Dragon Time and Other Stories [Kindle Edition]

Ruth Nestvold (Author)

Book Description

A collection of four previously published fantasy tales by Ruth Nestvold: "Dragon Time," "Wooing Ai Kyarem," "To Act the Witch," and "Princes and Priscilla."

Dragon Time: In Unterdrachenberg, time has stopped. After the death of his queen, the dragon king is mad with grief. Only a human woman can enter the dragon's lair to fix time -- a magic that is forbidden to women. Katja is the grand-daughter of a clockmaker, and she has watched her grandfather work with time for many years. But can she fix it on her own? More importantly, is she brave enough to try?

Wooing Ai Kyarem: Ai Kyarem calls no man lord. But what if the powerful Kubai forces her to choose?

To Act the Witch: Brilliana is a famous actress for the Duke's Theatre, yes -- but she is also a Witch. And it is up to her to save the Age of Magic.

Princes and Priscilla: As princess and heir to the kingdom, Priscilla really should marry a prince and ensure the succession. Unfortunately, Priscilla has other ideas.

The four short stories in this collection come to a total of about 30,000 words.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"'Dragon Time' is a beautifully told tale. It's easy to feel empathy for Katja; she has just enough flaws that we can love her, and not so many that we lose respect for her. The play of plot and emotion was especially lovely; the ending satisfies completely, and the love in the story positively shines. While the story has ancient treaties, magician-clockmakers, and, of course, dragons--everything needed for a good fantasy story--it's the love that stands out the most. It's a story I'll go back to time and time again--pun intended."

- Keesa Renee DuPre at Tangent Online

About the Author

Ruth Nestvold's short stories have appeared in numerous markets, including Asimov's, F&SF, Baen's Universe, Strange Horizons, Realms of Fantasy, and Gardner Dozois's Year's Best Science Fiction. Her fiction has been nominated for the Nebula, Tiptree, and Sturgeon Awards. In 2007, the Italian translation of her novella "Looking Through Lace" won the "Premio Italia" award for best international work. Her novel Yseult (Flamme und Harfe) appeared in translation with the German imprint of Random House in 2009 and has since been translated into Dutch and Italian. She maintains a web site at ruthnestvold.com.

Product Details

• File Size: 227 KB
• Print Length: 102 pages
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B006UMIU8G
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #478,353 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars fantasy & magic times four March 14, 2012

By aobibliophile™

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Those things which are precious are saved only by sacrifice. - David Kenyon Webster (US Army Officer and Writer)

from the creative mind of Nebula Awards nominee Ruth Nestvold comes a collection of four notable stories of fantasy and magic:
* Dragon Time - stricken with grief over the death of his Queen, the dragon King has accidentally stopped time. Katja must attempt to fix time even if it is forbidden for a woman to do so.
* Wooing Ai Kyarem - summoned by her lord Kubai Kuyuk, Ai Kyarem must go to the city of Pakum and prove to him that not even his loyal adviser Nika of the Harding can best her in a wrestling match in order to win her hand in marriage
* To Act the Witch - pleading for her husband's recovery, the Queen's Alchemist Janna Childe seeks the help of actress and witch Brilliana Crowley. Brilliana must stop whoever is responsible for attempting to put an end to the Age of Magic.
* Princes and Priscilla - to save the kingdom from falling into the hands of King Rupert's cousin Denny, fairy godmother Fanny stages a trial for the hand of her godchild Princess Priscilla.
after reading a couple of pages of the first story, i felt that i had to slow down because i knew that i discovered another master wordsmith. more than three hours later, i was not proven wrong in savoring this well-written collection.
i love the old-world feel of the settings of the stories and how mundane everything appeared to be despite the fantasy and magical elements in each tale.
what connects all four are the presence of strong female characters who face their respective predicaments and triumph over them. moreover, each one had to sacrifice someone or something for the greater good without losing her dignity and integrity in the process....
i thoroughly enjoyed escaping into Ms. Nestvold's world and i highly recommend this anthology to fans of fantasy and magic who wish to make that journey as well. Read more ›

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable, makes you want more June 6, 2012

By Tania Arpa

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I enjoyed this book a lot. The stories are smart, romantic and funny, and take you to unexpected places. I hope the author writes a full novel with the characters and places in Dragon Time.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars 4 short stories to wile away the hours January 19, 2013

By Paul from LA

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Dragon Time and other stories is a great read. It is four short stories, all with women as the main characters.

Dragon Time was really enjoyable. Katja is a woman in a mans world who is called upon to fix time when the Dragon King, in a fit or rage over the death of his Queen, breaks the clock that controls time. The King's son, the Prince enlists Katja to fix time even though it is forbidden for a woman to do so. You will have to read the book to find out more.

Wooing Ai Kyarem is a story about a woman who is the leader of a tribe, and is also an undefeated warrior who will not have any man who can not best her in wrestling. She is summoned by her lord Kubai Kuyuk, and goes to Pakum because he wants her to marry into his clan so he can acquire her tribe's horses. The story does not go his way, and the rest will require you to read the book to know what happens.

To Act the Witch is a story about a performer, Brilliana Crowley who is also the descendant of a Witch, and finds out that she is a witch in a land that is trying to put an end to the age of magic. Brilliana undertakes a challenge to remove a spell placed on the husband of the Queen's Alchemist. Secrets will be uncovered and again, you will have to read the book to find out more.

Princes and Priscilla is about a spoiled princess, her father, her fairy godmother, Fanny, a slew of princes and an attempt to wed Priscilla so that the King's cousin Denny will not be the next King to sit upon the throne. Read along and find out how Fanny and the King attempt to wed Priscilla, and how she resists their every attempt. This story will amaze you, and the ending is supurb....

Ruth Nestvold has put together these four short stories with a flair that will entice you to read the entire book at one sitting, it is supurb. The characters are all very well defined, the stories are believeable, and you can relate to them. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and recommend it to anyone who absolutely loves fantasy. I look forward to more from this author and encourage you to get this book, read it, and like it. Read more ›

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Dragon Time and Other Stories March 13, 2013

By Megan Dickson

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I loved them. I just wish they were longer! Very well written and entertaining. I'm really glad I got it!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Different and enjoyable July 17, 2012

By Epithet

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

This was a great collection of 4 short stories by Ruth Nestvold. I enjoyed all 4 stories, but I think my favourite was Princes and Priscilla - about a very down-to-earth princess, her beaus and an unusual godmother. I would definitely read another book by this author.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable! May 16, 2012

By Kristen Fadich

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

A delightful collection of short stories. A bit of fantasy with a healthy dose of romance. My favorite was the title story "Dragon Time". Nothing here is unexpected. But everything here is well written and a lovely time pass.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic Imagination February 24, 2012

By Dawn Rarick

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I cannot say enough about the stories I read in this book! I could feel the love on every page. I absolutely adore the characters in all of these tales. They are very real, and easy to relate to. Not sure, really, the audience she had intended, but, I can see this book being read by young adults and adults alike. What amazing, imaginative and realistic, fun stories! I absolutely LOVE this book, and hope to find it in paperback/hardcover, so that I may have an heirloom gift! Thank you, mi lady, Ruth, for the magic you brought into my life!

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Fantasy in many settings. February 25, 2012

By Kriti Godey

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book contains four short stories: "Dragon Time", "Wooing Ai Kyarem", "To Act the Witch", and "Princes and Priscilla". Overall, I thought that it was a pretty strong collection. I was a bit surprised by the fact that all the stories had a strong element of romance to them, but that's probably because I went into the author's novel, "Yseult" expecting a lot more romance than there was, and that skewed my expectations.

I was pretty impressed with the range of settings described in Dragon Time and Other Stories. The titular story is set in a place like medieval Germany, "Wooing Ai Kyarem" is set in what seemed like Mongolia and Genghis-Khan inspired, and "To Act the Witch" is set in 17th century England. Nestvold was able to capture very different feels in all the stories, and I really enjoyed that.

I thought that "To Act the Witch" was the weakest of the stories; the events of the story were too big to be adequately conveyed in such a short story. It felt a bit rushed and not entirely believable. I still enjoyed it, though. "Dragon Time" was a fun story, although it was a bit too romantic for me. "Wooing Ai Kyarem" was one of my favourites; I liked Ai Kyarem and her determination a lot. "Princes and Priscilla" was my other favourite, I also loved Priscilla's way of taking matters into her own hands, and the humour of the story.

More About the Author

Since about the age six, Ruth Nestvold wanted to be a writer (besides wanting to be a singer and an actress and President of the United States), but for too many years she put practical pursuits first and writing fiction second. After completing a Ph.D. in literature and working as lecturer and assistant professor at the University of Stuttgart and the University of Freiburg, she took time off from academic pursuits to attend the Clarion West Writers Workshop, a six week "boot camp" for writers of science fiction and fantasy. She learned more there than she could have dreamed possible, changed her priorities, and gave up theory for imagination. Two years later, she sold her first short story to the acclaimed science fiction magazine, Asimov's. Since then, she has sold over forty pieces of short fiction to a variety of markets, including Baen's Universe, Strange Horizons, Scifiction, F&SF, Realms of Fantasy, and several year's best anthologies. She has been nominated for the Nebula, the Sturgeon, and the Tiptree awards. In 2007, the Italian translation of her novella "Looking Through Lace" won the "Premio Italia" for best international work. Her novel Yseult appeared in German translation as Flamme und Harfe with Random House Germany and has since been translated into Dutch and Italian. It is now available as an ebook in the original English. It was followed in June 2012 by the second book in the Pendragon Chronicles, "Shadow of Stone" (http://pendragonchronicles.wordpress.com). She taught creative writing for a semester at the University of Stuttgart, participates regularly in online writing workshops, and founded the Villa Diodati workshop for English-speaking writers of speculative fiction in Europe. She maintains a web site at www.ruthnestvold.com.