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~ Past Midnight by AE Rought ~ As a child, she hated visiting Grandmother’s house. Now her Grandmother is gone, the house has been sold and subsequently vacated again, and she is drawn irresistibly to the house and the woods her Grandmother warned her about. But she is ill-prepared for the evil awaiting her homecoming… Sometimes I need a story with a happy ending, and other times I need a story that does not necessarily cater to what the writer thinks I want or expect. A.E. Rought’s offering to the Spellbound anthology, Past Midnight, definitely fits in the second category and earns this author a place on my to-be-watched list. Readers who require a happy-ever-after may not enjoy this particular tale, but those of who love a good story that unravels naturally with an intriguing twist will surely enjoy Past Midnight as much as I did! ~ Unholy Night by Candice Gilmer ~ Marissa doesn’t do Halloween night. Not since that night – well, she doesn’t talk about that. Ever. She isn’t quite sure why she let her best friend drag her to this particular Halloween party, but she is sure she would rather be anywhere else. That is, until Neil shows up. As soon as Neil sees Marissa, he can’t take his eyes off of her, and he won’t take no for an answer. But the dangerous secrets they both harbor threaten their love and their lives… Candice Gilmer’s contribution to the Spellbound anthology left me hungry for more – in a good way! Unholy Night is a complete story itself, but feels like a marvelous beginning to what might hopefully become a series. She introduces some intriguing secondary characters in such a way that leaves us wanting to learn more about them, while not detracting from the lead couple’s storyline. I will definitely be looking for more from Gilmer in the near future! ~ The Spirits of Squirrel Hollow by Ivana Peters ~ The old abandoned house is a legend in Squirrel Hollow, complete with fantastic ghost stories of a pair of cursed lovers who met their doom in the old house. It seems the perfect place for three teen-age couples to spend one Halloween night. But the ghosts who haunt the old Fisher house have their own ideas… I was intrigued by Ivana Peters’ premise in The Spirits of Squirrel Hollow, but the story told was much too large for such a short story. Including the ghosts in the story, there seemed to be nine main characters, none of whom every really had enough story for the reader to connect with them. I would rather have seen the author focus on only one of the three couples, with the ghostly couple and witch as the co-stars for the story. The large cast might work better for a full-length novel, but in the shorter format, it was simply too much. That said, I enjoyed Peters’ writing style immensely, and her ideas were definitely intriguing. After reading The Spirits of Squirrel Hollow, I am interested in picking up one of her full-length novels where she would have room to fully explore the depths of her imagination. ~ Aphrodesia by Sabrina Luna ~ Dawn’s kindness to an old Gypsy woman is rewarded in unexpected, but very appreciated ways when the love potion she bought turns out to be a true Aphrodesia! Sabrina Luna’s Aphrodesia was perfectly cast for such a short story. While a mysterious gypsy woman serves as the catalyst for what transpires in the story, Luna quickly focuses the story on the lead couple, Dawn and Victor. The magical genre and the mysterious love potion serve as a perfect plot device to rapidly progress their romance in a very enjoyable short story. ~ Connacht the Immortal by HS Kinn ~ Connacht the Immortal was torn from his family as a child, betrayed by his own people, and raised ignorant of his true heritage. And now he wants revenge… With Connacht the Immortal, we are again presented with a great idea that is much too big for the short story format. This story has a complicated mythos, an abundance of characters, and too many time periods to work in such a brief story. I didn’t dislike the story, but felt lost trying to keep up with the story. This is another I would like to see redone in a longer format. I think H.S. Kinn had a great story but not enough time to tell it in. ~ Grave Desire by Katrina Strauss ~ Kaitlyn Sinclair never forgot her first love, Antoine, but isn’t prepared when he shows up at her door nineteen years after she last saw him – mostly because he died in 1987! I chose this book simply because Katrina Strauss was part of it. Having enjoyed several of her other books immensely, I was confident that Grave Desire would be just as entertaining as her other stories, and she did not disappoint me. Grave Desire offers a non-traditional happy-ever-after ending while maintaining the integrity of the story and the characters. Antoine’s sudden re-appearance in Kaitlyn’s life helps her remember the girl she once was, and realize the woman she has become. Reviewed by Jennifer
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Spellbound: Tales of
Mischief & Mayhem
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