Young Woman in a Garden

Starred review from October 27, 2014
Lightly flecked with fantasy and anchored in vividly detailed settings, the 14 stories in Sherman's first collection are distinguished by their depictions of determined women who challenge gender roles in order to make their way in the world. In "The Ghost of Cwmlech Manor," a servant girl parlays her acquaintance with an ancestral ghost into a professional relationship with the descendant whose house it haunts. The title story toggles between present and past as an art history student researching the life of an Impressionist painter unravels the hitherto unknown role his model played in the creation of his art. Although Sherman (The Porcelain Dove) grapples with serious themes, she leavens a number of her tales with gentle humor, notably "Walpurgis Afternoon," in which a pair of lesbian witches comically discompose an ordinary suburban neighborhood when their Victorian estate springs up in a vacant lot overnight. Readers who enjoy sophisticated modern fantasy fiction, both light and dark, will greatly admire Sherman's skill with a variety of narrative forms and the gentle touch of her magic wand.

Starred review from November 15, 2014

In this first collection from Sherman (The Porcelain Dove; The Freedom Maze), what seems ordinary consistently veers into the extraordinary and often downright surprising. From a scientist studying a merman in her pond to two neighbors connected by matching ominous red pianos, these 14 stories are all full of surprising fantasy details (fairies, ghosts, werewolves, witches, magic), and distinctive voices. Ranging in length and style, these tales are captivating and odd, with characters and settings fully and memorably fleshed out. VERDICT Sherman has won several awards for her fiction, and her literary talent is reflected in the depth and variety of stories presented here. For fans of the author's previous works as well as those seeking quirky, fantastical short stories.--Katie Lawrence, Chicago

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