Beneath Ceaseless Skies #411, July 11, 2024

“The Wicks Whisper” by Emily C. Skaftun

“Linden Honey, Blackcurrant Wine” by M. R. Robinson

Reviewed by Victoria Silverwolf

Two stories featuring characters yearning to be reunited with lovers appear in this issue.

“The Wicks Whisper” by Emily C. Skaftun takes place in a fantasy world inhabited by bird-like beings. They believe that the dead can be brought back to life for a brief time by lighting candles containing their ashes. The narrator attempts this without success. Later, the narrator is able to temporarily summon the soul of a recently deceased lover, in hopes they can be reincarnated together, but again there is only failure. They are eventually reunited in an unexpected way.

The fantasy content of this story is unique and imaginative, but inconsistent. At times it seems that the lighting of candles is useless; at other times, it seems to work. The way in which reincarnation operates is also unclear. The point may be that love is more powerful than magic, but some readers may object to apparent contradictions.

In “Linden Honey, Blackcurrant Wine” by M. R. Robinson, a very old woman returns to the place where she met and fell in love with a fairy-like being from Slavic folklore when she was a girl. Their reunion is bittersweet, but ultimately joyful.

As this synopsis suggests, the plot is simple and straightforward. The resulting work makes for very pleasant, if unsurprising, reading. This is the author’s first published short story, and definitely shows promise.

Victoria Silverwolf went to a combination coffeehouse/bookstore today.