Thursday, November 8, 2018

The Baron and His Floating Daughter, by Nick Dichario

[F&SF]
★★★☆☆ Honorable Mention

(Historical Fantasy) Prince Antonio comes to woo Baron Francesco’s daughter and learns that she’s beautiful, charming, and has a tendency to float up to the ceiling and get stuck there. (5,895 words; Time: 19m)

Recommended By: ๐Ÿ‘STomaino+1 (Q&A)


"The Baron and His Floating Daughter," by (edited by C.C. Finlay), appeared in issue 11-12|18, published on by .

Mini-Review (click to view--possible spoilers)

Review: 2018.599 (A Word for Authors)

Pro: Up to a point, it’s a sweet little tale of young love. Antonio is naรฏve, but deeply in love. Baron Francesco has less of an excuse for failing to anticipate the King’s reaction to his son’s infatuation.

Baron Francesco il Bonario (“the good-natured”) is well-named. His daughter, Levita (“she flies”)  is even better named.

Il Villaggio di Ombre literally means “The Village of Shadows,” but there are several ways to interpret it.  Given how the story turns out, I favor “The Village Populated by Ghosts.”

Con: The abrupt switch from light-hearted to grim and dark is jarring and unpleasant. It’s sad that she hates him so much that she’s unmoved by his death.

I’m surprised they didn’t try travel as a cure. If the apple tree only lived on the island, maybe the curse only worked there as well.

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Nick Dichario Info: Interviews, Websites, ISFDB, FreeSFOnline

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