History That Never Was

Home of Dawn Vogel: Writer, Historian, Geek

Review of Gilded Spirits by Amrit Kallar

| September 23, 2026

Amrit Kallar’s Gilded Spirits (Brown Books Publishing Group, 2025) is a novel split between historical and contemporary speculative fiction. Set in California in two very different time periods, the interwoven narrative of two women going about their lives, which overlap in extraordinary ways, provided a gripping narrative! The story begins with Emily in Gold Rush-era California […]

“A Remnant of the Past” in Chimerical Remembrance

| September 17, 2026

A lot of the stories within Chimerical Remembrance come from personal experiences, though in general, the details have been changed substantially. “A Remnant of the Past” is one such story. The setting of the story is my first apartment, which was allegedly used as a morgue during the Civil War. However, when I did a bit […]

Review of Death Valley Blooms by S. M. Mack

| September 2, 2026

S. M. Mack’s Death Valley Blooms (Neon Hemlock, 2025) is a contemporary fantasy novella that poses questions about family curses and inheritances when some members set out to break the curses by not continuing their family line. With gorgeous, lush, surreal descriptions and a relatable protagonist, it’s a quick and fascinating read. Mar knows that the […]

“Kindred Souls” and “Student Response to Referral Report” in Weathering Youth

| August 25, 2026

Because Weathering Youth is my biggest collection to date, I’m grouping the short stories and flash fiction stories in pairs for my posts, based on the way they fall in the collection. This lets me look at the connections between the stories and how I decided to arrange specific stories in the collection! “Kindred Souls” is a […]

Poetry in Chimerical Remembrance

| August 20, 2026

Chimerical Remembrance has five poems included in it, alongside contemporary fantasy flash fiction and short stories. They cover a variety of topics, but many of them involve social commentary through a contemporary fantasy lens. “The Cold, Strange Globe” was a poem inspired by an image of a glass sphere and a winter scene, which I […]

“We Don’t Stop for Gas in Arkansas” in Chimerical Remembrance

| July 16, 2026

“We Don’t Stop for Gas in Arkansas” came from a former roommate of mine, who had gone on a road trip from southern Illinois to Texas for the wedding of one of his closest friends. As he and his wife headed to the event, he occasionally posted photos to Facebook, along with “Chapter #”. I […]

“Spun Sugar” and “No Fear” in Weathering Youth

| June 30, 2026

Because Weathering Youth is my biggest collection to date, I’m grouping the short stories and flash fiction stories in pairs for my posts, based on the way they fall in the collection. This lets me look at the connections between the stories and how I decided to arrange specific stories in the collection! “Spun Sugar” and […]

“Propagating Rosa glacies” and “The Glass Cauldron Shattered” in Chimerical Remembrances

| June 18, 2026

“Propagating Rosa glacies” and “The Glass Cauldron Shattered” are two of the flash fiction pieces in Chimerical Remembrances, which fit nicely together, as they share a theme of magical revenge. “Propagating Rosa glacies” is written from the perspective of a botanist giving advice on growing a particularly finicky plant. Their most important pieces of advice are tied to […]

“Knock Three Times” in Chimerical Remembrance

| May 28, 2026

“Knock Three Times” is one of the longer stories in my Chimerical Remembrance collection. It was inspired by a YouTube video about weird history, some interesting images, and a song I love. The YouTube video was about the history of Pheasant Island, which is an uninhabited island in the Bidasoa River between France and Spain that […]

“It’s My Party and I’ll Scry If I Want To” and “No Bunny Like You” in Weathering Youth

| May 26, 2026

Because Weathering Youth is my biggest collection to date, I’m grouping the short stories and flash fiction stories in pairs for my posts, based on the way they fall in the collection. This lets me look at the connections between the stories and how I decided to arrange specific stories in the collection! “It’s My Party and […]