Review: La Sylphide - A Gripping Short Story by K. Gorman

Posted first at Amazon with Four Stars

I enjoyed reading the draft of Ms Gorman’s offering at her web site, and following up with the finished story was an equal pleasure for a couple of reasons: I didn’t have to wait a week between chapters, LOL, and there were a few changes that I liked with none that I didn’t.

I’m not sure of the genre; there are elements of romance, and fantasy and SF along with some dystopia to keep the reader engaged, though I think romance and fantasy dominate. As befits a story of this length, the plot doesn’t take many (any) side trips.

Still, I hoped for a more explicit resolution of a couple of plot threads (read: It wasn’t long enough!). This likely says more about me than the story, so I’ll avoid spoilers.

Ms Gorman’s characters seem true to me. I liked all of them, even Telemut, but Allish and Seth particularly struck the mark. Her descriptions are lush, even when chronicling the more dystopian scenes.

I read La Sylphide using the Kindle app on my MacBook; the formatting was fine. The cover evoked Allish as both dancer and sprite; I liked it, but didn’t check how my greyscale Kindle rendered it. The characters use real language.

I noticed a couple of typos which may by now have been corrected, but probably would interfere with no one’s enjoyment.

I recommend La Sylpide to anyone looking for a striking mélange of romance and fantastical elements.