Stories
Clear As Light
A short sci-fi story.
At last, Evan Sumner-Beauville achieves his life-long dream: retiring with Mac, his husband of 60 years, in a place unlike any other — a space station orbiting Earth. A one-way trip, to be sure, but such a glorious one, surrounded by the stars.
Until Mac sees a flash of light no one else can see.
And Evan watches their life together start unraveling, piece by piece.
Get “Clear as Light”
The Giving Year
A novelette. Published on Dec. 21 in Midwinter Fae, a Procession of Faeries anthology.
On Gull Island in the cold North, Eithni awaits Winter Solstice with pride, resentment, and fear. All signs point to a Taking year. And Eithni, chosen to enter the chamber of the gods, prepares to leave her human community forever.
On the other side of the Stone Door, Sable stands guard in anticipation of a successful solstice, when the veil between worlds will lift…and when her liege, a lightlord of the fae, will claim the human woman who willingly steps across into the Summer realm.
But everything changes when Eithni breaks the rules.
Everything changes when Sable hears a voice from the stone.
A fantasy love story set among the Picts in Iron Age Scotland.
We, the Ocean
A short story. Originally printed in Fiction River Anthology Magazine, Vol. 22 — No Humans Allowed.
On the Tangent Online 2017 Recommended Reading list.
“[One of] the kind of stories anyone who reads them will remember forever…inventive, heartbreaking, and wholly original.” — Kristine Kathryn Rush, Hugo Award-winning author and editor
“The story makes an interesting twist that highlights the dangers of limited understanding and self-referentiality…the author shows surprising subtlety, especially in the final third of the story.” — Tangent Online
When Thalassa’s Children — the mer-like, genderless protectors of the ocean — experience the trapped and suffocating death of one of their own, a single member chooses to take action. Against the wishes of the collective mind.
But can a lone mer ever hope to convince the humans of what they have done to the ocean, in a language they will understand?
And will it be worth losing everything?
Magic for a Rainy Day
A short story collection.
“This delightful collection of short stories twists and turns with Celtic magic…with a heart and passion that is apparent in every word. Definitely recommend this to readers of fantasy, fairy tales and mythical stories.” — A.L. Butcher, Fantasy Author
Set in Scotland, Ireland, and the Pacific Northwest, these five short stories share three things: a little rain, a little fantasy, and a lot of heart.
In this collection:
“Sidewynd”
“The Flat Above the Wynd”
“Banoffee Pie and Black Pudding”
“(Not a) Fairy Tale”
“They Stole My Love Last Night”
Sidewynd
A short story. First in short story series, “Wyndside Stories.” Published in the Summer in the City Bundle.
Born of two worlds but important to neither, Sky Patel balances life between her beloved Edinburgh and its mirror in the faerie realm known as the Wynd. But everything changes with the retirement of her friend and mentor–and sole protector of Edinburgh’s Old Town.
Now, despite her best intentions, Sky finds her careful balance cracking. And she may be called to do more–and be more–than she could ever believe possible.
An urban fantasy short story about finding strength in what you love.
Want this story for FREE? I send an ebook as a thank-you to people who subscribe to my newsletter.
Or you can purchase from your favorite retailer.
The Flat Above the Wynd
A short story. Second in “Wyndside Stories” series. Published in The Faerie Summer, a Procession of Faeries anthology.
As the sole Protector of Edinburgh, Sky Patel watches over Old Town, with its many hidden doorways to the faerie realm known as the Wynd.
But when past mistakes come back to haunt her, she begins to question the one man she thought she could always trust. The very man who gave her the role of Protector of Old Town in the first place.
All this with new, vulnerable charges to guard against the grasp of the Wynd.
Can Sky even protect herself…let alone anyone else?
They Stole My Love Last Night
A novelette. Published in The Haunted Bundle.
“As hauntingly lovely as the Gaelic melody that inspirits it.” — J.M. Ney-Grimm, Fantasy Author
Jess and her grandmother, Marie, return to the Isle of Skye for one purpose only: to lay Granmarie’s personal ghosts to rest.
But confronting old memories of her lost love sends Granmarie into an odd sort of reverie, one that soon catches Jess in its grip as well. Why do they both hear the same haunting melody?
And what secrets lie in the heart of the woodland behind the White Skye Inn?
In this novelette, Celtic fairies, music, and ghosts collide, turning the bitter sweet.
Get “They Stole My Love Last Night”
Banoffee Pie and Black Pudding
A short story.
If your heart lies in Ireland while your body pines in the USA, if you delight in quirky, madcap tales, and if you really love food, look no further.
“Banoffee Pie and Black Pudding” takes you on a dangerously magical romp through the kitchens of an Irish-style pub in Seattle, where everything that can go wrong, will.
And all because of one little, ancient artifact that chef Alyssa Granville maybe accidentally stole from Ireland. Who knew a Cauldron of Plenty could cause so much trouble?
Get “Banoffee Pie and Black Pudding”
(Not a) Fairy Tale
A short story.
Everyone knows high school grows drama like mold in a petri dish. Bullying? Check. Vicious rumor mill? Check. Draconian caste system? Check.
But at Rainy Valley High, one outcast girl starts believing an outrageous rumor about herself – and really weird stuff begins to happen.
But fairies don’t go to high school.
Do they?