From the Ashes: And Straight into my Heart?

You must read From the Ashes, by Alexis Ames. Its themes aren’t unknown to readers, yet they are themes that everyone should remember time and time again. Its crisp writing will pull you into a world of dragons and robots and weddings (and a gay wedding, too!). By the time you’ve read just a few paragraphs, you’ll feel like you’re standing beside the character as he solves a particularly perplexing puzzle.

Short stories are a difficult art form to master. Writers must pen a tale that fits within just a few thousand words—sometimes less, depending on the market. In From the Ashes, Ames wastes no time placing you right in the action as the protagonist faces down the claws of a dragon.

And that’s the beauty of this story. With every word, you’re dragged along toward a new twist that will subvert your expectations. My instinct predicted a fight between a knight and a dragon; in some ways, that happened, but it’s no ordinary fight.

Like all of Ames’s writing, she constructs an inclusive world, too. Never ignoring the misrepresentation of LGBTQ+ characters in fantasy writing, she successfully reminds readers that these relationships are entirely normal and should own the genre.

If you’ve got fifteen minutes today, read From the Ashes. It went straight to my heart, and I think it will make its mark on you too.

The Two Doctors Review gives From the Ashes an 8/10.

“From the Ashes” was originally located online, but it has since been removed from that publication at the author's request. We will update with a link to the story when Alexis Ames finds a new home for it :)