I’ll be honest, that cover completely caught my eye, and when I saw this anthology had stories from Naomi Kritzer, Seanan McGuire and JANE YOLEN!!!! II’ll be honest, that cover completely caught my eye, and when I saw this anthology had stories from Naomi Kritzer, Seanan McGuire and JANE YOLEN!!!! I couldn’t resist. The overarching theme is that of relationships in science fiction – romantic, familial, or platonic – with all the stories written by female or nonbinary authors. It’s divided into three unequal sections. The first section “Hearts” has the most stories (unsurprising given the theme) and revolves around love, mostly of the romantic type. “Hands”, the next section, deals more with actions, whether that’s building communities or some seriously dysfunctional family dynamics. “Minds”, the final section, deals more with the mental rather than the physical aspects of relationships.
Because it’s generally hard to rate such a broad group of stories, here’s each one in the order they appear, along with some quick notes.
HEARTS
“Poem: They: A Grammar Lesson” by Jane Yolen – ★★★★★. Deceptively simple but absolutely terrific, a perfect start to this collection.
“The sad conclusion that must be drawn is that some people cannot handle a little intimacy.”
“Retrospect” by Seanan McGuire – ★★★★★. Hi, I’m freaked out and fascinated and kinda jealous actually? Seanan McGuire has a way with medical/scientific short stories and novellas that is absolutely unrivaled. They’re twisty in the most delicious way.
“Lockpick, Locked Heart” by AnaMaria Curtis – ★★★★☆. It’s abandonware, but for emotions! An interesting concept and a mostly successful execution. The quip about the organizational skills of nuns had me laughing!
“Touch Has a Memory” by Lisa Morton – ★★★★☆. This one reminded me of a noir mystery, though it involves a high-powered lawyer and a rich robot instead of the usual hard boiled detective and femme fatale. It’s a fascinating take on rights and gender and attraction.
“Ping-Pong Dysphoria” by Madeline Pine – ★★★☆☆. The story is fine, but compared to the previous ones? It fell short, both in length and in execution. It wasn’t quite meaty enough for me.
“In Our Masks, the Shadows” by Sam Fleming – ★★★☆☆. A exploration of online life versus “real” life and how it relates to dating. The central theme – about the shallowness of how we often represent ourselves to the outside world – felt, well, shallow.
“Ships of Theseus” by Felicity Drake – ★★★★☆. This story explores a woman’s choice to voluntarily augment herself with a prosthesis and her interactions with a friend who has prosthetic legs due to an accident. They’re able to neurally link together and “feel” the other’s limbs. This story was absolutely fascinating, between the ethics of voluntary augmentation and the ability to literally walk in another person’s shoes (or limbs, whatever).
“With All Souls Still Aboard” by Premee Mohamed – ★★★★★. This is perhaps the most low-tech of the stories, dealing with the daily life of a mother and young son after her husband is killed while saving the planet from an asteroid. It’s full of grief and a bit of hope, and the emotions are just so present and engrossing. Definitely a writer I’ll be following!
“You need someone to take care of you.” “And I need to take care of someone,” I said softly.
“More than Nine” by Beth Cato – ★★★★★. It’s cute and a bit silly, but I also cried like an idiot. I was absolutely delighted to see that this author has written several other cat stories, and she’s on my TBR for sure now.
HANDS
“Poem: There Is a Hand” by Jane Yolen – ★★★★☆. Yep, Jane Yolen’s still Jane Yolen.
“I learned that you can’t understand the shape of the particle without understanding the particles near it,” I said.
“The Shape of the Particle” by Naomi Kritzer – ★★★★☆. I’m trash for anything found family, so of course I gobbled this up. It’s a very near sci-fi sort of story, but it fits well enough into this anthology given its themes. It’s a lovely rejection of one’s worth being only what you produce; about how building a community is just as important. (As a sidenote, Naomi Kritzer is one of my favorite short story writers, with “Little Free Library” being my favorite).
“No Want to Spend” by Sophie Giroir – ★★★☆☆. An asexual person attempts to get passage off an incredibly sexually-oriented world. It was a bit too in-your-face about it and the resolution seemed lackluster.
“Little Deaths and Missed Connections” by Maria Dong – ★★★☆☆. A woman in a space prison starts finding mysterious notes left behind by a secret admirer…. if only she can figure out who that is. Another story that’s just fine and didn’t really catch my attention.
“Sincerely Yours” by Lyda Morehouse – ★★★★☆. Another story of intercepted communications, but this time one that really caught (hah, pun intended) my attention. The heroine has severe social anxiety, so much so that being the sole crew member on a space station is a dream job for her. One of the few social outlets she can tolerate is discussing her favorite anime shows via text. I liked that this story didn’t go the “time-honored” route of showing some whiz-bang techno way she could be “cured,” but rather focused on how important her boundaries were. Powerful stuff.
“Photosynthesis, Growth” by Devin Miller – ★★★☆☆. This story is about navigating a long distance relationship, where the scifi theme comes into play because one person in the relationship goes off to school somewhere dark and cold and the other can’t follow because she needs photosynthesis to survive. Interesting idea, but the execution didn’t work for me.
“No Pain but That of Memory” by Aimee Ogden – ★★★☆☆. It pained me to not like this one because I’ve liked the author’s previous work, but I found this story, about the machinations between two siblings on a world taken over by a mind-controlling dictator, overly gory and too hard to get in to.
“Go Where the Heart Takes You” by Anita Ensal – ★★★★☆. Super cute and heartwarming and a perfect ending to the “hands” section, in this case involving the remaining two elderly members of a plural marriage who decide to do the scifi equivalent of renting an RV and seeing the universe. What really sold me on this one was the way the two women interact with each other, how they anticipate the other’s actions and responses, just like an old married couple.
MINDS
“The receptacle for your histories, mysteries, stories, poems.”
“Poem: Mars Conquest” by Jane Yolen – ★★★★☆. Yet again perfectly suited for the section.
“The Star-Crossed Horoscope for Interstellar Travelers” by Fran Wilde – ★★★★☆. Decidedly hilarious galactic horoscopes. “Be a little less extra, Leo” indeed.
“Canvas of Sins” by Mercedes M. Yardley – ★★★☆☆. I have no idea where this story was going, and no idea if it did what it wanted to, but I didn’t like it.
“If My Body Is a Temple, Raze It to the Ground” by Lauren Ring – ★★★★☆. The idea of being able to upload your consciousness isn’t a new one, and neither is the way that could be exploited, but I liked the thoughtful way it was handled here and the gentle romance.
“PerfectMate™” by Xander Odell – ★★★★☆. More hilarity, this time when attempts to find someone’s perfect match keep going badly wrong. This one also involves an asexual character, but I think it does it more skillfully while still resonating just as well.
“Etruscan Afterlife” by Rosemary Claire Smith – ★★★★☆. Adorably sweet. Another story exploring the uploading of consciousnesses, but this time framed around a couple, one of whom is afraid they’ll stop loving each other after being uploaded. An absolutely fascinating take.
“Our Savage Heart Calls to Itself (Across the Endless Tides)” by Justina Robson – ★★★☆☆. This was… fine. It took me a while to get my head around the characters, but I enjoyed the heist portion.
There were some definite standouts for me and some misses, but overall, I think this anthology did exactly what it set out to do. While I didn’t enjoy all of the stories, there were very few that I got actively bored reading, so I’ll give this four stars.
I received an advance review copy of this book from Book Sirens. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. ...more
I am a humongous fan of romance tropes, so I was especially excited to read this anthology of fifteen young adult stories each centered around a speciI am a humongous fan of romance tropes, so I was especially excited to read this anthology of fifteen young adult stories each centered around a specific trope, from snowed in to mistaken identity to mutual pining. It’s queer as all get out, with quite a few sapphic pairings as well as some gay and trans characters. It’s also delightfully diverse, in both its characters and authors.
Like most collections, there are some stories I liked more than others. First up, the fantasy/scifi stories.
“And now said competitor is trying to get me drunk. I should report them to the trail runners for subterfuge.” “Subterfuge!” Ru looked gleeful. “What a delightful word!” Mila rolled her eyes. “What would you call it, then?” “Seduction.”
Natasha Ngan’s “Silver and Gold” (snowed in together) covered a moment of quiet and understanding in the middle of a fantasy Iditarod. This was delightful, atmospheric and adventurous by turns, and it was a great start to the collection.
Rebecca Kim Wells’ “Unfortunately, Blobs Do Not Eat Snacks” recounts Tess and Davina’s attempts to complete their magical academy exam…. if they can get to the small town they’re supposed to investigate some random minor magical mishap in without killing each. This is the “kissing under the influence” trope, which is not a particular favorite of mine, but I adored this story and would love an entire series starring Tess and Davina. Definitely one of my top faves!
“What Makes Us Heroes” is one where the author, Julian Winters, went all out and decided to interrogate the trope of hero vs villain. In a world where superpowers are hereditary but racial and class inequalities still exist, what is the real difference between heroes and villains?
“My Best Friend’s Girl” by Sara Farizan helpfully tells you what the trope is in the title, but the rest of the story, about a regular girl who falls for her superhero best friend’s girlfriend, was anything but boring. The world-building was fascinating, and I loved the portrayal of the relationships between all three of them. This is definitely an author I’ll be looking out for.
“Disaster” by Rebecca Podos is the last story in the collection and straddles the line between contemporary and SF. I loved this one, its sly humor and utter believability of a second chance romance resisted due to the possible complete destruction of the earth.
As for ones that particularly didn’t work, “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” by Malinda Lo was, like the title says, incredibly fun, but it also reminded me a lot of Cinder.
Surprisingly enough, the contemporary stories had even more standouts, though I have a bit less to say about them.
“Earlier today she was a crush, just someone to look at, really. She was more like a metaphor than a real girl, if I was honest with myself. She was freedom and confidence and being out in a way I still couldn’t completely imagine. But now, in a matter of minutes, she’s transformed into something way more and less than that all at once. Just a girl I feel like I could understand and who maybe could understand me.”
“Five Stars” by Amy Spalding involves a case of mistaken identity when Krista, who recently moved to LA, gets mistaken for a rideshare driver by Audrey, the hottest girl in high school. It’s so cute, and Krista’s internal freakout is hilarious and so sweet. I absolutely adored this one. Almost equal to me was Laura Silverman’s “The Passover Date.” It had one of my favorite tropes, fake dating, and was cheesy (literally) in all the best ways.
Hannah Moskowitz’s “And” has one of my least favorite tropes, the love triangle, and while I liked the way it was resolved, the second-person POV was very jarring. Lilliam Rivera’s “These Strings” has the sibling’s best friend trope, a favorite of mine, but despite the interesting premise (Latinx puppeteers!) the emotions fell flat for me. In contrast, “Teed Up” by Gloria Chao deals with some of the same feelings (feeling unheard by your parents) but it worked out a lot better for me, despite revolving around golf, which is definitely not an area of interest for me.
Overall, while there were a handful of stories I didn’t particularly care for, overall the stories I liked were enough to earn this collection a solid 4 stars from me. Highly recommended if you’re a fan of romance tropes and want several fresh views!
I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review....more
I’m not a huge astrology fan. Pretty much every I know comes from random internet articles, but I’m a big fan of anthologies (author speed dating!), sI’m not a huge astrology fan. Pretty much every I know comes from random internet articles, but I’m a big fan of anthologies (author speed dating!), so I hopped in hoping for the best. Luckily, each of the thirteen stories has a list of characteristics for that sign before the story starts. Yes, there are thirteen stories, the twelve traditional zodiac signs plus one that my limited googling indicates is controversial.
Aries: “ruler and killer” – g. haron davis – ★★
F/NB. Not a strong start unfortunately. There’s a non-binary vampire queen who’s looking for a consort and they’re holding a championship to determine who’s best fit to rule beside them. Chi is a witch, which are technically forbidden since they tried to overthrow the vampire monarchy… Look, there is way too much that needed explaining for such a short story, and I never felt like the important thing – Chi’s magic – got enough explanation. There wasn’t enough focus on the relationship between Chi and Álava for me either. It’s all vibes no romance.
“The two very things I’d always wanted were connected and somehow, for the first time in my life, the food didn’t seem as important as the guy. Was this what real love tasted like?”
Taurus: “The Taste of a Kiss” – Roselle Lim – ★★★★
M/F. Look, if you can get through this story without ordering some Korean fried chicken, you’re a better person than me! It’s childhood friends to lovers (one of my favorite tropes!), plus a side of figuring out what to do about Asian parent pressure. Super cute, still a bit light on the romance, but this one worked better for me.
Gemini – “Doublespeak” – Tehlor Kay Meija – ★★★★
F/F. This is a case of “twins” who are cousins born close together and are complete opposites… though they seem to share the same taste in girls. Ana’s pranks have gotten Jessi in trouble in the past, so she’s not completely thrilled that she’s coming to stay with her but resolves to make the best of it. And then Ana starts hitting on Jessi’s crush, and the next thing she knows, somehow Jessi is filling in for Ana on long phone conversations with Ana’s girlfriend. Fun, even if I spent most of the story wanting to smack Ana back to her own house.
“Tomorrow, she would be able to keep up the pretense of being a somewhat witch, and try again.”
Cancer – “L(Train)iminal” – Karuna Riazi – ★★★★★
M/F. I’m a cancer so I was inclined to be partial towards this one – and it’s about a library witch!!! Mia’s a homeless witch who has to gain power by riding the L train. Normally witches gain power from their homes, but without one, she has to make do with the scraps from riding on the train as long as possible, while somehow managing numerous part time jobs and trying to find a full-time one. There’s a tiny bit of romance, but mostly it’s about finding the space you fit in. Would 100% read a full length novel about this!
Leo – “Alternative Combustion” – Kiana Nguyen – ★★★
F/NB. Princess has a crush on Lala, a skate boarding enby hottie, but she’s too afraid to even talk to them. But a late night conversation about astrology may just lead to something more. I liked that Lala shouted out the Girl Scouts, and the amount of crushing Princess was doing over Lala was sublime, but not much else happened.
Virgo – “Sometimes in September” – Byron Graves – ★★★★
M/F. A surprisingly touching story about a boy who’s leaving a treatment program and meets a girl just starting the program. This one hit me hard in the feels.
Libra – “Fake Scorpio” – Mark Oshiro – ★★★★★
M/M. Efren, who makes his spare cash as the high school astrologer, discovers that he’s not exactly who he thought he was. Efren’s the type of OTT queer disaster that I love (err, or identify strongly with). Super cute and funny, and I’m definitely picking up the rest of this author’s work.
“Though the idea of not thinking about Kim almost feels ridiculous. She’s an ever-present thought, as much as part of me as Gritty is to Philadelphia, the feelings strange and wonderful. Again, like Gritty.”
Scorpio – “The South Street Challenge” – Eric Smith – ★★★★
M/F. This story is deeply sweet, plus it’s set in my beloved Philly. Miguel’s leaving for college and his parents are moving to California, so he’s spending his last days of summer with his best friends, doing all the cheesy (pun-intended) Philly tourist things with his best friends, including his crush. A little bittersweet, but ultimately hopeful.
“It’s a special thing for a girl to take up space. A more special thing for a queer Black girl to do so.”
Ophiuchus – “Formation” – Cam Montgomery – ★★★★★
M/F (with trans rep!!!). The world-building in this story is phenomenal! Five girls, including Luna, are preparing to make the trek up the mountain to serve as conduits for the Other and, well, New Orleans. There wasn’t quite enough to the romance for me, but I’d totally read a book length work about this. Another author added to my TBR!
Sagittarius – “Anchor Point” – Lily Anderson – ★★★★★
M/F. Nothing like going all in and doing a story about archers for Sagittarius! A story, told over four years and numerous archery competitions, of “Katniss” and “Robin Hood,” two extremely competitive high school archers. I loved this one: the banter, the competition, the ending! Seriously the best romance of the whole anthology!
“But I love you. And that never can change. It also is eterno, you understand?”
Capricorn – “Mucho, Mucho Amor” – Alex Villasante – ★★★★
F/F. An adorably sweet story about love and acceptance and the death of a TV astrologer. Definitely made me cry.
Aquarius – “I Come from the Water” – Adrianne White – ★★
I have absolutely no idea what happened in this story. There’s a river? There was a cool ghost, though, so bonus star for that.
“I think you’re really smart. And funny. And snarky, but like, in a funny and smart kind of way.”
Pisces – “The Cure for Heartbreak” – Emery Lee – ★★★★★
M/M. Luis, who works at his parents’ magic shop, reluctantly helps the school jock Al when he comes in asking for a cure for a broken heart. And then keeps coming back. Oblivious grouchy loners are my kryptonite! My second favorite romance, and a great ending to the book!
Overall, while there were definitely some stories that didn’t work for me, I’m going to give the anthology as a whole four stars because several of the stories were excellent! Plus, I’ve got several new authors to check out! If you’re looking for an anthology featuring many diverse queer voices, I’d definitely recommend this!
I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Content notes: (view spoiler)[violence (including murder), homophobia, reference to self-harm, reference to past substance abuse, bullying (hide spoiler)]...more
I adore short story collections, and I was particularly impressed by last year’s anthology edited by Jonathan Strahan. It follows the same format as lI adore short story collections, and I was particularly impressed by last year’s anthology edited by Jonathan Strahan. It follows the same format as last year, with the editor’s introduction including other recommended reading as well as general comments on the state of the publishing industry in 2020. And then we get into the real meat of it: 27 short stories that are, arguably, the best of the year. While some stories missed the mark a bit for me, they were all well-written and interesting.
“well they’re all good dogs even the naughty ones”
The collection starts out with the absolutely amazing “A Guide for Working Breeds” by Vina Jie-Min Prasad. Can you die of cute? This is a story told mainly through chat transcripts between a robot mentor and its new mentee, and features so many dogs. Adorable, original and uplifting, this is one of my favorites in the collection. Also hitting high on the adorable scale is Timons Esaias’s “GO. NOW. FIX.” which stars a robotic pillow in the shape of a panda and a plane crash (just trust me on this one). And if you’re looking more for satire, “It Came From Cruden Farm” by Max Barry, about a newly inaugurated president who discovers that aliens exist, had me in stitches.
“I feel like I’m watching the Ten Commandments being written here, and unless I say something, a burning bush is going to be gendered for the next two thousand years.”
For more classic scifi, Yoon Ha Lee’s “The Mermaid Astronaut” is a gorgeously evocative retelling of The Little Mermaid. I’m still not sure how he fit so much emotion in to so few pages. I also adored the scifi romp of Gene Doucette’s “Schrödinger’s Catastrophe.” It had all the feels of some of my favorite TNG episodes, plus some hilarious absurdity mixed in with a tightly-paced action story. “Burn or The Episodic Life of Sam Wells as a Super” by A.T. Greenblatt is about Sam, who’s recently discovered he has the completely useless superpower of setting his head on fire. In a society where most Supers go live out their days in seclusion, Sam instead decides to join the local Super team and help people… only it’s not exactly what he thought it would be like. This is a lovely story about accepting yourself.
“She frowned at the ham on the counter. “Are you behind this?” “Why are you talking to a ham?” asked Donna. “That’s just weird.”
Of course, where would we be without a lot of whizzbang scifi goodness, from the titular weight loss treatment in Meg Elison’s horrifying “The Pill,” to the devices in “Don’t Mind Me” by Suzanne Palmer which make kids incapable of remembering certain things they hear, like swear words and that pesky climate change, to how cryptocurrency and AR can fix pollution in “The Suicide of Our Troubles” by Karl Schroeder, to AirBnb for bodies in Sameem Siddiqui’s “Airbody.”
“I’ve never done so much math in my whole entire life.”
And then there’s the ones that truly made me think. I’d previously read Marian Denise Moore’s “A Mastery of German” and found its exploration of ethics and racial memory just as fascinating as the first time. But the winner of the most thought-provoking goes to “How to Pay Reparations: a Documentary” by Tochi Onyebuchi. I’m still chewing over that one.
Overall, another excellent collection, and after two stellar anthologies, I’ll definitely be putting future editions on my autobuy list.
I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
I absolutely adore speculative fiction anthologies, so when I saw that both C.L. Clark and T.L. Huchu had stories in this one, I had to read it. This I absolutely adore speculative fiction anthologies, so when I saw that both C.L. Clark and T.L. Huchu had stories in this one, I had to read it. This is a collection of twenty-nine stories from 2020 told by African or African diaspora writers, a good mix of science fiction, fantasy and horror. There are stories that deal with age-old problems like racism and parenthood and newer ones like climate change and gentrification, from robot revolutions to vengeful djinn. Most of the stories were a solid three or four stars, but there were a few stories that particularly stood out to me:
“Things Boys Do” – Pemi Aguda. A delightfully atmospheric horror story about three new fathers.
“She hates that word, destination. Too close to destiny. Too far from reality.”
“Giant Steps” – Russell Nichols. A journey of discovery for one scientist, from her childhood to her arrival as the first human on a new world.
“A robot can’t cry, but it can be worried.”
“Scar Tissue” – Tobias S. Buckell. My absolute favorite of the collection. Told in the second person, a deeply emotional exploration of trauma and parenthood, through the lens of a man who’s suffered an accident and now agrees to “raise” a robot in return for extra cash.
“A Love Song for Herkinal as Composed By Ashkernas Amid the Ruins of New Haven” – Chinelo Onwualu. Another heartwarming one, where after the collapse of most of the world, a family is running a hotel for supernatural creatures – even the not so pleasant ones. Absolutely fascinating and amazing world building.
“You always taught me that it’s easier to run forward than backwards.”
“A Mastery of German” – Marian Denise Moore. A story about racial memory and ethics. Very thought provoking.
“Desiccant” – Craig Laurance Gidney. I absolutely loved this one, about a woman who moves into a rundown apartment and discovers something is critically wrong, housing segregation as a horror story. My only complaint was that it was too short!
“Egoli” – T.L. Huchu. Told in the second person, a story about an elderly woman reflecting on technological – and other – advancements during her lifetime. Lovely.
“And This Is How to Stay Alive” – Shingai Njeri Kagunda. My (extremely close) second favorite. A gorgeous, bittersweet story about a gay teen, suicide, time travel, and a sister’s love.
Overall, a well-rounded collection with a little something for everyone. Highly recommended!
While I haven’t read any of Charlie Jane Anders’ novels, I’d read a lot of her work on Tor, and very much enjoyed her bookstore short story that I’d rWhile I haven’t read any of Charlie Jane Anders’ novels, I’d read a lot of her work on Tor, and very much enjoyed her bookstore short story that I’d read as part of a year’s best anthology. I’ve loved anthologies since I was a kid, as the yearly SFF anthologies were one of the few genre things my small childhood library could be guaranteed to carry. It’s how I got introduced to many of my favorite authors, and even today it’s a favorite way of mine to find new and different voices. So I was absolutely ticked when, in the introduction, the author refers to anthologies as speed-dating with authors! In that case, as this is a set of nineteen short stories spanning the author’s career, this is more like yearly coffee dates perhaps. Each story is preceded by a short introduction that explains what inspired it, as well as content warnings.
“Short stories are dangerous: tiny sparks of pure narrative fire that burn hotter because they snuff out sooner.”
The first story, “As Good as New”, was one of my favorites, telling the story about a woman at the end of the world who discovers a genie in a bottle. But the genie actually used to be a theatre critic and the woman gave up her dreams of being a playwright for pre-med, and anyway, it’s the end of the world, so maybe they should just sit around and binge watch The Facts of Life. It’s the sort of quirky mix of humor and horror that Anders navigates well, and it was the perfect opener for this anthology.
As for stories that didn’t work as well for me, two of the stories, “If You Take My Meaning” and “Clover”, are actually follow-ups to her novels. I found the first a bit hard to get into – it was obvious there was a lot of backstory I was missing – but ultimately enjoyed it, while the second I felt like I never quite got the point of. “Rat Catcher’s Yellows” was interesting, a shorthand version of The Speed of Dark where people with a certain illness retreat into themselves but excel at a complicated kingdom building game, but parts of it scratched me wrong.
“All my life, there had been a giant empty space, a huge existential void, that had needed to be filled by something, and I had never realized that that thing was the Oscar Meyer Wienermobile, with its sleek red hot-dog battering ram surrounded by a metal bun.”
And then you have the stories that appear to be absolutely ridiculous (or just bizarre) fluff that cover a deeper meaning. “Rock Manning Goes for Broke” is about a self-trained stunt guy who does, well, stunts-gone-wrong slapstick videos, and then tries to, you know, speak out against a tyrannical government with one. As one does. “A Temporary Embarrassment in Spacetime” is along the same vein, two space rogues just trying to make enough money to buy gas by robbing giant sentient divine blobs. (Also as one does?) “Captain Roger in Heaven” somewhat goes along with that vibe, as the initial take is “oops I started a sex cult” but then turns into musing on the calcification of religion.
“Don’t Press Charges and I Won’t Sue” is a complete change of pace from most of the stories, about a forced gender reassignment, and was predictably written in response to, uh, everything about the past four years. It’s a raging, unquiet story, very much unlike the rest of the stories that fool you with quirky characters and then wallop you over the head with the moral. The message, of defiantly holding tight to your self-identity, struck a chord with me, and it’s definitely a story I’ll be thinking about for a long time. “Love Might Be Too Strong a Word” plays with some of the same gender identity issues, but in a much more fanciful way, complete with star-crossed lovers set among the actual stars.
“I’ve got my eye on this one future, this one node way off in the distance, where I die aged 97, surrounded by lovers and grandchildren and cats. Whenever I have a big decision to make, I try to see the straightest path to that moment.”
As a romance lover, “Six Months, Three Days” was a favorite, telling the story of the relationship between a woman who sees all possible futures and a man who sees only the future as it will happen. They’ve both been looking forward to meeting the other for their entire lives, but they also both know that their inevitable breakup will be painful. The emotions – the love, the despair, even the contempt – leapt from the page.
“I think that’s what makes us such good time travelers, actually. [..] We are very experienced at being in the wrong place at the wrong time, and at doing whatever it takes to get ourselves to the right place and the right time.”
But my absolute favorite was “The Time Travel Club.” A recovering alcoholic stays after her meeting and meets a motley group of people, who are all pretending to be time travelers. There’s some fun science, but my favorite part was the assertion that you could be known through the stories you chose to make up as well as you’re known through the ones that are real. They are, in a very real sense, just as true.
“Falling in love with a community is always going to be more real than any love for a single human being could ever be.”
For all the different genres and silliness, most of the stories would be characterized as hopepunk, positivity – or at least, the insistence that things can change – in the face of even a dystopian end of the world. There’s also a large focus on community, on found families and partners and pets (or sentient bicycles), as the antidote for hopelessness and loneliness.
Overall, this collection is an assorted chocolates box of stories, where even if you don’t like one or two flavors, you’re sure to find at least one keeper. Highly recommended!
I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review....more
I’ve said it before, but I love anthologies for the opportunity to speed date a variety of authors. While I’ve been reading more horror lately, it’s nI’ve said it before, but I love anthologies for the opportunity to speed date a variety of authors. While I’ve been reading more horror lately, it’s not a genre where I’m familiar with a lot of authors, so I jumped on the chance to read this anthology. In that respect, it was a complete success as I found several new authors!
“In classes, I was often told that, according to Henry James, my taste for the works of Edgar Allan Poe was ‘the mark of a decidedly primitive stage of reflection.’ In all deference to James, suck it.”
There are twelve stories in the collection from a wide variety of styles and authors, from folk horror to more old-school stuff, and from up and coming authors to masters of the genre. While some stories worked better for me than others, I enjoyed all of them. Here’s a rating and quick review for each.
“Attention from boys is the best drug. You get his attention and suddenly, you don’t need a lot of other stuff, you know? You don’t really need him, only his attention.”
“The Attentionist” – Caroline Kepnes – ★★★.
Two boy-crazy teen sisters in the 90s stumble into some coming-of-age horror. Sneakily disquieting, but the ending felt too pat for me.
“A Life in Nightmares” – Ramsey Campbell – ★★★★★.
This story is initially confusing, starting with a child who’s afraid of going to bed by himself, but morphed into one of my favorite stories in this collection. It masterfully evokes that “am I awake or am I dreaming?” feeling, and I especially loved how he played with language. I wasn’t surprised at all to find out that this author is one of the greats of horror writing!
“Isn’t life supposed to be transient?” “I know but why do I find that so hard to bear?”
“Papa Eye” – Priya Sharma – ★★★★.
This isn’t the gory type of horror story, but more of the quiet contemplative type. A doctor, struggling with ennui and the inevitability of being forgotten, accepts a position at a small clinic on a remote island. Lovely writing style!
“Volcano” – Livia Llewellyn – ★★★.
This story is just plain weird. It’s the sort of very atmospheric cosmic horror where you have no idea of what’s actually happening, but I liked the college student antiheroine who’s just trying to find a job during the summer.
“All the Things He Called Memories” – Stephen Graham Jones – ★★★★★.
Welp, thanks for the nightmares. During the early pandemic, a man is stuck at home quarantining with his scientist wife, who gets bored and decides to run her own experiment. This story is legitimately terrifying and the only one from this anthology to give me nightmares. I’d already had one of this author’s novels on my TBR and I immediately moved it to the top ten after reading this story!
“She escaped to the mental place and endured the pain because she had caused it.”
“Trinity River’s Blues” – Chesya Burke – ★★★★.
This felt a bit closer to urban fantasy than horror to me. I loved the feeling of the story, the whole theme of getting in over your head, of your yearning for something else blinding you to what you already have. Plus, birds.
“The Familiar’s Assistant” – Alma Katsu – ★★★.
A story that directly compares drug addiction with being a vampire’s Renfield, which is an interesting take. Sure it’s creepy and the main character definitely has issues, but it felt like something was missing.
“Swim in the Blood of a Curious Dream” – John F.D. Taff – ★★★.
While I agree that highway rest stop bathrooms are nightmarish, this was another one of those stories that was more “what the heck is going on?” experimental than, well, understandable. Excellent writing, though.
“The Sanguintalist” – Gemma Files – no rating.
I adored this story. The character, her ex-girlfriend, the murder she’s investigating, everything about it. Why no rating then? A lot of the story’s atmosphere relies heavily on the main character’s south Asian background (references to hijra in the family’s history, magic that made them infamous in pre-colonial India) but the author, as far as I can tell, doesn’t share that background.
“Mrs. Addison’s Nest” – Josh Malerman – ★★★★.
Another story that blurs the lines between reality and not, this one follows four men, former high school delinquents, who have reunited with an awful purpose. Creepy, twisty, and a lot of fun.
“Challawa” – Usman T. Malik – ★★★★★.
A woman is researching a ghost story in her native Pakistan. I had a creeping feeling of where this story was going and wow it was so much worse than I expected. 5 horrified wide-eyed stars.
“Enough for Hunger and Enough for Hate” – John Langan – ★★★★.
This slowly paced story, set for the most part on a frozen lake in the middle of the wilderness, is a good end to the collection. It’s got a little bit of gore, a little bit of ancient horror, a little bit of psychological woah.
Overall, this was a very successful read in my eyes as I found several new authors to explore, and I definitely hope that the editor plans more anthologies in the future!
I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review....more
Content warnings: (view spoiler)[cheating (of ex’s and parents), death of parents (before book starts), injury (hide spoiler)]
I picked this up solely Content warnings: (view spoiler)[cheating (of ex’s and parents), death of parents (before book starts), injury (hide spoiler)]
I picked this up solely for the Priscilla Oliveras story, but I ended up enjoying the other two novellas as well. This anthology follows three friends as their summer Friday night plans get derailed during an all-boroughs-wide blackout in New York City.
“I don’t know why I was afraid to take a risk. That’s what I do for a living. Why should I be afraid of a risk?” “Because,” Ria said, feeling philosophical, “those are monetary risks. They’re much easier to calculate. Math is indisputable. Relationships, on the other hand…” “Are a whole new level of risk.”
“Night at the Museum” – Lori Wilde – ★★★★
Ria’s spent all her time the last few months restoring a romantic painting of love in the city, and that’s the only explanation for why she seems to have fallen head-over-heels with a complete stranger. It’s serendipity, then, when she spots him at a gala celebrating the completion of the restoration, except “Mr. Gorgeous” is not at all what she expected. Vic is a very goal oriented financial advisor. He’s had a plan since he was a young teen for how to get out of his farming town, and so far he’s checked off every item on his list. The latest? Attending a gala at the Met and helping a set of prospective clients pick out a painting as an investment piece. He can’t let the fact that his mysterious “Red” is there and that he might get a chance to finally meet her. When the blackout strands them both in the depths of the museum over night, can two people with very different attitudes towards life paint a new picture for themselves?
This was quite sweet. Both Ria and Vic are passionate about their careers… and, eventually, passionate about each other. The misunderstanding was a bit predictable, but I liked the way Vic solved it.
“Ooh, he wasn’t quite ready to admit his long-held infatuation with Vanessa. Although after having spent tonight with her, not the poison-pen reviewer or even the cute teen of his past, but the quick-witted, competitive, captivating woman he found easy to talk to, even about topics he didn’t normally share with others, he found his infatuation had deepened.”
“Lights Out” – Priscilla Oliveras – ★★★★
Mateo has spent the past eight years grinding to get to this opening night. Clemente, a musical about the famous baseball player, is a true passion project for him, and spotting Vanessa, his once time crush turned kinda nemesis, in the audience shouldn’t dismay him. Attending the Broadway premier isn’t exactly how Vanessa wants to spend her Friday night, especially as her review of the show is already written. But after she wrote a viral – and vitriolic – review of the last show Mateo starred in, she can’t quite tell if she’s overcompensating with this one. But Vanessa has a history with cheaters and womanizers, and she’s sure Mateo is one… even if her heart wishes it were otherwise. But when the lights go down on Broadway – and the rest of the city – can the two old acquaintances reconnect and write a new ending?
Vanessa, like many of the author’s heroines, is focused, competent and competitive, and she’s not afraid to tell it like it is, even if the person she’s telling it to is the super-hot Mateo. Naturally, I couldn’t help comparing Mateo to Lin Manuel Miranda, and the author does tongue-in-cheek name-drop In the Heights. I mean, her name is Vanessa and there’s literally a blackout in the musical, too! As with everything she does, the author’s wit and love of her Puerto Rican heritage shines through. This delightful second chance story had me smiling the entire time.
“The problem wasn’t that she hated him. The problem was she couldn’t forget how much she’d loved him. How much she’d wanted him. How she used to hold her breath whenever he entered the room, couldn’t relax until he took her hand in his, confirming that, yes, he was here for her; he wasn’t a fantasy; this gorgeous, kind, sexy guy was hers. Except he hadn’t been hers. He hadn’t been kind. Misleading her about both those things had been his greatest magic trick.”
“Mind Games” – Sarah Skilton – ★★★★
Magician Nick is slated to take over his mentor’s residency, if only he can prove himself with a show to the management. He’s worked years for this so it should be easy… and then his ex walks into the room. Alison has waited years for this moment. She’s studied, she’s planned, and now she’s finally going to get revenge on the man who broke her heart in college. And if bantering with him again as she tries to derails each of his tricks makes her have some conflicting feelings, well, that’s to be expected. And then, the lights go out… Could the greatest magic trick be resurrecting their old relationship?
And this gem is exactly the reason why I keep reading anthologies! It’s an amazing second chance story, and the action that led Alison to breakup with Nick made me absolutely gasp in outrage. Now that’s not to say that there wasn’t a reason behind it, or that Alison didn’t jump to conclusions herself, but it was easy to understand why she’d held on to that rage for so many years. She’s magnificently vicious and ferocious, and the best part was that Nick, after some initial nerves, absolutely rose to the occasion and challenged her back. I wouldn’t be surprised if the chemistry between them is what caused the blackout! I am such a sucker for second chance romances, though, and this is definitely a stellar example of the “we had to break up so we could find ourselves” genre.
Overall, this was an amazing anthology and I’m glad to have found a new author to look up as well!
I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review....more
Content warnings: (view spoiler)[cheating, death (mostly violent), gun violence, alcohol, threats of and reference to sexual assault (hide spoiler)]
I Content warnings: (view spoiler)[cheating, death (mostly violent), gun violence, alcohol, threats of and reference to sexual assault (hide spoiler)]
I adore fairy tale retellings and I was already familiar with the author from following her on Twitter, so of course I wanted to read this book. Add in the gorgeous cover art and I was completely sold. And this anthology is excellent, full of thoughtfully reimagined tales with strong women and varied settings, and how love unites us all.
“So, what was our beginning? When we first met? When we first fell in love? But falling in love is continuous and perpetual, an activity that abides under the aegis of capital letter Love.”
While I wasn’t familiar with the source material for many of the tales, I didn’t find it affected my enjoyment of them, though I’m sure I missed nuances. For the ones I was, I loved the way the retellings bent the tale, Scheherazade being my personal favorite. In this version, her storytelling is for the benefit of fixing politicians’ messes, and it takes 1001 nights for her to let herself fall in love, to accept the protection and possible heartache that comes with that. “Nefertiti,” the sole f/f story, was another gem, setting her as the widowed owner of a cabaret and all-women gang, dedicated to protecting women from the corrupt government and the men who would prey on them (often one and the same). “Psyche” sets Mt. Olympus as a Devil Wears Prada situation in a skyscraper and involves a sweet friends-to-lovers trope. “Yaa” explores the main character freeing herself from parental – and societal – expectations. To be completely honest, there weren’t any stories that I didn’t like.
“I’m pretty sure you’re the love of my life. I, uh, like your face and I like when words come out of your face. Sorry, that didn’t sound romantic at all.”
This collection’s biggest strength is also its weakness: so many of the stories are about powerful women being truly seen, about owning that power, about their partner respecting that power and seeing them. Gobbling up all thirteen stories in a row is probably not the best way to read this. I wish I’d had the willpower to put the book down between tales and reflect on each individually. The author has an amazing way with words, just the most gorgeously evocative prose, and a great ability to pack a book’s worth of feelings into a short story. I’d love to see what she could do with a full length novella or novel!
“We of all people can’t afford distraction.” Maadi shifted closer. “With all due respect, Siya, I’m not distracted. I’m focused on what matters most.”
Overall, I very much enjoyed this anthology and will be looking forward to wherever the author goes next!
I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review....more
Just like it says on the tin, this is an anthology of four wlw second chances romances! I’m a bit embarrassed to admit that while I own books by threeJust like it says on the tin, this is an anthology of four wlw second chances romances! I’m a bit embarrassed to admit that while I own books by three out of the four authors, I’ve only ever read one – the absolutely fluffy and hilarious Deal with the Demon by Chace Verity. I feel like this was a great introduction to all of them and definitely had me shuffling things around on my TBR!
“So far we’ve got a dead guy and a dog in your truck this morning,” Casey said. “Anything else you want to disclose?” A dead guy, a dog, and Susan’s ex in her truck. But that didn’t seem worth pointing out at the moment.”
“Out for Delivery” – Leigh Landry. ★★★
Content warnings: (view spoiler)[murder (including discovery of a dead body on-page), sexual harassment (off-page, discussed), illegal gambling (hide spoiler)]
Susan knows it’s going to be a bad day at her job delivering packages when her first delivery is to her ex Casey’s house. And then she finds her boss’s dead body in the back of her truck. The premise is completely bonkers. Casey insists Susan try to figure out who killed her boss before going to the police, so they ride around together doing deliveries with a dead body in the back of the truck while simultaneously trying to do amateur detective work. Despite the fact that Susan doesn’t completely trust Casey (for good reason), she goes along with it. Despite the bonkers-ness, it’s obvious that Casey cares deeply about Susan and regrets her past actions. The ending of the story was especially sweet, but the whole murder plot didn’t quite work for me. I loved the dog, though!
“There was no note of allure in her voice when she said again, “This is nice stuff, Trace. Let’s just—let’s do business.” Business, right then, was the last thing Trace wanted to do.”
Trace has a dual business – she sells off her clients’ ex’s possessions, and sometimes even comforts them in a more physical manner. But when her ex Tansy contacts her out of the blue during a messy divorce, Trace has to decide whether the possible paycheck is worth reopening old wounds.
There was a lot I liked about this story. Trace’s business idea was absolutely brilliant, and I loved how butch she was – at one point, she’s chopping wood in her backyard when Tansy shows up unexpectedly. Trace knows what she wants in life. Tansy, however, didn’t, and that’s what ultimately caused the breakdown in their relationship. For a long time she was willing to be led along by someone else, be someone she wasn’t – literally relegated to a guest room in her own house.
My main issue with this is that it felt like it ended too abruptly and left too much unfinished. There was a whole subplot with Tansy’s brother, Colt (who was also Trace’s best friend) that wasn’t resolved. I think this is perhaps more of a 3.5 stars for me, but I’d definitely read this as a full-length novel, just saying.
“Things hadn’t worked with Justine or any other girl in the past because they weren’t Dahlia. She only wanted to commit (fake) crimes with Dahlia. And more. She wanted to do more with Dahlia.”
“The (Virtual) Body Guard” – Chace Verity. ★★★★★
Content warnings: (view spoiler)[depression, anxiety, self-harm (in the past), car accident (in the past), estranged parents (not on page), video game mob violence, transphobia, ableism, MC experiencing housing insecurity and job loss (hide spoiler)]
Tala started playing a Mafia-themed game during rehab after a car accident that left her in a wheelchair. Now, years later, she can hardly imagine a day where she doesn’t spend time as a bodyguard to her online best friend, Dallas. But when she misses a raid due to a last minute Valentine’s date, Dallas suddenly ghosts her. Tala’s grieving the loss of the friendship when she meets a gorgeous woman at the library she works at, catches a glimpse of her screen, and realizes she’s Dallas. Dallas – Dahlia – is even more wonderful IRL, but how can Tala tell her who she is without ruining this new friendship?
I absolutely loved these two. Tala favors a butch aesthetic, and she exercises religiously, while Dahlia’s a trans lesbian. Dahlia has very good reasons for being so hurt by Tala’s actions, even if it was “only a video game,” and despite those reasons, this is really a comforting and sweet story. I loved how Dahlia would walk Tala to work every day, along with all the other bits and pieces of their “new” friendship. Definitely my favorite of the collection!
“The Best Places” – Candace Harper. ★★★★
Content warnings: (view spoiler)[side characters die in car accident (off-page), MC’s husband died of heart attack (off-page, many years ago), grief, animal neglect, ace phobia (mentioned) (hide spoiler)]
After the death of her husband fifteen years ago, Rebecca left her judgmental in-laws and the small town they lived in behind for good. When she receives a letter on Christmas Eve that she’s the executor of her in-laws’ estate, she’s torn, but decides to go along with her daughter Emma. She’s surprised to find the lawyer is her roommate from college, Rosalyn. They were best friends once, but that fractured when Rebecca married Rosalyn’s cousin, Bill, and Rosalyn didn’t support her against her in-laws, who saw her as nothing but a gold-digger.
This was just so unbelievably sweet, and it is the absolute epitome of the “missed chances” version of the second chance trope. It really felt like Rebecca and Rosalyn had a history and it was wonderful to watch them reconnect. I also liked Rebecca’s relationship with Emma. She felt like a real teen, and I liked how her perspective on her (previously unknown) grandparents and “their” town was included. I also liked the rep. Rosalyn’s asexual and panromantic, Rebecca is pan as well, and her daughter is bi.
Overall, this was a great collection, and I’m hoping for more just like it, whether it’s more second chance stories or whether the authors decide to explore a different trope.
I received an advance review copy of this book from the author. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review....more
Content warnings: (view spoiler)[violence and murder (including child death and children in danger), gore, prostitution, sexual assault (graphic and oContent warnings: (view spoiler)[violence and murder (including child death and children in danger), gore, prostitution, sexual assault (graphic and on-page), animal cruelty, misogyny, suicide (hide spoiler)]
In the introduction, the author calls herself a “book-based lifeform” which immediately struck a chord for me. This is a collection of thirteen stories, from some of the author’s earliest work to her latest, including the author’s Nebula award winning novelette. Each story is followed by author’s notes explaining the inspiration and and her intent.
“It’s no use pretending the world hadn’t changed. It changes all the time. Every choice we make, every person we meet, has the potential to transform our lives. When that happens, we adapt. Manage. Cope.”
Many of the stories are, despite climate change, age and all of our personally accumulated mistakes, hopeful. While the author doesn’t have children and doesn’t want children, a large amount of the stories seem to revolve around parenting. I’m not sure whether it’s because children are an easy stand-in for hope, as they are in “Two Watersheds,” or if it’s just because for so long children have been an accepted part of women’s lives. Many of the stories are queer, and especially lesbian, though there are some mis-steps, as when the narrator in “Skin City” assumes someone’s pronouns, even after being reminded why that’s not a good idea.
I have several favorites in the collection. “A Human Stain” is about an Englishwoman agreeing to be a nanny at a friend’s family’s castle in the remote German countryside. It’s the last story (and the Nebula award winning one) and absolutely deliciously horrifying. “A Study in Oils” involves an art retreat in an indigenous Chinese village, a killer, and a group of elderly artists. The detail about the village and the natural wonders around it was compelling and lyrical. The exploration of art and its abilities to express things unseen even to the creator jived with me, though I’m not sure what to think about the fact that the story was at least in part sponsored by the Chinese government. “Waters of Versailles” stars a social-climbing inventor noble in Versailles, whose claim to fame is, well, plumbing. But as in most stories about grasping for power, it’s about who is forgotten and endangered in that search for power. “What Gentle Women Dare” was perhaps my most favorite, following a 1700s sex worker and her meeting with the Devil in a church graveyard.
While the stories take place across a swath of time and space, many of them are distinctly Canadian in setting or tone. There’s an amusing trio of stories – “The Desperate Flesh,” “Alias Space,” and “Skin City” – that track the evolution of Toronto into a city famous for street burlesque shows. I found “Alias Space,” the most recently written story in the collection, especially interesting for its inclusion of mask-wearing and social distancing and the imagined effects of that on live performances. “La Vitesse” is about a school bus driver on a particularly rural route who suddenly has more to contend with than just gravel roads and snow.
“You seek to raise yourself above your station,” she continued. “Those who do have no true home. They leave behind their rightful and God-given place and yet never reach their goal. It is a kind of Limbo, a choice to begin eternity in purgatory even before death.”
As for the ones that didn’t work for me, the anthology opens with “Two-Year Man” which involves a man who assumes his wife is broken because she doesn’t want children. Honestly, I almost DNF’d the book after this story. It was not what I expected from an otherwise feminist and decidedly queer anthology, and I still wonder if I simply grossly misunderstood the story. “So You Want to Be a Honeypot” was a story from the POV of a James Bond-esque femme fatale but missed something in its execution for me. I have mixed feelings about “The Three Resurrections of Jessica Churchill.” It has extreme content warnings but is extremely chilling and thought-provoking. I understand from the author’s notes it was one of her ways to work out her feelings over the disappearance of a classmate, but the author herself isn’t First Nations (nor is the character in the story), and I’d be interested in hearing from someone ownvoices about it.
Overall, this was an enjoyable collection, and I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for the author’s stories in the future.
I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review....more
I’m always up for an anthology, especially a science fiction one. This is a collection of sixteen short stories by Australian authors. While there werI’m always up for an anthology, especially a science fiction one. This is a collection of sixteen short stories by Australian authors. While there were some I didn’t care for, on the whole this was a very enjoyable collection with a few stand-out favorites. Just a note that the only place you seem to be able to buy this is from the publisher’s website. I’ve linked it above using the Bookshop logo!
“Traitor” – Geraldine Borella – ★★★. An exploratory mission to determine the habitability of a planet leads one scientist to contemplate the meaning of “traitor.” Told from the POV of the scientist, the story is generally framed by the testimony of the mission’s captain during an inquiry.
“Endymion” – Johnathan E. Furneaux – ★★★★. The last sleeper colony ship is slowly closing in on its destination when it encounters something that may change everything.
“Arrogance Is Death” – Lynne Stringer – ★★★★. A destroyed world’s only hope is to time travel backwards to steal resources. But one young person asks why they’re not doing more.
“Ebenezer’s Cafe” – Catriona McKeown – ★★★. Interesting story about returning to an abandoned Earth, but a weird focus on intelligent design.
“Fetching the Flame” – Janeen Samuel – ★★★. Imagining what would happen if the only way to make fire was by bargaining with a fire lizard. They’ve forgotten how to make fire, which I thought was weird and unlikely.
“The Clockmaker and the Time Machine” – Jo Hart – ★★★★. A mysterious gentleman and his daughter bring a time-traveling device to a village repairman.
“Over and Out” – Adele Jones – ★★★. A hacker works with a team to defeat an AI overlord, but all is not as it seems.
“The Rocksway Flight” – Russell Hume – ★★★. A steampunk airship trade route goes awry when the pilot has to deal with a spoiled “helper.”
“The True Written Life of Ed Specolta” – Penny Jaye – ★★★★. A silly way to use up an extra school notebook ends with Ed’s best friend almost writing him out of her life.
“Romano’s” – Jack Garrety – ★★★★. Classic ghost story starring a violin shop and a young girl.
“The Seeking of Javan” – Rosanne Hawke – ★★★. The confession of a girl who left her insular community to explore the dystopian outside.
“Faulty Connection” – Jennifer Horn – ★★★. A well-written premise (everyone spends all day connected to their virtual worlds) but a bit over-moralizing.
“Light Club” – Jennie Del Mastro – ★★★. I have no idea what happened in this story, but it was an enjoyable confusion, at least.
“The Choice” – Anne Hamilton – ★★. More confusion, but lyrical confusion this time.
“Luminescent Love” – Stephanie Martin – ★★★. Cute story about a mechanic keeping a big secret from his girlfriend.
“Designer Ghost” – Emily Larkin – ★★★★. A very inventive story about animal “ghosts” that are assigned to teens based on their deficits.
Overall, I’d give the collection as a whole three stars, with my favorites being “Endymion,” “Romano’s,” and “Designer Ghost.” I feel like there was a good variety between futuristic and fantasy stories, and they certainly met their goal of taking my mind off the pandemic!
I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review....more
What an absolutely amazing anthology! This is a collection of fantasy and science fiction stories written by an inclusive group of authors and starring a diverse cast of characters. With everything from retold fairytales to apocalyptic landscapes, there’s a little bit of something for any young adult reader. While I’ve read some of the included authors before, most were new to me, and these stories were a great introduction to their work.
“Wonder, Thorn realized, was beautiful; it banished what was impossible and made room for belief.”
“A Universe of Wishes” – Tara Sim – ★★★★★
A boy harvesting wishes from the dead, caught by the boy who works at a funeral parlor, offers him three wishes in exchange. I loved the world building and the sweet development of the m/m relationship, plus the resolution on this one is just sheer perfection!
“The Silk Blade” – Natalie C. Parker – ★★★★
Willador, one of three warriors chosen to compete for the hand of the Bloom, heir to Everdale’s throne, has second thoughts after meeting Rabi, one of her fellow competitors. Lots of excitement and fun worldbuilding.
“At last! A proper adventure!” “Two dead men and a missing Rakshana agent isn’t an ‘adventure,’ Fee. It’s trouble.” “Trouble is always an adventure.”
“The Scarlet Woman” – Libba Bray – ???
I haven’t read the Gemma Doyle books, so I honestly had no idea what was going on. The worldbuilding seemed interesting, and I liked the byplay between Gemma and Fee, but I was so confused I don’t feel like I should rate this one. Not recommended if you’re not already familiar with the books.
“Cristal y Ceniza” – Anna-Marie McLemore -★★★★★
A gorgeous reimagining of Cinderella with a trans prince and the difference between tolerance and acceptance. I haven’t read this author before, but her books are going straight on to my TBR.
“Liberia” – Kwame Mbalia – ★★★★
What we leave behind is almost as important as what we take with us in this story about teens piloting an aging spaceship to a colony.
“A Royal Affair” – V.E. Schwab – ★★★
Another story where I haven’t read the series, but this one was much more understandable. It’s quite sad and dark, which *waves at 2020* isn’t really to my taste right now, but the worldbuilding was interesting.
“The Takeback Tango” – Rebecca Roanhorse – ★★★★
Loved this one! A teen thief plans a caper to steal back her planet’s artifacts, but there’s a complication. I’d love to read a set of stories about Vi and Val!
“Dream and Dare” – Nic Stone – ★★★
I liked the message behind this one – about girls who don’t fit into the traditional gender roles – but the writing didn’t work for me.
“Wish” – Jenni Balch – ★★★
An imaginative retelling of the genie myth, but this time in… spaaaaaace. Honestly, this one just fell a little flat for me.
“But she chose to believe the world would be better if everything had its place and every question had its answer, like pairs of matching socks. So she could prepare.”
“The Weight” – Dhonielle Clayton – ★★★★★
A young couple is preparing to undergo a medical procedure that will tell them who they love and how much they love them. Dhonielle Clayton writes stories that are amazing in their own right and then absolutely roiling with meaning under the surface.
“Unmoor” – Mark Oshiro – ★★★★★
The world building in this one was exquisite. A teenager employs a magic service to help ease his heartbreak. It sounds like a great idea, except, well, there are always trade-offs, aren’t there?
“The Coldest Spot in the Universe” – Samira Ahmed – ★★★
I was all-in on this lyrically sad intertwined tales of an alien civilization investigating Earth many years after global warming destroyed it, and a teenager living through those last days. Then there was a twist at the end – “synchronicity” – that was just too preachy for me.
“The Beginning of Monsters” – Tessa Gratton – ★★★★
Unbelievably imaginative. In a world where bodies can be magically re-architected – adding claws or changing genders – what does being “human” really mean?
“Longer Than the Threads of Time” – Zoraida Córdova – ★★★★
A Rapunzel retelling that stopped much too soon for me! Another author going to the top of my reading list!
“Even though they were rarely about Arabs, and rarely about young Arab boys like me, if I squinted, I could see in the contours of their heroes something of my shoulders and my hair and my hands and feet. If I closed my eyes, I could imagine myself as the main character. And I was a hero who did not destroy things but saved them.”
“Habibi” – Tochi Onybuchi – ★★★★★
Two imprisoned teen boys – one from Long Beach, California and one from Palestine – communicate through magical means. An absolute powerhouse ending to this anthology.
Overall, while some stories didn’t work for me, this was an excellent collection and I’ll definitely be picking up the rest of the We Need Diverse Books anthologies, as well as checking out many of the authors’ individual works. Highly recommended!
I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review....more
This book consists of two pairs of stories by a South Korean author known for her speculative fiction. Both deal with a sort of time-is-relative theorThis book consists of two pairs of stories by a South Korean author known for her speculative fiction. Both deal with a sort of time-is-relative theory, though in very different ways.
The first and last stories are from the perspective of an engaged couple. One is traveling back from Alpha Centauri, so rather than wait the few years for her to return, the other decides to board a spaceship that’ll accelerate up to light speed – meaning that it’ll only be a few months for him. But even when things don’t go the way they’re supposed to, he continues to hope that she’ll wait for him. The story is told through fifteen letters to his fiancé and is a powerhouse of emotion: hope, despair, resiliency. Despite the circumstances keeping them apart, he keeps doing his best to get back to her, eagerly waiting for and anticipating the day he’ll see her again, even while it feels like he’s the only human left in the universe.
The middle set of stories were a little more opaque. Earth is a training ground created by a set of beings who divide themselves and send themselves there to learn. The stories are told from the point of view of Naban, a Teacher whose numerous experiences have led them towards asceticism. Their views, however, are in conflict with some of the other more popular Teachers, who instead prefer to spend their Earth lives accruing power and money. This story was harder to get in to and was more overtly philosophical in nature. The second of the stories in the set is a direct continuation of the first, but was more traditional in structure and much less abstract. I didn’t enjoy these as much as the other pair of stories, even though in some ways they’re exploring some of the same sort of ideas, and I’m probably going to blame that on pandemic brain.
The last story is the bookend to the collection, a matching set of fifteen letters from the fiancée’s point of view. While much of what the first narrator has to overcome is his complete isolation from other people, for the woman, hell is other people. She goes through the same set of emotions as him, though, and perseveres through it all with the hope of seeing her fiancé again. I almost liked this one better than the first, as it was intriguing seeing the same events through her eyes, and I loved HUN the AI.
There’s also a series of author’s notes and translators’ notes at the end that explain a little more in depth about the creation of these stories and how they were translated, and it was definitely especially helpful for understanding more about the middle set of stories.
Overall, I’d give the collection as a whole around 3.5 stars, and I’ll definitely be looking for more work from this author in translation!
I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review....more
Content warnings: (view spoiler)[mention of past self-harm, social anxiety, homophobia (by another character, off-page), misgendering (by another charContent warnings: (view spoiler)[mention of past self-harm, social anxiety, homophobia (by another character, off-page), misgendering (by another character, off-page), accidental injury (broken wrist and glass in foot), kid getting kicked out of home due to homophobia, panic attack (on-page) (hide spoiler)]
That cover is super cute and, honestly, who could say no to a bunch of pandemic meet-cutes? I hadn’t read most of these authors before, so I was pleasantly surprised how much I liked this anthology – and now I have a whole bunch of new authors’ backlists to check out!
“Love, Delivered” – Erin A. Craig – ★★★★
Millie and her parents have just moved to a new house in Michigan, one that’s so out in the boonies that it has no cell reception or any food delivery options beyond pizza. With her parents gone all day working at the local hospital, no way to get into town for groceries and nothing to do but unpack, Millie strikes up a friendship – and a mild flirtation – with the pizza delivery kid over basketball and books. It’s cute and I thought it showed Millie’s frustrations – moving during a pandemic, missing her friends, being home alone without her parents in a new place – well.
“The Socially Distant Dog-Walking Brigade” – Bill Konigsberg – ★★★★
Kaz already has a hard time talking to people, so when his dog Griffin pees all over another another dog walker he just met… well, apparently he can just never go to that dog park again. But he keeps running into Daxton and his dog Squirrel on their daily walks, and suddenly they’re walking together every day. This was cute and absolutely hilarious at points, but also a lot heavier between Kaz’s social anxiety and their discussions of their parents’ casual homophobia/transphobia.
“One Day” – Sajni Patel – ★★★★★
All Bobby’s trying to do when she goes out on the balcony is escape her family and their claustrophobic apartment so her headache will go away. That’s her only explanation for why, when the boy in the building next to her won’t stop playing his guitar, she throws her sneaker at him. Now the boy’s serenading her sneaker and refusing to give it back… unless she gives him her number. This was just over-the-top rom-com hijinks adorable and uplifting.
“The Rules of Comedy” – Auriane Desombre – ★★★
Finding out her chem partner, who she’s been crushing over all year, is gay is the best thing that happened to Harper since the pandemic started. But how can her boring old self ever attract bubbly, hilarious Alyssa’s attention? Obviously the only solution is to convince her comedy major older sister to help her make a viral TikTok. This was cute, but for whatever reason (maybe because I’m old?) the whole viral TikTok/”I’m not funny enough!” thing didn’t work for me.
“The New Boy Next Door” – Natasha Preston – ★★★
Two weeks into the lockdown, and Quinn is officially obsessed with the new boy next door, Archer. Problem is, she can’t seem to actually get him to talk to her – all he seems capable of doing is scowling. While I enjoy a good grumpy hero, something about this story just didn’t work for me. The neighborhood’s a little too perfect and I couldn’t buy how quickly Quinn and Archer connected.
“Love with a Side of Fortune” – Jennifer Yen – ★★★★
Michelle’s pandemic “break” has been spent working at her family’s restaurant. Between that and her mom’s fortune teller’s prediction that her next year will be not great, the last thing she expects is to see her crush, high school swim team star, Evan, picking up some broccoli beef. Before she knows it, Evan’s picking up food every night and they’re chatting like friends. But will the fortune teller’s prediction mean that any relationship between them is doomed before it starts? This one was so funny, and I loved how awkward Michelle was with Evan initially.
“The Green Thumb War” – Brittney Morris – ★★★★★
Billie’s therapist has suggested she start growing plants on their balcony to help her deal with the stress of living in an apartment during the pandemic. What doesn’t help her stress is when her cat leaps across the balcony to the next apartment over and injures the cute boy who lives there. While the meet-cute was the absolute most ridiculous of all of the stories, I loved how this one had both Billie and Sebastian’s POVs. Billie is so ice-cold while Sebastian is just absolutely adorable while trying to get her number, and I couldn’t even.
“Stuck with Her” – Rachael Lippincott – ★★★
Allie is regretting not getting on-campus housing for her sophomore year even more now that she’s stuck with her roommate Mia. She’s messy and loud, but at least now she can’t have her equally annoying friends over for parties every Saturday. Though she seems to be doing her best to make up for that by playing music at 3am every morning. I wanted to like this one – especially since it was the only one involving college students – but Mia was just too annoying for me.
“Masked” – Erin Hahn – ★★★★
Gray has developed quite the crush on Jude while chatting online with him about making masks for his uncle’s employees. After she finally meets him, the crush gets even worse, especially since he looks like her favorite contestant on a reality show. Maybe… too much like that contestant? OK, this one seriously strained my suspension of disbelief, but it was so adorable and well-written (and dual POV again!) that I honestly couldn’t care. I’ve read the author before and absolutely loved her writing style, so honestly, liking this one was no surprise for me. I loved the focus on music.
Overall, for the most part, the stories in this anthology really worked for me. I’m certainly far (far!) outside of the target age range, but the characters’ pandemic frustrations and hopes still spoke to me. Even better, I’ve found several new authors to look up!
I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review....more
Gardner Dozois’ Year’s Best collections were a staple of my childhood, mostly because it was some of the only science fiction my local library could bGardner Dozois’ Year’s Best collections were a staple of my childhood, mostly because it was some of the only science fiction my local library could be relied on to buy every year. If this inaugural volume is anything to go by, Jonathan Strahan is a worthy successor. This is an anthology of 28 stories from 2019, delightfully diverse and spanning a wide range of themes.
“Everybody needs books, Molly figured. No matter where they live, how they love, what they believe, whom they want to kill. We all want books.”
Charlie Jane Ander’s “The Bookstore at the End of America” serves as a not particularly subtle introduction to a group of stories about how the stories we tell divide us, unite us, and bring us hope. Almost all of the stories were new to me even if the authors weren’t. The only exception was S.L. Huang’s bombshell “As the Last I May Know,” about one child and a nation’s “ethical” solution to nuclear warfare, which won the Hugo for short story this year. Also as unsurprisingly exceptional – even though I hadn’t read it before – was N.K. Jemisin’s “Emergency Skin,” which handles a topic (climate change and apocalypse) others cover in this anthology with unbelievable skill and a frankly unparalleled storytelling ability. Despite the subject matter, it’s surprisingly hopeful, as is Malka Older’s “Sturdy Lantern and Ladders” about a behavioral researcher who job is to provide stress relief for a research octopus.
For new-to-me authors, I was particularly taken by Indrapramit Das’ “Kali_Na,” about an AI goddess and a poor, lower-caste Indian girl. On the less than hopeful and more rage-filled side (this is 2020, we all need a little bit of screaming into the void at this point), Alice Sola Kim’s “Now Wait For This Week” is a not-particularly-subtle Groundhog-Day-like take on sexual harassment. Karin Tidbeck’s “The Last Voyage of Skidbladnir” is one of the few outright adventure-type stories, following a human grease monkey on a strange interstellar cruise ship. I’d also add Tegan Moore’s “The Work of Wolves,” from the point of view of an Enhanced search and rescue dog who’s puzzled by her cold relationship with her handler, to that pile.
I was especially touched by Caroline M. Yoachim’s “The Archronology of Love.” One of my favorite styles of science fiction is plopping down relatable characters in different-but-not-so-different places and times, using that lens to reinterpret our lives. This story is a heart wrenching tale of a woman who’s lost her husband and the future they were planning to share and now has to unravel the mystery of the failed colony, all the while dealing with her nearly grown up son.
Overall, even if some of the stories weren’t to my taste, they were for the most part high quality. I also appreciated the long introduction listing the editor’s favorites from the year, regardless of length or format. While I’d already read or added most of them to my TBR, I found a few new gems. This is definitely a worthy successor to one of my childhood favorites and I will definitely be picking up next year’s edition!
I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. ...more
It’s that time of year when everyone’s looking for some new reads to put them in the holiday spirit. If you’re looking for something lighthearted and It’s that time of year when everyone’s looking for some new reads to put them in the holiday spirit. If you’re looking for something lighthearted and fun, then I think this anthology will definitely fit the bill.
It’s a bit of a mixed bag, with things from lists to short stories. While this is probably overkill, I’ve gone ahead and reviewed each of the items in the anthology, along with an associated quote.
“I think I speak for all of us when I say that moistening aliens was not on the agenda for any of us at this table.”
“Science Fictional Thanksgiving Grace” – ★★★★ – A tongue-in-check prayer thanking the Lord for not yet plunging us into any scifi movie plots, including alien invasions, AI overlords, and dinosaurs. Short and hilarious.
“I think that those cranberries might have fermented on you.”
“A Bitter November” – ★★★★ – November, personified, complains about December barreling in on its month. Quick and silly.
“Ayn Rand’s A Selfish Christmas (1951)”
“The 10 Least Successful Holiday Specials of All Time” – ★★★ – Descriptions of various “holiday special!!” takes on various books and TV shows, from War of the Worlds to Ayn Rand to Star Trek (where Spock is mistaken as one of Santa’s elves). Interesting concept, but most of them missed the mark for me.
“Santa doesn’t judge people for their kinks, but he does expect them to pay for them.”
“An Interview with Santa’s Lawyer” – ★★★★ – Like the title says, it’s an interview with one of Santa’s lawyers, covering everything from unionized elves to how Santa gets flight clearance to his data gathering practices.
“Jingle! Jangle! Gerbils!”
“A Personal Top 10 of Things That Are Not Titles to Christmas Songs and/or Lifetime Holiday Movies and Honestly I Don’t Understand Why” – ★★★ – The title is almost longer than the list!
“That’s the thing about gifts, Major Collier. They’re not obligations. They’re a kindness.”
“Christmas in July” – ★★★★★ – The first actual short story in the collection, this was sweet, lovely and the epitome of the Christmas spirit (while also still being hilarious).
“Why not reindeer?”
“Interview with Santa’s Reindeer Wrangler” – ★★★★ – Another interview, but this one exploring all the fun bits of reindeer, including how they fly, how they’re recruited, and several very bad cheese jokes.
“Little Public Relations Intern Boy”
“8 Things You Didn’t Know About Your Favorite Holiday Music” – ★★★★ – Another list, much like the holiday specials one. Possibly because I’m much more familiar with the source material, but I found the fictional backstories of Christmas favorites – like “Baby It’s Cold Outside” and “Silent Night” – absolutely hilarious.
“Jackie loved Christmas more than most girls and boys For one simple reason: Because of the toys!”
“Jackie Jones and Melrose Mandy” – ★★ – This poem, while a nice change in format, was simply too preachy for me (there’s more to Christmas than toys!!!), and it didn’t scan well for me.
“You’ve settled on a plan of driving down Santa’s popularity, then.”
“An Interview with the Christmas Bunny” – ★★★ – Another interview! This one was… interesting to say the least.
“You can’t go around drugging people, Jangle.”
“Jangle the Elf Grants Wishes” – ★★★★ – An elf tasked with granting non-material wishes takes things a little too far. Mostly three star, but adding an extra star for the last few lines.
“They are future ninjas for Christ.”
“Script Notes on the Birth of Jesus” – ★★★★ – As if a producer was returning notes on the story of the birth of Jesus from Matthew and Luke. Irreverent and silly, but time traveling ninjas get the nod from me every time.
“It’s nice to be a baby, and know how much you’re loved.”
“Sarah’s Sister” – ★★★★ – At the hospital on Christmas Eve while her mother is in labor, ten-year-old Sarah is still ambivalent about whether she wants a baby sister. Definitely a tear jerker along the lines of It’s a Wonderful Life.
“So your baby is born, and the first thing you do is put him in an open container filled with grain and covered in oxen drool?”
“An Interview with the Nativity Innkeeper” – ★★★ – Like the title says. Irreverent and silly.
“running from murderous drones is SUPER cardio”
“Resolutions for the New Year: A Bullet Point List” – ★★★★★ – Finishing out this anthology with a bang. I found this ridiculously hilarious, but perhaps not for those who are lactose intolerant.
Overall, what do I think? Well, I already went ahead and purchased the hardcover version. While this definitely doesn’t have year-round appeal, it’s definitely a book that I can see revisiting next Christmas when I need a bit of a pick-me-up.
I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. ...more
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