First time reading this author, and pleasantly surprised with this collection. A couple that dipped down to 3.5 stars, but all the rest 4 or 5 stars. Most stories had just a touch of the fantastic or magical, and all were quite enjoyable.

The Education of a Witch - 3.5 Stars
Amicae Aeternum - 5
Mrs. Zeno’s Paradox - 5
Singing on a Star - 5
Hey, Presto! - 5
Echoes of Aurora - 4.5
Friday Night at St. Cecilia’s - 5
Caligo Lane - 4.5
Goodnight Moons - 5
Gone to the Library - 4
Household Management - 3.5
Sponda the Suet Girl and the Secret of the French Pearl - 5
Woodsmoke - 5
The Scary Ham - 5

Averages out to 4.6, which I'm very happy to round up to 5 stars.

Now on to find other stories from this lady. ( )

I don't think it's at all an exaggeration to say that this anthology honestly has something for everyone. Fantasy, science fiction, fairy tale, you name it--it's here. And to top it off, every one of these stories is well written and kept me engaged from beginning to end. This was my first experience reading anything by Ellen Klages, and I am glad I picked this up. This is an author who demonstrates great skill in both creating richly-developed worlds and unique, three-dimensional characters over and over again in short stories. It's no small feat, and she does it so very well. Definitely worth a read!

[Disclaimer: This review is based on an advance reading copy provided by the publisher via NetGalley.] ( )

I received this ebook free from the publisher via netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.

Please see full reviews at www.coffeeandtrainspotting.wordpress.com. ( )

Lovely but disquieting. I really loved the author's notes about each story at the end of the book; I went back and re-read some of the stories, or at least parts of them, after reading the notes. ( )

3.5 stars. I am not a short story reader, as I like to have something that keeps me turning pages. Several of the stories in this book though, did just that. I was looking forward to seeing what the author would come up with next. Some of the stories were very good and some just didn't excite me but all were written well. The story notes at the back were great. Interesting to see the thought process behind the story. ( )