This is a collection of 24 stories ranging from flash fiction to novelettes in length. The author is a friend and I was a first reader (i.e., beta) for these stories, so I am by no means an unbiased reviewer, but for what it's worth, I love these stories. Most of them can be described as "speculative fiction" - fantasy, science fiction, horror - with a smattering of what might be called "literary fiction."

The author's style is clean, spare and often lyrical and stands out to me for the way it catches various voices: from a tough old lady remembering her good times with truckers in "Memory Lane" to the down to earth survivor in the post-apocalyptic tale "Life Without Crows" to the old groom of a talking race horse who manages his own career in "Bluegrass Dreams Aren’t for Free" to a subversive Biblical Ruth in "Whither Thou Goest." The stories feature historical figures like Anne Boleyn and Francis Drake; Egyptian, Greek, and Chinese goddesses and Biblical figures; early hominids, dragons, ghosts, vampires and were-crows and robots and aliens. Memorable characters who grab at the heart, stories that often have a twist in the tale, that make you laugh or cry or gasp--served with lovely prose and featuring eye-poppingly gorgeous illustrations by Maggie Middleton, a young artist. (The beautiful cover art is "The Song of Eternity," by another artist, Richard Kirsten-Daiensai.)

What's not to love? You can find her Official Home Page here. Some of her stories can be read for free online on her site, so you can give them a try to see if her style might appeal to you. ( )