Review: Short story: "The Lion's Tusk" by Robert Jackson Bennett

The Lion's Tusk by Robert Jackson Bennett
Published July 2026 via Amazon Original Stories

It's the biggest wedding of the year—until everything goes horrible wrong.

This is one in a collection of stories about magic and, well, occasionally mayhem. Each is very different in feel (though I'm interested to note that two of the four stories I've read so far mentione Abilene, Texas, and the other two feature relics); this one is something of story within a story. We don't learn too much about the storyteller, or why this particular story interests him (or, for that matter, too much about the listener), but it's clear that it's a story that he knows well and has opinions about. His asides are probably the best part of the story, but waiting for what happens next isn't so bad either. Let's just say that there are layers of who might want to be involved, and why.

So far this collection has been full of pleasant surprises—each story taking a different angle and attitude, and each with something to show for it.

Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a review copy through NetGalley.