Enchanted Flames: A Magical Collection of Short Stories Book Review

Full disclosure: I was given a free electronic copy by BookFunnel in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoy reading short stories from time to time. I usually consume these if I need something quick or a break from longer books. But then I come across one or many short stories that turn me into Janet from The Rocky Horror Picture Show in wanting more, more, MORE! This was the case when I read Enchanted Flames: A Magical Collection of Short Stories anthology published by Lyndsey Hall. Many of the fire-centric tales in some way sucked me in, and I didn’t want to put them down. 

Enchanted Flames: A Magical Collection of Short Stories is the third book in the Enchanted Anthology series. It features 10 fantasy-based tales written by 10 different authors, and all of them deal with the fiery element itself in some way. 

Many of these stories have typical fantasy elements like royalty, spells, and dragons. But, some of them do things a little differently. For example, Cajun Cold Flames by Donna White takes place in historical New Orleans and deals with Egyptian treasures and rougarous, while The Scorch Tournament by Elena Shelest is located in a dystopian, desert-like universe. 

From the moment I started reading the first tale In the Ashes by Jo Holloway, I knew that this was a collection that I didn’t want to put down. I previously mentioned in my Once Upon a Winter: A Folk and Fairy Tale Anthology review that I love fairy tale retellings. This one was a combination of Cinderella and Snow White along with Romeo and Juliet. It tells the story of a young woman who loses her mother in a house fire and is subjected to accomplish many tasks by her lord stepfather while he tries to deprive resources for the land and people who work on it as well as her dignity. She is forced to leave the land (fief in the book) after accusations are leveled against her being a witch because she survived the disaster with no marks. When I got to the end, I literally cried, “Noooooooooooo” because I didn’t want it to end.

Another one that I enjoyed was To Steal a Kiss by Sky Sommers. This takes a lot of elements from Beauty and the Beast and features delightful and witty commentary about how one should go about stealing a kiss from someone without them knowing it in order to break the spell.

I also have to give a shoutout to Golden Apples by Astrid V.J.. It’s about Ivan, a teenaged boy who encounters a phoenix and later discovers the 12 missing princesses. Ivan is a great character as he wants to prove himself when no one took him seriously on his previous discoveries. It also makes me want to reread The Twelve Dancing Princesses for old time’s sake.

In addition, there were many ways fire was depicted in these tales. Some like In the Ashes and A Candle Burns in Herboshi by Ben Lang displayed the destruction and power, while others like Golden Apples and Ping and the Phoenix by Xander Cross showed its rebirth side. There are also some that do a combination like Palace of Embers by N.D.T. Casale. That one is another one of my favorites. It tells the story of a woman who was crowned as the new queen before the palace was supposedly burned because of her skill in producing fire. She has to reclaim that gift and demonstrate that it can be used for good before her evil step grandmother and step aunt take over the kingdom. It’s a great tale of how one can turn their supposed flaws into strengths with a compelling lead character.

To Steal a Kiss and Ping and the Phoenix are sequels of stories that were published in Enchanted Forests – a previous volume in the anthology series. Although I would’ve liked to read those for a better understanding, this didn’t bother me because I was caught up to speed on what had happened in these ones. In other words, one can read these sequels without reading the originals and not miss a beat.

As much as I enjoyed this collection, there were some stories that I wasn’t so crazy about. For instance, I love the concept behind A Candle Burns in Herboshi, in which a pair of twins try to cheat death by getting buried alive and turning into wood, but certain sections dragged on. In another, I wanted more of Cajun Cold Flames since it ended too abruptly.

Each story features illustrations by Shelest. Displayed at the beginning of each, these black-and-white pictures portray the essences. My favorite of these is the one for Hero of the Wyverns by Alice Ivinya, in which the main characters Theresa (who is running away from the palace to avoid being married to someone she barely knows) and Finnick (a guy whom she encounters along the way) bicker while wyverns fly in the background. The story plays out like a quirky romantic comedy but with fantasy elements, so the illustration captures this perfectly.

All in all, Enchanted Flames: A Magical Collection of Short Stories anthology published by Lyndsey Hall is a wonderful fantasy anthology that ignites the desire to want more. These tales are compelling in their own ways, and one can’t go wrong with having fire as long as it’s in text. I would recommend this to those who love fantasy in all of its iterations, short stories, and reading about fire (as long as one is not an arsonist). The book is out now, and proceeds will go to the World Land Trust Wildfire Appeal.

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