Tales of Spaceships and Magic collects ten stories from fantasy and science fiction writer Kate MacLeod: The science fiction novelette "Required to Assist," a mystery set on board a colony ship, where one woman alone is woken by the ship's droids to solve a murder."Sword and Tattoo," a fantasy short story where a stranger stumbles into a hidden town. He brings danger with him, but the people of the town just might be more dangerous still.The science fiction short story "Being Neighborly," a light-hearted tale of a human family homesteading on a world side by side with a very alien people."Tumbling Up," a science fiction short story about a group of diplomats attempting to negotiate a peace with an aquatic alien species."Death Spiral," a science fiction mystery where a security officer must solve a murder and keep a strange species of aliens calm at the same time."While the Rat's Away," a science fiction story of travelers stowing away on a very unusual client ship."The Fair Folk," a fantasy tale of fairs, magic and tricky bargains. "The Rod of Circe," a fantasy caper set in a magical version of modern day Minneapolis. "Winter's End," a melancholy tale of a winter that never seems to end."Heat Death," a science fiction mystery story set in the near future on the edges of the Chihuahuan Desert in the brutal heat of midsummer.