A.F. Stewart's revised version of her short story collection, Inside Realms, is a rare treat for any fantasy lover.

Written with the same grace and mastery as her poetry collection, Tears of Poetry, Inside Realms consists of nine stories, the first three set in the mythical world of Ms. Stewart's upcoming novel, Song of the Wind and Sea. The other tales range in setting from the Roman world and the realm of King Arthur, from the modern day to a world of gods in an unknown time. But no matter the setting, these stories walk the edge between beauty and violence, and within their settings the boundaries between life and death, love and destruction are flexible and blurred. Not even gods and master magicians are safe, but love can conquer any boundary, crossing from life to endure death, joining natural to Supernatural. Indeed, love and destruction are the great levelers here, capable of bringing down the mere mortal and the mighty.

Ms. Stewart's style is imminently suited to these stories, neither florid nor melodramatic but filled with color and movement and starkly represented passion. Her sense of time and place are impeccable, making each realm entirely consistant within the boundaries of the tale. Every story holds a sense of decisions made and judgement served, of action taken and its inevitable consequence. Whether that judgement is meted out to vampires, wizards, soldiers or gods, it is swift, and it is, essentially, fair even when it is without mercy.

These nine stories have left me with a great desire to read more, and I am anxious for the forthcoming
books. Do yourself a favor and seek out Ms. Stewart's books whenever and wherever they are available.

In Inside Realms, Anita Stewart presents six fantasy short stories. Three, Song Rise, Advent and Kinsharra are set in her fantasy world among the Kinsharra Mountains. Two are stories about King Arthur, and the final one is a vampire tale.

First let me say that Anita Stewart writes with the grace and style of a poet. This is a quote from one of her stories and it describes a meeting between a man and a girl:

"His music permeated her, a fluid brimming through her pores. It reworked every fibre, every stitch of her, until her eyes were stars, her flesh the earth, her hair sunlight, and her soul the first and last notes of the song."


This delicate language which creates magical images out of words is quite deliberate. Anita writes more about magic than anything else. And with her ethereal prose and passionate characters she transfers the mystical craft from her mind onto the page.

But the reader should be aware that for the most part, though the Kinsharra stories, in particular, are beautiful, (and they are very beautiful,) they're not particularly exciting. That doesn't mean that they're dull. They're not.
But Anita in one tells us about a meeting between a man and a girl and in another she tells us about how Aristan conducts an experiment, by himself, in the privacy of his own home.

Of all six stories, the one with most tension and excitement in it was about a vampire, and in that one the anti-heroine surrendered meekly! Anita notes that even her central character was disappointed at the vampire's lack of resistance!

And, finally, when an exciting execution does take place, it's all over within seconds!

So, my recommendations with these stories would be: Please read them if you enjoy beautifully and poetically worded stories about fantasy worlds. You'll be very glad that you did.

But, if you absolutely require excitement in your stories, to keep you turning the pages over, be warned that there isn't much of that in any of these stories.

(There may be more in Anita's novel though. I haven't read or see that.)

Review By
Patrick Mackeown Editor of Litarena.com Book Review
http://www.litarena.com/books/

Is not unheard of at all. However, and I say this only from reading the preview, that this work will leave you wanting for more! Clocking in as a short set of stories (under 100 pages) you will blow through the reading. This isn't a bad thing. On the other hand I think it can only entrance readers and keep them coming back.

Anita writes with a real grace that is a pleasure for this realm of writing. Often times fantasy novels, especially the newer ones, are awkward and have no real flow.

Not here.

Instead we are given beautiful details that do not bore you but keep you hooked. The realm she manages to craft, even in the short preview, is wonderful.

Were I not broke, -nudge nudge-, I believe this would be in the mail to my house as it is!

4/5