Micro Reviews - Dragon Seeks Wife by Sandra Graves and The Bloodstone Dragon by G.L. Jackson

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Dragonthology
Untold Press
Anthology
e-book
2013

Today's Reviews;

Dragon Seeks Wife
Sandra Graves

The Case of the Bloodstone Dragon
G.L. Jackson

cover - (I posted the very same thing last night, but it's still true, *g*) I just love this cover.  It's subtle and with those claw marks, just gets the point across, doesn't it?  Under those 'rips' in the cover are glimpses of words....love it.

Dragon Seeks Wife (Sandra Graves) There is a certain style of fairy tale reading that I'm occasionally nostalgic for.  It takes me back to when I was a young tween (though that particular word was unheard of then), reading any fairytale -  or actually ANYTHING I could get my hands on.  Sandra Graves has the style down pat, and I enjoyed very much this fairy tale quest story with the twist of different setting.  Most fairytales are set in places that make you think of Europe.  This one is set in Mexico or Central America and features not only dragons, but quetzal birds.

The story is of a dragon who must seek a wife - or eventually die.  He morphs into a human, has no choice in this and goes on a quest to find a wife.  On his way he meets a village medicine woman then he ends up in a kingdom that has been cursed by a witch. 

The narrative flows, it's a story within a story as it's being told by a village elder to a group of villagers.  The dialogue within both tales is fitting - fits with the style of fairytale and the characters and is a fun, nostalgic (for me) return to a style of story that I haven't read in quite a while.  Very enjoyable.

The Case of the Bloodstone Dragon (G.L. Jackson) a noir mystery - surprised I know this term?  not sure if I'm using it right, but it feels right to me.  Think of those old Spillane style mystery books - story is reminiscent of that style of story. 
With each story I read in here, I appreciate more and more  the different styles of writing that these writers are sharing with us.  Jackson does her part here - telling dragon story, mystery style with a twist.  As with the other writers - her narrative is wonderful, and her character's dialogue works well with the noir detective style of story.
The year is not given - it's hinted at.  Starts out with a dame walking into a down and out detective's office...
seems there's a missing item - a relic that has something to do with dragons.  Could be because it's vaguely shaped like a dragon.
The woman who walks into the office - she has faint scales showing under her make up.  She wants to hire this not very successful ex-cop to help her find this bloodstone.
After doing some research, Clark goes to meet Ms Scarlet but there's this complication which ends in him and Ms Scarlet being tied up in some dark building.
All the elements that you love in a mystery, might remind  you of some stories like the Maltese Falcon, without being the same exact story.  It's written very well, and I enjoyed reading it very much.  

So far, out of three stories that I've read in this anthology, I've enjoyed all three.  This isn't always the case in a story collection.  Usually I like one or two, but not all.  I'm looking forward to the rest of the collection.

Micro-review of the short story Darkness Taken by J.A. Campbell

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Darkness Taken
J.A. Campbell
Dragonthology 
anthology/fantasy
Untold Press
available now

cover - I just love this cover.  It's subtle and with those claw marks, just gets the point across, doesn't it?  Under those 'rips' in the cover are glimpses of words....love it.

Being a shameless fan of J.A. Campbell, the first story I read in the Dragonthology anthology was Darkness Taken by - you guessed it - J.A. Campbell.  I really have a hard time reviewing short stories, because I am always afraid of simply summarizing the story.  When I read a review, I don't always want a rundown on the story - I want to know if the dialogue fits, if the characters sound like real people (depending on the situation or setting, of course), if the narration just pulls me along or if it's too stilted, how the characters are.  

J.A. Campbell has built a world in few words; a world that has children warriors partnering with dragons, unicorns and wolves who fight the Darkness.  Not just the darkness, but The Darkness.  Underneath lies a mystery of why there is no one over 18 in this group (I'm wondering if it's to do with unicorns and communicating with the dragons, unicorns and wolves - a whole believability thing with young people), and where those over 18 go as well as where the babies come from...it's hinted at - but ultimately it's a mystery, perhaps to be explored in another story in this setting (yes?)

The plot for this story is the kidnapping of a unicorn foal, and the rescue attempt that follows.  There are some very creepy elements in this Darkness - when you read this, watch out for the trees.  ugh.  shivery - a good shivery.

Campbell is great with dialogue.  You know when a voice is a dragon's voice, and when a human is speaking.  The dialogue is consistant, and is very believable.  Her narration conveys enough detail that you know what is happening and can follow the story without being overwhelmed with repetitive words or too many details.  When I started reading, my interested was caught and kept through the entire story.   The story contains a good mixture of  sorrow, adventure, horror and humor - which a great mix for a short story; it's a great mix for any length story, actually.

Another good short story by a very talented author with a wonderful imagination.

giveaway and a future post - Dragonthology

One of my all time favorite writers has a story in the Dragonthology anthology. 

I am going to be part of a blog tour - not sure exactly what you're going to see here, but keep your eyes open for a post on January 6, 2013.

AND - there is currently a giveaway where you can win a $25 card, then use it for your very own copy of this anthology - and who doesn't like a good dragon story, or better yet, a book full of dragon stories.  Click on banner below for giveaway link

Dragonthology

Edited by Untold Press

Genres: Fantasy + Mystery, Sci Fi, Humor, Dystopian,

Published: Jan 1 2013

Untold Press www.untoldpress.com

Authors: G.L. Jackson, Jason Andrew, Marian Allen, Jay Wilburn, Troy Lambert, Sandra Graves, J.A. Campbell

Word count: 54 552

Pages 171

ASIN: BooAVLQZ6G

Price:

eBook: 3.99

eBook Buy Links:

Amazon US: http://www.amazon.com/Dragonthology-ebook/dp/B00AVLQZ6G

Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dragonthology-ebook/dp/B00AVLQZ6G

Amazon IT: http://www.amazon.it/Dragonthology-ebook/dp/B00AVLQZ6G

etc

Jan 1 –March 31- Amazon Prime members can borrow for FREE

(press packet info follows)

Blurb:
Enter the pages of the Dragonthology.  No single story has ever been great enough to contain the mystical, wondrous creature known as the dragon.  We assembled the greatest draconian tales and put them between the covers of a single tome to satisfy your hunger for everything dragon.  Seven magnificent stories, ranging from science fiction to mystery, await you within.

The Case of the Bloodstone Dragon by G.L. Jackson

A washed up has been, Private Investigator Clark is down to his last $100.  That is, until the night a mysterious femme fatale walks through his door weaving a tale of intrigue in hope of recovering an artifact steeped in mystery and danger.  What follows is a raucous ride through a little known human and dragon history, played out on the streets of New York City.

Unto the Breach by Jason Andrew

Jonathan Heller uncovers an unusual secret during one of the bloodiest campaigns of World War One in the middle of horrific trench warfare.  Can he convince an ancient dragon that humanity is worthy of life during their darkest hour?

The Dragon of Sullivan Hall by Marian Allen

A dormitory full of fun loving female students, an angry red dragon with a litter full of hungry whelps, and a particular student of Irish descent.  This won't end well for the dragon.

Egg Hunt by Jay Wilburn

A lonely smuggler must make decisions he never dreamt possible in the darkness of space to elude capture and protect his precious cargo of dragon eggs.  When one of them hatches, it threatens to damage his ship.  Can a person change enough to save a ship, a dragon, and himself?

The Clan by Troy Lambert

Dragons return to the earth and humanity enslaves them with the last remnants of technology of their dying race.  Now the technology of old is fading.  Will the dragons be able to rise again?  Will the humans declare war, or will a peaceful solution be found?  it all rests in the hands of an ancient dragon, and a lowly shepherd and his clan.

Dragon Seeks a Wife by Sandra Graves

What happens when a dragon falls ill and is told he will die in a year and a day unless he finds his one true love?  The only thing a dragon can do.  He sets out on a quest to win the hand of the perfect mate for a dragon-the daughter of the king.  Aided by a Quetzal bird sorcerer, he begins his quest.  An old fashioned fairy tale with a Meso-American twist.

Darkness Taken by J.A. Campbell**
In a land where children are warriors and the only adults are mythical creatures, all are called to fight the Darkness.  Til and her dragon partner, Heliodor, complete the perfect Welcome Ceremony, but their joy is short lived.  The Dark has slain a unicorn and taken her foal back to the Darklands.  Can Til and Heliodor venture where none go and rescue the young unicorn?

**me here - J.A. Campbell is the ONE in this anthology who is one of my alltime favorite authors - you KNOW this is the story I'm reading first!  :) **

Author Bios:

Marian Allen

Marian Allen writes science fiction, fantasy, mystery, humor, horror, mainstream, and anything else she can wrestle into fixed form.

Allen has had stories in on-line and print publications, on coffee cans and the wall of an Indian restaurant in Louisville, Kentucky.

Allen is a member of Quills and Quibbles and the Southern Indiana Writers Group, and is a regular contributor to SIW's annual anthology.

Find out more about Marian at  http://MarianAllen.com  and follow her on twitter @MarianAllen 

J.A. Campbell

Julie has been many things over the last few years, from college student, to bookstore clerk and an over the road trucker. She’s worked as a 911 dispatcher and in computer tech support, but through it all she’s been a writer and when she’s not out riding horses, she can usually be found sitting in front of her computer. She lives in Colorado with her three cats, her vampire-hunting dog in training, Kira, and her Irish Sailor.

She is the author of many Vampire and Ghost-Hunting Dog stories and the young adult urban fantasy series The Clanless.

Find out more about Julie at  www.writerjacampbell.com  and follow her on twitter @Pfirewolf

G.L. Jackson

G.L. Jackson lives in the hills outside Portland, Oregon with her family. She's a licensed massage therapist, but when she's not working at that she's either writing, reading, taking photographs, or indulging in philosophical discussion with the birds, stray cats, raccoons, and other creatures that stop by on a daily basis. Much to the chagrin of her parents, she cut her literary teeth at an early age by writing and performing plays with her two sisters. From there she moved on to stories both short and long, but poetry has remained elusive.  Born and raised on the east coast, she's fallen in love with the Pacific Ocean. The Case of the Bloodstone Dragon is her first detective story.

Find out more about Gwynne at gwynnejackson.wordpress.com  and follow her on twitter @notsuestorm 

Jay Wilburn

Jay Wilburn lives in Conway, South Carolina with his wife and two sons. His novel, Loose Ends: A Zombie Novel, is available now. He has a novella, Circuit Rider, in the acclaimed anthology Realms of the Undead.  He has published a number of horror and speculative fiction stories.

Follow his many dark thoughts @AmongtheZombie on Twitter or at JayWilburn.com. 

Jason Andrew

Jason Andrew lives in Seattle, Washington with his wife Lisa.  He is a member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, the Horror Writers Association, and the International Association of Media Tie-In Writers.   His short fiction has appeared in markets such as Shine: An Anthology of Optimistic SF, Frontier Cthulhu: Ancient Horrors in the New World, and Dark Tales of Lost Civilizations.  In 2011, Jason received an honorable mention in Ellen Datlow’s List for Best Horror of the Year for his story “Moonlight in Scarlet”.  Jason also writes for awesome RPG games such as Vampire: the Masquerade and Shadowrun

Find out more about Jason at www.jasonbandrew.com  and follow him on twitter @jasonbandrew

Sandra Graves

Raised in Colorado by European immigrant parents who passed on their love for both great literature and great music, Sandra has had her nose in a book since she first learned to read.  When she isn’t reading, she’s either writing fiction or designing her latest artwork project.  She also owns and operates her own business.

Sandra spent her school years in Denver and her summers attending musical events in the mountain valley of Aspen.  Throughout her youth she was a talented cellist, achieving first chair position in the Colorado Youth Symphony as well as a position in a semi-professional symphony while in high school.  She earned an MA degree in Anthropology from Eastern New Mexico University where she met her husband.  They have been married for more than thirty years.

She currently lives in Minnesota, a state far away from her beloved mountains but featuring thousands of lakes and rivers.  She is combating homesickness by writing a novel that takes place in the years of the Colorado gold rush. She’s looking forward to the necessity of doing on-site research within the next year.

Find out more about Sandra at www.IsisRising08.com 

Troy Lambert

Troy began his writing life at a very young age, penning the as yet unpublished George and the Giant Castle at age six. He grew up in Southern Idaho, and after many adventures including a short stint in the US Army and a diverse education, Troy returned to Idaho, but the north end of the state this time, where he currently resides.

Troy works as a freelance writer and researcher by night, and the Museum Operations Specialist and Head of Research at the Wallace District Mining museum by day. He truly loves to write dark, psychological thrillers and released Broken Bones, a collection of his short stories, last September to great acclaim and with reasonable success. His new thriller Redemption is available now.

Troy lives with his wife of eleven years, two of his five children and two very talented dogs. He is a skier, cyclist, hiker, fisherman, hunter, and a terrible beginning golfer. The sequel to Redemption, titled Temptation will be released early in 2013.

Find out more about Troy at www.troylambertwrites.com  and follow him on twitter @authortroy

Back to me now - lots of info on these authors.  I haven't yet read anything by any of these authors except for J.A. Campbell, but these blurbs on the stories sound very interesting, so I'm looking forward to seeing what these writers have to offer - after all, that's one of the best things about anthologies - you get exposure to authors that you might never have otherwise heard of, or read.  Keep alert for further posts - or at least for a post coming up on the 6th of January.

Micro-Review - Robber Bride

I keep anthologies in places where I might need to read for short periods of time. Then I slowly read a short story. I haven't been mentioning them in the blogs though. But I do finish a story here and there. Most of the time I'm not really impressed with the stories, or most of the writers in the anthology. But I just finished a story the other night written by Marjorie M Liu which is in the Anthology titled Huntress. The short was titled The Robber Bride.

I enjoyed The Robber Bride. It's set in a post-disaster world. There was a disease that wiped out most of the population world wide and people are barely subsisting, farming, trading, going without most of the things we take for granted now. Even things like a simple flower pot are pretty much unknowns for the current population. There are not cars, mass transit,etc although there are bicycles, horses and wagons. It's an interesting setting and Marjorie M Liu does an excellant job slowly revealing pieces of this world while we are reading the story. The main character (Maggie) tries to keep to herself (it's safer) on her little piece of land that she used to share with her grandfather. They traded in items. Maggie fixes things. But strangers come to town and take off with people and Maggie feels compelled to go after them. She discovers things on her journey that she really doesn't want to know.

The story was written so well, I was left wanting more at the end. I hope that eventually Ms Liu might return to this setting and write more about Maggie and her friends. The plot was engaging, the wording reminded me of a dark, dark fairytale, and the conversation was spare, but every piece of dialogue told a lot. I really enjoyed The Robber Bride.

There are three other stories in this anthology:

1. Devil's Bargain by Christine Warren - I started to read this, but lost interest
2. The Robber Bride - Marjorie M Liu - excellent story, great writing
3. Down in the Ground Where the Dead Men Go - Caitlin Kittredge (just started reading)
4. Sin Slayer - Jenna Maclaine - started this one, but also lost interest in it after the first few pages. I might go back to it, but I doubt it, it just didn't hold my interest.

From now on, when I finish reading a short story, I'll review it and list at least some of the other books in the anthology (if there's only a few stories - some anthologies have 20 stories in them)