For traditional fantasy, does it get better than this author menu? I don't think so. A rich, enjoyable book. Each story is set within a wider world, making it even more impressive that each of these finely crafted stories can stand on their own but still slot neatly into the larger world mythologies. ( )

An anthology of fantasy short stories by a variety of authors. There are two stories each by Mercedes Lackey and Marion Zimmer Bradley, and one each by Jennifer Roberson and Ru Emerson. The stories I liked best were Bradley's two, which focus around the character Lythande, due to having prior experience with the character, while the weakest in my opinion was Roberson's story, but that's likely because it's a prequel to her eight volume Cheysuli chronicles and doesn't stand quite so well on its own. The quality overall of the stories is so-so, but not unenjoyable. ( )