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| Beware the dragons for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup! |
In every anthology there is
something for everyone—some solid stories and real gems. That is definitely the case with the diverse “Heroika
1: Dragon Eaters” edited by Janet Morris.
The stories, which all center on dragons, range from classic myths from
England, Greece and Egypt to wide-eyed futures.
Most of the stories take a
gritty, grimy approach to the business of dragons and dragon slaying. Huge, mythical creatures whose mass alone
make them impressive, have added bonuses of breathing fire and, in some cases,
super-intelligence. Walter Rhein’s
“Aquila of Oyos” was such a gem, a short story in the truest sense, a reader
can finish it easily in a single sitting, but will consider the implications
for days after. I greatly enjoyed “Of
Blood and Scales,” by AL Butcher and “The Wyght Wyrm” by Cas Peace.
Dragons inspire our
imagination in the most basic sense of all that is fantasy. These authors have taken their task to focus
on dragons, the world they inhabit and the warriors to fight them. They’ve captured very well that essence of
fantasy and the fantastic. “Heroika 1:
Dragon Eaters” edited by Janet Morris is definitely worth the price of
admission.
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