"The power of love fuels the Magick of this tale"
SMALL MAGICK is a fitting companion to the PEARL
2000 award winning novella FIRE & ICE. If you thought fire
was hot, remember that fire needs air to burn! Born to a long line of powerful female mages, Drey can
only summon small magick. Still it has its uses. She can
sense what causes illnesses, and cure them if it is within
the realm of possibilities. Certain that Drey must find a
way to unlock her power on her own, her family had sent her
off into the world. She had found little success thus far.
A trip back to her home village, however, changes her life
forever. On this particular trip it is not the magick of
her women folk that she envies but the love of a spouse.
She ponders the type of man she could love on the journey
home. Along the way, Drey's beloved cat discovers a path up a
hitherto insurmountable mountain. There Drey finds a place
of magick, abandoned long ago by another mage. Drey revels
in her find, and as the wind sings to her she closes a
circle. For the first time in her life she is able to raise
her untapped power and inadvertently conjures a man from
the sky who is the epitome of all the qualities she'd
imagined in a perfect lover. But Cyrus is not a man, but a
wind spirit whom she has accidentally bound to mortal form.
Cyrus had been drawn to Drey, had touched her with breezes
in intimate places as she'd played her pipes. Now he could
touch her in the flesh, but this pleasure would come at the
expense of his freedom to go where the wind carried him.
Try though she might, Drey could raise no more power to
return him to his ethereal form. Cyrus appears content to enjoy the pleasures his new flesh
affords them, until Drey can find a way to send him back.
She comes to love him more each day, but with that love she
realizes that she must put his happiness before her own.
She must find the power to send him back. Opportunity comes
when a wealthy and powerful new mage settles in her
village. Drey had never heard of a male mage before and
ponders what one might be like. Little does she know that
mages come in many varieties, but she is soon to find out
much to her horror. Drey makes a blind bargain with the
mage in exchange for his tutelage, hoping to learn a spell
that will set Cyrus free. Kelsch's font of references teach
Drey much. Too much in fact, for what she learns about him
makes her fear that the price of power might be too high. This tale was a wonder on so many levels. The reader will
enjoy the relationship between these two unusual
characters. Drey's wisdom and compassion outweigh any lack
she might have in the magick department. Cyrus is a
delight. All he gives, he gives with a passion and joy that
can't help but make you smile. His loyalty will touch the
reader's heart. Ms. Midnight has injected just the perfect
amount of sensuality and suspense into a novella that
doesn't seem at all small, but very magickal. I can't wait
to see what she does with Earth and Water. Copyright © 2003
Reviewed for LTDBooks rel. -
November 1, 2002,
ISBN #1553161092
Reviewed by Leslie Tramposch
Posted January 6, 2003
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