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Maps to Nowhere
Follow the map to another world . . .
Two cities joined by their reflections. A realm of feathered serpents and jaguar-men. A desert where a former goddess seeks the ultimate truth. In this collection, award-winning author Marie Brennan takes you to ten different fantastical lands, including the world of her famed scholar-heroine Lady Trent. Journey with her to places rich and strange: here there be more than just dragons.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
* Once a Goddess
* The Mirror-City
* A Mask of Flesh
* But Who Shall Lead the Dance?
* A Thousand Souls
* Beggar’s Blessing
* Nine Sketches, in Charcoal and Blood
* Letter Found in a Chest Belonging to the Marquis de Montseraille Following the Death of That Worthy Individual
* From the Editorial Page of the Falchester Weekly Review
* Love, Cayce
* story notes
Two cities joined by their reflections. A realm of feathered serpents and jaguar-men. A desert where a former goddess seeks the ultimate truth. In this collection, award-winning author Marie Brennan takes you to ten different fantastical lands, including the world of her famed scholar-heroine Lady Trent. Journey with her to places rich and strange: here there be more than just dragons.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
* Once a Goddess
* The Mirror-City
* A Mask of Flesh
* But Who Shall Lead the Dance?
* A Thousand Souls
* Beggar’s Blessing
* Nine Sketches, in Charcoal and Blood
* Letter Found in a Chest Belonging to the Marquis de Montseraille Following the Death of That Worthy Individual
* From the Editorial Page of the Falchester Weekly Review
* Love, Cayce
* story notes
103 pages, ebook
Published September 5, 2017
About the author
Marie Brennan
162 books3,098 followersMarie Brennan a.k.a. M.A. Carrick
Marie Brennan is a former anthropologist and folklorist who shamelessly pillages her academic fields for material. She recently misapplied her professors' hard work to Turning Darkness Into Light, a sequel to the Hugo Award-nominated series The Memoirs of Lady Trent. As half of M.A. Carrick, she is also the author of The Mask of Mirrors, first in the Rook and Rose trilogy. For more information, visit swantower.com, Twitter @swan_tower, or her Patreon.
Marie Brennan is a former anthropologist and folklorist who shamelessly pillages her academic fields for material. She recently misapplied her professors' hard work to Turning Darkness Into Light, a sequel to the Hugo Award-nominated series The Memoirs of Lady Trent. As half of M.A. Carrick, she is also the author of The Mask of Mirrors, first in the Rook and Rose trilogy. For more information, visit swantower.com, Twitter @swan_tower, or her Patreon.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
February 5, 2018
Almost all of these short stories worked for me, which is a wonder (I can be picky!). Each of them had some really fascinating ideas, and the only one that left me cold was ‘Love, Caycee’ (and even then, I liked the idea, it’s just I don’t think it quite came together into a story I found fun to read). Of course, one of my favourites is the one featuring Isabella Trent, particularly for the last letter in the narrative. Of course Isabella would get herself arrested over a matter of science!
But the others are all worth the time too, and I particularly liked ‘Once a Goddess’, the first story of the collection. Brennan is really great at atmosphere, as these stories show; each of them evoked its own landscape in my head.
Reviewed for The Bibliophibian.
But the others are all worth the time too, and I particularly liked ‘Once a Goddess’, the first story of the collection. Brennan is really great at atmosphere, as these stories show; each of them evoked its own landscape in my head.
Reviewed for The Bibliophibian.
October 9, 2017
an incredibly creative collection of short stories set amid strange worlds. can't wait to read her books
June 11, 2018
Another great collection of short stories from Marie Brennan. I enjoyed the mix of styles in these short stories and many left me wanting to read more about the fantasy world within. My particular favourites were the collection of letters from the Lady Trent story (because I love that series) and Love, Cayce, which was a hilarious take on an RPG game. I've never played an RPG myself, but I've read enough fantasy and have enough basic knowledge of RPGs that I really enjoyed this story and its humorous take on many classic fantasy things.
December 18, 2021
A collection of 10 short tales by a prolific fantasy author best known for her Lady Trent dragon series. Brennan excels at using her academic background in anthropology and folklore to create fully realized worlds within just a few pages. Her fantasy realms have atmosphere, feeling like real places you could visit, and her characters have rich emotional lives. She is versatile, writing within a broad range of moods and styles to create tales that are heartbreaking and hopeful, despairing and humorous, by turns.
The collection includes story notes by the author, which I really appreciate. It's always fun to see how a story idea germinated and ultimately developed.
Reviews of the short stories:
Once a Goddess, 5/5: "I was once a goddess. Now I am myself."
A lovely philosophical story about striving for one's own identity.
As a little girl, Nefret became Hathirekhmet, an avatar of the Sun Goddess. For reasons unknown to the desert priests, the goddess abandons her avatars as they grow up, thus necessitating a search for another girl. Nefret is cast from her luxurious temple life back into the hovel where she was born, where she is woefully unprepared to face the lot of a poor peasant woman who must marry or die. In rejecting the fate chosen for her, Nefret embarks on a long struggle to discover her own value. (I listened to the audio version from Realm.)
The Mirror-City, 4/5: A story that plays with concepts surrounding gender. La Specchia is a city reminiscent of Venice, filled with rivers and canals, that has a twin, a mirror city that can be glimpsed by looking into its waters. Each person in La Specchia also has a double, always on the opposite side of the gender spectrum from themselves. The cities are united and prosper through the person of their ruler, a non-binary individual that embodies the entire gender spectrum. The story cleverly questions whether we cut people off from parts of themselves when we insist that human beings must exist either as male OR female.
A Mask of Flesh, 4.5/5: Quite a brutal tale of feminine power and revenge, in which a woman sacrifices all to bring down the lord who killed her people. Brennan weaves ancient Mesoamerican mythology into the tale, creating atmosphere as much by what she leaves unsaid as what she reveals. (I listened to the audio version from Realm.)
But Who Shall Lead the Dance? 4.5/5. A brief yet lush story propelled by the music of a faerie dance and the passion of a human heart. A young woman outwits the faeries when she inadvertently trespasses on their lands. Their usual punishment is to make their victim dance until death, but she surrenders to the dance rather than fighting it, and in doing so taps into a human strength that no fairy can withstand. The story pulses with the insistent rhythms of an old folk ballad.
A Thousand Souls, 3.5/5. A brief glimpse into age-old tales of sirens who lure sailors to their deaths. This brought a wry smile to my face even as it sent a shiver down my spine.
Beggar's Blessing, 4/5. A story similar in theme to A Christmas Carol, except with a protagonist even more stubborn than Scrooge, and a tale more horrifying than uplifting. It reads like an old cautionary folk tale.
Nine Sketches, in Charcoal and Blood, 4.5/5. An unsettling, atmospheric story about people meddling with supernatural forces best left alone. The seven living acolytes of a disreputable sorcerer attend an estate auction after his death. Slowly, the story reveals why they have come and the nature of the danger they face. (I listened to the audio version from Realm.)
Letter Found in a Chest Belonging to the Marquis de Montseraille Following the Death of that Worthy Individual, 4.5/5. A heartbreaking story that asks whether it would ever be advisable to change the past if we could, even to prevent a tragedy. The titular marquis loses his beloved wife in the most horrific way imaginable. But when he's given a chance to change the past, he finds he cannot save either of them from years of pain.
From the Editorial Page of the Falchester Weekly Review, 3.5/5: A brief, laugh-out-loud glimpse into the life of dragon naturalist Lady Trent, in the form of letters written to a scholarly journal. Lady Trent takes on a pompous, amateur dragon enthusiast who claims to have discovered a cockatrice specimen. Their letters grow more heated under a veneer of gentility, until they resemble a Victorian flame war. (Listened to on Cast of Wonders podcast, Episode #444.)
Love, Cayce, 4/5: A rollicking tale set in a lit-RPG realm, telling the story of Cayce's band of newbie adventurers in letters home to her mom and dad. Fast-paced and funny, with just enough seriousness to give it the feeling of "the real story" behind an epic ballad in which the embarrassing bits are glossed over or ignored. (I listened to the audio version from Realm.)
The collection includes story notes by the author, which I really appreciate. It's always fun to see how a story idea germinated and ultimately developed.
Reviews of the short stories:
Once a Goddess, 5/5: "I was once a goddess. Now I am myself."
A lovely philosophical story about striving for one's own identity.
As a little girl, Nefret became Hathirekhmet, an avatar of the Sun Goddess. For reasons unknown to the desert priests, the goddess abandons her avatars as they grow up, thus necessitating a search for another girl. Nefret is cast from her luxurious temple life back into the hovel where she was born, where she is woefully unprepared to face the lot of a poor peasant woman who must marry or die. In rejecting the fate chosen for her, Nefret embarks on a long struggle to discover her own value. (I listened to the audio version from Realm.)
The Mirror-City, 4/5: A story that plays with concepts surrounding gender. La Specchia is a city reminiscent of Venice, filled with rivers and canals, that has a twin, a mirror city that can be glimpsed by looking into its waters. Each person in La Specchia also has a double, always on the opposite side of the gender spectrum from themselves. The cities are united and prosper through the person of their ruler, a non-binary individual that embodies the entire gender spectrum. The story cleverly questions whether we cut people off from parts of themselves when we insist that human beings must exist either as male OR female.
A Mask of Flesh, 4.5/5: Quite a brutal tale of feminine power and revenge, in which a woman sacrifices all to bring down the lord who killed her people. Brennan weaves ancient Mesoamerican mythology into the tale, creating atmosphere as much by what she leaves unsaid as what she reveals. (I listened to the audio version from Realm.)
But Who Shall Lead the Dance? 4.5/5. A brief yet lush story propelled by the music of a faerie dance and the passion of a human heart. A young woman outwits the faeries when she inadvertently trespasses on their lands. Their usual punishment is to make their victim dance until death, but she surrenders to the dance rather than fighting it, and in doing so taps into a human strength that no fairy can withstand. The story pulses with the insistent rhythms of an old folk ballad.
A Thousand Souls, 3.5/5. A brief glimpse into age-old tales of sirens who lure sailors to their deaths. This brought a wry smile to my face even as it sent a shiver down my spine.
Beggar's Blessing, 4/5. A story similar in theme to A Christmas Carol, except with a protagonist even more stubborn than Scrooge, and a tale more horrifying than uplifting. It reads like an old cautionary folk tale.
Nine Sketches, in Charcoal and Blood, 4.5/5. An unsettling, atmospheric story about people meddling with supernatural forces best left alone. The seven living acolytes of a disreputable sorcerer attend an estate auction after his death. Slowly, the story reveals why they have come and the nature of the danger they face. (I listened to the audio version from Realm.)
Letter Found in a Chest Belonging to the Marquis de Montseraille Following the Death of that Worthy Individual, 4.5/5. A heartbreaking story that asks whether it would ever be advisable to change the past if we could, even to prevent a tragedy. The titular marquis loses his beloved wife in the most horrific way imaginable. But when he's given a chance to change the past, he finds he cannot save either of them from years of pain.
From the Editorial Page of the Falchester Weekly Review, 3.5/5: A brief, laugh-out-loud glimpse into the life of dragon naturalist Lady Trent, in the form of letters written to a scholarly journal. Lady Trent takes on a pompous, amateur dragon enthusiast who claims to have discovered a cockatrice specimen. Their letters grow more heated under a veneer of gentility, until they resemble a Victorian flame war. (Listened to on Cast of Wonders podcast, Episode #444.)
Love, Cayce, 4/5: A rollicking tale set in a lit-RPG realm, telling the story of Cayce's band of newbie adventurers in letters home to her mom and dad. Fast-paced and funny, with just enough seriousness to give it the feeling of "the real story" behind an epic ballad in which the embarrassing bits are glossed over or ignored. (I listened to the audio version from Realm.)
February 18, 2023
I approached this book with a little trepidation; my experience with Brennan is mixed: the Lady trent books were excellent but I found the Onyx Court unreadable.
From the very first page, my mind was set at easy.
This is a collection of ten unique short stories, each tightly written, with voice that matches the subject matter and characters.
From the very first page, my mind was set at easy.
This is a collection of ten unique short stories, each tightly written, with voice that matches the subject matter and characters.
May 25, 2021
Great short story collection. Love your pen Marie.
My favorites:
“Once a Goddess”
“A Thousand Souls”
“Nine Sketches, in Charcoal and Blood”
“Letter Found in a Chest Belonging to the Marquis de Montseraille Following the Death of That Worthy Individual”
My favorites:
“Once a Goddess”
“A Thousand Souls”
“Nine Sketches, in Charcoal and Blood”
“Letter Found in a Chest Belonging to the Marquis de Montseraille Following the Death of That Worthy Individual”
May 16, 2023
Mixed bag - some I really loved, "Once A Goddess" and :Nine Sketches, in Charcoal and Blood: really stood out to me, most were merely okay. I absolutely detested "Love, Cacey"! I regret reading that one.
October 9, 2017
Very creative collection of short stories, often inspired by the anthropological studies of the author.
December 29, 2017
A lovely book, I really enjoyed the stories in it. They were all interesting concepts, and I loved seeing them!
September 9, 2020
** Full disclosure: I received this book in exchange for an honest review**
You can tell the author knows her mythologies, folk tales, and legends as she uses her anthropology background in this short story collection to wonderful effect.
This collection is actually a first for me, it's both the first time I've read anything by this author and it's quite possibly the first short story collection where I enjoyed and loved every single story. I can't even think of a weak one in the bunch.
Many of the stories have a dark edge to them, a hint of the monsters hiding underneath so to speak, especially the ones that seemed mythology or fairytale based and that tone worked perfectly. It really made then feel like ancient stories instead of the cleaned up and safe versions we tell today.
My favorite story was the last one though, “Love, Cayce”, this is possibly the best epistolary based story I have ever read and it had me laughing out loud on the train. I really hope the author follows up and does more with the characters.
Beyond that I'm not going to review each story, I'm just going to say that I enjoyed them all, they all felt just the right length with no sense of the story being rushed or truncated to fit the short story format. They all just worked for me and resonated with me.
I read this in an e-book format and my app did not allow me to follow the links at the end of each story for notes, but they were all included at the very end of the book and they gave nice insights into the inspirations for or what happened while she was writing each story and they we well worth reading as well so don't skip those.
As I said above, this was my first experience with this author but it won't be my last, I am really looking forward to reading more by her as soon as I can.
You can tell the author knows her mythologies, folk tales, and legends as she uses her anthropology background in this short story collection to wonderful effect.
This collection is actually a first for me, it's both the first time I've read anything by this author and it's quite possibly the first short story collection where I enjoyed and loved every single story. I can't even think of a weak one in the bunch.
Many of the stories have a dark edge to them, a hint of the monsters hiding underneath so to speak, especially the ones that seemed mythology or fairytale based and that tone worked perfectly. It really made then feel like ancient stories instead of the cleaned up and safe versions we tell today.
My favorite story was the last one though, “Love, Cayce”, this is possibly the best epistolary based story I have ever read and it had me laughing out loud on the train. I really hope the author follows up and does more with the characters.
Beyond that I'm not going to review each story, I'm just going to say that I enjoyed them all, they all felt just the right length with no sense of the story being rushed or truncated to fit the short story format. They all just worked for me and resonated with me.
I read this in an e-book format and my app did not allow me to follow the links at the end of each story for notes, but they were all included at the very end of the book and they gave nice insights into the inspirations for or what happened while she was writing each story and they we well worth reading as well so don't skip those.
As I said above, this was my first experience with this author but it won't be my last, I am really looking forward to reading more by her as soon as I can.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews