Plot Summary: Elysia is living in what's left of Baltimore. Seven years ago there was a great `Collapse' and mankind was returned to the dark-age, but with automatic weapons at their disposal. Gasoline is worth killing for, riots start whenever food appears, and money is worthless. Her former best friend, Darien, steps in just when Elysia is cornered for stealing a bag of apples. Together they escape Baltimore and Darien wants to know if Elysia is still being called by her animal spirit. He wants to convince Elysia to give their relationship a chance, and follow their inner animal guides to find a new beginning for mankind.
I was pressed for time today, so I decided to read this freebie novella I downloaded for my Kindle. It is the prequel story to Jeri Smith-Ready's Aspect of Crow Trilogy, of which I have read the first book, Eyes Of Crow (Aspect of Crow Trilogy). I had assumed this trilogy was based on a pure fantasy construct, but actually it's a tale set on Earth far into the future. This prequel novella tells the story of how our current civilization collapsed, and the group of people who became ancestors to the animal spirit followers in the Aspect of Crow Trilogy.
In general I'm not a short story fan, but within a limited number of pages Smith-Ready wrote a complete tale with a start, middle, end, and a romance to boot. Unfortunately we are not privy to whatever caused the collapse of societies' modern infrastructure, and we're only treated to details about the aftermath. Still, it's a good little story for anyone who wants to read, or has already read, this series.
