Status Updates From Sword and Sorceress XVII

The Tears Of The Moon by Cynthia Ward - a bittersweet story of love, loss and destiny. A lovely conclusion to this volume.

Lady of Flame by Diana L. Paxson - I'm a sucker for a good, evocative historical tale of magic, and this one delivers. A Norse healer comes up against the mystery of her Irish counterpart.

Soul Dance by Lisa Silverthorne - the story of a woman who has fallen to slave due to dishonor in war, this tale features a fascinating concept, of a dancer whose magic can find the black soul which causes disharmony. Unfortunately, the rules of this magic aren't defined well enough to justify the ending.

Valkyrie by Jenn Reese - a very tight, well-illustrated piece of flash fiction with a feisty older heroine.

Memories Traced In Snow - a quiet, thoughtfully written story building to revelation. I think it could have been much shorter and still had the same impact. Moreover, there was an unnecessary incest element that I found distracting.

Shadow Soul by Laura J. Underwood - a fun, solid story about a mage who goes to rescue an unfortunate bride's shadow soul from a demon.

The Haunting Of Princess Elizabeth by Carrie Vaughn - I'm a sucker for this era of history, and how I wanted to enjoy this story, a tale of Elizabeth I before she became queen, attended and protected by the ghost of her mother ... and the historical details were lovely, but this felt like a summary, with vignettes from a longer work.

Nor Iron Bars A Cage by Deborah Wheeler - an intense story that feels (in the most satisfying way) like the first step in the saga, and features an intriguing concept of miniature demons dwelling in iron and the mind. My only quibble is that the conclusion is a trifle under-explained (and doesn't need to be). I had to go back and reread to get it.

Demon Calling by Elizabeth Gilligan - the story of a young girl who is rescued by an irascible sorceress, this one doesn't ever seem fully realized.

Price of the Sword by Kim Fryer - a short, simply executed story about a witch-woman who is called upon to aid a warrior with a cursed sword ... a gut-punch of an ending. Very well done.

An Exchange of Favors by Dorothy J. Heydt - a cute if disjointed little tale of a seer who takes on a task from Mercury. It's an entertaining episode, though not really a full story.

Hell Hath No Fury ... by Lee Martindale - a cute, clever tale of bardic taletelling gone awry. I enjoyed it, but it was a trifle too overplayed; a little more subtlety would have stood the story in good stead.

Weapons at War by Charles Richard Laing - a concept rife for amusement (a woman's weapons and armor can talk back to her) and a delightful story that is mainly marred by the fact it's too short. I could have cheerfully followed the poor, beleaguered narrator for a longer tale rather than a piece of flash fiction.

Deep as Rivers by Cynthia McQuillin - this is a really interesting tale told partially from the perspective of a slow-thinking troll as she tries to save a rather vapid elf. I loved most of this story, but it seemed like the author suddenly ran up against a word count and had to shove the ending in. Needed 3-4 more pages to feel complete.

Caelqua's Spring by Vera Nazarian - I ... uh ... what? This story is about ... no, wait ... err ... it's a very artistic, mythical tale that, to my mind, tries too hard and ends up saying nothing.