"Dunasby, Fire and Ice," by Rebecca Lyn Shelley

[Scott H. Andrews]

This thread is for discussion of "Dunasby, Fire and Ice (http://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/story.php?s=11)," by Rebecca Lyn Shelley, which appears in BCS Issue #6 from Dec. 18, 2008.

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[Unregistered]

I actually read this story a while ago, but I didn't know guests could post comments.

Firstly, I have to say that I'm very impressed with the prose. It was a perfect balance between florid and clear, without the rough edges that sometimes permeates genre fiction or the long-winded metaphors that only slow down reading drastically when it comes to more literary work. And while I'm at it, I've been very impressed with BCS as a whole for delivering some of the best quality prose I've seen in the F/SF short fiction field.

The storyline is also very powerful, with a good mix of the dark and the hopeful. The tone contains a dark aura, but the story also has elements that give the reader hope. I also like how the focus is given to creating a good plot and solid characters (as opposed to making pretty settings, unique magical systems, or original creatures/lore--while I understand the appeal of these things, I personally find that a good story is more important than how good the magic is). Deathfire is a twisted but strangely engaging character and the dynamics of the side characters are handled very well.

I really enjoyed the themes of life and death, pain and pleasure. The story happens to be the perfect balance of light and dark I enjoy: serious and suspenseful, but with a shard of light in the otherwise dark, dismal cavern. I would like to thank the author and the magazine for giving me the chance to read this fabulous story.