I just finished reading all 4 stories. I picked up the anthology because it included Sharon Shinn and Rebecca York, but Shinn's story almost made me not want to finish the book. Usually with an anthology, they try to put the strongest story in the first position, so it lowered my expectations.

1st story: Sharon Shinn's story was told entirely from the viewpoint of a third party. It read more like a fairy tale, but an unhappy one, and there was little romance.

2nd story: Jean Johnson's story was much more romantic. The characters spent time together developing a relationship and the fantasy elements were supporting the story rather than the purpose of the story. I think this was the strongest in the book and would be interested to read more by this author. This tale had twin royal sisters trying to determine which of them is firstborn and would become their father's heir. While researching a solution, the heroine meets a mage that provides assistance in her quest.

3rd story: Carol Berg's story was okay - it has a psychic investigator who is still a student that gets involved in espionage. This story seems to be crying out to be a larger novel - a lot of time is spent defining the class problems between psychics and people without powers, problems with a neighboring region, types of law enforcers and types of power holders. The amount of time for the hero/heroine to meet and fall in love is short and unsubstaniated. Seems likely this was part of a larger book, maybe a prequel where there heroine and hero meet. Not much romance, some physical attraction.

4th story: Rebecca York's story was okay - it is the sexiest of the stories in the book, including a virgin sex slave. The paranormal plot is interesting. The storyline is obviously trying to set up an alternate universe earth, in the future after people have invented a device that creates mental powers and ends up causing chaos and war. The characters seem surprised to blurt out they were in love, and I was surprised too, as they had almost barely meet each other and spent little time together and not really shown that they were in love. I didn't buy in to the romance storyline, but the intrique was sustainable to finish the story.

All four short stories were from good authors, but no standouts, not their best works.

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I am a fan of both Berg and Shinn and was looking forward to collection. I did enjoy their novellas, but was not at all impressed with the other contributions. The Shinn and Berg stories were much better crafted in terms of dialogue, setting, plot and pretty much everything. Knowing what I know now, I still would have bought the book to read the Shinn and Berg novellas but I don't know if I would have wasted my time on the other two.

Shinn's piece was entertaining but did not compare with her novels. It was a sadder story but pretty. Berg's was my favorite. I've read the series that the universe is based on and enjoyed it so that might have influenced my opinion. I do find her to be a strong tight writer, and I know when I pick up a book by her that I will enjoy it.

The other two novellas were not at all to my taste. York's had very stilted "matter of fact" dialogue that annoyed me throughout the story, and Johnson's love at first sight sex slave story was poorly written and the story line was implausible.

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Two good anthologies back to back! This one holds 4 stories, each with an elemental theme. Sharon Shinn's romance has a happy ending despite the pitfalls of making bargains with capricious air elementals. Jean Johnson's exotic desert setting is perfect for her tale of twins trying to determine who is the ruling heir with the power to command the earth. Carol Berg's wizards and sorcerers live in a world where water strips away all illusions. And in Rebecca York's parallel universe of psychics, magic and werewolves, those who control fire have the power to heal as well as harm. A satisfying collection of classic and contemporary fantasy.

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