If your week is shaping up to be as hectic as mine have been lately, I’ve got some short fiction to tell you about. Two new short stories by Kristine Kathryn Rusch, in fact.
The first is called “The Wedding Ring.” I find Vegas wedding stories fascinating, in part, because I’ve been married in Vegas more than once but always as a planned event (and never with Elvis officiating). I guess I just like the simplicity of a Vegas wedding. Big fuss and planning never appealed to me. And my last wedding—the only one I wore an honest-to-goodness wedding dress for because I finally knew this was the one—was the only one where we invited guests to attend. It was a wonderfully romantic ceremony made even better by the addition of our daughter to the ceremony.
But “The Wedding Ring” is not a romance. Not even close.
Here’s the synopsis:
When Serena meets Dylan in a casino hallway, she embraces the fairy tale. Whirlwind romance, Vegas wedding, all of it.
But when the fairy tale ends abruptly, she vows to find out why. And what she discovers proves more shocking than winning big in Vegas.
Named one of the best short mysteries of the year for 2018 by SeuthSayers.
You can buy “The Wedding Ring” here.
The second story is available for free this week only on Kris’ website as her latest Free Fiction offering. It’s called “Sales. Force.” and while it, too, deals with love (lost love, love potions), it’s also not even close to a romance. Here’s the synopsis:
Kaylee uses her magic to help her boss, Nia, keep the balance when Nia needs someone with Kaylee’s particular talents. But when Kaylee returns to work shortly after her fiancé dies, the assignment Nia proposes leaves Kaylee puzzled.
Nia wants Kaylee to investigate a new love potion. Kaylee wants to use her magical strength to get over her grief.
This assignment might help Kaylee move on in ways she never expected.
Click here to read “Sales. Force.” on Kris’ website or here to buy it to read whenever you want on your own device.
So, if you want a short respite from the sunny summer weather, and delightfully dark and twisty tales, give one or both of these stories a try.
Allyson Longueira is publisher of WMG Publishing. She is an award-winning writer, editor and designer, working mother, and brain tumor survivor.