright" by Jean Johnson - 3.5★
A pair of royal twins sets out to determine who is the firstborn and heir. The sex scene and the sexual open mindedness were quite a surprise, but the interesting world, paired with wry humour made me enjoy it much better than the previous one.
WATER elementals: "Unmasking" by Carol Berg - 3.5★
An enjoyable revisiting of Ezzaria, this short story stands on its own, but, for the Rai-Kirah serie's 'connoisseurs', it has a surprise in tow .
FIRE elementals: "Huntress Moon" by Rebecca York - 1.5★
In this one the fantasy was more of a pretense for the erotic parts. A daughter from a noble family now fallen from grace is sold as a sex-slave in order to spy for her city. The world and magic system aka psychic powers are hardly explained, instead we are treated to cheap romance and rash behaviour.
September 18, 2008
Why did I wait so long to read this delightful fantasy romance anthology? "Elemental Magic" contains four stories--one about each of the elements: air, water, fire, and earth.
"Bargain With the Wind" by Sharon Shinn - What would you be willing to give up to get your heart's desire? Shinn's story has the almost palpable feel of impending doom like the best gothic novels, but is set against a most ungothic background. **Great story that reads almost like a fable; more fantasy than romance.
"Birthright" by Jean Johnson - A pair of royal twins must find a way to determine who is the firstborn and heir. One places her faith in oracles, the other in a man. **Interesting historical paranormal romance.
"Unmasking" by Carol Berg - A talented Searcher trainee and a simple farmer must work together to fool a spy and prevent a bloody war. But whose knowledge will prove most valuable? **More a coming-of-age tale; set in a fantasy world where magic is coveted.
"Huntress Moon" by Rebecca York - Will her fire magic be enough to save her from the wolf? **The sexiest of the stories. Set in an alternate reality and very true to York's style.
Enjoyed all the stories. Appropriate for teens too!
"Bargain With the Wind" by Sharon Shinn - What would you be willing to give up to get your heart's desire? Shinn's story has the almost palpable feel of impending doom like the best gothic novels, but is set against a most ungothic background. **Great story that reads almost like a fable; more fantasy than romance.
"Birthright" by Jean Johnson - A pair of royal twins must find a way to determine who is the firstborn and heir. One places her faith in oracles, the other in a man. **Interesting historical paranormal romance.
"Unmasking" by Carol Berg - A talented Searcher trainee and a simple farmer must work together to fool a spy and prevent a bloody war. But whose knowledge will prove most valuable? **More a coming-of-age tale; set in a fantasy world where magic is coveted.
"Huntress Moon" by Rebecca York - Will her fire magic be enough to save her from the wolf? **The sexiest of the stories. Set in an alternate reality and very true to York's style.
Enjoyed all the stories. Appropriate for teens too!
May 15, 2008
A collection of four "paranormal romance" novellas. In order of descending suckitude:
Rebecca York's "Huntress Moon" is awful. In a modern world disturbingly similar to Robin McKinley's Sunshine, a young noble virgin sacrifices her freedom to buy medical treatment for her mother. She is sold as a sex slave to a werewolf. Oily sex ensues; apparently it's not rape if she comes. Three days later, they get married. Gah!
Jean Johnson's "Birthright" is a mediocre story about two twins trying to find out which one inherits their kingdom. The world building and characters are lightweight enough that the entire thing could have been easily cut in half.
Sharon Shinn's "Bargain With the Wind" is a faintly creepy take on the tale of Cinderalla. A mysterious, beautiful woman marries a man recently come into his title, but as time goes by the housekeeper slowly realizes that there is more to the story than it seems. With better writing or a less saccharine ending, this could have truly packed a punch.
Carol Berg's "Unmasking" is by far the best, although again, the ending is weak. A young woman has repeatedly failed the final wizard trials. Her last chance to claim her title is to convince a spy that the wizards are less powerful than they seem. I was intrigued by the world here: demons roam the earth and possess those who don't protect themselves properly, making them perform acts of cruelty or harm. The wizards roam the world, dislodging demons and protected the possessed from the vengeance of their victims. Because those without magic are easy prey for the demons, there are rigid laws prohibiting them from anything that would let them do harm: they can't make anything permanent (even a quilt or a house), for instance, lest a demon take control of the object; they only have a few years of schooling; they are moved at the whim of the wizards. I liked reading about hte interactiou between one of these powerless people (a humble woodsman, who has to hide his little carved trinkets) and a rather downtrodden, but nevertheless privileged, wizard.
Rebecca York's "Huntress Moon" is awful. In a modern world disturbingly similar to Robin McKinley's Sunshine, a young noble virgin sacrifices her freedom to buy medical treatment for her mother. She is sold as a sex slave to a werewolf. Oily sex ensues; apparently it's not rape if she comes. Three days later, they get married. Gah!
Jean Johnson's "Birthright" is a mediocre story about two twins trying to find out which one inherits their kingdom. The world building and characters are lightweight enough that the entire thing could have been easily cut in half.
Sharon Shinn's "Bargain With the Wind" is a faintly creepy take on the tale of Cinderalla. A mysterious, beautiful woman marries a man recently come into his title, but as time goes by the housekeeper slowly realizes that there is more to the story than it seems. With better writing or a less saccharine ending, this could have truly packed a punch.
Carol Berg's "Unmasking" is by far the best, although again, the ending is weak. A young woman has repeatedly failed the final wizard trials. Her last chance to claim her title is to convince a spy that the wizards are less powerful than they seem. I was intrigued by the world here: demons roam the earth and possess those who don't protect themselves properly, making them perform acts of cruelty or harm. The wizards roam the world, dislodging demons and protected the possessed from the vengeance of their victims. Because those without magic are easy prey for the demons, there are rigid laws prohibiting them from anything that would let them do harm: they can't make anything permanent (even a quilt or a house), for instance, lest a demon take control of the object; they only have a few years of schooling; they are moved at the whim of the wizards. I liked reading about hte interactiou between one of these powerless people (a humble woodsman, who has to hide his little carved trinkets) and a rather downtrodden, but nevertheless privileged, wizard.
on-hold
December 16, 2015I haven't read all stories yet, so I won't check it as "read" until I do. I'll keep updating this review as I read the stories (when I read them) and will write short reviews concerning them:
STORY 1: UNMASKING
◈ Author: Carol Berg
◈ Title: Unmasking
◈ Read on: 15.12.2015
◈ Rating: 4/5 stars
◈ Related series: Rai-Kirah #0.5
◈ Can be read as standalone: Yes
◈ Supernatural: Wizards and demons
Unmasking was well done. You don't have to read Rai-Kirah series to enjoy it, but you will enjoy it if you read this after the conclusion of the series. This is a prequel and a story of two Ezzarians (the nation that wages secret war against demons) and a meeting of two people who impacted the future later on in the series.
This is a story of how the parents of certain character met - and the danger they faced at that time.
Once again, it's better knowing what happens in the series because you will enjoy it much much more, but even so, it is all properly explained so it would be good material to make you interested in Rai-Kirah series itself.
The story is told from Joelle's POV - in first person POV - who was tasked with a mission to train an ordinary worker class citizen how to look like a magician and therefore to show to Derzhi spy (a cruel and tyranical nation, set on enslaving and conquering other nations) that Ezzarian magic is "not" real but an illusion (which is, in fact, not true as their magic is pretty much real, but they believe it would be safer if Derzhi knew that they are harmless).
It was well done and interesting. I honestly wish there was more of this story because it was so captivating.
REVIEW(S) RELATED TO THIS BOOK:
◈ Transformation (Rai-Kirah, #1)
◈ Revelation (Rai-Kirah, #2)
◈ Restoration (Rai-Kirah, #3)
◈ Elemental Magic (Moon #6.5; Rai-Kirah #0.5 )
STORY 1: UNMASKING
◈ Author: Carol Berg
◈ Title: Unmasking
◈ Read on: 15.12.2015
◈ Rating: 4/5 stars
◈ Related series: Rai-Kirah #0.5
◈ Can be read as standalone: Yes
◈ Supernatural: Wizards and demons
Unmasking was well done. You don't have to read Rai-Kirah series to enjoy it, but you will enjoy it if you read this after the conclusion of the series. This is a prequel and a story of two Ezzarians (the nation that wages secret war against demons) and a meeting of two people who impacted the future later on in the series.
This is a story of how the parents of certain character met - and the danger they faced at that time.
Once again, it's better knowing what happens in the series because you will enjoy it much much more, but even so, it is all properly explained so it would be good material to make you interested in Rai-Kirah series itself.
The story is told from Joelle's POV - in first person POV - who was tasked with a mission to train an ordinary worker class citizen how to look like a magician and therefore to show to Derzhi spy (a cruel and tyranical nation, set on enslaving and conquering other nations) that Ezzarian magic is "not" real but an illusion (which is, in fact, not true as their magic is pretty much real, but they believe it would be safer if Derzhi knew that they are harmless).
It was well done and interesting. I honestly wish there was more of this story because it was so captivating.
REVIEW(S) RELATED TO THIS BOOK:
◈ Transformation (Rai-Kirah, #1)
◈ Revelation (Rai-Kirah, #2)
◈ Restoration (Rai-Kirah, #3)
◈ Elemental Magic (Moon #6.5; Rai-Kirah #0.5 )
August 20, 2020
Bargain With the Wind by Sharon Shinn 3 *
An enjoyable story and I wonder a bit how my experience would have been if I hadn't read the blurb as it made it very obvious where the story would go very early in advance. I think I would have still picked up a lot early on but perhaps not quite as quickly.
But I admit I have a strong dislike of 1st person POV narrators who...just stand around doing nothing that really moves the plot forward and could just as easily have been 3rd POV. Still, the story intrigued me enough that I might check out other stuff by the author.
Birthright by Jean Johnson 2.5 *
A nice world but the story was very dull. There was next to no tension because the bad guy had a big neon sign saying I AM EVIL over his head and the only "issue" between the couple just disappeared. (Dude: Oh no! I have developed feelings for this woman but found out she's a princess. I'm not good enough for her. A few pages later: let's get married when all this is over). Very unlikely that I'll check out more by this author.
Unmasked by Carol Berg 4*
The reason I bought the book in the first place and it didn't disappoint. However, while it is a stand-alone in the sense that it tells a full story without a cliffhanger, I feel that it would appeal less to people who don't know the Rai-Kirah books this is a prequel of. If I hadn't read (and loved) them I would probably have been left with a feeling of "This was nice but also...unfulfilling?" at the end. Being able to put it in context makes for a beautiful bittersweet read.
Huntress Moon by Rebecca York 0 *
Sexual Slavery. So romantic (: (And even if that's your thing...I have read knitting patterns that were more erotic than these sex-scenes)
I would only read something else by this author if forced at gunpoint.
An enjoyable story and I wonder a bit how my experience would have been if I hadn't read the blurb as it made it very obvious where the story would go very early in advance. I think I would have still picked up a lot early on but perhaps not quite as quickly.
But I admit I have a strong dislike of 1st person POV narrators who...just stand around doing nothing that really moves the plot forward and could just as easily have been 3rd POV. Still, the story intrigued me enough that I might check out other stuff by the author.
Birthright by Jean Johnson 2.5 *
A nice world but the story was very dull. There was next to no tension because the bad guy had a big neon sign saying I AM EVIL over his head and the only "issue" between the couple just disappeared. (Dude: Oh no! I have developed feelings for this woman but found out she's a princess. I'm not good enough for her. A few pages later: let's get married when all this is over). Very unlikely that I'll check out more by this author.
Unmasked by Carol Berg 4*
The reason I bought the book in the first place and it didn't disappoint. However, while it is a stand-alone in the sense that it tells a full story without a cliffhanger, I feel that it would appeal less to people who don't know the Rai-Kirah books this is a prequel of. If I hadn't read (and loved) them I would probably have been left with a feeling of "This was nice but also...unfulfilling?" at the end. Being able to put it in context makes for a beautiful bittersweet read.
Huntress Moon by Rebecca York 0 *
Sexual Slavery. So romantic (: (And even if that's your thing...I have read knitting patterns that were more erotic than these sex-scenes)
I would only read something else by this author if forced at gunpoint.
April 4, 2019
This was ok. But the only story I really liked was Sharon Shinn’s Bargain with the Wind. I liked Carol Berg’s Unmasking, but the ending was unsatisfying. Jean Johnson’s Birthright was a bit cliched and the final story by Rebecca York (Huntress Moon) was both cliched and distasteful.
July 27, 2015
A very disparate melange of stories and skill levels, each based on one element: earth, air, fire, or water. Carol Berg's story, Unmasking (the element of water), is arguably the best of the bunch, and ties into the history of the characters introduced in her Rai-kirah series. It is the least "romantic" of all the stories, but the most well written. Sharon Shinn's story is well done, but a little disjointed. It seems that the air element was placed after the fact. The other two stories in the book are a bit jarring in comparison with Berg's and Shinn's. They have many more erotica elements, which could make some people uncomfortable. They are definitely done in a different style than Berg/Shinn.[return][return]I bought this book solely for Berg's story. I did read all the others, but I was very glad I saved hers for last. Hers is worth 5 stars, but the overall quality and subject matter of the other stories bring the book's rating down to 3.5.
March 14, 2018
So I picked this up because I love me some Sharon Shinn, and I did enjoy her story about air spirits and demon bargains in a Regency-esque setting. My favorite story was Jean Johnson's story, "Birthright." The depictions of Earth magic in here were brutal and visceral. I enjoyed Carol Berg's story, except for a formatting problem. I was reading it on my Kindle, and the entire first chapter was missing. I got to the end of the story, turned the page, and there was the first chapter! So I read it, just to see what I missed, and not only was the first chapter there, but the entire story was repeated. So I don't know who was in charge of the formatting, but that's a major oops.
The last story, by Rebekah York, isn't a romance. She's sold into slavery, and the guy buys her, and has sex with her - she's a virgin, natch - and then, of course, she falls in love with him. After they have sex she thinks, "it's not rape because he gave me pleasure." Um, honey, it was rape. He bought you and raped you, and just because he didn't beat you up doesn't mean that consent was involved. Slaves falling in love with their masters is just gross. It's not romantic. It's abuse.
So read the first three and skip the last one.
The last story, by Rebekah York, isn't a romance. She's sold into slavery, and the guy buys her, and has sex with her - she's a virgin, natch - and then, of course, she falls in love with him. After they have sex she thinks, "it's not rape because he gave me pleasure." Um, honey, it was rape. He bought you and raped you, and just because he didn't beat you up doesn't mean that consent was involved. Slaves falling in love with their masters is just gross. It's not romantic. It's abuse.
So read the first three and skip the last one.
August 20, 2023
I picked this up at Half Price Books by chance b/c it had a story by Sharon Shinn that I'd never heard of. My rating is for the Sharon Shinn story alone, and I...kind of adored it? Predictable if you had to nitpick, but I did not care at all. You'd think someone who writes such good full-length novels most of the time wouldn't write brilliant short fiction, but so far I've loved pretty much every short story/novella I've read from her. She handles the shortened format really well. Excellent pacing and cadence, & she builds believable characters despite how few pages she has to work with. Nothing felt too slow, fast, or abrupt. Idk. I liked it, even though the ending was a little sad. If you're looking for a dose of Shinn but don't have time to invest in one of her novels, I thought this was great. It's also very interesting if you're a fan of her Elemental Blessings books (and who isn't?), as it has what I would call an early sketch of the world building she uses for that series.
July 12, 2025
Anthology with 4 novellas, each written by a different author. I really didn't see a connecting thread except for the use of supernatural / fantasy elements. Each story was supposed to represent a different element but it was not apparent which one was which until you'd read it.
AIR -🌟 - Bargain with the Wind by Sharon Shinn - 99 pages
This was a slow moving story until close to the end. I might have dnf'ed this except I was trying to figure out how this was a retelling of Cinderella.
EARTH - 🌟🌟 - Birthright by Jean Johnson - 87 pages
This one was probably one of the better stories in the collection. Royal twins trying to figure out who was born first.
WATER - 🌟🌟 - Unmasking by Carol Berg - 83 pages
Another decent story, this one involves a young woman who has failed her wizard trials and is given an undercover assignment to fool a spy. I discovered that this is a prequel to the Rai-Kirah series and if you're reading that series, I'd definitely give this a try.
FIRE - 🌟🌟 - Huntress Moon by Rebecca York - 99 pages
This one was okay. Apparently it's part of a series, but set in a parallel universe. Yeah, me too. Anyway, Zarah, daughter of a disgraced nobleman, has been sold as a slave to Griffin. She is supposed to spy on him and in exchange her mother will get treatment for cancer. This is a steamy bodice-ripper set on another planet. Ho-hum.
AIR -🌟 - Bargain with the Wind by Sharon Shinn - 99 pages
This was a slow moving story until close to the end. I might have dnf'ed this except I was trying to figure out how this was a retelling of Cinderella.
EARTH - 🌟🌟 - Birthright by Jean Johnson - 87 pages
This one was probably one of the better stories in the collection. Royal twins trying to figure out who was born first.
WATER - 🌟🌟 - Unmasking by Carol Berg - 83 pages
Another decent story, this one involves a young woman who has failed her wizard trials and is given an undercover assignment to fool a spy. I discovered that this is a prequel to the Rai-Kirah series and if you're reading that series, I'd definitely give this a try.
FIRE - 🌟🌟 - Huntress Moon by Rebecca York - 99 pages
This one was okay. Apparently it's part of a series, but set in a parallel universe. Yeah, me too. Anyway, Zarah, daughter of a disgraced nobleman, has been sold as a slave to Griffin. She is supposed to spy on him and in exchange her mother will get treatment for cancer. This is a steamy bodice-ripper set on another planet. Ho-hum.
February 22, 2010
I was incredibly conflicted in deciding what rating to give this collection. Two of the novellas were near perfect, one was kind of lame, and the last one was such complete trash I'd almost rather believe it was written as a satire of romance novels. Still, I am going to try and focus on the stronger stories, so I bumped the rating up a little.
The first story, loosely centered around the element "Air" and also very loosely a reimagining of the Cinderella myth, is called "Bargain with the Wind," and is written by Sharon Shinn. It is the reason I bought this collection, and it really impressed me. Shinn's writing style is fairly simple and a little weak, but she excels at creating characters that the reader cares about. This story is some of her strongest work in some time, nearly at the level of her Campbell Award-winning first novel, The Shape-Changer's Wife. Like that novel, it also ends with a melancholy, haunting beauty that lingered in my mind for some time.
The second novella is very loosely centered around the element "Earth." "Birthright," by Jean Johnson, was the story I found a bit lame. It felt pulled in two directions -- there was too much romance to have enough time building the world and setting up the plot, but there was so much plot (and a rather weak plot to boot) that Johnson skipped all the most interesting parts of the romance: the actual falling in love. Her characters meet, want each other, spend a month together that the reader doesn't get to see at all, then fall into bed (or in this case a bathing pool) with each other and are ready to pledge their undying love. Still, it moved quickly, and the bathing pool scene walked the fine line between being R-rated and X-rated carefully enough that it was titillating rather than either horrifying or ludicrous.
The third novella is the strongest. Centered around "water" and set in the world of her major trilogy, "Unmasking" by Carol Berg was a revelation. I had read Berg's standalone novel Song of the Beast and wasn't terribly impressed; it read quickly, but I forgot it almost as soon as I finished it. This novella caused me to go out and get the first novel in her Rai-Kirah trilogy immediately on its strength alone. There is nothing flashy about her writing style, but it is serviceable and there is no clunkiness as there sometimes is in Sharon Shinn's writing; but the strength in this story is her characterization. It is the shortest of the novellas in this collection, yet its characters are the ones I will remember the longest -- the inhabit a world I can picture perfectly, they are multi-faceted, and the protagonist faces quite a few hard choices with wonderfully realized courage and grace. While the romance takes up very little time, it made my heart ache. Truly an impressive work.
The fourth novella is sadly the weakest by far, and left a horrible taste in my mouth after Berg's small masterpiece. Centered around "Fire" -- and much more literal an interpretation of the element than the other three novellas -- "Huntress Moon" by Rebecca York was disgustingly inadequate from the very first page. The characters make no sense, the world-building is trite and nearly non-existent, the plot is hackneyed, and the content is. . . well, I have to say that I don't read romance novels. I will admit to some snobbishness about them. But I never really believed that someone (and a woman no less!) could write such utter filth, and that other people (women!!!) could enjoy it. It is a horrifying tale of a girl buying into her own destruction wholeheartedly. The main character agrees to become a sex slave with the hope of saving her mother and is instantly swooning over her purchaser. Their sex is described graphically (but not at all sexily) and repeatedly, and then they are magically brought together by several coincidences, the evil-doers are conveniently routed, a couple of slaves are freed (but of course, not all of them can be, that would be a sign of weakness -- but by the way, when did Zarah learn to care about slavery? it isn't shown in the text), and everyone lives happily ever after. I only kept reading after the first two pages because I didn't feel qualified to review it if I didn't finish it. I strongly recommend anyone else picking up this collection to simply cut the pages out of the book and burn them.
Still, if I ignore the fourth novella, this is a strong collection -- one brilliant story, one excellent story, and one that is adequate. I will take my own advice and burn Rebecca York's novella, and then I can absolutely place this collection on my keeper shelf.
The first story, loosely centered around the element "Air" and also very loosely a reimagining of the Cinderella myth, is called "Bargain with the Wind," and is written by Sharon Shinn. It is the reason I bought this collection, and it really impressed me. Shinn's writing style is fairly simple and a little weak, but she excels at creating characters that the reader cares about. This story is some of her strongest work in some time, nearly at the level of her Campbell Award-winning first novel, The Shape-Changer's Wife. Like that novel, it also ends with a melancholy, haunting beauty that lingered in my mind for some time.
The second novella is very loosely centered around the element "Earth." "Birthright," by Jean Johnson, was the story I found a bit lame. It felt pulled in two directions -- there was too much romance to have enough time building the world and setting up the plot, but there was so much plot (and a rather weak plot to boot) that Johnson skipped all the most interesting parts of the romance: the actual falling in love. Her characters meet, want each other, spend a month together that the reader doesn't get to see at all, then fall into bed (or in this case a bathing pool) with each other and are ready to pledge their undying love. Still, it moved quickly, and the bathing pool scene walked the fine line between being R-rated and X-rated carefully enough that it was titillating rather than either horrifying or ludicrous.
The third novella is the strongest. Centered around "water" and set in the world of her major trilogy, "Unmasking" by Carol Berg was a revelation. I had read Berg's standalone novel Song of the Beast and wasn't terribly impressed; it read quickly, but I forgot it almost as soon as I finished it. This novella caused me to go out and get the first novel in her Rai-Kirah trilogy immediately on its strength alone. There is nothing flashy about her writing style, but it is serviceable and there is no clunkiness as there sometimes is in Sharon Shinn's writing; but the strength in this story is her characterization. It is the shortest of the novellas in this collection, yet its characters are the ones I will remember the longest -- the inhabit a world I can picture perfectly, they are multi-faceted, and the protagonist faces quite a few hard choices with wonderfully realized courage and grace. While the romance takes up very little time, it made my heart ache. Truly an impressive work.
The fourth novella is sadly the weakest by far, and left a horrible taste in my mouth after Berg's small masterpiece. Centered around "Fire" -- and much more literal an interpretation of the element than the other three novellas -- "Huntress Moon" by Rebecca York was disgustingly inadequate from the very first page. The characters make no sense, the world-building is trite and nearly non-existent, the plot is hackneyed, and the content is. . . well, I have to say that I don't read romance novels. I will admit to some snobbishness about them. But I never really believed that someone (and a woman no less!) could write such utter filth, and that other people (women!!!) could enjoy it. It is a horrifying tale of a girl buying into her own destruction wholeheartedly. The main character agrees to become a sex slave with the hope of saving her mother and is instantly swooning over her purchaser. Their sex is described graphically (but not at all sexily) and repeatedly, and then they are magically brought together by several coincidences, the evil-doers are conveniently routed, a couple of slaves are freed (but of course, not all of them can be, that would be a sign of weakness -- but by the way, when did Zarah learn to care about slavery? it isn't shown in the text), and everyone lives happily ever after. I only kept reading after the first two pages because I didn't feel qualified to review it if I didn't finish it. I strongly recommend anyone else picking up this collection to simply cut the pages out of the book and burn them.
Still, if I ignore the fourth novella, this is a strong collection -- one brilliant story, one excellent story, and one that is adequate. I will take my own advice and burn Rebecca York's novella, and then I can absolutely place this collection on my keeper shelf.
July 30, 2022
Never have I been so quick to blacklist an author from future reads in my life. The fifty shades meets breaking bad, law and order special victims unit ped0 werewolf rape culture tire fire had me looking forward to whatever book I read after this just to get this rancid taste out of my mouth. While the air story was mediocre-pleasant, the water story seemingly cut off too soon, and the earth story the closest one to enjoyable, although predictable, the fire story ruined my entire experience of this whole book. So much so that I'm actually planning to recycle my copy of this book. Rebecca York, your writings will not be missed.
April 24, 2010
To be fair, I only read one story in this anthology. I have been working my way through Rebecca York’s Moon series and wanted to try to read the shorts as well.
I wish I hadn’t. (though the characters are used more in the next book in the series)
It wasn’t good on so many levels. Zarah was forced into slavery to spy on a neighboring nobleman and was purchased by said nobleman as a sex slave. Herein lies my first major complaint with the story. How am I supposed to like the main male character (Griffin) when he purchased Zarah for the sole purpose of sex? How can any resulting sexual encounters not be considered rape? SO NOT MY THING! When I first read it I figured the story was set in the past. I later realized while reading the next book that it’s actually set in the Alternate Universe that York has created within her Moon series.
I wish I hadn’t. (though the characters are used more in the next book in the series)
It wasn’t good on so many levels. Zarah was forced into slavery to spy on a neighboring nobleman and was purchased by said nobleman as a sex slave. Herein lies my first major complaint with the story. How am I supposed to like the main male character (Griffin) when he purchased Zarah for the sole purpose of sex? How can any resulting sexual encounters not be considered rape? SO NOT MY THING! When I first read it I figured the story was set in the past. I later realized while reading the next book that it’s actually set in the Alternate Universe that York has created within her Moon series.
August 19, 2008
Read the short story by Carol Berg, only.
True to form, I didn't care for it. Carol Berg's a good author, if you don't mind a little masochism in your characters :), but she should stick to a longer form for her stories, all of which rely heavily on characterization. Short stories simply don't allow for the development necessary to make the reader care what happens in the end.
True to form, I didn't care for it. Carol Berg's a good author, if you don't mind a little masochism in your characters :), but she should stick to a longer form for her stories, all of which rely heavily on characterization. Short stories simply don't allow for the development necessary to make the reader care what happens in the end.
May 17, 2008
The story by Sharon Shinn is the best of the lot, with the Carol Berg story coming in second. As for the other two--don't bother.
Read
November 20, 2008Elemental Magic by Sharon Shinn (2007)
October 28, 2012
This was an odd little anthology. Each story was supposed to be a romance and incorporate one of the four elements (earth, air, fire, water. You know the drill.), but that's not the odd part. This anthology was strange to me because there was a huge difference in quality among the stories. One was amazing, one was meh, and two were that "HOW DID THIS GET PUBLISHED?!" kind of terrible. I can't help but question the sanity (or maybe taste) of the person who put these works in the same anthology. If it wasn't for the Carol Berg story (which was the only reason I bought the anthology in the first place), this would have been one of those roll your eyes, laugh at the triteness, and forget you ever read it type of books. But Berg's story was as awesome as the others were mediocre/terrible. I was glad I had saved hers for last, because the thought that I had a Berg story waiting for me at the end of the mediocre tunnel was the only thing that kept me going. Then why did I give this anthology five stars, if it was so terrible? Because I personally was just in it for Carol Berg, and in that respect, this anthology did not disappoint. The other stories were just perks; entities that happened to come with my new Berg story. I didn't really care if they were there or not, so their terribleness didn't weigh in on my overall rating. I will just politely forget their existence as I shelve this book with my Carol Berg collection.
Below I will do my customary individual rating (on the Goodreads scale, of course) and review of each novella.
Bargain with the Wind 2/5 stars.
This story was a really mixed bag for me. The basic concept was very strong and stuck with me long after the story was over: imagine Cinderella at the ball with her prince. As they are dancing, they stare deeply into each other's eyes, ignoring the glorious party around them, and Cinderella gives a slow, sweet smile. We are all familiar with this scene; we all grew up watching Cinderella rise from her torment to find bliss with her royal somebody. Now imagine this scene again, but with a manipulative, duplicitous undertone. Every action, smile, and movement Cinderella makes is a calculated seduction in a play to gain more social power. This frigid, calculating creature is not the innocent, sweet girl we grew up knowing. Shinn made Cinderella (Lady Charis) a conniving bitch, basically, which I found to be pretty frackin' cool. I honestly haven't looked at Cinderella in the same way since reading this story. What if those were her true motivations for using magic to get close to the prince? It makes their quick love story make a lot more sense, if you ask me. I just really loved and could get behind this concept, which gained this story a star.
But the story only continued to be interesting as long as she was conniving. For a while after they were married, she was still being manipulative by using her new-gained social power to cause strife between the nobility of the region, which I thought was really awesome. It made it clear that her goal was something much deeper and more mysterious than just stepping up the social ladder. And it was cool. But then she just kinda…stopped. I think she was supposedly falling in love with her husband, but if that was the case, there was no gradual buildup to this. One day she just stopped. And once she ceased to be conniving, she was just weepy and boring. She started worrying about pointless crap. "What if events had been different and we had never met?" This would be fine if it was curious speculation or contemplation about how life is just a culmination of random events, but it wasn't. She was legitimately worried about it. You did meet; you did get married. That is such a stupid, pointless thing to worry about. And Prince Charming (Lord Duncan) would have to swoop in and reassure her. "Would you still love me if I wasn't beautiful?" And Duncan would have to reassure her some more. This is what the story became after she gave up on her scheming. Such a letdown after the awesome first half. Her schemes never reached a climax, and nothing ever really became of them. She was just conniving until she wasn't.
And the "romance" aspect of this story was unbelievably contrived. Lord Duncan marries her after THREE DAYS! Now, this would make sense if it was mere physical attraction and just a product of her successful seduction, but when she asks him that "What if I wasn't beautiful?" question, he says in all seriousness, "I didn't marry you for your face." YOU MARRIED HER AFTER THREE DAYS! I'm calling horseshit on that one, sirrah. And her love for him sort of just came out of the blue. I think Shinn was trying to go for a gradual change of heart, because there were a couple scenes showing how she was beginning to realize how "kind and gentle" he was. But these scenes felt weak and contrived, and her behavior never really changed after these scenes. So they didn't really have their desired effect.
And once her mysterious machinations stopped, the story was entirely about this ridiculous romance that I didn't care about. It was meaningless because I didn't care about either of these characters. As I said before, after she ceased to be Machiavellian, she was weepy and boring. And Lord Duncan was lovesick, wide-eyed, and nice to the point where it was sickening. No matter how much his wife would lie, connive, plot, and cause social strife, he would always be like, "Oh, Charis. I love you so much that I could never feel ill will toward you." Yuck. Dude, grow a personality. Because of this mentality of his, there was no conflict with him. Ever. There could have been some really tense or interesting scenes if he would just react to these things she was doing. These machinations of hers affect your House! When someone's actions could potentially cause your fall, you should be a little more concerned about it than "Whatever you want to do, darling."
Although, I did really like how the "Air" element was incorporated in the story. The whole elemental mythology was simple but was adroitly executed in a way that added depth to the world-building. And I liked how the POV character was one of the estate servants who was witnessing all these events with a (mostly) objective eye. Although sometimes Shinn would have to contrive reasons for why this character would have been in a position to know some of these things, but this fault was minor and forgivable compared to the story's other problems. And I actually liked this POV character better than any of the other characters who should have been more interesting.
The concept was very strong and unique, but it failed utterly in the execution. The plot had a few clever twists that caught me off guard, but that wasn't enough to compensate for the unbelievable characters, contrived romance, and the fact that this interesting premise was forgotten and shoved to the side halfway through.
Birthright 1/5 stars
Speaking of interesting plots being shoved to the side, let's talk about Birthright. Chapter 1 of this novella actually introduced an interesting world, characters I wanted to get to know better, and a plot involving a barefooted, weaponless pilgrimage through a desert infested with sand demons to determine which twin sister would inherit an empire. Sounds pretty exciting, actually. I'm on board. This first chapter shows us that Arasa, one of the twins, traveled to a barbarian land searching for answers to her inheritance problem and enlisted the help of the foreign mage, Elrik. They set off back to Arasa's desert homeland to find her sister and embark on this pilgrimage. I was really excited to watch these events play out and to get to know these characters better. Unfortunately, neither of these things really happen.
Chapter 1 set up all of these intriguing things, so I eagerly moved on to Chapter 2 expecting a continuation of their adventures. But Chapter 2 was essentially about Elrik wanting to get in Arasa's pants. That's it. Reading that line, you have basically read Chapter 2. That is literally all that happens. A month of time has passed since Chapter 1 in which Arasa and Elrik have traveled in the desert together, so apparently the characters know each other. But if you ask me, they still act like acquaintances, so I don't see why the jump in time was necessary. This jump's sole purpose was to give these characters an excuse to sleep together, which became the story's only focus for quite some time.
As I said, neither character seemed particularly concerned about the trial that was ahead of them or the fact that they were surrounded by sand demons. Instead, we get to read about Elrik's sexual frustrations. "…but it was rather frustrating not to be able to coax her into a decent bed." Um, your bed, do you mean? And he gives all these reasons why he shouldn't sleep with her: they are in the desert surrounded by sand demons, they will get sand in their pants, etc, but he doesn't seem overly concerned with the fact that she really doesn't seem the least bit interested. That should be the first reason you shouldn't sleep with her, unless you are a rapist. And following his frustrations about not being able to get her into a room with him, he thinks "At least he'd be able to relieve his needs within its privacy." All of these things led me to the conclusion that Elrik is a nymphomaniac, because sex seems to be the only thing he thinks about. Which I'm pretty sure wasn't the author's intention, but that's how his personality came across nevertheless. And Arasa mentions sensing his "growing masculine frustration," and the way she said it made it seem a little bit sexist. So if men are acting like sexual predators, don't worry about it because it is just their "masculine frustration?" Apparently all men are just horn-dogs who can't keep it in their pants. That's nice, Arasa.
Then Chapter 3 arrives, and we finally get to read about the sexual encounter that apparently needs to happen before we can move on to more interesting things. And this encounter is graphic in a way that wasn't sexy or romantic. And it certainly wasn't meaningful because I still don't know the characters well enough at this point to give a good gorram about whether they have sex or not. So it was mostly just gross. And it wasn't just a gross sexual encounter, it was a gross sexual encounter that lasted for 8 pages (including foreplay). And after the sexual encounter finally draws to a close, we get to read about how "in love" the characters are. Because apparently 1 month of time + sex = unconditional love. Meaningless sex and contrived romance are much more interesting than an exciting desert pilgrimage. Thank you very much for that, Jean Johnson.
The actual "Birthright" plot, once it finally arrived, was actually pretty cool, and the "Earth" element of this story was incorporated well into the plot in a way that was pretty badass. But these things didn't roll around until 69 pages into the story. That's 69 pages of artificial romance, graphic sex, and similar trite crap until something interesting actually happened with this cool pilgrimage I was promised, and then the cool parts of the pilgrimage only last for about 14 pages. I really enjoyed myself for those 14 pages, but that in no way made up for the previous 69 pages of terribleness.
What angered me the most about the way this story was executed was that the characters were sacrificed for this forced romance. The story could have been so much more meaningful and exciting if it had just focused its attention on the actual pilgrimage plot. Then Elrik and Arasa could have been drawn closer together by going through this dangerous experience, and we could actually have gotten to know them as characters instead of just flat love interests. I can't care about the romance or the sex until I care about the characters. You can't just throw two strangers together and assume I give a crap about whether they are together or not, because if I don't know them, I won't. MAKE IT MEANINGFUL! MAKE ME CARE! But this story wasn't, and I didn't.
Unmasking 5/5 stars
At this point (if you'd had no previous experience with Carol Berg's storytelling prowess), you probably would pretty much have given up on finding anything worthwhile in this anthology. I certainly would have. And had that been my belief, this story would have given me some serious whiplash, because the quality of this anthology pulls a 180 from terrible to amazing (for the duration of this story, anyway). It makes absolutely no sense to me how such a well-written, meaningful novella can be placed in all seriousness next to these other pointless, trite stories. That's like placing Shakespearean sonnets in an anthology full of Harlequin romance stories. Both are fine, but they really have no business being in the same anthology.
And this story was really trememdous. It takes place in the same world as her Rai-kirah trilogy, so it had my excitement and personal involvement from the start; I already cared about this world and several of its inhabitants, so this story was on good footing from the get go. And it really didn't disappoint.
The romance in this story was the only meaningful, believable one in the entire anthology. This was because, paradoxically, the romance wasn't the focus of the story. The story was about these characters thrust in this dangerous situation together where the stakes were realistic and very high. And this exciting story isn't derailed halfway through in order to shove romance or sex down our throats, and because of this, the plight of the characters isn't made meaningless. The characters are enabled to become deep and multifaceted, so that by the end of the story I loved them both and was willing to accept that they loved each other. And it was meaningful. I cared about these people, their world, their plight, what needed to be sacrificed. I cared about them. When they finally got together, it didn't feel contrived and rushed; the characters were brought closer together by their situation, not by the author saying "And then they were in love, because I need to write 69 pages about them having sex." Thank you, Carol Berg, for understanding how to tell a meaningful story.
I also don't think that it is essential to have previously read any of her Rai-kirah books to enjoy this story, but there are definitely a couple perks if you have. First, the "Water" element of this story was well-executed anyway, but if you have read any of her Rai-kirah books, you would see that she didn't just BS that element into this novella. Water was also an important factor in the actual trilogy, so the groundwork to this part of her magic system was already in place. It wasn't like water was never mentioned as being important in the world during the trilogy, but was randomly thrown in here. She didn't change the pre-established rules of her world to make this novella fit into the anthology; the rules were already there. This continuity may not be all that big or important, but it made me respect her storytelling even more. Second, you don't have to have read the trilogy to fall in love with these characters, but if you have, they will take on a second, special layer of meaning. This particular perk moved this story from being merely excellent to holding a special place in my heart.
And I loved how this story was able to be told in a world that was already established without simply rehashing events and themes from the trilogy. This story actually shed some light on things that weren't expounded on in the trilogy; for example, this novella went more in depth into the duties of Comforters and Searchers than what the trilogy had time to do. I only had a vague notion of what the purpose of those factions were while reading the trilogy, but this story had the time to explain their function. And it went really in depth into the relationship between the valyddar (those born with magical ability) and tenyddar (those born with no magical ability). The vast gap between these classes wasn't as apparent in the trilogy, but this novella gave us the ability to explore this theme in a way that made it relevant and meaningful.
There was just nothing about this story that was trite or pointless. The characters were multifaceted, the world-building deep even when compared to that of the trilogy, the plot was exciting and had high stakes, and the romance was actually meaningful. It was just a well-told story, and I really expected nothing less from Carol Berg. Seriously, if you haven't checked out her work before, I recommend you do so.
Huntress Moon 1/5 stars
And if Carol Berg's story renews your faith in storytelling and in humanity, Huntress Moon will dash that faith into tiny fragments. This story was even worse than Birthright. At least Birthright gave the brief illusion it was going to tell an exciting story and kinda delivered in the last 14 pages. But Huntress Moon didn't even have that. The only thing this story was about was the sex. It was like the graphic parts of Birthright, but without even putting forth the effort to pretend the story was about anything but the sex. Imagine the concept of porn: weak, convenient plot that exists for the sole purpose of getting two characters in the same room so they can have sex. That is what this story was. It was porn.
Everything existed (or didn't exist) for the sole reason of getting these characters to have sex. The plot: Zarah's mother is dying, and these people will save her if Zarah poses as a sex slave to spy on the leader of an enemy nation. This plot even had the potential to have deep moments, but was just used an elaborate excuse to get these people to have sex. The moment anything potentially deep would occur, it would be ignored or dropped so the characters could remain together to have more sex. The characters: Zarah was extremely stupid. She willingly sold herself into sex slavery, but acted confused when she actually had sex. She wasn't confused that she had to have sex, but she had this moment of "Oh, that's what sex is?" You are a grown ass woman, and you don't know what sex is? Middle school girls know what sex is; I refuse to believe you are that naïve. And Griffin (the man she was supposed to be spying on) himself could never quite decide if he was a harsh master or a gentle one. Everything these characters said or did wasn't because that was their character, but because that would get them to have sex or would made the sex "more exciting" or some such bologna. World-building: I can't even tell you anything about this world, because I wasn't really ever given anything that I could tell. Magic System: This was where the "Fire" element was supposed to be incorporated, but it didn't have a lot to do with them having sex, so it wasn't a big part of the story.
There really isn't a lot more to say about this story. It had all the graphic sex of Birthright without even putting forth the effort to pretend it wasn't what it really was. Which was porn.
Below I will do my customary individual rating (on the Goodreads scale, of course) and review of each novella.
Bargain with the Wind 2/5 stars.
This story was a really mixed bag for me. The basic concept was very strong and stuck with me long after the story was over: imagine Cinderella at the ball with her prince. As they are dancing, they stare deeply into each other's eyes, ignoring the glorious party around them, and Cinderella gives a slow, sweet smile. We are all familiar with this scene; we all grew up watching Cinderella rise from her torment to find bliss with her royal somebody. Now imagine this scene again, but with a manipulative, duplicitous undertone. Every action, smile, and movement Cinderella makes is a calculated seduction in a play to gain more social power. This frigid, calculating creature is not the innocent, sweet girl we grew up knowing. Shinn made Cinderella (Lady Charis) a conniving bitch, basically, which I found to be pretty frackin' cool. I honestly haven't looked at Cinderella in the same way since reading this story. What if those were her true motivations for using magic to get close to the prince? It makes their quick love story make a lot more sense, if you ask me. I just really loved and could get behind this concept, which gained this story a star.
But the story only continued to be interesting as long as she was conniving. For a while after they were married, she was still being manipulative by using her new-gained social power to cause strife between the nobility of the region, which I thought was really awesome. It made it clear that her goal was something much deeper and more mysterious than just stepping up the social ladder. And it was cool. But then she just kinda…stopped. I think she was supposedly falling in love with her husband, but if that was the case, there was no gradual buildup to this. One day she just stopped. And once she ceased to be conniving, she was just weepy and boring. She started worrying about pointless crap. "What if events had been different and we had never met?" This would be fine if it was curious speculation or contemplation about how life is just a culmination of random events, but it wasn't. She was legitimately worried about it. You did meet; you did get married. That is such a stupid, pointless thing to worry about. And Prince Charming (Lord Duncan) would have to swoop in and reassure her. "Would you still love me if I wasn't beautiful?" And Duncan would have to reassure her some more. This is what the story became after she gave up on her scheming. Such a letdown after the awesome first half. Her schemes never reached a climax, and nothing ever really became of them. She was just conniving until she wasn't.
And the "romance" aspect of this story was unbelievably contrived. Lord Duncan marries her after THREE DAYS! Now, this would make sense if it was mere physical attraction and just a product of her successful seduction, but when she asks him that "What if I wasn't beautiful?" question, he says in all seriousness, "I didn't marry you for your face." YOU MARRIED HER AFTER THREE DAYS! I'm calling horseshit on that one, sirrah. And her love for him sort of just came out of the blue. I think Shinn was trying to go for a gradual change of heart, because there were a couple scenes showing how she was beginning to realize how "kind and gentle" he was. But these scenes felt weak and contrived, and her behavior never really changed after these scenes. So they didn't really have their desired effect.
And once her mysterious machinations stopped, the story was entirely about this ridiculous romance that I didn't care about. It was meaningless because I didn't care about either of these characters. As I said before, after she ceased to be Machiavellian, she was weepy and boring. And Lord Duncan was lovesick, wide-eyed, and nice to the point where it was sickening. No matter how much his wife would lie, connive, plot, and cause social strife, he would always be like, "Oh, Charis. I love you so much that I could never feel ill will toward you." Yuck. Dude, grow a personality. Because of this mentality of his, there was no conflict with him. Ever. There could have been some really tense or interesting scenes if he would just react to these things she was doing. These machinations of hers affect your House! When someone's actions could potentially cause your fall, you should be a little more concerned about it than "Whatever you want to do, darling."
Although, I did really like how the "Air" element was incorporated in the story. The whole elemental mythology was simple but was adroitly executed in a way that added depth to the world-building. And I liked how the POV character was one of the estate servants who was witnessing all these events with a (mostly) objective eye. Although sometimes Shinn would have to contrive reasons for why this character would have been in a position to know some of these things, but this fault was minor and forgivable compared to the story's other problems. And I actually liked this POV character better than any of the other characters who should have been more interesting.
The concept was very strong and unique, but it failed utterly in the execution. The plot had a few clever twists that caught me off guard, but that wasn't enough to compensate for the unbelievable characters, contrived romance, and the fact that this interesting premise was forgotten and shoved to the side halfway through.
Birthright 1/5 stars
Speaking of interesting plots being shoved to the side, let's talk about Birthright. Chapter 1 of this novella actually introduced an interesting world, characters I wanted to get to know better, and a plot involving a barefooted, weaponless pilgrimage through a desert infested with sand demons to determine which twin sister would inherit an empire. Sounds pretty exciting, actually. I'm on board. This first chapter shows us that Arasa, one of the twins, traveled to a barbarian land searching for answers to her inheritance problem and enlisted the help of the foreign mage, Elrik. They set off back to Arasa's desert homeland to find her sister and embark on this pilgrimage. I was really excited to watch these events play out and to get to know these characters better. Unfortunately, neither of these things really happen.
Chapter 1 set up all of these intriguing things, so I eagerly moved on to Chapter 2 expecting a continuation of their adventures. But Chapter 2 was essentially about Elrik wanting to get in Arasa's pants. That's it. Reading that line, you have basically read Chapter 2. That is literally all that happens. A month of time has passed since Chapter 1 in which Arasa and Elrik have traveled in the desert together, so apparently the characters know each other. But if you ask me, they still act like acquaintances, so I don't see why the jump in time was necessary. This jump's sole purpose was to give these characters an excuse to sleep together, which became the story's only focus for quite some time.
As I said, neither character seemed particularly concerned about the trial that was ahead of them or the fact that they were surrounded by sand demons. Instead, we get to read about Elrik's sexual frustrations. "…but it was rather frustrating not to be able to coax her into a decent bed." Um, your bed, do you mean? And he gives all these reasons why he shouldn't sleep with her: they are in the desert surrounded by sand demons, they will get sand in their pants, etc, but he doesn't seem overly concerned with the fact that she really doesn't seem the least bit interested. That should be the first reason you shouldn't sleep with her, unless you are a rapist. And following his frustrations about not being able to get her into a room with him, he thinks "At least he'd be able to relieve his needs within its privacy." All of these things led me to the conclusion that Elrik is a nymphomaniac, because sex seems to be the only thing he thinks about. Which I'm pretty sure wasn't the author's intention, but that's how his personality came across nevertheless. And Arasa mentions sensing his "growing masculine frustration," and the way she said it made it seem a little bit sexist. So if men are acting like sexual predators, don't worry about it because it is just their "masculine frustration?" Apparently all men are just horn-dogs who can't keep it in their pants. That's nice, Arasa.
Then Chapter 3 arrives, and we finally get to read about the sexual encounter that apparently needs to happen before we can move on to more interesting things. And this encounter is graphic in a way that wasn't sexy or romantic. And it certainly wasn't meaningful because I still don't know the characters well enough at this point to give a good gorram about whether they have sex or not. So it was mostly just gross. And it wasn't just a gross sexual encounter, it was a gross sexual encounter that lasted for 8 pages (including foreplay). And after the sexual encounter finally draws to a close, we get to read about how "in love" the characters are. Because apparently 1 month of time + sex = unconditional love. Meaningless sex and contrived romance are much more interesting than an exciting desert pilgrimage. Thank you very much for that, Jean Johnson.
The actual "Birthright" plot, once it finally arrived, was actually pretty cool, and the "Earth" element of this story was incorporated well into the plot in a way that was pretty badass. But these things didn't roll around until 69 pages into the story. That's 69 pages of artificial romance, graphic sex, and similar trite crap until something interesting actually happened with this cool pilgrimage I was promised, and then the cool parts of the pilgrimage only last for about 14 pages. I really enjoyed myself for those 14 pages, but that in no way made up for the previous 69 pages of terribleness.
What angered me the most about the way this story was executed was that the characters were sacrificed for this forced romance. The story could have been so much more meaningful and exciting if it had just focused its attention on the actual pilgrimage plot. Then Elrik and Arasa could have been drawn closer together by going through this dangerous experience, and we could actually have gotten to know them as characters instead of just flat love interests. I can't care about the romance or the sex until I care about the characters. You can't just throw two strangers together and assume I give a crap about whether they are together or not, because if I don't know them, I won't. MAKE IT MEANINGFUL! MAKE ME CARE! But this story wasn't, and I didn't.
Unmasking 5/5 stars
At this point (if you'd had no previous experience with Carol Berg's storytelling prowess), you probably would pretty much have given up on finding anything worthwhile in this anthology. I certainly would have. And had that been my belief, this story would have given me some serious whiplash, because the quality of this anthology pulls a 180 from terrible to amazing (for the duration of this story, anyway). It makes absolutely no sense to me how such a well-written, meaningful novella can be placed in all seriousness next to these other pointless, trite stories. That's like placing Shakespearean sonnets in an anthology full of Harlequin romance stories. Both are fine, but they really have no business being in the same anthology.
And this story was really trememdous. It takes place in the same world as her Rai-kirah trilogy, so it had my excitement and personal involvement from the start; I already cared about this world and several of its inhabitants, so this story was on good footing from the get go. And it really didn't disappoint.
The romance in this story was the only meaningful, believable one in the entire anthology. This was because, paradoxically, the romance wasn't the focus of the story. The story was about these characters thrust in this dangerous situation together where the stakes were realistic and very high. And this exciting story isn't derailed halfway through in order to shove romance or sex down our throats, and because of this, the plight of the characters isn't made meaningless. The characters are enabled to become deep and multifaceted, so that by the end of the story I loved them both and was willing to accept that they loved each other. And it was meaningful. I cared about these people, their world, their plight, what needed to be sacrificed. I cared about them. When they finally got together, it didn't feel contrived and rushed; the characters were brought closer together by their situation, not by the author saying "And then they were in love, because I need to write 69 pages about them having sex." Thank you, Carol Berg, for understanding how to tell a meaningful story.
I also don't think that it is essential to have previously read any of her Rai-kirah books to enjoy this story, but there are definitely a couple perks if you have. First, the "Water" element of this story was well-executed anyway, but if you have read any of her Rai-kirah books, you would see that she didn't just BS that element into this novella. Water was also an important factor in the actual trilogy, so the groundwork to this part of her magic system was already in place. It wasn't like water was never mentioned as being important in the world during the trilogy, but was randomly thrown in here. She didn't change the pre-established rules of her world to make this novella fit into the anthology; the rules were already there. This continuity may not be all that big or important, but it made me respect her storytelling even more. Second, you don't have to have read the trilogy to fall in love with these characters, but if you have, they will take on a second, special layer of meaning. This particular perk moved this story from being merely excellent to holding a special place in my heart.
And I loved how this story was able to be told in a world that was already established without simply rehashing events and themes from the trilogy. This story actually shed some light on things that weren't expounded on in the trilogy; for example, this novella went more in depth into the duties of Comforters and Searchers than what the trilogy had time to do. I only had a vague notion of what the purpose of those factions were while reading the trilogy, but this story had the time to explain their function. And it went really in depth into the relationship between the valyddar (those born with magical ability) and tenyddar (those born with no magical ability). The vast gap between these classes wasn't as apparent in the trilogy, but this novella gave us the ability to explore this theme in a way that made it relevant and meaningful.
There was just nothing about this story that was trite or pointless. The characters were multifaceted, the world-building deep even when compared to that of the trilogy, the plot was exciting and had high stakes, and the romance was actually meaningful. It was just a well-told story, and I really expected nothing less from Carol Berg. Seriously, if you haven't checked out her work before, I recommend you do so.
Huntress Moon 1/5 stars
And if Carol Berg's story renews your faith in storytelling and in humanity, Huntress Moon will dash that faith into tiny fragments. This story was even worse than Birthright. At least Birthright gave the brief illusion it was going to tell an exciting story and kinda delivered in the last 14 pages. But Huntress Moon didn't even have that. The only thing this story was about was the sex. It was like the graphic parts of Birthright, but without even putting forth the effort to pretend the story was about anything but the sex. Imagine the concept of porn: weak, convenient plot that exists for the sole purpose of getting two characters in the same room so they can have sex. That is what this story was. It was porn.
Everything existed (or didn't exist) for the sole reason of getting these characters to have sex. The plot: Zarah's mother is dying, and these people will save her if Zarah poses as a sex slave to spy on the leader of an enemy nation. This plot even had the potential to have deep moments, but was just used an elaborate excuse to get these people to have sex. The moment anything potentially deep would occur, it would be ignored or dropped so the characters could remain together to have more sex. The characters: Zarah was extremely stupid. She willingly sold herself into sex slavery, but acted confused when she actually had sex. She wasn't confused that she had to have sex, but she had this moment of "Oh, that's what sex is?" You are a grown ass woman, and you don't know what sex is? Middle school girls know what sex is; I refuse to believe you are that naïve. And Griffin (the man she was supposed to be spying on) himself could never quite decide if he was a harsh master or a gentle one. Everything these characters said or did wasn't because that was their character, but because that would get them to have sex or would made the sex "more exciting" or some such bologna. World-building: I can't even tell you anything about this world, because I wasn't really ever given anything that I could tell. Magic System: This was where the "Fire" element was supposed to be incorporated, but it didn't have a lot to do with them having sex, so it wasn't a big part of the story.
There really isn't a lot more to say about this story. It had all the graphic sex of Birthright without even putting forth the effort to pretend it wasn't what it really was. Which was porn.
November 24, 2017
I am writing this review to rate the stories separately.
Sharon Shinn, Bargain With the Wind. 3.5 stars, a well-written, haunting short story. It has definite overtones of a classic fairy tale, Cinderella or Beauty and the Beast, while being distinctly original. This is what a fantasy novella should be, with a world instantly familiar, but still distinctly it's own, with a compelling, but not overly complex, cast and a solid plot. I rated it lower because I wasn't super attached to the characters and it felt a little impersonal, like an Andrew Lang story or something.
Jean Johnson, Birthright. 4 stars, only because I enjoyed it much more for my own preference. It's fairly light hearted and doesn't take itself too seriously, while having fun with the novella format. It hangs together well and was a great plot, and I enjoyed the main character very much. It made me want to read more about these characters and their world, I'll definitely be looking this author up as a result of this short story.
Carol Berg, Unmasking. 5 stars. This reads like a full length novel, and I give the author a lot of credit for accomplishing that. I loved the characters, the world, the plot!!! This was my favorite story. I love the burgeoning relationship and the slow and steady development it is given. I did think we were told more than we needed about the jobs of the different magic users, but as my online book made a mistake and shifted chapter one to the end, I skipped all that initially! Maybe the author should just cut it in the next edition.
Rebecca York, Huntress Moon. 1.5 stars. This story brings down the high standards set by the other three stories and is the reason for my low rating of this collection. It's an erotic fantasy story. Not my thing anyway, but you have 'mystic connections' instead of relationships, slave markets selling slaves who have magic that could burn people to a crisp (so why are they slaves?!), powerless and weepy female lead (until she finds her power just in the nick of time to save her lover, who was the first person to 'awaken' her. Also, she's a sex slave, come on, you are not a teenaged boy, author), and the werewolf in the castle seems like an afterthought, rather than the main driver of the shaky, shaky plot. I was not impressed, to say the least.
I will be looking up books by the first three authors, this was a great way to be introduced to their writing!
Sharon Shinn, Bargain With the Wind. 3.5 stars, a well-written, haunting short story. It has definite overtones of a classic fairy tale, Cinderella or Beauty and the Beast, while being distinctly original. This is what a fantasy novella should be, with a world instantly familiar, but still distinctly it's own, with a compelling, but not overly complex, cast and a solid plot. I rated it lower because I wasn't super attached to the characters and it felt a little impersonal, like an Andrew Lang story or something.
Jean Johnson, Birthright. 4 stars, only because I enjoyed it much more for my own preference. It's fairly light hearted and doesn't take itself too seriously, while having fun with the novella format. It hangs together well and was a great plot, and I enjoyed the main character very much. It made me want to read more about these characters and their world, I'll definitely be looking this author up as a result of this short story.
Carol Berg, Unmasking. 5 stars. This reads like a full length novel, and I give the author a lot of credit for accomplishing that. I loved the characters, the world, the plot!!! This was my favorite story. I love the burgeoning relationship and the slow and steady development it is given. I did think we were told more than we needed about the jobs of the different magic users, but as my online book made a mistake and shifted chapter one to the end, I skipped all that initially! Maybe the author should just cut it in the next edition.
Rebecca York, Huntress Moon. 1.5 stars. This story brings down the high standards set by the other three stories and is the reason for my low rating of this collection. It's an erotic fantasy story. Not my thing anyway, but you have 'mystic connections' instead of relationships, slave markets selling slaves who have magic that could burn people to a crisp (so why are they slaves?!), powerless and weepy female lead (until she finds her power just in the nick of time to save her lover, who was the first person to 'awaken' her. Also, she's a sex slave, come on, you are not a teenaged boy, author), and the werewolf in the castle seems like an afterthought, rather than the main driver of the shaky, shaky plot. I was not impressed, to say the least.
I will be looking up books by the first three authors, this was a great way to be introduced to their writing!
September 9, 2019
Hmmm. I usually love Sharon Shinn’s writing, but didn’t read all of her story. The fact that the first sentence tells you you get to be witness to the main character’s destruction was a huge dampener for me. I read on a while to see where it was headed, and then skipped and skimmed my way through to the end. It’s probably not as overall depressing as I’d thought it might be, and I do think it’s a clever take on Cinderella. But I don’t know that I feel pulled to go back and read the rest of it.
Next I skipped to the end and deliberately skimmed through the Rebecca York tale because going in I didn’t think I’d be too interested in a sex slave story, which also seemed not to fit in with an anthology that was more fantasy than it was erotica in a fantasy setting. And that’s how York’s tale struck me...as though she wrapped a bit of plot around some sexual fantasies she thought she’d enjoy writing, or others would enjoy reading.
Then I read Jean Johnson’s tale which I largely enjoyed, though it also had a completely unnecessary-to-the-story overIy descriptive sex scene, and a day later I had to look back at the story to remember what it was about. However, I liked the premise of the story itself. I don’t mind reading sex. Sometimes I actively look for it. But that wasn’t my sense of what this anthology was supposed to be, and this story was primarily about other things so that the overly descriptive sex scene felt out of place.
Finally I read Carol Berg’s story, which was the best of the four for me. It’s possible I would have liked Shinn’s writing or character or world building better if I’d read all of her story, but since she lost me at the first sentence, I guess that leaves Berg the undisputed winner in my review. I liked her tale well enough to look her up and found her trilogy set in the same world, and think this tale is a prequel. The trilogy features other characters who don’t exist in this story. So I’m not sure if I’ll follow up on reading it or not. I got fairly attached to these characters. I was a little confused at the end about something, and wanted to know more about what would happen next.
Next I skipped to the end and deliberately skimmed through the Rebecca York tale because going in I didn’t think I’d be too interested in a sex slave story, which also seemed not to fit in with an anthology that was more fantasy than it was erotica in a fantasy setting. And that’s how York’s tale struck me...as though she wrapped a bit of plot around some sexual fantasies she thought she’d enjoy writing, or others would enjoy reading.
Then I read Jean Johnson’s tale which I largely enjoyed, though it also had a completely unnecessary-to-the-story overIy descriptive sex scene, and a day later I had to look back at the story to remember what it was about. However, I liked the premise of the story itself. I don’t mind reading sex. Sometimes I actively look for it. But that wasn’t my sense of what this anthology was supposed to be, and this story was primarily about other things so that the overly descriptive sex scene felt out of place.
Finally I read Carol Berg’s story, which was the best of the four for me. It’s possible I would have liked Shinn’s writing or character or world building better if I’d read all of her story, but since she lost me at the first sentence, I guess that leaves Berg the undisputed winner in my review. I liked her tale well enough to look her up and found her trilogy set in the same world, and think this tale is a prequel. The trilogy features other characters who don’t exist in this story. So I’m not sure if I’ll follow up on reading it or not. I got fairly attached to these characters. I was a little confused at the end about something, and wanted to know more about what would happen next.
January 26, 2021
This book wasn't at all what I was expecting. I thought there would be some kind of introduction defining and describing elemental magic (there was no introduction). It was divided into four stories. The first story was a very well-written tale by Sharon Shinn, with a sort of Regency/Victorian England feel to it, reminding me a little of Wuthering Heights in that it was narrated by the housekeeper and described the romance of the master of the house. While there was no elemental magic (which I would define as people magically using the elements), it did at least mention different elemental spirits (wind and earth being the primary ones), which both featured in the story. It was enjoyable.
The next story was Birthright by Jean Johnson. I read all of this but it wasn't really to my taste. It was more like a genre romance but with a fantasy setting, desert-style. I didn't think the magic described was really elemental. It was more ruler-possesses-magic-to-control-the-land.
Unfortunately, in the ebook I was reading from the library the first chapter was missing from the third story, Unmasking, by Carol Berg, and I ended up skipping this story as I couldn't really make sense of it.
I really didn't like the fourth story, Hunter's Moon, by Rebecca York. It appeared to be a postapocalyptic dystopia set in the far future and again had a desert-style setting. Too much slavery and rape for my taste so I only read the first ten pages or so and didn't encounter any elemental magic in that part, only some references to telepathy and precognition.
The next story was Birthright by Jean Johnson. I read all of this but it wasn't really to my taste. It was more like a genre romance but with a fantasy setting, desert-style. I didn't think the magic described was really elemental. It was more ruler-possesses-magic-to-control-the-land.
Unfortunately, in the ebook I was reading from the library the first chapter was missing from the third story, Unmasking, by Carol Berg, and I ended up skipping this story as I couldn't really make sense of it.
I really didn't like the fourth story, Hunter's Moon, by Rebecca York. It appeared to be a postapocalyptic dystopia set in the far future and again had a desert-style setting. Too much slavery and rape for my taste so I only read the first ten pages or so and didn't encounter any elemental magic in that part, only some references to telepathy and precognition.
April 11, 2021
I feel bad for saying it, but one of these stories was not really of the caliber of the others, and unfortunately the disappointing one was last, so I had been enjoying it in a "it's not perfect, but it's enjoyable enough" way, and then the last one hit and I felt like it was a whole pile of tell, not show, and I finished on a disappointed note. (Last story felt like one of those "ah, this has happened because you wrote it that way because that was your agenda" and not because it seemed to flow at all.) From the notes on the book, sounds like it might be her first published work, so I mean, fair enough, I suppose, and maybe her later works are better.
July 15, 2020
Of the four novellas in here, I liked Carol Berg's the best both for the quality of the prose and the worldbuilding. Her command of details was good, and the romance itself wasn't forced or clunky.
May 3, 2021
I really enjoyed reading the short stories in this book. The unique presentation of each author taking one element and telling a story including that element was a refreshing change. I think the first story about air caught me up the most.
July 9, 2023
Five stars for Shinn - a well developed, stand alone story. 4 stars for Berg and Johnson. Three stars for York. I assume there is more about this world. The story didn’t stand up very well on its own.
July 3, 2013
This book is an anthology containing four stories from various authors. I picked this book up on a whim at the library because I've read a couple of books from Sharon Shinn and she has pretty good stories. I didn't recognize the other authors, but it looked like an easy read, so why not?
The first story by Sharon Shinn is called Bargain with the Wind. It's a play on the classic Cinderella story with a twist. I thought it was rather charming the way the characters developed. I loved the narrator, that sort of maid in the background point of view. The elemental magic could have used a little more development, but for a short story, I think it was good. 3 stars. Sharon Shinn is a consistently good writer for fantasy and magic while building a world and community for this magic. She's probably not the best writer for innovation, but a lovely writer for what she does.
The other three really aren't that worth reading. Birthright by Jean Johnson was crap. I would have dropped that story in the first twenty pages if I didn't know it was a short and easy read. Arasa is going on a pilgrimage to see if she is the firstborn and the true heir. Elrik is a wandering mage that happens to join her party along the way. Plot twist: she's the princess. Oh, they fall in love. And look, there are enemies. Whoop-de-doo. Nothing new at all. But even beyond a cliche story-line, the writing is just not good at all. The dialogue is unwieldy and fake. Nobody talks like that. The romance is completely unbelievable - especially the way the two main characters go about telling the other person about their mutual attraction to each other (dialogue problems, see?). The entire plot seems very contrived and pretty much worthless. Honestly, motivations behind every action is unrealistic. And the main character's pilgrimage is a major event for the country - so why aren't other people researching what to do?
1 star. I probably won't read anything by this author unless a friend seriously recommends something to me emphatically. This is the worst one of the four.
The third story is Unmasking by Carol Berg. I also haven't heard of this author, but that's okay. Joelle is a Searcher - a partner that uses magic to protect the world against demons that corrupt people. Well, actually she's just a student right now trying to be a Searcher. But when Joelle stumbles across a suspicious man in the sanctified waters, she is unknowingly drawn into a battle bigger than she could imagine. For her to succeed, she'll have to work with this man to trick a spy from their enemies.
I thought it was okay. I think it was a disservice that it was only a short story because it had potential. But because of the word count limitation, I don't think the reader can fully understand the magnitude of their task - which makes a lot of their actions kind of pointless. I thought the magic system also wasn't developed as well as it should have been. But hey, I get it - it's a short story. But it does have some major plot holes and the conclusion was weak. The premise for task isn't really sound and the reason for why she keeps failing isn't resolved, even though it seems to be at the end. But Berg never explain exactly what changed. It doesn't make sense. But it wasn't bad. 2 stars because it was okay. I might pick something up from this author if I came across it.
The last story is Huntress moon by Rebecca York. Zarah is the daughter of a supposedly traitorous noble. She is sold into slavery. As a spy. But when she gets into contact with Griffin, her target, she falls in love. What's a girl to do?
Ugh, it's not a bad book. But it's just really gives off a tween romance. Well.... with the amount of explicit love-making... maybe not tween. But it still feels juvenile even despite those scenes. I felt like those scenes were also a bit of fan-service rather than helpful to the story. Rather, it felt a little trashy. Especially since the main characters call their emotions love after all of that forced (or what they call seduced) love-making. Please.
Griffin's secret and the resolution was basically a subplot to their romance, which is ridiculous since it touts itself as an adventure. Ha. The ending was bland and the romance worth an eye-roll. But I still read it, so ugh, it's not a bad book. I don't really have problems with York's writing, but I do have problems also with her world. She makes it a parallel universe to Earth, but with magic. However, the slang and speech patters seem way too similar to modern day times. It feels wrong because the story seems to be set in a much older time period with nobles and kings. And yet... we have slang. That's a problem.
2 stars because it was okay. Maybe 1.5 stars. I probably wouldn't pick up this author's books unless recommended. Or it had an extremely gorgeous cover haha.
Overall rating for the book: 2 stars. One story worth reading, the other three mediocre or bad.
Recommended for those who need a quick read of magic and fantasy. And aren't too picky about the quality of writing. Soooo... not really that recommended, to be honest.
The first story by Sharon Shinn is called Bargain with the Wind. It's a play on the classic Cinderella story with a twist. I thought it was rather charming the way the characters developed. I loved the narrator, that sort of maid in the background point of view. The elemental magic could have used a little more development, but for a short story, I think it was good. 3 stars. Sharon Shinn is a consistently good writer for fantasy and magic while building a world and community for this magic. She's probably not the best writer for innovation, but a lovely writer for what she does.
The other three really aren't that worth reading. Birthright by Jean Johnson was crap. I would have dropped that story in the first twenty pages if I didn't know it was a short and easy read. Arasa is going on a pilgrimage to see if she is the firstborn and the true heir. Elrik is a wandering mage that happens to join her party along the way. Plot twist: she's the princess. Oh, they fall in love. And look, there are enemies. Whoop-de-doo. Nothing new at all. But even beyond a cliche story-line, the writing is just not good at all. The dialogue is unwieldy and fake. Nobody talks like that. The romance is completely unbelievable - especially the way the two main characters go about telling the other person about their mutual attraction to each other (dialogue problems, see?). The entire plot seems very contrived and pretty much worthless. Honestly, motivations behind every action is unrealistic. And the main character's pilgrimage is a major event for the country - so why aren't other people researching what to do?
1 star. I probably won't read anything by this author unless a friend seriously recommends something to me emphatically. This is the worst one of the four.
The third story is Unmasking by Carol Berg. I also haven't heard of this author, but that's okay. Joelle is a Searcher - a partner that uses magic to protect the world against demons that corrupt people. Well, actually she's just a student right now trying to be a Searcher. But when Joelle stumbles across a suspicious man in the sanctified waters, she is unknowingly drawn into a battle bigger than she could imagine. For her to succeed, she'll have to work with this man to trick a spy from their enemies.
I thought it was okay. I think it was a disservice that it was only a short story because it had potential. But because of the word count limitation, I don't think the reader can fully understand the magnitude of their task - which makes a lot of their actions kind of pointless. I thought the magic system also wasn't developed as well as it should have been. But hey, I get it - it's a short story. But it does have some major plot holes and the conclusion was weak. The premise for task isn't really sound and the reason for why she keeps failing isn't resolved, even though it seems to be at the end. But Berg never explain exactly what changed. It doesn't make sense. But it wasn't bad. 2 stars because it was okay. I might pick something up from this author if I came across it.
The last story is Huntress moon by Rebecca York. Zarah is the daughter of a supposedly traitorous noble. She is sold into slavery. As a spy. But when she gets into contact with Griffin, her target, she falls in love. What's a girl to do?
Ugh, it's not a bad book. But it's just really gives off a tween romance. Well.... with the amount of explicit love-making... maybe not tween. But it still feels juvenile even despite those scenes. I felt like those scenes were also a bit of fan-service rather than helpful to the story. Rather, it felt a little trashy. Especially since the main characters call their emotions love after all of that forced (or what they call seduced) love-making. Please.
Griffin's secret and the resolution was basically a subplot to their romance, which is ridiculous since it touts itself as an adventure. Ha. The ending was bland and the romance worth an eye-roll. But I still read it, so ugh, it's not a bad book. I don't really have problems with York's writing, but I do have problems also with her world. She makes it a parallel universe to Earth, but with magic. However, the slang and speech patters seem way too similar to modern day times. It feels wrong because the story seems to be set in a much older time period with nobles and kings. And yet... we have slang. That's a problem.
2 stars because it was okay. Maybe 1.5 stars. I probably wouldn't pick up this author's books unless recommended. Or it had an extremely gorgeous cover haha.
Overall rating for the book: 2 stars. One story worth reading, the other three mediocre or bad.
Recommended for those who need a quick read of magic and fantasy. And aren't too picky about the quality of writing. Soooo... not really that recommended, to be honest.
April 27, 2018
It was a good waiting in line book. I wasn't a fan of the book as a whole, but it was good bubble gum for the brain.
October 10, 2019
Review is for the Sharon Shinn story "Bargain With the Wind" only.
August 15, 2020
Got this for the Sharon Shinn story and thoroughly enjoyed it.
December 16, 2020
Read only the Shinn story.
January 16, 2023
Four short stories and I read three. The second just failed to hold my interest.
The other three barely. Not recommended unless you are curious!
The other three barely. Not recommended unless you are curious!
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