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Half Gate
Short story collection from world of The Gate Trilogy.
When Aqitaka is swept up into the Wild Hunt, he is lost to its irresistible sway. Seduced by its shadowy power, he rides the worlds, an instrument of the Lord of the Hunt. That is, until he locks eyes with Ellaria, her very essence reviving his humanity. When Aqitaka’s planet calls him home, will he choose to answer its demand or remain with Ellaria?
--
One moment Azura is painting, and the next she is caught in a waking nightmare. Everyone has become statues—everyone, that is, except her. Inexplicitly drawn to the Rainbow Palace, when Azura arrives, she discovers her destiny. There, Prince Jerard finds himself trapped in a frozen world with a commoner he shouldn't be drawn to. As he fights against tradition and the law, his only hope is that she is Oran's first Gate Guardian. The only question is, will her new role be enough?
--
Elisabeth has always been caught between two worlds, trying to balance her love of mortals and how dangerous she is to them. When she stumbles upon a cursed book, secrets are revealed. All of her skills as a Fringe Scientist will be put to the test when the book inadvertently leads her to a trapped spirit. Will Elisabeth prove her theorems to be true, or will all her hard work be for naught?
This can be read before or after The Gate Trilogy—so get reading today!
When Aqitaka is swept up into the Wild Hunt, he is lost to its irresistible sway. Seduced by its shadowy power, he rides the worlds, an instrument of the Lord of the Hunt. That is, until he locks eyes with Ellaria, her very essence reviving his humanity. When Aqitaka’s planet calls him home, will he choose to answer its demand or remain with Ellaria?
--
One moment Azura is painting, and the next she is caught in a waking nightmare. Everyone has become statues—everyone, that is, except her. Inexplicitly drawn to the Rainbow Palace, when Azura arrives, she discovers her destiny. There, Prince Jerard finds himself trapped in a frozen world with a commoner he shouldn't be drawn to. As he fights against tradition and the law, his only hope is that she is Oran's first Gate Guardian. The only question is, will her new role be enough?
--
Elisabeth has always been caught between two worlds, trying to balance her love of mortals and how dangerous she is to them. When she stumbles upon a cursed book, secrets are revealed. All of her skills as a Fringe Scientist will be put to the test when the book inadvertently leads her to a trapped spirit. Will Elisabeth prove her theorems to be true, or will all her hard work be for naught?
This can be read before or after The Gate Trilogy—so get reading today!
- GenresFantasy
179 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 3, 2022
3 people want to read
About the author
K.T. Munson
23 books207 followersK.T. Munson is an independent author. First published at 5 years old in the young writers conference, she has pursued writing ever since. She maintains a blog creatingworldswithwords.wordpress.com that is about writing and her novels. She was born and raised in the last frontier, the great state of Alaska.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
January 14, 2023
This is a collection of three stories that are connected with the The Gate Trilogy by the same author. The stories feature different characters and take place at different points in time, but reference the same fantasy universe. I was completely enthralled by the world-building in these stories. I just wish more of it was explained in the stories. What is the Wild Hunt and what do they do with people they capture? Who stands opposed to it and why? What do the Gate Guardians do and what motivates them? How are the planet worlds connected? I had so many questions, which are probably answered in detail in the trilogy, but in this collection the reader was left guessing for most of the time. My favourite story was the last one, mainly because I'm not a fan of the 'love at first sight' trope used in the first two and because I found the character Elizabeth (a Soul Collector) much more interesting and complex. I'm putting the trilogy on my to-read list.
January 17, 2023
When I first read one of the Gate Trilogy novels in 2017, I was completely absorbed by the story because of the author’s fascinating creation of the characters in a ‘Nethergate’ kind of world. The ideas behind it involve demons and trapped spirits, amongst many other-worldly concepts. Half Gate is a short work of three short stories, which illustrates further the various kinds of problems its characters may meet.
In the first short story we meet Aqitaka and Ellaria who seem destined to become lovers. But Aqitaka is from another world. Can he stay? In the next story Azura, a commoner, is suddenly caught in a frozen world, Oran, and discovers a prince in the same situation. His father is determined to prevent the two marrying but Azura has become their world’s Gate Guardian, a powerful influence. Story three is about a student of fringe worlds. She is called Elisabeth, and she discovers a secret and dangerous book. There is a strong likelihood that the spirit trapped within it will ruin her work, maybe cause havoc in their world. Can she create a suitable device to render it friendly or harmless?
Despite the assertions that Half Gate can be read as a standalone book, I disagree. I had some idea about what was going on in this book of three stories but still struggled to understand the overall plot(s). The worlds that Munson creates here are varied and intriguing but I felt all the way through that each story could have been developed much more into a novel of its own. The pace of each is fast and furious but their worlds would benefit greatly for being in much greater depth, with its own twists and turns in my opinion. Somehow, I wanted the main characters to figure more significantly, weaving in and out of new situations developed by this skilled and imaginative author. Her world-building is so fascinating it seemed to me to be a waste to keep them so short.
Unfortunately, once again I find my overall rating reduced through the need for further careful editing in this book. For example when it said ‘palatable’ did it really want to say ‘palpable?’ There were too many punctuation and grammatical errors, with too many US idioms and words throughout the narrative that made it difficult for this UK reader to fully understand what was being explained. I am a firm believer that the patois and dialect for a region should be kept within the written dialogue of a novel. The conversations were real and well done but exposition was not always clear to me. Words in the story like: dove; snuck; sunk; snagged; scooted; and barreled mean something quite different in a UK dictionary.
In the first short story we meet Aqitaka and Ellaria who seem destined to become lovers. But Aqitaka is from another world. Can he stay? In the next story Azura, a commoner, is suddenly caught in a frozen world, Oran, and discovers a prince in the same situation. His father is determined to prevent the two marrying but Azura has become their world’s Gate Guardian, a powerful influence. Story three is about a student of fringe worlds. She is called Elisabeth, and she discovers a secret and dangerous book. There is a strong likelihood that the spirit trapped within it will ruin her work, maybe cause havoc in their world. Can she create a suitable device to render it friendly or harmless?
Despite the assertions that Half Gate can be read as a standalone book, I disagree. I had some idea about what was going on in this book of three stories but still struggled to understand the overall plot(s). The worlds that Munson creates here are varied and intriguing but I felt all the way through that each story could have been developed much more into a novel of its own. The pace of each is fast and furious but their worlds would benefit greatly for being in much greater depth, with its own twists and turns in my opinion. Somehow, I wanted the main characters to figure more significantly, weaving in and out of new situations developed by this skilled and imaginative author. Her world-building is so fascinating it seemed to me to be a waste to keep them so short.
Unfortunately, once again I find my overall rating reduced through the need for further careful editing in this book. For example when it said ‘palatable’ did it really want to say ‘palpable?’ There were too many punctuation and grammatical errors, with too many US idioms and words throughout the narrative that made it difficult for this UK reader to fully understand what was being explained. I am a firm believer that the patois and dialect for a region should be kept within the written dialogue of a novel. The conversations were real and well done but exposition was not always clear to me. Words in the story like: dove; snuck; sunk; snagged; scooted; and barreled mean something quite different in a UK dictionary.
July 2, 2023
Enjoyable short stories
Half Gate is a collection of three distinct short stories, that I understand are connected to The Gate Trilogy by the same author.
The first, The Truest Gate, is a tale of insta-love between Ellaria and Aquitaka. It’s a little cheesy / fairy tale like, but quite sweet. There is an impressive amount of worldbuilding for such a short book; this was the only story I felt I would’ve enjoyed more had I read the Trilogy beforehand. Although an enjoyable read, I did find the age gap a little disturbing (and unnecessary), I don’t understand why Ellaria couldn’t have just been sixteen.
The second, The First Butterfly Princess, is another insta-love this time between Azura and Prince Jerard. I found this story more enjoyable as it has a forbidden love trope and has a little more mystery.
The third story, A Ghostly Gate, is very different. It follows Dr Elisabeth Avery who is a Fringe Scientist dealing with spirits. There are elements that are probably delved into more in the Gate Trilogy (Demons, other worlds) but it all seemed to make sense. Elisabeth is a strong female lead and the story works well.
Overall, an enjoyable read, particularly for those who have already read The Gate Trilogy and for fans of Romance.
Half Gate is a collection of three distinct short stories, that I understand are connected to The Gate Trilogy by the same author.
The first, The Truest Gate, is a tale of insta-love between Ellaria and Aquitaka. It’s a little cheesy / fairy tale like, but quite sweet. There is an impressive amount of worldbuilding for such a short book; this was the only story I felt I would’ve enjoyed more had I read the Trilogy beforehand. Although an enjoyable read, I did find the age gap a little disturbing (and unnecessary), I don’t understand why Ellaria couldn’t have just been sixteen.
The second, The First Butterfly Princess, is another insta-love this time between Azura and Prince Jerard. I found this story more enjoyable as it has a forbidden love trope and has a little more mystery.
The third story, A Ghostly Gate, is very different. It follows Dr Elisabeth Avery who is a Fringe Scientist dealing with spirits. There are elements that are probably delved into more in the Gate Trilogy (Demons, other worlds) but it all seemed to make sense. Elisabeth is a strong female lead and the story works well.
Overall, an enjoyable read, particularly for those who have already read The Gate Trilogy and for fans of Romance.
December 27, 2022
Very well written and enjoyable
I truly enjoyed reading this book, I haven't read the other previous books from this series, but as the author mentions it is possible to jump right into this as a standalone story. I agree completely. It was very interesting, fast paced and the love between the two protagonists was sweetly written, believable even. A love so strong it makes up the entire universe of the two lovers. And that's a difficult thing to achieve as a story teller. The world building and interesting characters throughout the book, was a delight to get to know. Specially Azura, what a great character, living, caring, bold and intriguing. Elisabeth was a joy aswell. It's a good balance between showing and telling we hen necessary, and it is noticeably that it's gone through a great amount of good editing work, thank you! I will definitely read the previous books by K.T Munson. Glad I found myself a new author to follow! Great job!
I truly enjoyed reading this book, I haven't read the other previous books from this series, but as the author mentions it is possible to jump right into this as a standalone story. I agree completely. It was very interesting, fast paced and the love between the two protagonists was sweetly written, believable even. A love so strong it makes up the entire universe of the two lovers. And that's a difficult thing to achieve as a story teller. The world building and interesting characters throughout the book, was a delight to get to know. Specially Azura, what a great character, living, caring, bold and intriguing. Elisabeth was a joy aswell. It's a good balance between showing and telling we hen necessary, and it is noticeably that it's gone through a great amount of good editing work, thank you! I will definitely read the previous books by K.T Munson. Glad I found myself a new author to follow! Great job!
February 22, 2023
I weighed whether this book of three collected short stories should be given 4 or 5 stars. I enjoyed the characters, which is really important, but did not always understand why they were doing what they were doing, or what the consequences might be for success or failure. But the connection and concern between characters was always palpable, and that carries the reader through. The biggest drawback for me is that the author does not give us much reason to care for the lead characters right up front. Heroes are thrown into danger without my understanding why I should care. I would like to see the author give us reason to root for these people, make them selfless and kind, in the first couple paragraphs of each story. However, let me assure the reader that we do get there. These are people to cheer for. We do end up rooting strongly for these characters. And the world is fun, the Gate Guardians are impressive, and the stories engaging. So, five stars.
January 23, 2023
Apparently, this is a set of tales that takes place in Munson's larger series. However, it can pretty much be read as a stand-alone book on its own, though I did wonder if I missed anything from not reading the series prior to this one. Overall, though, I was able to understand the world that the author has been crafting, and this was a pretty good read. The romance depictions are especially good, and the idea of 5 worlds plus another that can be traveled is intriguing. The idea of half-breeds being pursued is also interesting, and the search for secret books and trapped souls will draw in many readers to a well-built realm. It didn't answer all of my questions, but maybe I will have to read the rest of the series for more detail. Worth a look!
February 8, 2023
This is a collection of three short stories set on multiple worlds that are looked after by Gate Guardians. From a woman who rescues a strange handsome man who could possible be one of these immortal gate guardians but may choose to leave that all behind for the love of the woman who rescued him. Then there is the normal commoner girl who may be destined for something greater than even becoming a princess. And lastly the Fringe Scientist investigating spirits worries she may have released a demon for the Netherworld. All three stories are imaginative and I enjoyed the world building and the descriptive story telling.
May 26, 2023
Strong prose leaning purple
This was three short stories without a connection beyond a shared universe. All had strong prose that will likely delight many. If you hate purple prose, like I do, know it isn't to that extent. This is probably a perfect compromise between literary and commercial writing.
The books were advertised as fantasy, but the first two were unapologetically romance stories. Insta-love at its worse. The world building was still great, but the short length left little room for a B story. I didn't enjoy either story, rating them two and three stars.
The final entry was a masterpiece. I was drive to Elizabeth more than any other character. Her story was the only one that made me want to know what happens next. It was a firm five-star tale. Apple Juice indeed.
This was three short stories without a connection beyond a shared universe. All had strong prose that will likely delight many. If you hate purple prose, like I do, know it isn't to that extent. This is probably a perfect compromise between literary and commercial writing.
The books were advertised as fantasy, but the first two were unapologetically romance stories. Insta-love at its worse. The world building was still great, but the short length left little room for a B story. I didn't enjoy either story, rating them two and three stars.
The final entry was a masterpiece. I was drive to Elizabeth more than any other character. Her story was the only one that made me want to know what happens next. It was a firm five-star tale. Apple Juice indeed.
January 16, 2023
This is the first time I am reading this author and I was pleased. Good story with good narration. Enjoyed the characters involved and the overall plot. Hoping for more!
May 21, 2023
well written shorts
The first book in this collection of shorts was a pleasant read. It was fast paced and I enjoyed the story. I think if it had been fleshed out, it would have made an excellent novel in itself because there was a lot of story to dig into, but so much was left untold.
I loved the 2nd story! It goes over well-worn tropes of forbidden love, but it was a pleasure to read and I found the story to be captivating.
And the third was just as enjoyable as the others, though very different to the first two.
Based on these short stories, I wouldn’t hesitate to read the main series, or other works by this author.
The first book in this collection of shorts was a pleasant read. It was fast paced and I enjoyed the story. I think if it had been fleshed out, it would have made an excellent novel in itself because there was a lot of story to dig into, but so much was left untold.
I loved the 2nd story! It goes over well-worn tropes of forbidden love, but it was a pleasure to read and I found the story to be captivating.
And the third was just as enjoyable as the others, though very different to the first two.
Based on these short stories, I wouldn’t hesitate to read the main series, or other works by this author.
July 5, 2023
Plot-driven short stories with cinematic flair.
This collection of three short stories shares a style of writing with one of my favorite indie authors, Christy Nicholas (author of Irish historical fantasy.) Specifically, the writing 'shows' nicely what is going on as though the story is playing out like a movie. Fans of "showy" fantasy will gobble up these quick-reads, and be introduced to the Gate universe at the same time, happy in the knowledge that they have full-length novels to dive into should they choose.
Like other reviewers, I'll say there's a stylistic distinction between 1&2 (which have strong romantic overtones) and 3 (which is more quest-driven). I liked all the stories equally, and was happy to have things mixed up like this. I did think #3 was a little more developed, the characters showing a little more dimensionality, and if I had any critical thoughts at all about these stories it would be that a little more character development would not go amiss.
But five stars. Good writing, good editing, nice set of tales that leads into the Gate novels. Bravo!
This collection of three short stories shares a style of writing with one of my favorite indie authors, Christy Nicholas (author of Irish historical fantasy.) Specifically, the writing 'shows' nicely what is going on as though the story is playing out like a movie. Fans of "showy" fantasy will gobble up these quick-reads, and be introduced to the Gate universe at the same time, happy in the knowledge that they have full-length novels to dive into should they choose.
Like other reviewers, I'll say there's a stylistic distinction between 1&2 (which have strong romantic overtones) and 3 (which is more quest-driven). I liked all the stories equally, and was happy to have things mixed up like this. I did think #3 was a little more developed, the characters showing a little more dimensionality, and if I had any critical thoughts at all about these stories it would be that a little more character development would not go amiss.
But five stars. Good writing, good editing, nice set of tales that leads into the Gate novels. Bravo!
August 17, 2023
This is a collection of three short stories set on multiple worlds that are looked after by Gate Guardians. From a woman who rescues a strange handsome man who could possible be one of these immortal gate guardians but may choose to leave that all behind for the love of the woman who rescued him. Then there is the normal commoner girl who may be destined for something greater than even becoming a princess. And lastly the Fringe Scientist investigating spirits worries she may have released a demon for the Netherworld. All three stories are imaginative and I enjoyed the world building and the descriptive story telling.
July 13, 2023
The three stories included in this book have all the characteristics of this author: mystery, adventure, suspense, romance, and fast pace. All this is placed in worlds created with a lot of fertile imagination, which is a characteristic feature of this author, as I have also read other works of hers. The plot raises some questions along the way, which are satisfactorily explained at the end. These three stories are sure to please readers who enjoy this genre.
January 26, 2023
I really liked the concept of these stories and enjoyed learning about the worlds that the author has created. I was absorbed with trying to work everything out in my own head and in some part this may have taken a little away from the real thread, but it was enjoyable all the same.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews