Things seem clearer in the silver light of the extraordinary - Harlan Ellison

Simon was sick last night and we had a trip to URgent Care. bad reaction to antibiotics. better now.
have been skimming books, summer style:
Started and finished this during our 4 hour wait last night:
She Walks these Hills - sharyn McCrumb - got via bookmooch.com - based on a story of a girl captured by injuns = did what it needed to do while sitting in an uncomfortable plastic chair.
the Wheel of Darkness - Preston Chils and Douglas Preston - got this at Goodwill. another in the series about Agent Pendergrast and despite the Buddhist bent, was disappointed. Normally LOVE this series.
Finally
Salon Fantastique - edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling. Loved this collection of fantasy tales. pretty much love anything written or edited by these two. Especially worth mentioning, La Fee Verte by Delia Sherman - need to find more by this writer.

Now my friend Susan passed on to me 'Angels Game' by writer of Shadow of the Wind. Is simply breathtaking. Barcelona is alive for me in these pages... enjoying every sentence and trying to linger..

The Wood Wife - Terri Windling.
I read a short story of hers, loved her style and found this on half.com.
I relate to her characters - this one in particular has an affinity for both the Southwest Desert and the West country in the UK - Cornwall, Devon and Dartmoor.
Her characters are alive and take many forms, mystical, magical, quasi-human, quasi based on indiginous(sp?) folklore - the Trickster, the Hag, etc. Stayed up till the wee hours on this one.

I am a fan of Sci-fi, speculative fiction, horror, etc., but get really picky about fantasy. This one delivered for me and I will seek out other works she has participated in. she is quite accomplished, a painter, a writer, a poet and an excellent editor of anthologies and short story collections. I realized I have a few of her edited short story collections - Snow White and Blood Red is delicious.

She is an inspiration!

Just closed this enchanting collection of short stories put together by friends of SJ Tucker to raise funds to pay her medical bills.

Oh, I love everything about this genre and put aside another very good book when this one arrived. The short story combined with magic and fantasy - some better than others, haunting and lingering, a few predictable and I wish that not everyone wanted to be Neil Gaiman.
But, I read a story by Terri Windling, fell in love with her style and have ordered her book 'the Wood Wife' on half.com. She was the find for me - her writing style fits me, magic and grounded, adult and realistic, but with tendrils of wonder. She is also quite the artist, editor AND she lives in Devon, not far from my mother in law.

Had a bad headache in the early hours and wiped out by the medicine stayed home, woke up, did the essential work and then have listened to the blustery April day and let myself be taken by these tales of what ifs? I do like a good 'what if?"