unusual small curses and powers

November 4, 2024 8:23 AM

Two fantasy stories in which characters notice and respond to little spells. "That seemed like a… a manageable amount of divinity." Sarah Blackwell (Dyce) (previously) writes a fun short piece in which Jenna gets something that, deep down, she's always wanted. "The possibility of danger overrides my manners, and my hand shoots out to grab her wrist.... She notices too much, and she thinks too fast." In the suspenseful, romantic "Useful and Beautiful Things", available in text and audio, E. Saxey (previously) depicts an antiques specialist with a few secrets, and the intriguing books expert they can't get away from.
posted by brainwane (4 comments total)

A strong pair, paired well! I adore the joy of the first, especially.
posted by foxtongue at 9:53 AM on November 4 [1 favorite]

Both nice. Both kind of breathless, tumbling toward their conclusions. Thanks for sharing!
posted by GenjiandProust at 10:51 AM on November 4 [1 favorite]

So sweet! Thank you for sharing!
posted by mutt.cyberspace at 4:23 AM on November 5 [1 favorite]

Oh, those were both wonderful. So different.

I love things, I love objects, and I really enjoyed both of the narrators' connections to objects.

Really lovely.

Thank you so much for posting these, brainwane! (And I appreciate the previously links; I'd like to read more by both authors.)
posted by kristi at 8:03 PM on November 5 [1 favorite]