IAN DOWNUNDER VS. WHISPERS FROM THE IRON CAULDRON

Ian delves into Burial Books’ Whispers From the Iron Cauldron and finds adventure, chaos, magic, and enough fantasy fun to fill a wizard’s spellbook.

TITLE: Whispers From the Iron Cauldron

EDITOR: Stephen Rhoades

GENRE: Fantasy

PAGES: 431

FORMAT: eBook

PRICE: eBook $3.99, Paperback $14.99, Hardcover $23.99

G’day all, it’s your ARC reader from the slowly warming land of Australia, coming at you with something a little different from the norm. Here’s a hint: it’s not horror. Did I just hear you gasp? Putting aside the fact that it’s actually impossible to do since I’m most likely in another country, and even if I wasn’t, not in the same room (or am I?), the fact remains. This week, I’m lubing myself up to slip on my strongest suit of armor and preparing for battle with Burial Books’ Whispers From the Iron Cauldron, a fantasy anthology. So, if you’re curious, feel free to lube yourself up, slip on your own armor of choice, and join me.

Now that we have that slightly awkward intro out of the way, let’s get into the bread-and-mead of things (get it? It’s not meat and potatoes because of the fantasy setting), shall we?

This anthology boasts twenty-four stories spread across a meaty four hundred-plus-page book and packs quite a variety of tales betwixt its pages. 

Being primarily a horror reader, I’m used to tales having unexpected twists, and although a few of these do, they’re more bite-sized, self-contained stories. Fantasy often needs a bit of world-building to understand the setting and what the characters are up against, so I was curious how that would be handled in the short story format. For the most part, it worked quite well. There was just enough information in each to be immersed, though I did find myself craving to know more.

There’s a nice variety of stories here: some typical adventure fantasy, some sword & sorcery, some revenge, and even a few light-hearted ones. There’s enough for any fantasy lover to enjoy.

Some of my favourites included:

Birds of a Feather by Eric Mosher — a sword & sorcery tale following Camryn, a barbarian for hire who arrives in a seaside town that is besieged by a harpy invasion. The townsfolk are scared and desperate as the harpy attacks are creating shortages of food due to attacks on the ships that come in. When Camryn is ambushed by a band of desperate thieves, he’s saved by Corvinna, a captain of one of the ships that made it safely to port. The pair then embark on a journey to put an end to the Harpy threat. It’s a fun tale that sword & sorcery lovers will appreciate. 

Dragons in the Night by Craig Borri, where a pair of dragons in the guise of humans enter a town to find a mythical item that was stolen an age ago and hidden in a temple. A demon is also after the item, and the dragons must race to reach it first in a life-or-death struggle. 

The Greatest Fool in the World by Mark Mills, featuring a man who ventures across a desert to prove he’s worthy of marrying a princess in a town on the other side. The desert is full of creatures living under the surface that will instantly attack and kill anyone who so much as drops a bead of sweat on the sand. After many trials and tribulations, he makes it only to be rejected by the princess. It doesn’t end there, but the conclusion gave me a good chuckle.

The Gods Old and New by Karl El-Koura, about a powerful sister and her two brothers who are on a quest to put an end to eight tyrannical gods who have made people’s lives a living hell. They’ve trained and planned well, but as we know, plans rarely go as expected, and the ending they envisioned is not the one they get. 

There were many more I could have mentioned, but alas, my hourglass has run out of sand, my quest log is full, and my mana bar is looking embarrassingly low. If these sound up your alley, I’d encourage you to take a gander at this anthology. I had a great time with it — enough to roll a natural 20 on enjoyment — and I’m sure you will too.

I give it 4.5 sharp, pointy swords of doom out of 5.

Ian Gielen is a writer of all things spooky and a horror fanatic. Ian embraces his inner geek with pride, his dedication on display in the intimidating collection of horror novels and video games that threaten to take over his living space. He is mad for all things Alien, Star Wars, and cats; his furry companions are always there to keep him company as he scribbles down his latest ideas. With the sheer number of furry and human companions in his life, it’s a wonder he isn’t a little crazier than he already is.

PLEASE NOTE: The views and opinions of the staff of Memento Mori Ink do not necessarily represent those of Memento Mori Ink or Crystal Lake Publishing, nor do the views or opinions of Crystal Lake necessarily represent those of Memento Mori Ink or its staff. Thank you for understanding.