Review:Seasons of Sorcery

I may have mentioned, once or twice, okay so all the time, of my love for short stories, and my adoration for anthologies.  When I read about the Seasons of Sorcery anthology, I squeed a bit, mostly because it has stories set in two of my favorite worlds by two of my favorite authors Jeffe Kennedy and Grace Draven. As a bonus, I was treated to stories by two new to me authors.

I devoured the collection, staying up past my bedtime again, enthralled by this excellent collection of stories.  This anthology is a fantastic twist on the typical seasonal collection of short stories. And mind you, I have nothing against that sort of thing, but this collection of stories fits together like a well-made pair of chain-mail gloves.

I particularly loved Grace’s story that puts a new hella sexy twist on merfolk, and if you are a fan of Jeffe’s Twelve Kingdom’s series you know that any story featuring Harlan and Ursula is going to be filled with witty dialog, and aching sexual tension. I had not read Amanda Bouchet or Jennifer Estep before this, but after reading their stories, I am ready to dive into their fantasy worlds as well.

Every story in the collection works as a stand-alone, with well-paced plots and solid story arcs. If you are looking for a  seasonal read that is out of the ordinary (in a good way), then Seasons of Sorcery is the book for you. It is out now an all the usual e-book retailers

Seasons of Sorcery

An anthology of fantasy novellas for all seasons from the hottest authors of fantasy romance and urban fantasy.

Amanda Bouchet

Grace Draven

Jeffe Kennedy

Jennifer Estep

WINTER’S WEB BY JENNIFER ESTEP

An assassin at a renaissance faire. What could possibly go wrong? Everything, if you’re Gin Blanco. This Spider is trapped in someone else’s icy web—and it seems like they don’t want her to leave the faire alive . . .

A CURSE FOR SPRING BY AMANDA BOUCHET

A malevolent spell strangles the kingdom of Leathen in catastrophic drought. Prince Daric must break the curse before his people starve. A once-mighty goddess trapped in a human body might be the key—but saving his kingdom could mean losing all that he loves.

THE DRAGONS OF SUMMER BY JEFFE KENNEDY

As unofficial consort to the High Queen, former mercenary Harlan Konyngrr faces a challenge worse than looming war and fearsome dragons. His long-held secrets threaten what he loves most—and he must make a choice between vows to two women.

A WILDERNESS OF GLASS BY GRACE DRAVEN

The stretch of sea known as The Gray rules the lives of those in the village of Ancilar, including widow Brida Gazi. In the aftermath of an autumn storm, Brida discovers one of the sea’s secrets cast onto the shore—a discovery that will change her world, mend her soul, and put her in the greatest danger she’s ever faced.

Review: The Arrows of the Heart

This novel is another installment in The Uncharted Realms series by Jeffe Kennedy. I have reviewed other books in this series, and this is another fantastic read and worthy addition to the ranks. If you have not read the other books in the series, this novel reads well as a stand-alone. That said, your experience will be so much richer if you take the time to read the first three books in the series: (The Pages of the Mind, The Edge of the Blade (my personal favorite because, hello, Jepp) and The Shift of the Tide. For the absolute best experience go back and read The Twelve Kingdoms series, you will not regret the time spent immersing yourself in these books and the delightful world Jeffe has created.

This story features Karyn and Zyr, possibly the most unlikely couple of any of Jeffe’s novels,  given Karyn’s rigid attitude and formality and Zyr’s reckless propensity to follow his whims, consequences be dammed. As always Jeffe infuses her characters with sparkling wit and the banter between the two leads is fun and a highlight of the novel. Written in first person, from Karyn’s point of veiw we get to experince her growth as she comes to own her worth and fierceness, as she fights for her adopted homeland. Shifters, romance, intrigue, rich world building and perfect pacing had me up and turning pages well past my bedtime. Karyn and Zyr have won a place in my list of favorite fantasy couples.

ABOUT JEFFE KENNEDY

Jeffe Kennedy is an award-winning author whose works include novels, non-fiction, poetry, and short fiction. She has been a Ucross Foundation Fellow, received the Wyoming Arts Council Fellowship for Poetry, and was awarded a Frank Nelson Doubleday Memorial Award. Her award-winning fantasy romance trilogy The Twelve Kingdoms hit the shelves starting in May 2014. Book 1, The Mark of the Tala, received a starred Library Journal review and was nominated for the RT Book of the Year while the sequel, The Tears of the Rose received a Top Pick Gold and was nominated for the RT Reviewers’ Choice Best Fantasy Romance of 2014. The third book, The Talon of the Hawk, won the RT Reviewers’ Choice Best Fantasy Romance of 2015. Two more books followed in this world, beginning the spin-off series The Uncharted Realms. Book one in that series, The Pages of the Mind, has also been nominated for the RT Reviewer’s Choice Best Fantasy Romance of 2016 and is a finalist for RWA’s RITA Award. The second book, The Edge of the Blade, released December 27, 2016, and was a PRISM finalist, along with The Pages of the Mind. The next in the series, The Shift of the Tide, released August, 2017. A high fantasy trilogy taking place in The Twelve Kingdoms world is forthcoming from Rebel Base books in 2018. She also introduced a new fantasy romance series, Sorcerous Moons, which includes Lonen’s War, Oria’s Gambit, The Tides of Bàra, and The Forests of Dru. She’s begun releasing a new contemporary erotic romance series, Missed Connections, which started with Last Dance and continues in With a Prince. In 2019, St. Martins Press will release the first book in a new fantasy romance series, Throne of Flowers. Her other works include a number of fiction series: the fantasy romance novels of A Covenant of Thorns; the contemporary BDSM novellas of the Facets of Passion; an erotic contemporary serial novel, Master of the Opera; and the erotic romance trilogy, Falling Under, which includes Going Under, Under His Touch and Under Contract. She lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico, with two Maine coon cats, plentiful free-range lizards and a very handsome Doctor of Oriental Medicine. Jeffe can be found online at her website: JeffeKennedy.com, every Sunday at the popular SFF Seven blog, on Facebook, on Goodreads and pretty much constantly on Twitter @jeffekennedy. She is represented by Sarah Younger of Nancy Yost Literary Agency.

http://jeffekennedy.com

https://www.facebook.com/Author.Jeffe.Kennedy

https://twitter.com/jeffekennedy

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1014374.Jeffe_Kennedy

Brenda Murphy writes short fiction and novels. She loves tattoos and sideshows and yes, those are her monkeys.  When she is not loitering at her local tea shop and writing, she wrangles two kids, one dog, and an unrepentant parrot.  She reviews books, blogs about life as a writer with ADHD and publishes photographs on her blog Writing While Distracted.  You can find her on Facebook by clicking here

Website: www.brendalmurphy.com