This is a wonderful little collection of stories set in faerie Britain (the setting of Clarke's book Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell). There are also a couple of other (not so subtle) nods to other stories many people will be familiar with, mostly fairy tales (and Stardust by Neil Gaiman being a surprising one!). 

Susanna Clarke has the rare ability to make any length of story entertaining, somehow using a concept from a 1000+ page novel and using it in short stories without breaking a sweat. 

She also really tapped into the universal love of proper fairy tales with this collection, and I was more or less transported to my childhood bedroom with the beautiful folio collection of fairy tales I'd nicked off my parents' bookshelf. 

Clarke has such an incredible mastery of language, and it shines through here even more so than her full novels. Every story has a unique tone and use of language and yet is clearly using the same voice that was key in Strange & Norrell. 

Not a lot else to say about this collection, other than it is definitely worth reading straight after Strange & Norrell, as I suspect there were even more subtle hints to that story than I picked up. I do also want to take a small moment to point out that these stories are partly so enjoyable BECAUSE of the previous novel, but that is a small part of what makes them so engaging. 

Brilliantly fun without sacrificing an ounce of artistry.