cupcakes_books's review against another edition
3.0
The stories provided had some interesting twists. Some a bit morbid, which is nice from some of the fluff out there.
etoiline's review
4.0
I requested this short story collection because Peter S. Beagle was featured. I still haven't read any of his novels, which I really need to remedy. But I was pleased with the other stories here, not just his, which makes me happy. I did get the feeling that I should recognize the myths some of these stories are based on, but I suppose my mythology is lacking. Many of the stories tasted familiar, as if I had read something like it before, but I couldn't pin it down. For all that, this collection had me reading fast, because the stories are well written. Beagle's story is about the personification of Death (seems like I've seen quite a few of those lately) but it's a good twist on the theme. And there is always a price for talking with the one who will take you out of the world...
Some of the fairy tales are repeated in different authors' stories, but each one is told in a unique way. Some were creepy, yet romantic, and others just made me squirm. These are not fairy tales you would tell your young children, but YA lovers would be comfortable. Overall a good, if dark, collection and a good introduction to the various authors.
Received as a digital ARC via LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program.
Some of the fairy tales are repeated in different authors' stories, but each one is told in a unique way. Some were creepy, yet romantic, and others just made me squirm. These are not fairy tales you would tell your young children, but YA lovers would be comfortable. Overall a good, if dark, collection and a good introduction to the various authors.
Received as a digital ARC via LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program.
valhecka's review
5.0
I grabbed this on a whim when it was cheap and oh I am so glad I did.
Necklace of Rubies is second only to The Seventh Bride in Bluebeard retelling. Come Lady Death has an odd, mannered, Pratchetty charm that I loved. I'd read the two Sleeping Beauty remixes in the Color Noun Color Noun anthology series put together by Windling and Datlow, but revisiting was fun. Words Like Pale Stones is inspired. Frayed Tapestry is the coolest Persephone variation I can imagine, and But Can You Let Him Go is a cross-cultural masterpiece.
The originals - Remains and Cold Blackness Between - are both lingeringly creepy and fun - Remains atmospheric, Cold Blackness character-driven (and by what a character).
I'm also kind of astonished at how much I liked this twist on the jewel-speaking sister.
Necklace of Rubies is second only to The Seventh Bride in Bluebeard retelling. Come Lady Death has an odd, mannered, Pratchetty charm that I loved. I'd read the two Sleeping Beauty remixes in the Color Noun Color Noun anthology series put together by Windling and Datlow, but revisiting was fun. Words Like Pale Stones is inspired. Frayed Tapestry is the coolest Persephone variation I can imagine, and But Can You Let Him Go is a cross-cultural masterpiece.
The originals - Remains and Cold Blackness Between - are both lingeringly creepy and fun - Remains atmospheric, Cold Blackness character-driven (and by what a character).
I'm also kind of astonished at how much I liked this twist on the jewel-speaking sister.
astronomist's review
4.0
I really liked pretty much all of the stories. There was maybe one or two that I wasn't feeling, but the rest were great. My favorite was Frayed Tapestry. A Necklace of Rubies gave me the heeby jeebies. And Every Word I Speak was heartbreaking.
Oh and I got this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.
Oh and I got this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.
alyssaarch's review
4.0
It's rare for me to wholeheartedly recommend an anthology, but I am recommending this one. Once Upon a Curse is a collection of amazing fairy tale interpretations from some pretty fantastic authors. With short story collections, I usually only like a couple and am neutral about the rest, but for this one there isn't one story that I didn't like. Most of them, I loved.
There are some things keeping me from giving this book a perfect rating. The last story definitely could have been cut by at least ten pages. While it was interesting to read about all the different cultural retellings of Cinderella, I don't think it was necessary to the main plot and all the stories-within-the-story made it drag. There were also a couple of others where the endings fell a bit flat, but not enough to make me dislike them outright.
There are two Sleeping Beauty stories in here (both excellent), along with Bluebeard, Cinderella, "Diamonds and Toads," among others. Anna Kashina has become my new favorite fantasy author with her story "Solstice Maiden," and I most definitely plan to check out her other works. If you're at all a fan of fantasy, you will find at least one story in this book to love (although, I'm betting that you'll find more). These stories are all entertaining, full of twists, and have interesting characters.
*I received a free copy of this book from the publisher through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program.*
There are some things keeping me from giving this book a perfect rating. The last story definitely could have been cut by at least ten pages. While it was interesting to read about all the different cultural retellings of Cinderella, I don't think it was necessary to the main plot and all the stories-within-the-story made it drag. There were also a couple of others where the endings fell a bit flat, but not enough to make me dislike them outright.
There are two Sleeping Beauty stories in here (both excellent), along with Bluebeard, Cinderella, "Diamonds and Toads," among others. Anna Kashina has become my new favorite fantasy author with her story "Solstice Maiden," and I most definitely plan to check out her other works. If you're at all a fan of fantasy, you will find at least one story in this book to love (although, I'm betting that you'll find more). These stories are all entertaining, full of twists, and have interesting characters.
*I received a free copy of this book from the publisher through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program.*
ckanderson's review
4.0
Fascinating, beautiful, and sometimes haunting stories. Most of them are fairly dark, but they all hold your attention and put a creative twist on a variety of fairy tales.
book_grinch's review
3.0
Fairy Tales and it's subsequent retelling s are a genre, that despite my (advanced) age continue to fascinate me...
Maybe because in the end, good always triumph (normally..)...and maybe because when I should have read them , I didn't!!
So..apparently I still feel this "need" to devour them....everytime I see a shiny cover with some promising stories inside!!
Basically my inner six year old self is still the boss of me...but do not be fooled, this is not a kid's fairy tales.
This anthology, well it seemed so intriguing that I was sure I was going to love it!
As you can see, it didn't quite happened...
I admit however, that at the moment, I am having one too many Mr. Darcy "not interesting enough to tempt me" moments when reading books. o.O
This one, well it suffers from the basic anthology issues!
It has some interesting stories, others that are okay, and others that are just plainly bad!
This three star rating signifies an okay (being one star bad, two mediocre) reading. Two would be more accurate, but there's a couple of stories in this that don't deserve so lower rating.
A Necklace of rubies by Cindy Lynn Speer, 2 Stars
A Bluebeard re-tale.
The writing was okay, but the characters were just too much one dimensional (and stupid to live),to make me appreciate the tale:
It doesn’t much matter, you see. It’s what I was saying about the hunting cats. He may be a murderer, and I may be the next victim. But when he scolds me gently for sleeping on the sofa (“It’s freezing in this room. You’ll be sick.”) and when he picks me up and carries me upstairs promising a present for me; he’s so soft and so loving, I cannot feature it.
He’s often a cold, hard man, but he softens for me. He cherishes me. It makes me feel special, as if I’ve done something no other woman could.
Come Lady Death by Peter S. Beagle 3.5 stars
This was the "name" that made me notice this anthology in the first place. And in thuth, I can't say that it disappointed me.
Unfortunately this whimsical tale of a bored Lady who decides to invite Death itself for her grand party, was just too short!
The characters are mostly irrelevant. Here the only thing it matters is the quality of the writing, and the tale itself.
“Be sure,” said Death. “Be sure of what you want, be very sure. Do all of you want me to stay? For if one
of you says to me, no, go away, then I must leave at once and never return. Be sure. Do you all want me?”
And everyone there cried with one voice, “Yes! Yes, you must stay with us. You are so beautiful that we cannot let you go.”
Summer Wind by Nancy Kress 4 stars
A Briar Rose re-telling, this turned out to be one of my favorites in this anthology. It gives us the full extension of a curse during the girl's lifetime. And I am afraid, no happy ever after for her...
The first old woman repeated sharply, “It is no little thing you have gained, sister.”
Rose said, “I would rather have had my lost life.”
Stronger Than Time by Patricia C. Wrede 3.5 stars
Another Briar Rose/ Sleeping Beauty re-tale...
Another good story, that I think would have benefited immensely if it had been longer.
It's another sad story (Yes, all of them are...but some I just couldn't care less!) about failure, doing the right thing...and of ghosts!
Words Like Pale Stones by Nancy Kress 2 stars
A little too much of a mess. I just couldn't connect with the story or characters.
The pale fire moved up from the ground and onto my fingers, charring them to stumps. A vision burned in my head. I screamed, but only from pain: Dirk was saved, and I didn’t care that I would never spin again, nor that every gold thread in the kingdom had suddenly become stone, pale, and smooth and ordinary as a true word.
Every Word I Speak by Cindy Lynn Speer 3.5 Stars
Okayyyyy..so when I first read this, I honestly didn't like it all that much, but now after having re-read it in another anthology, I found myself liking it!
So...clearly my opinion is really realiable O_O.
It is the story of how a blessing can turn into a curse..
My husband is gone. I can be silent today, tomorrow, and until his return. There’s freedom in that, knowing that I can go and sew by the lake, perhaps, or take meals in my room by myself.
Remains by Siohban Carrol 1 Star
I have no idea what this few pages were for...
...a draft, maybe?
We hear on the radio that a body has been found. Some of the unliving rise, put on thick woolen gloves, get ready for the drive. In other, farther places, we lie hoping for an ending that never comes.
Frayed Tapestry by Imogen Howson 2 Stars
An apparently contemporary setting (you'll understand this if you read it) for a "Persephone and Hades" story....imaginative yes, but...in the end i don't see myself re-reading this. And i can't help wondering what will happen in Winter....or, is Spring going to be eternal?
Bottom line: I like re-tellings, but there are some things that shouldn't be altered...
And Candy??? Really? Wasn't there another name less....sugared and more appropriate?
With every step the earth welcomed her. The grass softened under her feet, grew lush with spring growth. The wind lost its cold bite, threading gentle fingers through her hair. Sweet night-time scents rose around her.
“Candy. . . ”
He was following her. She didn’t look back at him. “That’s not my name.”
She heard him swallow. “Persephone. Please understand. I love you.”
The Cold Blackness Between by Lucy Ann Snyder 0 Stars..
Reading this is like having a: WTH (moment)???
Why, was this included in this anthology?
This is paranormal romance!
Mary trudged up to her bedroom on the third floor to change. She wondered how she was ever going to break the news of her affair to William. He was still more her employer than her husband. She’d started as his personal nurse, but when sex became a part of their relationship, he decided they should be married. She was fond of him. . . but he was not a passionate man and never had been. And he had grown increasingly cold over the past year; he hardly spent time with her anymore.
Solstice Maiden by Anna Kashina 3.5 Stars
The writing is above average, but the characters were just too stereotypical. Or maybe i'm just too jaded...and the insta attraction moment (I know it's a short, but even so!!) didn't convince me.
Even though is worth reading for the quality of the writing alone.
It is a tale, old as time, true as life. Every Solstice, a maiden must die to appease the god of the crops, to keep hunger out of our simple kingdom. And I, the Mistress of the Solstice, must be the one to sacrifice her. On that night, every one of our subjects gathers around a bonfire, consumed by the power of love. Of lust, really, for no love could possibly bloom for one night and fade into nothingness,(..)"
But Can you Let Him go by Cindy Lynn Speer 4.5 Stars (my favourite)
I know I'll probably sound contrary, because in some of the previous tales I've mentioned that their short length ruined the tale for me, but this one, who was longer than the other ones, I reached a point in which:
"Okay, okay, i get it!! It's always the same thing!!"
This is Cinderella and her prince curse, told by Cinderella's Fairy Godmother. And it is pretty good....despite the events repetitions.
"This is me. The caution in your tale, the one with the thousand guises. Right now my disguise is nothingness,(..)"
"As I tell her the tale, I long to I sink myself into that tree, allow myself to move into it, my body becoming wood grain, my blood becoming sap. It is a dangerous tree, because it is so very deep that you could get lost in it. The further you go in, the more isolated from the world you become."
Like i said:
Some interesting tales, but most of them are not that great...
mythicgeek's review
4.0
Like most anthologies, the stories were hit or miss, but overall I really enjoyed the book!
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