(High Fantasy; Tasik) A swamp woman traps a youth who came seeking a love potion, and before she eats him, she tells him a story. (3,528 words; Time: 11m)
Rating: ★★★☆☆ Average
"Abere and the Poisoner," by Jonathan Edelstein [bio] (edited by Scott H. Andrews), appeared in Beneath Ceaseless Skies issue 208, published on September 15, 2016.
Mini-Review (click to view--possible spoilers)
Pro: It's a nice idea--the swamp woman eats your body but it frees your soul to take any form you like. Foulou's trick of escaping disguised as a bacterium was cute.
Con: It doesn't quite work. We're never clear why the swamp woman bothers with this. She can hardly process every love-sick young man who comes to her.
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Con: It doesn't quite work. We're never clear why the swamp woman bothers with this. She can hardly process every love-sick young man who comes to her.
Other Reviews: Search Web, Browse Review Sites (Issue 208)
Jonathan Edelstein Info: Interviews, Websites, ISFDB, FreeSFOnline
Follow RSR on Twitter, Facebook, RSS, or E-mail.
Thanks for the review.
ReplyDeleteFor the record, Folau (who tells the story) is neither the swamp-witch nor the young man, but if that didn't come across clearly enough, it is of course my fault.
Oops. That was Folau, not the young man. I've fixed it--it was just a careless mistake. Thanks for letting me know.
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