affiknittyreads's review against another edition
4.0
Well, this was fun! If you like film noir of the 1940s and 1950s, and Alfred Hitchcock Presents and that sort of thing, READ THIS. You will certainly enjoy it. All of the stories were good, but the ones by Shirley Jackson and Nedra Tyre stood out. I feel like the Vera Caspary one might have been the basis for a film, but I guess they would have mentioned that.
caseykoester39's review against another edition
This extraordinary collection of mystery and suspense tales written by women left me dying for a sequel. Every single story is unexpected and beautifully crafted with real human emotions and reactions. Most were originally published in the Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, which makes me think I should hunt a few down.
5elementknitr's review against another edition
5.0
I am a huge fan of short stories.
Pre-five years old, when we used to go visit our bio-dad, he would often drop us off at his parents' house for the day. His sister still lived with those parents. I would often sneak way in the back of her closet and devour her secret stack of "Tales from the Crypt" comic books. Bio-dad would also let my brother and I stay up late to watch "Twilight Zone" and "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" reruns with him. Those TV shows were often based upon short stories. So began my love of scary things and short-form storytelling.
Years later, my fate was sealed when, one day after 8th grade band class, my best friend handed me a book . It was "Skeleton Crew" by Stephen King. "Here. I just finished it. I think you'd like it." Was she ever right!
The ability to create fully developed characters with backstories and the full range of emotions people experience in just a few short pages is an art.
Not to mention a full story trajectory, beginning, build-up to conflict, climax, and sometimes even a wrap-up at the end.
All the stories in this book range from 10 - 60 pages. It blows me away how good these tiny stories can be. To fit all that in just 10 pages is mind-boggling!
When I read the intro to this anthology, I have to admit my patriarchal brain-washing kicked in. The intro kept mentioning "domestic suspense", and I immediately thought, "Well that sounds boring." I thought this was going to be a bunch of "cozies". (For those that don't know, a cozy is a completely bloodless and primarily violence-free mystery.) I am not a fan of the cozy. They are too... cozy? (This is why I'm not a writer, People. WORDS!) I prefer my suspense to be full of mayhem.
This anthology focuses on female writers writing about female suspense. Except for an early Shirley Jackson and a very early Patricia Highsmith, I hadn't heard of ANY of the authors. All the authors in this book were prolific writers and fairly well known in their day (1920's - 1950's-ish). They were all very influential in the world of suspense novels and some of their novels were even made into noir movies. One of the authors was a huge influence on Raymond Chandler.
And there's the rub, right? Can you name more than one female author from that time period? The only one I can think of at all is Daphne de Maurier, and I only know her through Alfred Hitchcock.
(Ok, now I'm remembering Agatha Christie as well.)
Anyway, I have put this book on my Amazon wishlist because each story begins with a small intro by the editor explaining the writing resume of its author. The editor lists the author's most famous novels (never heard of ANY of them) along with the awards they received in their day. Nearly all the tales in the book were nominated for or won the Edgar Award. I need this book in my personal library, so I can look up and read all these other novels.
And, wow! NONE of these stories are boring. Usually with anthologies, there's at least one that is just very... meh. Not so here, mon frere.
My favorites were the one with the weaving, and the last one.
Come to think of it, there wasn't really any blood in any of these stories, even when it wasn't plausible (sorry, but if you cave someone's head in with a rock... there's gonna be blood.)
There was certainly no shortage of mayhem, murder, and madness in these stories, and I highly recommend this anthology!
Pre-five years old, when we used to go visit our bio-dad, he would often drop us off at his parents' house for the day. His sister still lived with those parents. I would often sneak way in the back of her closet and devour her secret stack of "Tales from the Crypt" comic books. Bio-dad would also let my brother and I stay up late to watch "Twilight Zone" and "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" reruns with him. Those TV shows were often based upon short stories. So began my love of scary things and short-form storytelling.
Years later, my fate was sealed when, one day after 8th grade band class, my best friend handed me a book . It was "Skeleton Crew" by Stephen King. "Here. I just finished it. I think you'd like it." Was she ever right!
The ability to create fully developed characters with backstories and the full range of emotions people experience in just a few short pages is an art.
Not to mention a full story trajectory, beginning, build-up to conflict, climax, and sometimes even a wrap-up at the end.
All the stories in this book range from 10 - 60 pages. It blows me away how good these tiny stories can be. To fit all that in just 10 pages is mind-boggling!
When I read the intro to this anthology, I have to admit my patriarchal brain-washing kicked in. The intro kept mentioning "domestic suspense", and I immediately thought, "Well that sounds boring." I thought this was going to be a bunch of "cozies". (For those that don't know, a cozy is a completely bloodless and primarily violence-free mystery.) I am not a fan of the cozy. They are too... cozy? (This is why I'm not a writer, People. WORDS!) I prefer my suspense to be full of mayhem.
This anthology focuses on female writers writing about female suspense. Except for an early Shirley Jackson and a very early Patricia Highsmith, I hadn't heard of ANY of the authors. All the authors in this book were prolific writers and fairly well known in their day (1920's - 1950's-ish). They were all very influential in the world of suspense novels and some of their novels were even made into noir movies. One of the authors was a huge influence on Raymond Chandler.
And there's the rub, right? Can you name more than one female author from that time period? The only one I can think of at all is Daphne de Maurier, and I only know her through Alfred Hitchcock.
(Ok, now I'm remembering Agatha Christie as well.)
Anyway, I have put this book on my Amazon wishlist because each story begins with a small intro by the editor explaining the writing resume of its author. The editor lists the author's most famous novels (never heard of ANY of them) along with the awards they received in their day. Nearly all the tales in the book were nominated for or won the Edgar Award. I need this book in my personal library, so I can look up and read all these other novels.
And, wow! NONE of these stories are boring. Usually with anthologies, there's at least one that is just very... meh. Not so here, mon frere.
My favorites were the one with the weaving, and the last one.
Come to think of it, there wasn't really any blood in any of these stories, even when it wasn't plausible (sorry, but if you cave someone's head in with a rock... there's gonna be blood.)
There was certainly no shortage of mayhem, murder, and madness in these stories, and I highly recommend this anthology!
jowiththetbrshelves's review against another edition
5.0
One of my favorite reads in ages! I am new to the idea of domestic suspense and this anthology is structured in a unique and compelling way that encourages further delving into the genre. I really liked that each story featured mini biographies and notes on the author.
I was on the edge of my seat or unnerved by many of the stories, and they were each satisfying in their own way. I am inspired to read more of the women featured in this collection!
I was on the edge of my seat or unnerved by many of the stories, and they were each satisfying in their own way. I am inspired to read more of the women featured in this collection!
sscs's review against another edition
4.0
A delightful collection of old school mystery short stories, the kind I write sometimes but as far as I can tell there's no market for anymore. But I love them and Weinman's dutiful bio of each author gives insight into what you're reading. Shirley Jackson's "Louisa, Please Come Home" and Vera Casparay's "Sugar and Spice" were particular standouts.
The "domestic suspense" theme is uneven and I wouldn't apply it to some of the stories in this collection, but it's a good collection just the same. Worth a read.
The "domestic suspense" theme is uneven and I wouldn't apply it to some of the stories in this collection, but it's a good collection just the same. Worth a read.
ncrabb's review against another edition
2.0
If, like me, you read “Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine” as a teenager in the ‘70s, many of the names you remember fondly will appear in this book. Joyce Herrington is here as is Celia Fremlin. That’s just a couple of examples of names that will almost surely bring back memories when EQMM was brilliantly narrated. I’ve stopped reading the NLS edition these days because the narrations are marginal at best too much of the time. But many of the women whose stories appear in this anthology will be familiar to you.
Patricia Highsmith’s “The Heroin” is a creepy piece about a woman hired to be a nanny who wants to be oh so much more, and sex has nothing to do with it.
In “A Nice Place to stay,” a woman mourns the fact that she is freed from a women’s prison, since all she really ever wanted in life was a nice place to stay.
I normally dislike short-story collections immensely, and this one doesn’t go down as a life changer. It’s pretty uneven in spots and mostly forgettable.
Patricia Highsmith’s “The Heroin” is a creepy piece about a woman hired to be a nanny who wants to be oh so much more, and sex has nothing to do with it.
In “A Nice Place to stay,” a woman mourns the fact that she is freed from a women’s prison, since all she really ever wanted in life was a nice place to stay.
I normally dislike short-story collections immensely, and this one doesn’t go down as a life changer. It’s pretty uneven in spots and mostly forgettable.
davidwright's review against another edition
5.0
4 stars for the stories and 5 for pulling them together in this great collection. (I'm pleased to note that almost all of these writers have been featured in Thrilling Tales, my story time for grown ups at Seattle Public Library - and just as pleased to see most of these hard-to-find stories are new to me ; I'll definitely be sharing some of them in the future). If you like this, be sure to check out another great anthology of women crime writers: A Moment on the Edge, edited by Elizabeth George.
suvata's review
4.0
There are 14 short stories in this book. All of them are great. None of them are about "happy families" as the title implies. I've heard of several of these offers before but haven't read a lot of work so this short story collection treat for me. I love "dark" tails and these definitely were that. Mystery at its best.