Buried Deep and Other Stories is a new anthology by author Naomi Novak, containing some of her older works and two new ones, one of which is set in the world of the series she is currently working on.

The Wreck of the Amphidrake (Araminta)

Sensuality: Subtle       Grade: D+

On her way to get married, Lady Araminta encounters pirates and magic, forever changing the trajectory of her life. The predictably feisty Mary Sue heroine and a story far too large for the page space allotted keeps this tale from receiving a higher grade.
(Originally published in 2008 in Fast Ships, Black Sails.)

After Hours

Series: Schoolomance
Sensuality: N/A            Grade: B

Beata is a witch of the Crooked forest, from a family who has always homeschooled their children in the old ways of the craft. She is surprised and reluctant when her family urges her to attend the Schoolomance and learn sorcery there.When Beata decides to break the rules and go out after dark, risking consumption by some nasty magical beasties while she does, she learns a lot about herself, her roommate Jayne and the real hero of the Schoolomance story. This quick YA read gives fans a chance to revisit the Schoolomance universe, get the briefest update on hero Orion, and see how The Calling, the major event in book two, impacted the students of the Schoolomance. Original to this anthology, it’s a good story for fans of that series.

Vici

Series: Temeraire
Sensuality: Subtle                Grade: A-

Marcus Antonius introduces us to the beginning of the dragon-riding/fighting world of the Temeraire series. It’s a fun, lighthearted story that perfectly captures the temper of the original set of books.
(Initially published in 2010 in The Dragon Book: Magical Tales from the Masters of Modern Fantasy).

Buried Deep

Sensuality: N/A   Grade: D-

This is an odd retelling of the Greek myth about the Minotaur. Confusing and disjointed, the tale seemed to have no purpose other than to remind us that human sacrifice is needless and cruel.

Spinning Silver

Sensuality: N/A             Grade: B+

Novik would later turn this retelling of Rumpelstiltskin into a very different. full-sized novel. However, this quick, cute tale still captures the essence of a clever girl outwitting a fairy king that made the book so wonderful.
(Originally published in 2016 in the anthology The Starlit Wood.)

Dragons and Decorum

Series: Temeraire
Sensuality: Kisses              Grade: A

A cute retelling of Pride and Prejudice in which Elizabeth Bennet is the captain of a Longwing Dragon (who will only accept female riders) and meets and falls in love with Mr. Darcy as she visits family. The romance is captured beautifully here, and the tale sticks to the original plot, writing style, and characterizations quite well, given its brevity and the addition of fantasy elements.
(Originally published 2017 in Golden Age and Other Stories.)

The Long Way Round

Sensuality: Subtle          Grade: D

Tess and her brother Aston build and race ships when they aren’t busy ferrying goods between the islands that make up their small corner of the world. They are growing tired of paying tariffs for waterway usage, though, and Aston can’t help but wonder if sailing The Blue – that vast expanse of ocean that no one has ever crossed before – wouldn’t provide a way to avoid that. So they build a ship and make a plan to at least give it a try – then local magician Ferrantis decides to join them.

I struggled a lot with this story. One reason for that is that I’m not super fond of tax evasion. Yes, it’s a nuisance to pay the government money you worked for, but there are good reasons for laws that regulate shipping and tax goods, so I wasn’t exactly on board for the why of Aston and Tess’ desire to sail the blue. I struggled with Aston’s character, which is written as both selfish and clueless. But the worst part by far is Ferrantis. He practices a form of mental magic wherein he goes into a person’s mind to either extract information or force a compulsion to do what he wishes on them. I’ve heard this defined as rape before, and in every other instance I have ever seen this power used, it has been reserved for use against villains. Ferrantis uses it just to ensure he isn’t lied to. While he doesn’t use his power to force Tess and Aston to take him with them, the threat that he could means they very reluctantly have to agree. And he does use his power later. Between the boring storyline, an ending that hints at colonization and exploitation, and including a rapist on the roster, this tale concludes the whole collection on a sour note.

Buried Deep contains other tales – Commonplaces, Seven, Blessing, Lord Dunsany’s Teapot, Seven Years from Home and Castle Coeurlieu – all of which have appeared in previous anthologies. None of them are particularly notable. Given the lackluster quality of the new works and the fact you can find the older stuff on library shelves, I recommend everyone but die-hard fans skip this.