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Snuggle with the Strange: 9 Twisted Tales (The Snuggle Series #1)
10.0
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Step into nine eerie lives where the obvious is left at the door, and the surprises are just a page...
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10.0
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The Cat in the Hat
7.3
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Two children left home alone for a short while one afternoon are visited by a very interesting yet...
After Forever
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Dean (6926 KP) rated The Woman in the House across the Street from the Girl in the Window in TV
Jul 1, 2023
Ross (3284 KP) rated Fires of the Dead in Books
Nov 12, 2019 (Updated Nov 12, 2019)
This short story (around 90 pages) somehow manages to establish a well-explained magic system, and enough information about the world, and a decent story in a very small number of pages.
The story follows a small group of battle-worn mercenaries sent on a mission through the fire-ravaged wasteland to capture the skull of a dead pyromancer. Along the way they cross paths with other groups on similar missions as well as a stronger foe they had not intended to meet.
Herne has a talent for writing, that much is abundantly clear. His narrative is pithy, concise and very immersive. He changes PoV at a few points of the story, so the reader is given different viewpoints at different times (though sadly they don't change back again).
The characters are all uniquely defined and have their own place in the crew.
His story was well laid out, with some excellent, flowing action sequences. The story is well told and exposed at a good pace. There were a few small background details of the overall plot which I felt should have been outlined earlier, but given the character in question's background I can see why this happened this way.
My only complaint about this book was that it was too short. This could easily be expanded with more backstory and more information about the world without feeling padded out, I think. I would happily read this book again with another 300 pages of the same added in.
I will be reading the author's free short stories from his mailing list with relish.