The Overneath

Peter S. Beagle is a warm blanket author of mine. When I just need stories that are beautiful and musical and comfortable, I turn to him. The Overneath was a great pandemic read. It not only has TWO short stories about Schmendrick the Magician but also a host of other unicorns from around the world. Like most of Beagle's short fiction, the stories are melancholy, wistful, and beautiful. I would say the exception here is “Underbridge” which is the most straight-up horror I've ever read from Beagle. Definitely Little Shop vibes from that one. I think the first and last stories are my favorite. If you're a fan of The Last Unicorn, these short stories are especially worth your time.