Equus (ebook)
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Anthology edited by Rhonda Parrish.
Series: Rhonda Parrish's Magical Menageries
Fantasy and Horror / Short Story Anthology
Release Date: July 18, 2017
Ebook
ISBN-13: 978-0998702209
Anthology: Approx. 96,000 words
Also available as a trade paperback
Find it Online:
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Books-A-Million
Goodreads
iTunes/Apple Books
Kobo
Wholesale: Ingram or direct: publisher[at]WorldWeaverPress.com
Other books in the series: Fae (1), Corvidae (2), Scarecrow (3), Sirens (4), Equus (5)
Series: Rhonda Parrish's Magical Menageries
Fantasy and Horror / Short Story Anthology
Release Date: July 18, 2017
Ebook
ISBN-13: 978-0998702209
Anthology: Approx. 96,000 words
Also available as a trade paperback
Find it Online:
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Books-A-Million
Goodreads
iTunes/Apple Books
Kobo
Wholesale: Ingram or direct: publisher[at]WorldWeaverPress.com
Other books in the series: Fae (1), Corvidae (2), Scarecrow (3), Sirens (4), Equus (5)
DescriptionThere’s always something magical about horses, isn’t there? Whether winged or at home in the water, mechanical or mythological, the equines that gallop through these pages span the fantasy spectrum. In one story a woman knits her way up to the stars and in another Loki's descendant grapples with bizarre transformations while fighting for their life. A woman races on a unique horse to save herself from servitude, while a man rides a chariot through the stars to reclaim his self-worth. From steampunk-inspired stories and tales that brush up against horror to straight-up fantasy, one theme connects them all: freedom.
Featuring nineteen fantastic stories of equines both real and imagined by J.G. Formato, Diana Hurlburt, Tamsin Showbrook, M.L.D Curelas, Laura VanArendonk Baugh, V.F. LeSann, Dan Koboldt, J.J. Roth, Susan MacGregor, Pat Flewwelling, Angela Rega, Michael Leonberger, Sandra Wickham, Stephanie A. Cain, Cat McDonald, Andrew Bourelle, Chadwick Ginther, K.T. Ivanrest, and Jane Yolen. ContentsStars, Wings, and Knitting Things" by J.G. Formato
"Eel and Bloom" by Diana Hurlburt "A Complete Mare" by Tamsin Showbrook "Neither Snow, nor Rain, nor Heat-Ray" by M.L.D Curelas "Rue the Day" by Laura VanArendonk Baugh "Riders in the Sky" by V.F. LeSann "Above the Silver Sky" by Dan Koboldt "A Mother Unicorn's Advice to Her Daughter" by J.J. Roth "Ladies Day" by Susan MacGregor "The Boys from Witless Bay" by Pat Flewwelling "The Horse Witch" by Angela Rega "Eli the Hideous Horse Boy" by Michael Leonberger "Different" by Sandra Wickham "To Ride a Steel Horse" by Stephanie A. Cain "The Last Ride of Hettie Richter" by Cat McDonald "We Us You" by Andrew Bourelle "Scatter the Foals to the Wind" by Chadwick Ginther "Lightless" by K.T. Ivanrest "A Glory of Unicorns" by Jane Yolen ExcerptsExcerpt from “Stars, Wings, and Knitting Things” by J.G. Formato:
I didn’t tell him the news until I’d placed the last raisin in my oatmeal. The wise and wrinkled happy face I’d created was quite encouraging. “Marcus,” I said, waiting for acknowledgement and eye contact. His eyes were still mostly contacting the Wall Street Journal, so I cleared my throat and dinged my spoon on his mug. Announcement style. He emerged from the paper and frowned at the ripples in his coffee. “Why’d you do that? I was reading.” “Were you?” I asked, genuinely curious. I always thought his morning paper was like an adult security blanket. But instead of making him feel safe and loved, it made him feel all grown-up and professional. Ready to join the Rat Race. Reading it for fun was a totally different story and not nearly as endearing. “Of course I was, Annie. Now, what were you going to say?” “I think the house is haunted.” “You think the house is haunted? “Mm-hm.” “Why?” “Because I saw a ghost.” Why else would I think the house was haunted? “Where?” “In the backyard. It was kind of swooshing all around by the swing set.” “So, really, you think the backyard is haunted.” He looked very pleased with himself, like he scored a point or something. All those years of law school must have really paid off. “Okay, fair enough. If you want to pick nits, I think the backyard is haunted.” “What did it look like? Your ghost?” “It was white, of course. And shimmery. Oh, and it had wings.” “Like an angel?” “No, not like an angel. Angels don’t haunt people’s backyards.” “Of course.” He smacked his forehead—but in a smartassy way, not an oh, duh kind of way. Excerpt from “Above the Silver Sky” by Daniel Koboldt: “What do you want for your birthday, Neshka?” father asked. There was nothing I truly needed. The rain that fed our valley gave us grain and berries and dew squash. We had sheep and hogs for meat, goats for milk. Bees for honey, and a never-ending stream of cool clean water. But mostly, we lived on the mushrooms. Soon my father would begin to teach me the arts of mushroom-tending, and one day I’d take over for him. I watched a trickle of rainwater as it meandered down a stepladder of red-and-white toadstools, each one just shorter than the next, and told myself it would not be so bad. But my lips betrayed my heart to him, and I said, “I want to see the horses.” “Neshka,” my father said, in his sternest voice. “You know better than to ask for that.” “Please, father? I only want to look.” “That’s exactly what your mother said. She only wanted to look, and then the horses took her away from us. Is that what you want? To leave?” “Of course not.” My voice sounded as small as I felt. “Good.” A pool of vague sadness welled up in me, for I’d meant to fight harder to see the horses. He would say no, then I’d throw a fit, and we’d meet somewhere in the middle. Maybe that was creeping up to the edge of the prairie-lands to watch them from a distance. Maybe it was simply hearing the story once more about my mother and the time she rode one. But the hurt in his voice took me aback, and his accusation stilled the arguments upon my lips. Not that it mattered anyway, because at that moment, the rain stopped. The gentle patter of raindrops faded into silence, a numbness against my ears. The trickle of water on those red-and-white toadstools slowed, then died. My father and I looked at each other, then up at the silver sky in askance. “Has this ever happened before?” I asked. He frowned up at the sky. “No.” Excerpt from “Lightless” by K.T. Ivanrest: Already Fulsa was halfway across the room, nerves coursing around his stomach while he unbuttoned his shirt and tossed it on a nearby chair. Immediately the room grew lighter, and desperate hope fired in his heart. Perhaps he was brightening after all. Perhaps his nightmare was finally over. He slid a sheer coat across his shoulders and then studied his hands, but could discern no difference in their glow. Here in this secluded tower with only Phaios for company, he had no way to determine whether there had been any further dimming. Beside the lightless slave he always looked radiant, so bright he could almost forget what was happening, and then the empress would visit and he’d see just how quickly his dignity and worth were seeping out of his skin. A last glance out the window while he clenched his fists and tried to calm his heartbeat. Another last glance toward Phaios, whose silent nod spoke more clearly than any words. Then he knelt before the door and waited. Aithra’s footsteps were mere tps on the polished stone, her presence announced instead by the brilliance which preceded her up the staircase, pressing away the shadows with proud disdain and careless ease. “Your Majesty.” Her gossamer coat rustled softly, scattering specks of light like jewels for the less fortunate. Even knowing how much of it was unnatural, he envied her splendor. To have so much to shed… About the Anthologist
Rhonda Parrish is driven by the desire to do All The Things. She was the founder and editor-in-chief of Niteblade Magazine, is an Assistant Editor at World Weaver Press, and is the editor of several anthologies including, most recently, Sirens and C is for Chimera. In addition, Rhonda is a writer whose work has been included or is forthcoming in dozens of publications including Tesseracts 17: Speculating Canada from Coast to Coast, Imaginarium: The Best Canadian Speculative Writing (2012 & 2015), and Mythic Delerium. Her website, updated weekly, is at rhondaparrish.com.
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Praise"All the stories in this collection are good. Each author has a completely different take on where the animals live and how they behave. It makes the stories surprising and unique. If you like fantasy, magic, or horses, you'll love this book."
--Journey of a Bookseller "This was a wonderfully eclectic anthology, with practically any stripe of fantasy a grown-up weird horse girl could want on offer between the covers." --T.R. North, short story author "Equus is a delight, with a unique take on an old subject. There's a nice range of mood and subject, but the overall theme is well-explored and central." —Jaym Gates, ed War Stories "Equus is a delightful collection of stories…If you love horses and fantasy, this is definitely a collection for you." --Nicki J. Markus, author of The Ragnarök Chronicles "Equus should be read by anyone who loves everything equestrian." --Long and Short Reviews "Generously infused with magic and mystery, these stories leaped off the pages and lingered in my imagination long after I finished the book." —Tabitha Lord, author of Horizon PRaise for the series
"The call of SIRENS is quite powerful indeed. With a variety of stories, crafted with care, you will delight in the tales that the many authors weave throughout this fantastical anthology. It will lure you in and not let go."
—Tara Platt, author Zartana "Poignant, diverse, and enthralling: this new volume in the Magical Menagerie series evokes the majesty of sirens, from the traditional deep sea variety of Greek mythology to those that entice sailors of deep space to ones who scan modern dating sites with wistful hopes for a good match. I could not stop reading." —Beth Cato, author of The Clockwork Dagger "Nibble on this deliciously wondrous collection of stories of fae one at a time or binge on its delights on one night, you'll love the faerie feast this collection provides. Love, loss, horror, healing, humor, tragedy--it's all here, where stories of magical beings and the humans they encounter will enthrall and enlighten the reader about both the mundane and the otherworldly. I devoured it." — Kate Wolford, editor of Beyond the Glass Slipper, editor and publisher of Enchanted Conversation: A Fairy Tale Magazine. “The Fae prove treacherous allies and noble foes in this wide-ranging anthology from Rhonda Parrish that stretches boundaries of folk tale and legend. These fairy stories are fully enmeshed in the struggles of today, with dangerous beings from under the hills taking stances against the exploitation of children and the oppression of women, yet offering bargains in exchange for their aid that those in desperate need had best think twice about accepting. There’s no Disney-esque flutter and glitter to be found here — but there are chills and thrills aplenty.” — Mike Allen, author of Unseaming and editor of Clockwork Phoenix “Smart and dark like the corvids themselves, this excellent collection of stories and poems will bring you a murder of chills, a tiding of intrigue, a band of the fantastic, and—most of all—an unkindness of sleepy mornings after you've stayed up too late reading it!” — Karen Dudley, author of Kraken Bake “Corvidae evokes the majesty and mischief of corvid mythologies worldwide—and beyond our world—in a collection that is fresh and thoroughly enjoyable.” — Beth Cato, author of The Clockwork Dagger “Magic and corvids collide in this certain to intrigue anthology.” — Joshua Klein, hacker and inventor of the crow vending machine “A creepy, crazy kaleidoscope of corvids,Corvidae is what happens when you bring together ingenious writers and sagacious subjects. It’s nothing short of a thrill ride when this anthology takes flight.” — Susan G. Friedman, Ph. D., Utah State University; behaviorworks.org. “As sparkling and varied as a corvid’s hoard of treasures, Corvidae is by turns playful and somber, menacing and mischievous. From fairy tale to steampunk adventure, from field of war to scene of crime, these magical birds will take you to places beyond your wildest imaginings.” — Jennifer Crow, poet and corvid-by-marriage “Rhonda Parrish has assembled a stellar collection that runs the gamut of Urban Fantasy to Weird Fiction. Easily the most consistently satisfying anthology I've read in years.” — K.L. Young, Executive Editor, Strange Aeons Magazine “With fifteen talented writers and a subject that is both evocative and memorable, Rhonda Parrish’s new anthology, Scarecrow, is no straw man. Like any good scarecrow, this anthology is truly outstanding in its field. Don’t be scared to pick this up and give it a read.” — Steve Vernon, author of Tatterdemon |