FATE: Tales of History, Mystery and Magic Anthology

Bjørn reviews FATE: Tales of History, Mystery and Magic, an indie anthlogy featuring historical fiction and fantasy stories.

If you had a crystal ball to predict what lay ahead, would you be tempted to use it? Or would you leave the future to the turn of Fate?

Tales of Variety. Tales of History, Mystery and Magic – some comprising just one of these popular fiction genres, others, a mild mixture of all three. Perhaps you prefer historical fiction rather than a story about magic or fantasy? Maybe you enjoy exploring new themes or prefer sticking to the familiar? Historical fiction can often inform, imparting knowledge of the past, of its events and its people. Stories of mystery exercise the ‘little grey cells’ as Poirot would say, while fantasy and magic create new worlds and awed wonder.

Whatever result, this is where anthologies come into their own, and where short stories are often appreciated as enjoyable, entertaining, quick or easy reads shown through the eyes of a variety of extraordinary characters and situations. In this an Anglo-Saxon woman facing the consequence of conquest, the pursuit of alchemy, the concern of a mother for her daughter, the shifting of time, the necessity of hidden identity, souls who will linger as ghosts, a warning from the supernatural, the necessity for (justifiable?) revenge. All mingled with the rekindling of romance through a mutual quest, and the preparations for a Cotswold village celebration. (Along with a good tip if illicitly snaffling cakes.)

The binding theme? Destiny… Kismet… FATE!

FATE: Tales of History, Mystery and Magic is an anthology of ten stories featuring some of the biggest names I recognise from Indie Twitter (RIP – come to Bluesky to follow the same people). In order of appearance, FATE features contributions by: Annie Whitehead, Jean Gill, Marian L Thorpe, Helen Hollick, Alison Morton, Elizabeth St. John, R. Marsden, Anna Belfrage, J. P. Reedman, and Debbie Young (!) (you know what I mean by (!) if you’ve read enough books by Debbie Young to wonder how she made her way into this anthology).

I didn’t set my expectations high – I knew some of those authors would deliver because they’re predictably brilliant and already among my favourites, but anthologies are always hit-and-miss. Someone’s favourite story is inevitably going to be somebody else’s hour of boredom. But FATE: Tales of History, Mystery and Magic is free from filler, with all the authors delivering quality. Which makes my work much more difficult. Reviewing books that are very good means I have nothing to complain about, and if I’m only gushing, I could as well say ‘buk gud, buy buk’ – right? Well, buk gud. Buy buk.

Two or three of those stories beg to be expanded into novels. The brief afterword following one of them, Elizabeth St. John’s ‘Following Fate’, suggests that the author had the same idea – in fact, the words used are ‘potential new series’ which I’m already looking forward to. This both is and isn’t a compliment, because two other stories felt unfinished; they read like excerpts from longer works, which I would very much like to read.

I skimmed through one story because I didn’t particularly appreciate the writing style – just not my sort of thing, which doesn’t mean the story itself was bad. Everything else ranged between good and fantastic. I was delighted by ‘The Black Onyx Box’ by R. Marsden, an author new to me and definitely deserving further investigation. Jean Gill’s trip into the world of Greek mythology surprised and delighted me. So did Anna Belfrage’s excursion into the Norse world.I wholeheartedly recommend FATE: Tales of History. Mystery and Magic to all readers of historical fiction. You’re bound to find something to love. There is time travel, religion, royalty (a bit of Tudors, even), ghosts and/or saints (who knows with saints who show up?), a bit of horror, and lots of the promised mystery and magic, big and small. Just be aware – the destiny of your TBR pile is to grow further. Like mine just did 🙁