Diabolical Plots #101, July 2023
“Glass Moon Water” by Linda Niehoff
“The Dryad and the Carpenter” by Samara Auman
Reviewed by Seraph
“Glass Moon Water” by Linda Niehoff
This was a surprisingly wistful story about what we hold dearest. The dead have appeared, and apparently quite favor the water. The parents all forbid their children from any body of water but of course the children defy the orders of their mothers to visit the dead who now inhabit the local pool. Rather than anything harmful, the dead mostly just… are. They whisper of memories long lost that they’ve tenaciously hung onto even after death, whatever was most important to them in life, and murmur wistfully for things they’ll never again have or feel. The setting felt somewhere around mid to late twentieth century, although it really could have been any time relatively modern. But the almost mournful clinging to treasured memories is timeless, inextricably human… and well written in this story.
“The Dryad and the Carpenter” by Samara Auman
It is hard for me not to love a story built around mythology. Modern imaginings of past stories are a tricky endeavor, because you need to understand and respect the dreams and ponderings of people who lived in an entirely different time and culture in order to do the story justice. Not every writer is capable of stepping into those shoes, but this author is quite brilliantly so. I will admit that my initial reading of the modern trials and tribulations of an ancient olive tree harboring the fused spirit of a Dryad wasn’t favorable. As I read it a second, and then third time the story grew on me to the point that I can see the care and respect that was given to the mythology. You are put into the mind of the Dryad, as she witnesses the carpenter and fearing her own demise, but it is her dreams and longing memories that most pull you in as you are reading. There is something inextricably loving about how the story is crafted, indicative of an author who was able to fully immerse themselves in the mind and very being of the character written about, and it ended up being an entirely enjoyable story to read.