14 Comments
User's avatar
Johnathan Reid's avatar

You build the world so effectively and the tension just keeps mounting - I was gripped! The post-partum pain, smells and emotions were spot-on. The wraith-like descriptions in the darkness reminded me of Aragorn summoning the Army of the Dead. Great stuff!

Expand full comment
Bridget Riley's avatar

Thank you so much!! Any comparison to LOTR is a huge win in my book. 😊

Expand full comment
maryh10000's avatar

Yes! It's so rare for someone to write the post birth mother and newborn baby in a believable manner. I love this. I was terrified you'd have her sacrifice the baby. And Quill!

Expand full comment
Bridget Riley's avatar

Thank you so much! Birth and postpartum were such a transformative experience for me, so I try to do justice to them when I include them in stories. Your comment is so encouraging!

Expand full comment
maryh10000's avatar

Same here! There's a reason many more wokist women are childless. It does transform you. It can break you, too. Most of my stories involve mothers, and often childbirth or miscarriage.

Expand full comment
Bridget Riley's avatar

My first pregnancy ended in miscarriage, and, like you, I’ve incorporated miscarriage into several stories. It’s such a common experience for families, but I’ve found it difficult to find many stories that address it.

Expand full comment
maryh10000's avatar

Which of your stories have a miscarriage? I have one in Cloak and Stola.

Expand full comment
Bridget Riley's avatar

Thank you for sharing! I'll have to read them! I often have to make sure I'm in the right frame of mind before I read anything about infant loss or miscarriage. I don't have any fiction posted now that explicitly deals with miscarriage, although I have a serial that I'm considering posting at some point which includes it in a subplot. But I do have a nonfiction piece called "The Golden Thread of Epiphany" that talks a little bit about my experience.

Expand full comment
Garen Marie's avatar

Visceral and haunting with deftly wrought world building - and in only a few thousand words! Gorgeous writing. I want more!

Expand full comment
Bridget Riley's avatar

Thank you so much, Garen!

Expand full comment
Joseph L. Wiess's avatar

That was beautiful. A dark cavern, a mysterious treasure, a demonic being, a dashing hero that vanishes, and an innocent child.

Well done.

Expand full comment
Bridget Riley's avatar

Thank you so much!

Expand full comment
Hanna Delaney's avatar

I remember the aches, the shivering and the weakness from childbirth. This was a beautiful story of a mother's strength in a time of vulnerability. No matter what, she's a mama bear and will fight anyone (or anything, clearly) who would dare to harm a cub. I felt the loss and the relief of Quill's appearance. It was beautiful.

Expand full comment
Bridget Riley's avatar

Thank you so much! I’ve included birth scenes in stories several times, I think partly as catharsis, and I love writing mama bear stories.

Expand full comment