Tag Archives: Fantasy

June 18, 2026 · 1:00 am

A Review of Hearth Stories, Summer Solstice 2025

Title: Hearth Stories, Summer Solstice 2025 (Hearth Stories Book 4)

Author: J.C. Pillard, Erin Keating, Amanda Fetters, Alicia Adams, T.R. Steele, Kendra Recht, T.S. Weaver, and Christian Emecheta

Publisher: Heart Stories

Publication Date: June 18, 2025

Genres: Fantasy, Paranormal, LGBTQ+, Romance, Historical

Length: About 110 pages.

Source: I received a free copy from the publisher.

Rating: 5 Stars

Blurb:

Hearth Stories is a speculative fiction magazine focused on cozy fantasy stories. Each issue features a letter from the editor, author bios and interviews, and wonderful stories focused on family, home life, connection, and the natural world.

This issue features the following stories:

A Different Kind of Worship by J.C. Pillard

The Washing Witch by Erin Keating

The Braided Lintel by Amanda Fetters

To the Scribe Who Reads This by Alicia Adams

No More Walls by T.S. Weaver

An Ordinary Love Story by Christian Emecheta

Content Warning: A terminal illness, aging, grief, and death.

Review:

Anything is possible when the forests are filled with the energy and life that summer brings.

In “A Different Kind of Worship,” a minor god named Salix sat at the bedside of his last worshipper, Ruldi. When Ruldi died, so would Salix, but for now they shared the same peaceful existence in a small home together. I adored Salix’s gentle and kind personality and was curious to discover how he would spend his final days. While I can’t discuss the plot twists in this story without sharing spoilers, I can say they were just as beautiful and meaningful as the protagonist was and I finished the final paragraph with a tear gleaming in my eye and a smile on my lips. This would have made an incredible short film!

The first sentence of “Fully Formed” in which the narrator explained that nobody wanted to let Rowan bury his golden apple beetle pupae in their gardens immediately piqued my curiosity. It seemed like such a minor favour to give that I couldn’t imagine saying no to it, but I wanted to learn more. This was an excellent example of how to include world building into a short story that entices the reader to keep going. While I can’t go into much detail about it without sharing spoilers, I can say that the folklore surrounding beetles and apple trees was particularly lovely.

The relationship between Linden and Marna in “An Ordinary Love Story” was sweet and gentle, but what drew me into this chapter of their lives even more deeply was the time they spent learning how to be healers. It was an apprenticeship that lasted about a year and included both herbal and magical remedies. This was the perfect combination of themes in my opinion, especially as their friendship began to evolve into something more than that and they needed to figure out how to break the news to their mentor.

Hearth Stories, Summer Solstice 2025 was a well-written anthology that made me yearn for summer to begin.

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Tagged as 2020s, Alicia Adams, Amanda Fetters, Anthology, Book Reviews, Christian Emecheta, Erin Keating, Fantasy, Hearth Stories, Historical, J.C. Pillard, Kendra Recht, LGBT, Paranormal, Romance, T.R. Steele, T.S. Weaver

June 11, 2026 · 1:00 am

A Review of Hearth Stories, Summer Solstice 2024

Title: Hearth Stories Book Two, Summer Solstice 2024

Authors: Gwendolyn Maia Hicks, River West, Margaret Treanor Frey, Alicia Adams, A. Emery Watkins, Morgan Welch, A. Katherine Black, Nancy J. Hayden, H. A. Titus & Erin Keating

Publisher:Hearth Stories

Publication Date: June 20, 2024

Genres: Fantasy, Romance, LGBTQ+, Historical

Length: about 124 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the publisher.

Rating: 5 Stars

Blurb:

This issue features the following stories:

The Heart That Beats Behind the Bones by Gwendolyn Maia Hicks

The Woman with the Bird in Her Skirts by River West

Tome for Tea by Margaret Treanor Frey

You’re Always Welcome Hereby Alicia Adams

Bitter Tea by A. Emery Watkins

Marginalia by Morgan Welch

Outside of Wonderful by A. Katherine

Black Skogul by Nancy J. Hayden

Past Lives and Loaves by H. A. Titus

Green Water, Blue Water by Erin Keating

Content Warning: Brief references to dementia, terminal illness, and death. I will not discuss them in my review.

Review:

The past may be a foreign country in some respects, but that’s not all that it is.

“Bitter Tea” focused on a short conversation about human nature between a frog witch and Pilpa, the local sorcerer. I appreciated the perspectives it shared on what makes someone a good or bad person and how much one should extend themselves to help others who may or may not actually feel gratitude for the assistance. There aren’t always clear cut answers to such questions, but puzzling out various answers to them is a great way to pass the time while drinking a cup of tea. I would have happily read more about these characters!

Figuring how to to recreate a type of bread that nobody had made in generations lead Mara on a short quest in “Past Lives and Loves.” I loved the cozy fantasy elements of this tale, especially since the individual she needed to talk to was part of a species that is not typically treated so warmly in the mainstream fantasy genre. The focus on maintaining longterm friendships was another reason this was so meaningful to me. I’m always on the lookout for more stories that do precisely that, and this was a lovely example of how friendship can enrich a character’s life.

Skogul was a raven attempting to understand human customs in “Black Skogul.” Mingus was the human who had raised Skogul from a chick to a full-fledged adult, but now Mingus was beginning to show signs of mental and physical decline as he aged. It’s difficult to say too much about this story without giving away spoilers, but I loved the way the non-human perspective was written. Skogul described certain scenes quite differently than any human would, so it took a little thought to understand what was happening in them. This was a good thing, though, given who the protagonist was and how important their relationship with Mingus had become to both characters over the years.

I wish I could have talked about all of the stories in this anthology in my review. Every one of them was beautifully written and enriched my imagination.

Hearth Stories Book Two, Summer Solstice 2024 was sweet, gentle, and heartwarming. I can’t recommend it highly enough as Summer Solstice approaches.

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Tagged as 2020s, A. Emery Watkins, A. Katherine Black, Alicia Adams, Anthology, Book Reviews, Erin Keating, Fantasy, Gwendolyn Maia Hicks, H. A. Titus, Hearth Stories, Historical, LGBT, Margaret Treanor Frey, Morgan Welch, Nancy J. Hayden, River West, Romance, Xenofiction

May 21, 2026 · 1:00 am

A Review of This House Isn’t Haunted, But We Are

Title: This House Isn’t Haunted, But We Are

Author: Stephen Howard

Publisher: Wild Hunt Books

Publication Date: April 3, 2025

Genres: Fantasy, Horror, Paranormal, Mystery, Contemporary

Length: 106 pages

Source: I borrowed it from the library.

Rating: 3 Stars

Blurb:

A couple mourning the loss of their young daughter take up an opportunity to renovate a rural cottage on the remote North Yorkshire Moors. However, they can’t process their grief as increasingly eerie events unfold. Is it their daughter haunting them or something else?

Content Warning: the death a child that occurred before this novella began. I will be discussing it briefly in my review.

Review:

Moving forward rarely happens on a set schedule.

I adored the house’s motivation for attempting to communicate with Priya and Simon, the couple who just moved in. While I can’t go into detail about this without sharing spoilers, it was a fresh perspective on the haunted house genre that made me eagerly want to learn more. Mr. Howard is a creative storyteller, and these scenes in particular were well done and made me want to check out more of his work.

This would have been a much stronger work if more time had been spent fleshing it out, especially when it came to the character development. While the minimalistic descriptions worked better for the storyline given how straightforward it was for the most part, I found myself wishing I knew more about who Simon and Priya were as individuals. There simply wasn’t enough space in this novella to explore their personalities, histories, and what their marriage had been like before little Lily passed away.

The ending was as unexpected as it was thought provoking. I was intrigued by what it had to say about the process of grief and how easy it is to get stuck in certain phases of it for some people. It takes courage to pull oneself out of those spirals and move forward when what one really wants to do is wallow in the past. While I would have liked to see another chapter added at the end to explain what was really going on in the house, I also understand why the author decided to leave those questions unanswered. Grief in real life is often accompanied by questions that can’t possibly be answered, too, so it made sense to reflect that in fiction as well.

If anyone reading this review would like a recommendation for a similar read, The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters explores similar themes surrounding grief, the loss of a child, and the physical and emotional decay of a home and may be of interest to you.

This House Isn’t Haunted, But We Are made me want to read more haunted house tales.

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Tagged as 2020s, Book Reviews, Contemporary, Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Novella, Paranormal, Psychological Horror, Stephen Howard, Wild Hunt Books

April 23, 2026 · 1:00 am

A Review of Interruptions

Title: Interruptions

Author: P.B. Cannon

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: February 16, 2013

Genres: Fantasy, Contemporary

Length: 20 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 4 Stars

Blurb:

Cady and Sam don’t like excitement. So, they have good reason to love their lifestyle in the small town of Matthews, N.C. They’ve got a cute kid, good jobs, great neighbors, and their home beats the wheels off their last address. Unfortunately, interruption rears its head when it’s least expected, leading to that unwanted unrest they’ve been avoiding. What’s a couple of homebody werewolves to do?

Content Warning: Brief references to sexual harassment and humans being attacked by fantasy creatures.

Review:

Werewolves need to rest, too.

Cady’s character development was quite well done. Her relationships with her husband and child were explored in depth as well as her feelings on a variety of topics ranging from race to European beauty standards to why she so desperately wanted her neighbourhood to remain a quiet and peaceful place to live. She was the sort of protagonist I’d love to invite out for a cup of coffee so I could get to know her better as what I learned about her from this piece only made me more curious about who she was as a person.

The ending felt abrupt to me. I should note that this is part of a serial, a type of tale that is well known for ending on cliffhangers, so do keep those facts in mind while reading. Even when including them, though, I wished more attention would have been paid to developing that final scene. The way it was written felt more like the end of a chapter in a book than a short story. In my opinion, serials work better when each instalment in them stands alone as a fully formed tale, and I did not feel like this quite met that standard even though I deeply enjoyed reading it otherwise.

This was a good example of how to write an exciting fantasy story in a suburban setting. Most modern fantasy that I’ve read has either been set in rural or urban areas, so it was refreshing to see a different sort of setting being utilized. I especially liked the brief moments where Cady talked about simple aspects of living in the suburbs like finding a good parking spot or maintaining positive relationships with the neighbours. Yes, both of these topics were relevant to her adventures on this particular night, but I’ll leave it up to other readers to discover why.

Interruptions was exciting.

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Tagged as 2010s, Book Reviews, Contemporary, Fantasy, P.B. Cannon, Self-Published, Short Story, Werewolves

March 5, 2026 · 1:00 am

A Review of Hearth Stories, Springtime Fare

Title: Hearth Stories, Springtime Fare

Author: B. Morris Allen, Erin Keating, Em Harriett, Erin France, and JM Cyrus

Publisher: Hearth Stories

Publication Date: March 22, 2025

Genres: Fantasy, Historical, Romance, LGBTQ+

Length: 66 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the authors.

Rating: 4 Stars

Blurb:

Hearth Stories: Springtime Fair (2025) is a special issue of Hearth Stories in which each story has instructions for making something that was featured in the story (charm, recipe, ritual, etc).

This issue features the following:

Crivăț and the Snow Curse by B. Morris Allen

How to Make a Martisor

The Confession Chocolate by Erin Keating

How to Make Confession Chocolate

Creature Comforts by Em Harriett

Fox’s Almond Cake

The Soapmaker by Erin France

Unscented Soap

A Song Amongst the Prayer Ribbons by JM Cyrus

Leaf Rubbing and Forest Bathing

Content Warning: An accident that seriously injures someone’s knee.

Review:

Early spring is no time to leave the house unprepared for any sort of weather.

“The Confession Chocolate” was a cozy tale about two friends who may or may not be falling in love with each other. The storyline was straightforward, so I don’t want to share too many details about it for spoiler reasons. What I adored about it was how Mara and Lennan danced around their evolving feelings for each other while she was simultaneously grinding through the busiest time of the year at her chocolate shop. The fantasy elements of the storyline ebbed and flowed in ways that were as natural as they were playful. I think this one might be a little more appealing to fans who already love the romance genre versus those who were hoping for something deeply rooted in traditional fantasy lore, but it was delightful either way.

I had mixed feelings about “A Song Among the Prayer Ribbons.” The romantic subplot was a wonderful surprise whose details I’ll leave for others to discover for themselves, and I liked the nuanced relationship between Maren and her grumpy, elderly father. What made me pause as I was reading was the underlying theme that it’s okay for older people to be argumentative, mean-spirited, and grouchy with younger people because the former have been alive for so long. This is something that pops up regularly in both fiction and real life, and it’s something I vehemently disagree with. Yes, of course we should make some allowances for people who are grieving or in pain, but I don’t agree with the idea that living a particular number of years should grant anyone the right to treat others poorly regularly. This is something I’m saying as a younger person who has a chronic illness that causes terrible pain and other symptoms that cannot be ignored. I completely understand being in a bad mood because of how one feels, but I cannot agree with the idea that this gives anyone the license to be a jerk. Self control is key.

Stinky soap and etiquette were the conflicts in “The Soapmaker.” Conversations about someone’s odour will always be awkward no matter how gentle others try to be about it, so I kept reading with interest as the characters in this little village tried to let the kind and wonderful woman who made soap for everyone know that the scent combinations she used weren’t appealing. My favorite part of this tale was the open-ended final scene that left so much scope for the imagination. It made me wish for a sequel so I could discover what happened to the characters next.

I look forward to other readers chiming in with their thoughts on these tales.

Hearth Stories, Springtime Fare was a sweet and gentle read.

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Tagged as 2020s, B. Morris Allen, Book Reviews, Em Harriett, Erin France, Erin Keating, Fantasy, Hearth Stories, Historical, JM Cyrus, LGBT, Romance, Spring, Spring Equinox

March 4, 2026 · 1:00 am

Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge: Fictional Things I’m Glad Are NOT Real

Hosted by Long and Short Reviews.

Click here to read everyone else’s replies to this week’s question and here to see the full list of topics for the year.

This is once again going to be a science fiction, horror, and fantasy heavy list due to how much I’ve read in those genres.

1. Vampires

Stylized drawing of a Chinese dragon that doesn’t have limbs. It’s long, snake-like body curls around itself as it flicks out its tongue and looks annoyed. 2. Zombies

3. The Borg

4. Panem (The country set in North America in the Hunger Games series that forced children to fight for their lives in epic televised battles)

5. Being the Chosen One ™. Honestly, that sounds exhausting.

6. Aliens who show up on Earth ready to fight.

7. Having a One True Love ™. Falling in love can be an excellent thing, but the pressure of believing there’s only one person out there for you and you’d better not mess things up was intense when I was single.

8. Epic adventures. This, too, sounds exhausting. Let someone else go save the world while I hunker down for the rest of the winter.

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Tagged as Fantasy, Science Fiction, Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge

February 25, 2026 · 1:00 am

Top Ten Tuesday: Fictional Things I Wish Were Real

Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

This list is going to be heavily influenced by Star Trek and other science fiction themes. Be prepared.

I wish these fictional things were real:

A photo of Earth taken from the moon. Earth is partially hidden in shadow and looks small against an endlessly inky black sky. The moon’s surface is a monotone of grey and light brown. 1) Successful Human Settlements

For example, groups of people living well on other planets or on the moons of other planets. I think our longterm chances of surviving as a species would be much higher if we had the technology to spread out in the galaxy or universe.

2) Replicators.

Imagine if we could have all of the food, medicine, medical equipments, and other necessary things for life available at the press of a button. So much human suffering could be eliminated. (I’ve already talked about the wonders of a Star Trek medical bay in a previous WWBC post, or I would have included it here as well).

3) Equality for All

My favourite types of science fiction to read and to watch are the ones that show humans solving problems that have nothing at all do with any form of prejudice based on ethnicity, race, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, disability, etc. because such a thing doesn’t really exist in their society anymore. If only they went into more detail about how that happened, because I’d love to see us figure it out in the current era.

4) Warp Drives

We’ll need them to travel to other solar systems!

5) Magic

I wish I really could flick a wand or perform a spell to fix many major problems.

6) Dragons

Is this at all practical? No. Do I still want them to exist in remote places on Earth where humans will hopefully leave them in peace anyway? Yes.

7) Bigfoot

A Review of Love Bug

Title: Love Bug (The Shrouded Isle Series) Book cover for Love Bug by Zoe Tasia. Image on cover is a drawing of three light brown envelopes that have been dropped in a snowbank and have a few red hearts floating out of them.

Publisher: Zoe Tasia

Publication Date: February 13, 2024

Genres: Young Adult, Holiday, Mystery, Fantasy, Contemporary

Length: About 47 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 3 Stars

Blurb:

It’s Valentine’s Day on the Shrouded Isle. Love is in the air! Unfortunately, love needs a compass, because Cupid keeps hitting the wrong targets. Join Becca Shaw and her daughters, Jessie and Tate as they solve the mystery!

Review:

Love is magical.

I enjoyed the school setting of this tale, especially considering how kind Becca’s teacher was not only to her but to all of the other students in the class as well. Too often school is a source of conflict in young adult novels. While that is in no way a bad thing, especially given how common it is for some kids to have conflicted feelings about school for a wide variety of completely understandable reasons, it was refreshing to read about a teen who genuinely likes going to class and learning new things.

The slow start to this tale made it difficult for me to remain focused on reading it at times. While the pacing did pick up about halfway through, I found myself wishing that it had remained steady from the first scene to the last one as I found the middle and ending much more enjoyable and would have given this a higher star rating if not for my struggles with this aspect of the writing. If other readers have this same problem, I definitely would recommend sticking it out as the final scene was delightful.

Marketing this tale to the young adult genre was a great decision. What would have been out of place for an adult protagonist ended up being perfect for someone Becca’s age given her limited experience with life, magic, and matters of the heart. I nodded as I read about the Valentine’s Day cards she made as an extra credit assignment for one of her classes and wondered when the magical elements of the storyline were going to kick in. Obviously, I can’t share any details about exactly how that panned out for spoiler reasons, but I hope other readers have as much fun figuring it out as I did.

Love Bug piqued my curiosity.

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Tagged as 2020s, Book Reviews, Contemporary, Fantasy, Holiday, Mystery, Novella, Self-Published, Valentine's Day, Young Adult, Zoe Tasia

February 5, 2026 · 1:00 am

Bittersweet Valentine’s Day: A Review of Forget February

Title: Forget February Book cover for Forget February by Holly Schindler. Image on cover shows a red heart that’s been broken into a dozen or more pieces and lies shattered on a black surface.

Author: Holly Schindler

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: December 7, 2022

Genres: Holiday, Fantasy, Romance, Paranormal, Contemporary

Length: 17 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 5 Stars

Blurb:

Forever Finley Episode / Short Story #3: A tale of happy accidents, mystical events, and the beautiful things that can happen after (or even as the result of) a broken heart. The legend of Amos Hargrove is nothing more than a silly fairy tale, according to the two people who are arguably the most broken-hearted in the entire town of Finley. His spirit does not still exist, and he does not play matchmaker or bring luck to those who need it…or does he?

Forget February is the third installment of Forever Finley, a series of episodes or stand-alone stories that released once a month throughout 2016. Read together, the stories work like chapters in a novel. Previous releases in the series include Come December and January Thaw. Subsequent releases include Dearest March…, April’s Promise, Mayday Mayday Mayday, Chasing June, A Hundred Julys, Under the August Moon, Song for September, October Omen, and the Forever Finley Finale (Pale November / December Bells). Stories can be purchased individually, or readers can purchase all installments in Forever Finley: An Episodic Novel.

Content Warning: Death from pleurisy. Drunkenness. Brief references to war. A character accidentally breaks their leg.

Review:

February isn’t a trustworthy month, but it is a memorable one.

I loved the romantic paranormal elements of this story. The myths surrounding Amos Hargrove and his sweetheart Finley provided the perfect backdrop for contemporary life as the protagonists struggled with their own broken hearts along with other misfortunes that found them in this month. The willingness of the author to show why some characters find certain holidays difficult has consistently been one of the things I enjoyed about this series the most. There is definitely something to be said for holding space for both celebration and grief depending on how one reacts to a specific special day, and it worked even better given the tragic backstory of the spirits who protect the town of Finley.

Some of the quieter scenes that described how cold, stormy, unpredictable, and slippery the weather can be in February turned out to be my favorite moments so far while reading these books. Not only did they provide some interesting foreshadowing, they also set the scene for part of the reason why certain characters were struggling and explained why foul moods and foul weather are never a good match. This is something I hope to find more of when I return to this world this spring as it added another layer of meaning to everything that was happening.

The romance between the two living characters was handled sweetly and delicately. Obviously, given that this is part of a series, there was plenty left to the imagination as the year wears on, but this was a cute introduction to one of the many ways that love can begin to shape two people in new and refreshing ways. I’ve already read other instalments in their adventures at this point, and so I know things about them that a brand new reader will not. Still, these stories were meant to be started at any point, and I can confirm that this works perfectly well even if readers who have already visited this world before might get a little something extra out of it.

Forget February was heartwarming and just a little bittersweet.

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Tagged as 2020s, Book Reviews, Contemporary, Fantasy, Holiday, Holly Schindler, Paranormal, Romance, Self-Published, Short Story, Valentine's Day

January 29, 2026 · 1:00 am

A Review of Gods Don’t Sleep

Title: Gods Don’t Sleep

Author: TheRizzX (Rishi Raagav)

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: June 20, 2025

Genres: Fantasy

Length: 10 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author

Rating: 3 stars

Blurb:

Mr.Or was an famous singer, sings like an angel, but suddenly he gets into a weird obsession that makes him to go insane and paranoia with the three friends called Fates.

Content Warning: Insomnia and threats of bodily harm.

Review:

Some challenges should never be taken.

The fantasy elements of the plot were interesting and made me want to keep reading. The blurb doesn’t really do this part of the storyline justice, so this is a word of encouragement to keep reading if the blurb or the beginning doesn’t necessarily speak to you. Things change later on in the plot in ways that I thought were good for nearly everyone involved, and they made me wish for a sequel.

I struggled to understand the main character’s motivation for purposefully not sleeping for several days in a row. Sleep deprivation is such a miserable experience, at least for me, that I didn’t think the explanation that was given for his decision was sufficient. If I had more information about his personality and backstory, it would have made it easier for me to understand why he was drawn to this experience and what he hoped to glean from it.

While I’ve never gone five days without sleep, the descriptions of what it feels like to go more than a day without sleep felt pretty accurate to me early on this tale. I especially liked how the author emphasized how dreamlike the world can eventually feel when one has gone that long without getting any rest. It really does feel like a lucid dream in some respects, and not in a fun way. Time can feel like it speeds up or slows down and even ordinary experiences like trying to have a conversation can feel monumentally challenging.

Gods Don’t Sleep was intriguing.

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Tagged as 2020s, Book Reviews, Fantasy, Rishi Raagav, Self-Published, Short Story, TheRizzX

Tag Archives: Fantasy

A Review of Hearth Stories, Summer Solstice 2025

A Review of Hearth Stories, Summer Solstice 2024

A Review of This House Isn’t Haunted, But We Are

A Review of Interruptions

A Review of Hearth Stories, Springtime Fare

Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge: Fictional Things I’m Glad Are NOT Real

Top Ten Tuesday: Fictional Things I Wish Were Real

A Review of Love Bug

Bittersweet Valentine’s Day: A Review of Forget February

A Review of Gods Don’t Sleep

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