With Blood and Ash: The Curse of Blood Magic Vol 1
Goodreads link This dark fantasy anthology features novellette length stories about "deadly magic". Each of the seven stories in this volume are engrossing and emotional. The magic systems featured are diverse, yet all are primal and powerful with components of elemental magic and the fae. The stories are longer than the short stories I have been reading lately and each one requires pause and reflection once done. They feel more like "mini-novels" than "short fiction" because the emotional depths and the characters featured are strong and complex. It took me a bit of time to get through this volume, but not because the quality was lacking, rather the opposite. My personal favourites are (descriptions are from the amazon page): Wynne F. Winters - "The Spring in the Desert": There is a world of drought and destruction, where magic is currency and water is life. What dark mysteries await you there? The first story takes place in the desert...